Commentators explain that Paul's return to his hometown of Tarsus was not a retreat from ministry. Citing Galatians 1:21, they argue he used this time to evangelize his home region of Cilicia. This period, often overlooked, was likely when he planted the churches mentioned later in Acts 15:41 and may have endured many of the hardships he lists in 2 Corinthians 11. His time in Tarsus was a strategic base for mission, not a period of inactivity.