Phrygia, and Pamphylia, in Egypt,.... Phrygia was a country in Asia, and had part of Galatia on the north, Lycaonia, Pisidia, and Mygdonia on the south, and on the east Cappadocia x; here the Apostle Paul afterwards travelled, and strengthened the Christians; see Acts 16:6. Pamphylia, now called Setilia, is another country in Asia, formerly called Mopsopia y; which had on the west Lycia, and part of Asia, on the north Galatia, on the east Cilicia, and part of Cappadocia, and on the south the sea of Pamphylia z, of which mention is made in Acts 27:5. The chief city in it was Perga, where was a temple of Diana a, and here the Apostle Paul also was; see Acts 13:13. Others of these sojourning Jews lived in Egypt, which was a large country in Africa; which had on the east the deserts of Arabia, on the west Libya, on the south Ethiopia, and on the north the Mediterranean sea; hither many Jews were carried captive by Ptolomy Lagus, and these spoke the Egyptian language:
and in the parts of Libya about Cyrene; there were others at Jerusalem, which came from hence, The Arabic version reads this clause, "and in the parts of Africa, which is our country"; and Pliny says b, the Greeks call Africa, Libya. The Jews say c, Libya in Egypt; and for proselytes from Libya, they wait three generations; that is, before they receive them: Cyrene, or Cyreniaca, which is no other than upper Libya, is called by Pliny d, the Pentapolitan country, from the five cities in it; Berenice, Arsinoe, Ptolemais, Apollonia, and Cyrene: to these are added,
and strangers of Rome, Jews and proselytes; that is, as the Syriac version renders it, "those that came from Rome"; to which the Arabic agrees: they were natives and inhabitants of the city of Rome, though now they were at Jerusalem; and some of these were Jews by birth, and lineal descent, though born at Rome; and others were such as were proselytes of righteousness, who were originally Gentiles, but were now circumcised, and had embraced the Jewish religion; concerning such, Matthew 23:15. These doubtless spoke in the Roman, or Latin tongue.
x Plin. l. 5. c. 32. y Ib. c. 27. z Ptolom. l. 5. c. 5. a Plin. l. 5. c. 27. Ptolom, ib. &. Mela, l. 1. c. 14. b Plin. l. 5. in principio. c T. Hieros. Kilaim, fol. 31. 3. & Sabbat, fol. 7. 2. d L. 5. c. 5.