Cyprus
Acts 12:25–13:12
Overview
It was already clear from Acts 9 that Paul had been singled out by God as a special instrument to aid in the fulfilling of the divine salvation plan. Thus, whatever is being describle in these verses in not meant to suggest that only now had Paul been called or singled out for missionary work. Here the Holy Spirit is the one who indicates that Paul and Barnabas have been chosen for a particular role in the overall missionary work. (Witherington)
In contrast to Herod and like Peter, the word of the Lord, the gospel, continued to grow and multiply through God’s supernatural blessing. Therefore the church continued to flourish in Jewish territory as well as among the Gentiles. This verse is another of Luke’s progress reports that concludes a section of his history (cf. 6:7; 9:31). Nothing seemed capable of stopping the expansion of the church. Corruption and contention in its ranks did not kill it (5:1–11; 6:1–7). Its religious enemies could not contain it (4:1; 8:1, 3; 11:19). Even Roman officials could not control it (vv. 1–23). In the next section we see that it broke out into Asia Minor. Jesus’ prediction that even the gates of Hades could not overpower it was proving true (Matt. 16:18; Acts 1:8).
Luke recorded that Jesus came to bring deliverance to the Jews and to the whole world (Luke 4:14–30). In his Gospel, Luke told the story of Jesus’ personal ministry, primarily to the Jews. In Acts the emphasis is mainly on Jesus’ ministry, through His apostles, to the Gentile world. As the mission to the Gentiles unfolds in Acts, we can see that Luke took pains to show that the ministry to the Gentiles paralleled the ministry to the Jews. He did this by relating many things that the missionaries to the Gentiles did that were very similar to what the missionaries to the Jews did. This demonstrates that God was indeed behind both missions and that they are really two aspects of His worldwide plan to bring the gospel to all people and to build a worldwide church.
The present section of text (12:25–16:5) does more than just present the geographical expansion of the church into Asia Minor (modern western Turkey). Primarily it shows the legitimacy of dealing with Gentiles as Gentiles, rather than through Judaism before and after their conversion. It becomes increasingly clear that the church and Judaism are two separate entities. God was not renewing the remnant in Israel and refreshing it with Gentile’s who believed in Jesus. He was creating a new body: the church. This section culminates in the Jerusalem Council (ch. 15) in which the issue of the Gentiles’ relationship to the church came to a head. The last verse (16:5) summarizes these events and issues. (Constable)
Background
Seleucia — The journey begins with a trip to the city of Seleucia, which was some 16 miles from Antioch and served as its port, though it was in fact some 5 miles from there to the mouth of the Orontes River. The Roman fleet for this region was stationed there, and one could obtain regular passage to many distinations from this port.
Cyprus — Cyprus was an island of great importance from very early times, being situated on the shipping lanes between Syria, Asia Minor, and Greece. In 57 B.C. it was annexed by Rome from Egypt and in 55 B.C. incorporated into the province of Cilicia. In 27 B.C. it became a separate province governed on behalf of the emperor Augustus by an imperial legate. In 22 B.C. Augustus relinquished its control to the senate, and, like other senatorial provinces, it was administered by a proconsul. (Longenecker)
Salamis — Salamis was the largest town in eastern Cyprus, about 130 miles from Seleucia. It lay on the coast, and there were enough Jews there to warrant more than one synagogue. Salamis’ population was mainly Greek, but many Jews lived there as well. The ancient city of Salamis stood on the eastern shore of Cyprus, at the mouth of the Pediaios River. It was the island’s most important port city, with ships stopping here from the Middle East and from Europe (particularly the Aegean) in antiquity. During the Roman period, Salamis was the largest city on the island, surpassing even Paphos, the administrative capital of Cyprus. The city ran along the shore for about a mile (2 km) and reached about half a mile inland (1 km). (Josephus & bibleplaces.com)
Paphos — Biblical Paphos, also called “Nea Paphos” or “New Paphos,” was founded around 320 BC by Nikokles, the city’s last Greek king. Paphos served as the island’s capital until the Byzantine period, when it was moved to Salamis. During the Ptolemaic period (ca. 300–58 BC) New Paphos was a significant port city. The Romans seized control of Cyprus in 58 BC and incorporated it into the province of Cilicia. In 30 BC, it was made a separate Roman province ruled by a Roman military governor, and in 22 BC, it became a senatorial province ruled by a proconsul. The proconsul of the island when Paul visited (about AD 47) was a man named Sergius Paulus. (bibleplaces.com)
