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Text -- 2 Corinthians 11:32 (NET)

Strongs On/Off
Context
11:32 In Damascus, the governor under King Aretas was guarding the city of Damascus in order to arrest me,
Parallel   Cross Reference (TSK)   ITL  

Names, People and Places, Dictionary Themes and Topics

Names, People and Places:
 · Aretas the ruler of Damascus during N.T. times; the father-in-law of Herod the Tetrarch
 · Damascus a city-state in Syria, located near Mt. Hermon at the edge of the Syrian desert (OS),a town near Mt. Hermon at the edge of the Syrian desert (OS)


Dictionary Themes and Topics: Zeal | SYRIANS | Paul | PAUL, THE APOSTLE, 3 | NABATAEANS; NABATHAEANS | Minister | GOVERNOR | GALATIANS, EPISTLE TO THE | ETHNARCH | Damascus | DAMASCENES | Corinth | CORINTHIANS, SECOND EPISTLE TO THE | CHRONOLOGY OF THE NEW TESTAMENT | Aretas | ARETAS, OR ARETAS | ARABIA | APPREHEND | more
Table of Contents

Word/Phrase Notes
Robertson , Vincent , Wesley , JFB , Clarke , TSK

Word/Phrase Notes
Barnes , Poole , Gill

Verse Notes / Footnotes
NET Notes

Verse Range Notes
TSK Synopsis , MHCC , Matthew Henry , Barclay , Constable , College , McGarvey , Lapide

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Commentary -- Word/Phrase Notes (per phrase)

Robertson: 2Co 11:32 - -- The governor under Aretas ( ho ethnarchēs Hareta ). How it came to pass that Damascus, ruled by the Romans after b.c. 65, came at this time to be u...

The governor under Aretas ( ho ethnarchēs Hareta ).

How it came to pass that Damascus, ruled by the Romans after b.c. 65, came at this time to be under the rule of Aretas, fourth of the name, King of the Nabatheans (2 Maccabees 5:8), we do not know. There is an absence of Roman coins in Damascus from a.d. 34 to 62. It is suggested (Plummer) that Caligula, to mark his dislike for Antipas, gave Damascus to Aretas (enemy of Antipas).

Robertson: 2Co 11:32 - -- Guarded ( ephrourei ). Imperfect active of phroureō , old verb (from phrouros , a guard) to guard by posting sentries. In Act 9:24 we read that the...

Guarded ( ephrourei ).

Imperfect active of phroureō , old verb (from phrouros , a guard) to guard by posting sentries. In Act 9:24 we read that the Jews kept watch to seize Paul, but there is no conflict as they cooperated with the guard set by Aretas at their request.

Robertson: 2Co 11:32 - -- To seize ( piasai ). Doric first aorist active infinitive of piezō (Luk 6:38) for which see note on Act 3:7.

To seize ( piasai ).

Doric first aorist active infinitive of piezō (Luk 6:38) for which see note on Act 3:7.

Vincent: 2Co 11:32 - -- The governor ( ἐθνάρχης ) Only here in the New Testament. A governor ruling in the name of a king: a prefect .

The governor ( ἐθνάρχης )

Only here in the New Testament. A governor ruling in the name of a king: a prefect .

Vincent: 2Co 11:32 - -- Aretas Or Hareth , the father-in-law of Herod Antipas. Hs capital was the rock-city of Petra, the metropolis of Arabia Petraea. Herod's unfaithf...

Aretas

Or Hareth , the father-in-law of Herod Antipas. Hs capital was the rock-city of Petra, the metropolis of Arabia Petraea. Herod's unfaithfulness to his daughter brought on a quarrel, in which Herod's army was defeated, to the great delight of the Jews. The further prosecution of the war by Roman troops was arrested by the death of Tiberius, and it is supposed that Caligula assigned Damascus as a free gift to Aretas.

