And then immediately the brethren sent away Paul to go as to the sea; but Silas and Timotheus abode there.
Persecution from Thessalonica followed Paul fifty miles to Berea, and the believers there rushed him out of the city. Why did Paul run, what does the phrase about the sea mean, and why were Silas and Timothy left behind?
One writer sees Paul's flight as obedience to an instruction given long before:
Long before, the Lord had also laid down a general principle: "When they persecute you in one town, flee to the next" (Matt. 10:23). Paul and his companions plainly carried out this principle later, even to shaking the dust off their feet (Acts 14:6, Acts 17:10-14).
The same wisdom shaped his route out of Berea and his choice of companions:
Again wisdom says Paul should leave Berea. He went toward the sea with others who seem to have known the area, but left Silas and Timothy behind.
Some texts read "as if to the sea," which hints at a trick to send the pursuers down the wrong road. Commentators differ here. One argues from the oldest manuscripts that no trick is in the text at all:
"As far as to the sea" they went. That is how the oldest manuscripts read. They do not say "as if to the sea." Some could take that other reading as a decoy to throw pursuers off the scent. At what point they embarked for Athens is not stated.
Another writer keeps the idea of a trick, and sees the hostility aimed at Paul in particular:
The Thessalonian Jews hated the Word of God so much that they chased Paul all the way to Berea. Faced with more trouble, Paul slipped away to Athens and outwitted his pursuers with a simple trick. Silas and Timothy stayed at Berea, since the hostility now fell on Paul in particular.
Escorting Paul cost the Bereans more than a walk to the city gate:
The believers in Berea, new converts as they all were, cared for Paul and sent him away as far as the sea. Some even went with him to Athens... We can pause to admire the devotion of those brothers who escorted Paul. They did not leave him until he reached Athens. The sea voyage to Athens would take a little time, say from three to six days... So the journey from Berea to Athens and back would have kept these brothers away from home for two to three weeks. But we are sure they grudged none of it — not the time, not the cost, not the weariness. They cared for this man, cheered him, and helped him on his way. He had brought such blessing to their souls, and his weak eyesight may also have made him more dependent on others. Brotherly love was active in them.
Their later movements show how Paul kept using them for churches he could not reach himself:
Paul had been driven by persecution from Thessalonica, then from Berea to Athens. Alone at Athens for a time (Acts 17), he sent word for Silas and Timothy to come to him with all speed (17:15). Evidently Timothy at least had done so. As to Silas, it does not seem clear. But Paul then sent Timothy from Athens to Thessalonica. He could not go himself, and no doubt he hated losing Timothy's help. Later both Silas and Timothy rejoined Paul at Corinth (Acts 18:5). As for where Silas was in the meantime, Scripture seems to give no hint.
The work at Berea was cut short. One writer reads that interruption the other way round:
To human eyes, the enemies of the gospel seemed to have stopped the work by cutting Paul's labours short. But once again they only helped spread the good news into other regions. Happy is the servant who has no will of his own. He sees the Lord's hand in all his changing circumstances. He can discern His mind in everything that comes up in his path.
Another writer states it briefly:
But with all this, the enemy does nothing but order the path of the gospel, according to the will of God.
- Hostility starts the path. Jews from Thessalonica came to Berea to stir up the crowds, and their hostility fell on Paul in particular.
- Wisdom chooses the path. Leaving obeyed the Lord's own instruction to flee to the next town.
- Love escorts along the path. New believers in Berea gave two to three weeks, their money and their strength to bring Paul to Athens.
- Co-workers hold the ground behind. Silas and Timothy stayed at Berea and rejoined Paul later. Paul then sent Timothy back to Thessalonica and stood alone.
- God ordered the path all along. The enemy seemed to stop the work. In fact he drove the gospel where God wanted it next.
But they that conducted Paul brought him as far as Athens; and, having received a commandment to Silas and Timotheus, that they should come to him as quickly as possible, they departed.
This verse reads like a travel note. Behind it lie a violent expulsion from Berea, a servant left waiting alone in a strange city, and the moves that led to Paul's letters to Thessalonica.
Paul is in Athens because his enemies drove him out of Berea. One writer sees those enemies serving God's plan without meaning to.
A few brothers conduct Paul to Athens, and he sends an order to Silas and Timothy to join him there at once. But with all this, the enemy does nothing but arrange the path of the gospel, according to the will of God.
Another writer draws out how a servant should read such setbacks:
To human eyes, it might seem that the enemies of the gospel had stopped Paul's labours and so hindered the work. But once again they only helped to spread the good news in other regions. Happy is the servant who has no will of his own! He sees the Lord's hand in all his changing circumstances, and he can discern His mind in everything that comes up in his path.
The verse does not say how many men went with Paul, or how far they walked. One writer supplies both.
More than one person went with Paul to Athens, over 200 miles away. On their return they brought an order for Silas and Timothy to join him with all speed.
Athens was where Paul was heading, and where he called his companions to meet him. One writer looks ahead to what the visit produced:
Athens, as we shall see, was not destined to be a fruitful field for the incorruptible seed, the living and abiding word of God.
Paul told his companions to come fast. Then he waited in Athens instead of preaching. One writer treats that pause as a real question about the servant's motives.
It is a remarkable thing that the apostle's mind does not seem to have been set on service in Athens. Even in his coming to the place, those who accompanied him seem to have decided where he went. And now that he has arrived, he did not begin preaching at once, as at Thessalonica and Berea. He waited for Silas and Timothy. Had he left Berea unwillingly? We cannot tell; but one thing is certain: the servant is often in danger of being governed by his affections rather than by the Lord's will.
The same writer does not leave it as a criticism. Whatever Paul felt, he adds, the Lord was controlling His devoted servant and preparing him for new work in His own way.
Why did Paul have to send for Silas and Timothy at all? One writer explains why they had stayed behind.
Silas and Timothy remained at Berea, because clearly the hostility was now aimed especially at Paul. So on his visit to Athens, Paul was solitary and alone as far as his service went. Athens was the great centre of Greek culture and wisdom.
The order in this verse starts a chain of travels. Scripture traces only part of it.
Alone at Athens for a time (Acts 17), he sent word for Silas and Timothy to come to him with all speed (17:15). Evidently Timothy at least had done so. As to Silas, it does not seem clear. But Paul then sent Timothy from Athens to Thessalonica. He could not go himself, and he was no doubt reluctant to be without Timothy's help. Later both Silas and Timothy rejoined Paul at Corinth (Acts 18:5). As for Silas's movements in the meantime, Scripture seems to give no indication.
Out of these travels came Paul's first letter to Thessalonica. Where did he write it? One writer weighs the old claim that it came from Athens:
The Authorized Version has a postscript, "written from Athens." … Paul wrote the Epistle after Timothy had returned from his visit to Thessalonica. … Timothy came from Thessalonica with the good news of the happy state of the Thessalonian church and joined the apostle in Corinth (Acts 18:5). From Corinth Paul wrote this first Epistle.
- Driven. Opponents forced Paul out of Berea. The enemy only arranged the gospel's route, according to the will of God.
- Escorted. Believers travelled more than 200 miles with him, then carried his order back to Berea.
- Charged. Paul sent for his fellow workers at speed, then waited instead of preaching. One writer warns that a servant can be governed by his affections rather than by the Lord's will.
- Alone. The hostility now targeted Paul, so he faced the great centre of Greek culture on his own.
- Fruitful anyway. The summons set off Timothy's travels, and out of them came Paul's first letter to Thessalonica — written, one writer argues, from Corinth.