Acts 13:6

The three of them went across the entire island to Paphos city. There they met a magician whose name was Bar-Jesus. He was a Jew who falsely claimed ◄to be a prophet/to speak messages from God►.

Translation for Translators

In The King James Version

And when they had gone through the isle unto Paphos, they found a certain sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew, whose name was Bar-jesus:

In Context

5While they were in Salamis, they went to the Jewish meeting places. There they proclaimed the message from God about Jesus. John Mark went with them and was helping them.

7He often accompanied the governor of the island, Sergius Paulus, who was an intelligent man. The governor sent someone to ask Barnabas and Saul to come to him, because he wanted to hear God’s message. So Barnabas and Saul came and told him about Jesus.

Read all of Acts 13

Cross References

Exodus 22:18You must execute any woman who ◄practices sorcery/is a shaman►.

Deuteronomy 13:1“Possibly there will be people among you who say that they are prophets. They may say that they are able to interpret the meaning of dreams or perform various kinds of miracles [DOU].

1 Kings 22:22Yahweh asked him, ‘How will you do it?’ The spirit replied, ‘I will go and inspire all of Ahab’s prophets to tell lies.’ Yahweh said, ‘You will be successful; go and do it!’

Isaiah 8:19Some people may urge you(pl) to ◄consult/go and talk with► those who talk with the spirits of dead people or with those who say that they receive messages from those spirits. They whisper and mutter about what we should do in the future. But God is [RHQ] the one whom we should ask to guide us! It is ridiculous [RHQ] for people who are alive to request spirits of dead people to tell us what we should do!

Ezekiel 13:10They deceive my people, saying “Things will go well for us,” when things will not go well. It as though [MET] the people have built a shaky/weak wall, and the prophets cover it with ◄whitewash/white paint► to make people think that it is a very strong wall.

Matthew 7:15“Beware of people who come to you and say falsely that they are telling you what God has said. They seem to be harmless, but they are extremely harmful. They are like wolves that have covered themselves with sheepskins to make people believe that they are sheep [MET], but they actually are wolves that attack people [MET].

Matthew Henry on Acts 13:5-14

Elymas Struck with Blindness. 4 So they, being sent forth by the Holy Ghost, departed unto Seleucia; and from thence they sailed to Cyprus. 5 And when they were at Salamis, they preached the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews: and they had also John to their minister. 6 And when they had gone through the isle unto Paphos, they found a certain sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew, whose name was Bar-jesus: 7 Which was with the deputy of the country, Sergius Paulus, a prudent man; who called for Barnabas and… Read the whole commentary →

This Verse In Other Editions

Study Acts 13:6