Acts 13:8-10

13:8 But the magician Elymas ¹  (for that is the way his name is translated) ²  opposed them, trying to turn the proconsul ³  away from the faith. 13:9 But Saul (also known as Paul), ⁴  filled with the Holy Spirit, ⁵  stared straight ⁶  at him 13:10 and said, “You who are full of all deceit and all wrongdoing, ⁷  you son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness – will you not stop making crooked the straight paths of the Lord? ⁸ 

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¹ tn On the debate over what the name “Elymas” means, see BDAG 320 s.v. ᾿Ελύμας. The magician’s behavior is more directly opposed to the faith than Simon Magus’ was.

² sn A parenthetical note by the author.

³ sn The proconsul was the Roman official who ruled over a province traditionally under the control of the Roman senate.

⁴ sn A parenthetical note by the author.

⁵ sn This qualifying clause in the narrative indicates who represented God in the dispute.

⁶ tn Or “gazed intently.”

⁷ tn Or “unscrupulousness.”

⁸ sn “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.