Romans chapter 16, greetings and final admonition. Paul now concludes his magnificent letter. He closes by sending greetings to various Christians in Rome, whom he personally knows. Since Paul had never visited the church in Rome, how did he know these people? He met them in other parts of the Roman Empire during his missionary journeys. In many cases, they had worked with him in ministry and had since moved to Rome.
Chapter 16 is particularly valuable today because it enables us to see how greatly Paul loved and appreciated the sisters who served alongside him or who ministered to him. Before writing his letter to the Romans, Paul had told the Corinthians," Let your women keep silent in the churches, for they are not permitted to speak, but they are to be submissive," as the law also says. Years after writing Romans, Paul instructed Timothy," Let a woman learn in silence with full submission.
But I do not permit a woman to teach nor to exercise authority over a man, but to be in silence." Based on what Paul says in those letters, modern critics have accused Paul of hating or not valuing women. However, in his greetings, Paul features women prominently. What he says about them in his greetings demonstrates the worth he places on them. Paul thereby demonstrates that although he holds firmly to God's order among the sexes, he greatly honors, values, and loves the sisters in the churches.
Romans chapter 16 verses 1 through 16, greetings to various individuals, verse 1 and 2. I commend to you, Phoebe, our sister, a servant of the church at Cenchrea, that you receive her in the Lord as become saints, and that you assist her in whatever business she has need of you. For she has been a helper of many, including myself also. The fact that Paul places Phoebe at the beginning of his list indicates that she was a very special Christian. Obviously, she devoted her life to serving others in the church.
When Paul was writing his letter, Phoebe was apparently planning to leave shortly for Rome. So Paul wants to make certain that she will be welcomed and assisted by the Roman Christians. Phoebe was from Cenchrea, a small village lying five miles east of Corinth. The eastern harbor for Corinth was located in Cenchrea, and Paul is most likely writing his letter to the Romans from Corinth. Was Phoebe a deaconess? Paul says that Phoebe is a servant of the church at Cenchrea.
This can also be translated as a deaconess of the Church at Cenchrea. Chrysostom believes that Paul is referring to her as a deaconess. By the early 3rd century, if not earlier, many Eastern congregations had deaconesses. An early church manual known as the Didascalia provides this description of the ministry of a deaconess. When a woman who is baptized comes up from the water, let the deaconess receive her and teach and instruct her how the seal of baptism ought to be kept unbroken in purity and holiness.
And you have need of the ministry of a deaconess for many other things. For example, a deaconess is required to go into the houses of pagans where there are believing women and to visit those who are sick and to minister to them in their needs and to bathe those who are recovering from sickness. In the Eastern Church, the Office of Deaconess was closely associated with the Ministry of Widows that Paul speaks of in 1 Timothy.
There, Paul writes," Let no one be enrolled as a widow under 60 years old, having been the wife of one man, being approved by good works if she has brought up children, if she has been hospitable to strangers, if she has washed the saints' feet, if she has relieved the afflicted, and if she has diligently followed every good work." The Apostolic Constitutions a Fourth Century Church manual says this about deaconesses," Let the deaconess be a pure virgin," or," At the minimum, let her be a widow who has been married
only once and who is faithful and well-esteemed." Other possible ministries of Phoebe.
Many modern Christians imagine that it somehow elevates Phoebe if she were an official deaconess. Actually, the opposite is true. If she was a deaconess, she would have been only one of many hundreds throughout the worldwide church. However, Paul is paying her a much greater honor if he is singling her out as a servant of the church, for he would be saying that Phoebe stood out among all others because of her dedication to serving the needs of others.
Origen understands Paul in this manner, praising Phoebe for her noteworthy assistance and care to others. Paul honors Phoebe with great praise and commendation, and he enumerates her excellent deeds. She was placed in this service in the church at Cenchrea. He says that she has helped many people in every way. She was always available for anyone's needs. Furthermore, she assisted Paul in his needs and apostolic labors with full devotion. I would describe her work as similar to the hospitality of Lot.
Because Lot was always receiving guests, he deserved to entertain angels as well. In the same way, Abraham was always meeting visitors. So he deserved to have the Lord and His angels stop and rest at his tent. Likewise, this conscientious Phoebe, who stood by all and served all, was blessed to assist and serve even the apostle himself. Theodoret adds," Paul says that she has been a helper of many, including himself.
By help, I understand him to mean hospitality and kind attention." Most likely, Phoebe cared for the sick as well. Chrysostom writes," How can this woman be anything but blessed who has received the blessing of such a favorable testimony from Paul, for she was able to render assistance to this apostle who had righted the whole world. This ministry to Paul was the summit of her good deeds.
For that reason, Paul listed himself at the very end, saying," And of myself also." As Ambrosiaster notes, when such a prominent person as Paul asked the church in Rome to give her whatever assistance she requested, we can be certain that they readily complied. Medieval legends about Phoebe.
In late antiquity in the Middle Ages, various legends arose about Phoebe, that she personally delivered Paul's letter to the Romans, that she founded the church in Cenchrea, that she was wealthy, and that she had been part of Caesar's Court and carried out his royal business. None of these legends has any historical basis. Nevertheless, the legend that Phoebe delivered Paul's letter to the Church in Rome is still repeated today in most modern commentaries. To be sure, this latter conjecture is not impossible.
However, none of the early Christians make mention of this claim. More importantly, the Scriptures say nothing about it. It seems far more likely that Paul would have wanted his letter to reach Rome ahead of Phoebe's arrival. In that manner, the church in Rome would have been prepared to welcome her when she arrived.
Verses 3 and 4," Greet Priscilla and Aquila, my helpers in Christ Jesus, who have for my life laid down their own necks, to whom not only I give thanks, but also all the churches of the Gentiles." We read about Priscilla and Aquila in Acts 18. They had just moved to Corinth from Rome, and Paul found them in Corinth.
Luke writes," He, Paul, found a certain Jew named Aquila, a man of Pontus by race who had recently come from Italy with his wife, Priscilla, because Claudius had commanded all the Jews to depart from Rome, and he came to them." Paul stayed with Aquila and Priscilla for over 18 months. Later, he took them with him to Ephesus. They had helped Paul by providing him with hospitality and by engaging in evangelism themselves. They are the couple who explained to Apollos that Christian baptism had replaced John's baptism.
Unfortunately, in Acts, Luke does not describe how Aquila and Priscilla risked their own necks for Paul's sake. Perhaps this happened in connection with the insurrections in Corinth and Ephesus of which Luke speaks. We do not know. Apparently, after the edict of Claudius was rescinded, Aquila and Priscilla returned to Rome. That is why Paul asked the Roman church to pass on his greetings to them, to whom not only I give thanks, but also all the churches of the Gentiles.
Origen writes," It is apparent that they, Aquila and Priscilla, were obliging and hospitable to all the faithful brethren, not only to those of the Jews, but also to those of the Gentiles." Chrysostom adds," Here Paul hints of their hospitality and monetary assistance. He holds them in admiration because they not only had made their whole property open to everyone, but they had poured forth their blood as well. The