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Paul's Missionary Journeys Map

Paul's missionary journeys on one map: Damascus and the early years, the three journeys, the voyage to Rome and the debated later travels, c. AD 33–67. Step through Acts as the map moves.

Damascus, three journeys, the shipwreck on Malta and Rome: Paul's roads on one map, with Acts and the dates beside them.

Later travels (debated), stop 5 of 10: Macedonia, c. AD 63.

Natural Earth · Pleiades

Later (debated) · 5 / 10 · c. AD 63
Macedonia
Early years1st journey2nd journey3rd journeyTo RomeLater (debated)
  • On foot
  • By sea
  • Speculative
  • Roman road (sketch)
  • Routes

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14 stops · about 35 minutes

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This is a reconstruction. Acts names cities and regions but rarely roads, and never years. Lines between stops follow known Roman roads and sailing routes where we have them and are otherwise a best guess. Every stop, leg and date shows how sure we can be, from what the text says outright to what is speculation, and the debated later travels are drawn as dotted lines.

Dates are approximate and count from the Gallio inscription (about AD 51–52). Distances are measured along the drawn lines and travel days are estimates: 20–30 km a day on foot; at sea, from the text where it says, otherwise typical sailing times. Scripture quotations are from the King James Version (1769), and the Chinese Union Version (1919), public domain.

Map data: coastlines, rivers, borders and shaded relief from Natural Earth (public domain). Ancient places from the Pleiades gazetteer (CC BY 3.0). Roman roads are sketched between known stations.

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Paul's missionary journeys: routes, dates and the voyage to Rome

Acts follows Paul from the road to Damascus to two years under guard in Rome. Between them come three missionary journeys, from Antioch in Syria across Cyprus and Asia Minor to Macedonia and Greece, a long stay in Ephesus, an arrest in Jerusalem, two years in prison at Caesarea and a winter voyage that ends in shipwreck on Malta. Paul's letters add a few details Acts leaves out, such as his time in Arabia, and the Pastoral Letters and early tradition hint at travels after Acts ends.

This lab puts every route on one map with a timeline from about AD 33 to 67, a graph of Paul's co-workers from Barnabas to Phoebe, and his thirteen letters, each placed where it went and where it may have been written. The lines follow known Roman roads and sailing routes, the dates count from the Gallio inscription at Delphi, and every stop, person and letter shows how sure we can be. Debated questions stand side by side.

Paul's roads at a glance

Paul's roads at a glance
ScriptureActs 9–28; Galatians 1–2; 2 Corinthians 11; Romans 15; the Pastoral Letters
DatesAbout AD 33/34 (conversion) to 62 (end of Acts); later travels to about AD 64–67, debated
First journeyActs 13–14, about AD 46–48: Cyprus and southern Galatia
Second journeyActs 15:36–18:22, about AD 49/50–52: Macedonia and Achaia
Third journeyActs 18:23–21:17, about AD 52/53–57: Ephesus, then Macedonia and Greece
Voyage to RomeActs 27–28, about AD 59–60: storm, shipwreck on Malta, Puteoli, Rome
Co-workers21 in the lab, from Barnabas and Silas to Priscilla, Aquila, Timothy, Titus and Phoebe
Letters13, from 1 Thessalonians (about AD 50–51) to 2 Timothy; six of disputed authorship
Dating anchorThe Gallio inscription at Delphi: Gallio proconsul of Achaia about AD 51–52
DistancesEstimates measured along reconstructed routes

Key verses 5

3And as he journeyed, he came near Damascus: and suddenly there shined round about him a light from heaven: 4And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? 5And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks. 6And he trembling and astonished said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do.

Acts 9:3–6

1Now there were in the church that was at Antioch certain prophets and teachers; as Barnabas, and Simeon that was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen, which had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. 2As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them. 3And when they had fasted and prayed, and laid their hands on them, they sent them away.

Acts 13:1–3

9And a vision appeared to Paul in the night; There stood a man of Macedonia, and prayed him, saying, Come over into Macedonia, and help us. 10And after he had seen the vision, immediately we endeavoured to go into Macedonia, assuredly gathering that the Lord had called us for to preach the gospel unto them.

Acts 16:9–10

23But now having no more place in these parts, and having a great desire these many years to come unto you; 24Whensoever I take my journey into Spain, I will come to you: for I trust to see you in my journey, and to be brought on my way thitherward by you, if first I be somewhat filled with your company.

ROM 15:23–24

30And Paul dwelt two whole years in his own hired house, and received all that came in unto him, 31Preaching the kingdom of God, and teaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ, with all confidence, no man forbidding him.

