God’s Word for You

Acts 20:36-38 Farewell

by Pastor Timothy Smith on Monday, December 14, 2020

36 After he said these things, he knelt down and prayed with all of them. 37 Then they all wept for a long time. They fell on Paul’s neck, kissing him again and again, 38 especially grieved because of what he had said, that they would not see his face again. Then they escorted him to the ship.

Paul’s ship was ready to set sail. The apostle finished his words of farewell, and the group knelt together in prayer. We can well imagine the weeping of these men as the last of the cargo was being carried aboard and it was time for Paul, Luke, and the others to leave. Their weeping lasted a long time. The Greek idiom in verse 37 is that they all “fell on Paul’s neck” to embrace him, but it isn’t easy to say this in English without making it seem as if Paul was under attack in some way. Here the added words, “kissing him,” help to paint the correct picture. Esau threw his arms around Jacob’s neck this way (Genesis 33:4), and Joseph threw his arms around Benjamin’s neck and the necks of his brothers, too (Genesis 45:14-15).

The kneeling posture reflected Solomon’s prayer at the dedication of the temple (2 Chronicles 6:13) and the subsequent appearance of the glory of the Lord, which brought the whole city to its knees in prayer (2 Chronicles 7:1-3). Praying or showing reverence to a god by kneeling was also done among the pagans, such as to the god Baal (1 Kings 19:18), but later in Israel’s history, kneeling was often shown as a prayer posture before God. Ezra (Ezra 9:5), Daniel (Daniel 6:10) and Jesus (Luke 22:41) knelt as they prayed. Kneeling expresses deep feelings such as sorrow, fear, and deep reverence. For many years, kneeling was common in Christian churches, and its significance may have been lessened by frequency, but today it has fallen away again, making the impression of deeper feelings of grief and helplessness more clear.

What they were sad about was Paul’s prediction that they would never see him again. Later passages like 1 Timothy 1:3 and 3:14 lead us to believe that they really did see one another again after Paul’s imprisonment, but this isn’t certain. As the Study Bible points out, “His prophetic power was not used to foresee his own future, just as his healing power was not used to heal his own disease (2 Corinthians 12:7-9).”

In this scene Luke underscores the deep love the Ephesians had for Paul, the man who brought the gospel to them. The tense of the verb “kissing” in verse 37 tells us that they didn’t each give Paul a quick kiss, but that this went on for some time as they kissed him “again and again.” Not quite a year ago, I was at a hospital bedside to witness a woman who was just hours from death talking to her mother on the phone. They both knew this would be their last goodbye. They shared their love for each other, and they said things like “this is me giving you a hug.” Their tears at parting were dried just a little by the gift of being able to talk on the phone at such a heartbreaking moment, but their joy came shining through as the two women spoke about seeing one another again in the resurrection, when parents and children will be reunited forever, raised by Christ and brought to Paradise. Now consider the joy of the Ephesian elders, who knew that without Paul and his work they would not even know Christ, would have no place in the resurrection to life, and would be condemned to everlasting punishment. Their parting grief was mixed with the joy of thankfulness. The words of a Psalm might summarize their emotions: “Save us, O Lord our God, and gather us from the nations, that we may give thanks to your holy name and glory in your praise” (Psalm 106:47). Salvation is an indescribable blessing, and to be gathered into God’s church as part of his divine harvest is a gift we will treasure and praise him for throughout all eternity. Praise God, from whom all blessings flow.

In Christ,
Pastor Timothy Smith

 

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