The big picture
Antioch becomes a sending church by listening before it sends. Barnabas and Saul are already serving among a varied group of prophets and teachers when the Holy Ghost separates them for work, and the congregation answers with fasting, prayer, and laying on of hands. Cyprus immediately shows that the work will involve both hearing and obstruction. Sergius Paulus wants the word of God; Elymas tries to turn him away and receives a temporary blindness that oddly echoes Saul's own earlier dependence. From there Paul moves to Pisidian Antioch, where a synagogue invitation becomes a sweeping argument that Israel's history has been carrying a promise toward Jesus. David dies and sees corruption; the promised heir is raised and does not. The speech reaches its point in forgiveness and justification through him, then meets sharply divided responses. The next sabbath brings a larger crowd, opposition, and an explicit turn toward the Gentiles through Isaiah's language of light reaching the ends of the earth. Expulsion moves the messengers on, but not the word.
Central truth
Sent by the Holy Ghost, Paul and Barnabas proclaim forgiveness through the risen Jesus, reject both opposition and misdirected worship, and return to strengthen the churches that receive the word.
The study notes have a page of their own
The movement by movement analysis, the words to trace, the verse by verse notes and where readers differ are written for someone studying alone. They are on the Deep Personal Reflections page for this chapter. This page is the lesson.
A chapter-specific teaching brief
These anchors come from this chapter itself. They help a teacher use the Level 1 overview, the Level 2 study, and the Scripture text as one lesson.
Open with the chapter’s first image
Acts 13:1: “Now there were in the church that was at Antioch certain prophets and teachers; as Barnabas, and Simeon that was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and…”
Slow down at the turning point
Acts 13:25: “And as John fulfilled his course, he said, Whom think ye that I am? I am not he. But, behold, there cometh one after me, whose shoes of his feet I am not…”
Keep this word trail visible
word, Lord, Paul, raised, Barnabas, Holy
What to explain, in order
Teach the passage in this order. Each step names the verses it rests on, so every point can be shown in the text before it is applied.
Acts 13:1-3
Sent from a praying church
Begin with the leaders at Antioch and read their names: Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen, Saul. Explain that the list includes men from Cyprus, North Africa and Herod’s court, a diverse leadership. They are worshipping and fasting when the Holy Ghost speaks. Then the church fasts, prays and lays hands on the two. Explain “Separate me” as setting apart for a task. Teach this first because the whole journey depends on it: the mission starts with the Spirit and a praying church, not with a plan.
Acts 13:4-12
Cyprus and the deputy
Trace the route on a map: Seleucia, Cyprus, Salamis, Paphos. Note that they preach first in the synagogues and that John Mark is with them. At Paphos the proconsul Sergius Paulus wants to hear the word, and a Jewish sorcerer, Bar-jesus or Elymas, opposes them. Point out verse 9, where Saul is first called Paul, from here on his usual name in the Book of Acts. Explain that his sharp words and the temporary blindness echo his own experience in chapter 9. End on the proconsul believing at the teaching of the Lord.
Acts 13:13-41
Paul’s sermon at Pisidian Antioch
Note John Mark’s departure in verse 13, which will matter in 15:38. Then the synagogue service, the reading of the law and the prophets, and the invitation to speak. Walk through Paul’s sermon in three movements: Israel’s history from the exodus to David (17-22), Jesus as David’s promised seed, crucified and raised (23-37), and the offer of forgiveness and justification (38-41). Explain “justified from all things” as declared right with God in a way the law of Moses could not achieve. Close with the warning from Habakkuk.
Acts 13:42-52
A light to the Gentiles
Show the response: many Jews and proselytes follow, and the next sabbath nearly the whole city comes. Some of the Jewish leaders are filled with envy and contradict. Paul and Barnabas quote Isaiah 49:6 and turn to the Gentiles. Read verse 48 carefully: “as many as were ordained to eternal life believed”. Traditions understand this differently, some as God’s prior choice, some as those who were disposed or ready; present the readings fairly. Then the persecution, the shaking off of dust, and verse 52, disciples full of joy.