Acts 28:30–31

Scripture quotations: King James Version (1769) (KJV).

How sure are we?

How we build the Labs →

What the Bible says, what our model adds to it, where good readers disagree, and where the old copies and the translations differ. We set the views side by side and do not pick a winner.

  • Textually stated9
  • Strongly supported2
  • Plausible7
  • Speculative6

A few of the model's choices

  • Strongly supported

    Gallio was proconsul of Achaia about AD 51–52.

  • Plausible

    The council met about AD 48/49.

  • Plausible

    The escape happened before AD 40.

Show all 29
What the text says9

Stated in Scripture. Quoted from the King James Version (KJV) and the 1919 Chinese Union Version (和合本).

  • They sailed from Seleucia to Salamis on Cyprus.

    Textually stated

    4So they, being sent forth by the Holy Ghost, departed unto Seleucia; and from thence they sailed to Cyprus. 5And when they were at Salamis, they preached the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews: and they had also John to their minister.

    Acts 13:4–5 · KJV

  • The crossing from Troas to Neapolis took two days.

    Textually stated

    11Therefore loosing from Troas, we came with a straight course to Samothracia, and the next day to Neapolis;

    Acts 16:11 · KJV

  • Aquila and Priscilla shared Paul's trade and his lodging in Corinth.

    Textually stated

    2And found a certain Jew named Aquila, born in Pontus, lately come from Italy, with his wife Priscilla; (because that Claudius had commanded all Jews to depart from Rome:) and came unto them. 3And because he was of the same craft, he abode with them, and wrought: for by their occupation they were tentmakers.

    Acts 18:2–3 · KJV

  • 1 Corinthians written from Ephesus

    Textually stated

    8But I will tarry at Ephesus until Pentecost.

    1 Corinthians 16:8 · KJV

  • They crossed the open sea, leaving Cyprus on the left, to Tyre.

    Textually stated

    3Now when we had discovered Cyprus, we left it on the left hand, and sailed into Syria, and landed at Tyre: for there the ship was to unlade her burden.

    Acts 21:3 · KJV

  • Philippians was written from prison, but which prison is debated.

    Textually stated

    13So that my bonds in Christ are manifest in all the palace, and in all other places;

    Philippians 1:13 · KJV

  • Making for Phoenix, the ship was caught by Euraquilo (KJV: Euroclydon) and driven to the lee of Cauda.

    Textually stated

    14But not long after there arose against it a tempestuous wind, called Euroclydon. 15And when the ship was caught, and could not bear up into the wind, we let her drive.

    Acts 27:14–15 · KJV

  • With a south wind they reached Puteoli on the second day.

    Textually stated

    13And from thence we fetched a compass, and came to Rhegium: and after one day the south wind blew, and we came the next day to Puteoli:

    Acts 28:13 · KJV

  • Timothy is named as co-sender of six of Paul's letters.

    Textually stated

    1Paul and Timotheus, the servants of Jesus Christ, to all the saints in Christ Jesus which are at Philippi, with the bishops and deacons:

    Philippians 1:1 · KJV
What the model adds15

Choices the reconstruction has to make where the text is silent, each with its evidence level and the reason for it.

Strongly supported2

  • Gallio was proconsul of Achaia about AD 51–52.

    Why: The Delphi inscription quotes Claudius in his 26th acclamation as emperor (early to mid AD 52) and names Gallio as proconsul; proconsuls served one year from early summer.

  • The ship drifted about 880 km west in fourteen days, from Cauda to Malta.

    Why: Acts 27:27 counts fourteen nights. Sailors' calculations (James Smith, 1848, and later) show that a ship lying to in an east-north-east gale drifts about 1.5 knots, which covers the distance to Malta in just about that time.

Plausible7

  • The council met about AD 48/49.

    Why: It falls between the first journey and the second, which the Gallio inscription places around AD 50–52; Galatians 2:1 counts fourteen years to a Jerusalem visit.

  • The escape happened before AD 40.

    Why: Aretas IV of Nabataea died about AD 40, so his governor's watch on Damascus must be earlier. How the Nabataeans came to control the city is not known.

  • Where Galatians was sent and when it was written are both debated.

    Why: The answers hang together: a South Galatian destination allows an early date (even before the Jerusalem council), a North Galatian one requires a date after Acts 16:6. The lab shows each option with its basis.

  • Luke travelled with Paul in the stretches Acts tells as 'we'.

    Why: Acts never names its author. It switches from 'they' to 'we' at Troas (16:10–17), again from Philippi to Jerusalem (20:5–21:18) and on the voyage to Rome (27:1–28:16). Early tradition names Luke, the beloved physician of Colossians 4:14, as the author; the lab follows that reading, but it is an inference.

