The Three Missionary Journeys of Paul

An understanding of the New Testament letters of Paul ("St. Paul", "Paul the apostle") requires a summary of the travels that Paul took over about a dozen years (from 46-58 CE?)  These journeys are described in chapters 13-21 of the book of Acts and represent the very earliest history of the Christian church.

The missionary journeys of Paul

According to Acts 13, the Holy Spirit tells the church in Antioch to "set apart Barnabas and Saul for the ministry I have planned for them."  And so this early church ordains two missionaries and sends them off, first to the island of Cyprus, and then on to Asia Minor (now Turkey) to tell the Jewish people in those locations about their recently revealed Messiah.  The book of Acts eventually describes three missionary journey and ends with a fourth journey, a forced journey in which Paul, as prisoner, travels to Rome.

It is on one of those missionary journeys that the author of Acts, Luke, becomes a convert and travels with Paul.

The first missionary journey

In this first journey, described in Acts chapters 13 & 14, Barnabas is the presumed leader; he has been a disciple much longer than Saul and is more experienced.  But Saul is the "talker" and seems to draw much of the attention.

The first missionary journey (Acts 13:4-14:28, about CE 46-48) begins with Paul and Barnabas visiting the island of Cyprus.  They then visit southern Galatia (Perga, Pisidian Antioch) where they stay awhile before going on to Iconium.  After conflict in Iconium, Paul and friends flee to Lystra and Derbe (and the surrounding region of Lycaonia, south of the province of Galatia.)  In Lystra, after they heal a lame man, Barnabas is identified by the people as Zeus and Paul is called Hermes (Acts 14:11-13)

The map below (taken from Gracepoint notes, which took them, in turn, from the Holman Bible Atlas) displays Paul's first missionary journey.

Interlude

In Acts 15 we see the important meeting in Jerusalem, in which an official decision is made regarding Gentile Christians.  This meeting is stimulated by the great success in the first missionary journey and by the obvious openness of the Gentiles (non Jews) to the message about Jesus the Messiah.

The second missionary journey

The second missionary journey is reported in Acts 15:40-18:23 (49-52 CE?) It is possible that Paul visited north Galatia (administrative Galatia) at this time.  This second journey is caused by a desire of Paul and Barnabas to revisit the synagogues and converts from the first journey.  But at the very beginning, Barnabas wants to take John Mark and Paul does not, so the dynamic missionary duo split up, Barnabas with John Mark heading back to Cyprus while Paul take Silas and travels north through Syria into Asia Minor.  In Lystra, a young disciple named Timothy joins Paul.  Since Timothy is uncircumcised (his father is Gentile), to please the Jews in the area, Paul has Timothy circumcised.

In this trip Paul has a vision of a man calling him into Macedonia (north of Greece, across the Aegean Sea.)  Responding to that call, Paul travels to the coastal town of Troas and then "we" set sail across the Aegean Sea to Macedonia and eventually Philippi.

The transition from third person to first person in Acts 16:11 most likely means that Luke, the author of the book of Acts, joins Paul at Troas and then for a time can tell the story in first person.

In Philippi after speaking in a small synagogue and baptizing new believer, Lydia, Paul and Silas are then thrown in prison.  During the night an earthquake opens the prison doors and Paul and Silas are freed and their jailer becomes a believer.  Paul frightens the local authorities by explaining that he is a  Roman citizen.  From Philippi the two travel on to Thessalonica where, as is their practice, they speak in the local synagogue.  On to Berea and Athens, where Paul speaks at Mars Hill, to both open ears and skeptics.  Luke lists by name several converts but also points out the Greek skepticism of someone claiming that a man was resurrected.

In Corinth, Paul meets a Jewish couple, Aquila and Priscilla, who, as believers, join Paul's ministry team.  Silas and Timothy join Paul in Corinth but due to strong opposition from Jewish leaders, Paul leaves the synagogue and begins to speak and minister from the house of Titius Justus, presumably a Gentile.  Luke records that a number of Jewish believers, including the synagogue leader, join Paul.

