The historian is careful to add in this case, as he does
1 80 History of the Churches of Galatia. Chap. VIII.
about the Seven Deacons (VI 3), about Cornelius (X 22, cp. 2), and as Paul does about Ananias (XXII 12), and as is implied in I 21, that Timothy had so lived as to bear a good character in the district where he was known. It is not meant that Paul went about taking the opinion of Lystra and Iconium about Timothy, any more than it is meant in X 22 that Cornelius's messengers went collecting evidence about him all over Palestine : we may be sure that in such a selection Paul depended on his own insight, guided perhaps by Divine approval. The author adds this information about the good repute of Timothy, because he considered good repute one of the conditions of appointment to any office however humble in the Church. He is interested in all questions of organisation ; and we may compare what he says about the qualifica- tion of preachers (pp. 45, 174). As a point of literary style we note that the event of a new and important character is marked by an unusually detailed account of him.
We infer from the expression that in vv. 1-3 Paul and Silas have not gone beyond Lystra ; and that it is a misconception to think that in v. 2 Paul is in Iconium. At Lystra Paul felt that, along the route which he in- tended to take, the Jews knew Timothy's father to be a Greek : he was going along a frequented route of trade, on which were colonies of Jews in communication with each other, for there can be no doubt that his plan was to go by Iconium and Antioch into Asia. The opinion has sometimes been held that at this point Paul abandoned the visitation of his Churches as contemplated in XV 36 ; and that "the fact that God put this companion in his way served as a warning to him to go direct from
Sec. i. The Visit of Paul and Silas. 181
Lykaonia to a new mission-field " (see Weiss's note on XVI 2). But, on the contrary, our view is that, when Luke records any deliberately formed intention on Paul's part, he leaves us to understand that it was carried out, if no intimation to the contrary is given (p. 342) ; and that Timothy here was taken as companion for the route as first planned, to fill the place of John Mark on the previous journey. There seems no reason to think (as Blass does) that one or more subordinates accompanied Paul from Syrian Antioch. It is not im- probable that Paul, owing to previous experience, thought of Timothy as a companion even before he left Antioch.
Paul then proceeded on his intended route through the Phrygian Region of the province, whose two cities visited on the previous journey were Iconium and Pisidian Antioch. The cities are not specially named, as nothing striking or important occurred in either. It is implied that no Church had been founded on the former journey in Pisidia or Pamphylia ; and hence Paul had no Churches to review and confirm there. The reference to Pisidia (a Region of the province Galatia) in XIV 24 does not suggest that any success was attained there ; and we may find in the list of I Peter I 1 a clear proof that there was no Church in Pamphylia at a date con- siderably later. That list is clearly intended to exhaust the Church in Asia Minor ; and it mentions every pro- vince except Lycia and Pamphylia (which, therefore, did not yet contain any Churches, and seem to have long resisted Christianity), and Cilicia, which was part of Syria. The list, incidentally, shows that already in the first century a certain coherence was perceptible between the various Churches of Asia Minor, as distinguished from