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Acts 13 Bible study: Good news of the promise

In a synagogue, just after "the reading of the law and the prophets" (13:15), Paul said that those in Jerusalem didn't know "the voices of the prophets which are read every Sabbath", and "fulfilled them by condemning him" (13:27). "But God raised him from the dead" (13:30).

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“Be it known to you therefore, brothers, that through this man is proclaimed to you remission of sins; and by him everyone who believes is justified from all things, from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses.”
Acts 13:38-39 · World English Bible

Try it · Did you catch it?

“When they sail back to Antioch, Acts speaks of "the work which they had fulfilled" (14:26).”

Is that in Acts 13, or not? Make your call.

What's really going on

"Separate Barnabas and Saul for me"

In the text

"Now in the assembly that was at Antioch there were some prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen the foster brother of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul." (13:1). "As they served the Lord and fasted, the Holy Spirit said, “Separate Barnabas and Saul for me, for the work to which I have called them.”" (13:2) (tap served, Separate). "Then, when they had fasted and prayed and laid their hands on them, they sent them away." (13:3). Here is what almost everyone misses: the next verse names another sender. "So, being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia." (13:4) (tap sent out). In 13:3 "they sent them away", and in 13:4 they were "sent out by the Holy Spirit": in the Greek, two different verbs. Acts sets the two side by side and says no more of how they fit, and these notes say no more of the fasting or the laying on of hands than these verses say. Favor's introduction to Acts opens a part, Separate Barnabas and Saul for me, at 12:25, and Favor's Acts 12 points to it in The word of God grew.

Where the Old Testament leads here

A promise kept

In the text

Psalm 2:7leads toActs 13:33

The decree the LORD spoke (Psalm 2:7): "You are my son. Today I have become your father" (Psalm 2:7). Paul, in the synagogue at Antioch (Acts 13:14-16), says, "We bring you good news of the promise made to the fathers" (Acts 13:32), "that God has fulfilled this to us, their children, in that he raised up Jesus. As it is also written in the second psalm" (Acts 13:33), and gives its words: "You are my Son. Today I have become your father" (Acts 13:33).

Honest questions

Questions people ask about Acts 13

That was a taste

The rest of Acts 13 is waiting in Favor

  • Turned away, and the right ways
  • Read every Sabbath
  • Good news of the promise
  • Lines that land here
  • Paul's telling, in other chapters
  • Words from the prophets, about other things
  • 20 questions as you read
  • 10 more Greek words
  • A short check at the end
  • Your notes, saved as you go
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The Greek word behind it

εὐαγγελίζωeuangelizosay yoo-ang-ghel-EED-zo

Strong's: "to announce good news". "We bring you good news of the promise made to the fathers" (13:32): behind bring you good news is this one verb. Favor's Acts 5 studies it where Acts first has it (5:42) and counts it in Acts, and Favor's Acts 8 studies it where Acts has it five times in one chapter. Here it is in Paul's own words, and what he brings as good news is "the promise made to the fathers" (13:32). Favor's Luke 1 studies the verb where Luke first has it.

For your group

Acts 13 Bible study questions

  1. 1Before Barnabas and Saul were sent off, "they had fasted and prayed and laid their hands on them" (13:3). Who has stood behind you as you stepped into something new, and whom could you stand behind this week?
  2. 2The proconsul "sought to hear the word of God" (13:7), and Elymas was "seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith" (13:8). What pulls you away from hearing God's word, and what helps you keep listening?
  3. 3Paul and Barnabas were thrown "out of their borders" (13:50), and the chapter ends, "The disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit." (13:52). When have you known joy in a hard place?

Leading a group? In Favor, everyone reads Acts 13 during the week and answers these questions privately. Answers stay sealed until you meet, then appear together, and you can print the week's sheet.

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Questions

What is Favor?

Favor is a Bible study app that explains every chapter as you read: the Hebrew and Greek behind the words, the details most readers miss, and how each part of the Bible leads to Jesus. Read on your own, or start a Bible study with friends, family or your church.

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Last reviewed October 7, 2026. Scripture quotations are from the World English Bible, which is in the public domain. Hebrew and Greek words are checked against the original-language texts and public-domain lexicons. What we believe · Favor home