Later in the life of
Seleucus Nicator I,
the successor of
Alexander the Great
that organized Asia
Minor, the city of Antioch of
Pisidia was founded.
 |
He located
the city
strategically
one hundred
miles north
of Perga,
long after
(25 years)
the founding
of such
cities as Antioch on Orontes and the
nearby port
of Seleucia.
Part of the
so called
lake
district of
southwest
Asia Minor,
the
strategic
value of Pisidian
Antioch was the
guard like
position it
held at 3500
feet above
sea level in
the Taurus
Mountains.
The position
guarded the
road access
from the
south, as
well as the
so called
high road
from Ephesus to Syria. It
was settled
and
maintained
as the
military
command
center of
southern
Galatia, and
was located
in the
proximity of
the border
of Pisidia
and Phrygia.
Because it
was near the
border, the
historian
Strabo
referred to
the place as
near
Pisidia. |
The city was set
atop a precipice
described by Sir
William Ramsey on
his visit at the
beginning of the
twentieth century as
an oblong plateau
varying from 50 feet
to 200 feet above
the plain nearly two
miles in
circumference.
| By 25 BCE
the city had
become a
colony of
Rome.
Westerners
had poured
into the
city,
retired
soldiers
with a
military
pension,
merchants
and those
seeking a
quieter life
than those
close to
Rome. The
expatriate
Romans
enjoyed full
citizenship,
something
not attained
for their
indigenous
counterparts
until later,
yet the
whole city
flourished
and enjoyed
peace and
prosperity
in the
generation
leading up
to St. Paul and St.
Barnabas�
visit. The
frequent
host of
Roman
governors on
travels from
west to
east, the
city hosted
festivals
and games,
and the
money
attracted
greater
investment
in this, a
center of
Galatian
activity.
On the First
Journey, St. Paul and St.
Barnabas
left the
area of
Perga
without John
Mark and
proceeded to Antioch,
where they
entered the
synagogue on
the Sabbath. |
 |
 |
The address
given there
caused the
reaction
that later
characterized St. Paul's
mission
journeys,
some had a
revival,
others a
riot! Driven
from the
city, St. Paul and St.
Barnabas
moved on to
Iconium ,
experiencing
an early
moment of
joy in the
journey. It
was here
that St. Paul was moved by
the hardness
of his
fellow
countrymen
and turned
to the
Gentiles, a
decision
that would
mark a
concern of
the
Jerusalem
Church for
years to
come.
Today,
modern
Yalvac is
settled by a
large
agricultural
and rural
settlement
amidst the
still rich
and fertile
plains and
pasturelands. |
