Sergius Paulus

Sergius Paulus was the Roman proconsul of Cyprus at the time of Paul and Barnabas' visit during the first missionary journey (Acts 13:7–12). He is described as "a prudent man" (aner sunetos) who summoned Paul and Barnabas to hear the word of God, and he is contrasted with his court attendant Bar-Jesus (Elymas), "a false prophet" who tried to turn him from the faith. When Paul struck Elymas temporarily blind, Sergius Paulus believed, "being astonished at the doctrine of the Lord." His name appears in Roman inscriptions from Cyprus (including a Cypriote inscription from Soli mentioning a Paulus as proconsul) and possibly from Rome and Pisidian Antioch, providing rare extra-biblical confirmation of a person named in Acts.