  • The ship was wrecked in St Paul's Bay on the north coast of Malta.

    Why: Tradition and the description of a bay with a beach and a place where two seas meet (27:39–41) fit St Paul's Bay and the strait by St Paul's Islands.

  • 2 Corinthians may combine more than one letter.

    Why: The sharp change of tone at chapter 10 and the letter written with many tears (2:4) have led many to think chapters 10–13 (or other parts) were once separate. Others read it as one letter written over time.

  • Paul died in Rome under Nero, about AD 64–67.

    Why: 1 Clement 5 (c. AD 96) speaks of his witness and death; Eusebius (c. AD 325) dates the beheading to Nero's reign. Neither gives an exact year.

Speculative6

  • Paul's 'Arabia' was probably the Nabataean lands south and east of Damascus.

    Why: Galatians 1:17 names only 'Arabia'. The Nabataean kingdom bordered Damascus, and its king's governor later watched for Paul there (2 Corinthians 11:32), which suggests Paul had been active in his territory. Where he went inside it, and for how long, is unknown.

  • Paul visited Pisidian Antioch on this journey.

    Why: Acts does not name the city on this journey. It fits the South Galatian reading and the plan to revisit every church of the first journey.

  • Paul was released from his first Roman imprisonment, about AD 62.

    Why: Philippians and Philemon expect release; the Pastoral Letters describe travels that do not fit Acts; 1 Clement 5 and Eusebius tell of a later ministry and a second imprisonment. None of this is certain.

  • Paul reached Spain after his release.

    Why: Paul intended to go (Romans 15:24, 28). 1 Clement's 'limit of the west' may mean Spain or simply Rome seen from the east; no Spanish church claims an early, documented link to him.

  • The order of the later travels shown here is one possible sequence.

    Why: The letters mention the places in passing and never in order. We follow a common reconstruction: Spain first (as Romans planned), then the east, then a final arrest.

  • The Pastoral Letters reliably record Paul's last journeys.

    Why: They name Paul as author and give personal details. Many scholars judge their vocabulary, church order and setting to be later than Paul and read the details as literary; others defend Paul's authorship, perhaps with a secretary.

Competing views3

Where careful readers disagree. Each view with who holds it and the evidence for and against it. No verdict.

Who were "the churches of Galatia": the cities of the first journey in the south, or the Celtic Galatians in the north?

Galatians 1:2; Acts 16:6; Acts 18:23

South Galatia: Pisidian Antioch, Iconium, Lystra and Derbe

Held by William Ramsay, who laid its groundwork in the 1890s, with Zahn and Renan before him (Berkhof)

For

  • Paul usually names the places of his churches by their Roman provinces, and these cities lay in the province of Galatia.
  • Acts tells how these churches were founded (Acts 13–14); no record tells of churches in the north.
  • Barnabas, who was with Paul only on the first journey, is named in the letter as someone the readers know.

Against

  • "Foolish Galatians" (Galatians 3:1) reads most naturally as the ethnic Galatians, not Phrygians and Lycaonians of the province.

Sources: Louis Berkhof, Introduction to the New Testament (1915), "The Epistle to the Galatians" (CCEL); Wikipedia, "Epistle to the Galatians"

North Galatia: the Celtic Galatians around Ancyra and Pessinus

Held by J. B. Lightfoot above all, with Weiss, Godet and Jülicher (Berkhof); Helmut Koester

For

  • Paul would hardly call the people of Phrygia, Pisidia and Lycaonia "Galatians".
  • Acts uses Mysia, Phrygia and Pisidia as regions, not provinces, so "the region of Galatia" (16:6) looks like a district beyond Lycaonia.

Against

  • No record tells of Paul founding churches in the north.

Sources: Louis Berkhof, Introduction to the New Testament (1915), "The Epistle to the Galatians" (CCEL); Wikipedia, "Epistle to the Galatians"

What the lab shows (a drawing choice, not a ruling): The map draws the South Galatian route and offers the northern route via Ancyra as an alternative.

From which prison did Paul write Philippians, Colossians and Philemon?

Philippians 1:13; Acts 28:30–31; Acts 24:27

Rome, about AD 60–62

Held by The traditional view, still the most widely held

For

  • Acts 28:30–31 has Paul two years under guard in Rome, free to receive visitors, and Philippians mentions the praetorian guard and "Caesar's household" (1:13; 4:22).

Against

  • Rome is far from Philippi and Colossae, and the letters assume several journeys between Paul and those churches while he was held.