Acts 14:1-20
Iconium and Lystra
At Iconium a great multitude of Jews and Greeks believes, the city divides, and the apostles flee when they learn of a plot to stone them. At Lystra Paul heals a man lame from birth, which recalls Peter in chapter 3. The crowd speaks Lycaonian, so the apostles may not understand at first what is happening. Explain Jupiter and Mercurius as Zeus and Hermes. Read the short sermon of 14:15-17, which speaks to people without the Scriptures through creation and rain. Then the stoning, and Paul getting up and going back into the city.
Acts 14:21-28
Going back to strengthen
Finish with the return journey, which is easy to skip. They go back through the very towns where they were attacked, confirming the disciples and telling them honestly that tribulation is part of entering the kingdom. They ordain elders in every church. Churches today differ on how elders are appointed, and the text does not set out a procedure; teach the care, not a method. Then the report at Antioch: God opened the door of faith unto the Gentiles. The credit goes to God, and the sending church hears it.
Where learners get stuck
The misreadings this passage tends to produce, and how to answer each from the text.
“The Jews rejected the gospel, so God rejected the Jews.”
In these chapters many Jews believe (13:43, 14:1), and Paul goes to the synagogue first in every town. The turn to the Gentiles in 13:46 is about one synagogue’s leaders at Pisidian Antioch, and it is grounded in Isaiah’s promise, not in contempt. Paul himself is a Jew, and in Romans 11:1 he denies that God has cast away his people. Teach this carefully; the phrase the Jews in these chapters names particular opponents, not a people.
“Verse 13:48 settles the debate about predestination.”
The phrase “as many as were ordained to eternal life believed” is read in different ways. Some traditions see God’s prior choice of those who believe; others read the word as describing people who were set or disposed toward eternal life, and stress the hearers’ response in 13:46. The verse matters to both. Present the readings with fairness and let learners see that the text holds God’s work and human response together, as 13:46 and 13:48 sit side by side.
“Following Jesus faithfully will keep you out of trouble.”
Paul is expelled from Pisidian Antioch, threatened at Iconium and stoned at Lystra in these chapters. When the apostles return, they teach “that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God” (14:22). The joy of 13:52 is real, but it sits beside suffering, not in place of it. Speak gently to learners who are suffering and wonder whether they have failed.
“Paul and Barnabas were proud of being treated as gods at first.”
The crowd speaks in Lycaonian (14:11), so the apostles may not have understood until the sacrifice was prepared. As soon as they hear of it, they tear their clothes and run in among the people (14:14). They say they are men of like passions and turn the people to the living God (14:15). Their reaction is horror, not pleasure, and it is the same refusal Peter made in 10:26.
Learning objectives
- Identify the Spirit’s call and Antioch’s participation in sending.
- Connect Paul’s synagogue message with the promise to David.
- Explain the offer of forgiveness and justification through Jesus.
- Contrast the synagogue address with the appeal at Lystra.
- Distinguish the crowd’s assumptions from the apostles’ claims.
- Describe the return visits, appointment of elders, and report to Antioch.
Teacher preparation
- Prepare a route connecting Syrian Antioch, Cyprus, Perga, Pisidian Antioch, Iconium, Lystra, and Derbe; clearly distinguish the two Antiochs.
- Mark Acts 13:9: Saul is also called Paul; do not present this as a new name given at his conversion.
- Read Psalm 2:7, Isaiah 55:3, Psalm 16:10, Habakkuk 1:5, and Isaiah 49:6 before tracing the synagogue address.
- Explain the deity names Jupiter and Mercurius in 14:12 and “like passions” in 14:15 as shared human nature, not identical emotional outbursts.
- Prepare to discuss 13:48 without rewriting “ordained to eternal life”; label theological conclusions beyond its wording and keep the whole mission in view.
Evidence and interpretation checks
Explicit
Read Acts 13:2–4, 38–39 and 14:21–23: divine sending leads to proclamation, believers, return visits, and appointed elders.
Scripture-supported
Compare Acts 13:47 with Isaiah 49:6: Paul and Barnabas connect their Gentile mission with scriptural light reaching the ends of the earth.
Strong inference
Infer from Acts 13:16–41 and 14:15–17 that the missionaries adjust their starting point to their hearers’ knowledge without surrendering the call to turn to God.
