Acts 14

Acts 14 is the fourteenth chapter of the Acts of the Apostles in the New Testament of the Christian Bible. It records the first missionary journey of Paul and Barnabas to Phrygia and Lycaonia. Early Christian tradition uniformly affirmed that Luke composed this book as well as the Gospel of Luke.Holman Illustrated Bible Handbook. Holman Bible Publishers, Nashville, Tennessee. 2012. Critical opinion on the tradition was evenly divided at the end of the 20th century.

Text The original text was written in Koine Greek. This chapter is divided into 28 verses.

Textual witnesses Some early manuscripts containing the text of this chapter are: In Greek Codex Vaticanus (AD 325–350) Codex Sinaiticus (330–360) Codex Bezae (~400) Codex Alexandrinus (400–440) Codex Ephraemi Rescriptus (~450) Codex Laudianus (~550; complete) In Latin Codex Laudianus (~550; complete) León palimpsest (7th century; extant verses 21–28).Bruce M. Metzger, The Early Versions of the New Testament, Oxford University Press, 1977, p. 316.

Old Testament references : and Psalm

New Testament references

Locations

This chapter mentions the following places (in order of appearance): Iconium, Phrygia Lystra and Derbe, cities of Lycaonia Antioch, Pisidia Perga, Pamphylia Attalia Antioch, Syria

Timeline The first missionary journey of Paul and Barnabas took place about AD 47–48.John Arthur Thomas Robinson (1919–1983). "Redating the New Testament". Westminster Press, 1976. 369 pages.

Preaching in Iconium (verses 1-7) and Lystra (verses 8–20)

Paul and his companions went out of Antioch in Pisidia to the east, apparently following the Roman road (Via Sebaste) which connects the Roman colonies of Antioch, Iconium (modern: Konya; to the southeast) and Lystra (30 km further to the southwest).Hansen, G. W. (1994) Galatia, in Gill and Gempf, pp. 384–385; apud Alexander 2007, p. 1046. Although the initial responses of both Jews and Greeks in the Iconium synagogue is positive (verse 1), the account focuses less on the church's foundation story, and more on the repeated opposition from "unbelieving Jews" or (in the aorist tense) "Jews who had decided against belief" in these cities.

Verse 8 At Lystra there was a crippled man, lame from birth, who had never walked.: New American Bible Revised Edition This man's needs and circumstances match those of the man healed by Peter and John in Acts 3:2.Gill, J., Gill's Exposition on Acts 14, accessed 9 May 2024 Theologians , Ferdinand Christian Baur, and Eduard Zeller considered that this narrative originated "from an imitation of the narrative of the earlier Petrine miracle in chapter 3".Meyer, H. A. W. (1880), Meyer's NT Commentary on Acts 14, translated from the German sixth edition, accessed 9 May 2024

Verse 11 Now when the people saw what Paul had done, they raised their voices, saying in the Lycaonian language, "The gods have come down to us in the likeness of men!": NKJV The Roman poet Ovid told of an ancient legend in which Zeus and Hermes came to the Phrygian hill country disguised as mortals seeking lodging. After being turned away from a thousand homes, they found refuge in the humble cottage of an elderly couple. In appreciation for the couple's hospitality, the gods transformed the cottage into a temple with a golden roof and marble columns. All the houses of the inhospitable people were then destroyed. This ancient legend may be the reason that the people treated Paul and Barnabas as gods. After witnessing the healing of the cripple, they did not want to make the same mistake as their ancestors.The Nelson Study Bible. Thomas Nelson, Inc. 1997 Ancient inscriptions confirm the existence of the local pre-Greek language ("Lycaonian") in that period, as well as the joint worship of Zeus and Hermes in the area.Bruce, F. F. (1990), The Acts of the Apostles: the Greek Text with Introduction and Commentary, 3rd edition. (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans), pp. 321–322; apud Alexander 2007, p. 1046.

Verses 19-20 19 But Jews came from Antioch and Iconium, and having persuaded the crowds, 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.: English Standard Version With verse 19 there is an "abrupt return" to summary mode and to the theme of Christian persecution. Although the stoning of Paul was undertaken by "Jews from Antioch and Iconium", Henry Alford suggests that "they stoned him, not in the Jewish method, but tumultuously and in the streets, dragging him out of the city afterwards".Alford, H. (1841-61), Greek Testament Critical Exegetical Commentary - Alford on Acts 14, accessed 10 May 2024 Paul refers to the event in 2 Corinthians 11:25. But when the disciples gathered about Paul, he "rose up" (,: Westcott-Hort New Testament anastas, as in the Resurrection of Jesus). The meaning here does not imply a "miraculous" recovery; rather, it shows "the protection and support" around him, which "gives Paul the strength to rise up and continue his apostolic mission".Holyhead, V. (2006), Welcoming the Word in Year C: With Burning Hearts, p. 69, Liturgical Press, Collegeville, Minnesota

Paul and Barnabas departed the next day for Derbe (; to the southeast of Lystra). Many translations render this text as 'and on the next day he went on with Barnabas to Derbe',Acts 14:20 in the English Standard Version and Revised Standard Version, accessed 18 September 2015 implying they traveled within one day, but as it is about 60 miles from Lystra to the likely site of Derbe, Bastian van Elderen has stated that Acts 14:20 must be translated as 'on the next day he set out with Barnabas towards (or for) Derbe'.

Returning to Pisidia (verses 21–23) From Derbe, Paul and Barnabas began the journey back to Antioch, Pisidia, while consolidating the newly planted churches along the way: 'strengthening the soul and encouraging believers to remain in the faith (verse 22) in person as Paul later does with his letters (cf. 1 Thessalonians 2:14–16; 3:2–4). The term "Elders" (Greek: , ) is used by Paul as church officials in the Pastoral epistles (Titus 1:5; 1 Timothy 5:17,19), along with another term episkopoi (Acts 20:28; cf. Philippians 1:1).

The journey home from Pisidia to Syria (verses 24–28) This section records the conclusion of the journey, tracing the traversed region along the land road until reaching Attalia, where they sailed to Seleucia, the sea port of Antioch in Syria (verses 24–26). The missionary church received a 'formal report' on the accomplished work (verses 26–27), especially the opening of a 'door of faith' for the Gentiles (cf. 2 Corinthians 2:12).

Acts 14

Bron en licentie