Aristarchus
Paul’s third named companion is to remain in Rome, but sends his greetings: ‘Aristarchus…saluteth you’ (the word in the Greek means ‘embraces’ you). He sends his fondest greetings.
Aristarchus was a Macedonian from Thessalonica, and we must ‘label’ him as sacrificial. He seems to be included as the first of three Jewish helpers. Once violently seized along with Paul (and Gaius) at Ephesus, he travelled with the apostle during the third missionary journey, and joined with him as a prisoner on ‘the perilous voyage’, ending in shipwreck. Aristarchus is a very notable companion of Paul.
Here, he is called ‘my fellowprisoner’, which is both interesting and slightly confusing. He was arrested with Paul at Ephesus but that arrest did not last. Then he would have been treated as a prisoner no doubt (though not personally under arrest) on the perilous voyage. But Paul clearly means that he is a prisoner with him in Rome, and this is the point of confusion.
In the letter to Philemon, Epaphras is called a fellow prisoner, and Aristarchus is not. Here in Colossians, Aristarchus is named as a fellow prisoner and Epaphras is not. As Colossians and Philemon went out at the same time, the mystery deepens.
The most probable solution is that Aristarchus and Epaphras alternated in tours of duty as voluntary fellow prisoners. In turn, they were willing to be bound like Paul in his room and be treated in exactly the same way. To stay with Paul in the hired house of his first Roman imprisonment did not allow complete freedom, because the companion could possibly have overpowered the guarding soldier and released the prisoner. To share the apostle’s ministry of prayer and writing, for the sake of security, you would wear the same shackles and be treated as a prisoner of imperial Rome. Aristarchus, it appears, was one of those who was prepared to share Paul’s sufferings.
The word translated ‘prisoner’ means a prisoner of war. Paul seems to be reminding us that he and Aristarchus were not in prison as criminals, but as captives in the world’s war against Christ and the Gospel. A prisoner of war possesses a special honour in the eyes of his own nation, and Aristarchus, with Paul, may wear this title of distinction as a contender in the great battle for souls. He deserves the epithet – sacrificial.
Is there anything of Aristarchus in us? Do we say, ‘My career is for Christ, not for me, and if I cannot rise to the top without forfeiting my service for him, I won’t attempt to do it’? Certainly some believers are enabled by the Lord to get to the top and still serve him, the Lord opening up great opportunities of witness to them. But that is for the Lord to bring about. The rule for us is to be willing to accept a modest station in life, if necessary, to be chiefly for Christ.
Paul’s third named companion is to remain in Rome, but sends his greetings: ‘Aristarchus…saluteth you’ (the word in the Greek means ‘embraces’ you). He sends his fondest greetings.
Aristarchus was a Macedonian from Thessalonica, and we must ‘label’ him as sacrificial. He seems to be included as the first of three Jewish helpers. Once violently seized along with Paul (and Gaius) at Ephesus, he travelled with the apostle during the third missionary journey, and joined with him as a prisoner on ‘the perilous voyage’, ending in shipwreck. Aristarchus is a very notable companion of Paul.
Here, he is called ‘my fellowprisoner’, which is both interesting and slightly confusing. He was arrested with Paul at Ephesus but that arrest did not last. Then he would have been treated as a prisoner no doubt (though not personally under arrest) on the perilous voyage. But Paul clearly means that he is a prisoner with him in Rome, and this is the point of confusion.
In the letter to Philemon, Epaphras is called a fellow prisoner, and Aristarchus is not. Here in Colossians, Aristarchus is named as a fellow prisoner and Epaphras is not. As Colossians and Philemon went out at the same time, the mystery deepens.
The most probable solution is that Aristarchus and Epaphras alternated in tours of duty as voluntary fellow prisoners. In turn, they were willing to be bound like Paul in his room and be treated in exactly the same way. To stay with Paul in the hired house of his first Roman imprisonment did not allow complete freedom, because the companion could possibly have overpowered the guarding soldier and released the prisoner. To share the apostle’s ministry of prayer and writing, for the sake of security, you would wear the same shackles and be treated as a prisoner of imperial Rome. Aristarchus, it appears, was one of those who was prepared to share Paul’s sufferings.
The word translated ‘prisoner’ means a prisoner of war. Paul seems to be reminding us that he and Aristarchus were not in prison as criminals, but as captives in the world’s war against Christ and the Gospel. A prisoner of war possesses a special honour in the eyes of his own nation, and Aristarchus, with Paul, may wear this title of distinction as a contender in the great battle for souls. He deserves the epithet – sacrificial.
Is there anything of Aristarchus in us? Do we say, ‘My career is for Christ, not for me, and if I cannot rise to the top without forfeiting my service for him, I won’t attempt to do it’? Certainly some believers are enabled by the Lord to get to the top and still serve him, the Lord opening up great opportunities of witness to them. But that is for the Lord to bring about. The rule for us is to be willing to accept a modest station in life, if necessary, to be chiefly for Christ.
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