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Acts 14

Paul, with Barnabas, was beginning to come into the ministry that the Lord had intended for him: as His
apostle to the Gentiles (Acts 22:21). Having been sent out on their first missionary journey by the
assembly at Antioch in Syria, the two men had landed upon the Asian continent, and pressed deeply into the
heartland of Asia Minor with their message of hope, carrying the gospel into Pisidian Antioch, in the
Roman province of Galatia.

As would become his pattern, Paul initially preached in the synagogue of the city, giving the Jews the
opportunity to first hear the good news, while at the same time introducing the Gentiles to the message
through the proselytes and God-fearers who also worshiped there. And the good news? God had sent His
long-promised Messiah, Jesus, according to the Scriptures – and all who believed in Him would be saved.

The Gentiles in Pisidian Antioch were particularly receptive to this message, and many came to believe into
Jesus. There were also Jews who believed; although many did not. The unbelieving Jews became
indignant at the response of the Gentiles to Paul and Barnabas’ message, and within a short time, stirred up
the civil authorities to expel the missionaries from the city.

Was the work cut short? No – as many as had been appointed to eternal life believed (Acts 13:48) – and
they were filled with joy and the Holy Spirit (Acts 13:52). They had received the light of Life, and would
eventually continue the witness to the Light to their fellow citizens of that city. The Lord had established
His church at Pisidian Antioch.

Meanwhile, Paul and Barnabas left the area, traveling south and eastward within the region of Phrygia,
until they came to the city of Iconium, about 80 miles from Pisidian Antioch. Iconium was a small city,
located on a fertile fruit and grain producing plain in Galatia. Its population was a cultural melting-pot
similar to Pisidian Antioch – there were the native Galatians of the region (Phrygians), Greeks, Jews, and
Romans.

Like Pisidian Antioch, the Iconium culture bore the mark of the Greeks and the Romans, but it was far less
cosmopolitan than Pisidian Antioch, and retained some of the local language and customs of the Phrygians,
as well. Still, its inhabitants would have been readily conversant in the Greek language, enabling the
missionaries to communicate freely with them.

v. 1 The term “Greeks” here can mean Greek from birth, or simply those who speak the Greek language –
that is, Greek-speaking Gentiles. In this passage, as it is juxtaposed to the Jews in the synagogue, the term
is being used for Gentile proselytes and God-fearers, who had come to the synagogue to worship Jehovah
God.

Luke tells us that Paul and Barnabas so spoke that a great multitude of the Jews and Gentiles in the
synagogue believed; that is, they spoke in such a manner that their listeners were persuaded that what they
told them concerning Jesus being their Messiah was the truth.

You wonder what it was that they “so spoke”, don’t you? I can tell you a few things about what they “so
spoke”. First of all, they spoke no word of their own; they didn’t figure out, rationally calculate, in their
own minds, just what they were going to say, nor how they were going to say it.

They didn’t evaluate the demographics of their audience, assess their knowledge of the Scriptures, nor give
them a survey to determine their opinions and convictions. They didn’t manipulate their audience with
music and dramatics designed to evoke an emotional rush. Nor did they water down their message, candy-
coat it, or garnish it in such a way as to make it palatable to the listener.
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What I can tell you is that they spoke all the words of this Life (Acts 5:20) – eternal Life – whatever words
those were, to this particular audience, that the Holy Spirit filled their mouths with. They submitted
themselves to God, and as the Lord led, so they spoke – and they so spoke that a multitude of their listeners
believed. They were not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for they knew that it is the power of God to
salvation for everyone who believes (Rm 1:16).

But there are always those who choose not to believe; these choose to resist the power of the gospel to save
them. Their resistance takes the form of a hardening of the heart to the love of God. For those who are
perishing, the truth of the gospel is veiled, their minds blinded by the god of this age, lest the light of the
gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine on them (2 Cor 4:4).

Abiding in their own unrighteousness, these men hold down the truth in unrighteousness for others (Rm
1:18). Having resisted the love of God themselves, they seek to sow their hatred in others; having veiled
their minds from the truth of the gospel, they seek to sow their lies in others.

