Acts 14
Expanded Bible
Paul and Barnabas in Iconium
14 In Iconium [13:51], ·Paul and Barnabas [L they] went as usual to the Jewish synagogue [C they typically appealed to their fellow Jews first]. They spoke ·so well [L in such a way] that a great many Jews and Greeks believed. 2 But the Jews who did not believe ·excited [stirred up] the Gentiles and ·turned them [poisoned their minds; L harmed/did evil to their souls] against the ·believers [L brothers (and sisters)]. 3 [L So; Therefore] ·Paul and Barnabas [L They] stayed in Iconium a long time and spoke ·bravely [or boldly] for the Lord. He ·showed [testified; confirmed] that their ·message [word] about his grace was true by giving them the power to work [miraculous] signs and ·miracles [wonders]. 4 But [L the people/population of] the city was divided. Some of the people agreed with the Jews, and others ·believed [L were with] the apostles.
5 Some Gentiles, some Jews, and some of their rulers ·wanted [intended; plotted] to mistreat Paul and Barnabas and to stone them to death. 6 When ·Paul and Barnabas [L they] learned about this, they ·ran away [fled; escaped] to Lystra [C eighteen miles south of Iconium] and Derbe [C sixty miles southeast from Lystra], cities in Lycaonia [C the administrative district], and to the areas around those cities. 7 They ·announced the Good News [preached the Gospel] there, too.
Paul in Lystra and Derbe
8 In Lystra [v. 6] there sat a man who had been ·born crippled [L lame from the womb of his mother]; he had never walked. 9 As this man was listening to Paul speak, Paul looked straight at him and saw that he ·believed [had faith that] God could heal him. 10 So he ·cried out [L said with a loud voice], “Stand up on your feet!” The man jumped up and began walking around. 11 When the crowds saw what Paul did, they shouted in the Lycaonian language, “The gods have ·become like humans [or taken on human form] and have come down to us!” 12 Then the people began to call Barnabas “Zeus” [C main god of the Greek pantheon] and Paul “Hermes,” [C the Greek god who delivered messages] because he was the main speaker. 13 The priest in the temple of Zeus, which was ·near [or beside; at the entrance of] the city, brought some ·bulls [or oxen] and ·flowers [garlands; wreaths] to the ·gates [temple gates; or city gates; C but it is doubtful that Lystra had city walls at this time]. He and the people wanted to offer a sacrifice to Paul and Barnabas. 14 But when the apostles, Barnabas and Paul, heard about it, they tore their clothes [C indicating outrage or sorrow]. They ran in among the people, shouting, 15 “·Friends [L Men], why are you doing these things? We are only human beings ·like [of the same nature as] you. We are bringing you the ·Good News [Gospel] and are telling you to turn away from these worthless things and turn to the living God. He is the One who made the sky, the earth, the sea, and everything in them [Ex. 20:11; Ps. 146:6]. 16 In the past [L generations], God let all the nations ·do what they wanted [L go their own way]. 17 Yet he ·proved he is real [L has not left himself without a witness] by ·showing kindness [doing good], by giving you rain from heaven and crops at the right ·times [seasons], by ·giving you [satisfying/filling you with] food and filling your hearts with joy [Ps. 104:13–15].” 18 Even with these words, they were barely able to keep the crowd from offering sacrifices to them.
19 Then some Jews [C those who had opposed them earlier; 13:50–51; 14:2, 5] came from Antioch and Iconium and persuaded the people to turn against Paul. So they threw stones at him [2 Cor. 11:25; C stoning was the main Jewish method of execution] and dragged him out of town, thinking they had killed him. 20 But the ·followers [disciples] ·gathered around him [or surrounded him; C either to protect from further attack or to check on his condition], and he got up and went back into the town [C perhaps a miracle; certainly evidence of Paul’s perseverance]. The next day he and Barnabas left and went to the city of Derbe [v. 6].
The Return to Antioch in Syria
21 ·Paul and Barnabas [L They] ·told the Good News [preached the Gospel] in Derbe, and many became ·followers [disciples]. ·Paul and Barnabas [L They] returned to Lystra [14:6], Iconium, and Antioch, 22 ·making the followers of Jesus stronger [L strengthening the souls/lives of the disciples] and ·helping them stay [L encouraging/exhorting them to remain/persevere] in the faith. They said, “We must ·suffer many things [endure/pass through many trials/persecutions] to enter God’s kingdom.” 23 They ·chose [appointed; or elected] elders [1 Tim. 5:17–20; Titus 1:5–9] for each church, ·by [after; L with] praying and fasting [C giving up eating for spiritual purposes]. These elders had ·trusted [believed in] the Lord, so Paul and Barnabas ·put them in [committed them to] the Lord’s care.
