According to the Epistle to the Romans found in the New International Version of the New Testament, Erastus was Corinth's "director of public works"^[1], a position of high status. The word in the original Greek text is oikonomos which is generally translated as "steward" or, in this context, "treasurer". ^[2] An Erastus is also mentioned in the Second Epistle to Timothy and Acts. It is not certain if these verses all refer to the one person. The Epistle to the Romans is one of the letters of the New Testament canon of the Christian Bible. ... The New International Version (NIV) is an English translation of the Christian Bible which is the most popular of the modern translations of the Bible made in the twentieth century. ... John 21:1 Jesus Appears to His Disciples--Alessandro Mantovani: the Vatican, Rome. ... Corinth, or Korinth (Greek: Κόρινθος, Kórinthos; see also List of traditional Greek place names) is a Greek city-state, on the Isthmus of Corinth, the narrow stretch of land that joins the Peloponnesus to the mainland of Greece. ... This article or section should be merged with First Epistle to Timothy The Pastoral Epistles are often considered together, as each throws light upon the others. ... The Acts of the Apostles is a book of the Bible, which now stands fifth in the New Testament. ...

Relevant Verses

^{*King James Version} This page is about the version of the Bible; for the Harvey Danger album, see King James Version (album). ...

"So he sent into Macedonia two of them that ministered unto him, Timotheus and Erastus; but he himself stayed in Asia for a season."
Acts 19:22 The Acts of the Apostles is a book of the Bible, which now stands fifth in the New Testament. ...

"Gaius mine host, and of the whole church, saluteth you. Erastus the chamberlain of the city saluteth you, and Quartus a brother."
Romans 16:23 Quartus (Latin fourth) was a Corinthian Christian who sent messages to friends in Rome through Paul of Tarsus. ... The Epistle to the Romans is one of the letters of the New Testament canon of the Christian Bible. ...

"Erastus abode at Corinth: but Trophimus have I left at Miletum sick."
2 Timothy 4:20 This entry incorporates text from Eastons Bible Dictionary, 1897, with some modernisation. ... This article or section should be merged with First Epistle to Timothy The Pastoral Epistles are often considered together, as each throws light upon the others. ...

The Erastus Inscription

In 1929, an inscription mentioning an Erastus was found near a paved area northeast of the theater of Corinth. It has been dated to the mid-first century^[3] and reads ERASTVS. PRO. AED. S. P. STRAVIT which translates as "Erastus in return for his aedileship laid [the pavement] at his own expense." An aedil was a city official responsible for managing markets, streets, public buildings, public games, and other commercial affairs; an elected position.^[4]

New Testament scholars have identified this aedile Erastus with the Erastus mentioned in The Epistle to the Romans but this is in dispute. This debate has implications relating to the social status of the members of the Pauline churches. ^[5]

References