Trophimus

AI summary: Trophimus matters because the cross references place him near one of the flashpoints in Acts where Paul's ministry to Gentiles collides with Jewish suspicion. The false assumption that Paul brought Trophimus into the temple helps trigger the riot that leads to Paul's imprisonment. His later mention in 2 Timothy also gives him a quietly human contour, reminding readers that apostolic mission involved illness, unfinished journeys, and ordinary vulnerability. Taken together, the material presents Trophimus as a Gentile coworker whose presence exposes both the reach and the cost of Paul's mission.¹

A foster-child, an Ephesian who accompanied Paul during a part of his third missionary journey (Acts 20:4; 21:29). He was with Paul in Jerusalem, and the Jews, supposing that the apostle had brought him with him into the temple, raised a tumult which resulted in Paul’s imprisonment. (See TEMPLE, HEROD’S.) In writing to Timothy, the apostle says, “Trophimus have I left at Miletum sick” (2 Tim. 4:20). This must refer to some event not noticed in the Acts. ³