References to an expulsion of Jews from Rome by the Roman emperor Claudius, who was in office AD 41–54, appear in the Acts of the Apostles (18:2), and in the writings of Roman historians Suetonius (c. AD 69 – c. AD 122), Cassius Dio (c. AD 150 – c. 235) and fifth-century Christian author Paulus Orosius. Scholars generally agree that these references refer to the same incident.Rainer Riesner "Pauline Chronology" in Stephen Westerholm The Blackwell Companion to Paul (May 16, 2011) pp.13-14Andreas J. Köstenberger, L. Scott Kellum, The Cradle, the Cross, and the Crown: An Introduction to the New Testament (2009) p. 110, 400

The exact date is uncertain. The maximal time window for the expulsion of Jews from Rome is from January AD 41 until January AD 53. More detailed estimates, such as those based on the AD 49 date by Orosius or the reduction of the AD 53 upper limit due to Proconsul Gallio's health, are possible but controversial.

Context There were at least two expulsions of Jews from Rome before the reign of the Roman emperor Claudius. In 139 BC, the Jews were expelled after being accused of missionary efforts. Then, in AD 19, Tiberius once again expelled Jews from the city, for defrauding the noblewoman Fulvia. Josephus reports in Antiquities of the Jews (Book 18, Chapter 3, 5) that approximately 4,000 Jews were banished to Sardinia in this incident.Antiquities of the Jews, Book 18, Chapter 3, 5, based on the translation of Louis H. Feldman, The Loeb Classical Library. http://www.josephus.org/testimonium.htm

Acts of the Apostles The author of the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 18:1-18) explains how the Apostle Paul met Priscilla and Aquila and mentions in passing an expulsion of Jews from Rome:

Dating Acts by reference to Gallio or to Orosius

A fairly precise date for Acts 18:1-18 is derived from the mention of the proconsul Gallio in 18:12 and the existence of an inscription found at Delphi and published in 1905, preserving a letter from Claudius concerning Gallio dated during the 26th acclamation of Claudius, sometime between January AD 51 and August AD 52.John B. Polhill, Paul and His Letters, B&H Publishing Group, 1999, , p.78.

Ralph Novak states that the Delphi inscription clearly indicates that Gallio did not assume office any earlier than the spring of 50, adds that he may have served one or two years, and uses that to compute date ranges. Working from a date prior to August AD 52 for the Gallio inscription, Novak considers the possibility that Gallio served for two years and calculates a possible range for Gallio's term of office from late spring of AD 50 to early summer of AD 54 depending on whether the inscription reflects a date late in Gallio's consulship or early. Slingerland accepts a wide date range for Paul's trial similar to that of Novak for Gallio's consulship and states that Paul could have arrived in Corinth up to 18 months earlier than the earliest possible start of Gallio's term of office or a short time before the end of Gallio's latest date.Slingerland, 'Orosius', JQR 83, 1/2 (1992), p.134.

Udo Schnelle specifies that the reign of Gallio started in the summer of 51,Apostle Paul: His Life and Theology by Udo Schnelle 2005 page 49. See also The Book of Acts by F. F. Bruce 1998 page 352 and The Greco-Roman World of the New Testament Era by James S. Jeffers (Oct 7, 1999) page 164 and Craig S. Keener pinpoints the start of his term to July 51, although some scholars prefer 52.Craig S. Keener in The Blackwell Companion to Paul edited by Stephen Westerholm 2011 page 51

