(15) We sailed thence . . .--After the usual manner of the Mediterranean navigation of the time, the ship put into harbour, where it was possible, every evening. Each of the stations named--Lesbos, Chios, Samos--has legendary and historical associations of its own, full of interest for the classical student; but these, we may well believe--the revolt of Mitylene in the Peloponnesian War (Thuc. Book iii.), the brilliant tyranny of Polycrates at Samos (Herod. iii. 39-56), even "the blind old man of Scio's rocky isle"--were nothing to the Apostle and his companions. Trogyllium, the last station named before Miletus, was a promontory on the mainland, forming the extremity of the ridge of Mycale, and separated from Samos by a narrow channel of about a mile in width. Miletus, famous for its dyes and woollen manufactures, memorable in its earlier history for the disastrous issue of its revolt against Persia (Herod. v. 28-36), was practically the port of Ephesus, the harbour of which had been gradually choked by the accumulation of silted-up sand.

Verse 15. - Sailing from for we sailed, A.V.; we came for and came, A.V.; following for next, A.V.; touched for arrived, A.V.; and the day after for and tarried at Trogyllium; and the next day, A.V. and T.R. Over against Chios. Their course would lie through the narrow strait between Chios on the west and the mainland on the east. Samos. The large island opposite Ephesus. There they touched, or put in (παρεβάλομεν). If the clause in the T.R. is genuine, they did not pass the night at Samos, but "made a short run from thence in the evening to Trogyllium (Alford), "the rocky extremity of the ridge of Mycale, on the Ionian coast, between which and the southern extremity of Samos the channel is barely a mile wide" ('Speaker's Commentary'). We came to Miletus. Anciently the chief city of Ionia, and a most powerful maritime and commercial place, about twenty-eight miles south of Ephesus; though in the time of Homer it was a Carian city. In St. Paul's time it was situated on the south-west coast of the Latmian gulf, just opposite the mouth of the Meander on the east. But since his time the whole gulf of Latmos has been filled up with soil brought down by the river, so that Miletus is no longer on the seacoast, and the new mouth of the Meander is to the west instead of to the east of Miletus, which lies about eight miles inland (Lewin, vol. it. p. 90; Smith's 'Dict. of Geog.'). Miletus was the scat of a bishopric in after times. As regards this visit to Miletus, some identify it with that mentioned in 2 Timothy 4:20. And it is certainly remarkable that so many of the same persons in connection with the same places are mentioned in both passages and in the pastoral Epistles generally. The identical persons are Paul, Timothy, Luke, Trophimus, Tychicus, and Apollos (Acts 20:4, 5, compared with 2 Timothy 4:11, 12, 20); and the identical places are Corinth, Thessalonica, Troas, Ephesus, Miletus, and Crete. But the other circumstances do not agree well with the events of this journey, but seem to belong to a later period of St. Paul's life (see below, ver. 25, note).

20:13-16 Paul hastened to Jerusalem, but tried to do good by the way, when going from place to place, as every good man should do. In doing God's work, our own wills and those of our friends must often be crossed; we must not spend time with them when duty calls us another way.And we sailed thence,.... From Mitylene:

and came the next day over against Chios; which, according to R. Benjamin Tudelensis (b), was three days' sail from Mitylene; according to Pliny (c) it was sixty five miles from it, and is an island in the Icarian or Aegean sea, and lies between Lesbos and Samos, next mentioned; and has its name from the nymph Chione, so called from the exceeding whiteness of her skin, as snow: it was famous for marble; from hence came the best mastic, and good figs, and the wine called malmsey wine (d). And of this place Jerom says (e), Chios, an island before Bithynia, whose name in the Syriac language signifies "mastic", because that mastic grows there; some add, he called it "Chia" from Chione the nymph: the reason of its name, as Pausanias (f) relates, was this; Neptune coming into a desert island, had carnal knowledge of a nymph, and in the time of her travail, a snow fell from heaven on the ground; and from this Neptune called his son Chius, from whom the island has its name. Others (g) conjecture, that it was called from "Chivja", which signifies a serpent; this island having been very much terrified, as Aelianus (h) says, by the hisses of a serpent of a monstrous size, until it was consumed by fire. It was common to sail from Mitylene hither, and "vice versa": so we read (i) of Herod seeking Agrippa, he came to Chios, and from thence to Mitylene. We read nothing of the apostle's stay and preaching here, nor of any Gospel church here, till ages after: in the "fourth" century, Heathenism prevailed to such a degree in it, that Dionysius Omadius was worshipped here with human sacrifice; and yet, in the fifth century, a bishop of Chios was present in the council of Chalcedon; and in the "sixth" century another assisted in the fifth Roman synod; and in the "seventh" century there was a bishop of this place at the sixth synod at Constantinople; and in the "eighth" century, Leon, bishop of Chios, was in the Nicene (k) synod. It is now called Chio or Scio, by the Turks Saches, and is inhabited by Italian Genoese.

