And the next sabbath day came almost the whole city together to hear the word of God.
This belongs to the first missionary journey of Paul and Barnabas after they were sent out by the Holy Spirit and ordained by the believers in Antioch, in a mission whose setting includes Cyprus, where Barnabas was from and where believers had previously preached Jesus. On the prior Sabbath they had first spoken in the synagogue at Antioch in Pisidia, preaching salvation through Jesus for Jews and Gentiles and presenting Jesus as the promised Saviour and Messiah of prophecy from the seed of David. After that message the lingering Gentiles asked to hear the same words again the next Sabbath, and interest in the teaching spread among both Jews and Gentiles. As a result, on the next Sabbath almost the whole city came together to hear the word of God, showing how strongly the preaching had aroused interest.
The gathering included Gentiles as well as Jews, with great numbers of Gentiles mingling with Jews on an equal religious footing and seeking the same teaching and religious privileges. Many gathered alongside the Jews, including many Gentiles, and the Gentiles were seeking the same teaching and religious privileges as the Jews. The sight of the multitudes assembled for the new doctrine moved the Jewish priests, rulers and leaders to envy, jealousy and resentment into opposition and contradiction with blasphemy and insult, just as in the days of Christ.
Their opposition arose from old bigotry, prejudice and rage because they could not endure Gentiles sharing religious privileges equally with them and clung to the idea that the blessing of God was reserved exclusively for Jews, which was their great sin. They were thus unfitted to weigh the evidence that the Messiah was to be a light to the Gentiles as well as the glory of Israel. In contrast, the Gentiles rejoiced exceedingly that Christ recognized them as children of God, and the apostles discerned from the gathering their duty to turn without hesitation to the Gentiles.
The verse shows that after Christ's ascension Paul, the apostle to the Gentiles, preached to both Jews and Gentiles on the Sabbath day. This proves that Christ honored the Sabbath throughout His life, that neither He nor His followers ever broke the law of the Sabbath, and that its sacred claims were to be remembered and honored after His death and resurrection.
This belongs to the first missionary journey of Paul and Barnabas after they were sent out by the Holy Spirit and ordained by the believers in Antioch, in a mission whose setting includes Cyprus, where Barnabas was from and where believers had previously preached Jesus. On the prior Sabbath they had first spoken in the synagogue at Antioch in Pisidia, preaching salvation through Jesus for Jews and Gentiles and presenting Jesus as the promised Saviour and Messiah of prophecy from the seed of David. After that message the lingering Gentiles asked to hear the same words again the next Sabbath, and interest in the teaching spread among both Jews and Gentiles. As a result, on the next Sabbath almost the whole city came together to hear the word of God, showing how strongly the preaching had aroused interest.
The gathering included Gentiles as well as Jews, with great numbers of Gentiles mingling with Jews on an equal religious footing and seeking the same teaching and religious privileges. Many gathered alongside the Jews, including many Gentiles, and the Gentiles were seeking the same teaching and religious privileges as the Jews. The sight of the multitudes assembled for the new doctrine moved the Jewish priests, rulers and leaders to envy, jealousy and resentment into opposition and contradiction with blasphemy and insult, just as in the days of Christ.
Their opposition arose from old bigotry, prejudice and rage because they could not endure Gentiles sharing religious privileges equally with them and clung to the idea that the blessing of God was reserved exclusively for Jews, which was their great sin. They were thus unfitted to weigh the evidence that the Messiah was to be a light to the Gentiles as well as the glory of Israel. In contrast, the Gentiles rejoiced exceedingly that Christ recognized them as children of God, and the apostles discerned from the gathering their duty to turn without hesitation to the Gentiles.
The verse shows that after Christ's ascension Paul, the apostle to the Gentiles, preached to both Jews and Gentiles on the Sabbath day. This proves that Christ honored the Sabbath throughout His life, that neither He nor His followers ever broke the law of the Sabbath, and that its sacred claims were to be remembered and honored after His death and resurrection.