Elymas
“Wise man (from Arabic 'alim')”
Summary
A Jewish sorcerer and false prophet, also called Bar-Jesus, who opposed Paul at Cyprus and was struck with temporary blindness.
☩Encounter with Paul
Elymas was a Jewish sorcerer and false prophet attached to the court of Sergius Paulus, the Roman proconsul of Cyprus. When Paul and Barnabas visited the island during the first missionary journey, the proconsul summoned them, desiring to hear the word of God. Elymas sought to turn the proconsul away from the faith. Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, denounced him as a 'child of the devil' and 'enemy of all righteousness,' pronouncing miraculous blindness upon him 'for a season.' The proconsul, witnessing this display of divine power, believed.
☩Name and Background
The name Elymas is commonly derived from the Arabic word meaning 'wise man' or 'sage,' which Luke interprets by the Greek word 'magos' (sorcerer or magician). His Jewish name was Bar-Jesus ('son of Jesus' or 'son of Joshua'). The temporary nature of his blindness ('for a season') suggests the punishment was intended not merely as retribution but as an opportunity for repentance and conversion.
References
- 1.John McClintock and James Strong, "Elymas," in Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature, vol. III (Harper & Brothers, 1867–1887).
- 2.George Morrish, "Elymas," in Morrish's Concise Bible Dictionary (George Morrish, 1898).
- 3.F. N. Peloubet & M. A. Peloubet (ed.), "Elymas," in Smith's Bible Dictionary (Porter & Coates, 1884).