Paul stays in Corinth for at least a year and a half before being forced out and heading back to Antioch, detouring to Jerusalem along the trip home.

The third missionary journey

The third missionary journey (CE 53-58?) begins in Act 18:23, after the conclusion of the second journey and after "some time" at Antioch.  In the third journey, Paul again returns to visit the various churches across Asia Minor.  Galatia is explicitly mentioned in that verse, with Asia Minor presumably mentioned in two parts, as "Galatia and Phrygia."

Paul visits Ephesus (on the western coast of Asia Minor) in Acts 19 and there many followers of the goddess Artemus turn to the Jewish Messiah, to the point that those making money off of Artemis are infuriated and cause a riot.  After that, Paul moves west across the Aegean to Macedonia and Greece, ministering in the places he had been before, including Philippi.  Eventually he returns east to Troas (where he had picked up Luke) and there we have the story of Paul preaching very long (possibly all day) and a young man (with whom I have considerable sympathy) falling asleep during Paul's message.  Young Eutychus pitches out a second story window and is picked up below as dead, but Paul's stretches over him, prays and revives him.

Paul continues on to Miletus, near Ephesus, where a prophet warns that if Paul continues, as planned, to Jerusalem, he will end up in chains.  But Paul must go ....  The last half of chapter 20 of Acts is a moving goodbye from Paul, given to the elders from Ephesus, expressing his care and concerns for them.

From Miletus, Paul's entourage move on past Cyprus to Syria and then down to Caesarea.  In Caesarea Paul is warned (a third time!) of the chains that wait for him in his Jerusalem trip.  In this case, the warning is acted out; a prophet named Agabus takes Paul's belt and then ties up his own hands and feet to show what will happen "to the owner of this belt."

But Paul must go on, and the third missionary journey ends in Jerusalem with Paul's arrest there, at the end of Acts 21.

Some resources and notes

Wikipedia, of course, has some good stuff.  Check out the article on St. Paul.

The Christian Classic Ethereal Library, based at Calvin College, Grand Rapids, MI, has lots of excellent resources.

There is a summary of the missionary journeys from a webpage sponsored by Gracepoint church in Berkeley CA.   The maps I used are taken from the Gracepoint notes, which took them, in turn, from the Holman Bible Atlas.

Jewish Dietary Customs

In Acts 10, Peter has a vision in which he is instructed to dine on "unclean" food.  What food did Peter and the Jews view as unclean?  The teachings on unclean foods were part of the Torah, appearing in Leviticus 11 and repeated in Deuteronomy 14.

The Israelites could eat any animal that "had a divided hoof and chewed its cud."  It had to have both of those properties, as chapter 11 of Leviticus goes on to describe animals that have one property but not the other, forbidding them.

Seafood was acceptable as long as it had scales and fins, that is, was fish.  (Slimy things like oysters would have been unacceptable!)

Some birds were not acceptable.  Those unacceptable were primarily birds of prey (like eagles or owls) or scavengers (like vultures.)  Chicken were acceptable, as were ducks and geese.

Many insects and bugs were not acceptable, but some like grasshoppers and locusts were explicitly allowed.

It is not clear why these various animals were prohibited.  Some have attempted to argue that the prohibitions were hygienic; that the unclean animals were more likely to carry diseases, particularly in a hot middle eastern environment, long before the advent of air-conditioning.

A discussion on clean and unclean foods, from a Jewish perspective, is available here at
http://www.jewfaq.org/kashrut.htm.  Several different opinions on unclean foods and Leviticus 11, from various Christian perspectives, are available here and here.  Regardless of one's understanding of the Jewish dietary laws, it is clear that in Acts 10, Peter is being told that the salvation available to the Jews has been opened up the all the world, independent of their understanding and history of the Torah.

A more general discussion on Leviticus 11 and the Torah's emphasis on "clean" and "unclean" is available at this bible.org page.

Tomorrow we will return to Acts and this radical concept of inviting the Gentiles to partake of the Jewish salvation.

A Timeline for Acts

Sunday is a day to relax, honor God, focus on renewal and rest.  So in this "a chapter a day" study, we pause to look at summaries and overviews of past reading or future readings.

