Acts 20:17 - Meaning and Application

When Paul and his companions came to Miletus, it seems the ship waited there for him and moved as he wished. Paul stayed there long enough to send for the elders of the church in Ephesus to meet him. If he had gone up to Ephesus, he would likely have found it impossible to leave them, because they would have held him back with affection.

Some think these elders, or presbyters, were the twelve men who had received the Holy Spirit through Paul’s hands (Acts 19:6). But it is also likely that Timothy had appointed other elders there to serve that church and the surrounding area. Paul sent for them so he could instruct them and encourage them to keep going in the work they had taken on. What he told them would also help the people under their care.

This was a very moving and practical farewell message from Paul, and it shows the excellent spirit of this good man. First, he appeals to them about both his life and his teaching during all the time he had been in and around Ephesus (Acts 20:18). He says, in effect, “You know how I lived among you, and how I carried out the work of an apostle.” He says this to confirm his calling and, with it, the truth of the message he had preached. They all knew him as a serious, gracious, heaven-minded man, not a selfish deceiver like false teachers. He could not have kept going with such steadiness in service and suffering unless God’s grace was at work in him.

He also points to his own conduct to teach them, since the work would now be left in their hands. He is saying, “You know how I lived among you. In the same way, live among those entrusted to you” (Philippians 4:9). Whatever they had seen in him that was good, they should do as well.

His spirit and conduct were excellent and worthy of imitation. They knew how he had lived among them, in simplicity and godly sincerity (2 Corinthians 1:12), with holiness, justice, blamelessness, gentleness, and kindness (1 Thessalonians 2:7, 1 Thessalonians 2:10). From the very first day he came into Asia, his life had been consistent at all times. No one could fairly fault the way he entered among them. He showed from the start that he meant not only to do what was right, but also to do good wherever he went. He was the same person in every setting, steady and dependable, not changing with the crowd or the weather.

He had made it his business to serve the Lord and to promote God’s honor and the good of Christ and his kingdom among them. He did not live to serve himself, or to please men, or to follow their desires and moods. He was not a man who shifted with the times. Rather, he truly lived as “a servant of Jesus Christ” (Romans 1:1).

He also did his work with all humility of mind, that is, with a spirit of condescension, modesty, and self-forgetting. Even though God had greatly honored him and used him to do much good, he never acted above others or kept people at a distance. He spoke freely and warmly with the lowest as well as the highest, as long as it helped them. He was willing to bend to any service and make himself and his work as accessible as possible. Those who want to serve the Lord well, and help others well, must do so with humility (Matthew 20:26, Matthew 20:27).

He had also been tender, affectionate, and compassionate among them. He served the Lord with many tears. In this, Paul was like his Master, often marked by tears. He wept in prayer and made earnest pleading (Hosea 12:5). He wept in preaching too, repeating to them what he had already warned them about, even while crying (Philippians 3:18). Though he had known them for only a short time, he felt so deeply for them that he wept with those who wept and shared their sorrows. That kind of compassion made him dear to them.

He also faced many hardships among them. He kept working in the middle of strong opposition, many temptations, and trials that tested his patience and courage. These pressures were sometimes so heavy that they may have tempted him, like Jeremiah, to say he would speak no more in the name of the Lord (Jeremiah 20:8, Jeremiah 20:9). These troubles came from the Jews who were always lying in wait and plotting against him. Those are faithful servants of the Lord who keep serving him in the middle of danger and hardship, who care more about pleasing their Master than about avoiding enemies. Paul’s tears came in part from these trials, for suffering often deepens holy affection.

His preaching was faithful too, as it should have been (Acts 20:20, Acts 20:21). He came to Ephesus to preach the gospel of Christ, and he had been faithful both to them and to the one who sent him. He was a plain preacher, speaking so people could understand him. That is shown by the words, “I have shown you” and “I have taught you.” He did not fill their minds with fine-sounding ideas and then lose them in confusion. Instead, he showed them the simple truths of the gospel, truths of the greatest weight and value, and taught them as one teaches children. He showed them the right road to happiness and taught them how to walk in it.

He was also a powerful preacher, as shown by his bearing witness to them. He spoke like a man under oath, fully convinced of the truth of what he said and eager to persuade them of it. He did not preach like a street seller shouting out news, careless whether it was true or false. He preached like a serious witness in court, with deep concern and full honesty. Paul’s preaching was a testimony to them if they received it, but a testimony against them if they rejected it.

