Acts 14:5

An assault. Gr. horme, “an assault,” or “an attempt.” The word does not indicate a direct attack here for such did not take place (see v. 6). The Jews excited and urged their pagan companions, with the hope that violence would result.

Rulers. That is, the rulers of the Jewish synagogue, where Paul and Barnabas had begun to preach when they first arrived at Iconium.

Use them despitefully. They suffered wanton insult and outrage. It marks what was planned as a piece of mob incitement. Paul employs a closely related word to describe his own conduct as a persecutor (1 Tim. 1:13).

To stone them. Stoning was the Jews’ mode of punishment for blasphemy (Lev. 24:14-16), and apparently they believed that the apostles’ teaching was just that. There had probably been no legal process to arrive at this plan; they simply decided “to use them despitefully” (see on Acts 7:58; cf. John 10:31).