1. Philippi (Acts 16:12-40). This was an ancient town, enlarged and renamed by Philip, the father of Alexander the Great. Near it was fought the great battle between Augustus and Antony on one side, and Brutus and Cassius on the other, in which the hope of a Roman republic perished, and the empire was ushered in. It had been made a colony; that is, a branch of Rome itself, and enjoyed certain privileges of self-government, so that its magistrates bore Roman titles, as noticed by Luke. Here Lydia, the first convert in Europe, was baptized, and a church was planted; Paul and Silas were scourged and imprisoned, and set free by divine power; the jailer was brought to Christ; and the officials of the city were made to tremble at having inflicted violence upon citizens of Rome.
2. Amphipolis was 33 miles southwest of Philippi, and 3 miles from the Ægean Sea. It was a town of ancient fame; but, in Paul's time, decayed in population; and, having no synagogue or Jewish population, was not yet made a field of his labors. After a delay of only a day, he journeyed on still further westward. (Acts 17:1.)
3. Apollonia was 30 miles from Amphipolis, and an important city; but for some reason Paul did not choose to labor in its vicinity, and remained there but a day. (Acts 17:1.)
4. Thessalonica (Acts 17:1-9) was the capital of the entire province, and 40 miles from the preceding station. It was named after a sister of Alexander the Great, and had many historic associations. An arch is still standing, and was doubtless seen by the apostle, which commemorated the victory at Philippi. There was a large Jewish population, and a synagogue, in which Paul preached for three sabbaths. He succeeded in founding a church, mostly of Gentiles, to which he soon after wrote his two earliest epistles, First and Second Thessalonians. But the Jews excited a riot, and the apostles were compelled to leave the city by night. Thessalonica, now called Saloniki, is still the second city of European Turkey, and contains 80,000 inhabitants.
5. Berea (Acts 17:10-13) was a small city, chosen by the apostle on account of its retired situation. It lay on the eastern side of Mount Olympus. Its people were generous in hearing the truth, and candid in examination of its claims; so that many of them believed, and "the Bereans" have furnished a name for earnest students of the Bible in all lands. The place is now called Verria, and has a population of about 6,000.
6. Athens (Acts 17:15-34) was one of the most famous cities of the world. It was situated 5 miles northeast of the Saronic Gulf, between the two little streams Cephissus and Ilissus, and connected by long walls with its two seaports, the Piræus and the Phaleric Gulf, where probably Paul landed. Around it stand mountains noted in history, and within its walls rise four important hills: the Acropolis, surmounted by the Parthenon, the most perfect specimen of Greek architecture; the Areopagus, northwest of the Acropolis, where Paul delivered his memorable discourse; the Pnyx, still further west; and, on the south, the Museum. In Paul's time Athens was no longer the political capital, but was still the literary centre, not only of Greece, but of the civilized world. Paul's discourse before its philosophers was not attended with immediate results, as no church appears to have been founded; but, four centuries afterward, the Parthenon became a Christian church, and the Athenians were among the most bitter foes of image worship. After many changes of fortune—at times being without inhabitants—Athens is now the growing capital of the kingdom of modern Greece, and the seat of a university.
7. Corinth (Acts 18:1-18), the next station of the apostle, was 40 miles west of Athens, on the isthmus between Hellas and Peloponnesus, which is here 10 miles wide. In Paul's time it was the commercial and political metropolis of Greece, being the residence of the Roman proconsul. It was, however, a most wicked city, and a by-word for corruption and licentiousness. Paul preached in Corinth for a year and a half, working meanwhile at his trade as a tent-maker, and during his stay wrote the two Epistles to the Thessalonians. After leaving, he wrote to the Corinthian Christians two of his longest Epistles, First and Second Corinthians. The site of the city is now desolate, except for a small and wretched village, named Gortho.
8. Cenchrea (Acts 18:18), more accurately Cenchreæ, is named merely as the place from which Paul set forth on his return journey, and where he performed the Levitical service of cutting off his hair in token of a vow. We know, however, that he had, directly or indirectly, planted a church here, as its deaconess, Phebe, is named. (Rom. 16:1, 2.) This was the eastern harbor of Corinth, on the Saronic Gulf, 9 miles from the city. It is now called Kekhries.
III. The Return Stations of the apostle, in his journey from Corinth to Antioch, are given as four in number, though the journey was more than a thousand miles in length.