7:17 “But as the time drew near for God to fulfill the promise he had declared to Abraham, 3 the people increased greatly in number 4 in Egypt,
1 tn “and they.”
2 sn See Gen 49:29-32.
3 tn Grk “But as the time for the fulfillment of the promise drew near that God had declared to Abraham.” The order of the clauses has been rearranged to improve English style. See vv. 6-7 above.
4 tn Grk “the people increased and multiplied.”
5 tn Or “ancestors”; Grk “fathers.”
6 tn Grk “and Isaac,” but 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.
7 sn A quotation from Exod 3:6. The phrase suggests the God of promise, the God of the nation.
8 tn Or “to investigate,” “to contemplate” (BDAG 522 s.v. κατανοέω 2).
7 tn Grk “Men brothers,” but this is both awkward and unnecessary in English.
8 tn Grk “sons”
9 tn Or “race.”
10 tn Grk “and those among you who fear God,” but this is practically a technical term for the category called God-fearers, Gentiles who worshiped the God of Israel and in many cases kept the Mosaic law, but did not take the final step of circumcision necessary to become a proselyte to Judaism. See further K. G. Kuhn, TDNT 6:732-34, 743-44. Note how Paul includes God-fearing Gentiles as recipients of this promise.
11 tn Grk “word.”
9 tc ‡ The repetition of ὁ θεός (Jo qeos, “God”) before the names of Isaac and Jacob is found in Ì74 א C (A D without article) 36 104 1175 pc lat. The omission of the second and third ὁ θεός is supported by B E Ψ 33 1739 Ï pc. The other time that Exod 3:6 is quoted in Acts (7:32) the best witnesses also lack the repeated ὁ θεός, but the three other times this OT passage is quoted in the NT the full form, with the thrice-mentioned θεός, is used (Matt 22:32; Mark 12:26; Luke 20:37). Scribes would be prone to conform the wording here to the LXX; the longer reading is thus most likely not authentic. NA27 has the words in brackets, indicating doubts as to their authenticity.
10 tn Or “ancestors”; Grk “fathers.”
11 sn Has glorified. Jesus is alive, raised and active, as the healing illustrates so dramatically how God honors him.
12 sn His servant. The term servant has messianic connotations given the context of the promise, the note of suffering, and the titles and functions noted in vv. 14-15.
13 tn Or “denied,” “disowned.”
14 tn This genitive absolute construction could be understood as temporal (“when he had decided”) or concessive (“although he had decided”).
11 tn Or “forefathers”; Grk “fathers.”
12 tn Or “in your offspring”; Grk “in your seed.”
13 tn Or “families.” The Greek word πατριά (patria) can indicate persons of succeeding generations who are related by birth (“lineage,” “family”) but it can also indicate a relatively large unit of people who make up a sociopolitical group and who share a presumed biological descent. In many contexts πατριά is very similar to ἔθνος (eqnos) and λαός (laos). In light of the context of the OT quotation, it is better to translate πατριά as “nations” here.
14 sn A quotation from Gen 22:18.
13 tn Grk “said.”
14 tn Or “ancestor”; Grk “father.”