Acts 13
13
Barnabas and Saul Are Chosen and Sent
1The church at Antioch had several prophets and teachers. They were Barnabas, Simeon, also called Niger, Lucius from Cyrene, Manaen, who was Herod's#13.1 Herod's: Herod Antipas, the son of Herod the Great. close friend, and Saul. 2While they were worshiping the Lord and going without eating,#13.2 going without eating: The Jews often went without eating as a way of showing how much they loved God. This is also called “fasting.” the Holy Spirit told them, “Appoint Barnabas and Saul to do the work for which I have chosen them.” 3Everyone prayed and went without eating for a while longer. Next, they placed their hands on Barnabas and Saul to show that they had been appointed to do this work. Then everyone sent them on their way.
Barnabas and Saul in Cyprus
4After Barnabas and Saul had been sent by the Holy Spirit, they went to Seleucia. From there they sailed to the island of Cyprus. 5They arrived at Salamis and began to preach God's message in the synagogues. They also had John#13.5 John: Whose other name was Mark (see 12.12,25). as a helper.
6Barnabas and Saul went all the way to the city of Paphos on the other end of the island, where they met a Jewish man named Bar-Jesus. He practiced witchcraft and was a false prophet. 7He also worked for Sergius Paulus, who was very smart and was the governor of the island. Sergius Paulus wanted to hear God's message, and he sent for Barnabas and Saul. 8But Bar-Jesus, whose other name was Elymas, was against them. He even tried to keep the governor from having faith in the Lord.
9Then Saul, better known as Paul, was filled with the Holy Spirit. He looked straight at Elymas 10and said, “You son of the devil! You are a liar, a crook, and an enemy of everything that is right. When will you stop speaking against the true ways of the Lord? 11The Lord is going to punish you by making you completely blind for a while.”
Suddenly the man's eyes were covered by a dark mist, and he went around trying to get someone to lead him by the hand. 12When the governor saw what had happened, he was amazed at this teaching about the Lord. So he put his faith in the Lord.
Paul and Barnabas in Antioch of Pisidia
13Paul and the others left Paphos and sailed to Perga in Pamphylia. But John#13.13 John: See the note at 13.5. left them and went back to Jerusalem. 14The rest of them went on from Perga to Antioch in Pisidia. Then on the Sabbath they went to the synagogue and sat down.
15After the reading of the Law and the Prophets,#13.15 the Law and the Prophets: The Jewish Scriptures, that is, the Old Testament. the leaders sent someone over to tell Paul and Barnabas, “Friends, if you have anything to say that will help the people, please say it.”
16Paul got up. He motioned with his hand and said:
People of Israel, and everyone else who worships God, listen! 17#Ex 1.7; Ex 12.51. The God of Israel chose our ancestors, and he let our people prosper while they were living in Egypt. Then with his mighty power he led them out, 18#Nu 14.34; Dt 1.31. and for about 40 years he took care of#13.18 took care of: Some manuscripts have “put up with.” them in the desert. 19#Dt 7.1; Js 14.1. He destroyed seven nations in the land of Canaan and gave their land to our people. 20#Jg 2.16; 1 S 3.20. All this happened in about 450 years.
Then God gave our people judges until the time of the prophet Samuel, 21#1 S 8.5; 1 S 10.21. but the people demanded a king. So for 40 years God gave them King Saul, the son of Kish from the tribe of Benjamin. 22#1 S 13.14; 1 S 16.12; Ps 89.20. Later, God removed Saul and let David rule in his place. God said about him, “David the son of Jesse is the kind of person who pleases me most! He does everything I want him to do.”
23God promised that someone from David's family would come to save the people of Israel, and this one is Jesus. 24#Mk 1.4; Lk 3.3. But before Jesus came, John was telling everyone in Israel to turn back to God and be baptized. 25#Jn 1.19,20; Mt 3.11; Mk 1.7; Lk 3.16; Jn 1.27. Then, when John's work was almost done, he said, “Who do you people think I am? Do you think I am the Promised One? He will come later, and I am not good enough to untie his sandals.”
26Now listen, you descendants of Abraham! Pay attention, all of you Gentiles who are here to worship God! Listen to this message about how to be saved, because it is for everyone. 27The people of Jerusalem and their leaders didn't realize who Jesus was. And they didn't understand the words of the prophets they read each Sabbath. So they condemned Jesus just as the prophets had said.
28-29 #
Mt 27.22-26; Mk 15.13-15; Lk 23.21-25; Jn 19.15,16;
Mt 27.57-61; Mk 15.42-47; Lk 23.50-56; Jn 19.38-42. They did exactly what the Scriptures said they would. Even though they couldn't find any reason to put Jesus to death, they still asked Pilate to have him killed.