24 Then they went through Pisidia [13:14] and came to Pamphylia [13:13]. 25 When they had ·preached the message [L spoken the word] in Perga [13:13], they went down to Attalia [C eight miles southwest of Perga]. 26 And from there they sailed away to Antioch [C in Syria about 400 miles away] where ·the believers had put them into God’s care [L they had been delivered over to God’s grace] to do the work that they had now ·finished [completed; fulfilled].
27 When they arrived in Antioch, ·Paul and Barnabas [L they] gathered the church together. They ·told [reported/recounted to] the church all about what God had done with them and how God had ·made it possible for the Gentiles to believe [L opened a door of faith to the Gentiles]. 28 And they stayed there ·a long [a considerable; L no little] time with the ·followers [disciples].
Acts 14
The Message
14 1-3 When they got to Iconium they went, as they always did, to the meeting place of the Jews and gave their message. The Message convinced both Jews and non-Jews—and not just a few, either. But the unbelieving Jews worked up a whispering campaign against Paul and Barnabas, sowing mistrust and suspicion in the minds of the people in the street. The two apostles were there a long time, speaking freely, openly, and confidently as they presented the clear evidence of God’s gifts, God corroborating their work with miracles and wonders.
4-7 But then there was a split in public opinion, some siding with the Jews, some with the apostles. One day, learning that both the Jews and non-Jews had been organized by their leaders to beat them up, they escaped as best they could to the next towns—Lyconia, Lystra, Derbe, and that neighborhood—but then were right back at it again, getting out the Message.
Gods or Men?
8-10 There was a man in Lystra who couldn’t walk. He sat there, crippled since the day of his birth. He heard Paul talking, and Paul, looking him in the eye, saw that he was ripe for God’s work, ready to believe. So he said, loud enough for everyone to hear, “Up on your feet!” The man was up in a flash—jumped up and walked around as if he’d been walking all his life.
11-13 When the crowd saw what Paul had done, they went wild, calling out in their Lyconian dialect, “The gods have come down! These men are gods!” They called Barnabas “Zeus” and Paul “Hermes” (since Paul did most of the speaking). The priest of the local Zeus shrine got up a parade—bulls and banners and people lined right up to the gates, ready for the ritual of sacrifice.
14-15 When Barnabas and Paul finally realized what was going on, they stopped them. Waving their arms, they interrupted the parade, calling out, “What do you think you’re doing! We’re not gods! We are men just like you, and we’re here to bring you the Message, to persuade you to abandon these silly god-superstitions and embrace God himself, the living God. We don’t make God; he makes us, and all of this—sky, earth, sea, and everything in them.
16-18 “In the generations before us, God let all the different nations go their own way. But even then he didn’t leave them without a clue, for he made a good creation, poured down rain and gave bumper crops. When your bellies were full and your hearts happy, there was evidence of good beyond your doing.” Talking fast and hard like this, they prevented them from carrying out the sacrifice that would have honored them as gods—but just barely.
19-20 Then some Jews from Antioch and Iconium caught up with them and turned the fickle crowd against them. They beat Paul unconscious, dragged him outside the town and left him for dead. But as the disciples gathered around him, he came to and got up. He went back into town and the next day left with Barnabas for Derbe.
Plenty of Hard Times
21-22 After proclaiming the Message in Derbe and establishing a strong core of disciples, they retraced their steps to Lystra, then Iconium, and then Antioch, putting grit in the lives of the disciples, urging them to stick with what they had begun to believe and not quit, making it clear to them that it wouldn’t be easy: “Anyone signing up for the kingdom of God has to go through plenty of hard times.”
23-26 Paul and Barnabas handpicked leaders in each church. After praying—their prayers intensified by fasting—they presented these new leaders to the Master to whom they had entrusted their lives. Working their way back through Pisidia, they came to Pamphylia and preached in Perga. Finally, they made it to Attalia and caught a ship back to Antioch, where it had all started—launched by God’s grace and now safely home by God’s grace. A good piece of work.
27-28 On arrival, they got the church together and reported on their trip, telling in detail how God had used them to throw the door of faith wide open so people of all nations could come streaming in. Then they settled down for a long, leisurely visit with the disciples.
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Copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson