The Roman province of Galatia was home to some of the first churches established by the apostle Paul (Acts 13-14), and it appears he continued to regard these churches with deep affection throughout his ministry (Galatians 4:19-20). Sometime after Paul returned from his first missionary journey he wrote the letter of Galatians to these churches to warn them against turning away from the gospel of grace and seeking righteousness through obedience to the law of Moses. Later Paul revisited and encouraged these churches during his second and third journeys (Acts 15:41; 18:23). The map shown here depicts the inbound route Paul took during his first journey, though the exact route Paul followed to reach Pisidian Antioch from Perga is uncertain. Some scholars suggest he took the Sebastian Way, which was a well maintained but somewhat indirect route for traveling to Antioch. Other suggest Paul followed the more direct but also more difficult route along the valley of the Cestrus River. During his second and third journeys it appears that Paul approached these churches from the east by taking the road leading from Tarsus to Derbe, and he revisited the churches in the reverse order from his first journey.