He was also a useful preacher. In all he said, he aimed to do good to those who heard him. He sought what was helpful to them, what would make them wiser and better, and what would shape both their minds and their lives in a better way.

He preached things that were profitable, things that brought divine light, warmth, and power to people’s souls. It is not enough to avoid preaching what is harmful, what leads people into error, or what hardens them in sin. We must also preach what helps. Paul wanted to preach what was useful, not merely what people liked, and to please only so that he could do them good. God says that he teaches his people what is profitable (Isaiah 48:17). Those who teach for God teach people what helps them grow.

Paul was also a diligent preacher. He worked hard and did not grow tired. He preached in public and from house to house. When he had a chance to preach to the large gathering, he did not stay hidden in a corner. When there was need for personal care, he did not limit himself to the public meeting. He was not afraid or ashamed to preach the gospel in public, and he was not unwilling to spend himself in private visits when that was needed. He preached publicly to the flock gathered in the open pasture, and he went from house to house to look for those who were weak or had wandered away. He did not think one kind of ministry excused him from the other.

In private visits, ministers should talk over the same truths they taught in public. They should repeat them, press them home, and explain them when needed. They should also ask, “Have you understood all these things?” Most of all, they should help people apply the truth to their own lives and circumstances.

Paul was also faithful. He did not only preach what was useful, but everything he believed could be useful. He kept back nothing, even when it cost him more work or made some people dislike him. He did not refuse to preach anything that might help, even if it was not popular or accepted by everyone. He did not hold back needed rebukes for fear of offending people. He did not hide the preaching of the cross, even though he knew it was a stumbling block to the Jews and foolishness to the Greeks. Some Roman missionaries in China later acted differently.

He was also a preacher for all people. He testified both to the Jews and also to the Greeks. He was born and raised a Jew, loved his own nation deeply, and had been brought up with Jewish prejudice against the Gentiles. Still, he did not limit his work to Jews or avoid Gentiles. He preached to the Gentiles as readily as to the Jews, and he spoke freely with them. On the other hand, even though he had been called to be the apostle of the Gentiles and the Jews hated him because of that, he did not give up on the Jews. They had often wronged him, and at Ephesus they were still plotting against him, but he still worked for their good. Ministers must preach the gospel without favoritism, because they serve Christ for the whole church.

Paul was also a truly Christian, gospel-centered preacher. He did not preach philosophy, doubtful debates, politics, or affairs of state. He preached faith and repentance, the two great gifts and duties of the gospel, and he urged them at every opportunity. He preached repentance toward God. People who have gone away from God by sin, and are moving farther from him toward endless separation, must turn back to him in true repentance. Repentance means looking toward God, turning toward him, moving toward him, and hurrying to him. Paul preached repentance as God’s command (Acts 17:30), which people must obey, and as Christ’s gift for the forgiveness of sins (Acts 5:31). He directed people to look to Christ for it.

He also preached faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. We must look to God as our goal through repentance, and to Christ as the way to God through faith. Sin must be given up through repentance, and then Christ must be trusted by faith for the pardon of sin. Repentance toward God is not enough by itself. We must also have true faith in Christ as our Redeemer and Savior, receiving him as our Lord and our God. There is no coming to God, as penitent prodigals come to a father, except through the strength and righteousness of Jesus Christ as Mediator, the one who brings us to God. The Ephesians knew that Paul had always been such a preacher, and if they would continue that work, they must walk in the same spirit and follow the same steps.

Paul then declares that he expected suffering and trouble on his journey to Jerusalem (Acts 20:22-24). They should not think he had left Asia because he was afraid of persecution. He was not running away like a coward from danger. He was more like a hero hurrying toward the place where the fighting would be strongest. “Now, behold, I go bound in the spirit to Jerusalem” can mean one of two things. It may mean he had a sure sense of the trouble ahead, though he was not yet physically bound. Or it may mean the Holy Spirit was strongly moving him to make this journey, so that he was firmly resolved to go and knew that he was being led by God, not by his own mood or plan.

