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Hfihe
International Sunday-School Lessons.
Lesson for June 10, 1883.
At Iconium anti Lystra.
ACTS XIV: 1-18.
Golden Text.—Speaking boldly in the
Lord. v. 3.
CONNECTION AND INTBODUCTION.
This lesson immediately follows the last.
Leaving Antioch, Paul and Barnabas, who,
in the lesson are called “apostles,” departed
to Iconium, from which they fled in a
Southeastern direct! on,preaching'in a wilder
and more heathen country, in which region
were the towns of Lystra and Derbe, and
where there were few or no Jews. Iconium,
60 or 100 miles south-east of Antioch, was
a considerable and important place and was
the capitol of Lycaona. It lay in a fertile
plain, on the great Roman highway, from
Ephesus to Tarsus in Cilicia and Antioch
in Syria.
EXPOSITION.
V. 1. Driven from one city Paul and Bar
nabas go immediately to another, in accord
ance with the command of Christ, in Matt.
10:23, and preach the Gospel, first to the
Jews in their own synagogue and “so” or in
such a manner that a great multitude were led
to believe in Christ; and these were converts
not only from among the “Jews” but from
among the “Gentiles who had become Jew
ish proselytes. They are called here
“Greeks,” meaning not, as in some places,
foreign or Greek-speaking Jews, but Gen
tiles who bad become converts to Judaism,
and who worshipped in the synagogue where
Paul and Barnabas preached.
V. 2. The Jews who rejected the Gospel
proceeded, as usual, to arouse opposition and
being unable, and not authorized, by them
selves to inflict punishment or personal
harm upon the two preachers, “stirred up,”
or excited the heathen “Gentiles,” that is,
the influential men of the city, so as to ren
der them “evil afflicted”—or hostile, not on
ly against Paul and Barnabas, but against
all the converts, who are here called “breth
ren.”
V. 3. This disaffection towards the “breth
ren” or, probably, Church or Christian com
munity, which had been formed, rendered
it necessary that Paul and Barnabas should
remain a "long time,” in that city to con
firm the faith of the converts; and this they
did, “speaking boldly in the Lord” —boldly
proclaiming the broad principles of the Gos
pel of salvation, in contradistinction to Ju
daism, trusting in the Lord for their own
safety, and depending on Him to give power
to His own word. And that was what he
did; for the Lord Jesus “gave testimony to
the word of his grace”—testified to his own
gracious gospel, and indorsing it and verify
ing the divine mission of missionaries, by
granting them power to perform “signs and
wonders” —that is, miracles. By miracles
which were evidently di vine,the wordsof the
apostles were proved to be true and of divine
origin. This was Christ’s “testimony” or
indorsement of his own “word of grace.”
V. 4. —This went on until two great par
ties were formed in the city—the people di
viding and becoming, some of them, sympa
thizers or partizans of the Jews who were
hostile to the gospel, and some becoming
sympathizers with and nartizans of the
“apostles,” who preached the gospel and
performed confirming miracles.
V. 5-6. And wnen, on the part of the oppo
nents of the gospel, there was a purpose or
intention formed to outrageously abuse and
stone the apostles, they fled into the cities
of Lycaona Lystra and Derbe, and the re
gions lying round about. It seems that an
"assault” was organized and about to be put
in execution; that is, a mob was excited to
violence, with the fixed determination to
make an onset on Paul and Barnabas, who
become aware of it and fled, exactly in ac
cord with Christ’s injunction in Matt. 10:23.
“The Jews with their rulers,” their syna
gogue rulers, excited and led the mob and
prescribed the proposed punishment—“to
stone them”—-which was the Jewish mode
of punishing blasphemy. The idea seems to
be that the authorities of both the Jews and
Gentiles were lending countenance to a mob
attack, instigated by the “unbelieving Jews,”
and the apostles becoming informed of it,
fled, before the actual attack was made, thus
preventing a positive conflict with what Paul
says in 2 Cor. 11:25: “Once was I stoned.”
