Discovery BoxActs 5:38 
Context5:38 So in this case I say to you, stay away from these men and leave them alone, because if this plan or this undertaking originates with people, 1 it will come to nothing, 2
Acts 8:39
Context8:39 Now when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away, and the eunuch did not see him any more, but 3 went on his way rejoicing. 4
Acts 12:19
Context12:19 When Herod 5 had searched 6 for him and did not find him, he questioned 7 the guards and commanded that they be led away to execution. 8 Then 9 Herod 10 went down from Judea to Caesarea 11 and stayed there.
Acts 18:18
Context18:18 Paul, after staying 12 many more days in Corinth, 13 said farewell to 14 the brothers and sailed away to Syria accompanied by 15 Priscilla and Aquila. 16 He 17 had his hair cut off 18 at Cenchrea 19 because he had made a vow. 20
Acts 21:1
Context21:1 After 21 we 22 tore ourselves away 23 from them, we put out to sea, 24 and sailing a straight course, 25 we came to Cos, 26 on the next day to Rhodes, 27 and from there to Patara. 28
Acts 22:22
Context22:22 The crowd 29 was listening to him until he said this. 30 Then 31 they raised their voices and shouted, 32 “Away with this man 33 from the earth! For he should not be allowed to live!” 34
Acts 22:29
Context22:29 Then those who were about to interrogate him stayed away 35 from him, and the commanding officer 36 was frightened when he realized that Paul 37 was 38 a Roman citizen 39 and that he had had him tied up. 40
Acts 23:10
Context23:10 When the argument became 41 so great the commanding officer 42 feared that they would tear Paul to pieces, 43 he ordered the detachment 44 to go down, take him away from them by force, 45 and bring him into the barracks. 46
Acts 24:25
Context24:25 While Paul 47 was discussing 48 righteousness, self-control, 49 and the coming judgment, Felix 50 became 51 frightened and said, “Go away for now, and when I have an opportunity, 52 I will send for you.”
1 tn Here ἀνθρώπων (anqrwpwn) has been translated as a generic noun (“people”).
2 tn Or “it will be put to an end.”
3 tn BDAG 189 s.v. γάρ 2 indicates that under certain circumstances γάρ (gar) has the same meaning as δέ (de).
4 sn Note that the response to the gospel is rejoicing (joy, cf. Acts 11:23; 13:48).
5 sn King Herod was Herod Agrippa I, the grandson of Herod I (Herod the Great).
6 tn Or “had instigated a search” (Herod would have ordered the search rather than conducting it himself).
7 tn “Questioned” is used to translate ἀνακρίνας (anakrina") here because a possible translation offered by BDAG 66 s.v. ἀνακρίνω for this verse is “examined,” which could be understood to mean Herod inspected the guards rather than questioned them. The translation used by the NIV, “cross-examined,” also avoids this possible misunderstanding.
8 tn The meaning “led away to execution” for ἀπαχθῆναι (apacqhnai) in this verse is given by BDAG 95 s.v. ἀπάγω 2.c. Although an explicit reference to execution is lacking here, it is what would usually occur in such a case (Acts 16:27; 27:42; Code of Justinian 9.4.4). “Led away to torture” is a less likely option (Pliny the Younger, Letters 10, 96, 8).
9 tn Grk “and,” but the sequence of events is better expressed in English by “then.” A new sentence is begun in the translation because of the length of the sentence in Greek, which exceeds normal English sentence length.
10 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Herod) has been specified in the translation for clarity. Since Herod has been the subject of the preceding material, and the circumstances of his death are the subject of the following verses (20-23), it is best to understand Herod as the subject here. This is especially true since according to Josephus, Ant. 19.8.2 [19.343-352], Herod Agrippa I died at Caesarea in
sn King Herod was Herod Agrippa I, the grandson of Herod I (Herod the Great), who died at Caesarea in
11 sn Caesarea was a city on the coast of Palestine south of Mount Carmel (not Caesarea Philippi). See the note on Caesarea in Acts 10:1.
map For location see Map2 C1; Map4 B3; Map5 F2; Map7 A1; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
12 tn The participle προσμείνας (prosmeina") is taken temporally.
13 map For location see JP1 C2; JP2 C2; JP3 C2; JP4 C2.
14 tn Or “Corinth, took leave of.” Grk “saying farewell to”; the participle ἀποταξάμενος (apotaxameno") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.
15 tn Grk “Syria, and with him.”
16 sn See the note on Aquila in 18:2.
17 tn Or “Aquila, who.” The relationship of the participle κειράμενος (keirameno") is difficult to determine. Traditionally it is taken to refer to Paul, meaning that Paul had his hair cut off because of the vow. However, due to the proximity of the noun ᾿Ακύλας (Akula") and the reversal of the normal order (Aquila and Priscilla, Acts 17:34), the participle is taken as adjectival referring to Aquila by H. Greeven, TDNT 2:777, n. 11. The later references to Paul in Jerusalem (Acts 21:23) do not resolve the problem, because the cutting of Paul’s own hair, while it may be implied, is not specifically mentioned in connection with the completion of the vows made by the other four.
18 tn The word “off” is supplied in the translation to indicate that this was not a normal haircut, but the shaving of the head connected with taking the vow (see Acts 21:24).
19 tn That is, “before he sailed from Cenchrea.”
sn Cenchrea was one of the seaports for the city of Corinth, on the eastern side of the Isthmus of Corinth, on the Aegean Sea. It was 7 mi (11 km) east of Corinth.