He did not know the exact things that would happen to him in Jerusalem. God had not shown him where the trouble would come from, what would cause it, or how severe it would be. It is good for us not to know future events, so that we keep looking to God and waiting for him. When we go out, we should remember that we do not know what will happen in a day, a night, or even an hour. So we must put ourselves into God’s hands, let him do with us what seems good to him, and seek to stand complete in all his will.

Still, Paul did know in general that a storm was ahead. The prophets in every city he passed through told him by the Holy Spirit that chains and suffering awaited him. Along with the general warning given to all Christians and ministers to expect trouble, Paul also had special warnings of a greater and longer trial than any he had yet faced.

Even so, he firmly resolved to keep going with his work.

It was a sad message he kept hearing in city after city, that chains and suffering were waiting for him. It was hard for a poor man to work constantly for good, and then be treated so badly for it. The question, then, is how he carried this burden.

Paul was flesh and blood, just like other people. Yet by God’s grace, he kept doing his work and looked down on every difficulty and setback with steady, generous faith. We hear his own words in Acts 20:24, where he speaks, not with stubborn pride or self-display, but with humble resolve: “None of these things move me. My only care is to keep going in the path of duty and finish well.”

Paul is an example of holy courage in our work, even when we face trouble and resistance. He saw the hardships ahead, but he treated them lightly: “None of these things move me,” that is, I do not count them as important. He did not let these threats pull him away from his calling. He kept going straight on, even where he knew it would cost him dearly.

These trials also did not steal his peace or make his work drag. In the middle of trouble, he could seem unconcerned. In patience he kept his soul, and even when he was sorrowful, he was still rejoicing. He was more than a conqueror. Those whose lives are set in heaven can look down on the troubles of this world, and even on the rage of evil, and say that none of these things move them, because none of them can truly harm them.

Paul also shows a holy disregard for his own life, and for the comfort and length of it. Life is sweet, and by nature we hold it dear. A man will give everything he has for his life. But a wiser person will give up even life itself rather than lose God’s favor or risk eternal life. Paul had this mind.

To the natural eye, life is very precious. To the eye of faith, it is less important in comparison with Christ. It is not so dear that it cannot be gladly given up for him. This helps explain Luke 14:26, where we are told to hate our own lives, not in a sudden burst of anger, like Job or Jeremiah at moments, but in humble submission to God’s will, ready to die for Christ rather than deny him.

Paul also cared deeply about finishing the work of life. That should matter far more to us than keeping outward comfort or saving our reputation. Blessed Paul does not count his life dear when compared with this. By Christ’s strength, he is determined never to lose the true purpose of living just to save his life. He is willing to spend his life in labor, risk it in dangerous service, waste it in tiring service, and even lay it down in martyrdom, as long as he can fulfill the great purpose of his birth, his baptism, and his appointment as an apostle.

Two things mattered most to this great and good man. If he gained them, he did not care what happened to his life. First, he wanted to be faithful to the trust given to him, to finish the ministry he received from the Lord Jesus. He wanted to do the work he had been sent into the world, and more especially into the church, to do. He wanted to complete the service of his generation, make full proof of his ministry, carry the work through, and let others receive all the benefit that God intended. He wanted, like the two witnesses in Revelation, to finish his testimony (Revelation 11:7), and not do his work halfway.

We should notice three things here. First, the apostleship was a ministry both to Christ and to people’s souls. Those called to it cared more about serving than about rank or power. If the apostles thought this way, pastors and teachers should do the same, serving in the church as people who minister.

Second, this ministry came from the Lord Jesus. He trusted them with it, and from him they received their charge. They worked for him, in his name and strength, and to him they must give account. It was Christ who put them into the ministry (1 Timothy 1:12). He also carried them through it and gave them strength for their duty and for its hardships.

Third, the work of this ministry was to testify to the gospel of God’s grace, to publish it, prove it, and recommend it. Since it is the gospel of God’s grace, it carries enough in itself to commend it. It shows God’s good will toward us, and it is the means by which he works good in us. It shows that he is gracious to us, and it tends to make us gracious too. Paul made it the work of his life to bear witness to this gospel, and he did not wish to live another day unless he could help spread its truth, sweetness, and power.

