Albert Barnes Commentary Romans 16:1

"I commend unto you Phoebe our sister, who is a servant of the church that is at Cenchreae:" — Romans 16:1 (ASV)

Romans Chapter 16

The epistle concludes with various salutations. The names that occur in this chapter are chiefly Greek; and the persons designated had probably been inhabitants of Greece but had moved to Rome for purposes of commerce, etc. Possibly some of them had been converted under the ministry of the apostle himself during his preaching in Corinth and other parts of Greece. It is remarkable that the name of Peter does not occur in this list, which is conclusive evidence, contrary to the Papists, that Peter was not then known by Paul to be in Rome.

I commend. It was common then, as it is now, to carry letters of introduction to strangers, commending the person thus introduced to the goodwill and attention of those to whom the letters were addressed (2 Corinthians 3:1; Acts 18:27). This epistle, with the apostle's commendation, was designed in this way to introduce its bearer to the Roman Christians. The mention of Phoebe in this manner leaves it beyond a doubt that she was either the bearer of this epistle or accompanied those who carried it to Rome. The epistle was therefore written, probably, at Corinth. (See Introduction.)

Our sister. A member of the Christian church.

Which is a servant. Greek, "Who is a deaconess." It is clear from the New Testament that there was an order of women in the church known as deaconesses. The New Testament, in various places, refers to a class of women whose duty it was to teach other women and to take general supervision of that part of the church; their existence is also expressly affirmed in early ecclesiastical history. They appear to have been commonly aged and experienced widows, holding a good reputation, and suited to guide and instruct those who were young and inexperienced (Compare to 1 Timothy 5:3, 9-11; Titus 2:4).

The Apostolical Constitutions, Book III, says, "Ordain a deaconess who is faithful and holy, for the ministries toward the women." Pliny, in his celebrated letter to Trajan, says, when speaking of the efforts he made to obtain information regarding the opinions and practices of Christians, "I deemed it necessary to put two female servants who are called ministrae [that is, deaconesses] to the torture, in order to ascertain what is the truth." The reasons for their appointment among the Gentiles were these:

1. Women were usually separate from men. They were kept secluded, for the most part, and not permitted to mingle in society with men, as is the custom now.
2. It became necessary, therefore, to appoint aged and experienced women to instruct the young, visit the sick, provide for them, and perform for them the services that male deacons performed for the whole church. It is evident, however, that they were confined to these offices and were never regarded as an order of ministers or permitted to preach to congregations (1 Timothy 2:12; 1 Corinthians 14:34).

Of the church, etc. This is the only mention that occurs of a church at that place. It was probably gathered by the labors of Paul.

At Cenchrea. This was the seaport of Corinth. Corinth was situated on the middle of the isthmus and had two harbors, or ports: Cenchrea on the east, about eight or nine miles from the city, and Lechaeum on the west. Cenchrea opened into the Aegean Sea and was the principal port. It was on this isthmus, between these two ports, that the Isthmian games were celebrated, to which the apostle so often refers in his epistles.