What spiritual contribution are you making to the lives of others? He expelled the Jews. Third, they worked together. A lthough Priscilla had a household to manage, she still found time to be a thorough student of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. They remained in Ephesus to help Paul when he returned to the city for a three-year stay ( Acts 19:1; cf. Their house had an open door. They probably had a booming tent making business in Rome but when they were chased out, God made it work for their good. Most references to husbands and wives in the Bible place the man first. For husbands: Does it bother you when your wife outshines you? And although they worked long and hard running their shop, making and repairing tents, maintaining a home and caring for their distinguished guest, they always found time for serious Bible study. Either way, life was sometimes hard for this couple. In stark contrast, Priscilla and Aquila are a husband and wife ministry team. Most Bible readers assume that Apollos was re-baptized as a part of being taught the way of God more adequately by Priscilla and Aquila. Reading and discussing a Bible-centered devotional guide would be profitable. Acts 18-27 New Living Translation Paul Meets Priscilla and Aquila in Corinth 18 Then Paul left Athens and went to Corinth. Aquila and Priscilla salute you much in the Lord, with the church that is in their house. One correction should be made of Groothuis' facts: Priscilla/Prisca and Aquila are mentioned only six times in the Greek text (Acts 18:19 simply has ).. 3 Too much could be made of this point however, for only . He was an eloquent speaker and had a good knowledge of the Old Testament. Priscilla and Aquila: Tentmaking Ministers. In 1 Corinthians 16:19, Paul passes on the greetings of Priscilla and Aquila to their friends in Corinth, indicating that the couple were in his company. So when they arrived in Corinth, they scoured the marketplace together for a small open-air shop to rent, and proceeded to set up their tent-making business. This is one of the best ways to be on one accord with each. Aquila had acquired that skill and later taught it to his wife, and she happily assisted him in his business. We have already seen, in our notice of Lydia, how large a part women sometimes had in the origin of Churches formed by the Apostle Paul. If you and your mate were considering working together in a business, what problems would you foresee arising? How did Aquila and Priscilla die? See how youre doing with each of them. So Priscilla and Aquila decided to fix it. Priscilla was what some would consider a laywoman today. In the Catholic Church, the Roman Martyrology lists their feast as July 8. The fact that she is always mentioned with her husband, Aquila, disambiguates her from different women revered as saints in Catholicism, Orthodoxy and Lutheranism, such as (1)Priscilla of the Roman Glabrio family, the wife of Quintus Cornelius Pudens, who according to some traditions hosted St. Peter circa AD 42, and (2)a third-century virgin martyr named Priscilla and also called Prisca. That is not always easy for an extremely talented woman to do, but Priscilla did it. Acts 18:24-26. Together, they are credited with instructing Apollos, a major evangelist of the first century, and "[explaining] to him the way of God more accurately" (Acts 18:26). And she used her gift of friendship to encourage the greatest evangelist who ever lived. Priscilla and Aquila were a first century Christian missionary couple described in the New Testament. Priscilla and her husband Aquila were Jews who had been living in Rome. Learn how your comment data is processed. And what they were able to accomplish as a unit was magnificent. Why? Many years later Aquila and Priscilla were living back in Ephesus, no doubt helping Timothy in the difficult work Paul had given him to do there. Priscilla and Aquila took him aside in a private setting and shared vital insights. Apollos was already energetic and passionate. Key Scriptures: Acts 18-19; Romans 16:3-4; 1 Corinthians 16:19; 2 Timothy 4:19 Her Story Here are the Bible passages that talk about Priscilla. I hear that! I know you could think of a couple who cannot stand to be around each other. He had been "instructed in the way of the Lord" which he taught with great "enthusiasm". Six times. When Priscilla and Aquila met Paul in Corinth, they spent 18 months together. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. She is continually paired with her husband, Aquila. She is the only Priscilla named in the New Testament. By hanging out with Paul and being friends with him, they were exposing themselves. Paul lived and worked with them while founding the Corinthian church. When Saint Paul the Apostle visited Corinth to preach the Holy Gospel, Saints Aquila and Priscilla offered him a place to stay as they were impressed with his preaching. And that would not be the last time their home served that purpose. They were tentmakers by trade (18:3). When Paul left Antioch on his third missionary journey, he traveled through Asia Minor by land and returned to Ephesus, where he remained teaching the Word of God for approximately three years (cf. They seem to have something to prove, competing with their husbands for the spotlight, grasping after authority and preeminence. I love this Steve Green song about leaving a legacy of faith. What are you taking from Priscilla for your own life? If either one of you has never placed your faith in the sacrifice which Christ made for your sins, your marriage cannot be complete. Its impossible to know if they were already believers when they were forced out of Rome, of if they became Christians through their relationship with Paul. and McMaster Divinity College (MDiv). In particular they helped Apollos, a newly converted Jewish teacher who had come to Ephesus from Egypt ( Acts 18:24-26). Her joy: To spread the gospel and nurture the church. Terms of Use: The contents of this blog post are restricted to your personal use only. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. 