Second, Paul wanted to finish well. He did not care when his life would end, or how soon it might come, or how sudden or painful it might be in outward terms, as long as he could finish his course with joy. He sees life as a course, a race, which is the word used here. Our life is a race set before us (Hebrews 12:1). This tells us that our work has been assigned, because we were not sent into the world to be idle. It also tells us that our time is limited, because we were not sent here to stay forever, but to pass through the world, indeed to run through it quickly.

He also thinks of finishing his course as certain and near, something always before his mind. Dying is the end of the race, when we come out either with honor or with shame. He is deeply concerned to finish it well, which shows a holy desire to obtain the prize and a holy fear of falling short. “Oh, that I may finish my course with joy, and then all will be well, perfectly and forever well.” He thinks nothing is too much to do or too hard to suffer if only he may finish well and finish with joy. We should see it as the work of our life to prepare for a joyful death, so that we may not only die safely, but also die with comfort.

Now, knowing that this was likely the last time they would see him, he appeals to their consciences about his honesty and asks them to witness to it. He tells them that this is his final farewell. He knows that all of them, among whom he has spent time preaching the kingdom of God, though they may have letters from him, will never see his face again.

When we part from friends, we may say, and should say, that we do not know whether we will ever see one another again. Our friends may be taken away, or we may be. But Paul says this here with certainty, by the Spirit of prophecy, that these Ephesian believers would see his face no more. We should not think he would speak so confidently, especially when he knew it would grieve his friends, unless he had special help from the Spirit.

Some have thought Paul later returned to Ephesus and saw them again, but that does not fit his words. He would not have said so solemnly, “Now, behold, I know,” if he had not known it for sure. He did not mean he had no more work left at all, only that his work would now lie in other places. In these parts, his task was finished.

For a long time he had preached the kingdom of God there. He had preached against the kingdom of sin and Satan, and he had proclaimed the rule of God in Christ. He had preached the kingdom of glory as the goal, and the kingdom of grace as the way to it. Many times they were glad to see his face in the pulpit, as if they were seeing an angel’s face. If the feet of messengers of peace are beautiful (Isaiah 52:7), what must their faces be like?

But now they would see his face no more. We should often remember that those who now preach the kingdom of God to us will soon be gone, and we will see their faces no more. The prophets do not live forever. Their time with us is short, so we should make good use of it while we have it. Then, when we see their faces no more on earth, we may still hope to meet them with joy on the great day.

He then appeals to them about how faithfully he had done his ministry among them (Acts 20:26). Since his work with them is ending, it is time for both sides to look back and consider it. First, he challenges them to prove that he had been unfaithful, or that he had said or done anything that helped bring about the ruin of any precious soul. “I am pure from the blood of all men,” means the blood of souls.

This points back to the prophet Ezekiel, where the blood of the one who dies is required from the unfaithful watchman who failed to warn him (Ezekiel 33:6). Paul is saying, “You cannot say I failed to warn you, so no one’s blood can be charged to me.” If a minister has been faithful, he may rightly say this of himself, and others should be able to say it too.

Second, he leaves the blood of those who perish on their own heads, because they were warned but would not listen. Third, he charges these ministers to take care that they do the same. “I am pure from the blood of all men,” he says in effect, “see that you keep yourselves pure too. I call this day to witness,” that is, this very day of parting will testify to what I have done.

He then proves his own faithfulness with these words, “I have not shrunk from declaring to you the whole counsel of God” (Acts 20:27). First, he preached nothing but God’s counsel. He did not add any ideas of his own. It was pure gospel, and nothing else, the will of God about their salvation. The gospel is God’s counsel, wonderfully planned by his wisdom, firmly settled by his will, and kindly designed by his grace for our glory (Colossians 2:7).

Second, he preached the whole counsel of God. He not only kept the gospel pure, he kept it complete. He had opened to them a whole body of Christian teaching, from first to last, in a clear order, so they could understand the truths better by seeing how they connect with one another.

Third, he did not shrink from doing it. He did not purposely avoid any part of God’s counsel. He did not skip the harder parts to save himself trouble, nor avoid the easier parts to protect his reputation. He did not leave out truths that would offend hostile enemies of Christianity or bother careless church members. He faithfully did his duty, whether they listened or refused.

This is how he kept himself clear of the blood of all men.

