ISB ~ Acts 13 v5

the synagogues:Paul targets the local Jewish synagogue every time he enters a new missionary frontier in Acts (13:14; 14:1; 17:1, 10, 17; 18:4, 19, etc.).

This strategy was shaped by practical as well as theological considerations:on the one hand, synagogues already served as weekly gathering places where Jews and even Gentiles came together for prayer and religious instruction; on the other, Paul was driven by the conviction that Israel stood first in line to inherit the blessings of the messianic age (13:46; Rom 1:16).

John:John Mark, who was a cousin of Barnabas (Col 4:10). See note on Acts 12:12.