People in Paul's Life
10 - Aquila and Priscilla
Today we are going to look at a married couple. When Paul visited Corinth on his second missionary journey, which is recorded in Acts chapter 18, he met Aquila and his wife, Priscilla. Aquila was a Jew, but had lived in Italy for some time before moving to Corinth. He was born in Pontus which was a province situated on the southern coast of the Black Sea in the north of Asia Minor (modern day Turkey). On the Day of Pentecost that we have recorded in Acts chapter 2, we read “Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven.” Among the people listed there were people from Pontus.
They moved to Corinth because they had been deported by the Emperor, Claudius who had decreed that all Jews had to leave the city. They were believers, although we are not told when or how they were converted. We are also told that they earned their living by making tents and working with leather. In those days all young men who studied under the rabbis had to learn a trade.
Aquila and Priscilla are mentioned several times in the New Testament, but never separately. From this you can see that Priscilla played an important part in their service for the Lord. They worked as a couple both in their service for the Lord and in their day to day employment. Today, the term ‘tentmaker’ is used for people engaged in the Lord’s service, but support themselves financially by doing secular work.
Paul came to meet them because when Paul visited a city, it was his custom to visit the synagogue first in order to speak to the Jews living there. As Aquila was a Jew, he would be worshipping there on the Sabbath.
We read that Aquila and Priscilla willingly opened their home to Paul. Although they had probably never met him before, they would have heard of him by reputation. Although Paul was in Corinth for eighteen months, he only stayed part of that time with them. When Paul encountered opposition which could have endangered their lives, he moved to the home of Justice. They did, however give him work so that he could support himself financially. This brings out the practical side of their Christian service. Even today, many people in the Lord’s service are grateful to those who offer hospitality when they are away from home.
A good example of hospitality of this kind can be found in the second book of Kings and chapter 4 where we read of the Shunammite woman and her husband feeding Elisha and making a special room for Elisha to stay in whenever he visited the region.
When Paul left Corinth after remaining there a good while, Aquila and Priscilla went with him as they obviously wanted to continue serving the Lord. They were prepared to give up their work as tentmakers in Corinth and go wherever the Lord called them. Paul was returning to Antioch in Syria, and after a brief stay in Ephesus, he continued on his journey, leaving Aquila and Priscilla there.
They knew the scriptures, like most Jews, but their knowledge of them would have increased through Paul’s teaching. They had also come to know that Jesus was the promised Messiah and had come to know Him as their Lord and Saviour. This means they were prepared for what would lie ahead.
While they were at Ephesus, we read of the arrival of a preacher named Apollos. We are told that Apollos was an eloquent man who had a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures. He also knew who Jesus was and what He had done, but unlike Aquila and Priscilla, he didn’t have the same personal relationship with the Lord. When he preached there was something missing.
Aquila and Priscilla had a good knowledge of the Scriptures and a strong personal relationship with the Lord. Paul was very keen that believers should have a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures coupled with the gift of discerning between truth and error. When writing to the church at Philippi, in chapter 1 and verse 9, said, “And this is my prayer: that your love may abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight.” Because they had this knowledge and discernment, they soon identified what was missing in Apollo’s teaching and spoke to him about it.
They explained to him the full reason for Christ coming to earth and how he could have the same relationship with Him that they had. How did they do this? Probably by relating their own personal experiences with what the Old Testament preached concerning the coming of the Messiah, and what they had been taught, resulting in them repenting fully of their sins and how they had come to love the Lord.
They were not learned theologians like Apollos, but knew the truth of the gospel.
Their preaching obviously had an effect on Apollo, because he went on to preach Christ in Achaia, which was a province in southern Greece, of which Corinth was the capital. He encouraged and helped the believers there.
When Paul wrote to the believers in Rome he says that Priscilla and Aquila risked their lives for Paul. We are not told when or where this happened, but Paul was grateful enough to mention it in his letter. He also speaks of other churches in the Gentile regions being thankful for this. There are believers today who are prepared to put their lives in danger for the furtherance of the gospel. Over the years many people have been imprisoned because of their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Many of them could have had their freedom if they had been prepared to renounce their faith. There may have been some that did, but those who didn’t found their faith increased and as a result were an influence to many people.
While they were at Ephesus, they also opened up their home for the church to meet. You read of them doing this in Romans chapter 16, verses 3 to 5 and 1 Corinthians chapter 16 and verse 19. It is thought that Paul wrote his letter to Corinth while he was at Ephesus, and he mentions Aquila and Priscilla because, having lived in Corinth, they would be known to the believers there.
Hospitality is something Peter teaches in his first letter, chapter 4 and verses 9 and 10, where he writes: “Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others faithfully administering God’s grace in its various forms.”
In the case of Aquila and Priscilla, they had been given the gift of a home, a trade and the gift of being able to communicate with others in order to spread the gospel. And they had been given these gifts for God’s glory. Paul told the church at Corinth that there are different kinds of spiritual gifts which can be used in different ways for serving the Lord. There are also many practical gifts that can also be used. He gives people the ability to serve Him in the specific way He has called them to serve Him. You can read this in 1 Corinthians chapter 12 and verses 4 to 6. Paul told the believers in Rome that if they are given gifts, then they should use them. This can be found in Romans chapter 12 and verse 6.
Paul and many others would have had good reason to thank Aquila and Priscilla for their support and encouragement. Many would be able to thank them for leading them into their knowledge of the Lord. Married couples like this are an asset to any fellowship. They come over as a couple who pray together and spend time as a couple reading and discussing God’s Word.
There is an old hymn which says: “There’s a work for Jesus only you can do.” It may be preaching or offering hospitality. Both tasks are equally important by complementing each other for the furtherance of the gospel. There are many other ways in which a believer can be used in the service of the Lord, so why not ask the Lord how He can use you?