{Ye yourselves} (autoi). Intensive pronoun. Certainly
they knew that the church in Ephesus had not supported Paul while
there. {These hands} (hai cheires hautai). Paul was not above
manual labour. He pointed to his hands with pride as proof that
he toiled at his trade of tent-making as at Thessalonica and
Corinth for his own needs (chreiais) and for those with him
(probably Aquila and Priscilla) with whom he lived and probably
Timothy because of his often infirmities ( 1Ti 5:23 ).
{Ministered} (hup(8872)et(8873)an). First aorist active of hup(8872)ete(935c),
to act as under rower, old verb, but in the N.T. only in Ac
13:36 20:34 24:23 . While in Ephesus Paul wrote to Corinth: "We
toil, working with our own hands" ( 1Co 4:12 ). "As he held them
up, they saw a tongue of truth in every seam that marked them"
(Furneaux).
|