One natural question facing a reader of the book of Acts is, "When did this all take place?" and, as a follow-up, how close are some of the events?  Although Luke's writing places one event after another, in some places there is clear evidence that years pass between events.  In some places Luke himself provides the evidence, using phrases like, "they stayed there for some time."

Historians date the crucifixion to about 31 CE, give or take a couple of years.  (Some of this is based on historical events described in Luke's gospel.)  The book of Acts then covers at least another 30 years, past 60 CE.  In  the book of Acts we have a number of historical events (such as the death of Herod Agrippa in chapter 12) which have an external date (about 44 CE.)  In addition, in other letters, notably Paul's letter to the Galatians, we have some guide to the timeline; Paul describes his travels and in two places, Galatians 1:18 and Galatians 2:1, gives a length of time between events.

With these as a guide, there have been numerous attempts to date the events in the book of Acts, as they spread across thirty years.    Here is one timeline at biblehub.com. And here is a more detailed timeline, attempting to date some external events in the Roman empire and also date some of Paul's letters.  A similar timeline is here at morethancake.org.

One more link -- in the spirit of xkcd.com, we have the story and structure of Acts.

Tomorrow we return to Act 7, as the young church has its first martyr and first devoted enemy.

An Introduction to the Book of Acts

As we have just finished reading through Luke's account of Jesus's life, it is appropriate that we move on to the one New Testament book that tracks the history of the church after the death and resurrection of Jesus.

The "Book of Acts" was written as a sequel to an account of the life of Jesus, apparently by Luke, a physician who traveled with Paul at one point.  The book begins in Jerusalem, shortly after the resurrection of Jesus, and chronicles the early church in Jerusalem, its breakout into the surrounding area (mainly northward into Syria and towards Turkey) and eventually the church's recognition of the non-Jews, those confused, irreligious "Gentiles".  The last half of the book describes the journeys of the individual Saul/Paul as he increasingly focuses on the Gentiles.  The narrator, Luke, enters the story several times, switching his narration from third person to first person as he describes events that he witnessed.

We will spend five weeks working our way through the 28 chapters of Acts.  But if you'd like a much shorter study, here is Acts in 3 minutes.  Or, for the one in a hurry, here are 28 tweets which summarize the chapters!

There are, of course, more serious resources.  A brief summary of Acts is available here at biblestudytools.com (click on "Summary") and also here.  A summary of the book, followed by studies of individual chapters, is here at GotQuestions.org.  And, of course, the Wikipedia page on Acts is good.

We will examine (slowly!) 28 chapters in 31 days, just over five weeks.  Join me!

Luke 24: 33-53, Ascension

Jesus has just talked to two men on the road to Emmaus (near Jerusalem).

Luke 24: 33-43, Jesus visits the disciples
They got up and returned at once to Jerusalem. There they found the Eleven and those with them, assembled together and saying, "It is true! The Lord has risen and has appeared to Simon."

Then the two told what had happened on the way, and how Jesus was recognized by them when he broke the bread.

While they were still talking about this, Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, "Peace be with you." They were startled and frightened, thinking they saw a ghost. He said to them, "Why are you troubled, and why do doubts rise in your minds? Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself! Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have." When he had said this, he showed them his hands and feet.

And while they still did not believe it because of joy and amazement, he asked them, "Do you have anything here to eat?"

They gave him a piece of broiled fish, and he took it and ate it in their presence.

Does Jesus have the same body he had before the resurrection?  He appears to eat the fish as if to make sure they know he is physically there, not ephemeral.

This Sunday evening appearance is mentioned in the Gospel of John. Thomas is not there.

Luke 24: 44-53, Ascension
He said to them, "This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms." 

 Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. He told them, "This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. I am going to send you what my Father has promised; but stay in the city until you have been clothed with power from on high."

When he had led them out to the vicinity of Bethany, he lifted up his hands and blessed them. While he was blessing them, he left them and was taken up into heaven.

Then they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy. And they stayed continually at the temple, praising God.

