Discovery BoxActs 3:2 
Context3:2 And a man lame 1 from birth 2 was being carried up, who was placed at the temple gate called “the Beautiful Gate” every day 3 so he could beg for money 4 from those going into the temple courts. 5
Acts 5:26
Context5:26 Then the commander 6 of the temple guard 7 went with the officers 8 and brought the apostles 9 without the use of force 10 (for they were afraid of being stoned by the people). 11
Acts 6:1
Context6:1 Now in those 12 days, when the disciples were growing in number, 13 a complaint arose on the part of the Greek-speaking Jews 14 against the native Hebraic Jews, 15 because their widows 16 were being overlooked 17 in the daily distribution of food. 18
Acts 8:36
Context8:36 Now as they were going along the road, they came to some water, and the eunuch said, “Look, there is water! What is to stop me 19 from being baptized?”
Acts 11:5
Context11:5 “I was in the city of Joppa praying, and in a trance I saw a vision, 20 an object something like a large sheet descending, 21 being let down from heaven 22 by its four corners, and it came to me.
Acts 24:2
Context24:2 When Paul 23 had been summoned, Tertullus began to accuse him, 24 saying, “We have experienced a lengthy time 25 of peace through your rule, 26 and reforms 27 are being made in this nation 28 through your foresight. 29
Acts 27:41
Context27:41 But they encountered a patch of crosscurrents 30 and ran the ship aground; the bow stuck fast and could not be moved, but the stern was being broken up by the force 31 of the waves.
1 tn Or “crippled.”
2 tn Grk “from his mother’s womb.”
3 tn BDAG 437 s.v. ἡμέρα 2.c has “every day” for this phrase.
4 tn Grk “alms.” The term “alms” is not in common use today, so what the man expected, “money,” is used in the translation instead. The idea is that of money given as a gift to someone who was poor. Giving alms was viewed as honorable in Judaism (Tob 1:3, 16; 12:8-9; m. Pe’ah 1:1). See also Luke 11:41; 12:33; Acts 9:36; 10:2, 4, 31; 24:17.
5 tn Grk “the temple.” This is actually a reference to the courts surrounding the temple proper, and has been translated accordingly.
sn Into the temple courts. The exact location of this incident is debated. The ‘Beautiful Gate’ referred either to the Nicanor Gate (which led from the Court of the Gentiles into the Court of Women) or the Shushan Gate at the eastern wall.
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 The Greek term ὑπηρέτης (Juphreth") generally means “servant,” but in the NT is used for many different types of servants. See the note on the word “officers” in v. 22.
9 tn Grk “brought them”; the referent (the apostles) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
10 tn Or “without violence.” It is clear, as well, that the apostles did not resist arrest.
11 tn Grk “for they feared lest they be stoned by the people.” The translation uses a less awkward English equivalent. This is an explanatory note by the author.
12 tn Grk “these.” The translation uses “those” for stylistic reasons.
13 tn Grk “were multiplying.”
14 tn Grk “the Hellenists,” but this descriptive term is largely unknown to the modern English reader. The translation “Greek-speaking Jews” attempts to convey something of who these were, but it was more than a matter of language spoken; it involved a degree of adoption of Greek culture as well.
sn The Greek-speaking Jews were the Hellenists, Jews who to a greater or lesser extent had adopted Greek thought, customs, and lifestyle, as well as the Greek language. The city of Alexandria in Egypt was a focal point for them, but they were scattered throughout the Roman Empire.
15 tn Grk “against the Hebrews,” but as with “Hellenists” this needs further explanation for the modern reader.
16 sn The care of widows is a major biblical theme: Deut 10:18; 16:11, 14; 24:17, 19-21; 26:12-13; 27:19; Isa 1:17-23; Jer 7:6; Mal 3:5.
17 tn Or “neglected.”
18 tn Grk “in the daily serving.”
sn The daily distribution of food. The early church saw it as a responsibility to meet the basic needs of people in their group.
19 tn Or “What prevents me.” The rhetorical question means, “I should get baptized, right?”
20 tn This term describes a supernatural vision and reflects a clear distinction from something imagined (BDAG 718 s.v. ὅραμα 1). Peter repeated the story virtually word for word through v. 13. The repetition with this degree of detail shows the event’s importance.
21 tn Or “coming down.”
22 tn Or “the sky” (the same Greek word means both “heaven” and “sky”).
23 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Paul) has been supplied in the translation for clarity.
24 tn Or “began to bring charges, saying.”
25 tn Grk “experienced much peace.”
26 tn Grk “through you” (“rule” is implied).
27 tn This term is used only once in the NT (a hapax legomenon). It refers to improvements in internal administration (BDAG 251 s.v. διόρθωμα).
28 tn Or “being made for this people.”
29 sn References to peaceful rule, reforms, and the governor’s foresight in the opening address by Tertullus represent an attempt to praise the governor and thus make him favorable to the case. Actual descriptions of his rule portray him as inept (Tacitus, Annals 12.54; Josephus, J. W. 2.13.2-7 [2.253-270]).
30 tn Grk “fell upon a place of two seas.” The most common explanation for this term is that it refers to a reef or sandbar with the sea on both sides, as noted in BDAG 245 s.v. διθάλασσος: the “τόπος δ. Ac 27:41 is a semantic unit signifying a point (of land jutting out with water on both sides).” However, Greek had terms for a “sandbank” (θῖς [qis], ταινία [tainia]), a “reef” (ἑρμα [Jerma]), “strait” (στενόν [stenon]), “promontory” (ἀρωτήρον [arwthron]), and other nautical hazards, none of which are used by the author here. NEB here translates τόπον διθάλασσον (topon diqalasson) as “cross-currents,” a proposal close to that advanced by J. M. Gilchrist, “The Historicity of Paul’s Shipwreck,” JSNT 61 (1996): 29-51, who suggests the meaning is “a patch of cross-seas,” where the waves are set at an angle to the wind, a particular hazard for sailors. Thus the term most likely refers to some sort of adverse sea conditions rather than a topographical feature like a reef or sandbar.
31 tn Or “violence” (BDAG 175 s.v. βία a).
