Matthew 21:23

The Authority of Jesus

21:23 Now after Jesus ¹  entered the temple courts, ²  the chief priests and elders of the people came up to him as he was teaching and said, “By what authority ³  are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?”

Acts 4:5-7

4:5 On the next day, ⁴  their rulers, elders, and experts in the law ⁵  came together ⁶  in Jerusalem. ⁷  4:6 Annas the high priest was there, and Caiaphas, John, Alexander, and others who were members of the high priest’s family. ⁸  4:7 After ⁹  making Peter and John ¹⁰  stand in their midst, they began to inquire, “By what power or by what name ¹¹  did you do this?”

Acts 5:28

5:28 saying, “We gave ¹²  you strict orders ¹³  not to teach in this name. ¹⁴  Look, ¹⁵  you have filled Jerusalem ¹⁶  with your teaching, and you intend to bring this man’s blood ¹⁷  on us!”

¹ tn Grk “he.”

² tn Grk “the temple.”

³ tn On this phrase, see BDAG 844 s.v. ποῖος 2.a.γ.1

⁴ tn Grk “It happened that on the next day.” 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.

⁵ tn Or “and scribes.” The traditional rendering of γραμματεύς (grammateu") as “scribe” does not communicate much to the modern English reader, for whom the term might mean “professional copyist,” if it means anything at all. The people referred to here were recognized experts in the law of Moses and in traditional laws and regulations. Thus “expert in the law” comes closer to the meaning for the modern reader.

⁶ tn Or “law assembled,” “law met together.”

⁷ map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.

⁸ sn The high priest’s family. This family controlled the high priesthood as far back as a.d. 6. Annas, Caiaphas, and Alexander were all high priests at one time (though Alexander held that office after this event).

⁹ tn Grk “And after.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, καί (kai) has not been translated here. Instead a new sentence is begun in the translation at the beginning of v. 7.

¹⁰ tn Grk “making them”; the referents (Peter and John) have been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹¹ sn By what name. The issue of the “name” comes up again here. This question, meaning “by whose authority,” surfaces an old dispute (see Luke 20:1-8). Who speaks for God about the ancient faith?

¹² tc ‡ The majority of mss, including a few important witnesses (א² D E [Ψ] 1739 Ï sy sa), have the negative particle οὐ (ou) here, effectively turning the high priest’s words into a question: “Did we not give you strict orders not to teach in this name?” But the earliest and most important mss, along with some others (Ì⁷⁴ א* A B 1175 lat bo), lack the particle, making this a strong statement rather than a question. Scribes may have been tempted to omit the particle to strengthen the contrast between official Judaism and the new faith, but the fact that v. 27 introduces the quotation with ἐπηρώτησεν (ephrwthsen, “he questioned”) may well have prompted scribes to add οὐ to convert the rebuke into a question. Further, that excellent witnesses affirm the shorter reading is sufficient ground for accepting it as most probably authentic. NA²⁷ includes the particle in brackets, indicating some doubt as to its authenticity.

¹³ tn Grk “We commanded you with a commandment” (a Semitic idiom that is emphatic).

¹⁴ sn The name (i.e., person) of Jesus is the constant issue of debate.

¹⁵ tn Grk “And behold.” Because of the length of the Greek sentence and the tendency of contemporary English style to use shorter sentences, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

¹⁶ map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.

¹⁷ sn To bring this man’s blood on us is an idiom meaning “you intend to make us guilty of this man’s death.”