2023 ChurchLeaders.com, All rights reserved. They chose a wise mentoring approach with Apollos. Not everyone received his testimony. When Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him aside and explained the Way of God to him "more accurately".[v.26]. They cite 1 Corinthians 11:1112, where Paul writes "Nevertheless, in the Lord woman is not independent of man nor man of woman; for as woman was made from man, so man is now born of woman. Lewis and Clark. Apollos learned that the Old Testament prophecies about Jesus had already been fulfilled and that now we have salvation full and free in Jesus. Many dedicated women use coffee cup evangelism, establishing close friendships with their neighbors and sharing Christ with them over the kitchen table. 5. Priscilla and Aquila flesh this idea out and call us to similar discipleship. Priscillas name appears before Aquilas. We hear Luke and Paul tell of a woman who had rich influence on the nurturance and growth of churches in Corinth, Ephesus and their home-city of Rome. Who were Priscilla and Aquila in the Bible? Around the year A.D. 49, the Emperor Claudius issued an edict exiling all the Jewish people from Rome, the seat of the Roman Empire. Apollos wasnt wrong. being willing to die for fellow believers. But one thing we do knowthey were together. Tenth, they may have had children. By his side was his faithful wife, Priscilla. In the town of Corinth there lived a husband and wife named Aquila and Priscilla. [11] The Greek Orthodox Church and the Antiochian Orthodox Church commemorate them together on February 13. She is mentioned in multiple places. Acts16v31. While we have church buildings, there is no substitute for the home as a center for evangelism and spiritual nurture in the community. Theresa Doyle-Nelson Blogs July 8, 2017. Today we can read, dissect and examine what we know of their story and mine lessons we can use to guide our own Christian experiences in practical ways. 7. These two who lived together, worked together, and suffered exile together, came to know and love Jesus Christ together, and it made their marriage complete. You know what you are really looking for. For by trade they were tent-makers (Acts 18:3). Appolonius (Apollos), an Alexandrian Jew, preached in Epheseus. Aquila, a Jewish Christian, and his wife, Priscilla, first met Paul in Corinth, became good friends of his, and shared in his work. Priscilla and Aquila didnt just love each other. They knew this because in his sermon Apollos talked about the coming Messiah that the Old Testament prophecies talked about. And he settled there a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them (Acts 18:11). In every place where the Bible refers to Aquila or Priscilla, it speaks of them together, suggesting that they formed a useful and well respected partnership. At the mouth of the valley of the shadow of death he remembered the old days in Corinth, and the, to us, unknown instance of devotion which these two had shown, when, for his life, they laid down their own necks. Aquila and Priscilla were martyred with other Christians. Paul went to see them, and because he was a tentmaker as they were, he stayed and worked with them. Priscilla and Aquila were tentmakers as was Paul. This was the epitome of courageous faith. 24 Meanwhile a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus. The three of them became instant friends. I love this story because there are so many similarities and parallels with my life with my wife, Marlene. In ancient mediterranean culture, women were viewed as property of their husbands, of lesser status, needing to live under the protection of their fathers or husbands for their survival and well-being. When Paul, a tentmaker himself, came to Corinth, he went to see them, no doubt having heard of their faith in Christ. She was one of the most prolific female missionaries of the Scriptures. The journey to the city, with friends Priscilla and Aquila, is considered part of what is called Paul's second evangelistic or missionary journey. When you host worship and praise in your home, the devil will not be able to set up strongholds in your their. She was not competing with Aquila. Acts. Because they all work in the same trade, Paul lived and worked with Aquila and Priscilla as tent-makers. They risked their lives for me. The move was providential, for while Paul was gone a certain Jew named Apollos, an Alexandrian by birth, an eloquent man, came to Ephesus; and he was mighty in the Scriptures. It really isnt easy to wear those shoes indeed. So she is named first because of her rank. 9. The Jews hated Christians and the Romans killed them for sport. Aquila and Prisca greet you heartily in the Lord, with the church that is in their house (1 Cor. Priscilla, Aquila, and Timothy ministered together with Paul in Corinth, and Priscilla and Aquila worked alongside Timothy in Ephesus. So Priscilla and Aquila made their home available for church services. The Great Fire on July 19 AD, which destroyed 10 of the 14 districts in Rome, was blamed on Christians. The mention of her name before the name of her husband (also in Acts 18:18; Romans 16:3; 2 Timothy 4:19) is a way of honoring her. This Jewish couple was saved under the Apostle Paul's ministry and served as his spiritual coworkers. Advocates of female pastorship perceive this as an imperative that was a reflection of cultural and legal restrictions of the day. Aquila and Priscilla may not have been accomplished public speakers, but they were diligent students of the Word, and they loved to share it with others. Aquila, also called Akilas, (flourished 2nd century ad), scholar who in about ad 140 completed a literal translation into Greek of the Old Testament; it replaced the Septuagint (q.v.) Children are not mentioned, so why even mention this? He just needed some more information and a slightly different direction. Yes, you can be married to someone you dont actually like. If they didnt believe before, they would certainly have received teachings from Paul. He is thinking of his dear friends who were then back in Ephesus where Timothy was ministering, possibly having left Rome to escape Neros latest outburst of persecution against Christians.