{
  "id": "dict_004360",
  "term": "Perga",
  "slug": "perga",
  "letter": "P",
  "entry_type": "biblical_place",
  "entry_family": "theological_term",
  "depth_profile": "standard",
  "short_definition": "Perga was an ancient city in Pamphylia mentioned in Acts as a stop on Paul and Barnabas’s first missionary journey.",
  "simple_one_line": "Perga is a city in Pamphylia mentioned in Acts in connection with Paul and Barnabas’s missionary travels.",
  "tooltip_text": "Ancient city in Pamphylia, known in Acts as a stopping point on Paul’s first missionary journey.",
  "aliases": [],
  "scripture_references": [],
  "original_language_terms": [],
  "related_entries": [
    "Paul",
    "Barnabas",
    "John Mark",
    "Pamphylia",
    "Acts",
    "Missionary journeys"
  ],
  "see_also": [
    "Acts 13",
    "Acts 14",
    "Attalia",
    "Pisidia"
  ],
  "lede_intro": "Perga was an ancient city in Pamphylia, in Asia Minor, and is mentioned in Acts as a place visited during Paul and Barnabas’s missionary travels.",
  "at_a_glance_definition": "A real biblical place-name, not a doctrinal term.",
  "at_a_glance_key_points": [
    "City in Pamphylia, in Asia Minor",
    "Mentioned in Acts 13 and Acts 14",
    "Paul and Barnabas passed through Perga and preached there"
  ],
  "description_academic_short": "Perga was an ancient city in Pamphylia, mentioned in Acts during Paul and Barnabas’s first missionary journey. Scripture presents it chiefly as a geographic setting in the spread of the gospel.",
  "description_academic_full": "Perga was an ancient city in the region of Pamphylia, in southern Asia Minor. In the Book of Acts, Paul and Barnabas came through Perga on their first missionary journey, and John Mark left them there to return to Jerusalem. On their return, they again passed through Perga and spoke the word there before continuing on. The city is therefore significant in the biblical narrative mainly as a geographic location connected with the missionary advance of the gospel.",
  "background_biblical_context": "Acts uses Perga as part of the travel narrative of Paul and Barnabas. It marks an early stage in the spread of the gospel from Jewish and Syrian settings into Gentile regions of Asia Minor.",
  "background_historical_context": "Perga was an important city in Pamphylia and belonged to the wider Greco-Roman world of Asia Minor. Its appearance in Acts fits the historical setting of first-century missionary travel through Roman road networks and coastal cities.",
  "background_jewish_ancient_context": "Perga lies outside Judea and Galilee, showing the movement of the gospel beyond its Jewish homeland into the broader Mediterranean world. In Acts, such locations help trace the transition from Jerusalem-centered ministry to wider Gentile mission.",
  "key_texts_primary": [
    "Acts 13:13",
    "Acts 14:24-25"
  ],
  "key_texts_secondary": [
    "Acts 13:5"
  ],
  "original_language_note": "From Greek Πέργη (Pergē), a place name referring to the city of Perga.",
  "theological_significance": "Perga itself carries no special doctrine, but its presence in Acts highlights the historical reality of the church’s mission and the outward spread of the gospel in real places and times.",
  "philosophical_explanation": "Place names in Scripture remind readers that biblical revelation is anchored in history and geography, not myth. Perga is meaningful because God’s redemptive work unfolded in actual cities and journeys.",
  "interpretive_cautions": "Do not overstate Perga’s significance. Scripture does not attach a separate theological meaning to the city itself; its importance is narrative and historical.",
  "major_views_note": "There is little interpretive disagreement about Perga as a biblical place. The main question is its role in the travel sequence of Acts, not any doctrinal meaning attached to it.",
  "doctrinal_boundaries": "Perga should be treated as a geographic reference, not as a symbol or doctrine. Any theological conclusions should come from the surrounding biblical context, not from the place name alone.",
  "practical_significance": "Perga helps readers see how the gospel advanced through ordinary travel, cities, and conversations. It also reminds readers that missionary work often includes seemingly minor stops that are still part of God’s larger plan.",
  "meta_description": "Perga was an ancient city in Pamphylia mentioned in Acts as a stop on Paul and Barnabas’s missionary journey.",
  "public_url": "/companion-bible-dictionary/perga/",
  "json_url": "/companion-bible-dictionary/data/dictionary/perga.json",
  "final_disposition": "PUBLISH_CANONICAL"
}