Vincent: 2Co 11:32 - -- Kept with a garrison ( ἐφρούρει ) Imperfect tense, was maintaining a constant watch . Compare Act 9:24 : They watched t...

Kept with a garrison ( ἐφρούρει )

Imperfect tense, was maintaining a constant watch . Compare Act 9:24 : They watched the gates day and night .

Vincent: 2Co 11:32 - -- To apprehend ( πιάσαι ) See on Act 3:7.

To apprehend ( πιάσαι )

See on Act 3:7.

Wesley: 2Co 11:32 - -- King of Arabia and Syria of which Damascus was a chief city, willing to oblige the Jews, kept the city - Setting guards at all the gates day and night...

King of Arabia and Syria of which Damascus was a chief city, willing to oblige the Jews, kept the city - Setting guards at all the gates day and night.

JFB: 2Co 11:32 - -- Greek, "Ethnarch": a Jewish officer to whom heathen rulers gave authority over Jews in large cities where they were numerous. He was in this case unde...

Greek, "Ethnarch": a Jewish officer to whom heathen rulers gave authority over Jews in large cities where they were numerous. He was in this case under Aretas, king of Arabia. Damascus was in a Roman province. But at this time, A.D. 38 or 39, three years after Paul's conversion, A.D. 36, Aretas, against whom the Emperor Tiberius as the ally of Herod Agrippa had sent an army under Vitellius, had got possession of Damascus on the death of the emperor, and the consequent interruption of Vitellius' operations. His possession of it was put an end to immediately after by the Romans [NEANDER]. Rather, it was granted by Caligula (A.D. 38) to Aretas, whose predecessors had possessed it. This is proved by our having no Damascus coins of Caligula or Claudius, though we do have of their immediate imperial predecessors and successors [ALFORD].

Clarke: 2Co 11:32 - -- In Damascus the governor under Aretas - For a description of Damascus see the note on Act 9:2. And for the transaction to which the apostle refers s...

In Damascus the governor under Aretas - For a description of Damascus see the note on Act 9:2. And for the transaction to which the apostle refers see Act 9:23. As to King Aretas, there were three of this name. The first is mentioned 2 Maccabeans Act 9:8. The second by Josephus, Antiq. l. xiii. c. 15, sec. 2; and l. xvi. c. 1, sec. 4. The third, who is the person supposed to be referred to here, was the father-in-law of Herod Antipas, of whom see the notes, Act 9:23, etc

But it is a question of some importance, How could Damascus, a city of Syria, be under the government of an Arabian king? It may be accounted for thus: Herod Antipas, who married the daughter of Aretas, divorced her, in order to marry Herodias, his brother Philip’ s wife. Aretas, on this indignity offered to his family, made war upon Herod. Herod applied to Tiberius for help, and the emperor sent Vitellius to reduce Aretas, and to bring him alive or dead to Rome. By some means or other Vitellius delayed his operations, and in the meantime Tiberius died; and thus Aretas was snatched from ruin, Joseph., Antiq. lib. xviii. c. 5. What Aretas did in the interim is not known; but it is conjectured that he availed himself of the then favorable state of things, made an irruption into Syria, and seized on Damascus. See Rosenmuller; and see the introduction to this epistle, Section 2.

Clarke: 2Co 11:32 - -- The governor - Εθναρχης· Who this ethnarch was, we cannot tell. The word ethnarch signifies the governor of a province, under a king or e...

The governor - Εθναρχης· Who this ethnarch was, we cannot tell. The word ethnarch signifies the governor of a province, under a king or emperor

Clarke: 2Co 11:32 - -- Desirous to apprehend me - The enemies of the apostle might have represented him to the governor as a dangerous spy, employed by the Romans.

Desirous to apprehend me - The enemies of the apostle might have represented him to the governor as a dangerous spy, employed by the Romans.

TSK: 2Co 11:32 - -- Damascus : 2Co 11:26; Act 9:24, Act 9:25 Aretas : This Aretas was an Arabian king, and the father-in-law of Herod Antipas, upon whom he made war in co...