Luke follows his gospel, with a sequel, the book of Acts.  He records there that forty days transpire during which time Jesus meets his followers.  Jesus appears in the Jerusalem area, then in Galilee for awhile and then they all return to Jerusalem. It is not clear why these events occur in this order but it puts the disciples back in Jerusalem for Pentecost.

We will begin a study of Acts tomorrow.

Luke 24: 1-32, He is Risen!

Jesus has been buried at the beginning of the Sabbath, just before Friday evening.  The women who had followed Jesus continued to do so, following his body to the tomb and observing where he had been buried.

Luke 24: 1-8, Visit to the tomb
On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus.

While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them, "Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen! Remember how he told you, while he was still with you in Galilee: `The Son of Man must be delivered into the hands of sinful men, be crucified and on the third day be raised again.'" Then they remembered his words.

What are the thoughts of the women as they enter the tomb? What do you think is their reaction afterwards?

Luke 24: 9-12, Peter also
When they came back from the tomb, they told all these things to the Eleven and to all the others. It was Mary Magdalene, Joanna, Mary the mother of James, and the others with them who told this to the apostles.

But they did not believe the women, because their words seemed to them like nonsense. Peter, however, got up and ran to the tomb. Bending over, he saw the strips of linen lying by themselves, and he went away, wondering to himself what had happened.

As yet we do not have just anyone seeing Jesus. Matthew 28 has the women seeing Jesus before they visit the Eleven. (It also says they saw one angel.) Apparently we have two visits to the empty tomb. First the women (Matt 28: 1-10). Salome and the two Marys are mentioned by Mark.

According to John, Mary Magdalene saw the empty tomb (with stone rolled away). She tells Peter and John. They go to the tomb, John first, but John does not go in. Peter does. No angels. John believes. They leave. Then Jesus appears to Mary (after she tells the disciples the tomb is empty) and Mary sees two angels, one at the foot and one at the head of the tomb. Then that evening he appears to a number of disciples. A week later he appears when Thomas is there. This seems to be all in Judea. Then later (John 21) he appears in Galilee.

Later he appears to them in Galilee (Matt 28: 16 - 20), maybe twice.

Luke 24: 13-24, Emmaus Road
Now that same day two of them were going to a village called Emmaus, about seven miles from Jerusalem. They were talking with each other about everything that had happened. As they talked and discussed these things with each other, Jesus himself came up and walked along with them; but they were kept from recognizing him.

He asked them, "What are you discussing together as you walk along?" They stood still, their faces downcast.

One of them, named Cleopas, asked him, "Are you only a visitor to Jerusalem and do not know the things that have happened there in these days?"

"What things?" he asked.

"About Jesus of Nazareth," they replied. "He was a prophet, powerful in word and deed before God and all the people. The chief priests and our rulers handed him over to be sentenced to death, and they crucified him; but we had hoped that he was the one who was going to redeem Israel. And what is more, it is the third day since all this took place. In addition, some of our women amazed us. They went to the tomb early this morning but didn't find his body. They came and told us that they had seen a vision of angels, who said he was alive. Then some of our companions went to the tomb and found it just as the women had said, but him they did not see."

The phrase translated "seven miles" in verse 13 is, in Greek, "sixty stadia", that is, about 11 kilometers.

The two men summarize all the recent events, admitting their consternation and despair at the Messiah's death.  No explanation is given for why they do not recognize him here.

Luke 24: 25-32, Emmaus Road

He said to them, "How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Did not the Christ have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?"

And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.

As they approached the village to which they were going, Jesus acted as if he were going farther. But they urged him strongly, "Stay with us, for it is nearly evening; the day is almost over." So he went in to stay with them.

When he was at the table with them, he took bread, gave thanks, broke it and began to give it to them. Then their eyes were opened and they recognized him, and he disappeared from their sight.

They asked each other, "Were not our hearts burning within us while he talked with us on the road and opened the Scriptures to us?"

I have always found this event puzzling. Why does Jesus choose these two men to show himself to?And why/how is Jesus' identity kept from these two men? (If the resurrected body is similar, but different to the original, was there something about his appearance that was different? Or had these two men followed him from afar and not really been close to him previously?)

