Introduction
“At Iconium Paul and Barnabas went as usual into the Jewish synagogue. There they spoke so effectively that a great number of Jews and Gentiles believed. But the Jews who refused to believe stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers. So Paul and Barnabas spent considerable time there, speaking boldly for the Lord, who confirmed the message of his grace by enabling them to do miraculous signs and wonders.” Acts 14:1-3
In Iconium
In the previous chapter, we left Paul and Barnabas shaking the dust from their feet after the Jewish leaders stirred up trouble for them in Pisidian Antioch, Acts 13:50-51.
While all this was going on, Luke informs us that Gospel was being spread all over the country. And so, Paul and Barnabas leave the saints at Antioch very happy and full of the Spirit and moved on to Iconium, Acts 13:52.
Coffman, in his commentary, says the following.
‘This old Phrygian city, then a part of Roman Galatia, had a history reaching back into prehistoric times; it was located on the site of the modern city of Konia, a portion of the ancient name being still retained. Greek mythology relates that King Nannakos ruled there, that an oracle warned him of a world-wide flood, which he vainly sought to avert through tears and entreaties to the gods. The flood came; and when the waters receded, Prometheus and Athena made images of mud into which the winds breathed life; so was the earth repopulated.’
Every time an apostle of Christ went into a new city, the first place they would go to is the local synagogue if that city had one. And when Paul and Barnabas arrived in Iconium, they immediately went to the synagogue and seized upon an opportunity to preach, Acts 14:1 / Acts 13:46.
Interestingly, Luke doesn’t go into details with the exact words that Paul and Barnabas spoke but he does let us know that the message was powerful enough to move a great multitude, Acts 14:1. Their words were so powerful they moved a multitude of people which comprised of both Jews and Gentiles, to the point of obedient belief, Acts 14:1.
However, as always, some people love nothing better than to cause trouble. Luke tells us there was a bunch of Jews who refused to obey the Gospel and they did all they could to poison the thinking of the Gentile citizens, as well as the authorities, Acts 14:2.
Because of the trouble these Jews caused, Acts 14:2, Paul and Barnabas stayed in the city for some time, Acts 14:3. Again what we see happening here is the purpose of the miracles being fulfilled, Acts 14:3.
Miracles were designed to confirm the Word being preached, Acts 2:43 / Acts 4:30 / Acts 5:12 / Acts 6:8 / Acts 8:6 / Acts 8:13 / Acts 15:12 / Galatians 3:5 / 2 Corinthians 12:12 / Hebrews 2:3-4.
The miracles stood as a testimony of the preacher’s words, the miracles proved that the preacher’s words were true and from God Himself, Acts 14:3 / 2 Corinthians 12:12 / Romans 15:18.
A city is a big place and just because one side of a city wasn’t working well, doesn’t necessarily mean that other areas within that same city are going to be the same.
That’s exactly what Paul and Barnabas did, they moved on to another area within the city of Iconium and as they preached, the Lord caused great miracles to be worked by them, thereby confirming the words as being from Him, Acts 14:3.
“The people of the city were divided; some sided with the Jews, others with the apostles. There was a plot afoot among the Gentiles and Jews, together with their leaders, to mistreat them and stone them. But they found out about it and fled to the Lycaonian cities of Lystra and Derbe and to the surrounding country, where they continued to preach the good news.” Acts 14:4-7
Acts 14:4 is the first time Paul and Barnabas are called apostles in the Book of Acts. The only other time the title is used for them is in Acts 14:14.
Luke tells us that the city continued to be divided into two groups, those who obediently believed the preached Word and those who demonstrated their lack of belief by refusing to obey, Acts 14:4 / Luke 12:51-53. And it’s those people who conspired to work physical harm on the preachers, even to the point of stoning, Acts 14:5.
Foakes-Jackson, in their commentary, says the following.
‘It would have required a regular Hebrew court to sanction it (a legal stoning), and it would never have been tolerated in a Roman colony.’
Bruce, in his commentary, says the following.
‘Sir William Ramsay has recorded how it was this geographical note in Acts 14:6, that led to his first ‘change of judgment’ with regard to the historical value of Acts convincing him that the statement was entirely correct.’
Remember, creating trouble is a troublemaker’s job description, that’s what they do for a living, that’s what they enjoy doing the most, Proverbs 24:1-2. Just like they did at Antioch, they probably shook the dust from their feet with these trouble makers, Acts 13:51, and went to pastures new, Acts 14:6-7 / Matthew 10:23.