Damascus : 2Co 11:26; Act 9:24, Act 9:25

Aretas : This Aretas was an Arabian king, and the father-in-law of Herod Antipas, upon whom he made war in consequence of his having divorced his daughter. Herod applied to Tiberius for help, who sent Vitellius to reduce Aretas, and to bring him alive or dead to Rome. By some means or other Vitellius delayed his operations, and in the mean time Tiberius died; and it is probable that Aretas, who was thus snatched from ruin, availed himself of the favourable state of things, and seized on Damascus, which had belonged to his ancestors.

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Commentary -- Word/Phrase Notes (per Verse)

Barnes: 2Co 11:32 - -- In Damascus - This circumstance is mentioned as an additional trial. It is evidently mentioned as an instance of peril which had escaped his re...

In Damascus - This circumstance is mentioned as an additional trial. It is evidently mentioned as an instance of peril which had escaped his recollection in the rapid account of his dangers enumerated in the previous verses. It is designed to show what imminent danger he was in, and how narrowly he escaped with his life. On the situation of Damascus, see the note, Act 9:2. The transaction here referred to is also related by Luke Act 9:24-25, though without mentioning the name of the king, or referring to the fact that the governor kept the city with a garrison.

The governor - Greek, ὁ ἐθνάρχης ho ethnarchēs , "The ethnarch;"properly a ruler of the people, a prefect, a ruler, a chief. Who he was is unknown, though he was evidently some officer under the king. It is not improbable that he was a Jew, or at any rate he was one who could be influenced by the Jews, and he was doubtless excited by the Jews to guard the city, and if possible to take Paul as a malefactor. Luke informs us Act 9:23-24 that the Jews took counsel against Paul to kill him, and that they watched the gates night and day to effect their object. They doubtless represented Paul as an apostate, and as aiming to overthrow their religion. He had come with an important commission to Damascus and had failed to execute it; he had become the open friend of those whom he came to destroy; and they doubtless claimed of the civil authorities of Damascus that he should be given up and taken to Jerusalem for trial. It was not difficult, therefore, to secure the cooperation of the governor of the city in the case, and there is no improbability in the statement.

Under Aretas the king - There were three kings of this name who are particularly mentioned by ancient writers. The first is mentioned in 2 Macc. 5:8, as the "king of the Arabians."He lived about 170 years before Christ, and of course could not be the one referred to here. The second is mentioned in Josephus, Antiquities 13, xv, section 2. He is first mentioned as having reigned in Coele-Syria, but as being called to the government of Damascus by those who dwelt there, on account of the hatred which they bore to Ptolemy Meneus. Whiston remarks in a note on Josephus, that this was the first king of the Arabians who took Damascus and reigned there, and that this name afterward became common to such Arabian kings as reigned at Damascus and at Petra; see Josephus, Antiquities 16, ix, section 4. Of course this king reigned some time before the transaction here referred to by Paul. A third king of this name, says Rosenmuller, is the one mentioned here. He was the father-in-law of Herod Antipas. He made war with his son-in-law Herod because he had repudiated his daughter, the wife of Herod. This he had done in order to marry his brother Philip’ s wife; see the note, Mat 14:3. On this account Aretas made war with Herod, and in order to resist him, Herod applied to Tiberius the Roman emperor for aid. Vitellius was sent by Tiberius to subdue Aretas, and to bring him dead or alive to Rome. But before Vitellius had embarked in the enterprise, Tiberius died, and thus Aretas was saved from ruin. It is supposed that in this state of things, when thus waging war with Herod, he made an incursion to Syria and seized upon Damascus, where he was reigning when Paul went there; or if not reigning there personally, he had appointed an ethnarch or governor who administered the affairs of the city in his place.