And the next day we arrived at Samos; another island in the Icarian sea, not a very fruitful one, unless for olives (l); and for nothing more famous than for being the birth place of Pythagoras (m), hence called the Samian, and of Melissus. It was ninety three miles distant from Chios (n); and, according to R. Benjamin, two days sail from it (o); but Paul sailed hither in a day. Of this place Jerom (p) thus writes; Samos, an island in the Aegean sea, in which, it is reported, earthen vessels were first made. Herodotus (q) speaks of three things for which it was famous, a very high mountain in it, a bulwark about the haven in the sea, and a temple the largest of all he ever saw. Some say it has its name from the height of it, Samos signifying an high place. Pausanias (r), from Asius, a Samian, suggests, that it was so called from Samus, the son of Ancaeus and Samia; and observes, that the inhabitants of it affirm, that Juno was born here; and here was a famous temple, said to be dedicated to her by the Argonautes. One of the Sybils dwelt here, called from hence Samia, and Polycrates, a noted tyrant. Lycurgus, the famous lawgiver, died in this place, as did also Pherecydes, the Syrian (s). It is now called Samo. The apostle stayed not here to preach the Gospel; nor do we read of its being preached here by any: idolatry greatly prevailed in this place in the "second" century; and so it did in the "fourth": though in the same we also read of some Christians here that suffered persecution; and so low as the "eighth" century, Heraclius, bishop of this place, was in the Nicene synod (t).

And tarried at Trogyllium; which, according to Ptolomy (u), was a promontory in the Icarian sea: it was about forty furlongs distant from Samos, according to Strabo (w). It was a promontory of Mycale; and Trogilias, called also Trogilia, is mentioned with Mycale and Samos by Pliny (x), as near to Miletus. It follows here, and the next day we came to Miletus; which was once the chief city of Ionia: it was famous for being the birth place of Thales, one of the seven wise men of Greece, and of Timotheus the musician, and of Anaximander, and Anaximenes, and the famous Democritus, philosophers (y), and of Cadmus, the first inventor of prose (z). Pliny says (a), it was formerly called Lelegeis, Pityusa, and Anactoria; and it seems it had its name Miletus from Miletus, the son of Apollo, who is said to build it (b); and Apollo himself is sometimes called Apollo Milesius, and who had a famous temple in this place (c). Though rather it was so called from "Milata", or "Melote", which signifies pure, white, fine, soft wool, for which this place was famous; which was used for carpets, but chiefly for cloth, which being dyed purple, was sent into divers parts: "Melote" in Greek signifies the same; it is used in Hebrews 11:37 and translated "sheepskin". Ptolomy (d) places this city in Caria, by the sea; and certain it is from this account, that it was a sea port: it is said to have four ports or havens, one of which would hold a fleet. Of it Jerom (e) says; Miletus, a maritime city in Asia, distant ten furlongs from the mouth of the river Maeander: by the apostle's sending from hence to Ephesus, for the elders of the church there to meet him at this place, as is afterwards related, and taking no notice of any brethren, elders, or church here, it looks as if there were none at this time: and in the "second" century, Gentilism was embraced at Miletus; and in the "fourth" century Licinius consulted the oracle of Apollo Didymaeus in this place, concerning the event of the war against Constantine; but in the "fifth" century we read of a church here, a bishop of this place being in the Chalcedon council; in the "seventh" century a bishop of this church assisted at the sixth council at Constantinople, whose name is said to be George; and in the "eighth" century Epiphanius, bishop of Miletus, was present in the Nicene council (f).

(b) Itinerar. p. 29. (c) Plin. l. 5. c. 31. (d) Ib. l. 14. c. 7. (e) De locis Hebraicis, fol. 96. A. (f) Achaica, sive 1. 7. p. 404. (g) Hiller. Onomasticum Sacrum, p. 787. (h) De Animal. l. 16. c. 39. (i) Joseph. Antiqu. l. 16. c. 2. sect. 2.((k) Magdeburg. Hist. Eccles. cent. 4. c. 15. p. 865. cent. 5. c. 2. p. 6. cent. 6. c. 2. p. 6. cent. 7. c. 2. p. 4. cent. 8. c. 2. p. 6. (l) Apulei Florida, sect. 15. (m) Solin. c. 21. Laert. Vit. Philosoph. l. 8. p. 568. l. 9. p. 643. (n) Plin. l. 5. c. 31. (o) Itinerar. p. 30. (p) De locis Hebraicis, fol. 96. I.((q) Thalia, l. 3. c. 60. (r) Achaica, sive 1. 7. p. 402, 403. (s) Heraclides de Politiis, p. 432, 444. (t) Magdeburg. Hist. Eccl. cent. 2. c. 15. p. 193. cent. 4. c. 3. p. 19. c. 15. p. 865, 884. cent. 8. c. 2. p. 6. (u) Geograph. l. 5. c. 2.((w) Ib. l. 14. (x) Nat. Hist. l. 5. c. 29, 31. (y) Mela, l. 1. c. 17. Laert. Vit. Philosoph. l. 1. p. 15. l. 2. p. 88, 89. l. 9. p. 650. (z) Plin. l. 5. c. 29. Solin. c. 53. (a) Ib. (b) Apollodorus de Orig. Deor. l. 3. p. 130. (c) Alex. ab Alex. l. 6. c. 2.((d) Geograph. l. 5. c. 2.((e) De locis Hebraicis, fol. 96. F. (f) Magdeburg. Hist. Eccles. cent. 2. c. 15. p. 192. cent. 4. c. 15. p. 863. cent. 5. c. 2. p. 3. cent. 7. c. 2. p. 3. c. 10. p. 254. cent. 8. c. 2. p. 4.