In Lystra And Derbe
“In Lystra there sat a man crippled in his feet, who was lame from birth and had never walked. He listened to Paul as he was speaking. Paul looked directly at him, saw that he had faith to be healed and called out, “Stand up on your feet!” At that, the man jumped up and began to walk.” Acts 14:8-10
The apostle Paul was well aware of what it means to be persecuted, hence why he encourages us to expect it, 2 Timothy 3:12. Paul and Barnabas didn’t hang around while these people were out to kill them, they moved on. They moved on and preached the Gospel in Lystra and Derbe.
Boice, in his commentary, says the following.
‘The apostles did not go into these cities to do miracles, and then to preach. Rather, it was the other way around: They went to preach; then sometimes there were healings.’
Luke tells us that Paul and Barnabas arrived at Lystra, which was around 18 miles to the east of Iconium, Acts 14:8.
Coffman, in his commentary, says the following.
‘Lystra was the first stop, being only about eighteen or twenty miles eastward from Iconium; but the distance was not measured merely in miles, for it lay in a different political division of Galatia; and the people spoke a different language. This was a primitive place, singled out by Augustus as a colony, probably for the defence of the south-eastern frontier of the Galatian province. Throughout the countryside the old Anatolian village-system prevailed, and the native language of Lycaonia was spoken. Lystra was the market-town, with streets crowded by the local peasantry on market and festal days.’
Remember, the apostles would usually would check out the local synagogue when they arrived in a new city but Lystra doesn’t have one. But what they did find was something which was very familiar even to us today, a cripple.
This man had been crippled since birth and had never walked and it seems as though he paid close attention to the words of the apostle, Acts 14:8 / Acts 3:1-10 / Acts 9:33-35.
Paul recognized that the man fully believed he could be healed, Matthew 9:28-29 / Mark 6:5-6 / Mark 9:22-24, through the Name of the Jesus which Paul preached, Acts 14:9. And when Paul commanded him to stand on his feet, he leapt up and walked, Acts 14:10.
Bruce, in his commentary, says the following.
‘That this lame man had faith was made plain by his ready obedience to Paul’s command to stand up.’
Notice also that this man had no money to pay for ‘a healing.’ Unlike the wealthy so-called ‘faith-healers’ of today, when Jesus or any of the apostles performed miracles and healed people they did not do it for financial gain, this man had no money, 1 Timothy 6:3-5.
Notice also, that Paul and Barnabas had no alternative motives either for healing the man. In Biblical times, miracles always had a worthy motive and signs were ‘not done’ for the purpose of personal elaboration.
Though Jesus’ miracles established the validity of His claim of being the Son of God, that designation was ‘not assumed’ out of personal interest.
The reason that Jesus and the apostles performed miracles was purely motivated by a love for man’s salvation. As we are about to see, if Paul and Barnabas were after personal gain or praise, the perfect opportunity for them was about to arise.
“When the crowd saw what Paul had done, they shouted in the Lycaonian language, “The gods have come down to us in human form!” Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul they called Hermes because he was the chief speaker. The priest of Zeus, whose temple was just outside the city, brought bulls and wreaths to the city gates because he and the crowd wanted to offer sacrifices to them. But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of this, they tore their clothes and rushed out into the crowd, shouting.” Acts 14:11-14
The people of Lystra were very superstitious and when they saw the lame man walk, they concluded the gods had come to be with them, Acts 14:11.
And in their infinite wisdom, they also decided Barnabas was Zeus, the ‘patron god’ of that area, and Paul was Hermes who was called the ‘god of Eloquence’, Acts 14:12.
Constable, in his commentary, says the folowing.
‘If Satan cannot derail Christian witness with persecution, he will try praise. Too much persecution has destroyed many preachers, and too much praise has ruined many others. One of the problems with miracles is that they often draw more attention to the miracle worker than to God.’
We might wonder why Paul and Barnabas didn’t stop this straight away, the simple answer is, that they didn’t know what was happening straight away since the people spoke in the language of the Lycaonians, Acts 14:11.
Boles, in his commentary, says the following.
‘This shows that the gift of tongues did not give the apostles power to speak or to understand all dialects.’
Bruce, in his commentary, says the following.
‘The crowd’s use of Lycaonian explains why Paul and Barnabas did not grasp what was afoot until the preparations to pay them divine homage were well advanced.’
