Acts 13:5

And when they were at Salamis, they preached the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews: and they had also John to their minister. AND WHEN THEY WERE AT SALAMIS - the Grecian capital of the island, situated on its eastern side, and not many hours' sail from Seleucia, THEY PREACHED THE WORD OF GOD IN THE SYNAGOGUES OF THE JEWS. At this busy mercantile port immense numbers of Jews were settled; which accounts for its being here said that they had more than one synagogue, in which Barnabas and Saul preached, while other cities had one only. Zeller (of the Tubingen school of critics) makes a miserable attack on the authenticity of this book, grounded on their being sent forth to preach to the Gentiles while yet they are represented as beginning their mission by doing just the reverse-preaching to the Jews and neglecting the Gentiles. But who knows not that the apostles in this matter...

5.He saith that they began to preach the gospel first in Salamis, a famous city of Cyprus. Notwithstanding, they seem to begin amiss; for whereas they were sent specially to the Gentiles, they preach the word of God, nevertheless, to the Jews, I answer, that they were not so addicted to the Gentiles, that, setting aside the Jews, it stood them upon to go straight to the Gentiles, for when God did make them teachers of the Gentiles, he did not depose them from the office which they had heretofore exercised; so that there was no reason to let them, but that they might take pains, both with Jews and Gentiles; (781) yea, farther, it was meet that they should begin with the Jews, as we shall see in the end of the chapter. Moreover, Luke addeth by the way, that they were helped by John; for his meaning is not that he was their minister for any private use, or for the uses of body; but rather i...

4-13 Satan is in a special manner busy with great men and men in power, to keep them from being religious, for their example will influence many. Saul is here for the first time called Paul, and never after Saul. Saul was his name as he was a Hebrew; Paul was his name as he was a citizen of Rome. Under the direct influence of the Holy Ghost, he gave Elymas his true character, but not in passion. A fulness of deceit and mischief together, make a man indeed a child of the devil. And those who are enemies to the doctrine of Jesus, are enemies to all righteousness; for in it all righteousness is fulfilled. The ways of the Lord Jesus are the only right ways to heaven and happiness. There are many who not only wander from these ways themselves, but set others against these ways. They commonly are so hardened, that they will not cease to do evil. The proconsul was astonished at the force of th...

Verse Acts 13:5. _SALAMIS_] The capital of the island of Cyprus; afterwards called _Constantia_, and now _Salina_, situated on the eastern part of the island. _THEY PREACHED THE WORD OF GOD_] τον λογον, The doctrine of God, the Christian religion, emphatically so called. _THEY HAD ALSO JOHN TO_ their _minister._] This was _John Mark_, of whom we heard, Acts 12:25; _for_ their _minister_, υπηρετην, to assist them in minor offices, as _deacon_ or _servant_, that they might give themselves wholly to the doctrine of the Lord....

AND WHEN THEY WERE AT SALAMIS - This was the principal city and seaport of Cyprus. It was situated on the southeast part of the island, and was afterward called Constantia. IN THE SYNAGOGUES OF THE JEWS - Jews were living in all the countries adjacent to Judea, and in those countries they had synagogues. The apostles uniformly preached first to them. AND THEY HAD ALSO JOHN TO THEIR MINISTER - John Mark, Acts 12:12. He was their attendant, yet not pretending to be equal to them in circe. They had been specifically designated to this work. He was with them as their friend and traveling companion; perhaps also employed in making the needful arrangements for their comfort, and for the supply of their needs in their travels....

EXPOSITION ACTS 13:1 _At Antioch., in the Church that was there _for _in the Church that was at Antioch, _A.V.; _prophets, _etc., for _certain prophets, _etc., A.V. and T.R.; _Barnabas, _etc., for _as Barnabas, _etc., A.V.; _Symeon _for _Simeon, _A.V.; _the foster-brother of _for _which had_ _been brought up with, _A.V. AT ANTIOCH, IN THE CHURCH, etc. Κατὰ τὴν οὖσαν ἐκκλησίαν rather means "the existing Church," just as at αἱ οὖσαι ἐξουσίαι_ _means "the existing powers," "the powers that be," in Romans 13:1, A.V. and T.R. _The then Church _seems mere the meaning than _the Church there. _Luke writes from the standpoint of

AND WHEN THEY WERE AT SALAMIS,.... A chief city of Cyprus; and so Herodotus f calls it Salamis of Cyprus; and in this island it is placed by Pliny g and Ptolomy h: it was built by Teucer, the son of Telamon, after his return from the Trojan war; and so called by him, from his native country Salamine, in Greece, as is generally agreed by historians i: it was the birth place of the famous philosopher Solon, who is from thence called Salaminius; he died in the island of Cyprus, in the eightieth year of his age; and before he died, gave orders to carry his bones to Salamis, and being reduced to ashes, to scatter them throughout the province k: it was also claimed by the Cyprians, as the birth place of Homer, and is said l to be prophesied of that it should be; it was afterwards called Constantia, and now Famagusta, and is in the hands of the Turks; of it Jerom m thus writes: "Salamis, a cit...

ACTS 13:5 Instead of to.n lo,gon tou/ qeou/ codex Bezaegr itgig syrp read to.n lo,gon tou/ kuri,ou. The latter reading reflects the Christianization of the traditional expression. 248 Instead of u`phre,thn, D 614 itp syrhmg copsa read u`phretou/nta auvtoi/j and E vg read eivj diakoni,an. According to Weiss, 249 these alterations were made in order to avoid describing Mark as a (menial) u`phre,thj. On the other hand, however, in...

PART III The Witness to the Gentiles. The Apostle to the Gentiles; his Ministry and Captivity. Chapter s 13-28 CHAPTER 13 _ 1. The Divine Choice. Barnabas and Saul separated unto the work (Acts 13:1)._ 2. The Beginning of the Journey and the events in Cyprus (Acts 13:4). 3. The Gospel in Galatia. Paul's Address (Acts 13:13). 4. The Gospel rejected by the Jews (Acts 13:42). The thirteenth chapter is the beginning of the third part of this book. The second great center of Christianity comes to the front. It is no longer Jerusalem, but the city of Antioch. The gospel which had been preached in

SUCCESSES IN CYPRUS. Acts 13:4. went down: the usual phrase in connexion with a seaport. SELEUCIA is the port of Antioch, about sixteen miles from it. Acts 13:5. Salamis is the eastern port of Cyprus. IN THE SYNAGOGUES: this was the natural procedure for a Jew with a message bearing on the faith and on the salvation of his race. Ac. develops later a theory as to Paul's practice in addressing Jew and Gentile; the fact as told here may be accepted. What was Mark's function as their attendant? The synagogue was fully supplied with officials, and no services elsewhere are spoken of. Acts 13:6. Paphos is at the W. end of the island, and there Paul, like Peter on his first mission among Gentiles ...