Acts 14
New King James Version
At Iconium
14 Now it happened in Iconium that they went together to the synagogue of the Jews, and so spoke that a great multitude both of the Jews and of the (A)Greeks believed. 2 But the unbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles and [a]poisoned their [b]minds against the brethren. 3 Therefore they stayed there a long time, speaking boldly in the Lord, (B)who was bearing witness to the word of His grace, granting signs and (C)wonders to be done by their hands.
4 But the multitude of the city was (D)divided: part sided with the Jews, and part with the (E)apostles. 5 And when a violent attempt was made by both the Gentiles and Jews, with their rulers, (F)to abuse and stone them, 6 they became aware of it and (G)fled to Lystra and Derbe, cities of Lycaonia, and to the surrounding region. 7 And they were preaching the gospel there.
Idolatry at Lystra
8 (H)And in Lystra a certain man without strength in his feet was sitting, a cripple from his mother’s womb, who had never walked. 9 This man heard Paul speaking. [c]Paul, observing him intently and seeing that he had faith to be healed, 10 said with a loud voice, (I)“Stand up straight on your feet!” And he leaped and walked. 11 Now when the people saw what Paul had done, they raised their voices, saying in the Lycaonian language, (J)“The gods have come down to us in the likeness of men!” 12 And Barnabas they called [d]Zeus, and Paul, [e]Hermes, because he was the chief speaker. 13 Then the priest of Zeus, whose temple was in front of their city, brought oxen and garlands to the gates, (K)intending to sacrifice with the multitudes.
14 But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard this, (L)they tore their clothes and ran in among the multitude, crying out 15 and saying, “Men, (M)why are you doing these things? (N)We also are men with the same nature as you, and preach to you that you should turn from (O)these useless things (P)to the living God, (Q)who made the heaven, the earth, the sea, and all things that are in them, 16 (R)who in bygone generations allowed all nations to walk in their own ways. 17 (S)Nevertheless He did not leave Himself without witness, in that He did good, (T)gave us rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, filling our hearts with (U)food and gladness.” 18 And with these sayings they could scarcely restrain the multitudes from sacrificing to them.
Stoning, Escape to Derbe
19 (V)Then Jews from Antioch and Iconium came there; and having persuaded the multitudes, (W)they stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, supposing him to be (X)dead. 20 However, when the disciples gathered around him, he rose up and went into the city. And the next day he departed with Barnabas to Derbe.
Strengthening the Converts
21 And when they had preached the gospel to that city (Y)and made many disciples, they returned to Lystra, Iconium, and Antioch, 22 strengthening the souls of the disciples, (Z)exhorting them to continue in the faith, and saying, (AA)“We must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God.” 23 So when they had (AB)appointed elders in every church, and prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord in whom they had believed. 24 And after they had passed through Pisidia, they came to Pamphylia. 25 Now when they had preached the word in Perga, they went down to Attalia. 26 From there they sailed to Antioch, where they had been commended to the grace of God for the work which they had completed.
27 Now when they had come and gathered the church together, (AC)they reported all that God had done with them, and that He had (AD)opened the door of faith to the Gentiles. 28 So they stayed there a long time with the disciples.
Footnotes
- Acts 14:2 embittered
- Acts 14:2 Lit. souls
- Acts 14:9 Lit. Who
- Acts 14:12 Jupiter
- Acts 14:12 Mercury
Acts 14
New International Reader's Version
Paul and Barnabas Preach in Iconium
14 At Iconium, Paul and Barnabas went into the Jewish synagogue as usual. They spoke there with great power. Large numbers of Jews and Greeks became believers. 2 But the Jews who refused to believe stirred up some of the Gentiles who were there. They turned them against the two men and the new believers. 3 So Paul and Barnabas spent a lot of time there. They spoke boldly for the Lord. He gave them the ability to do signs and wonders. In this way the Lord showed that they were telling the truth about his grace. 4 The people of the city did not agree with one another. Some were on the side of the Jews. Others were on the side of the apostles. 5 Jews and Gentiles alike planned to treat Paul and Barnabas badly. Their leaders agreed. They planned to kill them by throwing stones at them. 6 But Paul and Barnabas found out about the plan. They escaped to the Lycaonian cities of Lystra and Derbe and to the surrounding area. 7 There they continued to preach the good news.
Paul Preaches in Lystra
8 In Lystra there sat a man who couldn’t walk. He hadn’t been able to use his feet since the day he was born. 9 He listened as Paul spoke. Paul looked right at him. He saw that the man had faith to be healed. 10 So he called out, “Stand up on your feet!” Then the man jumped up and began to walk.
11 The crowd saw what Paul had done. They shouted in the Lycaonian language. “The gods have come down to us in human form!” they exclaimed. 12 They called Barnabas Zeus. Paul was the main speaker. So they called him Hermes. 13 Just outside the city was the temple of the god Zeus. The priest of Zeus brought bulls and wreaths to the city gates. He and the crowd wanted to offer sacrifices to Paul and Barnabas.
