{
  "id": "dict_005191",
  "term": "Sergius Paulus",
  "slug": "sergius-paulus",
  "letter": "S",
  "entry_type": "biblical_person",
  "entry_family": "theological_term",
  "depth_profile": "standard",
  "short_definition": "The Roman proconsul of Cyprus who heard Paul and Barnabas, saw Elymas judged, and believed the gospel in Acts 13.",
  "simple_one_line": "Roman proconsul of Cyprus who believed after hearing Paul preach.",
  "tooltip_text": "A Roman official in Cyprus who responded to Paul's message in Acts 13.",
  "aliases": [],
  "scripture_references": [],
  "original_language_terms": [],
  "related_entries": [
    "Paul",
    "Barnabas",
    "Elymas",
    "Acts of the Apostles",
    "Cyprus"
  ],
  "see_also": [
    "proconsul",
    "first missionary journey",
    "Roman Empire",
    "Gentiles"
  ],
  "lede_intro": "Sergius Paulus was the Roman proconsul of Cyprus whom Paul and Barnabas met during their first missionary journey. After hearing the gospel and witnessing God's judgment on Elymas, he believed.",
  "at_a_glance_definition": "Roman proconsul of Cyprus in Acts 13 who believed the gospel after hearing Paul.",
  "at_a_glance_key_points": [
    "Roman governor of Cyprus",
    "Heard Paul and Barnabas teach",
    "Believed after Elymas was judged",
    "A notable early Gentile response to the gospel"
  ],
  "description_academic_short": "Sergius Paulus appears in Acts 13:6–12 as the Roman proconsul of Cyprus. Luke presents him as an intelligent official who summoned Barnabas and Saul to hear the word of God, and who believed after the confrontation with Elymas.",
  "description_academic_full": "Sergius Paulus is a New Testament historical figure mentioned in Acts 13:6–12 as the Roman proconsul of Cyprus. Luke describes him as an intelligent official who summoned Barnabas and Saul to hear the word of God. When Elymas opposed the missionaries, Paul pronounced judgment and Elymas was temporarily blinded; Sergius Paulus then believed, astonished at the teaching of the Lord. Scripture does not record further details about his later life, so the entry should remain closely tied to the biblical account.",
  "background_biblical_context": "Sergius Paulus appears during Paul and Barnabas's mission in Cyprus, an early stage of Gentile outreach in Acts 13. His response contrasts with Elymas's resistance and highlights the spread of the gospel beyond Jewish audiences.",
  "background_historical_context": "A proconsul was a Roman provincial governor. Luke's title fits Cyprus's administrative status in the first century and places the account in a recognizable Roman political setting.",
  "background_jewish_ancient_context": "The Cyprus episode unfolds in a mixed Jewish-Gentile environment, with synagogue witness, competing spiritual claims, and Roman authority all present in the same missionary setting.",
  "key_texts_primary": [
    "Acts 13:6–12"
  ],
  "key_texts_secondary": [
    "Acts 13:4–5, 13:7–12"
  ],
  "original_language_note": "The name is a Latin-Roman personal name preserved in Greek as Σέργιος Παῦλος (Sergios Paulos).",
  "theological_significance": "Sergius Paulus illustrates the gospel's advance into Gentile leadership circles and the sovereignty of God in opening hearts while opposing false spiritual influence.",
  "philosophical_explanation": "The account presents a public, historical case in which testimony, confrontation, and divine intervention lead to belief. Luke frames Sergius Paulus's response as a rational and moral reaction to the truth of the Lord's teaching.",
  "interpretive_cautions": "The text does not describe Sergius Paulus's later life or allow certainty about the depth and duration of his faith beyond the narrative itself. Avoid building doctrine from silence.",
  "major_views_note": "Most interpreters read Sergius Paulus as a straightforward historical person in Luke's narrative rather than a symbolic figure.",
  "doctrinal_boundaries": "Do not infer apostolic authority, ecclesial office, or detailed conversion chronology beyond what Acts states. The passage supports the historical reality of gospel witness to Gentile officials, not speculative biography.",
  "practical_significance": "Believers can take courage that the gospel may reach people in places of influence, and that opposition to the message does not prevent God from saving whom he will.",
  "meta_description": "Sergius Paulus was the Roman proconsul of Cyprus who heard Paul preach and believed in Acts 13.",
  "public_url": "/companion-bible-dictionary/sergius-paulus/",
  "json_url": "/companion-bible-dictionary/data/dictionary/sergius-paulus.json",
  "final_disposition": "PUBLISH_CANONICAL"
}