Acts 13:8

Acts 13:8 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)But Elymas the sorcerer (for so is his name by interpretation) withstood them, seeking to turn away the deputy from the faith.
• New International Version (NIV)But Elymas the sorcerer (for that is what his name means) opposed them and tried to turn the proconsul from the faith.
• English Standard Version (ESV)But Elymas the magician (for that is the meaning of his name) opposed them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith.
• New King James Version (NKJV)But Elymas the sorcerer (for so his name is translated) withstood them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith.

Context of Acts 13:8

6They travelled across the whole island and they arrived at a town called Paphos. There they met a man called Bar-Jesus. He was a Jew. He used magic to do surprising things. He said that he was a prophet from God. But his messages were not true. 7The ruler of Cyprus was called Sergius Paulus. Bar-Jesus was his friend. Sergius Paulus understood things well. So he asked Barnabas and Saul to come to him. He wanted them to tell him God's message. Bar-Jesus was also called Elymas. That was his name in the Greek language. He did not like what Barnabas and Saul were saying. He did not want Sergius Paulus to believe in Jesus. So he tried to stop him. 9Then God filled Saul with the power of his Holy Spirit. (Saul was also now called Paul. ) Paul looked straight at Elymas and he said, 10‘You are a servant of the Devil! You are against everything that is right. Your mind is full of lies and other bad things. You try to change the true message of the Lord and make it into lies. You must stop doing that!

Acts 13:8 word by word

ἀνθίστατο δὲ αὐτοῖς Ἐλύμας ὁ μάγος, οὕτως γὰρ μεθερμηνεύεται τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ, ζητῶν διαστρέψαι τὸν ἀνθύπατον ἀπὸ τῆς πίστεως.Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Butδέde · thenG1161
• ElymasἘλύμαςElumas · ElymasG1681
• the sorcererὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• the sorcererμάγοςmagos · sageG3097
• forγάρgar · forG1063
• soοὕτωςhoutō · thus(-ly)G3779
• isμεθερμηνεύωmethermēneuō · to meanG3177
• hisαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
• nameὄνομαonoma · nameG3686
• withstoodἀνθίστημιanthistēmi · to opposeG436
• seekingζητέωzēteō · to seekG2212
• to turn awayδιαστρέφωdiastrephō · to pervertG1294
• the deputyἀνθύπατοςanthupatos · proconsulG446
• fromἀπόapo · away fromG575
• the faithπίστιςpistis · faithG4102

Cross-references for Acts 13:8

• Acts 13:6They travelled across the whole island and they arrived at a town called Paphos. There they met a man called Bar-Jesus. He was a Jew. He used magic to do surprising things. He said that he was a prophet from God. But his messages were not true.
• Acts 9:36There was a woman called Tabitha who lived in Joppa. She was a believer. In the Greek language, her name was Dorcas, which means ‘deer’. She was always doing good things to help people. She gave poor people the things that they needed.
• John 1:41The first thing that Andrew did was to find his brother, Simon. Andrew said to Simon, ‘We have found the Messiah.’ (‘Messiah’ and ‘Christ’ mean the same.)
• Exodus 7:11Then Pharaoh called for his wise men and his magicians to come to him. The Egyptian magicians did the same thing as Aaron. They used their secret magic to do it.
• 1 Kings 22:24Then Kenaanah's son Zedekiah went to Micaiah. He hit Micaiah on his face. He asked Micaiah, ‘Do you say that the Lord's spirit has gone away from me and has spoken to you instead? How did he do that?’
• Jeremiah 28:1In the same year, the prophet Hananiah spoke to me. It happened in the fifth month of the fourth year that King Zedekiah ruled Judah. Hananiah was the son of Azzur, who came from Gibeon. He spoke to me in the Lord's temple, where the priests and all the people could hear him.
• Jeremiah 29:24The Lord told Jeremiah to send this message to Shemaiah, who came from Nehelam:
• 2 Timothy 3:8These are people who speak against God's true message, in the same way that Jannes and Jambres spoke against Moses. Their minds have become confused. The way that they serve God is false.
• 2 Timothy 4:14Alexander, the man who makes things from metal, caused a lot of trouble for me. The Lord will punish him because of the wrong things that he did.

Commentaries on Acts 13:8

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 8But Elymas, the sorcerer, (for so is his name by interpretation) - That is, Elymas is the interpretation of the word , or sorcerer; not of the word Bar-Jesus as some have imagined; and to support which they have been led into strange etymologies on the word -, Bar-Jesus. But how is Elymas, , the interpretation of the word , magician or sorcerer? Ans. Both names are Asiatic; but neither Hebrew nor Greek. I have already observed, in the note on Matthew 2:1…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 8Elymas the sorcerer (for so is his name by interpretation) - Elymas the magician. Elymas is the interpretation, not of the name Bar-jesus, but of the word rendered “the sorcerer.” It is an Arabic word, and means the same as Magus. It seems that he was better known by this foreign name than by his own. Withstood them - Resisted them. He was sensible that if the influence of Saul and Barnabas should be extended over the proconsul, that he would be seen to…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 4-13Verses 4-13 Satan is in a special manner busy with great men and men in power, to keep them from being religious, for their example will influence many. Saul is here for the first time called Paul, and never after Saul. Saul was his name as he was a Hebrew; Paul was his name as he was a citizen of Rome. Under the direct influence of the Holy Ghost, he gave Elymas his true character, but not in passion. A fulness of deceit and mischief together, make a man…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 7-8Sergius Paulus, the proconsul (governor), was an intelligent person. He had interest in the teachings of Barnabas and Saul. But Elymas (the sorcerer’s Greco-Roman name) recognized a challenge to his power and strongly opposed the message of Barnabas and Saul.Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 8-128-12. But Elymas--or "the wise." for so is his name by interpretation--the word is from the Arabic. withstood them--perceiving, probably, how eagerly the proconsul was drinking in the word, and fearing a dismissal. (Compare 2Ti 3:8).Read the comment

Topics related to Acts 13:8

• Cyprus
• Deputy
• Elymas
• Minister, Christian
• Miracles
• Paphos
• Paul
• Sergius Paulus
• Sorcery
• Synagogue

In the dictionaries

• Deputy
• Light
• Lo
• Ordain
• Prophet
• Season
• Sergius Paulus
• Stock
• Acts of the Apostles
• Bar-Jesus

Commentaries on Acts 13

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
• Tyndale Open Study Notes
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
• Calvin’s Commentaries
• John Wesley’s Notes
• Illustrated New Testament
• Burkitt’s Expository Notes
• Darby Translation Notes
• Family Bible Notes
• Geneva Bible Translation Notes
• Kingcomments
• Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
• Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
• Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
• The People’s New Testament
• Robertson’s Word Pictures
• Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
• The Fourfold Gospel and Commentary on Acts
• Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
• Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
• EGW Writings