‘And when an onset was made both of the Gentiles and of the Jews with their rulers, to treat them shamefully and to stone them, they became aware of it, and fled to the cities of Lycaonia, Lystra and Derbe, and the region round about, and there they preached the Good News.'
Eventually the Jews felt that they had built up enough support to be able to vote down the supporters of Paul and Barnabas and were confident that they could obtain the agreement of the assembly to the Pauline party being shamed and stoned. It should be noted that such a combination of Jews and Gentiles could only have arisen as a result of compromise by the Jews. Instead of treating idolatry with the scorn that they normally reserved for it, they would have had to gain support by speaking as though it were a respectable alternative, (unlike, of course, the new Christianity) and to point to its ancient traditions, traditions which they would point out these new Christians were said to be undermining. It would gain them votes on the assembly, but only at the cost of their religious integrity.
However, their ploy clearly succeeded and ‘an onset' (a rushed decision?) was made against the evangelists in the assembly. News of this clearly reached the Christians and the result was that as things were getting too hot, and it was becoming apparent that the pro-Jewish party had gained the ears of the majority of the assembly and intended to use the opportunity to misuse the evangelists and stone them, presumably on the grounds of blasphemy, the Pauline party cut short their visit and left the city, albeit unwillingly (fled), moving on along the Via Sebaste first to the Roman colony of Lystra, twenty four miles away from Iconium (and one hundred and four miles from Pisidian Antioch), and then to Derbe (both cities of Lycaonia), and there again preached the Good News, both in the cities and in the surrounding regions.
Thus the political system had enabled them to remain in Iconium longer than they might at first have expected, given the opposition.
South Galatia was in fact divided up into four political regions, Isauria, Pisidia, Phrygia and Lycaonia, and at this particular time in history (and no other, for it was later seen as in Lycaonia) Iconium was seen as officially in Phrygia. Thus at this time in history only Lystra and Derbe where in Lycaonia. The result was that by this move they transferred from one political region to another.