13:1 Now there were these prophets and teachers in the church at Antioch: 1 Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, 2 Lucius the Cyrenian, 3 Manaen (a close friend of Herod 4 the tetrarch 5 from childhood 6 ) and Saul. 13:2 While they were serving 7 the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart 8 for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.” 13:3 Then, after they had fasted 9 and 10 prayed and placed their hands 11 on them, they sent them off.
13:4 So Barnabas and Saul, 12 sent out by the Holy Spirit, went down to Seleucia, 13 and from there they sailed to Cyprus. 14 13:5 When 15 they arrived 16 in Salamis, 17 they began to proclaim 18 the word of God in the Jewish synagogues. 19 (Now they also had John 20 as their assistant.) 21 13:6 When they had crossed over 22 the whole island as far as Paphos, 23 they found a magician, a Jewish false prophet named Bar-Jesus, 24 13:7 who was with the proconsul 25 Sergius Paulus, an intelligent man. The proconsul 26 summoned 27 Barnabas and Saul and wanted to hear 28 the word of God. 13:8 But the magician Elymas 29 (for that is the way his name is translated) 30 opposed them, trying to turn the proconsul 31 away from the faith. 13:9 But Saul (also known as Paul), 32 filled with the Holy Spirit, 33 stared straight 34 at him 13:10 and said, “You who are full of all deceit and all wrongdoing, 35 you son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness – will you not stop making crooked the straight paths of the Lord? 36 13:11 Now 37 look, the hand of the Lord is against 38 you, and you will be blind, unable to see the sun for a time!” Immediately mistiness 39 and darkness came over 40 him, and he went around seeking people 41 to lead him by the hand. 13:12 Then when the proconsul 42 saw what had happened, he believed, 43 because he was greatly astounded 44 at the teaching about 45 the Lord.
13:13 Then Paul and his companions put out to sea 46 from Paphos 47 and came to Perga 48 in Pamphylia, 49 but John 50 left them and returned to Jerusalem. 51 13:14 Moving on from 52 Perga, 53 they arrived at Pisidian Antioch, 54 and on the Sabbath day they went into 55 the synagogue 56 and sat down. 13:15 After the reading from the law and the prophets, 57 the leaders of the synagogue 58 sent them a message, 59 saying, “Brothers, 60 if you have any message 61 of exhortation 62 for the people, speak it.” 63 13:16 So Paul stood up, 64 gestured 65 with his hand and said,
“Men of Israel, 66 and you Gentiles who fear God, 67 listen: 13:17 The God of this people Israel 68 chose our ancestors 69 and made the people great 70 during their stay as foreigners 71 in the country 72 of Egypt, and with uplifted arm 73 he led them out of it. 13:18 For 74 a period of about forty years he put up with 75 them in the wilderness. 76 13:19 After 77 he had destroyed 78 seven nations 79 in the land of Canaan, he gave his people their land as an inheritance. 80 13:20 All this took 81 about four hundred fifty years. After this 82 he gave them judges until the time of 83 Samuel the prophet. 13:21 Then they asked for a king, and God gave them Saul son of Kish, a man from the tribe of Benjamin, who ruled 84 forty years. 13:22 After removing him, God 85 raised up 86 David their king. He testified about him: 87 ‘I have found David 88 the son of Jesse to be a man after my heart, 89 who will accomplish everything I want him to do.’ 90 13:23 From the descendants 91 of this man 92 God brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus, just as he promised. 93 13:24 Before 94 Jesus 95 arrived, John 96 had proclaimed a baptism for repentance 97 to all the people of Israel. 13:25 But while John was completing his mission, 98 he said repeatedly, 99 ‘What do you think I am? I am not he. But look, one is coming after me. I am not worthy to untie the sandals on his feet!’ 100 13:26 Brothers, 101 descendants 102 of Abraham’s family, 103 and those Gentiles among you who fear God, 104 the message 105 of this salvation has been sent to us. 13:27 For the people who live in Jerusalem and their rulers did not recognize 106 him, 107 and they fulfilled the sayings 108 of the prophets that are read every Sabbath by condemning 109 him. 110 13:28 Though 111 they found 112 no basis 113 for a death sentence, 114 they asked Pilate to have him executed. 13:29 When they had accomplished 115 everything that was written 116 about him, they took him down 117 from the cross 118 and placed him 119 in a tomb. 13:30 But God raised 120 him from the dead, 13:31 and 121 for many days he appeared to those who had accompanied 122 him from Galilee to Jerusalem. These 123 are now his witnesses to the people. 13:32 And we proclaim to you the good news about the promise to our ancestors, 124 13:33 that this promise 125 God has fulfilled to us, their children, by raising 126 Jesus, as also it is written in the second psalm, ‘You are my Son; 127 today I have fathered you.’ 128 13:34 But regarding the fact that he has raised Jesus 129 from the dead, never 130 again to be 131 in a state of decay, God 132 has spoken in this way: ‘I will give you 133 the holy and trustworthy promises 134 made to David.’ 135 13:35 Therefore he also says in another psalm, 136 ‘You will not permit your Holy One 137 to experience 138 decay.’ 139 13:36 For David, after he had served 140 God’s purpose in his own generation, died, 141 was buried with his ancestors, 142 and experienced 143 decay, 13:37 but the one 144 whom God raised up did not experience 145 decay. 13:38 Therefore let it be known to you, brothers, that through this one 146 forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you, 13:39 and by this one 147 everyone who believes is justified 148 from everything from which the law of Moses could not justify 149 you. 150 13:40 Watch out, 151 then, that what is spoken about by 152 the prophets does not happen to you:
13:41 ‘Look, you scoffers; be amazed and perish! 153
For I am doing a work in your days,
a work you would never believe, even if someone tells you.’” 154
13:42 As Paul and Barnabas 155 were going out, 156 the people 157 were urging 158 them to speak about these things 159 on the next Sabbath. 13:43 When the meeting of the synagogue 160 had broken up, 161 many of the Jews and God-fearing proselytes 162 followed Paul and Barnabas, who were speaking with them and were persuading 163 them 164 to continue 165 in the grace of God.
13:44 On the next Sabbath almost the whole city assembled together to hear the word of the Lord. 166 13:45 But when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy, 167 and they began to contradict 168 what Paul was saying 169 by reviling him. 170 13:46 Both Paul and Barnabas replied courageously, 171 “It was necessary to speak the word of God 172 to you first. Since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy 173 of eternal life, we 174 are turning to the Gentiles. 175 13:47 For this 176 is what the Lord has commanded us: ‘I have appointed 177 you to be a light 178 for the Gentiles, to bring salvation 179 to the ends of the earth.’” 180 13:48 When the Gentiles heard this, they began to rejoice 181 and praise 182 the word of the Lord, and all who had been appointed for eternal life 183 believed. 13:49 So the word of the Lord was spreading 184 through the entire region. 13:50 But the Jews incited 185 the God-fearing women of high social standing and the prominent men of the city, stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and threw them out 186 of their region. 13:51 So after they shook 187 the dust off their feet 188 in protest against them, they went to Iconium. 189 13:52 And the disciples were filled with joy 190 and with the Holy Spirit.