When Jesus breaks the loaf of bread, he is signaling something. At that point they know who he is. (Why do they suddenly recognize him when they eat? Why does he disappear?) This incident is mentioned in Mark 16.

We will finish the Gospel of Luke tomorrow.

Luke 23: 26-56, On the Cross

Jesus has been sentenced to be crucified.

Luke 23: 26-31, A man from Cyrene and women of Jerusalem
As they led him away, they seized Simon from Cyrene, who was on his way in from the country, and put the cross on him and made him carry it behind Jesus. A large number of people followed him, including women who mourned and wailed for him.

Jesus turned and said to them, "Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for me; weep for yourselves and for your children. For the time will come when you will say, `Blessed are the barren women, the wombs that never bore and the breasts that never nursed!' Then "`they will say to the mountains, "Fall on us!" and to the hills, "Cover us!"'

For if men do these things when the tree is green, what will happen when it is dry?"

Luke identifies the man who carried the cross.

The quote in verse 31 ("Fall on us! Cover us!") is from Hosea 10:8, prophesying a time of war and desolation for Jerusalem.

Luke 23: 32-33, Two other criminals
Two other men, both criminals, were also led out with him to be executed. When they came to the place called the Skull, there they crucified him, along with the criminals--one on his right, the other on his left.  Jesus said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing."  And they divided up his clothes by casting lots.

Jesus is crucified between the other two. The soldier remove Jesus's clothes and keep them for themselves, since he is expected to die by thirst and exposure.

Luke 23: 35-38
The people stood watching, and the rulers even sneered at him. They said, "He saved others; let him save himself if he is the Christ of God, the Chosen One."

The soldiers also came up and mocked him. They offered him wine vinegar and said, "If you are the king of the Jews, save yourself."

There was a written notice above him, which read: THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.

Even in their mockery, the soldiers get it right.  This is the eternal King of the Jews.

Luke 23: 39-43, Two criminals separated
One of the criminals who hung there hurled insults at him: "Aren't you the Christ? Save yourself and us!"

But the other criminal rebuked him. "Don't you fear God," he said, "since you are under the same sentence? We are punished justly, for we are getting what our deeds deserve. But this man has done nothing wrong."

Then he said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom."

Jesus answered him, "I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise."

It is a strange aspect of human nature that one of the criminals wants to join in the mockery.  But Luke reports that one does not and indeed, that one is aware of whom he is dying with.

The fact that one asks to join Jesus in his kingdom is recorded only by Luke.

Luke 23: 44-49, Death
It was now about the sixth hour, and darkness came over the whole land until the ninth hour, for the sun stopped shining. And the curtain of the temple was torn in two.

Jesus called out with a loud voice, "Father, into your hands I commit my spirit." When he had said this, he breathed his last.

The centurion, seeing what had happened, praised God and said, "Surely this was a righteous man."

When all the people who had gathered to witness this sight saw what took place, they beat their breasts and went away. But all those who knew him, including the women who had followed him from Galilee, stood at a distance, watching these things.

Jesus suddenly dies quickly.  Crucifixions were notorious for long torturous deaths.

Luke 23: 50-53, Burial
Now there was a man named Joseph, a member of the Council, a good and upright man, who had not consented to their decision and action. He came from the Judean town of Arimathea and he was waiting for the kingdom of God. Going to Pilate, he asked for Jesus' body. Then he took it down, wrapped it in linen cloth and placed it in a tomb cut in the rock, one in which no one had yet been laid.

One of the religious leaders is a Follower and seeks a decent burial for Jesus.

Luke 23: 54-56, Grieving women
It was Preparation Day, and the Sabbath was about to begin. The women who had come with Jesus from Galilee followed Joseph and saw the tomb and how his body was laid in it. Then they went home and prepared spices and perfumes. But they rested on the Sabbath in obedience to the commandment.

It is Friday afternoon.  When the sun sets the Sabbath begins and no work is to be done.  So the women will bring back spices on Sunday, after the Sabbath is over.