Sources: Wikipedia, "Epistle to the Philippians"

Ephesus, about AD 52–55

Held by Scholars who propose an imprisonment at Ephesus not recorded in Acts

For

  • Paul speaks of many imprisonments and of deadly peril in Asia (2 Corinthians 1:8; 11:23), and Ephesus lies close to Colossae.

Against

  • Acts records no imprisonment at Ephesus.

Sources: Wikipedia, "Epistle to the Philippians"

Caesarea, about AD 57–59

Held by A minority of scholars

For

  • Paul was held two years at Caesarea (Acts 24:27), with friends allowed to visit him (24:23).

Against

  • In Caesarea his case ended in an appeal to Caesar (Acts 25:11), not in the release and early visit the letters hope for (Philippians 1:25; Philemon 22).

Sources: Wikipedia, "Epistle to the Philippians"

What the lab shows (a drawing choice, not a ruling): Each letter's possible places of writing are drawn on the map side by side, each with its own evidence level.

Was Paul released from Rome and did he travel again, even to Spain?

Romans 15:28; Philippians 1:25; 2 Timothy 4:16–17

Released about AD 62, travelled again, and was imprisoned in Rome a second time

Held by Early church tradition from 1 Clement 5 on; readers who take the Pastoral Letters as Paul's own

For

  • Paul planned to go to Spain (Romans 15:24, 28), and Philippians and Philemon expect release (Philippians 1:25; Philemon 22).
  • 1 Clement (about AD 96) says Paul reached "the farthest bounds of the West".
  • The Pastoral Letters mention travels to Crete, Nicopolis and Miletus that do not fit Acts.

Against

  • Clement's "bounds of the West" may mean Rome itself, seen from the east; he does not name Spain.
  • Many scholars believe the Pastoral Letters were written after Paul's death, so they cannot fix his later journeys.

Sources: 1 Clement 5, translated by J. B. Lightfoot (Early Christian Writings); Wikipedia, "Pastoral epistles"

What the lab shows (a drawing choice, not a ruling): The lab draws the later travels as one possible sequence, every stop marked Speculative, and starts with Spain only as Paul's stated plan.

Textual notes2

Places where manuscripts, ancient versions or translations differ in numbers or wording. KJV and 和合本 are quoted as they stand.

Acts 12:25: "to Jerusalem" or "from Jerusalem"?

Manuscripts

25And Barnabas and Saul returned from Jerusalem, when they had fulfilled their ministry, and took with them John, whose surname was Mark.

Acts 12:25 · KJV

25巴拿巴和掃羅、辦完了他們供給的事、就從耶路撒冷回來、帶着稱呼馬可的約翰同去。

使徒行傳 12:25 · 和合本 (CUV 1919)
Other witnesses
Codex Sinaiticus, Codex Vaticanus and others (Nestle–Aland 28)"to Jerusalem" (eis)
Other manuscripts"from Jerusalem"

KJV and the 和合本 (「從耶路撒冷回來」) both read "returned from Jerusalem", which fits the story: they had brought the famine relief to Jerusalem (11:30) and next appear in Antioch (13:1). The older manuscripts read "to Jerusalem"; some take those words with "their ministry" instead: they returned, having fulfilled their ministry to Jerusalem. The map takes them from Jerusalem back to Antioch.

Sources: Wikipedia, "Acts 12" (verse 25, with the Nestle–Aland 28 apparatus)

Acts 16:6: "Phrygia and the region of Galatia"

Translations

6Now when they had gone throughout Phrygia and the region of Galatia, and were forbidden of the Holy Ghost to preach the word in Asia,

Acts 16:6 · KJV

6聖靈旣然禁止他們在亞西亞講道、他們就經過弗呂家加拉太一帶地方．

使徒行傳 16:6 · 和合本 (CUV 1919)

23And after he had spent some time there, he departed, and went over all the country of Galatia and Phrygia in order, strengthening all the disciples.

Acts 18:23 · KJV

23住了些日子、又離開那裏、挨次經過加拉太和弗呂家地方、堅固衆門徒。

使徒行傳 18:23 · 和合本 (CUV 1919)

KJV reads two names, "Phrygia and the region of Galatia"; the 和合本 runs them together as one area, 「弗呂家加拉太一帶地方」, but in 18:23 writes 「加拉太和弗呂家地方」. Whether Luke means one district (the Phrygian part of the province of Galatia) or two regions is part of the North and South Galatia debate: Berkhof lists the phrase among the arguments for the North Galatian view.

Sources: Louis Berkhof, Introduction to the New Testament (1915), "The Epistle to the Galatians" (CCEL)

Frequently asked questions

What were the routes of Paul's three missionary journeys?

