Acts 28:25-27

28:25 So they began to leave, unable to agree among themselves, after Paul made one last statement: “The Holy Spirit spoke rightly to your ancestors through the prophet Isaiah 28:26 when he said,

Go to this people and say,

You will keep on hearing, but will never understand,

and you will keep on looking, but will never perceive.

28:27 For the heart of this people has become dull,

and their ears are hard of hearing,

and they have closed their eyes,

so that they would not see with their eyes

and hear with their ears

and understand with their heart

and turn, and I would heal them.”’


tn The imperfect verb ἀπελύοντο (apeluonto) has been translated as an ingressive imperfect.

tn Or “forefathers”; Grk “fathers.”

tn Grk “you will hear with hearing” (an idiom).

tn Or “seeing”; Grk “you will look by looking” (an idiom).

tn Or “insensitive.”

sn The heart of this people has become dull. The charge from Isaiah is like Stephen’s against the Jews of Jerusalem (Acts 7:51-53). They were a hard-hearted and disobedient people.

tn Grk “they hear heavily with their ears” (an idiom for slow comprehension).

sn Note how the failure to respond to the message of the gospel is seen as a failure to turn.

sn A quotation from Isa 6:9-10.