In Lesson 173 we left Saul in Damascus in Acts 9:20-22 and were illustrating his honest zeal for God. If you remember, those verses tell us immediately following his conversion he began to serve Christ with the same passion he had possessed when he persecuted Him only days before.
The next three verses (23-25) describe the Jews first attempt to kill Saul. Here, we have to be careful. If you simply read the narrative alone, you would naturally assume this took place immediately following the events of verses 20-22. That is not the case. Verse 23 starts with “After many days had passed…” where, “many” is from hikanos, usually translated, sufficient or considerable. An examination of both Galatians 1:15-18 and 2 Corinthians 11:32-33 tells us that, here, Saul was actually in Damascus for a second time after spending 3 years in Arabia. So, to be accurate, 3 years had passed between verse 22 and verse 23.
Apparently the Jews in Damascus were not happy to see Saul return to their city to begin stirring things up again. It is probable that by this time they had heard of the trouble Saul could cause them and they were having none of it. So, they determined to kill him. But, as you read the passage, Saul found out about their plot (that they were watching the gates leading out of the city) and with the help of some believers, escaped – being let down over the wall in a basket by night.
Then Saul returned to Jerusalem (verses 26-28). He looked for the disciples, but they avoided him. They were afraid of him and didn’t believe he was a believer, no doubt because they had witnessed firsthand his vicious persecutions. It’s not at all clear why they had not heard of Saul’s conversion by this time (remember, this is 3 years later), or, maybe they just didn’t believe it.
Then Barnabas brought Saul to the apostles (not the disciples), to Peter and James (the brother of Jesus) and he stayed with them 15 days (Galatians 1:18-19). At this point we should stop and look at this man Barnabas. He’s not an insignificant character in Acts, has already been mentioned several times and will be several more. We see him first in 1:23 when he was nominated along with Matthias to take the place of Judas. Verse 21 tells us he had been in the company of Jesus and His disciples “all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us”. So, he was well known to them; but then we know the lot fell to Matthias, not Barnabas (verse 26).
We see him next in 4:36-37 that says, “Then Joses (some manuscripts have Joseph, some have Joseph Barsabas), who the apostles called Barnabas…” He was a Levite from Cyprus. And during that time in the early church when they had all things in common, he sold land and brought the money to the apostles.
Then he takes Saul to Peter and James in 9:26-28 described above. Evidently Barnabas knew Saul, at least by reputation, and trusted him. During this time Saul gets himself in trouble again (this time by preaching Jesus to the Greek speaking Jews in Jerusalem). They want to kill him too, so he’s sent to Tarsus (9:29-30) his home (9:11). The next mention of Barnabas is in Acts 11:25 where he goes to Tarsus to find Saul (he had probably been there for about 5 years). From this point on it’s obvious that Saul and Barnabas quickly form a close working relationship. They spend the next year together teaching believers in Antioch, where “disciples were first called Christians” (verse 26).
The next mention of Saul and Barnabas is in Acts 11:29-30. Here, they’re sent from Antioch to Jerusalem with an offering to help believers there who were suffering through a famine caused by severe drought in Judea (this was during the 4th year of the reign of Claudius Caesar). Then in Acts 12:25 they both return from Jerusalem back to Antioch where they are separated from that company by the Holy Spirit to embark on their first missionary journey (Acts 13:1-4).
Here’s a brief summary of that first journey (Acts 13:1-14:28). From Antioch they went to the seaport of Seleucia, then sailed to Cyprus and Barnabas’ hometown of Salamis. From there they went to Paphos, where the governor of Cyprus was converted. It was also in Paphos where Saul began to use his Roman name, Paul (13:9). From there they sailed to the port of Attalia, then inland to Perga, where John Mark left them. Then they went to Pisidian Antioch where they had some acceptance and success, but were eventually driven out by the persecution of city leaders.
Then it was on to Iconium where many believed, but the city was sharply divided and Paul and Barnabas were forced to flee to Lystra. In Lystra they caused quite a stir when the Lord healed a crippled man. Then Jews came from Pisidian Antioch and Iconium to Lystra and persuaded the people there that Paul was evil, they then stoned him, dragged him out of the city and left him for dead.
I should mention in the account of this in Acts 14:19-20, it says in verse 20, “he arose and went back into the city.” Here, “arose” is from anistemi, found 111 times, 40 of which are used in the context of resurrection. So then, some say this is proof that Paul was actually dead and then was resurrected. Personally I doubt this, as Paul never mentions it in the long list of troubles and hardships he endured (see I Corinthians 11:23-28). He then went on to Derbe for a short and uneventful stay, and then backtracked to the seaport of Attalia, then back to Antioch in Syria.
It is thought that Paul and Barnabas may have stayed in Antioch for as long as 5 years before they began to consider a second journey. During that time in Acts 15:1-34 we see the early church leaders struggle to resolve an issue that we’ve already mentioned several times in previous lessons – the insistence of Jewish believers that those who come to Christ must also keep the law.
They met in Jerusalem to debate the issue and when all was said and done James settled it. His decision was that no such burden be placed on Gentile believers. Instead, he cited four prohibitions, all having to do with the pagan religions so prevalent in Gentile cultures (abstain from idols, from fornication associated with pagan temples, from things strangled and from blood).
And in Acts 15:36-41, as Paul and Barnabas prepare for what is called their second missionary journey, there is a major disagreement between them. Barnabas wanted to take John Mark with them, but Paul did not. John Mark had joined them in Acts 12:25 and had been with them in the beginning of their first journey. However, he soon left them and went back home to Jerusalem (13:13), probably due to a combination of youth, the rigors of travel and homesickness.
Now, I hope I don’t frustrate anyone here. We started the lesson talking about Saul, then Barnabas (we’ll get back to him) and now John Mark enters the conversation. Personally, I find it interesting to examine these characters as much as the Scriptures will allow, so we can better understand some of the things they did or maybe even why. So let me tell you just a little about John Mark.
We know from I Peter 5:13 he was probably a convert (or at least a disciple) of Peter. He was the author of Marks Gospel. And he was a nephew of Barnabas (Colossians 4:10), which probably explains the contention between Saul and Barnabas mentioned above.
So let’s get back to that. Saul probably thought John Mark was not to be trusted to see it through; but Barnabas, hoping for the best and yielding to his love for his nephew, was willing to overlook the past. But both men were determined in their decision and neither would give in to the other and they parted company. It is interesting that Barnabas is not mentioned again in Acts. However, he must have rejoined Paul sometime during that second journey: Paul mentions him by name in I Corinthians 9:6, though he is not mentioned in Acts 18 in the account of Paul’s first visit to Corinth (the specific time referenced in I Corinthians 9:6).
There is one more mention of Barnabas by Paul in Galatians 2:13, where Paul speaks critically of Barnabas’ (and Peter’s) hypocrisy and rebukes them for withdrawing fellowship from Gentile believers (Galatians 2:11-14). And there is one last mention of John Mark. Towards the end of his life, while imprisoned in Rome, Paul sends for Timothy and asks him to bring Mark with him (2 Timothy 4:11). Apparently by this time (some 17 years, or so, later) Mark had proven himself faithful.