Then he charges them, as ministers, to be diligent and faithful in their work. He commits the care of the church at Ephesus, the believers there and nearby (Ephesians 1:1), to these elders. They were probably too many to meet in one place, so they worshiped in several congregations under several ministers, yet they are called one flock because they shared one faith and kept fellowship with one another in many ways.

To these elders, or presbyters, Paul gives the care of the church as he sees that he must leave them. He tells them that it was not he, but the Holy Spirit, who had made them overseers, that is, bishops, of the flock. They were presbyters whom the Holy Spirit had made bishops, set to watch over this part of God’s church (1 Peter 5:1-2; Titus 1:5, Titus 1:7).

While Paul was with them at Ephesus, he guided all the church’s affairs, and that made the elders reluctant to lose him. But now the eagle stirs up the nest and flutters over her young. Now that they are beginning to grow up, they must learn to fly on their own and act without him, because the Holy Spirit had made them overseers. They did not take this honor for themselves, and no prince or ruler gave it to them. The Holy Spirit fit them for this great task and gave them what they needed for it. The Holy Spirit had fallen upon them (Acts 19:6), and he also guided those who chose, called, and ordained them for this work in answer to prayer.

He also tells them to pay close attention to the work they had been called to do. Dignity brings duty. If the Holy Spirit has made them overseers of the flock, then, as shepherds, they must be faithful to the trust given them.

They must first take heed to themselves. They need a careful eye on every movement of their own hearts, and on everything they say and do. They must walk carefully and know how to conduct themselves rightly in the house of God, because they have now been given the work of stewards. Many eyes are on them. Some watch them as examples to follow, and others look for faults to criticize, so they must be careful about their own lives. Those who do not keep their own vineyard are not likely to guard the vineyards of others well.

They must also take heed to the whole flock. Some are charged with one part, others with another, as their calling and opportunity allow, but no part of the flock should be neglected. Ministers must not only care for their own souls, but also keep constant watch over the souls under their charge, just as shepherds watch over their sheep so they suffer no harm. They must make sure none wander from the fold, none are seized by wild animals, and none are missing or ruined through their neglect.

They must feed the church of God. They are to do every part of a shepherd’s work. They must lead Christ’s sheep into green pastures, set food before them, and do what they can for those who are weak, troubled, or no longer hungry for the truth. They must feed them with sound teaching and with gentle gospel discipline, making sure nothing needed for their growth is left out. The church needs pastors not only to gather in those outside, but also to build up those already inside.

They must also watch, as shepherds keep watch over their flocks at night. They must stay alert and not give in to spiritual laziness or sleepiness. They should stir themselves to their work and keep close to it. They must watch against everything that could harm the flock, and also watch for everything that could help it. They should make the most of every chance to do the flock good.

Paul gives them several good reasons to take their ministry seriously. First, they should think about their Master’s interest and his care for the flock placed in their charge. It is the church that he purchased with his own blood. It is his own, and they are only his servants, put there to care for it on his behalf. It is an honor to be used by God, who will own his servants in their work, but their neglect and unfaithfulness are far worse because they wrong God and prove false to him. They received the trust from him, and they must give their account back to him, so they must take heed to themselves.

If it is the church of God, then they should show their love to him by feeding his sheep and lambs. He purchased it. The whole world belongs to God by creation, but the church belongs to him by redemption, meaning he bought it back for himself by saving it. For that reason, it should be dear to us, because it was dear to him and cost him dearly. We can show that love best by feeding his sheep and lambs.

This is the church of God, the church he purchased, not in the way he saved Israel of old, when he gave other nations for them, but with his own blood (Isaiah 43:3-4). This shows that Christ is God, because the passage says God purchased the church with his own blood. The blood was his as a man, yet the divine and human natures of Christ are so closely united that Scripture can call it the blood of God, because it was the blood of the one who is God. That gives his blood great worth. It is a costly ransom that frees us from evil, and a precious purchase that wins for us every good thing, even winning us for Christ as his own people. “They were yours, and you gave them to me.” Since the church was bought at such a great price, they must feed it carefully. If Christ gave his life to purchase it, should his ministers not spend every care and labor to feed it? To neglect its true good is to treat lightly the blood that bought it.

They should also think about the danger the flock faces from its enemies. If the flock is precious because it belongs to God and was redeemed by Christ, then enemies will try hard to damage it. It is in danger from those who would prey on it, so the shepherds must keep watch.