Portuguese icon of Barnabas (Wikimedia Commons)
Who was Barnabas in the book of Acts?
An important member of the early Church, he was one of the Apostle Paul’s closest friends.
His name is generally understood to mean “son of encouragement,” and he certainly played that role for the Apostle Paul and others.
But who was he and where did he come from?
His Levite parents from Cyprus didn’t name him Barnabas. They called him Joses (Joseph).
His father, therefore, was a priest who carried out temple duties. (The supposition is the family lived in Jerusalem but then relocated to Cyprus–whether before or after Barnabas’ birth, no one knows).
Barnabas came from a learned household and thus he would have known the Old Testament Scriptures well. He could recite the Torah (the first five books of the Old Testament) verbatim.
At some point, Barnabas wound up in Jerusalem following Jesus’ resurrection.
It’s not known when he became a believer, but he sold his land and gave the proceeds to the apostles in Jerusalem (Acts 4:36), setting the example that Ananias and Sapphira didn’t follow in Acts 5.
Paul and Barnabas at Lystra by Bartholomeus Breenbergh (Wikimedia Commons)
Barnabas and Saul
Fellowshipping with the apostles, living in communion with all the saints, Barnabas was in Jerusalem when Saul began his rampaging persecution of the Christians.
He saw the wonders God performed.
His encounter with the risen Christ may not have been in person, but through faith. His was a rugged faith, sustained even after Stephen’s martyrdom in Acts 7.
Indeed, the man did not flee Jerusalem during the persecution, but remained with the “senior” Apostles.
He was in town, therefore, when the astonishing news reached them that Saul the persecutor had recanted and now proclaimed Jesus Christ as Lord.
Bible scholars know Saul studied the Scriptures for three years before he began his missionary journeys.
Many suspect that time out of the public eye may have been after Saul saw the light in Damascus and before he came to Jerusalem seeking an audience.
If that fits into the timeline, it had been three years since Saul’s murderous rampage.
When Saul sent a message to the apostles asking for a meeting, they demurred. Brave Barnabas, however, met with Saul and served as the mediator between Saul and the apostles. (Acts 9:27)
So was he an amiable or a practical investigator?
Whichever, Barnabas had a position of trust–spiritual as well as personal–with the other followers of Jesus.
When the apostles received news of a possible revival in the area of Antioch (now Antakya, Turkey) 300 miles north of Jerusalem, they sent Barnabas as a fact-finder.
Since he had correctly identified Saul as one of them, he should be able to recognize if a bonafide work of the Holy Spirit had broken out in the north.
“When he came and had seen the grace of God, he was glad, and encouraged them all that with purpose of heart they should continue with the Lord. For he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a great many people were added to the Lord.” (Acts 11:23-24)
Barnabas, obviously, was also an evangelist.
His willingness to listen and weigh carefully may have been the reason the apostles decided Barnabas should travel with Saul–now called Paul–as he shared the gospel of Jesus Christ.
If anyone could keep that firebrand loose-cannon Paul in line it was his friend.
The two men traveled together on a missionary trip, including Barnabas’ cousin John Mark as a fellow traveler. (Mark didn’t finished the trip thus disappointing Paul, which caused “trouble” later).
They visited cities along the southern coast of what is now Turkey, with occasional forays into the interior. The churches in Galatia knew him.
Barnabas also was on hand in Antioch, Pisidia when the entire town came out to hear Paul speak. Like Paul, he shook the dust off his feet as he left that city.
A Biblical scholar
Paul’s exceptional learning was important while preaching the gospel, but Barnabas’ Jewish credentials should not be forgotten. He knew the Scriptures just as well as Paul did and had walked in faith longer.
Paul needed him–as a companion, a fellow believer, and a more balanced personality. The two worked well together.
The devout Barnabas was appalled when people in Lystra who had seen them pray for a man to be healed decided they were Greek gods.
When they called Barnabas “Zeus,” and Paul “Hermes,” (would this have been because Barnabas was a bigger physical man than Paul?), the two men both tore their clothes and cried,
“Men, why are you doing these things? We also are men with the same nature as you, and preach to you that you should turn from these useless things to the living God.”
Barnabas did not forget his place in the kingdom of God.
He was willing to take on Peter and the other apostles as they all grew in a deeper understanding of the fledgling faith.
He and Paul both spoke at the Jerusalem Council. They had seen the devotion of “non-Jewish” believers. They knew God welcomed Jews and Gentiles both into his kingdom on account of Jesus’ death on the cross.
Division between the two friends
While the two men traveled and worked well together, they parted ways on a subsequent mission trip, Barnabas suggested inviting his cousin Mark along again. (Acts 15:39-40)
When Paul refused to budge, Barnabas and Mark set off together for Cyprus leaving Paul to travel with Silas through Syria and Cilicia.
What looked like a failure actually ended up being a success as the gospel was preached in twice the places.
The Scriptures do not mention what became of Barnabas after his separation from Paul. Some believe he was martyred, others believe he ended his life in Cyprus, probably martyred.
He’s considered the patron saint of Cyprus by the Greek Orthodox Church.
Barnabas’ influence on Christianity cannot be denied. Without his courage in giving Paul a chance to demonstrate his love for Jesus . . . God would have had to work in another way.
Bible studies like to remind us all of the value of an encourager.
Barnabas, acting in faith and a keen leading of the Holy Spirit, is an excellent example may of us should emulate.
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Very informative. I liked that you called him an encourager. I believe when I was very young the first church I was a member of and its’ first pastor also called him an encourager.
Would it be wonderful if we all had an encourager like Barnabas in our life? Someone who stood next to us, in torn clothes, breathing heavily from running with us, vaguely wondering what will happen with the luggage now we’ve been chased out of town who says, “well, that was interesting. Let’s dust off our shoes and go to the next town to see what happens!”
🙂