Acts 15:40 - Printer Friendly

ESV: but Paul chose Silas and departed, having been commended by the brothers to the grace of the Lord.

NIV: but Paul chose Silas and left, commended by the believers to the grace of the Lord.

NASB: But Paul chose Silas, and left after being entrusted by the brothers to the grace of the Lord.

CSB: But Paul chose Silas and departed, after being commended by the brothers and sisters to the grace of the Lord.

NLT: Paul chose Silas, and as he left, the believers entrusted him to the Lord’s gracious care.

KJV: And Paul chose Silas, and departed, being recommended by the brethren unto the grace of God.

NKJV: but Paul chose Silas and departed, being commended by the brethren to the grace of God.

The partnership of Paul and Barnabas has come to an end. Paul no longer needs the "son of encouragement" (Acts 4:36) to mentor him in teaching and evangelism. Barnabas' talents are of more use for his cousin John Mark who must grow in faith and courage before he can travel with Paul again (Philemon 1:24; 2 Timothy 4:11). Both sides of the disagreement between Paul and Barnabas have merit, and the best possible solution is for them to pursue God's will separately.

For this missionary voyage, Paul needs a fellow Roman citizen who can handle the dangers of the road and physical assault (Acts 16:19–40), and still step into a leadership position when needed (Acts 17:14; 18:5). Silas, sometimes called Silvanus, will go on to co-author Paul's letters to the church in Thessalonica (1 Thessalonians 1:1; 2 Thessalonians 1:1) and, some say, help Peter with his Greek (1 Peter 5:12).

As the elders of the church in Syrian Antioch once dedicated Paul and Barnabas (Acts 13:2–3), they now send Paul and Silas off. The pair will travel through the province of Syria and then overland into Galatia where they will meet Timothy (Acts 15:41—16:5). The group will head farther west, across the sea into Macedonia and down into Greece (Acts 16:6—18:23). As disappointed as Paul and Barnabas may have felt in the short term, God has bigger plans for both.

Acts 15:36–41 marks a significant shift in Paul's ministry. Ever since Barnabas sought him out to help build the church in Syrian Antioch (Acts 11:19–26), the two have seemed inseparable. They established a church that will influence Christian theology for centuries. Their ministry extends beyond Syria and up into central modern-day Asia Minor. And they protected their church from legalists with harmful expectations of the Gentile Jesus-followers (Acts 15:1–35). Now, they go their separate ways. Paul will take Silas on his next missionary journey while Barnabas will take John Mark. Barnabas is not mentioned again in the book of Acts.

Paul and Barnabas are in Syrian Antioch, home from their first missionary journey. Legalistic Christians from Jerusalem arrive and insist Gentiles must convert to Judaism. When negotiations fail, a delegation travels to Jerusalem to request clarification from Jesus' closest students. The leadership in Jerusalem agree with Paul and Barnabas. They write a letter that Gentiles should only make concessions, mostly dietary, which will ensure unity with the Jews in their congregation. After delivering the letter to Antioch, Paul takes Silas and Barnabas takes John Mark to share the letter to other churches they have planted.

Acts chapter 15 resembles Acts 11:1–18, where Peter testified before the leadership of the church in Jerusalem. His subject was how the Holy Spirit had fallen on uncircumcised and unbaptized Gentiles. Here Paul and Barnabas also testify that Gentiles are coming to faith in Jesus without being circumcised. The issue the leadership must decide is the extent Gentiles must be responsible to follow the Mosaic law. Their decision is that the Law is in no way required to be saved, but Gentiles should graciously make concessions so their Jewish brothers and sisters feel free to live in community. This forms a partial background to the rest of Paul's missionary journeys as explained in Acts.

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.