Paul and Barnabas had first encountered this resistance to the gospel in Pisidian Antioch; now they
encountered it again in Iconium. But Paul and Barnabas had been prepared by the Lord for this resistance
to the gospel, through a sign He had given them back in Cyprus.

The sign was that picture in Bar-Jesus, the Jewish sorcerer, who was not content just to remain in the
darkness himself; but sought to keep others in the dark, as well (Acts 13:6-12). That picture showed that
the greatest obstacle to the Gentiles receiving the gospel would be from Jews who would not receive the
truth themselves, which is what we see in the next verse.

v. 2 So those Jews who did not believe the truth agitated the Gentiles of Iconium - that is, those Gentiles
who also did not believe, or had not yet heard the message. The Jews poisoned their minds against Paul,
Barnabas, and those who believed. What would they have poisoned their minds with? Lies. They opposed
the things that were spoken concerning Jesus being the Messiah.

But this proved to be a slow-acting poison, and the Lord provided an antidote, for any willing to receive it.

v. 3 The antidote that the Lord provided to the lies of the enemy was a way of confirming the truth. Paul
and Barnabas weathered the storm of opposition by standing in the truth. They continued preaching freely
and openly, without constraint, and the Lord Jesus Himself bore witness to the fact that what they spoke
was the truth. How? He gave Paul and Barnabas the power to work signs and wonders in Iconium –
extraordinary miracles that caused the mind to marvel, and directed it to God.

For those who were willing to believe to see, these signs and wonders authenticated the words which Paul
and Barnabas spoke, and consequently showed up the words of the unbelieving Jews as lies. Although
signs and wonders did not always accompany the preaching of the gospel, you can see that the Lord used
them where needed to confirm His word.

v. 4-6 The preaching of the gospel eventually polarized almost the entire city. The opposition,
spearheaded by the unbelieving Jewish leaders, continued to grow and to organize its efforts.

Having failed to mask the Light with their lies, the opposition moved past words to brute force – they
would put out the Light altogether. The enemies of the gospel opted for a violent assault, intending to stone
the apostles – presumably with the intent of killing them, which was the punishment for blasphemers,
according to the Law of Moses (Lev 24:16).
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Gentiles also used stoning as a form of punishment, but not for a mere civil disturbance. The participation
of unbelieving Gentiles in the plot indicates that they had bought into the lies of the unbelieving Jews
concerning the apostles.

But the Lord brought word of the plot to the apostles, who quickly left the city – something the Lord
Himself had told His disciples to do, when a city persecuted them (Mt 10:23). Paul and Barnabas
proceeded eastward to cities in another region of Galatia, called Lycaonia.

Did you notice in this part of our passage that both Paul and Barnabas are named as apostles? The word
“apostle” is often used in a narrow connotation to refer to the twelve men appointed by the Lord as His
witnesses. It is extended to Paul as well, in that he was an eyewitness of the resurrected Christ, and had
been called by Him (Acts 8:15, Rm 1:1).

But in using it for Barnabas the word is being used in a much wider sense here, to those who ministered as
associates of the Twelve, and bore witness to Christ. Literally, the term means a “Sent out one”; a
messenger. And that, Paul and Barnabas certainly were – messengers who had very Good News, which
they now proceeded to bring to other cities of Galatia.

v. 7 The first city Paul and Barnabas came to in Lycaonia was Lystra, about 20 miles to the south and west
of Iconium. Lystra had more in common with Pisidian Antioch, 100 miles away, than Iconium. Both were
Roman colonies, and were connected by a Roman military road that was not shared with Iconium.

But where Pisidian Antioch was a cosmopolitan city, Lystra was more rural, and less sophisticated, tending
to emphasize the local culture, perhaps more than its Roman character. As in most Roman provinces, the
inhabitants spoke Greek as well as their traditional tongue, Lycaonian. Paul and Barnabas would have been
able to preach the gospel in the Greek language, to the understanding of the inhabitants.

Did you notice anything different in this initial encounter in Lystra? Where had Paul and Barnabas first
preached the gospel, in Pisidian Antioch? In a synagogue. And in Iconium? In a synagogue, also. Do you
see any mention of them preaching in a synagogue in Lystra? No; and as we continue in the passage, we
get the sense that they are not preaching in any building at all, but out in public, to a crowd; perhaps in the
marketplace, or on a street corner, as philosophers were inclined to do.

