Acts 13:6 "And when they had gone through the isle unto Paphos, they found a certain sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew, whose name was Barjesus: 7 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. 8 But Elymas the sorcerer (for so is his name by interpretation) withstood them, seeking to turn away the deputy from the faith. 9 Then Saul, (who also is called Paul,) filled with the Holy Ghost, set his eyes on him. 10 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? 11 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. 12 Then the deputy, when he saw what was done, believed, being astonished at the doctrine of the Lord."Paphos is on the island of Cypress. Christianity was moving westward. As Horace Greeley wrote in America "Go west young man!" Jesus said "Go ye therefore, and teach all nations... (Matthew 28:19). Wannabe cowboys did just that, and obedient apostles did the same! However, in the American west there were people there who resisted (Sorry... aborigines) and in Greece there were those out to ambush those making the pilgrimage for Christ! Elymas Barjesus circled the wagons and waged war! American Indians were said never fight in the dark, and darkness stopped Elymas in his tracks.
This is a hard subject on which to write. Some of it will bore you because you've never heard it before. However, inquiring minds can save $2.50 and read what follows!
First off, Elymas was not a magician in the sense that he did supernatural feats. He was a very ordinary guy who was an assistant to the deputy "governor" of Cypress; Sergius Paulus. Like those who came from the east to bring gifts to Jesus, Elymas was magi; a wise man, not from the east, but one who brought eastern philosophies from the east (Persia, now Iran). As such, this Jew, Elymas Barjesus, was strongly influenced by Zoroastrianism, an ancient Persian religion to which Darius I belonged.
Zoroastrianism was at one time the most dominant religion in the middle east. It lives on today due to great influences on Brahmanism and even Judaism, not to mention the evolution of eastern philosophy and even analytical psychology of today! Many say some of it's teachings sneaked into Christianity. (That's why we need to know!)
As magi Elymas was a philosopher. Ironically, his father's name was Jesus; one if the most common names of the time, being another transliteration as Joshua. (This should serve as a caution that many come in the name of Jesus, but they all are false prophets unless they bring truth!)
There are three basic maxims of Zoroastriansm: (Wikipedia: "Zoroastrianism")
- Good Thoughts, Good Words, Good Deeds.
- There is only one path and that is the path of Truth.
- Do the right thing because it is the right thing to do, and then all beneficial rewards will come to you also.
So Elymas was teaching what he believed was "truth". Luke called him "a false prophet", hence it wasn't lies that he was teaching, but a deception propagated by Satan!
Looking at the maxims, it was Zoroastrian "truth" (sic) which he was bringing to Sergius. His was a religion of works: good thoughts, words and deeds. He taught that we are do to right things, not for righteousness sake, but from a humanistic standpoint! It should be obvious to the casual reader that much of secular humanism of today share the same maxims, Indeed positive thinking and doing are children of this early religion! Humanism is right-doing, but leaves Jesus out of the picture. Elymas was surely doing much the same as modern progressive religions do today! (Social justice in the church fits well here).
Jews were gullible to this false religion. Because Darius the Great was the one who allowed his subject Jews to restore their home land and temple, the Jews thought highly of him (See the Book of Ezra). In addition, Zoroastrianism was a very tolerant religion. After all their god Ahura Masda (Lord of Wisdom), was their creator God who seemed to be the same as God JHVH! Even the name "Lord of Wisdom" brings to mind the serpent, Satan's emissary who slithered in the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, from which the false knowledge derived. His was a Lord of False Wisdom, but it had influenced the deputy
Somewhere, someplace, Sergius Paulus, of a prestigious Roman family, and was a gentile, heard about Jesus! Elymas endeavored "to turn away the deputy from the faith" (verse 8). Sergius may have heard before, but Elymas was putting a barrier to keep Sergius from the faith! Like the Eunuch he sought more knowledge about Jesus before he was to be convinced.
Elymas was up to no good! He was sincere and doing right in his own eyes, but he was sincerely wrong. He likely was a "good" person from a secular standpoint and probably even a "good" Jew. As such he had blended the religion of Zoroaster into Judaism, and frankly, they are a nice fit! Both were caught up in works, good deeds and a common creator god. It would appear, due to their tolerance of other religions, that Zoroastrians were actually more loving than Jews! It was a perfect storm headed toward Sergius, and then Jesus stepped in and calmed the storm!
Paul confronted false teachings with the aid of the Holy Ghost. We know from scripture that there is power in the Holy Ghost (Acts 1:8) because he's God's Almightiness unleashed! It was God who withdrew his Light and blinded Elymas! Just imagine: This powerful assistant who "knew it all" became instantly blind and suddenly became speechless! He said nothing more except maybe "Lead me, somebody! I'm helpless and blind!" God had toppled another idol. His wisdom shed no light now. His truth was darkened!
"Then the deputy, when he saw what was done, believed, being astonished at the doctrine of the Lord"! (verse 12). Sergius didn't believe because of his mind (The Lord of he Mind, Azura Mazda), but because of the Holy Ghost. That old tree was just pruned a bit! (The one which grew first in the Garden!) Jesus continued to "bruise the head" of the serpent (Genesis 3:15).
We need to beware of the religions of "wisdom" because what they teach is not God's truth. What we can learn from them is false teachings. We also need to beware of those who come in Jesus' name. They are wolves in sheep's clothing (Matthew 7:15). As a Jew and a "wise" man who had been taught tolerance, Elymas brought chaos to undermine Christianity because he himself was deceived. Nice guys can carry false doctrine! The name of Jesus doesn't guarantee the same Jesus.
Doctrines of "other religions" all revert back to "the other god besides God". That God is YOU who DO THINGS to save yourself! Those who desire to do that are "good" people, but they believe themselves to be gods. People, regardless of religion and wisdom, have no power to save themselves and they all know it! They are deceived into believing a lie!
How did Sergius obtain the hope of salvation. He believed "the doctrine of the Lord"! (verse 12). It was the Holy Ghost who brought The Word to Sergius. Paul was the temple which came to Sergius! It wasn't going to a synagogue which saved Sergius or a religion; it was the Truth; "the doctrine of the Lord"!
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