Kept the city ... - Luke Act 9:24 says that they watched the gates day and night to kill him. This was probably the Jews. Meantime the ethnarch guarded the city, to prevent his escape. The Jews would have killed him at once; the ethnarch wished to apprehend him and bring him to trial. In either case Paul had much to fear, and he, therefore, embraced the only way of escape.

With a garrison - The word which is used here in the original ( φρουρέω phroureō ) means simply to watch; to guard; to keep. Our translation would seem to imply that there was a body of people stationed in order to guard the city. The true idea is, that there were men who were appointed to guard the gates of the city and to keep watch lest he should escape them. Damascus was surrounded, as all ancient cities were, with high walls, and it did not occur to them that he could escape in any other way than by the gates.

Poole: 2Co 11:32-33 - -- Ver. 32,33. Luke hath shortly given us the history of this danger, Act 9:23-25 . Soon after Paul was converted from the Jewish to the Christian relig...

Ver. 32,33. Luke hath shortly given us the history of this danger, Act 9:23-25 . Soon after Paul was converted from the Jewish to the Christian religion, he, disputing with the Jews which dwelt at Damascus, confounded them by his arguments, proving Jesus was the Christ, as we read there, Act 9:21 . This so enraged them, as that they sought to kill him, Act 9:23 . And (as we learn from this text) to effect their design, they had by some acts or other brought over the governor to favour their design; which, governor was a substitute under Aretas the king, who was father-in-law to Herod; for (as Josephus tells us) Herod put away his wife, the daughter of this Aretas, when he took Herodias. The Jews had got this deputy heathen governor so much on their side, that he shut up the gates, keeping his soldiers in arms. But (as St. Luke tells us, Act 9:24 ) Paul coming to the knowledge of this design, though they watched the gates day and night, yet he found a way of escape by the help of those Christians, who at that time were in Damascus; Act 9:25 : The disciples took him by night, and let him down by the wall in a basket. Two questions are started upon this passage of Paul’ s life:

1. Whether it was lawful for him to flee? But besides the particular licence our Lord, in this case, had given his first ministers, Mat 10:23 , Paul did in this case no more than what divines make lawful for a more ordinary minister, viz. to flee, when the persecution was directed against him in particular, leaving sufficient supply behind him.

2. The second question raised is: Whether, it being against human laws to go over the walls of a city or garrison, Paul did not sin in this escape? But that is easily answered; for:

a) This was lawful in some cases.

b) God’ s glory, and the good of souls, were more concerned in Paul’ s life, than to have it sacrificed to a punctilio of obedience to a human law made upon a mere politic consideration.

Gill: 2Co 11:32 - -- In Damascus the governor under Aretas the king,.... Aretas or Al-Hareth was a king of Arabia, of the family of the Gassanii; among whom were many of t...

In Damascus the governor under Aretas the king,.... Aretas or Al-Hareth was a king of Arabia, of the family of the Gassanii; among whom were many of this name r; and who for some hundreds of years ruled over Syria, of which Damascus was the metropolis. The fourth king of that family was of this name, and perhaps is the person here meant; and after him there were four more of the same family so called; it was a name of Arabian kings in other families. The fifteenth king of the Yamanensians was of this name, and so was the "seventeenth" of the Hirensians s, and the "third" of the kings of Cenda; in the times of Antiochus Epiphanes, there was an Aretas king of the Arabians, mentioned in the Apocrypha t.

"In the end therefore he had an unhappy return, being accused before Aretas the king of the Arabians, fleeing from city to city, pursued of all men, hated as a forsaker of the laws, and being had in abomination as an open enemy of his country and countrymen, he was cast out into Egypt.'' (2 Maccabees 5:8)

