Acts 13:6

And when they had gone through the isle unto Paphos, they found a certain sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew, whose name was Bar-jesus: AND WHEN THEY HAD GONE THROUGH THE ISLE - `the whole isle,' according to what is clearly the true reading. ['Aleph (') A B C D E, etc., and most ancient versions, have holeen (G3650) before teen (G3588) neeson (G3520); and so Lachmann and Tischendorf.] UNTO PAPHOS - on the opposite or west side of the island, a distance of a hundred miles along its southern shore; the Roman capital of the island, where the proconsul resided. THEY FOUND A CERTAIN SORCERER - `a certain man, a sorcerer' or 'magian,' is the true reading ...

6._When they had passed over. _It is to be thought that this their passage was not altogether without fruit; and, assuredly, Luke would never have passed over with silence a general repulse; but it was sufficient for him to say that they were not idle in the office of teaching in their journey, seeing that he maketh haste unto a famous history, which he will set down immediately. And forasmuch as Salamis, situated upon the east coast, did look toward Syria, it was requisite that Paul and Barnabas should pass through the midst of the island unto the other side, that they might come to Paphos; for Paphos was a city situated upon the sea-coast toward the south. Furthermore though all the island was dedicated to Venus, yet Paphos was the principal seat of the idol. For which cause the goodness of God is more wonderful, in that he would have the light of his gospel to pierce into such a filth...

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 13:6. _GONE THROUGH THE ISLE_] ολην, _The WHOLE isle_, is added here by ABCDE, several others, both the _Syrian, Coptic,_ _AEthiopic, Armenian, Vulgate_, and _Itala_; and also by several of the Greek fathers; and this must be the true reading, for it is evident they ran through the whole island from _east_ to _west_. _UNTO PAPHOS_] This town, next in importance to _Salamis_, was situated on the western part of the isle; and having gone from _Salamis_ to this place is a proof that they had gone through the whole island from east to west, according to the _reading_ noticed above. There was probably no town in the universe more dissolute than _Papas_. Here Venus had a superb temple: here she was worshipped with _all her rites_; and from this place she was named the _Paphian Venus_, the queen of

AND WHEN THEY HAD GONE THROUGH THE ISLE - The length of the island, according to Strabo, was 1,400 stadia, or nearly 170 miles. UNTO PAPHOS - Paphos was a city at the western extremity of the island. It was the residence of the proconsul, and was distinguished for a splendid temple erected to Venus, who was worshipped throughout the island. Cyprus was fabled to be the place of the birth of this goddess. It had, besides Paphos and Salamis, several towns of note Citium, the birthplace of Zeno, Areathus, sacred to Venus, etc. Its present capital is Nicosia. Whether Paul preached at any of these places is not recorded. The island is formerly supposed to have had one million inhabitants. A CERTAIN SORCERER - Greek: magus, or magician. See the notes on Acts 8:9....

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 HAD GONE THROUGH THE ISLE UNTO PAPHOS,.... The Alexandrian copy, and the Vulgate Latin and Syriac versions read, "the whole isle"; for through the midst of the whole island they must go, to go from Salarnis to Paphos; for Salamis was on the east, and Paphos on the west of the islands q: it had its name from the Phoenician word, פאת פאות, "peathpaoth", "the corner of corners"; because both old and new Paphos were situated in the extreme part of the island; and not from Paphus, the son of Pygmalion, by any ivory statue which he had made, whom Venus, at his request, according to the fables of the Heathens, turned into a woman: some say r, that Cinyras, a king of the Assyrians, coming into Cyprus, built Paphos; but Pausanias s affirms, that Agapenor, who came hither after the Trojan war, was the builder of this place, and also of the temple of Venus in it, for which it was famo...

SORCERER (Greek, "magos"). See (Matthew 2:1); "wise men." The same word was used for a vulgar magician, and for a true wise man of the East....

ACTS 13:6 dielqo,ntej According to Haenchen, the Western reading, “And when they had gone _around_ the whole island as far as Paphos …” (kai. perielqo,ntwn (+ de, D, omit itd) auvtw/n, D itgig vg Lucifer), replaced the commonly received text (dielqo,ntej) in order to explain why no other places on Cyprus are mentioned: the missionaries sailed southwards from Salamis around the island as far as Paphos. 251 ------------------------- 251 E. Haenchen, _The Acts of the Apostles,_ p. 397....

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