First (Acts 13–14): from Antioch to Cyprus, then Perga, Pisidian Antioch, Iconium, Lystra and Derbe, then back through the same towns to Perga and by sea from Attalia to Antioch (Acts 14:21–26). Second (Acts 15:36–18:22): overland to Lystra and Troas, across to Philippi, Thessalonica, Berea, Athens and Corinth, home by Ephesus and Caesarea. Third (Acts 18:23–21:17): through Galatia and Phrygia to Ephesus for about three years, on to Macedonia and Greece, then back by Troas, Miletus and Tyre to Jerusalem. The cities are named in Acts; most roads between them are reconstructed.

How many missionary journeys did Paul make?

Acts describes three missionary journeys, each starting from Antioch in Syria (Acts 13–14; 15:36–18:22; 18:23–21:17), followed by his journey to Rome as a prisoner (Acts 27–28). The numbering is a later convention; Acts itself does not count them.

What route did Paul take to Rome?

From Caesarea by ship along the coast to Sidon and Myra, on an Alexandrian grain ship to Cnidus and Fair Havens on Crete, then driven by a storm for fourteen days until the ship ran aground on Malta. After three months he sailed by Syracuse and Rhegium to Puteoli and walked the Via Appia to Rome (Acts 27–28).

When did Paul's journeys take place?

Roughly AD 46 to 57, with the voyage to Rome about AD 59–60. Acts gives no years; the firmest anchor is the Gallio inscription at Delphi, which places Gallio's year as proconsul of Achaia, when Paul stood before him in Corinth, at about AD 51–52. Other dates are counted from it and are approximate.

Did Paul go to Spain?

Paul planned to (Romans 15:24, 28), and 1 Clement, written in Rome about AD 96, says he reached “the limit of the west”. Acts ends before any such journey, and no other early evidence settles it, so the lab draws it as speculative.

Where did Paul write his letters?

Some places are clear: 1 Corinthians from Ephesus (1 Corinthians 16:8), Romans from Corinth, 2 Corinthians from Macedonia and 1 Thessalonians most likely from Corinth. Others are debated: Galatians may come from Antioch, Corinth, Ephesus or Macedonia depending on its date and readers, and the prison letters (Philippians, Colossians, Philemon, Ephesians) from Rome, Ephesus or Caesarea. The lab shows the options side by side without a verdict.

Where was Paul shipwrecked?

On Malta (Acts 28:1). Tradition points to St Paul's Bay on the island's north-east coast; other bays on Malta have been proposed, and a few scholars have argued for other islands. The lab shows the traditional site with the alternatives.

Where did Paul's missionary journeys start?

In Antioch in Syria, not Jerusalem. The church there set apart Barnabas and Saul and sent them out (Acts 13:1–3), and each of the three journeys began from Antioch. The first two ended there too (Acts 14:26; 18:22); the third ended with Paul's arrest in Jerusalem (Acts 21).

Sources & limits

Limits of this lab 5

  • Acts and the letters name places, not roads. The lines between stops follow known Roman roads and typical sea lanes, and distances and days are estimates.
  • Acts gives no years. Dates are reckoned from a few fixed points, above all Gallio's year in Corinth (AD 51–52), and may be a year or two out.
  • Where Galatians was sent and where the prison letters were written are debated; the lab shows the options side by side.
  • Everything after Acts 28, including Spain and a second imprisonment, rests on hints in the letters and later tradition and is marked Speculative.
  • Ancient sites are placed from Pleiades and excavations; small stops such as Salmone are approximate.

Sources 10

  1. King James Version (KJV) (Public domain outside the United Kingdom)
  2. 官話和合譯本 (Chinese Union Version, 1919), zh.wikisource (Public domain)
  3. Louis Berkhof, Introduction to the New Testament (1915), "The Epistle to the Galatians" (CCEL) (Public domain)
  4. Wikipedia, "Epistle to the Galatians"
  5. Wikipedia, "Epistle to the Philippians"
  6. Wikipedia, "Pastoral epistles"
  7. 1 Clement 5, translated by J. B. Lightfoot (Early Christian Writings) (Public domain)
  8. Bryan Windle, "Gallio: An Archaeological Biography", Bible Archaeology Report (2019)
  9. Wikipedia, "Delphi Inscription"
  10. Wikipedia, "Acts 12" (verse 25, with the Nestle–Aland 28 apparatus)

Scripture is quoted only from KJV and the 1919 和合本. Other works are cited for facts and arguments, not quoted at length.

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What’s new · v2.1.3Version 2.1.3: English Scripture is now quoted from the King James Version (1769).