Acts 13:13-15 13Now, after sailing from Paphos, those around Paul came to Perga in Pamphylia. And John, after leaving them, returned to Jerusalem. 14But after crossing over from Perga, they came to Antioch in Pisidia. And after entering the synagogue on the Sabbath day, they sat down. 15And after the reading from the Law and the Prophets, the rulers of the synagogue sent to them, saying, “Brothers, if you have any word of encouragement for the people, say it.”
A noticeable shift now happens in Acts as far as the main characters go. Saul had been secondary to Barnabas up to this point, but now the name of Saul is replaced by Paul, who becomes the primary character. Barnabas and others become secondary in the story. Paul is the main character in the next major story that took place in Antioch in Pisidia. These verses set the scene for the next major teaching section. The team of Paul, Barnabas, and Mark left the port city of Paphos on Cyprus and went to Perga, on the mainland of Asia-minor in what is now Turkey. Perga was in Pamphylia, which was between the Taurus mountains and the Mediterranean Sea. The city was located seven miles up the Cestrus River from the Mediterranean port of Attalia. No major preaching activity is described in this city, but later, on their return, Paul and Barnabas preached there (14:25).
At that point, for some unknown reason, John Mark left Paul and Barnabas and returned to Jerusalem, which would have been quite a long journey. This separation later caused a significant disagreement between Paul and Barnabas when they were about to go out on another major missionary trip, described in 15:36-41. Whatever happened was significant enough that it bothered Paul to the point that he did not want to join Barnabas and Mark for another trip. God continued to use all three in mission work later in life, and, as indicated by 2 Timothy 4:11, Paul and Mark joined together as a team again
The story focuses next on a scene that took place in the city of Antioch, which was a different city that the sending church of Antioch, which was in Syria. This Antioch was a significant and difficult journey of 100 miles to the north of Perga, across the Taurus mountain range. The city was part of the province of Galatia. The city had a large population of Jews, which would have attracted the team there. Their focus seems to have still been reaching the Jews in these cities, although some Gentiles also came to believe. Their strategy was to go to local synagogues, which would have been religiously and ethnically familiar to them. They could more easily fit in as Hellenistic Greek-speaking Jews themselves. It is not often that a guest is invited to speak at an assembly, but the leaders of that synagogue saw something special about the mission team. They stood out. Perhaps there was some conversation beforehand, or some of the Jews had met the team before the synagogue meeting.
Whatever led to this invitation, it was a great opportunity to share the good news of the Messiah. The typical practice in synagogues was to read from Scripture and then have a message based on this. This practice has continued in Christian churches with the preaching of the Word. The rulers were hoping for a word of encouragement to their people, something that would help them spiritually grow and face their challenges as a minor people in a predominantly Greco-Roman city.
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