Godbey's Commentary - Acts - Romans - Enter His Rest

End and the residence of Sergius Paulus, the Roman proconsul, a well-disposed, intelligent man and
an earnest inquirer after truth. They are soon confronted by the resident pastor, Elymas, who forbids
them the privilege of preaching in his pastoral charge. He is a Jew and a prophet, i.e., a preacher in
good standing, even having the confidence of the Roman governor, and wielding so potent an
influence as to have the right to keep all the heresies and strange doctrines out of his bailiwick. We
have him here pronounced a false prophet, because the Holy Ghost is the Author of the history. You
must remember that the false prophets in the days of Elijah were the popular pastors of the influential
churches, who believed themselves to be the true ministers of God and Elijah a false prophet. So
Elymas is Paul’s brother in the popular church, an able preacher of the gospel, as they understood
it, having the confidence of the people and enjoying the patronage of the Roman proconsul, who was
looking to him for light and salvation. He forbids Paul and Barnabas to preach at Paphos, and if
modern ecclesiastical law be correct he had a right to order them out of his dominion. Good Lord,
help us all to profit by the clear truth here elucidated and perfectly explanatory of a thousand parallel
cases at the present day. It is only a false prophet who is unwilling to have all the help he can get
against the armies of hell, which are running rough-shod all over this wicked world. Every heart in
sympathy and co-operation with the Savior of sinners welcomes every helping hand and covers every
soul with blessings that will join in the common crusade against the powers of hell, and make an
honest effort to rescue the perishing. How the present opposition to the holiness people, who preach
no creed and nothing but Jesus and His pure and unadulterated truth, is fulfilling the latter-day
prophecies, “Men will not endure sound doctrine.” But you say we ought to be very polite to the false
prophets who forbid us to preach the Word at some place over which they claim the right to wield
the scepter of ecclesiastical tyranny. Let us see how polite and courteous Paul was to this false
prophet, at the same time remembering that he was his brother in the Jewish church.
9. “O thou full of all hypocrisy and all rascality, thou son of the devil, thou enemy of all
righteousness, wilt thou not cease perverting the right ways of the Lord?”
11, 12. Now Paul, in the name of the Lord, pronounces on him an awful anathema of physical
blindness, symbolic of his spiritual darkness, which immediately supervenes, beginning with a mist
and developing into total darkness. Consequently the people are convinced that Elymas (an Arabic
word, meaning “wise man,” by himself assumed) is wrong, and Paul is right. Therefore the proconsul
is happily converted, as the Greek says, “delighted with the doctrine of the Lord.”
SAUL VERSUS PAUL.
He was honored with the royal name of Israel’s first king. It suited him well to be called Saul, i.e.,
“the grand one,” while standing at the head of the fallen church and persecuting the poor holiness
people. But when he got sanctified the name no longer had the right ring. So he did a thing very
common with scholars even down to Luther’s day, i.e., he changed his name into Greek. Paulus is
a Greek word, and means “little,” i.e., “the little one.” Saulus versus Paulus only changes one letter.
Sanctification takes the royalty out of you and makes you so little the devil can not find you, and
never will while you keep sanctified. Hence he finds it convenient to make this little change in the
form of the word and call himself Paulus, instead of Saulus, i.e., Paul, “the little one.” Hence in the
Pauline writings we hear no more of King Saul. He died in Arabia and Paul buried him in the sand,