Acts 16:10Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

Thus Christ Himself also appears to him, saying, “You must stand before Caesar”; Acts 27:24.

What does “concluding” mean? It means surmising.

From the fact that the vision was given to Paul and to no one else, from the fact that they had been restrained by the Spirit, and from the fact that they were at the borders of Macedonia, they drew this conclusion from all these things.

On the other hand, the voyage itself also indicated this, because in a short time they reached the very root of Macedonia.

Thus it was ordered that the dispute served for profit. If the Holy Spirit had not manifested His action, Macedonia would not have received the word.

Such success is a sign that what happened is not a human work.

It is not said that Barnabas was grieved, but that “there arose a sharp contention” between them; Acts 15:39. If he was not grieved, neither was Paul.

It should be noted that Luke was also with Paul in these cities. This is clear because Luke joins his own person to Paul’s when he says, “we sought,” “we came,” and “we went out.”

By an inner voice, or in a vision, the command of the Spirit of God was announced to him, restraining him from this direction.

With his companions he attempted to go through Mysia into Bithynia, but on this road also they were stopped.

All their steps, so to speak, were numbered by their almighty Guide. Everywhere they were to be at their proper time.

These nearer provinces, which offered more conveniences for preaching, he had to leave to others. In some of them he would labor only later.

Now the path left to him was through Mysia to Troas, and then across the Hellespont into Europe.

Scarcely had Paul arrived in Troas with this disposition when a Macedonian appeared to him in a dream, calling him to himself on the other shore.

There also in Troas Paul found Luke, the future narrator of his deeds.

Here the vision to Paul of the Macedonian man, who begged him to come to Macedonia and help its inhabitants, called the apostle of the Gentiles to transfer his preaching into Europe.

From Troas he set out. Here the evangelist and writer of Acts, Luke, also joined the number of the Apostle Paul’s companions.

As a result, from this point onward he most often designates the company of travelers, the preachers of Christ, by the word “we.”

Paul sailed to the island of Samothrace in the Aegean Sea. From there, through Neapolis, a coastal city by the Strymonic Gulf, he came to Philippi.

Philippi was the first Macedonian city to which, following the call, the Apostle Paul came with his companions; verses 10-12.

And the Apostle immediately responded to the call. Seeing in it a summons from the Lord to preach the Gospel there, he decided to go to Macedonia. At this time, among others, Luke, the beloved physician, joined him. By helping the Apostle with his medical skill in his bodily infirmities, he resolved to follow him also in his great journey through Europe.

In this vision the apostles understood the calling to go with preaching into Macedonia. They resolved, properly, began to seek a convenient opportunity to set out there by ship, where the vision was calling them.

Here the writer of Acts, by saying “we,” for the first time includes himself among the companions and fellow laborers of the Apostle Paul.

In this tone, with certain interruptions, he continues to narrate to the end of the book as an eyewitness of the events described.

Concerning this person, at this change in the tone of the narrative, he gives no report.

This was probably because the circumstances of his activity both before and after this were well known to Theophilus, for whom he first wrote his book; Acts 1:1.

Probably the writer of Acts joined the companions of the Apostle Paul precisely here in Troas. This explains the “we” in the subsequent narrative.

The revelation concerning the enlightenment of the Macedonians by faith came through a vision, as also happened to Peter concerning the reception of every kind of Gentile into the Church (see Acts 10:10-17).

The vision, though not definite, strongly inspired action in accordance with it. This was especially so when the Angel of Macedonia appeared to the Apostle Paul in a local form and inspired him to come to Macedonia and serve the work of God there.

The apostles themselves were striving toward this, though they did not clearly know where to direct their steps. The Angel did not state plainly what help was to be given to the Macedonians.

Yet in God, Whom they served, the apostles understood that they had to go and preach in Macedonia.