The Acts of the Apostles

86 THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES
great success of the mission was not, however, in the
parts of southern Palestine, but in Samaria. The
Christian Hellenists dispersed by the persecution con-
cerning Stephen and the same Philip who afterwards
became the missionary of the Philistian cities, won
over this region (viii. i. 5 ff.). The rejoicing concern-
ing this first success is already reflected in i. 8 {ev iracru
Til 'lovSaia Kai Ha/mapla, then follows at once eo-^arov
TtJ9 yrj^, cf. ix. 31 : ^ €KK\>](TLa KaO^ oXrjg rrjg 'lovSalag
. . , KOI Ha/uLapiag, also xv. 3), again in viii. 14:
SeScKTaL rj ^a/jLapla tov Xoyov tov Oeov, and in the
emphasis laid upon the fact that here the gospel had
won its way into many villages (viii. 25) ; but even
in the gospel of St. Luke we may trace a reflection of
this conversion of Samaritans (ix. 52 ; x. 33 ; xvii.
11, 16, but see also St. John iv. 39/.). Yet on the
other hand, it is obvious that St. Luke had not him-
self seen the country so as to have a clear conception
of its topography ; he speaks only from second-hand
information concerning " the city " (viii. 5),
" the
people " of Samai'ia (viii. 9), and the Church in that
country. In reference to Tyre, Ptolemais, and Sidon
(XXi. 3/. 7 ; XXVii. 3) we hear that St. Luke, together
with the Apostle, had learned something of the churches
in these cities on flying visits. In Tyre their reception
was especially hearty. The general name " Phoenicia "
occurs thrice (xi. 19 ; xv. 3 ; Xxi. 2) in the Acts. In
the second passage it stands together with Samaria
in the first (according to viii. 1) Samaria is also to
be supplied : SitiXOov [from Samaria] ewg ^oivik}]