Discovery BoxActs 5:34 
Context5:34 But a Pharisee 1 whose name was Gamaliel, 2 a teacher of the law who was respected by all the people, stood up 3 in the council 4 and ordered the men to be put outside for a short time.
Acts 5:21
Context5:21 When they heard this, they entered the temple courts 5 at daybreak and began teaching. 6
Now when the high priest and those who were with him arrived, they summoned the Sanhedrin 7 – that is, the whole high council 8 of the Israelites 9 – and sent to the jail to have the apostles 10 brought before them. 11
Acts 22:5
Context22:5 as both the high priest and the whole council of elders 12 can testify about me. From them 13 I also received 14 letters to the brothers in Damascus, and I was on my way 15 to make arrests there and bring 16 the prisoners 17 to Jerusalem 18 to be punished.
Acts 22:30
Context22:30 The next day, because the commanding officer 19 wanted to know the true reason 20 Paul 21 was being accused by the Jews, he released him and ordered the chief priests and the whole council 22 to assemble. He then brought 23 Paul down and had him stand before them.
Acts 23:6
Context23:6 Then when Paul noticed 24 that part of them were Sadducees 25 and the others Pharisees, 26 he shouted out in the council, 27 “Brothers, I am a Pharisee, a son of Pharisees. I am on trial concerning the hope of the resurrection 28 of the dead!”
Acts 23:15
Context23:15 So now you and the council 29 request the commanding officer 30 to bring him down to you, as if you were going to determine 31 his case 32 by conducting a more thorough inquiry. 33 We are ready to kill him 34 before he comes near this place.” 35
1 sn A Pharisee was a member of one of the most important and influential religious and political parties of Judaism in the time of Jesus. There were more Pharisees than Sadducees (according to Josephus, Ant. 17.2.4 [17.42] there were more than 6,000 Pharisees at about this time). Pharisees differed with Sadducees on certain doctrines and patterns of behavior. The Pharisees were strict and zealous adherents to the laws of the OT and to numerous additional traditions such as angels and bodily resurrection.
2 sn Gamaliel was a famous Jewish scholar and teacher mentioned here in v. 34 and in Acts 22:3. He had a grandson of the same name and is referred to as “Gamaliel the Elder” to avoid confusion. He is quoted a number of times in the Mishnah, was given the highest possible title for Jewish teachers, Rabba (cf. John 20:16), and was highly regarded in later rabbinic tradition.
3 tn Grk “standing up in the council, ordered.” The participle ἀναστάς (anasta") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.
4 tn Or “the Sanhedrin” (the highest legal, legislative, and judicial body among the Jews).
5 tn Grk “the temple.” See the note on the same phrase in the preceding verse.
6 tn The imperfect verb ἐδίδασκον (edidaskon) has been translated as an ingressive imperfect.
7 tn Or “the council” (the highest legal, legislative, and judicial body among the Jews).
8 tn A hendiadys (two different terms referring to a single thing) is likely here (a reference to a single legislative body rather than two separate ones) because the term γερουσίαν (gerousian) is used in both 1 Macc 12:6 and Josephus, Ant. 13.5.8 (13.166) to refer to the Sanhedrin.
9 tn Grk “sons of Israel.”
10 tn Grk “have them”; the referent (the apostles) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
11 tn The words “before them” are not in the Greek text but are implied.
12 tn That is, the whole Sanhedrin. BDAG 861 s.v. πρεσβυτέριον has “an administrative group concerned with the interests of a specific community, council of elders – a. of the highest Judean council in Jerusalem, in our lit. usu. called συνέδριον…ὁ ἀρχιερεύς καὶ πᾶν τὸ πρ. Ac 22:5.”
13 tn Grk “from whom.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, the relative pronoun (“whom”) was translated by the third person plural pronoun (“them”) and a new sentence begun in the translation.
14 tn Grk “receiving.” The participle δεξάμενος (dexameno") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.
15 tn Grk “letters to the brothers, [and] I was going to Damascus.” Such a translation, however, might be confusing since the term “brother” is frequently used of a fellow Christian. In this context, Paul is speaking about fellow Jews.
16 tn Grk “even there and bring…” or “there and even bring…” The ascensive καί (kai) shows that Paul was fervent in his zeal against Christians, but it is difficult to translate for it really belongs with the entire idea of arresting and bringing back the prisoners.
17 tn BDAG 221 s.v. δέω 1.b has “δεδεμένον ἄγειν τινά bring someone as prisoner…Ac 9:2, 21; 22:5.”
18 tn Grk “I was going…to bring even those who were there to Jerusalem as prisoners that they might be punished.”
map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
19 tn Grk “he”; the referent (the commanding officer) has been supplied here in the translation for clarity.
20 tn Grk “the certainty, why.” BDAG 147 s.v. ἀσφαλής 2 has “τὸ ἀ. the certainty = the truth (in ref. to ferreting out the facts…ἵνα τὸ ἀ. ἐπιγνῶ) γνῶναι 21:34; 22:30.”
21 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Paul) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
22 tn Grk “the whole Sanhedrin” (the Sanhedrin was the highest legal, legislative, and judicial body among the Jews).
23 tn Grk “and bringing.” The participle καταγαγών (katagagwn) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style. Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was begun in the translation, and καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to clarify the logical sequence.
24 tn BDAG 200 s.v. γινώσκω 4 has “to be aware of someth., perceive, notice, realize”; this is further clarified by section 4.c: “w. ὅτι foll….Ac 23:6.”
25 sn See the note on Sadducees in 4:1.
26 sn See the note on Pharisee in 5:34.
27 tn Grk “the Sanhedrin” (the Sanhedrin was the highest legal, legislative, and judicial body among the Jews).
28 tn That is, concerning the hope that the dead will be resurrected. Grk “concerning the hope and resurrection.” BDAG 320 s.v. ἐλπίς 1.b.α states, “Of Israel’s messianic hope Ac 23:6 (ἐ. καὶ ἀνάστασις for ἐ. τῆς ἀν. [obj. gen] as 2 Macc 3:29 ἐ. καὶ σωτηρία).” With an objective genitive construction, the resurrection of the dead would be the “object” of the hope.
29 tn Grk “the Sanhedrin” (the Sanhedrin was the highest legal, legislative, and judicial body among the Jews).
30 tn Grk “the chiliarch” (an officer in command of a thousand soldiers). See note on the term “commanding officer” in v. 10.
31 tn Or “decide.” BDAG 227 s.v. διαγινώσκω has “ἀκριβέστερον τὰ περὶ αὐτοῦ to make a more thorough examination of his case Ac 23:15.”
32 tn Grk “determine the things about him.”
33 tn The expression “more thorough inquiry” reflects the comparative form of ἀκριβέστερον (akribesteron).
34 sn “We are ready to kill him.” Now those Jews involved in the conspiracy, along with the leaders as accomplices, are going to break one of the ten commandments.
35 tn The words “this place” are not in the Greek text, but are implied.
