The beating he had taken was severe. He was accustomed to blows, but these put him down for a while and for fear that it might happen again, friends spirited him past the double wall and into Cenchrea for recovery.

Paul had come from Athens to Corinth a little over eighteen months before and quickly found employment with two new friends. He worked many hours every week for Aquila and his wife helping make tents, but a different passion drove him and soon preaching, individual counseling, study and prayer were added to the packed schedule. He was also dictating a new book to Tertius when spare moments and lamp light would allow.

Then, suddenly, the well ordered days came to an end. The government changed and Paul found himself unprotected from some very old and very aggressive enemies.

By the time of the beating, he had been busily planting gospel seeds for months. They were seeds that sprouted and threaded deep roots into the surrounding area. Several churches were scattered nearby and one in particular would risk keeping both him and his precious book safe as he regained strength. The church on the other side of the wall.

Corinth was sandwiched between two seaports. To the west, Lechalum opened toward Italy and to the east, Cenchera faced Asia with Corinth squeezed between them providing a social, banking, and government base for Rome. Though cramped for space, the three cities were determined to keep their own identity so each surrounded itself with a wall. They were so close together that for much of the way the structure became a double wall with occasional mismatched gates providing passage. Moving from Corinth to Cenchera, friends helped the injured Paul thread his way through the walls toward the sea, bringing along his few belongings and the book he had worked on for so long.

Paul and his precious book stayed hidden with various church members for a number of days while finishing lines were written and his injuries healed. Then the real question arose. How to get the book to its intended recipients six hundred miles away? The answer: a woman who had reason to travel, means enough to do so and would never be suspected by either the Romans or the Jews of doing anything seditious. Her name was Phoebe and in future centuries the scroll she carried would be called, The Epistle of Paul to the Romans.[1]

Phoebe had been named for the goddess of the moon and was a citizen of Greece. Some might wonder about such strange linage, but Paul called her a sister in the faith and found no problem with the fact that she never "Christianized" her name. He trusted her implicitly and when he left for Ephesus, laid his precious scroll in her capable hands.

He also included a brief introduction of the lady and added it to the book's closing remarks. From these brief comments we learn three things about Phoebe: she was a "servant" of the church at Cenchrea, she was a benefactor [2] to many-including Paul-and she had business connections that took her to Rome.

How did she "benefit" Paul? We don't' know, but the same grace had been extended to "many" others before he came along. The exact word he used to describe her actions was "prostatis" which literally means "one who stands by in case of need." In a classical sense it described a trainer in the Olympic Games who stood by athletes seeing they were properly trained, correctly fed and ready for the starting line. She was like a champion or coach who stood up for others offering guidance and help.

Paul also identified her was a "servant"[3] of the church-a choice of words that has created much controversy. The precise Greek word is "diakonos" which translates into English as "deaconess." Denominations acknowledging the role of deaconess as an office of the church point to this scripture for support. Other denominations who feel no office is allowed for females, point out that "diakon" could be used for any kind of servant.

But, if Phoebe were here today, I suspect she would dismiss the entire debate as unimportant. After all, any Christian women who had courage enough to keep her pagan name and travel half-way across the then known world on business would never be bothered by details of semantics. Phoebe was too busy being a first class "prostatis" to worry whether her role as "diakonos" was officially recognized or not.