An independent dating of Acts is sometimes based on a controversial AD 49 date for Claudius' edict, reported by Orosius (see section on Paulus Orosius below): According to Novak, if Claudius' edict were issued in January of 49 and Paul came to Corinth and met Aquila and Priscilla, within six or so months of the edict, then an eighteen-month stay in Corinth would indicate a date after late spring of 50 and many days before January of 51 for Paul's trial. At the other extreme, if Claudius' edict were issued in December of 49, using the same reasoning, the date of Paul's trial would be many days before the January of 52. Michael R. Cosby states that the dates 49-50 for the expulsion of Jews from Rome support the date from the trial of Paul in Corinth, and are consistent with the account of the activities of Priscilla and Aquila given in Acts 18:24-26.Apostle on the Edge: An Inductive Approach to Paul by Michael R. Cosby (Oct 20, 2009) pages 142-143. See also Introduction to the New Testament by Raymond E. Brown (30 Nov 1997) page 433 and Introducing Romans: Critical Issues in Paul's Most Famous Letter by Richard N. Longenecker (Mar 25, 2011) pages 46-47

In summary, the maximal time window for the expulsion of Jews from Rome is January AD 41 (the accession of Claudius) until January AD 53 (18 months prior to the latest possible end of Gallio's term and thus the latest date for Paul's trial). More detailed estimates such as those based on the AD 49 date of Orosius are possible but controversial.

The health of Gallio Gallio's brother Seneca reports in Moral Epistles 104.1 that Gallio "began to develop a fever in Achaia and took ship at once, insisting that the disease was not of the body but of the place". Furthermore, Pliny the Elder states in his Natural History 31.33 that "There are besides many other uses, the chief being a sea voyage for those attacked by consumption, as I have said, and for haemoptysis, such as quite recently within our memory was taken by Annæus Gallio after his consulship."Plinius Natural History Book 31 chapter 33, translation by WHS Jones (1963) William Heinemann, London, 1963, p417Alternative translation "There are numerous other medicinal resources derived from the sea; the benefit of a sea-voyage, more particularly, in cases of phthisis, as already mentioned, and where patients are suffering from hæmoptosis [hæmoptysis], as lately experienced, in our own memory, by Annæus Gallio, at the close of his consulship." .

Based on these references, Jerome Murphy-O'Connor and a number of other scholars conclude that it is likely that the tenure of Gallio in Corinth lasted less than a full year, and for health reasons Gallio left Corinth earlier, perhaps even before shipping on the Mediterranean stopped in October 51 due to winter storms."Pauline Chronology" by Rainer Riesner The Blackwell Companion to Paul edited by Stephen Westerholm (May 16, 2011) page 14. The Language of Belonging by Mary Katherine Birge (Dec 1, 2002) page 3. Jerome Murphy-O'Connor "Paul and Gallio" Journal of Biblical Literature Vol. 112, No. 2, 1993. The First Epistle to the Corinthians by Anthony C Thiselton 2000 pages 29-30. Apostle on the Edge: An Inductive Approach to Paul by Michael R. Cosby (Oct 20, 2009) page 76 He argues that "it is impossible" to place Paul's trial by Gallio in the latter part of AD 51–52 and the trial must have happened between July when Gallio arrived in Corinth and September of 51.Paul: A Critical Life by J. Murphy-O'Connor (Sep 3, 1998) pages 21-22 Murphy-O'Connor adds that this has "positive confirmation" in Galatians 2:1 which "places Paul in Jerusalem in AD 51".

On the other hand, Pliny the Elder refers to only one sea cure by Gallio, which was after he was consul presumably around AD 55,Klaus Haacker states, "Both Seneca and Plinius mention a sea voyage which Gallio chose as an immediate remedy against symptoms of phthisis when he was in Greece (not during his proconsulship as some modern writers wrongly assume)". Klaus Haacker, "Gallio", entry in the Anchor Bible Dictionary (Doubleday, 1992)"L. Junius Annaeus Gallio, was suffect consul in the mid-50s AD, perhaps in 54." Robert C. Knapp, Roman Córdoba (University of California Press, 1992) p.42. "L. Junius Gallio did hold consulship in 55 or 56". Anthony Barrett, Agrippina: Sex, Power and Politics in the Early Empire (Routledge, 1999) p.280. "Gallio reached the consulship, probably in 55". Miriam T. Griffin, Nero: The End of a Dynasty (Routledge, 1987) p.78. See also Wikipedia: List of Roman consuls and List of state leaders in 56. and neither Seneca nor Pliny explicitly suggest that Gallio deserted his Achaea posting not to return.Bruce Winter, "Rehabilitating Gallio and his Judgement in Acts 18:14-15" Tyndale Bulletin 57.2 (2006), pp.298-299. Slingerland states that an argument regarding the shortening of Gallio's stay in Achaea due to health issues is "speculative".Slingerland, 'Gallio', JBL 110, 3, p.446.

