Acts 13
1 Among [the people in] the congregation at Antioch there were (prophets/those who spoke messages from God) and those who taught [people about Jesus. They were] Barnabas; Simeon, who was also called Niger/Blackman; Lucius, from Cyrene [city]; Manaen, who had grown up with [King] Herod [Antipas]; and Saul.
Among the members of the church at Antioch there were several prophets and teachers – Barnabas, Simeon who was known by the name of “Black”, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen, foster-brother of Prince Herod, and Saul.
2 While they were worshipping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said [to them], “Appoint Barnabas and Saul to [serve] me and to [go and do] the work that I have chosen them [to do]!”
While they were engaged in the worship of the Lord and were fasting, the Holy Spirit said, ‘Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul, for the work to which I have called them.’
3 So they continued (to fast/to abstain from eating food) and pray. Then having put their hands on Barnabas and Saul and [praying that God would help them], they sent them off [to do what the Holy Spirit had commanded].
Accordingly, after fasting and prayer, they placed their hands on them and dismissed them.
4 Barnabas and Saul, guided by the Holy Spirit, went down [from Antioch] to Seleucia [port]. From there they went by ship to Salamis [port on Cyprus Island].
Barnabas and Saul, sent on this mission, as they were, by the Holy Spirit, went down to Seleucia, and from there sailed to Cyprus.
5 While they were in Salamis, [they went] to the Jewish meeting places. There they proclaimed the message from God [about Jesus]. John [Mark went with them and] was helping them.
On reaching Salamis, they began to tell the message of God in the Jewish synagogues; and they had John with them as an assistant.
6 [The three of] them went across the entire island to Paphos [city]. There they met a magician whose name was Bar-Jesus. He was a Jew who falsely [claimed] (to be a prophet/to speak messages from God).
After passing through the whole island, they reached Paphos, where they found an astrologer who pretended to be a prophet – a Jew by birth, whose name was Barjoshua.
7 He often accompanied the governor [of the island], Sergius Paulus, who was an intelligent man. The governor sent [someone] to ask Barnabas and Saul to come to him, because he wanted to hear God’s message. [So Barnabas and Saul came and told him about Jesus].
He was at the court of the Governor, Sergius Paulus, a man of intelligence, who sent for Barnabas and Saul and asked to be told God’s message.
8 However, the magician, whose name was Elymas [in the Greek language], was opposing them. He repeatedly tried to persuade the governor not to believe [in Jesus].
But Elymas, the astrologer (for that is the meaning of the word), opposed them, eager to divert the Governor’s attention from the faith.
9 Then Saul, who now called himself Paul, empowered by the Holy Spirit, looked intently at the magician and said,
However, Saul (who is the same as Paul), full of the Holy Spirit, fixed his eyes on him and said,
10 “You [(sg)] are serving the devil and you oppose everything that is good! You are always lying [to people] and doing [other] evil things to them. (You must stop saying that the truth about the Lord [God is a lot of lies!]/When will you stop changing what is true about the Lord [God and saying] what is not true about him?) [RHQ]
‘You incarnation of deceit and all fraud! You son of the devil! You opponent of all that is good! Will you never cease to divert the straight paths of the Lord? Listen!
11 Right now the Lord [God] [MTY] is going to punish you! You will become blind and not [even] be able to see light for [some] time.” At once he became [blind, as though he was] in a dark mist, and he groped about, searching for someone [to hold him by the] hand and lead him.
The hand of the Lord is on you even now, and you will be blind for a time and unable to see the sun.’ Immediately a mist and darkness fell on him, and he went feeling about for someone to guide him.
12 When the governor saw what had happened [to Elymas], he believed [in the Lord Jesus]. He was amazed by [what Paul and Barnabas] were teaching about the Lord [Jesus].
When the Governor saw what had happened, he became a believer in Christ, being greatly impressed by the teaching about the Lord.
13 [After that], Paul and the two men with him went by ship from Paphos to Perga [port] in Pamphylia [province. At Perga] John [Mark] left them and returned to [his home in] Jerusalem.
After this, Paul and his companions set sail from Paphos and went to Perga in Pamphylia, where John left them and returned to Jerusalem.
