Erastus was a fellow Christian worker who assisted the apostle Paul. According to (Romans 16:23) he was the city director of public works for the city of Corinth. Other translations refer to his position as being the city treasurer. It is believed that he could have been one of the seventy disciples talked about in the Gospel of Luke.
We only find two other times in the Bible where he is mentioned. In (Acts 19:22) Paul sends two of his helpers, Timothy and Erastus to Macedonia, while he himself stayed in Asia a little longer. Many Bible commentators believe this to be the same person who was the city treasurer in Corinth. One last brief mention of him can be found in (2 Timothy 4:20). Paul says that Erastus stayed in his hometown of Corinth.
The Erastus Inscription
During an archaeological excavation in 1929, excavators discovered an inscription near a paved area northeast of the theater of Corinth. The inscription dates to the mid-first century. It reads, “Erastus in return for his aedileship paved it at his own expense.” Some think this inscription could be referring to the same public official that is found in the New Testament. We can’t know for certain if it’s the same individual, but it’s a good possibility.
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