Dating problems Some scholars indicate difficulties trying to use Acts for strict chronological indications. Collins and Harrington state that Luke's account may be a conflation of various traditions and not entirely accurate.Raymond F. Collins, Daniel J. Harrington, First Corinthians (Liturgical Press, 1993) p.24. Jerome Murphy-O'Connor indicates that Acts 18 is "much less precise than appears at first sight." The expulsion was from Rome, but Aquila and Priscilla came from Italy, so they may have stayed in Italy after the expulsion, how long "no-one can say". He also questions the exactitude of what is meant by "recently"/"lately".Jerome Murphy-O'Connor, St. Paul's Corinth: Text and Archaeology (Liturgical Press, 2002) p.159.

Suetonius

A brief statement in Divus Claudius 25 mentions agitations by the "Jews" which led Claudius (Roman Emperor from AD 41 to 54) to expel them from Rome:

The expulsion event Suetonius refers to is necessarily later than AD 41,Rainer Riesner, "Pauline Chronology" in The Blackwell Companion to Paul, Stephen Westerholm (ed.) (Blackwell, 2011) p.13. and earlier than AD 54. The expulsion is mentioned in the last quarter of a list of Claudius' actions during his reign. However, precisely dating the expulsion from Suetonius provides some challenges because Suetonius writes in a topical rather than chronological fashion, necessitating the use of other texts to pinpoint the time.Slingerland, 'Suetonius "Claudius" 25.4 and the Account in Cassius Dio', JQR 79, 4, p.306 The dating of the "edict of Claudius" for the expulsion of Jews relies on three separate texts beyond Suetonius' own reference, which in chronological order are: the reference to the trial of Apostle Paul by Gallio in the Acts of the Apostles (18:2),Jerome Murphy-O'Connor St. Paul's Corinth: Texts and Archaeology (Aug 1, 2002) p.152 Cassius Dio's reference in History 60.6.6-7, and Paulus Orosius's fifth century mention in History 7.6.15-16 of a non-extant Josephus reference. Most scholars agree that the expulsion of Jews mentioned in the Book of ActsChristianity and the Roman Empire: background texts by Ralph Martin Novak 2001 pages 18-22 is consistent with this report by Suetonius. Donna Hurley notes that Acts provides a date of 49, but adds that neither Tacitus nor Dio "reports an expulsion in 49 or 50 as would be expected if there had been a large exodus of the Jewish community", concluding that '"all" is probably a hyperbole.'Donna W. Hurley (ed.), Suetonius: Diuus Claudius (Cambridge University Press, 2001) p.177.

The passage may suggest that in the mid-first century the Romans still viewed Christianity as a Jewish sect. Historians debate whether or not the Roman government distinguished between Christians and Jews prior to Nerva's modification of the Fiscus Judaicus in AD 96. From then on, practising Jews paid the tax, Christians did not.Wylen, Stephen M., The Jews in the Time of Jesus: An Introduction, Paulist Press (1995), , pp.190-192; Dunn, James D.G., Jews and Christians: The Parting of the Ways, 70 to 135, Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing (1999), , Pp 33-34.; Boatwright, Mary Taliaferro & Gargola, Daniel J & Talbert, Richard John Alexander, The Romans: From Village to Empire, Oxford University Press (2004), , p.426;