After Jesus had been put to death, he was taken down from the cross#13.28-29 cross: This translates a Greek word that means “wood,” “pole,” or “tree.” and placed in a tomb. 30But God raised him from death! 31#Ac 1.3. Then for many days Jesus appeared to his followers who had gone with him from Galilee to Jerusalem. Now they are telling our people about him.
32God made a promise to our ancestors. And we are here to tell you the good news 33#Ps 2.7. that he has kept this promise to us. It is just as the second Psalm says about Jesus,
“You are my son because today
I have become your Father.”
34 # Is 55.3 (LXX). God raised Jesus from death and will never let his body decay. It is just as God said,
“I will make to you
the same holy promises
that I made to David.”
35 #
Ps 16.10. And in another psalm it says, “God will never let the body of his Holy One decay.”
36When David was alive, he obeyed God. Then after he died, he was buried in the family grave, and his body decayed. 37But God raised Jesus from death, and his body did not decay.
38My friends, the message is that Jesus can forgive your sins! The Law of Moses could not set you free from all your sins. 39But everyone who has faith in Jesus is set free. 40Make sure what the prophets have said doesn't happen to you. They said,
41 # Hb 1.5 (LXX). “Look, you people
who make fun of God!
Be amazed
and disappear.
I will do something today
that you won't believe,
even if someone
tells you about it!”
42As Paul and Barnabas were leaving the synagogue, the people begged them to say more about these same things on the next Sabbath. 43After the service, many Jews and a lot of Gentiles who worshiped God went with them. Paul and Barnabas begged them all to remain faithful to God, who had treated them with undeserved grace.
44The next Sabbath almost everyone in town came to hear the message about the Lord.#13.44 the Lord: Some manuscripts have “God.” 45When the Jewish people saw the crowds, they were very jealous. They insulted Paul and spoke against everything he said.
46But Paul and Barnabas bravely said:
We had to tell God's message to you before we told it to anyone else. But you rejected the message! This proves that you don't deserve eternal life. Now we are going to the Gentiles. 47#Is 42.6; 49.6. The Lord has given us this command,
“I have placed you here
as a light
for the Gentiles.
You are to take
the saving power of God
to people everywhere on earth.”
48This message made the Gentiles glad, and they praised what they had heard about the Lord.#13.48 the Lord: Some manuscripts have “God.” Everyone who had been chosen for eternal life then put their faith in the Lord.
49The message about the Lord spread all over this region. 50But the Jewish leaders went to some of the important men in the town and to some respected women who were religious. They turned them against Paul and Barnabas and started making trouble for them. They even chased them out of this part of the country.
51 #
Mt 10.14; Mk 6.11; Lk 9.5; 10.11. Paul and Barnabas shook the dust from that place off their feet#13.51 shook the dust from that place off their feet: This was a way of showing rejection. and went on to the city of Iconium.
52But the Lord's followers in Antioch were very happy and were filled with the Holy Spirit.
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Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®)
© 2006 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.
Acts 13
13
Barnabas and Saul Commissioned
1#Ac 11:22–27; 4:36In the church that was in Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. 2#Ac 9:15; 2Ti 1:11As they worshipped the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” 3#Ac 6:6; 14:26Then after fasting and praying, they laid their hands on them and sent them off.
The Apostles Preach in Cyprus
4#Ac 4:36; 13:2So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia, and from there they sailed to Cyprus. 5#Ac 13:14; 9:20When they arrived at Salamis, they preached the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews. And they had John as an assistant.
6#Mt 7:15When they had gone through the whole island to Paphos, they found a certain sorcerer, a Jewish false prophet, whose name was Bar-Jesus, 7#Ac 13:12; 19:38who was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, an intelligent man. This man called for Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the word of God. 8#Ac 13:6–7; 2Ti 3:8But Elymas the sorcerer (which is his name by interpretation) opposed them, trying to divert the proconsul from the faith. 9#Ac 4:8; 2:4Then Saul, who also is called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, stared at him and said, 10#Hos 14:9; Mt 13:38“You son of the devil, enemy of all righteousness, full of deceit and of all fraud, will you not cease perverting the right ways of the Lord? 11#Ex 9:3; Ps 32:4Now, look! The hand of the Lord is against you, and you shall be blind, not seeing the sun for a time.”
Immediately mist and darkness fell on him, and he went about seeking someone to lead him by the hand. 12#Ac 13:7When the proconsul saw what had happened, he believed and was astonished at the doctrine of the Lord.
Paul and Barnabas in Antioch of Pisidia
13#Ac 2:10; 12:12Now when Paul and his companions set sail from Paphos, they came to Perga in Pamphylia. And John departed from them and returned to Jerusalem. 14#Ac 16:13; 13:5But they departed from Perga and came to Antioch in Pisidia. And they went into the synagogue on the Sabbath day and sat down. 15#Ac 15:21; Mk 5:22After the reading from the Law and the Prophets, the rulers of the synagogue sent word to them, saying, “Brothers, if you have any word of exhortation for the people, say it.”