Possible or traditional reading
Identify differing theological accounts of divine appointment and human response in Acts 13:46–48. Preserve both rejection in verse 46 and ordination and belief in verse 48.
Limit
State that Acts 14:19 says the attackers supposed Paul dead; it does not explicitly declare a resurrection or identify this incident with Paul’s heavenly vision in 2 Corinthians 12.
Discussion with answer guidance
1. Who sends Barnabas and Saul, and what does Antioch do?
What a good answer contains
The Holy Ghost sends them, and the church releases them. While they minister and fast, “the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them” (13:2). The church fasts, prays, lays hands on them and sends them away (13:3), and verse 4 says they were “sent forth by the Holy Ghost”. A good answer keeps both: the Spirit calls and the church obeys. A weak answer credits only the church’s planning or only a private sense of call.
Show teacher guidance
Use 13:2–4. Keep the Holy Ghost’s initiative with the church’s prayer, fasting, laying on hands, and release.
2. Why is Sergius Paulus astonished when Elymas is struck blind?
What a good answer contains
Because he sees judgement and hears the gospel at once. Elymas tries “to turn away the deputy from the faith” (13:8), Paul rebukes him and he is struck blind “for a season” (13:11). Then the deputy “believed, being astonished at the doctrine of the Lord” (13:12). A strong answer notes that his astonishment is at the teaching, not just the miracle. A weak answer turns the scene into a contest of tricks, which is exactly what Paul refused to make it.
Show teacher guidance
Read 13:7–12. Include the teaching of the Lord in verse 12; the official’s response is not described as fascination with a trick.
3. Why does Paul contrast David’s corruption with Jesus’ resurrection?
What a good answer contains
Because the promise to David needs someone who did not decay. David “after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell on sleep, and was laid unto his fathers, and saw corruption” (13:36). “But he, whom God raised again, saw no corruption” (13:37). So the promises of Psalm 2, Isaiah 55 and Psalm 16 are fulfilled in Jesus, and through him “is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins” (13:38). A good answer follows the argument to forgiveness and justification.
Show teacher guidance
Trace 13:32–39. The contrast supports the fulfilled promise and proclamation of forgiveness and justification through Jesus.
4. How do Paul and Barnabas support turning toward Gentile hearers?
What a good answer contains
They say it was right to speak first to the Jews, and that since some there “put it from you”, they turn to the Gentiles (13:46). Then they quote Isaiah: “I have set thee to be a light of the Gentiles, that thou shouldest be for salvation unto the ends of the earth” (13:47). A strong answer keeps both local rejection and the commission from Scripture, and notes that many Jews had followed them (13:43) and that they go straight to the synagogue in Iconium (14:1).
Show teacher guidance
Read 13:46–48 and Isaiah 49:6. Include both local rejection and scriptural commission; reject a claim that every Jewish hearer refused the message.
5. Why do the apostles tear their clothes when Lystra honors them?
What a good answer contains
Because they are being worshipped as gods. The crowd cries “The gods are come down to us in the likeness of men” (14:11), names them Jupiter and Mercurius, and the priest brings oxen and garlands (14:13). The apostles tear their clothes, a sign of horror at blasphemy, and cry “We also are men of like passions with you” (14:15). They point to “the living God, which made heaven, and earth, and the sea” (14:15). A good answer includes where they redirect the worship.
Show teacher guidance
Use 14:11–18: the crowd prepares sacrifice to supposed gods. They reject divine status and redirect worship to the living Creator.
6. Why return to places that have already become dangerous?
What a good answer contains
To strengthen what had begun. They return to Lystra, Iconium and Antioch, “Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith”, and they say plainly “that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God” (14:22). They ordain elders, pray with fasting and commend them to the Lord (14:23). Then they report to Antioch (14:27). A good answer sees pastoral care and honesty about suffering, not a search for trouble.
Show teacher guidance
Read 14:21–23, 27. Expect strengthening, realistic teaching about tribulation, elders, prayer, and accountability, not an unmentioned desire to provoke another confrontation.
Responsible application
Heart and habits
Evaluate a fictional ministry report that counts enthusiastic crowds but ignores whether listeners understood the message, using Lystra’s mistaken worship.
Relationships and community
Design a follow-up plan for a new group using the strengthening, leadership, prayer, and commendation in 14:21–23.