It is reasonable to conclude from this that Lystra had no synagogue, for if it did, Paul and Barnabas would
have surely begun there, as they did routinely. We can assume the Jewish population in Lystra was either
non-existent, or very small – too small to warrant a synagogue. This was the first essentially, purely
Gentile city which was hearing the gospel preached – the Good News of Jesus Christ.

v. 8-10 Here Luke has once again given us the details of a specific, miraculous healing. This healing was
done by the Lord, through Paul. Now, we have seen that, when Luke records such details, there is a
particular reason for it.

If you had a chance to reread Acts chapter 3 this week, you would have noticed that this healing is
remarkably similar to that which was done by the apostle Peter sometime after the day of Pentecost in
Jerusalem.

Both of the subjects are men who are described as lame from birth (“lame” in 3:2 and “cripple” in 14:8 are
the same Greek word, cholos); both Peter and Paul looked at the lame men intently; both apostles
commanded the lame men to arise, and stand or walk; and both lame men responded in faith, believing to
obey the command given, and leapt to their feet, and walked.
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Although the nationality of each of the lame men is not named by Luke, they are easily surmised. Do you
remember where the man in Acts chapter 3 went, as soon as he was healed? He went into the temple. That
man was a Jew; and his first thought, upon being healed was to enter the temple, and worship the God who
had healed him; something he could never do before, as a cripple.

What of this man here in Acts chapter 14? He is undoubtedly a native of Lystra, which had little to no
Jewish population. This man was certainly a Gentile.

This man had heard Paul speaking, preaching the gospel – the good news of Jesus Christ. Perhaps Paul had
been speaking about the mighty works that the Lord Jesus did in Iconium through the apostles – healings
that had been done in Jesus’ name.

Paul observed that this man had the faith to be healed – faith specifically in the One who possessed the
power to heal him, too – like those in Iconium. Perhaps the faith of the man was revealed to Paul by the
Holy Spirit.

As Paul commanded this Gentile to stand up on his feet, the man responded in faith, believing that Jesus
could heal him – and he rose, in ready obedience to the command given, the Lord simultaneously
empowering him to rise; and he leapt to his feet, and began to walk, by that same power. The Lord would
have healed this man completely; he was made whole - spirit, soul, and body. So, first a Jewish cripple,
and now a Gentile cripple made whole - empowered to walk for the first time in their life, through Jesus.

We had seen that the healing of the Jewish lame man was a sign given by the Lord to His nation, Israel.
The lame man was a picture of the unregenerate nation, who had never walked with God; who was
powerless to worship Him in Spirit and in truth. The regeneration of Israel is pictured in the healing of the
lame man, when Israel believes into Jesus as her Messiah, and walks with Him in the newness of Life. For
Israel, we have seen that blessing has been delayed by their rejection of Jesus as their Messiah, which
continues to this day.

And what of this Gentile cripple, who has been healed? Is this another sign? Yes – but not for the nation
Israel.

Now, in Scripture, signs were primarily given for the Jews (Ex 31:13, 17; Ps 105:26, 27); the Lord even
told His people to ask for them (Is 7:10-14), and they did request them, as a token from God (Mt 12:38,
16:1; 1 Cor 1:22).

But there are no Jews in Lystra – who would this sign have been for? For Paul – and Barnabas – much as
the sign of the Jewish sorcerer was for them, to prepare them for the opposition that would come from the
Jews against the gospel.

And the significance of the sign? As Paul and Barnabas have come into the first truly Gentile city, the Lord
was giving them a sign that the Gentiles, who had, like the Jews, never walked with God, would indeed
believe into the Lord and walk in the newness of His Life. And the sign was given by the Lord at a critical
moment, to encourage them in the work – because in the next moment, there would have been great
temptation to become much discouraged.

