Acts 15:1

The Jerusalem Council

15:1 Now some men came down from Judea ¹  and began to teach the brothers, “Unless you are circumcised ²  according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.”

Acts 15:5

15:5 But some from the religious party of the Pharisees ³  who had believed stood up and said, “It is necessary ⁴  to circumcise the Gentiles ⁵  and to order them to observe ⁶  the law of Moses.”

Acts 15:24

15:24 Since we have heard that some have gone out from among us with no orders from us and have confused ⁷  you, upsetting ⁸  your minds ⁹  by what they said, ¹⁰ 

Acts 22:3

22:3 “I am a Jew, ¹¹  born in Tarsus in Cilicia, but brought up ¹²  in this city, educated with strictness ¹³  under ¹⁴  Gamaliel ¹⁵  according to the law of our ancestors, ¹⁶  and was ¹⁷  zealous ¹⁸  for God just as all of you are today.

Romans 10:2

10:2 For I can testify that they are zealous for God, ¹⁹  but their zeal is not in line with the truth. ²⁰ 

Galatians 1:14

1:14 I ²¹  was advancing in Judaism beyond many of my contemporaries in my nation, ²²  and was ²³  extremely zealous for the traditions of my ancestors. ²⁴ 

[15:1]  ¹ sn That is, they came down from Judea to Antioch in Syria.

[15:1]  ² tc Codex Bezae (D) and a few other witnesses have “and walk” here (i.e., instead of τῷ ἔθει τῷ Μωϋσέως [tw eqei tw Mwu>sew"] they read καὶ τῷ ἔθει τῷ Μωϋσέως περιπατῆτε [kai tw eqei tw Mwu>sew" peripathte]). This is a decidedly stronger focus on obedience to the Law. As well, D expands vv. 1-5 in various places with the overall effect of being “more sympathetic to the local tradition of the church at Jerusalem” while the Alexandrian witnesses are more sympathetic to Paul (TCGNT 377). Codex D is well known for having a significantly longer text in Acts, but modern scholarship is generally of the opinion that the text of D expands on the original wording of Acts, with a theological viewpoint that especially puts Peter in a more authoritarian light. The expansion in these five verses is in keeping with that motif even though Peter is not explicitly in view.

[15:5]  ³ sn See the note on Pharisee in 5:34.

[15:5]  ⁴ sn The Greek word used here (δεῖ, dei) is a strong term that expresses divine necessity. The claim is that God commanded the circumcision of Gentiles.

[15:5]  ⁵ tn Grk “them”; the referent (the Gentiles) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[15:5]  ⁶ tn Or “keep.”

[15:24]  ⁷ tn Here BDAG 990-91 s.v. ταράσσω 2 states, “Of mental confusion caused by false teachings ταρ. τινά Ac 15:24 (w. λόγοις foll.).”

[15:24]  ⁸ tn BDAG 71 s.v. ἀνασκευάζω describes this verb with a figurative meaning: “to cause inward distress, upset, unsettle.”

[15:24]  ⁹ tn Grk “souls.”

[15:24]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “by words”; L&N 25.231 translates the phrase “they troubled and upset you by what they said.”

[22:3]  ¹¹ tn Grk “a Jewish man.”

[22:3]  ¹² tn BDAG 74 s.v. ἀνατρέφω b has “of mental and spiritual nurture bring up, rear, train…ἀνατεθραμμένος ἐν τ. πόλει ταύτῃ 22:3.”

[22:3]  ¹³ tn Or “with precision.” Although often translated “strictly” this can be misunderstood for “solely” in English. BDAG 39 s.v. ἀκρίβεια gives the meaning as “exactness, precision.” To avoid the potential misunderstanding the translation “with strictness” is used, although it is slightly more awkward than “strictly.”

[22:3]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “strictly at the feet of” (an idiom).

[22:3]  ¹⁵ tn Or “brought up in this city under Gamaliel, educated with strictness…” The phrase παρὰ τοὺς πόδας Γαμαλιὴλ (para tou" poda" Gamalihl) could be understood with what precedes or with what follows. The punctuation of NA²⁷ and UBS⁴, which place a comma after ταύτῃ (tauth), has been followed in the translation.

[22:3]  ¹⁶ tn Or “our forefathers.”

[22:3]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “ancestors, being.” The participle ὑπάρχων (Juparcwn) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[22:3]  ¹⁸ tn BDAG 427 s.v. ζηλωτής 1.a.α has “of pers. …ζ. τοῦ θεοῦ one who is loyal to God Ac 22:3.”

[10:2]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “they have a zeal for God.”

[10:2]  ²⁰ tn Grk “in accord with knowledge.”

[1:14]  ²¹ tn Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation. Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[1:14]  ²² tn Or “among my race.”

[1:14]  ²³ tn Grk “was advancing beyond…nation, being.” The participle ὑπάρχων (Juparcwn) was translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[1:14]  ²⁴ sn The traditions of my ancestors refers to both Pharisaic and popular teachings of this time which eventually were codified in Jewish literature such as the Mishnah, Midrashim, and Targums.