Explain from a real starting point
Draft two introductions to the same claim about God: one for hearers familiar with Scripture, another for hearers unfamiliar with it.
Session plans
Two timings of the same lesson. The shorter keeps the reading, the central discussion and one response; the longer gives the confusions and the application their own time.
45 minutes
Sent
Cyprus
Read 13:5-12 and take question two. Note the change of name in 13:9.
The sermon
Read 13:26-41 aloud. Take question three, writing David saw corruption and Jesus saw none side by side.
A light to the Gentiles
Read 13:44-52. Take question four and the confusion about the Jews.
Lystra
Read 14:8-20 and take question five.
Back again
Read 14:21-28 and take question six. Read the key verse together and give out the handout.
90 minutes
Opening
Ask how the group thinks churches should send people out. Hold the answers until 13:1-3.
Sent
Read 13:1-4 and take question one. Discuss what fasting and laying on of hands show.
Cyprus
Read 13:4-13 and take question two. Compare Elymas’s blindness with 9:8-9.
The sermon
Read 13:14-41 with Psalm 16:10. Take question three and outline the three movements.
A light to the Gentiles
Read 13:42-52 and Isaiah 49:6. Take question four and the confusions about the Jews and about 13:48.
Iconium and Lystra
Read 14:1-20. Take question five and the confusion about pride. Compare 14:15-17 with Romans 1:20.
Back again
Read 14:21-28. Take question six and the confusion about trouble, with care for anyone suffering.
Handout and prayer
Read the key verse together and pray for missionaries and new churches by name if you know them.
Adapting the lesson
Children
Make a large floor map with tape and walk the journey: Antioch, the boat to Cyprus, Perga, Pisidian Antioch, Iconium, Lystra and back. At Lystra let the children put paper garlands on two helpers and then have the helpers say, no, we are just people, worship God who made the sky and rain. Mention that Paul was hurt and got back up, without describing the stoning.
Youth
Ask what it takes to go back to a place where you were hurt, then read 14:21-22. Let them compare the two sermons, one to synagogue listeners using Scripture and one to villagers using rain and harvest, and see how Paul adapts. Discuss 14:15 and how people today treat leaders or celebrities as more than human. Keep the 13:48 debate fair if it comes up.
Adults
Give time to Paul’s first recorded sermon and its use of Psalm 2, Isaiah 55 and Psalm 16. Compare it with the address at Lystra and discuss how the gospel is explained to people with no Bible background. Present the readings of 13:48 fairly. Talk about how your church sends, supports and hears back from those it sends, as Antioch did in 13:3 and 14:27.
One to one
Ask the person where they sense God may be sending them, whether across the street or across the world, and read 13:2-3. If they are discouraged by opposition, read 13:52 and 14:22 together. If they are tempted to put a Christian leader on a pedestal, read 14:15 and talk about honouring people without worshipping them.
Song and video learning lab
A song or video may interpret, compress, or dramatize the text. Its value becomes clearer when its choices are compared with Scripture.
- Before the media: the exact passage and its central movement.
- During the media: the words, people, events, and emotions the artist emphasizes.
- After the media: what it clarifies, what it leaves out, and what belongs back in the biblical text.
Handout
One page for learners to take home. The print button prints this section alone.
Acts 13–14
The passage in brief
The Holy Spirit tells the church at Antioch to send Barnabas and Saul on a mission, and the church prays and sends them. On Cyprus a Roman official believes. At Antioch in Pisidia Paul preaches that God raised Jesus and offers forgiveness through him, and many believe, including Gentiles, though some oppose them. At Lystra the people think Paul and Barnabas are gods, and they insist they are only men. Paul is stoned but gets up. They return to strengthen the new believers and appoint elders.
A verse to keep
Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins:
Acts 13:38 · King James Version
Questions to take home
Who sent Barnabas and Saul, according to 13:2-4?
What did the apostles say to the crowd at Lystra in 14:15?
What did they tell the new disciples about hardship in 14:22?
This week
Write a note of encouragement this week to someone who is serving God in a hard place.
Music and video connected to the passage
Related media appears when its Scripture reference overlaps this study. Music and video can illuminate a theme while the biblical text remains the foundation.