It wasn’t until they saw the priest who served in the temple of Zeus on the road leading into the city bringing oxen with garlands on their heads to be sacrificed to the two ‘visiting gods’, Acts 14:13.
It was then they realised what was happening and so they tore their clothes, Mark 14:63, and ran in among the crowd shouting, Acts 14:14.
“Men, why are you doing this? We too are only men, human like you. We are bringing you good news, telling you to turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made heaven and earth and sea and everything in them. In the past, he let all nations go their own way. Yet he has not left himself without testimony: He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons; he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy.” Even with these words, they had difficulty keeping the crowd from sacrificing to them”. Acts 14:15-18
This text shows us they weren’t looking for self-praise but they wanted to share the love of God with them to bring them to salvation, Acts 13:16-41 / Acts 17:22-31.
They asked the people why they would do such a thing since they were mere mortals just like them, Acts 14:15. They pleaded with the people to turn from their empty worshipping of idols to serve the true living God, Acts 14:15 / 1 Thessalonians 1:9.
The true God who was the creator of the universe. The true God who had for years, allowed man to ignorantly pursue his own path, Acts 14:16, even though God always provided mankind with good things, like the rain and the harvest, Acts 14:17 / Psalm 19:1-4 / Matthew 5:45 / Romans 1:18-25.
And Luke tells us that the speech was unsuccessful in stopping the intended sacrifice, Luke 14:18. However, this doesn’t mean that no one listened.
Constable, in his commentary, says the following.
‘Timothy was apparently a native of Lystra, Acts 16:1-2 / Acts 20:4 / 2 Timothy 1:5. He apparently had a Jewish mother and grandmother, Acts 16:3 / 2 Timothy 1:5. This may indicate that there were some Jews who lived there.’
“Then some Jews came from Antioch and Iconium and won the crowd over. They stoned Paul and dragged him outside the city, thinking he was dead. But after the disciples had gathered around him, he got up and went back into the city. The next day he and Barnabas left for Derbe.” Acts 14:19-20
These people who have caused Paul and Barnabas a lot of trouble, Acts 14:5-6, are continually following them around and they won’t stop until Paul is dead.
Luke tells us that these hostile Jews from Antioch and Iconium soon came to Lystra and persuaded the people to stone Paul. And so they dragged his seemingly lifeless body outside the city, thinking he was dead, Acts 14:19.
Some scholars believe that Paul was actually killed and raised to life again, because stoning was usually reliable form of execution, Acts 7:58-8:1 / Galatians 6:17 / 2 Corinthians 11:25. Other scholars believe that this is when Paul was caught up into the third heaven, 2 Corinthians 12:2-4. There is no way proving or disproving any of these ideas.
Luke says that the disciples gathered around him, Acts 14:20, perhaps in mourning and the next thing you know Paul’s back up on his feet and what does he do?
Paul decided he had unfinished business to attend to and stayed another night, Acts 14:20. He walked straight back into the city, spent the night there and left the next morning with Barnabas to go to Derbe, Acts 14:20 / Acts 16:1.
Later see that many more people became believers and disciples in Derbe, particularly a man named Gaius, Acts 20:4.
The New Bible Dictionary, says the following.
‘The site of Derbe was identified in 1956 by M. Ballance at Kerti Huyuk, 13 miles North Northeast of Kavaman (Laranda), some 60 miles from Lystra (whence Acts 14:20b must evidently be translated, ‘and on the morrow he set out with Barnabas for Derbe.’
The Return To Antioch in Syria
“The next day he and Barnabas left for Derbe. They preached the good news in that city and won a large number of disciples. Then they returned to Lystra, Iconium and Antioch, strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith. “We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,” they said. Paul and Barnabas appointed elders for them in each church and, with prayer and fasting, committed them to the Lord, in whom they had put their trust”. Acts 14:21-23
Paul and Barnabas travelled some 60 miles to the east to the city of Derbe, which was on the easternmost edge of Roman Galatia, Acts 14:20. It appears here at least, their message was well received because they won a large number of disciples over the Lord, Acts 14:21.
And then what did they do? They returned to the very cities where they were receiving a lot of persecution. But they went back to Lystra, Iconium and Antioch for a reason, Acts 14:21.
And that reason was to urge the brethren to remain faithful despite the persecution, Galatians 4:13 / Galatians 6:17 / 2 Timothy 3:11-12, if they want to enter God’s kingdom, Acts 14:22 / Matthew 18:7 / 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12.
