Lystra
Summary
A city in Lycaonia where Paul healed a cripple, was worshipped as a god then stoned, and where he later found his young companion Timothy.
☩Location and Character
Lystra was a Roman colony established by Augustus around 6 BC as a military outpost against the wild mountaineers of the Taurus range. It was situated in southern Lycaonia, about eighteen miles south-southwest of Iconium, in a secluded valley at the edge of the vast upland plain. The city was 3,780 feet above sea level with the Taurus mountains behind it. As a Roman colonia, it had Latin as its official language and Greek as its language of culture, but the native Lycaonians still used their local speech among themselves. Unlike Iconium, no synagogue is mentioned at Lystra, suggesting a small Jewish population.
☩Paul's Miracle and Its Aftermath
When Paul and Barnabas fled persecution from Iconium, they came to Lystra where Paul healed a man who had been crippled from birth (Acts 14:8-10). This miracle produced such an effect on the superstitious Lycaonians that they concluded the gods had visited them in human form, calling Barnabas 'Jupiter' and Paul 'Mercury' because he was the chief speaker (Acts 14:11-12). The priest of Jupiter brought oxen and garlands to offer sacrifice at the city gates. Paul and Barnabas restrained them with great difficulty, directing them to worship the living God who gives rain and fruitful seasons (Acts 14:14-17).
☩Stoning of Paul
The swift change in the crowd's attitude demonstrates the volatile nature of mob psychology. Jews arrived from Antioch in Pisidia and Iconium, stirred up the people, and incited them to stone Paul (Acts 14:19). He was dragged outside the city and left for dead. Timothy, then a young man, was among those who witnessed Paul's sufferings and courage on this occasion (2 Timothy 3:10-11). Remarkably, as the disciples stood around him, Paul rose up, went back into the city, and departed the next day to Derbe. He later returned to Lystra to strengthen the disciples and appoint elders (Acts 14:21-23).
☩Timothy's Home
When Paul returned to Lystra on his second missionary journey, he found Timothy, a young disciple highly regarded by the believers at Lystra and Iconium (Acts 16:1-2). Timothy's mother Eunice was a Jewish believer, though his father was Greek. Paul circumcised Timothy to facilitate his ministry among Jews in the region (Acts 16:3). Timothy's conversion likely resulted partly from witnessing Paul's sufferings and steadfast faith during the first visit. From Lystra, Timothy began his long association with Paul's missionary work, becoming his most trusted companion and eventual recipient of two pastoral epistles.
References
- 1.James Hastings (ed.), "Lystra," in Dictionary of the Apostolic Church, vol. I (T. & T. Clark, 1915–1918).
- 2.James Orr (ed.), "Lystra," in International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, vol. III (Howard-Severance Company, 1915).
- 3.John McClintock and James Strong, "Lystra," in Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature, vol. V (Harper & Brothers, 1867–1887).
- 4.Andrew Robert Fausset, "Lystra," in The Englishman's Critical and Expository Bible Cyclopædia (Hodder & Stoughton, 1878).