18:5 Maybe Paul was able to stop practicing his trade and give full time to teaching and evangelizing if Silas returned from Philippi with a monetary gift, as seems likely (cf. Phil. 4:14-16; 2 Cor. 11:9). Timothy had returned from Thessalonica with encouraging news about the Christians' progress there (cf. 1 Thess. 3:6-10), but they were also having problems (1 Thess. 2:3-6; 4:13-5:11). Paul evidently wrote 1 Thessalonians soon after Timothy's return and 2 Thessalonians shortly thereafter also from Corinth, probably in the early 50s A.D. (cf. v. 11).
18:6 Paul's hearers blasphemed when they spoke things about Jesus Christ that were not true (cf. 13:45; 26:11). Shaking out one's garment so no dust from the place remained symbolized the same thing as shaking the dust from one's sandals (13:51), namely rejection. Paul felt he had fulfilled his responsibility to deliver the gospel to these Jews (cf. Ezek. 33:1-9). Consequently he turned his attention to evangelizing the Gentiles as he had done before (13:7-11, 46; 14:2-6; 17:5; cf. 19:8-9; 28:23-28).
18:7 Titius Justus--the name is Roman--may have been a God-fearer whom Paul met in the synagogue. He may be the person Paul called Gaius elsewhere (cf. Rom. 16:23; 1 Cor. 1:14) since Gaius is a first name and Titius and Justus are given and family names respectively.739
18:8 Crispus was another one of the few believers in Corinth that Paul baptized personally (1 Cor. 1:14). Yet many of the Corinthians believed the gospel when they heard it from Paul.
18:9-10 Another vision quieted Paul's fears (cf. 23:11; 27:23-24). His ministry in Corinth was getting off to a rough start, as many ministries do, but it would succeed. He needed encouragement to be courageous and to keep speaking rather than falling silent. The Lord could see His elect in Corinth before their conversions even though Paul could not.
18:11 Paul's year and a half stay in Corinth probably dates from the fall of 50 to the spring of 52 A.D. This was evidently the entire time Paul remained in Corinth. The church Paul planted in Corinth consisted of a rich mixture of people some of whom were greatly gifted but most of whom came from the lower elements of society (cf. Rom. 16:23; 1 Cor. 1:4-8, 26-29; 7:18; 12:13).