14 Then Paul and Barnabas traveled [by land] from Perga, and arrived in Antioch [city] near Pisidia [district in Galatia province]. (On the Sabbath/On the Jewish rest day) they entered the synagogue/the Jewish meeting place and sat down.
The others went on from Perga and arrived at Antioch in Pisidia. There they went into the synagogue on the Sabbath and took their seats.
15 [Someone] read [aloud] from what [Moses had written. Then someone read from what the other] prophets [had written] [MTY]. Then the leaders of the Jewish meeting place gave [someone this] note [to take] to Paul and Barnabas: “Fellow Jews, if [one of] you wants to speak to the people [here] to encourage them, please speak [to us(exc) now].”
After the reading of the Law and the prophets, the synagogue leader sent them this message – ‘Friends, if you have any helpful words to address to the people, now is the time to speak.’
16 So Paul stood up and motioned with his right hand [so that the people would listen to him]. Then he said, “Fellow Israelis and you [non-Jewish people] who [also] worship God, [please] listen [to me]!
So Paul rose and, motioning with his hand, said: ‘People of Israel and all here who worship God, hear what I have to say.
17 God, whom we [(inc)] Israelis worship, chose our ancestors [to be his people], and he caused them to become very numerous while they were foreigners living in Egypt. [Then after many years], God helped them [MTY] powerfully and led them out of there.
The God of this people Israel chose our ancestors, and during their stay in Egypt increased the prosperity of the people, and then with uplifted arm brought them out from that land.
18 [Even though they repeatedly disobeyed him, he] cared for them for about 40 years [while they were] in the desert.
For about forty years he bore with them in the desert;
19 He [enabled the Israelis] to conquer seven tribal groups [who were then living] in Canaan [region], and he gave their land to us Israelis for us to possess.
then, after destroying seven heathen nations in Canaan, he allotted their land to this people –
20 [Our ancestors began to possess Canaan] about 450 years after [their ancestors had arrived in Egypt].” Acts 13:20b-22 “After that, God appointed leaders [to rule the Israeli people. Those leaders continued to rule our people] until the time when the prophet Samuel [ruled them].
For about four hundred and fifty years. In later times he gave them Judges, of whom the prophet Samuel was the last.
21 Then, [while Samuel was still their leader], the people demanded that he [appoint] a king [to rule them. So] God appointed Saul, the son of Kish, from the tribe of Benjamin, [to be their king]. He [ruled them] for 40 years.
And, when they demanded a king, God gave them Saul the son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, who reigned for forty years.
22 After God had rejected Saul [from being king], he appointed David to be their king. God said about him, ‘I have observed that David, son of Jesse, is exactly the kind of man that I desire [IDM]. He will do [everything that] I want [him to do].’”
After removing him, he raised David to the throne, and bore this testimony to him – “In David, the son of Jesse, I have found a man after my own heart, who will carry out all my purposes.”
23 “From [among] David’s descendants, God brought one of them, Jesus, to [us] Israeli people to save us, just like he had told [David and our other ancestors] that he would do.
It was from this man’s descendants that God, in accordance with his promise, gave Israel a Saviour – Jesus;
24 Before Jesus began his work, John [the Baptizer] preached to all of our Israeli people [who came to him. He told them] that they should turn away from their sinful behavior [and ask God to forgive them. Then he] would baptize them.
John having first proclaimed, before the appearance of Jesus, a baptism on repentance for all the people of Israel.
25 When John was about to finish the work [that God gave him to do], he frequently said [to the people], ‘Do you think [RHQ] that I am [the Messiah whom God promised to send]? No, I am not. But listen! The Messiah will [soon] come. [He is so much greater than I am that] I am not [even] important enough to be his slave [MET].’”
As John was drawing towards the end of his career, he said “What do you suppose that I am? I am not the Christ. But there is ‘one coming’ after me, whose sandal I am not worthy to untie.”
26 “Fellow Israelis, you who are descendants of Abraham, and [you non-Jewish people who] also worship God, [please listen! It is] to [all of] us that [God] has sent the message about [how he] saves people.
Brothers and sisters, descendants of Abraham, and all those among you who worship God, it was to us that the message of this salvation was sent.
