Cilicia, a province in southeast Asia Minor, was the birthplace of Paul and an area where he ministered to the early churches.
Cilicia was a province located in the southeastern region of Asia Minor, modern-day Turkey. It was bounded by the Taurus Mountains to the north, separating it from Cappadocia, Lycaonia, and Isauria, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, Syria to the east, and Pamphylia to the west.
In the New Testament, Cilicia is mentioned several times in connection with the apostle Paul. Paul was born in Tarsus, one of the chief cities of Cilicia (Act.21.39; 22:3). After his conversion, Paul spent some time in Cilicia (Galatians 1:21; Act.9.30) and later revisited the region during his second missionary journey, strengthening the churches (Act.15.41).
Cilicia had a significant Jewish population, and the synagogue of the Cilicians in Jerusalem was among those who disputed with Stephen (Act.6.9). The early Christian church spread to Cilicia, as evidenced by the letter addressed to the Gentile believers in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia (Act.15.23).
Geographically, Cilicia was an important region, serving as a major trade route between Syria and the west. The Cilician Gates, a mountain pass through the Taurus Mountains, was a strategic point of travel and was likely used by Paul and Barnabas during their missionary journeys (Act.15.41).
Approximate location: 36.918, 34.892 · view on a map · on the Bible atlas
A maritime province in the south-east of Asia Minor. Tarsus, the birth-place of Paul, was one of its chief towns, and the seat of a celebrated school of philosophy. Its luxurious climate attracted to it many Greek residents after its incorporation with the Macedonian empire. It was formed into a Roman province, B.C. 67. The Jews of Cilicia had a synagogue at Jerusalem (Acts 6:9). Paul visited it soon after his conversion (Gal. 1:21; Acts 9:30), and again, on his second missionary journey (15:41), “he went through Syria and Cilicia, confirming the churches.” It was famous for its goat’s-hair cloth, called cilicium. Paul learned in his youth the trade of making tents of this cloth.
(the land of Celix), a maritime province int he southeast of Asia Minor, bordering on Pamphylia in the west, Lycaonia and Cappadocia in the north, and Syria in the east. (Acts 6:9) Cilicia was from its geographical position the high road between Syria and the west; it was also the native country of St. Paul, hence it was visited by him, firstly, soon after his conversion, (Acts 9:30; Galatians 1:21) and again in his second apostolical journey. (Acts 15:41)
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CILI'CIA, the south-easterly province of Asia Minor, having Cappadocia on the north, Syria on the east, the Mediterranean Sea on the south, and Pamphjiia and Pisidia (?) on the west. Eastern Cilicia was a rich plain; western Cilicia was rough and mountainous, lying on the Taurus range. Its capital was Tarsus, and many of its people were Jews. It is frequently mentioned in the book of Acts 6:9; Acts 15:23, 1 Chr 4:41; Acts 21:39; Acts 22:3; Acts 23:34; Acts 27:5; and Gal 1:21. See Tarsus.
CILI'CIA, the south-easterly province of Asia Minor, having Cappadocia on the north, Syria on the east, the Mediterranean Sea on the south, and Pamphjiia and Pisidia (?) on the west. Eastern Cilicia was a rich plain; western Cilicia was rough and mountainous, lying on the Taurus range. Its capital was Tarsus, and many of its people were Jews. It is frequently mentioned in the book of Acts 6:9; Acts 15:23, 1 Chr 4:41; Acts 21:39; Acts 22:3; Acts 23:34; Acts 27:5; and Gal 1:21. See Tarsus.
Easton (1897), Smith (1863), Hitchcock (1869), Hastings (1898) and Schaff are in the public domain. Parsed text: neuu-org/bible-dictionary-dataset (CC BY 4.0). Headwords and whitespace normalised for this site.
8 verses in 2 books · English text: BSB (change it from the menu at the top) · Strong’s G2791
But resistance arose from what was called the Synagogue of the Freedmen, including Cyrenians, Alexandrians, and men from the provinces of Cilicia and Asia. They disputed with Stephen,
and sent them with this letter: The apostles and the elders, your brothers, To the brothers among the Gentiles in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia: Greetings.
And he traveled through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the churches.
But Paul answered, “I am a Jew from Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of no ordinary city. Now I beg you to allow me to speak to the people.”
“I am a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but raised in this city. I was educated at the feet of Gamaliel in strict conformity to the law of our fathers. I was just as zealous for God as any of you are today.
The governor read the letter and asked what province Paul was from. Learning that he was from Cilicia,
And when we had sailed across the open sea off the coast of Cilicia and Pamphylia, we came to Myra in Lycia.
Later I went to the regions of Syria and Cilicia.
Names, family links and references: STEPBible TIPNR (Tyndale House Cambridge, CC BY 4.0). Short descriptions were drafted with AI assistance by STEPBible. Family links follow STEPBible’s scholarly decisions where genealogies are ambiguous.