The Life of St. Paul: Paul and Barnabas Taken for Gods

Circa 1857-60
Oil on canvas
Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls, Rome

This is from a series of paintings by various artists that line the nave and transept of the basilica. In Acts 14:8-18 Paul and Barnabas in Lystra heal a crippled man and the Lystrans take them for gods. A priest even brings an ox to sacrifice to them, as shown in this painting. The two have to explain that "we are of the same nature as you."

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View the page that links to the other paintings in the series.
Read more about St. Paul.

Photographed at the basilica by Richard Stracke, shared under Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike license.