And when the synagogue was broken up, many of the Jews and of the strangers who served God followed Paul and Barnabas: who, speaking to them, persuaded them to continue in the grace of God.
λυθεισης δε της συναγωγης ηκολουθησαν πολλοι των ιουδαιων και των σεβομενων προσηλυτων τω παυλω και τω βαρναβα οιτινες προσλαλουντες επειθον αυτους επιμενειν τη χαριτι του θεου
6 Church Fathers comment on this verse
After this the writer places him, Paul, first (Acts 13:43, 50). Do you see what zeal was stirred in them? He says that they "followed" them. Why did he not baptize them at once? The time had not yet come. They had to be persuaded to remain steadfast. And see, the apostles continually instructed them. They did not merely receive them or flatter them. Therefore the writer said, "speaking with them, they persuaded them to continue in the grace of God."
You have seen Paul's wise discernment. To bind the Gentiles to himself and dispose them favorably, and also not to scatter their attention by giving them everything at once, he first uttered several hints and left them unresolved. By this he awakened in the Gentiles a desire to hear him another time. He said that forgiveness of sins was being proclaimed to them, but he did not explain how this forgiveness would be accomplished. He did not baptize them at once, because it was not the proper time. "On the next Sabbath" means "on the coming Sabbath," as is clear below.
Meanwhile some of those present, especially the proselytes, were pierced by the power of truth more than the others. They thirsted for the redemption of which Paul preached, and did not wish to wait until the next Sabbath. They hastened to Paul and asked him for fuller instruction. Thus during the week Paul and Barnabas had many occasions to preach the divine teaching in private gatherings, and to spread it even among the Gentiles.
From Paphos Paul and his companions sailed to the peninsula of Asia Minor and came to Perga in Pamphylia. John Mark returned from there to Jerusalem, while Paul, with his other companions, continued the journey and went deeper into the interior regions of Asia Minor. He came to Antioch of Pisidia.
Here the preaching of the Apostle Paul concerning Christ made a powerful impression on the inhabitants of the city and turned many Jews and Gentiles to Christ.
Yet the majority of the Jews remained deaf to the apostles’ preaching. They even stirred up a disturbance against Paul and Barnabas and drove them out of the city.
Therefore the apostles went on farther, shaking off the dust from their feet against them, according to Christ’s commandment (Mt 10:14).
"When the assembly was dismissed": the public synagogue assembly for that Sabbath was closed according to the usual official order, and those gathered began to disperse to their homes.
Many Jews who had been in the synagogue assembly and had heard Paul’s speech, and worshipers of God, that is, Gentiles converted to Judaism, or proselytes (cf. Acts 13:26), followed the apostles. They probably went to the house where they were staying, in order to hear them further. So greatly had they been moved by Paul’s speech.
The apostles, of course, did not refuse them. Speaking with them, they urged them to remain in the grace of God, that is, in faith in Christ, Whom Paul had just preached to them.
The very fact that these people followed the apostles already showed Paul and Barnabas that the grace of God had touched their hearts. This grace leads to faith in Christ. It showed that the seed of the gospel preaching had found good soil in their hearts. If they remained in this grace, that seed would bring forth abundant fruit.
The impression made by the apostle’s speech was strong. Some asked the apostles to speak the same teaching on the following Sabbath. Many Jews and proselytes at once followed the apostles, so that they might hear them further.
The apostles, speaking with them at length, probably converted some of them to such an extent that they felt within themselves the influence of the gift of grace. Therefore the apostles urged them to remain in Christ and in His grace.
"Why did he not baptize them at once? The time had not yet come," says Saint John Chrysostom. "They had to be taught, so that they might be firmly convinced."
It seems that the proselytes listened to the apostles with the greatest interest. They told the Gentiles standing at the doors of the synagogue what they had heard, and these Gentiles also asked the apostles to converse further.
Not everything was at once clearly understood even by the proselytes, still less by the Gentiles, who heard it only from them. As for the Jews, it seems that the seeds of the good tidings which fell upon their hearts did not put down deep roots.
Passages read together with this verse.
Greek text, 27 words with lemma, transliteration and Strong’s number. Tap to expand.
THEOSIS