took a new name, and since Sergius Paulus converted due to Saul’s preaching, some have
suggested that Saul took Sergius Paulus’ name, Paul.
Paul’s First Missionary Journey
Paul condemns Bar-Jesus for his villainy and declares that
he will be blind for some
time, which immediately happens, after which Sergius Paulus converts. Along with
Peter’s conversion of Cornelius, Paul’s conversion of Sergius Paulus means that a second
important Roman official has converted to the new faith. Just as Cornelius sheltered
Peter and likely sent him off to Rome, now Sergius Paulus supports and sends Paul off to
his next destination, Pisidian Antioch in Asia Minor, now central Turkey (not to be
confused with Syrian Antioch, where Paul and Barnabas began their journey). Later, the
Roman Emperor Julian the Apostate will refer to Cornelius and Sergius as the rare
examples of Roman aristocratic converts to Christianity.
As Paul and Barnabas leave the port of Paphos and sail north to
Asia Minor
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(Turkey), Luke for the first time describes the group as “Paul’s company,” thus indicating
that Paul has taken charge (Acts 13:13). They land at Perga and head directly for the city
of Pisidian Antioch (Acts 13:14). It is odd that they do not stop in any of the villages or
cities along the way, especially since they bypass many Jewish communities and
synagogues, places Paul and Barnabas typically evangelize. While Pisidian Antioch was a
Roman colony and served as the administrative and economic center for its region, this
alone would not explain why Paul made straight for this city.
The reason for Paul’s uninterrupted journey may have been unearthed by Sir William
M. Ramsay (1851–1939), a British biblical scholar who spent much of his life doing
archaeological work in the areas where Paul traveled. Ramsay found an inscription in the
vicinity of Pisidian Antioch
that named Sergius Paulus, and discovered that his family
owned large estates just outside of the city and was influential in the political life of
Pisidian Antioch. Thus, it would seem that the governor Sergius Paulus directed Paul and
Barnabas to his home city, perhaps to share the gospel with his family and friends. This
may explain why Paul left Paphos with a “company” of people, given the likely social and
commercial interaction between Paphos, where Sergius was governor, and Pisidian
Antioch, where he owned land and had business and family contacts. By the second
Sabbath, nearly the whole city of Pisidian Antioch gathers to hear Paul. This may not be
an exaggeration, as Gentiles and Jews alike would have been interested in hearing the
preaching that had won such a noble convert as Sergius Paulus.
There is additional archaeological evidence that some scholars suggest
links Sergius
Paulus to Rome, where he had a home and had earlier worked as an official in the Roman
government. There are twenty-three inscriptions in Rome referring to an association that
met in the house of Sergius Paulus, and some scholars suggest that the family house of
Sergius Paulus was one of the early Christian house churches. Sergius Paulus’ daughter,
Sergia Paulla, had a daughter who
married Aucilius Glabrio, who served as a consul in
A.D. 124, and whose son was executed by Domitian, most likely during Domitian’s
persecution of Christians. If it is correct to take this all as evidence of the Christian faith
of Sergius Paulus’ family, we can see the lasting impact that Sergius Paulus’ conversion
had for
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generations, leading down to a fourth-generation martyr under Domitian’s
persecution, and illustrating how one man’s conversion can forever change the destiny of
his descendants.
In Pisidian Antioch, Paul begins evangelizing, as was his custom, by teaching in the
Jewish synagogue. The Jewish dispersion, which had exiled and scattered Jewish
communities all over the Roman world, providentially fostered the
early Christian
mission. Many Jews, as well as Gentiles who were devout converts to Judaism, follow Paul.
The first inroads into the Gentile population, according to Luke’s account in Acts, come
largely from Gentiles who are attached to local synagogues and hear Paul preach about
Jesus as the messiah and the good news that Gentiles are now welcome to become full
members of God’s covenant people by baptism. Many Gentiles in Pisidian Antioch
convert, provoking the jealousy of the Jews, who drive Paul out of the city. Paul moves on
to Lystra and heals a man crippled from birth, which causes such a sensation that, at first,
many in the city want to worship Paul and Barnabas. This healing puts Paul on a
par with
Peter, who healed a lame man, and shows that he, like Peter, is following in the footsteps
of the messiah, Jesus.
After traveling through Lystra and Iconium, Paul and Barnabas double back to visit
the new Christian communities they established earlier. They appoint “elders [in Greek,
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