14 But the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard about this. So they tore their clothes. They rushed out into the crowd. They shouted, 15 “Friends, why are you doing this? We are only human, just like you. We are bringing you good news. Turn away from these worthless things. Turn to the living God. He is the one who made the heavens and the earth and the sea. He made everything in them. 16 In the past, he let all nations go their own way. 17 But he has given proof of what he is like. He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven. He gives you crops in their seasons. He provides you with plenty of food. He fills your hearts with joy.” 18 Paul and Barnabas told them all these things. But they had trouble keeping the crowd from offering sacrifices to them.
19 Then some Jews came from Antioch and Iconium. They won the crowd over to their side. They threw stones at Paul. They thought he was dead, so they dragged him out of the city. 20 The believers gathered around Paul. Then he got up and went back into the city. The next day he and Barnabas left for Derbe.
Paul and Barnabas Return to Antioch
21 Paul and Barnabas preached the good news in the city of Derbe. They won large numbers of followers. Then they returned to Lystra, Iconium and Antioch. 22 There they helped the believers gain strength. They told them to remain faithful to what they had been taught. “We must go through many hard times to enter God’s kingdom,” they said. 23 Paul and Barnabas appointed elders for them in each church. The elders had trusted in the Lord. Paul and Barnabas prayed and fasted. They placed the elders in the Lord’s care. 24 After going through Pisidia, Paul and Barnabas came into Pamphylia. 25 They preached the good news in Perga. Then they went down to Attalia.
26 From Attalia they sailed back to Antioch. In Antioch they had been put in God’s care to preach the good news. They had now completed the work God had given them to do. 27 When they arrived at Antioch, they gathered the church together. They reported all that God had done through them. They told how he had opened a way for the Gentiles to believe. 28 And they stayed there a long time with the believers.
Acts 14
English Standard Version
Paul and Barnabas at Iconium
14 Now at Iconium (A)they entered together into the Jewish synagogue and spoke in such a way that a great number of both Jews and Greeks believed. 2 (B)But the (C)unbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds against (D)the brothers.[a] 3 So they remained for a long time, speaking boldly for (E)the Lord, who bore witness to (F)the word of his grace, (G)granting signs and wonders to be done by their hands. 4 But the people of the city (H)were divided; (I)some sided with the Jews and some with the apostles. 5 When an attempt was made by both Gentiles and Jews, with their rulers, (J)to mistreat them and (K)to stone them, 6 they learned of it and (L)fled to (M)Lystra and Derbe, cities of Lycaonia, and to the surrounding country, 7 and there they continued to preach the gospel.
Paul and Barnabas at Lystra
8 Now at Lystra there was a man sitting who could not use his feet. He was (N)crippled from birth and had never walked. 9 He listened to Paul speaking. And Paul, looking intently at him and (O)seeing that he had faith to be made well,[b] 10 said in a loud voice, “Stand upright on your feet.” And he (P)sprang up and began walking. 11 And when the crowds saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voices, saying in Lycaonian, (Q)“The gods have come down to us in the likeness of men!” 12 Barnabas they called (R)Zeus, and Paul, Hermes, because he was the chief speaker. 13 And the priest of (S)Zeus, whose temple was at the entrance to the city, brought oxen and garlands to the gates and (T)wanted to offer sacrifice with the crowds. 14 But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of it, they (U)tore their garments and rushed out into the crowd, crying out, 15 “Men, (V)why are you doing these things? We also are men, (W)of like nature with you, and we bring you good news, that (X)you should turn from these (Y)vain things to (Z)a living God, (AA)who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all that is in them. 16 In past generations he (AB)allowed all the nations (AC)to walk in their own ways. 17 Yet (AD)he did not leave himself without witness, for he (AE)did good by (AF)giving you rains from heaven and (AG)fruitful seasons, satisfying your hearts with (AH)food and (AI)gladness.” 18 Even with these words they scarcely restrained the people from offering sacrifice to them.
Paul Stoned at Lystra
19 (AJ)But Jews came from Antioch and Iconium, and having persuaded the crowds, (AK)they stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, supposing that he was dead. 20 But when the disciples gathered about him, he rose up and entered the city, and on the next day he went on with Barnabas to Derbe. 21 When they had preached the gospel to that city and had (AL)made many disciples, they returned to Lystra and to Iconium and to Antioch, 22 (AM)strengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them (AN)to continue in (AO)the faith, and saying that (AP)through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God. 23 And when they had (AQ)appointed (AR)elders for them in every church, with prayer and fasting (AS)they committed them to the Lord in whom they had believed.
Paul and Barnabas Return to Antioch in Syria
24 Then they passed through Pisidia and came to Pamphylia. 25 And when they had spoken the word in Perga, they went down to Attalia, 26 and from there they sailed to Antioch, (AT)where they had been (AU)commended to the grace of God for the work that they had fulfilled. 27 And when they arrived and gathered the church together, (AV)they declared all that God had done with them, and (AW)how he had (AX)opened (AY)a door of faith to the Gentiles. 28 And they remained no little time with the disciples.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Copyright © 1995, 1996, 1998, 2014 by Biblica, Inc.®. Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
The ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. ESV Text Edition: 2025.