Next we see the response of the people of Lystra to the miracle.

v. 11-13 The people of Lystra were astounded at this healing; most if not all in this town would have
known the man who was healed, and that he had never walked in his life.
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Their marveling caused them to speak among themselves in their native tongue, the Lycaonian language,
which neither Paul nor Barnabas could understand. All that the apostles could tell from the crowd’s
reaction was that the people recognized this as a great miracle. Apparently, someone later informed them –
presumably in Greek – of what was going on, and they were suitably horrified.

They were horrified because the bedazzled people of Lystra saw them as the source of the miracle, and took
them to be their pagan gods, visiting them in human form. The people assumed the more reserved
Barnabas was Zeus – the chief of gods – and Paul, the main speaker, they assumed was Hermes – the
messenger of the gods.

These two gods were worshiped together in this region; and now, the pagan priest from the temple was
about to offer sacrifice to Paul and Barnabas at the gates of the city on behalf of the people, in worship of
them.

Now, this account is made more comprehensible – although no less humorous – when you learn of a
famous myth set in this area of the world, as told by the Roman poet Ovid.

The story tells of an occasion when the gods Zeus and Hermes visited Lystra incognito, asking for food and
lodging. All of the region turned them away, except for an old peasant named Philemon and his wife,
Baucis. The gods took vengeance on the people of Lystra by drowning them in a flood; but they turned the
lowly cottage of Philemon and Baucis into a temple, where they served as priest and priestess.

You can see the connection that the people of Lystra must have readily made when they saw the miracle
done by Paul’s hand. They did not want to make the same mistake their ancestors did! And so they
prepared to bestow divine honors on Barnabas and Paul.

v. 14-18 When Barnabas and Paul eventually heard about what the people of Lystra were doing, they were
mortified. They tore their clothes in the customary Jewish manner, indicating their horror at this
blasphemous worship of which they were to be the unwitting recipients. Then they ran out into the crowd,
and quickly sought to correct the erroneous thinking of the people.

Paul and Barnabas had initially been preaching the gospel to the people of Lystra; and some had understood
the message, such as the lame man, but apparently, many had not. Now the apostles backed up their
message to a more elementary text, upon which they sought to find a means of making a connection with
this pagan audience; a foundation of truth, upon which they could build.

This is the first of two speeches recorded in Acts addressed to a purely pagan audience (the other is Paul’s
speech to the Athenians at the Aeropagus, Acts 17:22-31). Although the thoughts present are based on
Scripture, there was no need for a listener to have a knowledge of Scripture to understand them. The
fundamental idea presented is that there is only one true God, the Living God, the Creator, whose creation
provides a witness to Him.

First, the apostles assured the people of Lystra that they were not gods – they were merely mortal men, just
like the men of Lystra; and no more. They had come to make the true God known in Lystra. When the
apostles exhorted their pagan audience to “turn from these useless things” (KJV – vanities), it is speaking
of idols. What can an idol do for a man? Nothing. Turn to Psalm 115. Speaking on behalf of Israel, the
psalmist beseeches the LORD to reveal Himself to the Gentile nations.
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[Psalm 115:1-8]

v. 1 “us” – Israel

v. 2-4 “their” – the Gentiles

v. 5-7 what is the psalmist saying about the idols of the Gentiles? They have no life.

v. 8 those who make idols are like them – they have no life. So is everyone who trusts in them – they
have no life.

[Return to Acts 14]

The apostles were exhorting the people of Lystra to turn from these dead idols to serve the Living and true
God (1 Th 1:9). They present the living God as the Creator – the One who formed and filled the heavens
and the earth. Here the apostles were emphasizing the God who rules nature, and in fact, this God was
already recognized by paganism. Despite the pantheon of gods worshiped by many Gentiles, pagan
philosophical teachings acknowledged the existence of one supreme God.

In times of old, the living God allowed the Gentiles to walk in their own ways. That walk, away from God,
began in the days of Nimrod, in the land of Shinar, when all the families of the earth rebelled against God,
determining to worship the host of heaven, instead of the true and Living God, and to make a name for
themselves (Gen 11:1-9).

Paul described that walk, in his letter to the assembly at Ephesus. Turn to Ephesians chapter 2. Paul wrote
to the Gentiles at Ephesus, who had turned from vain idols to worship the true and Living God.

