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Commentary Index | Return to PrayerRequest.com | DownloadBob Utley You Can Understand the Bible - Acts 15:36 - 15:41
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NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Act_15:36-41
36After some days Paul said to Barnabas, "Let us return and visit the brethren in every city in which we proclaimed the word of the Lord, and see how they are." 37Barnabas wanted to take John, called Mark, along with them also. 38But Paul kept insisting that they should not take him along who had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not gone with them to the work. 39And there occurred such a sharp disagreement that they separated from one another, and Barnabas took Mark with him and sailed away to Cyprus. 40But Paul chose Silas and left, being committed by the brethren to the grace of the Lord. 41And he was traveling through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches.
Act_15:36 "Let us return" It was Paul and Barnabas' purpose to return and strengthen the new churches which had been started on their first journey. Notice there was not the divine manifestation about this mission as there was for the first one (cf. Act_13:2).
Act_15:38 "Paul kept insisting" This is an imperfect active indicative. Apparently Paul continued to express his reluctance.
▣ "who had deserted them" Exactly why John Mark left the first mission is uncertain (cf. Act_13:13).
Act_15:39 "there occurred such a sharp disagreement that they separated from one another" The root meaning of this term is "sharp," meaning "to sharpen as a blade." It is used in a positive sense in Heb_10:24. The verb is also used in Act_17:6 and 1Co_13:5. They really had an argument!
▣ "Barnabas took Mark with him and sailed away to Cyprus" Now there are two mission teams.
Act_15:40 "Paul chose Silas" Paul chose another leader from the Jerusalem church.
▣ "being committed by the brethren to the grace of the Lord" This would have involved a type of dedicatory prayer service (cf. Act_6:6; Act_13:3; Act_14:26; Act_20:32). This implies the whole church, not a select group.
Act_15:41 "Cilicia" Why and how these churches were started is uncertain. Possibly Paul himself started them during his silent years in Tarsus. Cilicia was Paul's home province.
▣ "churches" See Special Topic at Act_5:11.
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