Acts 13:13-25
Chapter 13
In Antioch of Pisidia
From Paphos, Paul and his companions set sail and arrived at Perga in Pamphylia. There, John left them and headed back to Jerusalem,while they continued from Perga to Antioch in Pisidia. On the Sabbath, they entered the synagogue and took their seats.
After the reading of the law and the prophets, the synagogue officials sent this message to them:
“Brothers, if you have any word of encouragement for the assembly, please speak up.”
So Paul got their attention, signaled for silence, and started:
“Fellow Israelites and all you who fear God, listen.
The God of our people Israel chose our ancestors; and after he had caused them to increase during their stay in Egypt, he led them out by mighty deeds.
For forty years, he fed them in the desert;
and after he had destroyed seven nations in the land of Canaan, he gave them their land as an inheritance.
All this took four hundred and fifty years.
After that, he gave them judges, until Samuel the prophet. Then they asked for a king; and God gave them Saul, son of Kish, of the tribe of Benjamin; and he was king for forty years.
After that time, God removed him and raised up David as king, to whom he bore witness, saying, I have found David, the son of Jesse, a man after my own heart, who will do all I want him to do.
It is from the descendants of David that God has now raised up the promised Savior of Israel, Jesus.
Before he appeared, John proclaimed a baptism of repentance for all the people of Israel.
As John was finishing his life’s work, he said: ‘I am not what you think I am, for after me, another is coming, whose sandal I am not worthy to untie.’
Commentaries
In Antioch of Pisidia.
The missionary team reaches Antioch of Pisidia and goes to the synagogue on the Sabbath. They are invited to speak about the readings from the Law and the Prophets. This visit is similar to the one Jesus made to the synagogue in Nazareth, described by Luke in his Gospel (cf. Lk 4:16-30). However, while Jesus was unsuccessful, Paul and Barnabas succeeded. The listeners, including pagans interested in Judaism, invite them to return and speak the next Sabbath. That day, a large crowd gathered to listen, and Luke says the entire population was present. The Jewish leaders, filled with envy, insulted and contradicted the missionaries. What was remarkable, however, was that many pagans understood the missionaries’ message.
In contrast, most of the Jews rejected it. Confronted with this attitude, Paul and Barnabas openly declare that from now on, preaching the Gospel to the pagans will take priority. Luke doesn’t want to end the story on a negative note of expulsion, so he notes that, although the authorities pushed them out, the disciples stayed in the city, filled with joy and the Holy Spirit.