[Ephesians 2:1-3] Walking in their own ways, they were the walking dead – dead in trespasses and sins.
They walked according to the course of this world, ruled over by the god of this world, the devil, who was
able to work through them, as they were powerless to resist his wiles. They walked in their lusts – the lust
of the flesh and the lust of the mind – powerless to do anything but sin – powerless to please God –
powerless to escape the condemnation they were born under.

And so were the people of Lystra. They were children of wrath, worshiping dead idols, which were
powerless to deliver them from the condemnation into which they were born.

But these people, and in fact all nations who had turned from God, could always choose to turn to Him; and
through the ages, God had always provided them with a witness to Himself, the Creator, the true and Living
God – in what was all around them, in nature.
The apostles pointed to the goodness of God, His provision for men – the rain, and the harvests, which
always came. Paul wrote more about this witness in his letter to the assembly at Rome. Turn to Romans
chapter 1.

[Romans 1:18-20] God has revealed Himself, the invisible God, through His visible creation – even His
eternal power and Godhead, leaving men without excuse. My Bible cites Psalm 19 here, which speaks of
the gospel that God planted in the stars, that reveals the person and work of the Coming Christ (Ps 19:1-6);
that faithful witness in the sky (Ps 89:37). Having revealed Himself, men have no excuse for not believing
in God.
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[Return to Acts 14] The words of the apostles did offer a point of connection to this pagan audience; even
so, the emotionally charged crowd could barely be deterred from their intent to worship their presumed
gods. It is hard to reach people when they have carried themselves away with religious zeal. It must have
been quite a letdown to hear Paul and Barnabas declare themselves to be mere mortals.

v. 19-20 You can see that the Jews were affected by a different kind of religious zeal than the pagans of
Lystra – one that masked their envious malice. Remarkably, these Jews from Paul and Barnabas’ previous
two stops had pursued the apostles to Lystra – a distance of about 100 miles, in the case of Pisidian
Antioch! They were determined to silence these two messengers of God.

Once again, the Jews managed to stir up the Gentiles. You may wonder why the people of Lystra would be
so easily persuaded by apparent strangers into a violent act against two itinerant preachers; but remember
that Antioch and Lystra were both Roman colonies, and considered themselves sister cities. If the Jews of
Pisidian Antioch indicated that the two men had practically caused a riot in their city, the people of Lystra
would be inclined to listen.

Also, this crowd was probably offended by the refusal of Paul and Barnabas to accept the divine honors that
they desired to shower upon them; they may even have felt foolish, after the apostles sought to correct their
blunder.

In any event, a drastic change of mood swept over the crowd. The fickle people of Lystra decided that their
gods were now imposters, and must be punished. The mob targeted Paul, the principal speaker and
probable refuter of the Jews, and they stoned him with the intent of killing him, then dragged his seemingly
lifeless body outside the city limits, leaving him there for dead. You wonder if, while all this was
happening to Paul, he couldn’t help but think of Stephen, and Paul’s own persecution of the disciples of
Jesus.

It is certain that this all transpired so quickly that Barnabas, and other disciples who were present (probably
from the previous towns), were unable to stop the mob. But as they gathered around the body of Paul, he
suddenly revived, rose up, and reentered the city – to the great joy of the disciples, no doubt.

Although Paul survived, the stoning made it apparent that any further evangelism of Lystra was out of the
question at this time, and the next day, Paul and Barnabas departed for Derbe, a small rugged city about 60
miles southeast of Lystra, on the eastern frontier of the province of Galatia.

Now, some believe that this episode is reflected in Paul’s second letter to the assembly at Corinth, where he
speaks of being caught up to the third heaven. We’re going to take a quick look at that.

Turn to Second Corinthians chapter 12. Paul had been writing of the many afflictions he had endured, as a
minister of Christ. He could boast of more afflictions than anyone – yet that was not his boast, but instead,
his infirmities were – for they showed forth the Lord’s strength through him. Then he wrote of something
one could boast about – revelations which the Lord had made.