And to choose men in each city to serve as elders in the church, Acts 14:23 / Acts 20:17 / Ephesians 4:11 / 1 Timothy 3:1-7 / Titus 1:6-9.
It’s interesting to note that whichever men were chosen to serve as elders, they were obviously still young coverts. 1 Timothy 3:6, tells us that a man can’t be an elder if he is a young covert.
Although we are not told how this was possible, it’s certainly possible that these young men possibly had the miraculous gift if faith, 1 Corinthians 12:9.
Obviously, their appointment was intended to help strengthen the church since Paul and Barnabas also prayed and fasted with them while urging them to rely on the Lord in whom they had placed their trust, Acts 14:23 / Acts 13:3.
Notice the plurality of elders, which appears to be pattern for the church, Acts 14:23 / Acts 20:17 / Philippians 1:1 / Titus 1:5. Notice also that the text doesn’t tell us exactly how the appointment of these elders took place.
In New Testament times, a congregation without elders was the exception, not the rule. The Galatian churches had elders Acts 14:23. The churches in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia had elders 1 Peter 5:1.
The church in Philippi had elders Philippians 1:1. The church in Judea had elders Acts 11:30. The church in Jerusalem had elders Acts 15. The church in Ephesus had elders Acts 21:18. And the church in Crete was encourage to appoint elders Titus 1:5.
The office of an elder is one that is approved by the Godhead.
1. The Elder is described as God’s Steward. Titus 1:7.
2. The Pastor is an office held with the Son’s approval. Ephesians 4:11.
3. The Bishop, ‘overseer’, is appointed through the work of the Holy Spirit. Acts 20:28.
What are the roles of the elders? Their role is described in the Bible names.
1. Elder, ‘presbuteros’. 2. Bishop, ‘episkopos’. 3. Pastors, ‘poimen’.
These words describe a man who is older and experienced in the faith, i.e., ‘an elder’, a person who is a decision-maker, manager of church affairs, and leader i.e., ‘bishop’, and one who maintains a careful watch for the spiritual needs of all the members of the flock i.e., ‘pastor’.
Ultimately the role of an elder is to feed, tend, protect and lead the church, Acts 20:28 / 1 Peter 5:1-3.
“After going through Pisidia, they came into Pamphylia, and when they had preached the word in Perga, they went down to Attalia. From Attalia they sailed back to Antioch, where they had been committed to the grace of God for the work they had now completed. On arriving there, they gathered the church together and reported all that God had done through them and how he had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles. And they stayed there a long time with the disciples.” Acts 14:24-28
Paul and Barnabas retraced their steps all the way back to Antioch, where they had first been separated to the work. They went through, Pisidia, came into Pamphylia, and after preaching in Perga, they went to Attalia and from Attalia they sailed back to Antioch, Acts 14:24.
Ramsay, in his commentary, says the folowing.
‘Paul and Barnabas crossed Taurus (probably in A.D. 48, certainly in the summer season) and returned through Pamphylia to Syrian Antioch.’
Longenecker, in is commentary, says the folowing.
‘Ports in antiquity were often satellite towns of larger and more important cities situated some distance inland for protection from pirates. So Luke’s mention of Attalia here probably has no more significance than his mention of Seleucia, Acts 13:4, the port of Syrian Antioch, and merely identifies the place of embarkation for the voyage back to Syria.’
And when they returned there, they got the whole church to assemble and related to them all God had accomplished on their journey, Acts 14:26-27 / Acts 13:13-14.
Notice two important components of report recording.
First of all, they wanted the whole church to know what had been done because they were the ones who sent them on this mission trip in the first place, Acts 14:27. And that’s what they did, they gave them an honest report of all the good things and the things which needed more prayer.
Secondly, which I believe is highly important, they gave God all the credit. God did it all, He opened the doors for the Gentiles, Acts 14:27 / 1 Corinthians 16:9 / 2 Corinthians 2:12 / Colossians 4:3 / Philippians 3:12-14, and so, they gave the credit where credit is due.
Barclay, in his commentary, says the following.
‘Paul and Barnabas never thought that it was their strength or their power which had achieved anything. They spoke of what God had done with them. We will begin to have the right idea of Christian service when we work, not for our own honour or prestige, but only from the conviction that we are tools in the hand of God.’
Paul and Barnabas finished their reports and stayed for a good while with the brethren in Antioch, Acts 14:28.