Acts 1:1

Jesus Ascends to Heaven

1:1 I wrote ¹  the former ²  account, ³  Theophilus, ⁴  about all that Jesus began to do and teach

Acts 1:26

1:26 Then ⁵  they cast lots for them, and the one chosen was Matthias; ⁶  so he was counted with the eleven apostles. ⁷ 

Acts 4:15

4:15 But when they had ordered them to go outside the council, ⁸  they began to confer with one another,

Acts 4:36

4:36 So Joseph, a Levite who was a native of Cyprus, called by the apostles Barnabas (which is translated “son of encouragement”), ⁹ 

Acts 7:17

7:17 “But as the time drew near for God to fulfill the promise he had declared to Abraham, ¹⁰  the people increased greatly in number ¹¹  in Egypt,

Acts 8:15-16

8:15 These two ¹²  went down and prayed for them so that they would receive the Holy Spirit. 8:16 (For the Spirit ¹³  had not yet come upon ¹⁴  any of them, but they had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.) ¹⁵ 

Acts 8:20

8:20 But Peter said to him, “May your silver perish with you, ¹⁶  because you thought you could acquire ¹⁷  God’s gift with money!

Acts 10:47

10:47 “No one can withhold the water for these people to be baptized, who have received the Holy Spirit just as we did, ¹⁸  can he?” ¹⁹ 

Acts 11:1

Peter Defends His Actions to the Jerusalem Church

11:1 Now the apostles and the brothers who were throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles too had accepted ²⁰  the word of God. ²¹ 

Acts 13:23

13:23 From the descendants ²²  of this man ²³  God brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus, just as he promised. ²⁴ 

Acts 15:14

15:14 Simeon ²⁵  has explained ²⁶  how God first concerned himself ²⁷  to select ²⁸  from among the Gentiles ²⁹  a people for his name.

Acts 26:6

26:6 And now I stand here on trial ³⁰  because of my hope in the promise made by God to our ancestors, ³¹ 

Acts 28:31

28:31 proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ ³²  with complete boldness ³³  and without restriction. ³⁴ 

[1:1]  ¹ tn Or “produced,” Grk “made.”

[1:1]  ² tn Or “first.” The translation “former” is preferred because “first” could imply to the modern English reader that the author means that his previous account was the first one to be written down. The Greek term πρῶτος (prwtos) does not necessarily mean “first” in an absolute sense, but can refer to the first in a set or series. That is what is intended here – the first account (known as the Gospel of Luke) as compared to the second one (known as Acts).

[1:1]  ³ tn The Greek word λόγος (logos) is sometimes translated “book” (NRSV, NIV) or “treatise” (KJV). A formal, systematic treatment of a subject is implied, but the word “book” may be too specific and slightly misleading to the modern reader, so “account” has been used.

[1:1]  ⁴ tn Grk “O Theophilus,” but the usage of the vocative in Acts with ὦ (w) is unemphatic, following more the classical idiom (see ExSyn 69).

[1:26]  ⁵ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the continuity with the preceding verse. Greek style often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” but English style does not.

[1:26]  ⁶ tn Grk “and the lot fell on Matthias.”

[1:26]  ⁷ tn Or “he was counted as one of the apostles along with the eleven.”

[4:15]  ⁹ tn Or “the Sanhedrin” (the highest legal, legislative, and judicial body among the Jews).

[4:36]  ¹³ sn This is a parenthetical note by the author. Note how the actions of Barnabas are in keeping with the meaning of his nickname. He stands in contrast to Ananias and Sapphira in 5:1-11.

[7:17]  ¹⁷ 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.

[7:17]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “the people increased and multiplied.”

[8:15]  ²¹ tn Grk “who.” The relative pronoun was replaced by the phrase “these two” and a new sentence was begun in the translation at this point to improve the English style.

[8:16]  ²⁵ tn Grk “For he”; the referent (the Spirit) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[8:16]  ²⁶ tn Or “fallen on.”

[8:16]  ²⁷ sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.

[8:20]  ²⁹ tn Grk “May your silver together with you be sent into destruction.” This is a strong curse. The gifts of God are sovereignly bestowed and cannot be purchased.

[8:20]  ³⁰ tn Or “obtain.”

[10:47]  ³³ tn Grk “just as also we.” The auxiliary verb in English must be supplied. This could be either “have” (NIV, NRSV) or “did” (NASB). “Did” is preferred here because the comparison Peter is making concerns not just the fact of the present possession of the Spirit (“they received the Spirit we now possess”), but the manner in which the Gentiles in Cornelius’ house received the Spirit (“they received the Spirit in the same manner we did [on the day of Pentecost]”).

[10:47]  ³⁴ tn The Greek construction anticipates a negative reply which is indicated in the translation by the ‘tag’ question, “can he?” The question is rhetorical. Peter was saying these Gentiles should be baptized since God had confirmed they were his.

[11:1]  ³⁷ tn See BDAG 221 s.v. δέχομαι 5 for this translation of ἐδέξαντο (edexanto) here.

[11:1]  ³⁸ tn Here the phrase “word of God” is another way to describe the gospel (note the preceding verb ἐδέξαντο, edexanto, “accepted”). The phrase could also be translated “the word [message] from God.”

[13:23]  ⁴¹ tn Or “From the offspring”; Grk “From the seed.”

[13:23]  ⁴² sn The phrase this man is in emphatic position in the Greek text.

[13:23]  ⁴³ tn Grk “according to [his] promise.” The comparative clause “just as he promised” is less awkward in English.

[15:14]  ⁴⁵ sn Simeon is a form of the apostle Peter’s Aramaic name. James uses Peter’s “Jewish” name here.

[15:14]  ⁴⁶ tn Or “reported,” “described.”

[15:14]  ⁴⁷ tn BDAG 378 s.v. ἐπισκέπτομαι 3 translates this phrase in Acts 15:14, “God concerned himself about winning a people fr. among the nations.”

[15:14]  ⁴⁸ tn Grk “to take,” but in the sense of selecting or choosing (accompanied by the preposition ἐκ [ek] plus a genitive specifying the group selected from) see Heb 5:1; also BDAG 584 s.v. λαμβάνω 6.

[15:14]  ⁴⁹ sn In the Greek text the expression “from among the Gentiles” is in emphatic position.

[26:6]  ⁴⁹ tn BDAG 568 s.v. κρίνω 5.a.α has “κρίνεσθαι ἐπί τινι be on trial because of a thing Ac 26:6.”

[26:6]  ⁵⁰ tn Or “forefathers”; Grk “fathers.”

[28:31]  ⁵³ tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”

[28:31]  ⁵⁴ tn Or “openness.”

[28:31]  ⁵⁵ sn Proclaiming…with complete boldness and without restriction. Once again Paul’s imprisonment is on benevolent terms. The word of God is proclaimed triumphantly and boldly in Rome. Acts ends with this note: Despite all the attempts to stop it, the message goes forth.