Traveling Rhetoricians — In the Greek world it was the custom for philosophers, rhetoricians, or religious propagandists, to travel about from city to city and give public orations. By this means they often secured permanent professorships. So when Sergius Paulus heard of Barnabas and Saul, he took them for similar professors, and having an interest in these matters he summoned them to give a declamation before his court. (Rackham)
Roman officials were notoriously superstitious. (Constable)
Key Ideas
Friend — the word σύντροφος (suntrophos) if taken literally could mean that this man had the same wet nurse as Herod Antipas, here called the tetrarch, but is was a common word to refer to an intimate friend, in this case a friend in the court. (Witherington)
Set apart to me — Ἀφορίσατε δή μοι is emphatic. Not only is the verb in the imperative, but μοι (to me), an invitatory particle (“come now”), punctuates the matter, indicating the need for immediate action. The Spirit is beckoning “set them apart for me now.” (Witherington)
Magician — the term μάγον (magon) could have the pejorative sense of quack magician, but it could also have the more neutral sense of an eastern priest, originally a Persian fire-priest. In view of the pejorative term “false prophet” with which it is coupled there is little doubt of its sense here. A μάγον was a diviner who through various rituals claimed to be able to evoke the dead, including the shares or spirits of one’s ancestors; and coupled with the word “prophet” our text suggests that he claimed to be able to tell the future, perhaps through necromancy, perhaps through astrology or magical spells and rituals involving both. (Nock & Witherington)
Departed — ἀποχωρήσας, used in both 13:13 and in a different form in 15:39, can have the sense of betrayal or almost apostasy (turning from God), or at least turning back in fear. Thus the translation “deserted” is not too strong at 13:13. In view of Philem. 24, Col. 4:10 and 2 Tim. 4:11, fences were apparently later mended between Paul and Mark. (Witherington & Johnson)
False Prophet — Bar-Jesus is called a false prophet, strongly suggesting that he was being used as a consultant of the sorts by the proconsul, part of his official entourage. We should not be surprised that a Roman might use such a person with associations with Judaism. We know that Jews had a reputation in the Empire for depth of religious insight and understanding, and there is even a reference to a Jewish sorcerer from Cyprus who aided the Roman governor Felix in seducing Drusilla away from her husband Azizus. Equally revealing is the reaction of the Vespisian to Josephus’s famous prophecy that he would be emperor, or the trust a highborn Roman matron placed in the advice of a syncretistic Jewess. One may also point to Emperor Tiberius’s reliance on the astrologer Thrasyllus, who was seen as a true prophet. Finally, one may also refer to Nero’s reliance on and initiation by one Tiridates. These examples make Luke’s association of Bar-Jesus with the Roman proconsul readily believable. (Barrett, Nock, Pliny & Witherington)
Paul — This passage is the first time we hear of Saul also being called Paul. This does not represent a change in name, but the identification of an alternative name. Luke’s way of putting it probably rules out the idea that Paul borrowed the name of the proconsul. It is probably right to say that Luke has introduced the name at this juncture because now Paul will be dealing with Gentiles and will accordingly want to use his Roman name in doing so. (Barrett & Witherington)
Possible Discussion Points
- Paul and Barnabas have received mentorship from the others at the time, but they did not receive an academic education to be called into their ministry. In other words, the calling of God transcends our education. How do you hold this tension in your own ministry?
- For some reason, Mark leaves Paul and Barnabas and a rift is formed between Paul and Mark. Is there someone who has left you, or have you left someone else? Is there reconciliation that needs to occur due to conflict?
- Paul changed his name (or went by a different name) for the sake of being an insider among the population he was trying to reach. What measures are you taking to be an insider?
Side Notes
Paul’s missionary work during this period has the best claim to being called a “missionary journey” as is customary on Bible maps. The later periods were much more devoted to extended activity and significant key cities of the ancient world, and we gain a false picture of Paul’s strategy if we think of him as rushing rapidly on missionary journeys from one place to the next, leaving small groups of half taught converts behind him; it was his general policy to remain in one place until he had established the firm foundation of a christian community, or until he was forced to move by circumstances beyond his control. (Marshall)
