Acts 14:6 - Printer Friendly

ESV: they learned of it and fled to Lystra and Derbe, cities of Lycaonia, and to the surrounding country,

NIV: But they found out about it and fled to the Lycaonian cities of Lystra and Derbe and to the surrounding country,

NASB: they became aware of it and fled to the cities of Lycaonia, Lystra and Derbe, and the surrounding region;

CSB: they found out about it and fled to the Lycaonian towns of Lystra and Derbe and to the surrounding countryside.

NLT: When the apostles learned of it, they fled to the region of Lycaonia — to the towns of Lystra and Derbe and the surrounding area.

KJV: They were ware of it, and fled unto Lystra and Derbe, cities of Lycaonia, and unto the region that lieth round about:

NKJV: they became aware of it and fled to Lystra and Derbe, cities of Lycaonia, and to the surrounding region.

Not long before, Paul and Barnabas had fled Pisidian Antioch when synagogue leaders convinced the civil Gentile leaders the two Jesus-followers were dangerous (Acts 13:50). Now, the apostles are driven out of Iconium, having learned those Jews and Gentiles who refused their message about Jesus are planning on stoning them (Acts 14:5). Lystra is a small town compared to the major trading centers of Pisidian Antioch and Iconium.

Lycaonia is a district in the large territory of Galatia which takes up the center of modern-day Asia Minor. Paul and Barnabas travel between Pisidian Antioch, Iconium, Lystra, and Derbe. All of these are in south Galatia. When Paul wrote his letter to the Galatians, it was likely passed around through the churches in these cities.

Lystra is a small town 20 miles south of Iconium and doesn't appear to have enough Jews to support a synagogue of its own. On Paul's second missionary journey, however, it is where he will meet his son in the faith, Timothy (Acts 16:1). Derbe is a larger city about 63 miles east and a bit south of Lystra. Right across the mountain range to the east is Paul's hometown of Tarsus. Later, Timothy and Gaius of Derbe will accompany Paul west to Macedonia and Greece (Acts 20:4). Paul revisits Lystra and Derbe on his second (Acts 16:6) and third (Acts 18:23) missionary journeys.

Acts 14:1–7 records how Paul and Barnabas fled persecution in Pisidian Antioch and arrived in Iconium. As becomes their habit, they share Jesus' story in the local synagogue and watch many Jews and Gentiles agree to follow Jesus. Like in Pisidian Antioch, other Jews and Gentiles reject their message. The pair stay as long as they can, teaching and starting the church, until their antagonists threaten to stone them. Paul and Barnabas leave the new believers and travel south and east to establish new churches but will return on their way back through (Acts 14:21).

Acts 14 describes the last half of Paul's first missionary journey. He and Barnabas leave Pisidian Antioch, near central modern-day Asia Minor, and travel southeast to Iconium where they establish a new church. In Lystra, Paul heals a man born crippled. The amazed people insist Barnabas is the Greek deity Zeus, and Paul is Hermes. They attempt to offer sacrifices to them, much to the horror of the two evangelists. When antagonists from Pisidian Antioch and Iconium arrive, Paul is stoned but survives. The pair travel to Derbe, then retrace their steps, encouraging the new churches before sailing back to Syrian Antioch.

Paul's first missionary journey, recorded in Acts 13—14, gives a glimpse of issues that the church will face throughout its entire existence. When presented with Jesus's story, some will accept Him while others will not. Opposition is sometimes violent. Some integrate into church life easily, but for centuries the church has struggled with how to integrate those from vastly different cultures. This raises the crucial question of which aspects of faith and worship are biblical, making them universal, and which are cultural, and therefore optional? In Acts 15, the church leadership will start a discussion on that subject which continues even today.

The summary of the book of Acts is provided in Jesus' words in Acts 1:8: ''But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.'' In Acts 2:1–13, the Christ-followers receive the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:14—7:60 describes the rapid growth of the church in Jerusalem. Chapters 8—12 find Jewish persecution inadvertently spreading the gospel throughout Judea and Samaria. And in chapters 13—28, Paul and his companions spread the good news throughout the Roman Empire.