27 The people who were living in Jerusalem and their rulers did not realize that this man [Jesus was the one whom God had sent to save them]. Although messages from [MTY] the prophets have been read [aloud] {someone has read [aloud] messages from [MTY] the prophets} every (Sabbath/Jewish day of rest), they did not understand [what the prophets wrote about the Messiah. So] the [Jewish leaders] condemned Jesus [to die], which was just like the prophets predicted.
The people of Jerusalem and their leaders, failing to recognise Jesus, and not understanding the utterances of the prophets that are read every Sabbath, fulfilled them by condemning him.
28 [Many people accused Jesus of doing wicked things], but they could not prove that he had done anything for which he deserved to die. They insistently asked Pilate [the governor] to command that Jesus be executed {to command soldiers to execute Jesus}. [So Pilate did what they asked him to do].
They found no ground at all for putting him to death, and yet demanded his execution from Pilate;
29 They did [to Jesus] all the things that [the prophets long ago had] written [that people would do to] him. [They killed Jesus by nailing him to a cross. Then] his body was taken {[some people took] his body} down from the cross and placed it in a tomb.
and, after carrying out everything written about him, they took Jesus down from the cross, and laid him in a tomb.
30 However, God (raised him from the dead/caused him to live again after he had died)
But God raised him from the dead;
31 and for many days he [repeatedly] appeared to [his followers] who had come along with him from Galilee [province] to Jerusalem. Those [who saw him] are telling the [Jewish] people about him now.”
and he appeared for many days to those who had gone up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem, and who are now witnesses for him to the people.
32 “[Right] now we [two] are proclaiming to you this good message. We want to tell you that God has fulfilled what he promised to [our Jewish] ancestors!
We also have good news to tell you, about the promise made to our ancestors –
33 He has now done that for us [(inc) who are] their descendants, [and also for you who are not Jews], by causing Jesus to live again. That is just like what [David] wrote in the second Psalm that [God said when he was sending his Son], You [(sg)] are my Son; Today I have shown everyone [that I really am] your Father.
That our children have had this promise completely fulfilled to them by God, by his raising Jesus. That is just what is said in the second Psalm – “You are my Son; this day I have become your Father.”
34 [God] has (raised [the Messiah] from the dead/caused [the Messiah] to live again after he had died) and will never let him die again. [Concerning that, God] said [to our Jewish ancestors], ‘I will surely help you, as I [promised] David [that I would do].’
As to his raising Jesus from the dead, never again to return to corruption, this is what is said – “I will give to you the sacred promises made to David;”
35 So [in writing] another [Psalm, David] said this [to God about the Messiah]: ‘Because I am devoted to you and always obey [you, when I die] you [(sg)] will not let my body decay.’
And, therefore, in another Psalm it is said – “You will not give up the Holy One to undergo corruption.”
36 While David was living, he did what God wanted him to do. And when he died [EUP], his [body] was buried, [as] his ancestors’ [bodies had been buried], and his body decayed. [So he could not have been speaking about himself in this Psalm].
David, after obediently doing God’s will in his own time, fell asleep and was laid by the side of his ancestors, and did undergo corruption;
37 [Instead, he was speaking about Jesus. Jesus also died], but God (raised him from the dead/caused him to live again), and [therefore] his body did not decay.”
but Jesus, whom God raised from the dead, did not undergo corruption.
38 “Therefore, [my] fellow Israelis [and other friends], it is important for you to know that [we(exc)] are declaring to you [that God] can forgive you for your sins as a result of [what] Jesus [has done]. Because of [what] Jesus [has done], [God] considers that everyone who believes [in Jesus] is no longer guilty (OR, the record has been erased {[God] has erased the record}) concerning everything that they [have done that displeased God. But] when [God] does [that for you], it is not as a result of [your obeying] the laws [that] Moses [wrote].
I would, therefore, like you to know, friends, that through Jesus forgiveness of sins is being proclaimed to you,
and that, in union with him, everyone who believes in him is absolved from every sin from which under the Law of Moses you could not be absolved.
40 Therefore be careful that [God] does not judge you [MTY], as one of the prophets said [MTY] that God would do!
Beware, therefore, that what is said in the prophets does not come true of you –
41 [The prophet wrote that God said], You who ridicule [me], you will [certainly] be astonished [when you see what I am doing], and [then] you will be destroyed. You will be astonished because I will do something [terrible to you] while you are living. You would not believe [that I would do that] even though someone told you!”