V. 7. In that “region” they preached the
gospel, and it was at "Lystra” that the fol
lowing incident occurred.
V. 8. “There sat,” no doubt in his usual
place of resort, where he sought alms pub
licly, in the street or market-place, a beggar
who never had known what it was to walk.
V. 9-10 “The same.heard Paul”—preaching
the gospel repeatedly, as day after day he
held forth in the market-place. Pai th grew
up in the man's heart, manifested itself in
his countenance, and, as Paul fastened
his gaze on the man, he perceived hisfaith—
the faith that was requiredof those who were
healed, and with a word of command, Paul
heals him. So great is the man’s faith that
he sprang up. and ever after, walked as a
well man. No miracle of healing could be
more wonderful.
V. 11. It was very natural for a supersti
tious people, who believed in the existence
of the gods of heathen mythology, to con
clude at once, that Jupiter or Mercury were
but repeating the visit tradition declared
them to have made once before, and which
visit was commemorated by a temple dedi-
THE CHRISTIAN INDEX: MAT 31, 1883.
cated to Jupiter; which now stood in part
of their city; and so, when they witnessed
the cure of the cripple, they cried out that
again the gods, in human.shape, were on a
visit to them. But this was said in Lycao
nian dialect, which Paul and Barnabas un
derstood not, their common language of in
tercourse being the Greek.
V. 12-13. Barnabas, the more stately and
dignified, perhaps, was called Jupiter, the
chief of the gods; and Paul, who did most of
the preaching was supposed to be Mercury,
the god of eloquence and messenger of the
other gods. “Then the priest,” who offici
ated in the temple of “Jupiter,” which was
“before the city,” brought or led, “oxen”
adorned with “garlands” of flowers, into the
“gates,”—or porch, vestibule, of the house
where Paul and Barnabas lived, and to which
they had retired, in order that “with the
people,” as participants, he might slay the
beast and thus offer up a “sacrifice.” in hon
or of the two supposed gods,right in the street
or open square, near the residence of Paul
and Barnabas.
V. 14. By that time Barnabas and Paul
learned what was going on, and compre
hended the idolatrous honor about to be
tendered to them, and, as a token of their
disapproving horror and grief at such a pro
ceeding, they “rent” or tore open their gar
ments in front, and “ran in”—or rather
sprang forth from the house, among the peo
ple and with an abrupt or energetic protest
at such a profanation, sought to arrest it.
V. 15. “Saying: Sirs, why do ye these
things?” What do you mean by doing these
things? We are not gods! We are mere
men, “of like passions with you”—that Is,
mere mortals —men subject to death and suf
fering like yourselves, (and therefore not the
proper objects of worship ) We preach to
you that you should turn from these vani
ties”—these Idol gods, empty, lifeless things
(which you call gods, but are no gods at all,)
to Him who is a “living God,” who made
heaven and earth and all things.
V. 16. “Who in times past”—in genera
tions gone by, “suffered” permitted all “na
tions,” all the nations—all the heathens, “to
walk in their own ways”—to do as they pleas
ed; (meaning that God had given them no reve
lation, except that of the Book of Nature,)
wherein they could read none of his good
ness and power.
V. 17. “Left not himself without wit
ness,” —that is, the evidences of God’s good
ness and power in the bounties of nature,
bear testimony to his existence and authori
ty—and Paul and Barnabas refer to the fact
that they bring good tidings of the existence
of God—the good news of salvation through
Jesus—a revelation not hitherto vouchsafed
to these people.
V. 18. “Scarce”—scarcely, with difficulty
prevented the multitude from offering a sac
rifice in their honor.
That bad breath comes from indigestion.
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A sick man is considered out of danger
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When you have occasion to utter rebuke,
let your works be soft and your agument
hard.
Nature’s tears are reason’s merriment.—
Shakspeare.
Catarrh of the Bladder,
Stinging irritation, inflamation, all Kid
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“Buchu-paiba.” sl.
Every man can boast of one admirer.—
Shaw.
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