Josephus u also makes mention of Aretas king of the Arabians, who seems to have been king of Arabia Petraea, since his royal seat was at Petra, to whom Hyrcanus fled by the advice of Antipater, the father of Herod the great; and there was also one of this name in the times of Herod himself, who succeeded Obodas w; yea, there was an Aretas king of Petraea, in the times of Herod the tetrarch, whose daughter Herod married, and put her away when he took Herodias, his brother Philip's wife, which occasioned a quarrel between him and Aretas, which issued in a battle, in which Herod was beaten x; and who is thought to be the same king which is here spoken of: the name Aretas or Al-Hareth, as Hillerus y, observes, signifies the lion; and a lion with the eastern nations was a symbol of royalty and dominion; hence such names were given to persons of illustrious birth and power; so Ali, the son-in-law of Mahomet, was called by the Arabs and Persians the lion of God: now Syria, where Damascus was, and which is called by Pliny z Damascus of Syria, had been of long time in the hands of the kings of Arabia; and a Josephus makes mention of Aretas, king of Coele Syria, who was called to the government by those who had Damascus in their hands; very probably by Milesius, who was governor of the tower of Damascus, and commanded των δαμασκηνων την πολιν, "the city of the Damascenes", as Josephus calls Damascus, just as it is here in the next clause; in which country of Coele Syria, Ptolomy b also places Damascus; and Grotius has proved from Justin Martyr c and Terlullian d, that Damascus formerly belonged to Arabia, though in their times it was reckoned to Syro Phoenicia: here the apostle preached to the confounding of the Jews that dwelt there, which provoked them to enter into a consultation to take away his life; and that he might not escape their hands, they moved to the then governor who was under the king, that the gates might be watched day and night; see Act 9:23 to which he agreed; and as the apostle here says,

kept the city of the Damascenes with a garrison, or set a guard about it; or as the Arabic version reads it, "he shut up the city"; and placed a watch at the gates of it night and day, or allowed the Jews to do so:

desirous to apprehend me; in order to deliver him into their hands, who were now his sworn enemies for the Gospel's sake; willing to do them this favour to ingratiate himself into their affections; or perhaps it might be insinuated to him, that he was a seditious person.

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Commentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes

NET Notes: 2Co 11:32 Or “to seize,” “to catch.”

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Commentary -- Verse Range Notes

TSK Synopsis: 2Co 11:1-33 - --1 Out of his jealousy over the Corinthians, who seemed to make more account of the false apostles than of him, he enters into a forced commendation of...

MHCC: 2Co 11:22-33 - --The apostle gives an account of his labours and sufferings; not out of pride or vain-glory, but to the honour of God, who enabled him to do and suffer...

Matthew Henry: 2Co 11:22-33 - -- Here the apostle gives a large account of his own qualifications, labours, and sufferings (not out of pride or vain-glory, but to the honour of God,...

Barclay: 2Co 11:16-33 - --All against his will Paul is forced to produce his credentials as an apostle. He feels that the whole thing is folly, and, when it comes to compari...

Constable: 2Co 10:1--13:11 - --IV. APPEALS CONCERNING PAUL'S APOSTOLIC AUTHORITY 10:1--13:10 In this third and last major division of his epist...

Constable: 2Co 11:1--12:19 - --B. Claims made by Paul 11:1-12:18 In this section Paul gave further evidence that he possessed apostolic...

Constable: 2Co 11:16-33 - --3. Paul's service and sufferings 11:16-33 To answer his critics and prove the extent of his own service and sufferings for Christ, Paul related many o...

College: 2Co 11:1-33 - --2 CORINTHIANS 11 B. COMPARISON TO FALSE APOSTLES MADE (11:1-15) 1. True Message of Jesus Preached (11:1-6) 11:1 I hope you will put up with a littl...

McGarvey: 2Co 11:32 - --In Damascus the governor under Aretas the king guarded the city of the Damascenes in order to take me:

Lapide: 2Co 11:1-33 - --CHAPTER 11 SYNOPSIS OF THE CHAPTER i. After declaring his love for the Corinthians, he proceeds (ver. 4) to defend his apostleship against the fals...