16#Ac 12:17; 10:2Then Paul stood up, and motioning with his hand said: “Men of Israel, and you who fear God, listen. 17#Dt 7:6–8; Ps 105:23–24The God of this people of Israel chose our fathers, and exalted the people when they lived as foreigners in the land of Egypt, and with great power He led them out of it. 18#Ac 7:36; Dt 9:7For about forty years He endured their conduct in the desert. 19#Ps 78:55; Dt 7:1; Jos 14:1When He had destroyed seven nations in the land of Canaan, He gave them their land as an inheritance by lot.
20#Jdg 2:16; 1Sa 3:20“After about four hundred and fifty years, God gave them judges until Samuel the prophet. 21#1Sa 10:1Then they requested a king. And God gave them Saul the son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, for forty years. 22#1Sa 16:1; 15:23; 15:26When He had removed him, He raised up David to be their king, of whom He testified, saying, ‘I have found David#Ps 89:20. the son of Jesse, a man after My own heart, who will fulfill My entire will.’#1Sa 13:14.
23#Mt 1:1; Ps 132:11“From this man’s descendants God has raised a Savior for Israel, Jesus, according to His promise. 24#Ac 1:22Before His coming John had preached a baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel. 25#Mt 3:11; Mk 1:7As John was fulfilling his course, he said, ‘Who do you think I am? I am not He. But look! He is coming after me, the sandals of whose feet I am not worthy to untie.’#Jn 1:20, 27.
26#Ac 4:12; 13:46“Brothers, sons of the family of Abraham, and those of you who fear God, the word of this salvation has been sent to us. 27#Ac 3:17; Lk 24:20Because those who live in Jerusalem, and their rulers, did not know Him, in condemning Him they have fulfilled the voices of the Prophets which are read every Sabbath. 28#Mt 27:22–25Though they found in Him no cause worthy of death, yet they asked Pilate to have Him killed. 29#Lk 23:53; Mt 27:57–60; Mk 15:45–46When they had fulfilled all that was written of Him, they took Him down from the tree and placed Him in a tomb. 30#Ac 2:24; Mt 28:6But God raised Him from the dead, 31#Lk 24:48; Ac 1:3and for many days He appeared to those who came up with Him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are now His witnesses to the people.
32#Ac 26:6; Ro 4:13“We preach to you good news: The promise which was made to the fathers, 33#Ps 2:7; Heb 5:5God has fulfilled to us, their children, raising Jesus. As it is written in the second Psalm:
‘You are My Son;
today I have become Your Father.’#Ps 2:7.
34#Isa 55:3; Ro 6:9That He raised Him from the dead, no more to return to corruption, He has spoken in this way:
‘I will give You the holy and sure blessings of David.’#Isa 55:3.
35#Ps 16:10So He says in another Psalm:
‘You will not let Your Holy One see decay.’#Ps 16:10.
36#1Ki 2:10; Ac 2:29“For after David had served by the counsel of God in his own generation, he fell asleep, was buried with his fathers, and saw decay. 37#Ac 13:30; 2:24But He whom God raised up saw no decay.
38#Lk 24:47; Ac 2:38“Therefore, brothers, let it be known to you that through this Man forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you, 39#Ro 8:3; Gal 2:16and by Him everyone who believes is justified from everything from which you could not be justified by the Law of Moses. 40Therefore beware, lest what is spoken of in the prophets come upon you:
41#Hab 1:5 ‘Look, you scoffers,
marvel and perish!
For I will perform a work in your days
which you will never believe,
even if someone declares it to you.’#Hab 1:5.”
42When Paul and Barnabas went out of the synagogue, the Gentiles asked that these words might be preached to them the next Sabbath. 43#Ac 11:23; 6:5When the congregation was dismissed, many of the Jews and devout proselytes followed Paul and Barnabas, who spoke to them and urged them to continue in the grace of God.
44On the next Sabbath almost the whole city assembled to hear the word of God. 45#Ac 18:6; 5:17But when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy, blaspheming and contradicting what Paul was saying.
46#Ac 3:26; 28:28Then Paul and Barnabas boldly said, “It was necessary that the word of God should be spoken to you first. But seeing you reject it, and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, we are turning to the Gentiles. 47#Isa 49:6; Lk 2:32For thus has the Lord commanded us:
‘I have established you to be a light of the Gentiles,
that you may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.’#Isa 42:6; 49:6.”
48When the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and glorified the word of the Lord. And all who were ordained to eternal life believed.
49The word of the Lord was spread throughout the entire region. 50#Ac 14:2; 14:19But the Jews stirred up the devout and honorable women and the chief men of the city, and raised up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and drove them from their region. 51#Mt 10:14; Ac 18:6So they shook off the dust of their feet against them and went to Iconium. 52#Ac 2:4; Mt 5:12And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.
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