Acts 4:1

The Arrest and Trial of Peter and John

4:1 While Peter and John ¹  were speaking to the people, the priests and the commander ²  of the temple guard ³  and the Sadducees ⁴  came up ⁵  to them,

Acts 5:24

5:24 Now when the commander ⁶  of the temple guard ⁷  and the chief priests heard this report, ⁸  they were greatly puzzled concerning it, ⁹  wondering what this could ¹⁰  be.

Acts 23:35

23:35 he said, “I will give you a hearing ¹¹  when your accusers arrive too.” Then ¹²  he ordered that Paul ¹³  be kept under guard in Herod’s palace. ¹⁴ 

Acts 24:23

24:23 He ordered the centurion ¹⁵  to guard Paul, ¹⁶  but to let him have some freedom, ¹⁷  and not to prevent any of his friends ¹⁸  from meeting his needs. ¹⁹ 

---

¹ tn Grk “While they”; the referents (Peter and John) have been specified in the translation for clarity.

² tn Or “captain.”

³ tn Grk “the official of the temple,” a title for the commander of the Jewish soldiers guarding the temple (thus the translation, “the commander of the temple guard”). See L&N 37.91.

sn The commander of the temple guard was the title of the officer commanding the Jewish soldiers responsible for guarding and keeping order in the temple courts in Jerusalem.

⁴ sn The Sadducees controlled the official political structures of Judaism at this time, being the majority members of the Sanhedrin. They were known as extremely strict on law and order issues (Josephus, J. W. 2.8.2 [2.119], 2.8.14 [2.164-166]; Ant. 13.5.9 [13.171-173], 13.10.6 [13.293-298], 18.1.2 [18.11], 18.1.4 [18.16-17], 20.9.1 [20.199]; Life 2 [10-11]). See also Matt 3:7; 16:1-12; 22:23-34; Mark 12:18-27; Luke 20:27-38; Acts 5:17; 23:6-8.

⁵ tn Or “approached.” This verb often denotes a sudden appearing (BDAG 418 s.v. ἐφίστημι 1).

⁶ tn Or “captain.”

⁷ tn Grk “the official of the temple,” a title for the commander of the Jewish soldiers guarding the temple (thus the translation, “the commander of the temple guard”). See L&N 37.91.

⁸ tn Grk “heard these words.”

⁹ tn Grk “concerning them,” agreeing with the plural antecedent “these words.” Since the phrase “these words” was translated as the singular “this report,” the singular “concerning it” is used here.

¹⁰ tn The optative verb here expresses confused uncertainty.

¹¹ tn Or “I will hear your case.” BDAG 231 s.v. διακούω has “as legal t.t. give someone an opportunity to be heard in court, give someone (τινός) a hearing Ac 23:35”; L&N 56.13 has “to give a judicial hearing in a legal matter – ‘to hear a case, to provide a legal hearing, to hear a case in court.’”

¹² tn Grk “ordering.” The participle κελεύσας (keleusas) has been translated as a finite verb and a new sentence begun here due to the length and complexity of the Greek sentence. “Then” has also been supplied to indicate the logical and temporal sequence.

¹³ tn Grk “him”; the referent (Paul) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹⁴ sn Herod’s palace (Grk “Herod’s praetorium”) was the palace built in Caesarea by Herod the Great. See Josephus, Ant. 15.9.6 (15.331). These events belong to the period of a.d. 56-57.

¹⁵ sn See the note on the word centurion in 10:1.

¹⁶ tn Grk “that he was to be guarded.” The passive construction (τηρεῖσθαι, threisqai) has been converted to an active one in parallel with the following clauses, and the referent (Paul) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹⁷ tn BDAG 77 s.v. ἄνεσις 1 states, “lit. relaxation of custodial control, some liberty, ἀ. ἔχειν have some freedom Ac 24:23.”

¹⁸ tn Grk “any of his own” (this could also refer to relatives).

¹⁹ tn Grk “from serving him.”