Acts 13:1-41
…but they went on from Perga and came to Antioch in Pisidia. (v. 14a) Two things about this Antioch… First, this Antioch is always referred to as Pisidian Antioch, in contrast to the other Antioch which housed the “church” from which Paul and Barnabas had been sent, occasionally referred to as “Syrian Antioch”. This “Syrian Antioch” is a major city in the Roman Empire and is simply referred to as Antioch. Second, my Study Bible referred to Pisidian Antioch also as a major city – in the region of Asia Minor. It was a Roman colony with a large Jewish population and sat “at the hub of good roads and trade”. Again from our travel to Turkey in 2017 Carol and I can imagine these “good roads” being the caravan routes that were common in this dry land. This caravan road would have gone east to Cappadocia and west to Ephesus and the Aegean Sea, with another major road going south to the Mediterranean Sea and north to what is now Istanbul. Yes, a major city…!
Every time I have read this quote from Psalm 2, “You are My Son, today I have begotten You.” (v. 33), I have always thought that the verse (quoted again in Hebrews 1:5, 5:5) referred to Jesus’ Incarnation, but my Study Bible said that it referred to Jesus’ Resurrection. To support that claim, in the very next verse Paul says, “And as for the fact that He raised Him from the dead…” (v. 34a), so evidently Paul’s follow-up words reflect his intent that the Psalm referred to Jesus’ Resurrection – as he shows also in the next two quotes, especially verse 35: You will not let Your Holy One see corruption. I looked online for further clarification, but the theological explanations that I found were too deep for me!
The key line in Paul’s speech is in verse 30: But God raised him from the dead… That line is a game-changer for Paul – it was his evidence that Jesus is different from all the Jewish heroes that went before Him. And it is the fact that guides us in our worship: “Christ is risen. The Lord is risen, indeed! Hallelujah!!” Yes, Hallelujah!!
See also: February 19 / Acts 13:1-3; February 20 / Acts 13:4-12; February 21 / Acts 13:13-25; February 22 / Acts 13:26-41
Thanks for the clarification, Fred!
As to the verse in Psalms, I also thought it referred to Jesus’ being born human, not his being (re)born at the resurrection, being King and Lord over all the earth. Very interesting! Praise the Lord!
Good points. Begotten not made. I didn’t know the source of that theological word.
I was struck by the fact that Jesus and the Apostles always went to the synagogue first. And those Jews who had a very different idea of who God was expected a military leader and new government. We know that to be false but there is a set of evangelicals in the United States who believe in dominion theology, that Christians are to take over the government and lead the country to pave the way for Jesus’s return. Google it, it goes under several names. It is sad and I have seen it in some Christian circles that also read conspiracy theories.