Now
in the assembly that was at Antioch there were some prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen the foster brother of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. As they served the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, “Separate Barnabas and Saul for me, for the work to which I have called them.” Then, when they had fasted and prayed and laid their hands on them, they sent them away. So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia. From there they sailed to Cyprus. When they were at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the Jewish synagogues. They had also John as their attendant. When they had gone through the island to 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. This man summoned Barnabas and Saul, and sought to hear the word of God.
Acts 13:1-7
Acts 12 [24.] But the word of God grew and multiplied. Barnabas and Saul returned to Jerusalem, when they had fulfilled their service, also taking with them John who was called Mark.
Acts 13 [1.] Now in the assembly that was at Antioch there were some prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen the foster brother of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. As they served the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, “Separate Barnabas and Saul for me, for the work to which I have called them.”
Acts 13 [3.] Then, when they had fasted and prayed and laid their hands on them, they sent them away. So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia. From there they sailed to Cyprus. When they were at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the Jewish synagogues. They had also John as their attendant. When they had gone through the island to 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. This man summoned 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.
Acts 13 [9.] But Saul, who is also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, fastened his eyes on him, and said, “Full of all deceit and all cunning, you son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, will you not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord? Now, behold, the hand of the Lord is on you, and you will be blind, not seeing the sun for a season!” Immediately a mist and darkness fell on him. He went around seeking someone to lead him by the hand. Then the proconsul, when he saw what was done, believed, being astonished at the teaching of the Lord.
Meaning:
With Acts 13 the story moves from Jerusalem to Antioch in Syria, and from the ministry of Peter to the missionary journeys of Paul. Antioch was the third largest city of the Roman Empire, and its assembly had been founded by believers from Cyprus and Cyrene who first preached the Lord Jesus to Greeks (Acts 11:20). These verses describe the sending of Barnabas and Saul and the first stage of their journey.
- “Prophets and teachers”
The five leaders named show how varied the assembly was. Barnabas was a Levite from Cyprus (Acts 4:36). Simeon was “called Niger,” a Latin nickname meaning “black,” which may point to an African origin; some have wondered whether he was Simon of Cyrene, who carried Jesus’ cross (Mark 15:21), but this cannot be known. Lucius came from Cyrene in North Africa. Manaen had been brought up with Herod Antipas, the tetrarch who beheaded John the Baptist (Mark 6:16); the two boys raised together had taken very different paths. Saul was a former persecutor from Tarsus. Together they led the assembly.
- “As they served the Lord and fasted”
The call came while the leaders were worshiping and fasting, not while they were planning a campaign. Jesus had said that after he was taken away his followers would fast (Matthew 9:15), and he taught them to fast without show, before their Father in secret (Matthew 6:16-18).
- “Separate Barnabas and Saul for me, for the work to which I have called them”
The Holy Spirit speaks as a person and claims the two men for himself. Saul’s call was not new. The Lord had said of him, “he is my chosen vessel to bear my name before the nations” (Acts 9:15), and Paul later wrote that God “separated me from my mother’s womb” to preach among the Gentiles (Galatians 1:15). The assembly now recognized publicly what God had already decided.
- “Laid their hands on them, they sent them away”
After more fasting and prayer, the leaders laid hands on the two men, as the apostles had done for the seven chosen to serve (Acts 6:6). The gesture expressed blessing, identification and commissioning. Luke then says they were “sent out by the Holy Spirit.” The assembly sent them, but the true sender was God.
- “They sailed to Cyprus”
From Seleucia, the port of Antioch, they sailed to Cyprus, Barnabas’ home island. At Salamis they preached first in the synagogues, the pattern Paul would follow everywhere, bringing the good news “for the Jew first, and also for the Greek” (Romans 1:16). John Mark went with them as their attendant.
- “The proconsul, Sergius Paulus, a man of understanding”
At Paphos, the seat of Roman government on the island, they met the proconsul, the governor of a senatorial province, a title Luke gives correctly. Beside him was Bar Jesus, a Jewish sorcerer and false prophet, the kind of figure the Law of Moses forbade (Deuteronomy 18:10). Sergius Paulus, a thoughtful man, “sought to hear the word of God,” and the stage was set for a confrontation (Acts 13:8-11).
The Significance of Acts 13:1-7
- God calls through a worshiping community
The first missionary journey grew out of worship, fasting and prayer. Churches today still discern God’s direction best when they seek him together.
- Unity in diversity
The Antioch leaders came from many backgrounds. The gospel creates one family where people who would otherwise be strangers serve side by side.
Cross-References:
Acts 9:15: "Go your way, for he is my chosen vessel to bear my name before the nations and kings, and the children of Israel." Saul’s call from the beginning.
Galatians 1:15: "But when it was the good pleasure of God, who separated me from my mother’s womb, and called me through his grace," Paul’s own account of his calling.
Matthew 9:15: "But the days will come when the bridegroom will be taken away from them, and then they will fast." Fasting among Jesus’ followers.
Acts 1:8: "You will be witnesses to me in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the uttermost parts of the earth." The mission now moves outward.
Conclusion: While the varied leaders of the assembly in Antioch worshiped and fasted, the Holy Spirit called Barnabas and Saul to a special work. After prayer and the laying on of hands they were sent out, and they preached in the synagogues of Cyprus until they reached the proconsul Sergius Paulus at Paphos. The passage shows a church that listened to God and sent its best leaders into his mission.
PIB Scriptures are derived from the World English Bible