Acts 10:39-43

10:39 We ¹  are witnesses of all the things he did both in Judea ²  and in Jerusalem. ³  They ⁴  killed him by hanging him on a tree, ⁵  10:40 but ⁶  God raised him up on the third day and caused him to be seen, ⁷  10:41 not by all the people, but by us, the witnesses God had already chosen, ⁸  who ate and drank ⁹  with him after he rose from the dead. 10:42 He ¹⁰  commanded us to preach to the people and to warn ¹¹  them ¹²  that he is the one ¹³  appointed ¹⁴  by God as judge ¹⁵  of the living and the dead. 10:43 About him all the prophets testify, ¹⁶  that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins ¹⁷  through his name.”

[10:39]  ¹ tn Grk “And we.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

[10:39]  ² tn Grk “the land of the Jews,” but this is similar to the phrase used as the name of the province of Judea in 1 Macc 8:3 (see BDAG 1093-94 s.v. χώρα 2.b).

[10:39]  ³ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[10:39]  ⁴ tn Grk “in Jerusalem, whom they killed.” The relative pronoun was replaced by the pronoun “him” and a new sentence was begun in the translation at this point to improve the English style, due to the length of the sentence in Greek.

[10:39]  ⁵ tn Or “by crucifying him” (“hang on a tree” is by the time of the 1st century an idiom for crucifixion). The allusion is to the judgment against Jesus as a rebellious figure, appealing to the language of Deut 21:23. The Jewish leadership has badly “misjudged” Jesus.

[10:40]  ⁶ tn The conjunction “but” is not in the Greek text, but the contrast is clearly implied in the context. This is technically asyndeton, or lack of a connective, in Greek.

[10:40]  ⁷ tn Grk “and granted that he should become visible.” The literal Greek idiom is somewhat awkward in English. L&N 24.22 offers the translation “caused him to be seen” for this verse.

[10:41]  ⁸ tn Or “the witnesses God had previously chosen.” See Acts 1:8.

[10:41]  ⁹ sn Ate and drank. See Luke 24:35-49.

[10:42]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “and he.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

[10:42]  ¹¹ tn The verb διαμαρτύρομαι (diamarturomai) can mean “warn,” and such a meaning is highly probable in this context where a reference to the judgment of both the living and the dead is present. The more general meaning “to testify solemnly” does not capture this nuance.

[10:42]  ¹² tn The word “them” is not in the Greek text, but is implied. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context, but must be supplied for the modern English reader.

[10:42]  ¹³ tn Grk “that this one is the one,” but this is awkward in English and has been simplified to “that he is the one.”

[10:42]  ¹⁴ tn Or “designated.” BDAG 723 s.v. ὁρίζω 2.b has “the one appointed by God as judge” for this phrase.

[10:42]  ¹⁵ sn Jesus has divine authority as judge over the living and the dead: Acts 17:26-31; Rom 14:9; 1 Thess 5:9-10; 1 Tim 4:1; 1 Pet 4:5.

[10:43]  ¹⁶ tn Or “All the prophets testify about him.” Although modern English translations tend to place “about him” after “testify” (so NIV, NRSV) the phrase “about him” has been left at the beginning of v. 43 for emphatic reasons.

[10:43]  ¹⁷ sn Forgiveness of sins. See Luke 24:47; also Acts 14:23; 19:4; 9:42; 11:17; 16:31. The gospel is present in the prophetic promise, Rom 1:1-7. The message is in continuity with the ancient hope.