“Look, you despisers, and wonder, and perish; for I am doing a deed in your days – a deed which, though told you in full, you will never believe”.’
42 After Paul [finished speaking], while he and Barnabas were leaving the Jewish meeting place, [many of] the people there repeatedly requested that on the next (Sabbath/Jewish day of rest) [the two of them] should speak to them [again] about those things [that Paul had just told them].
As Paul and Barnabas were leaving the synagogue, the people begged for a repetition of this teaching on the next Sabbath.
43 After they began to leave [that meeting], many [of them] went along with Paul and Barnabas. They consisted of Jews and also of non-Jews who had accepted the things that the Jews believe. Paul and Barnabas continued talking to them, and were urging them to continue [believing the message that] God kindly [forgives people’s sins because of what Jesus did].
After the congregation had dispersed, many of the Jews, and of the converts who joined in their worship, followed Paul and Barnabas, who talked with them and urged them to continue to rely on the loving kindness of God.
44 On the next Jewish rest day, most of the [people in Antioch came to] the Jewish meeting place to hear [Paul and Barnabas] speak about the Lord [Jesus].
On the following Sabbath, almost all the city gathered to hear God’s message.
45 But [the leaders of] [SYN] the Jews became extremely jealous, because they saw that large crowds of [non-Jewish people were coming to hear Paul and Barnabas. So] they began to contradict the things that Paul was saying [and also] to insult [him].
But the sight of the crowds of people filled the minds of the Jews with jealousy, and they kept contradicting Paul’s statements in violent language.
46 Then, speaking very boldly, Paul and Barnabas said [to those Jewish leaders], “[We two] had to speak the message from God [about Jesus] to you [Jews] first [before we proclaim it to non-Jews, because God commanded us to do that. But] you are rejecting God’s message. [By doing that], you have shown that you are not worthy (to have eternal life/to live eternally [with God]). [Therefore], we are leaving [you, and now we] will go to the non-Jewish people [to tell them the message from God]. (aiōnios g166)
Then Paul and Barnabas spoke out fearlessly, and said: ‘It was necessary that the message of God should be told to you first; but, since you reject it and reckon yourselves not worthy of the eternal life – we turn to the Gentiles! (aiōnios g166)
47 [We are doing that also] because the Lord [God] has commanded us [to do it]. He said to us, ‘I have appointed you [to reveal things about me] to non-Jewish people [MET] that will be [like] a light to them. [I have appointed] you to tell people everywhere [MTY] in the world [about the one who came] to save [them].’”
For this is the Lord’s command to us – “I have destined you for a light to the Gentiles, a means of salvation to the ends of the earth”.’
48 While the non-Jewish people were listening [to those words], they began to rejoice, and they repeatedly said that the message about the Lord [Jesus] was wonderful. And all of the non-Jewish people whom [God] had chosen (to have eternal [life/to live eternally with God]) believed [the message about the Lord Jesus]. (aiōnios g166)
On hearing this, the Gentiles were glad and extolled God’s message; and all those who had been enrolled for eternal life became believers in Christ; (aiōnios g166)
49 [At that time, many of the believers] traveled around throughout that region. As they did that, they were proclaiming the message about the Lord [Jesus] [MTY].
and the Lord’s message was carried throughout that district.
50 However, [some leaders of] [SYN] the Jews incited the most important men in the city, and [some] important/influential women who had accepted what the Jews believe, to oppose [Paul and Barnabas. So those non-Jewish people] incited [other people also] to persecute Paul and Barnabas. As a result they expelled the two men from their region.
But the Jews incited the women of high social standing who worshiped with them, and the leading men of the town, and started a persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and drove them out of their region.
51 So, [as the two apostles were leaving, they] shook the dust from their feet [to show those Jewish leaders that God had rejected them and would punish them. They left Antioch] and went to Iconium [city].
They, however, shook the dust off their feet in protest,
52 Meanwhile, the believers [in Antioch] continued to rejoice greatly, and they continued to be completely controlled by the Holy Spirit.
and went to Iconium, leaving the disciples full of joy and of the Holy Spirit.
