16:3

Give my greetings: From this verse to verse 15, Paul sends greetings to 26 Christians mentioned by name and to many others mentioned individually or collectively. Paul’s appreciation for his spiritual sisters is shown by his specific mention of these eight Christian women: Prisca, Mary, Tryphaena, Tryphosa, Persis, and Julia as well as Rufus’ mother and Nereus’ sister. By this time, he had been a prominent apostle to the nations for many years. (Ac 9:15; Ro 1:1; 11:13) Yet, as indicated by these greetings, he never stopped showing personal interest in his fellow worshippers.

Prisca and Aquila: This faithful couple had been banished from Rome by Emperor Claudius’ decree against the Jews sometime in the year 49 or early 50 C.E. Claudius died in 54 C.E., and by the time Paul wrote his letter to the Christians in Rome, about 56 C.E., Prisca and Aquila had returned there. (See study note on Ac 18:2.) Paul describes them as his fellow workers. The Greek word for “fellow worker,” sy·ner·gosʹ, appears 12 times in the Christian Greek Scriptures, most often in the letters of Paul. (Ro 16:9, 21; Php 2:25; 4:3; Col 4:11; Phm 1, 24) Notably, at 1Co 3:9, Paul says: “We are God’s fellow workers.”