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Introduction / Outline

Robertson: 2 Corinthians (Book Introduction) Second Corinthians From Macedonia a.d. 54 Or 55 By Way of Introduction The Pauline authorship is admitted by all real scholars, though there is ...

JFB: 2 Corinthians (Book Introduction) THE following reasons seem to have induced Paul to write this Second Epistle to the Corinthians: (1) That he might explain the reasons for his having ...

JFB: 2 Corinthians (Outline) THE HEADING; PAUL'S CONSOLATIONS IN RECENT TRIALS IN ASIA; HIS SINCERITY TOWARDS THE CORINTHIANS; EXPLANATION OF HIS NOT HAVING VISITED THEM AS HE HA...

TSK: 2 Corinthians (Book Introduction) The most remarkable circumstance in this Epistle, observes Mr. Scott, is the confidence of the Apostle in the goodness of his cause, and in the power ...

TSK: 2 Corinthians 11 (Chapter Introduction) Overview 2Co 11:1, Out of his jealousy over the Corinthians, who seemed to make more account of the false apostles than of him, he enters into a f...

Poole: 2 Corinthians 11 (Chapter Introduction) CORINTHIANS CHAPTER 11

MHCC: 2 Corinthians (Book Introduction) The second epistle to the Corinthians probably was written about a year after the first. Its contents are closely connected with those of the former e...

MHCC: 2 Corinthians 11 (Chapter Introduction) (2Co 11:1-14) The apostle gives the reasons for speaking in his own commendation. (2Co 11:5-15) Shows that he had freely preached the gospel. (2Co 1...

Matthew Henry: 2 Corinthians (Book Introduction) An Exposition, with Practical Observations, of The Second Epistle of St. Paul to the Corinthians In his former epistle the apostle had signified his i...

Matthew Henry: 2 Corinthians 11 (Chapter Introduction) In this chapter the apostle goes on with his discourse, in opposition to the false apostles, who were very industrious to lessen his interest and r...

Barclay: 2 Corinthians (Book Introduction) INTRODUCTION TO THE LETTERS TO THE CORINTHIANS The Greatness Of Corinth A glance at the map will show that Corinth was made for greatness. The south...

Barclay: 2 Corinthians 11 (Chapter Introduction) The Peril Of Seduction (2Co_11:1-6) Masquerading As Christians (2Co_11:7-15) The Credentials Of An Apostle (2Co_11:16-33)

Constable: 2 Corinthians (Book Introduction) Introduction Historical background First Corinthians did not dispel the problems in th...

Constable: 2 Corinthians (Outline) Outline I. Introduction 1:1-11 A. Salutation 1:1-2 B. Thanksgiving for c...

Constable: 2 Corinthians 2 Corinthians Bibliography Alford, Henry. The Greek Testament. 4 vols. Reprint ed. Grand Rapids: Baker Book Hou...

Haydock: 2 Corinthians (Book Introduction) THE SECOND EPISTLE OF ST. PAUL, THE APOSTLE, TO THE CORINTHIANS. INTRODUCTION. The subject and design of this second Epistle to the Corinthian...

Gill: 2 Corinthians (Book Introduction) INTRODUCTION TO 2 CORINTHIANS This epistle, according to the subscription at the end of it, was written from Philippi of Macedonia; and though the ...

Gill: 2 Corinthians 11 (Chapter Introduction) INTRODUCTION TO 2 CORINTHIANS 11 In this chapter, the apostle continues his discourse concerning the false teachers; blames the Corinthians for the...

College: 2 Corinthians (Book Introduction) INTRODUCTION Studying 2 Corinthians plunges the modern reader back to the real, tumultuous world of early Christianity. The simple ideals of sharing ...

College: 2 Corinthians (Outline) OUTLINE I. OPENING - 1:1-2 II. THANKSGIVING - 1:3-11 A. GOD COMFORTS - 1:3-7 B. GOD DELIVERS - 1:8-11 III. DEFENSE OF INTEGRITY - 1:12...

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