Discovery BoxActs 7:42 
Context7:42 But God turned away from them and gave them over 1 to worship the host 2 of heaven, as it is written in the book of the prophets: ‘It was not to me that you offered slain animals and sacrifices 3 forty years in the wilderness, was it, 4 house of Israel?
Acts 21:26
Context21:26 Then Paul took the men the next day, 5 and after he had purified himself 6 along with them, he went to the temple and gave notice 7 of the completion of the days of purification, 8 when 9 the sacrifice would be offered for each 10 of them.
1 sn The expression and gave them over suggests similarities to the judgment on the nations described by Paul in Rom 1:18-32.
2 tn Or “stars.”
sn To worship the hosts of heaven. Their action violated Deut 4:19; 17:2-5. See Ps 106:36-43.
3 tn The two terms for sacrifices “semantically reinforce one another and are here combined essentially for emphasis” (L&N 53.20).
4 tn The Greek construction anticipates a negative reply which is indicated in the translation by the ‘tag’ question, “was it?”
5 tn BDAG 422 s.v. ἔχω 11.b.β has “temporal, to be next, immediately following…τῇ ἐχομένῃ…on the next day Lk 13:33…Ac 20:15; w. ἡμέρᾳ added…21:26.”
6 tn That is, after he had undergone ritual cleansing. The aorist passive participle ἁγνισθείς (Jagnisqei") has been taken temporally of antecedent action.
7 tn Grk “entered the temple, giving notice.” The participle διαγγέλλων (diangellwn) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.
8 sn The days of purification refers to the days of ritual cleansing.
9 tn Grk “until” (BDAG 423 s.v. ἕως 1.b.β.א), but since in English it is somewhat awkward to say “the completion of the days of purification, until the sacrifice would be offered,” the temporal clause was translated “when the sacrifice would be offered.” The point is that the sacrifice would be offered when the days were completed. Paul honored the request of the Jewish Christian leadership completely. As the following verse makes clear, the vow was made for seven days.
10 tn Grk “for each one.”
