Apollos

In my reading of the books of the New Testament in the order they were written, I am on First Corinthians. Chapter 3 mentions Apollos. He is coupled with Paul himself and Peter (Cephas), as being influential in the teaching of Christian concepts at Corinth. (“I have planted, Apollos watered; but God gave the increase" – verse 6.) I found I knew nothing about Apollos so I looked him up in my Bible Dictionary. We find his history in Acts 18, beginning at verse 24. It seem that, to me, his story is familiar, but his name has never stood out as a real person, so to speak.

This is so interesting to me. I have quoted those verses previously in this blog, but the name Apollos hadn't gained my attention then. I see now that he was an important personage on those early days of Christianity. As far as I am concerned he hasn't had a good press all these years!

And he has a connection with Ephesus.

The Bible Dictionary (HarperCollins) says of Apollos: "He possessed great skills in Greek rhetoric and had already learned much about Jesus when he arrived in Ephesus and began speaking in the synagogue.” Priscilla and Aquila were active in Ephesus and they gave him further instruction in the Christian faith, for he knew "only the baptism of John” (Acts 18: 25). But, for all that, he was said by the writer of Acts to be "an eloquent man, and mighty in the scriptures" (Acts 18: 24) when he came to Ephesus. In Achaia, “he mightly convinced the Jews, and that publicly, shewing by the scriptures that Jesus was Christ” (Acts 18: 28).

Joyce Voysey