20 sn He had made a vow. It is debated whether this vow is a private vow of thanksgiving or the Nazirite vow, because it is not clear whether the Nazirite vow could be taken outside Jerusalem. Some have cited the Mishnah (m. Nazir 3:6, 5:4) to argue that the shaving of the hair can occur outside Jerusalem, and Josephus, J. W. 2.15.1 (2.313) is sometimes suggested as a parallel, but these references are not clear. H. Greeven, TDNT 2:777, is certain that this refers to the Nazirite vow. Regardless, it is clear that Paul reflected his pious dependence on God.
21 tn Grk “It happened that when.” The introductory phrase ἐγένετο (egeneto, “it happened that”), common in Luke (69 times) and Acts (54 times), is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated. Since the action described by the participle ἀποσπασθέντας (apospasqenta", “tearing ourselves away”) is prior to the departure of the ship, it has been translated as antecedent action (“after”).
22 sn This marks the beginning of another “we” section in Acts. These have been traditionally understood to mean that Luke was in the company of Paul for this part of the journey.
23 tn BDAG 120 s.v. ἀποσπάω 2.b has “pass. in mid. sense ἀ. ἀπό τινος tear oneself away Ac 21:1”; LSJ 218 gives several illustrations of this verb meaning “to tear or drag away from.”
24 tn BDAG 62 s.v. ἀνάγω 4, “as a nautical t.t. (ἀ. τὴν ναῦν put a ship to sea), mid. or pass. ἀνάγεσθαι to begin to go by boat, put out to sea.”
25 tn BDAG 406 s.v. εὐθυδρομέω has “of a ship run a straight course”; L&N 54.3 has “to sail a straight course, sail straight to.”
26 sn Cos was an island in the Aegean Sea.
27 sn Rhodes was an island off the southwestern coast of Asia Minor.
28 sn Patara was a city in Lycia on the southwestern coast of Asia Minor. The entire journey was about 185 mi (295 km).
29 tn Grk “They were listening”; the referent (the crowd) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
30 tn Grk “until this word.”
sn Until he said this. Note it is the mention of Paul’s mission to the Gentiles with its implication of ethnic openness that is so disturbing to the audience.
31 tn Grk “And.” To indicate the logical sequence, καί (kai) has been translated as “then” here.
32 tn Grk “and said.”
33 tn Grk “this one.”
34 tn BDAG 491 s.v. καθήκω has “to be appropriate, come/reach to, be proper/fitting…Usu. impers. καθήκει it comes (to someone)…foll. by acc. and inf….οὐ καθῆκεν αὐτὸν ζῆν he should not be allowed to live Ac 22:22.”
35 tn BDAG 158 s.v. ἀφίστημι 2.b has “keep away…ἀπό τινος… Lk 4:13; Ac 5:38; 2 Cor 12:8…cp. Ac 22:29.” In context, the point would seem to be not that the interrogators departed or withdrew, but that they held back from continuing the flogging.
36 tn Grk “the chiliarch” (an officer in command of a thousand soldiers). See note on the term “commanding officer” in v. 24.
37 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Paul) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
38 tn This is a present tense (ἐστιν, estin) retained in indirect discourse. It must be translated as a past tense in contemporary English.
39 tn The word “citizen” is supplied here for emphasis and clarity.
40 sn Had him tied up. Perhaps a reference to the chains in Acts 21:33, or the preparations for the lashing in Acts 22:25. A trial would now be needed to resolve the matter. The Roman authorities’ hesitation to render a judgment in the case occurs repeatedly: Acts 22:30; 23:28-29; 24:22; 25:20, 26-27. The legal process begun here would take the rest of Acts and will be unresolved at the end. The process itself took four years of Paul’s life.
41 tn This genitive absolute construction with the participle γινομένης (ginomenhs) has been taken temporally (it could also be translated as causal).
42 tn Grk “the chiliarch” (an officer in command of a thousand soldiers). In Greek the term χιλίαρχος (ciliarco") literally described the “commander of a thousand,” but it was used as the standard translation for the Latin tribunus militum or tribunus militare, the military tribune who commanded a cohort of 600 men.
43 tn Grk “that Paul would be torn to pieces by them.” BDAG 236 s.v. διασπάω has “of an angry mob μὴ διασπασθῇ ὁ Παῦλος ὑπ᾿ αὐτῶν that Paul would be torn in pieces by them Ac 23:10.” The passive construction is somewhat awkward in English and has been converted to an equivalent active construction in the translation.
44 tn Normally this term means “army,” but according to BDAG 947 s.v. στράτευμα, “Of a smaller detachment of soldiers, sing. Ac 23:10, 27.” In the plural it can be translated “troops,” but it is singular here.
45 tn Or “to go down, grab him out of their midst.”
46 tn Or “the headquarters.” BDAG 775 s.v. παρεμβολή 2 has “barracks/headquarters of the Roman troops in Jerusalem Ac 21:34, 37; 22:24; 23:10, 16, 32.”
47 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Paul) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
48 tn Or “speaking about.”
49 tn Grk “and self-control.” This καί (kai) has not been translated since English normally uses a coordinating conjunction only between the last two elements in a series of three or more.
sn The topic of self-control was appropriate in view of the personal history of both Felix and Drusilla (see the note on “Drusilla” in the previous verse), and might well account for Felix’s anxiety.
50 sn See the note on Felix in 23:26.
51 tn Grk “becoming.” The participle γενόμενος (genomenos) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.
52 tn Or “when I find time.” BDAG 639 s.v. μεταλαμβάνω 2 has “καιρὸν μ. have an opportunity = find time…Ac 24:25.”
