College Press Bible Study Textbook Series
Acts 13:6-12
AT PAPHOS. Acts 13:6-12.
And when they had gone through the whole island unto Paphos, they found a certain sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew, whose name was Bar-Jesus;
who was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, a man of understanding. The same called unto him Barnabas and Saul, and sought to hear the word of God.
But Elymas the sorcerer (for so is his name by interpretation) withstood them, seeking to turn aside the proconsul from the faith.
But Saul, who is also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, fastened his eyes on him,
and said, O full of all guile and all villany, thou son of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord?
And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon thee, and thou shalt be blind, not seeing the sun for a season. And immediately there fell on him a mist and a dark ness; and he went about seeking some to lead him by the hand.
Then the proconsul, when he saw what was done, believed, being astonished at the teaching of the Lord.
Acts 13:6 The next move of the evangelists took them on a journey of one hundred miles. They traversed the whole isle of Cyprus before Luke saw fit to record the next incident. The words used in the text: had gone through the whole island have the thought of a leisurely journey that would offer opportunity to stop off in several places on the way. It might be suggestive of visiting the previous work of those on this island. (Acts 11:19).
Like the work of Philip among the Samaritans the first fact made known to us is a note of opposition to the gospel. In Samaria it was Simon the sorcerer; in Paphos it is Bar-Jesus the sorcerer.
The city of Paphos was of considerable size, being the capitol of the island. The proconsul or ruler under the Roman Senate, was Sergius Paulus. Bar-Jesus was closely associated with the proconsul. This ruler was a man of understanding and was searching for the truth of God. Bar-Jesus being a Jew was evidently combining what knowledge he had of the Jewish religion with sorcery to give him the position he held.
Acts 13:7-8 It must have been in the providence of God that this sorcerer was a Jew, for when Sergius Paulus heard that two Jews came preaching a message purporting to be the truth or Word of God, he would quite naturally think of what he had heard from Elymas of the Jewish religion and be anxious to hear more on this subject. He called in Barnabas and Saul that they might speak to him. But when Elymas (a Grecianized form of the Arabic word for wise) realized the mission of these two he knew that unless he could defeat their counsel his influence and position were lost. The opposition put forth by Elymas was to withstand Barnabas and Saul. Just what method he used in doing this, we are not informed; we are told, however, of occasions with the Jews which were very similar to this one. The method used by the Jews was to rail and contradict Paul while he was speaking. When no valid objection is known this is the only recourse, The whole effort of the sorcerer was to turn the proconsul from the acceptance of the faith.
414.
How far from Salamis to Paphos?
415.
What thought is contained in the words had gone through the whole island? Of what is it suggestive?
416.
What is the first fact given concerning the work in Paphos?
417.
What special position did the city of Paphos have on the island?
418.
Under whom did the proconsul rule the island?
419.
If the proconsul was a man of understanding why have a sorcerer in his court?
420.
What method of sorcery do you imagine Bar-Jesus employed?
421.
Why is it said that the providence of God enters the fact that Bar-Jesus was a Jew?
422.
What does the name Elymas mean?
Acts 13:9-12 On this occasion we have the movement of Saul to the forefront. Previous to this both men had been speaking (7b). Now Saul is prompted by the Holy Spirit to execute the will of God in the form of a miracle. Through the inspiration of the Spirit of God, Saul lays bare the true character of this perverted Jew. He says:
(1) This one is full of all guile or cunning deceit. This presents something of his hypocrisy in the use of his knowledge of God. (2) He is also full of all villany. This bespeaks the evil ends to which he directed his efforts, (3) His name is Bar-Jesus, i.e. son of Jesus or son of Salvation, but here Paul shows that the exact antithesis is true, he is the son of the devil. (4) He is an enemy of all righteousness. Since he was not sincere in his profession he was truly an enemy of all righteousness. (5) All of these wicked attributes were directed toward the perversion of the right ways of the Lord.
This sorcerer sought to place a false construction upon the things spoken by Saul and Barnabas, thus perverting the truth. The efforts of Elymas were only bringing confusion to the mind of the proconsul. This must be stopped; a rebuke is given by Saul. The reason for such a severe rebuke can be observed in the fact that the person rebuked was altogether worthy of such since he was sinning against his own conscience. The purpose was to save Sergius Paulus from the condemnation of error. The punishment was given to lend meaning and power to the rebuke. It is described in such great detail that we are prone to think that it is the statement of an eye witness. The result sought was secured. Then the proconsul, when he saw what was done, believed, being astonished at the teaching of the Lord.
We should not leave our comment of this work in Paphos without a word about the change of Saul's name. There seem to be two general positions on this matter: (1) First, that Saul was the Hebrew name used up to this time; now since the apostle is to pass into the districts of the Gentiles the use of his Roman name Paul becomes prominent. This is only a theory which is based upon cases of Jews who did something similar to this. It cannot be denied that Saul is Hebrew and Paul is Roman. But it must also be said that it cannot be demonstrated that Saul had borne the name of Paul prior to this incident. (2) The other thought is that the occurrence of the preaching before Sergius Paulus, attended as it was with its good results, gave to Saul the name of the proconsul Sergius Paulus. The change of his name is associated with this event and it is entirely possible that such did take place since many men have been similarly nicknamed by some incident of their lives. This, however, is purely conjectural.
423.
How did Elymas oppose the work of Barnabas and Saul?
424.
What change of leadership took place in Paphos? Why do you imagine this was so?
425.
Give the four attributes of Bar-Jesus given by Paul in his rebuke.
426.
What is meant by perverting the right ways of the Lord?
427.
What twofold reason do we have for the severity of the rebuke?
428.
Why was the rebuke accompanied by punishment?
429.
Give the two ideas proposed for the change of Saul's name.