The Good News Comes to Antioch

¹⁹ Many of the believers were scattered when they were persecuted after Stephen was killed. Some of them went as far as Phoenicia [^Cnorthwest of Israel on the coast], Cyprus [^Can island to the west of the coast of Syria], and Antioch [^Can important city in Syria] telling the message to others, but only to Jews. ²⁰ Some of these believers were people from Cyprus and Cyrene [^Ca city in North Africa]. When they came to Antioch, they spoke also to ·Greeks^[a] [or Hellenists (see textual note); ^Cin 6:1 and 9:29 the word refers to Greek-speaking Jews; here it refers to Greek-speaking Gentiles], telling them the ·Good News [Gospel] about the Lord Jesus. ²¹ ·The Lord was helping the believers [^LThe hand of the Lord was with them], and a large group of people believed and turned to the Lord.

²² The church in Jerusalem heard about all of this, so they sent Barnabas [4:36; 9:26–27] to Antioch. Barnabas was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and full of faith. When he reached Antioch and saw ·how God had blessed the people [^Lthe grace of God], he ·was glad [rejoiced]. He ·encouraged [exhorted; urged] all the believers in Antioch always to ·obey [or remain true to] the Lord with ·all their hearts [resolved/resolute hearts], and many people ·became followers of [^Lwere added to] the Lord.

²⁵ Then Barnabas went to the city of Tarsus [^CPaul’s hometown in Cilicia; 9:11] to look for Saul, ²⁶ and when he found Saul, he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year Saul and Barnabas met with the church and taught many people there. In Antioch the ·followers [disciples] were called Christians for the first time [^Chighlighting that they were followers of Christ, and perhaps that they were no longer viewed as merely a sect within Judaism].