^13:6When they had crossed over²² the whole island as far as Paphos,²³ they found a magician, a Jewish false prophet named Bar-Jesus,²⁴^13:7who was with the proconsul²⁵ Sergius Paulus, an intelligent man. The proconsul²⁶ summoned²⁷ Barnabas and Saul and wanted to hear²⁸ the word of God. ^13:8But the magician Elymas²⁹ (for that is the way his name is translated)³⁰ opposed them, trying to turn the proconsul³¹ away from the faith. ^13:9But Saul (also known as Paul),³² filled with the Holy Spirit,³³ stared straight³⁴ at him ^13:10and said, “You who are full of all deceit and all wrongdoing,³⁵ you son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness—will you not stop making crooked the straight paths of the Lord?³⁶^13:11Now³⁷ look, the hand of the Lord is against³⁸ you, and you will be blind, unable to see the sun for a time!” Immediately mistiness³⁹ and darkness came over⁴⁰ him, and he went around seeking people⁴¹ to lead him by the hand.

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Footnotes

22 Or “had passed through,” “had traveled through.”
23 Paphos. A city on the southwestern coast of the island of Cyprus. It was the seat of the Roman proconsul.
24 Named Bar-Jesus. “Jesus” is the Latin form of the name “Joshua.” The Aramaic “bar” means “son of,” so this man was surnamed “son of Joshua.” The scene depicts the conflict between Judaism and the emerging new faith at a cosmic level, much like the Simon Magus incident in Acts 8:9–24. Paul’s ministry looks like Philip’s and Peter’s here.
25 The proconsul was the Roman official who ruled over a province traditionally under the control of the Roman senate.
26 Grk “This one”; the referent (the proconsul) is specified in the translation for clarity.
27 Grk “summoning Barnabas and Saul, wanted to hear.” The participle προσκαλεσάμενος (proskalesamenos) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.
28 The proconsul … wanted to hear the word of God. This description of Sergius Paulus portrays him as a sensitive, secular Gentile leader.
29 On the debate over what the name “Elymas” means, see Ἐλύμας. The magician’s behavior is more directly opposed to the faith than Simon Magus’ was.
30 A parenthetical note by the author.
31 The proconsul was the Roman official who ruled over a province traditionally under the control of the Roman senate.
32 A parenthetical note by the author.
33 This qualifying clause in the narrative indicates who represented God in the dispute.
34 Or “gazed intently.”
35 Or “unscrupulousness.”
36 “You who … paths of the Lord?” This rebuke is like ones from the OT prophets: Jer 5:27; Gen 32:11; Prov 10:7; Hos 14:9. Five separate remarks indicate the magician’s failings. The closing rhetorical question of v. 10 (“will you not stop …?”) shows how opposed he is to the way of God.
37 Grk “And now.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.
38 Grk “upon,” but in a negative sense.
39 The term translated mistiness here appears in the writings of the physician Galen as a medical technical description of a person who is blind. The picture of judgment to darkness is symbolic as well. Whatever power Elymas had, it represented darkness. Magic will again be an issue in Acts 19:18–19. This judgment is like that of Ananias and his wife in Acts 5:1–11.
40 Grk “fell on.”
41 The noun χειραγωγός (cheiragōgos) is plural, so “people” is used rather than singular “someone.”

In other versions

ESVEnglish Standard Version

When they had gone through the whole island as far as Paphos, they came upon a certain magician, a Jewish false prophet named Bar-Jesus. He was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, a man of intelligence, who summoned Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the word of God. But Elymas the magician (for that is the meaning of his name) opposed them, seeking to turn the proconsul away from the faith. But Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him and said, “You son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, full of all deceit and villainy, will you not stop making crooked the straight paths of the Lord? And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon you, and you will be blind and unable to see the sun for a time.” Immediately mist and darkness fell upon him, and he went about seeking people to lead him by the hand.

NIVNew International Version (2011)

They traveled through the whole island until they came to Paphos. There they met a Jewish sorcerer and false prophet named Bar-Jesus, who was an attendant of the proconsul, Sergius Paulus. The proconsul, an intelligent man, sent for Barnabas and Saul because he wanted to hear the word of God. But Elymas the sorcerer (for that is what his name means) opposed them and tried to turn the proconsul from the faith. Then Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked straight at Elymas and said, “You are a child of the devil and an enemy of everything that is right! You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery. Will you never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord? Now the hand of the Lord is against you. You are going to be blind for a time, not even able to see the light of the sun.”

Immediately mist and darkness came over him, and he groped about, seeking someone to lead him by the hand.

CSBChristian Standard Bible

When they had traveled the whole island as far as Paphos, they came across a sorcerer, a Jewish false prophet named Bar-Jesus. He was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, an intelligent man. This man summoned Barnabas and Saul and wanted to hear the word of God. But Elymas the sorcerer (that is the meaning of his name) opposed them and tried to turn the proconsul away from the faith.

But Saul—also called Paul—filled with the Holy Spirit, stared straight at Elymas and said, “You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery, you son of the devil and enemy of all that is right. Won’t you ever stop perverting the straight paths of the Lord? Now, look, the Lord’s hand is against you. You are going to be blind, and will not see the sun for a time.” Immediately a mist and darkness fell on him, and he went around seeking someone to lead him by the hand.

NLTNew Living Translation

Afterward they traveled from town to town across the entire island until finally they reached Paphos, where they met a Jewish sorcerer, a false prophet named Bar-Jesus. He had attached himself to the governor, Sergius Paulus, who was an intelligent man. The governor invited Barnabas and Saul to visit him, for he wanted to hear the word of God. But Elymas, the sorcerer (as his name means in Greek), interfered and urged the governor to pay no attention to what Barnabas and Saul said. He was trying to keep the governor from believing.

Saul, also known as Paul, was filled with the Holy Spirit, and he looked the sorcerer in the eye. Then he said, “You son of the devil, full of every sort of deceit and fraud, and enemy of all that is good! Will you never stop perverting the true ways of the Lord? Watch now, for the Lord has laid his hand of punishment upon you, and you will be struck blind. You will not see the sunlight for some time.” Instantly mist and darkness came over the man’s eyes, and he began groping around begging for someone to take his hand and lead him.

LEBThe Lexham English Bible

And when they had crossed over the whole island as far as Paphos, they found a certain man, a magician, a Jewish false prophet whose name was Bar-Jesus,who was with the proconsul Sergius Paulus, an intelligent man. This man summoned Barnabas and Saul and wished to hear the word of God. But Elymas the magician (for his name is translated in this way) opposed them, attempting to turn the proconsul away from the faith. But Saul (also called Paul), filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him and said, “O you who are full of all deceit and of all unscrupulousness, you son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness! Will you not stop making crooked the straight paths of the Lord! And now behold, the hand of the Lord is against you, and you will be blind, not seeing the sun for a while.” And immediately mist and darkness fell over him, and he was going around looking for people to lead him by the hand.

KJV 1900King 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: Which was with the deputy of the country, Sergius Paulus, a prudent man; who called for Barnabas and Saul, and desired to hear the word of God. But Elymas the sorcerer (for so is his name by interpretation) withstood them, seeking to turn away the deputy from the faith. Then Saul, (who also is called Paul,) filled with the Holy Ghost, set his eyes on him, And said, O full of all subtilty and all mischief, thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord? And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon thee, and thou shalt be blind, not seeing the sun for a season. And immediately there fell on him a mist and a darkness; and he went about seeking some to lead him by the hand.

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