Acts 13:49

‘And the word of the Lord was spread abroad throughout all the region.'

With such an amazing response and such a God the result was a foregone conclusion. The word of the Lord was spread abroad throughout all the region. Like wildfire the word spread from town to town, from village to village and the assumption is undoubtedly that multitudes responded.

We note here that this is the fourth mention of ‘the word'. In Acts 13:44 the crowds, both Jew and Gentile, come together to hear ‘the word of God'. In Acts 13:46 that ‘word of God' had been offered to the Jews but they had put it from them. In Acts 13:48 the Gentiles glorified ‘the word of the Lord'. And in Acts 13:49 ‘the word of the Lord' goes throughout all the region. Note how to the Jews or to the combined Jews and Gentiles it was the word of ‘God', while to the Gentiles it was ‘the word of the Lord'. It was no longer exclusive, but all inclusive, for it was ‘the Lord', YHWH God Himself, Who had commanded that it go forth to the Gentiles (Acts 13:47).