[2 Corinthians 12:1-4] “the man” is Paul himself. “In the body or out of the body” refers to being
physically alive or dead, respectively. “The third heaven” refers to spiritual heaven - God’s dwelling place
(the first and second heavens are the atmosphere of earth, and outer space, respectively – the physical
heavens). “Paradise” here refers to heaven, also.
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Apparently, Paul had some kind of experience in which he was in some manner translated into heaven,
God’s home, where the Lord shared visions and revelations with him; things that Paul saw and heard, but
that he was never able to share, most likely because he could find no words to describe what it was that he
experienced.

[Return to Acts] Some believe that Paul, who was assumed to be dead by the mob, actually was dead; that
he was killed by the stoning – and that he had the experience we just read about at that time, being
translated in soul and spirit into heaven. Afterward, the Lord returned Paul’s soul and spirit to his body,
miraculously restoring his life, and Paul rose from the dead.

Although this is an intriguing thought, it seems more likely that Paul had simply been rendered
unconscious by the stoning, then “came to” once he had been left by the mob – which is no less miraculous,
since ancient stonings were intended to result in death. This is supported in the passage.

In verse 19, the word “supposing” usually means “supposing something that is not true”, meaning that the
mob was incorrect, and Paul was not dead. Also, neither Luke nor Paul indicates that Paul was resurrected
from the dead; Paul simply states later that “once I was stoned” (2 Cor 11:25).

Finally, in the passage we just read (2 Cor 12:1-4), Paul stated that his visions and revelations occurred
“fourteen years ago” (v. 2). The dating of Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians, and the dating of this
missionary journey are far too close to one another for the timing to coincide with this stoning.

Nonetheless, it was just as miraculous a deliverance, wasn’t it? Paul is stoned, simply gets up and returns
to the city, and is able to make a 60 mile journey the following day! And notice that the Lord used the
incident to rid the apostles of their Jewish persecutors, who thought they had killed off the chief
spokesman.

But what of that fickle crowd at Lystra, which Paul and Barnabas had to leave behind – the first purely
Gentile mission field? Well, the apostles had that sign from the Lord, to encourage them – the Gentiles,
who had walked in their own ways in times past, would soon be walking with God. That would be borne
out at Derbe.

v. 21-23 In Derbe, another essentially Gentile city, the apostles encountered no persecution as they
preached the gospel, and many chose to believe in the Lord. The lame man was walking!

Paul and Barnabas then went back to all the cities where they had made disciples – showing that some fruit
had indeed been borne in Lystra. In fact, Paul will visit Lystra on his second recorded missionary trip, and
there will be brethren there in Lystra who will introduce him to a young disciple there named Timothy
(Acts 16:1-2).

So the missionaries returned to Lystra – that’s where Paul was stoned; and they went back to Iconium,
where both Paul and Barnabas were almost stoned; and they also revisited Pisidian Antioch, where the
apostles had been run out of town.

The very places where the apostles had been persecuted, they returned to, going right back into the face of
danger. Why? Because they deemed the welfare of these fledgling assemblies of greater import than their
own safety; and they knew that, within the will of the Lord, there was protection for them.
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Having believed into the Lord Jesus, these new disciples would have been facing the same persecution that
Paul and Barnabas encountered, and it was vital that the apostles encourage them. The apostles spoke from
personal experience when they said, “We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God” – but
they made it clear that the goal was well worth the price.

The apostles would have spent some time with each assembly, strengthening the disciples – presumably,
this refers to teaching them about Jesus, about His life, and about the Scriptures, which He fulfilled. This
would give them a strong foundation in the faith.

The apostles also appointed elders in each of the assemblies; godly men who were to act as overseers of the
assembly under the Lord’s direction, who would continue to exhort, teach, counsel and guide its members.
In this way, the apostles grounded the young churches, establishing them in the faith.

In each place, the apostles spent time in prayer and fasting with the assembly, ascertaining the will of God,
placing the new work there into His hands.

v. 24-28 The apostles returned to the assembly in Syrian Antioch, who had sent them out, who had been
with them in the work through prayer. The apostles shared all their exciting adventures of faith with them.
Imagine how encouraging this would have been to the assembly there, knowing that the sacrifice of their
beloved Paul and Barnabas had resulted in a furtherance of the gospel beyond what they could ever have
imagined!

November 30: Read Acts chapter 15; reread Acts 10, 11; Amos 9.