100 Reasons to Believe New Testament History
84. The Erastus Inscription
The name Erastus appears in several places in the New Testament, as an associate to the great apostle Paul. He worked alongside Timothy in Macedonia (Acts 19:22), but seemed to have permanent residence in the city of Corinth (2 Timothy 4:20, Romans 16:20). Paul describes him as the “chamberlain” of Corinth (Greek – “Oikonomos”), a term sometimes translated as “treasurer” (Romans 16:20).
On a limestone pavement just outside of the Corinthian ruins, a Latin inscription dated to the first century reads: “Erastus, in return for the aedileship, laid the pavement at his own expense.” The title “aedile” may be safely regarded as synonymous with “oikonomos” as both offices included the managing of financial affairs of the city A. There is no good reason to reject the belief that the Erastus inscription is referring to the companion of Paul mentioned in the New Testament writings.
84. The Erastus Inscription - Notes and References
A. “The question may be asked whether the Greek word oikonomos could represent the Latin aedile. We discover that these officials, whether Greek or Roman, included in their functions the charge of the financial affairs of the city, and thus the identification seems very probable. Most scholars today are agreed that there is no good reason why the man who prepared the pavement inscription should not be the same Erastus as the chamberlain.” J.A. Thompson, “The Bible and Archaeology”, Eerdmans Publishing, 1962, pp.397-398