Puteoli
Puteoli was the major Italian port near Naples where Paul finally landed after surviving the shipwreck at Malta, completing the sea portion of his long journey to Rome as a prisoner. There he found believers already established in the city, who urged him to stay with them for seven days before he continued on toward the capital. This detail quietly shows how far the gospel had already spread along the Roman trade routes even before Paul's own arrival in Italy, and the warm hospitality he received here anticipated the encouragement he would find from believers who came out from Rome itself to meet him on the road.
Details
- Region
- Italy
- Modern Location
- Pozzuoli, near Naples, Italy
Key Passages
Paul Arrives in Italy at Puteoli
Acts 28:13-14
Finding fellow believers already established in Puteoli shows the gospel had reached Italy along trade routes well before Paul's own arrival.
13nd from thence we fetched a compass, and came to Rhegium: and after one day the south wind blew, and we came the next day to Puteoli:
Did You Know?
Puteoli was Rome's main grain port - Paul arrived aboard an Alexandrian grain ship, the supertanker of the ancient world.
Believers already lived at Puteoli when Paul landed - Christianity had reached Italy's ports before any apostle did.
The harbor's ancient concrete piers, made with volcanic ash, helped give the world Roman concrete - some remnants survive underwater today.