Acts 15:17

15:17 so that the rest of humanity ¹  may seek the Lord,

namely, ²  all the Gentiles ³  I have called to be my own,’ ⁴  says the Lord, ⁵  who makes these things

Acts 17:21

17:21 (All the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there used to spend their time ⁶  in nothing else than telling ⁷  or listening to something new.) ⁸ 

[15:17]  ¹ tn Or “so that all other people.” The use of this term follows Amos 9:11 LXX.

[15:17]  ² tn Here καί (kai) introduces an explanatory clause that explains the preceding phrase “the rest of humanity.” The clause introduced by καί (kai) could also be punctuated in English as a parenthesis.

[15:17]  ³ tn Or “all the nations” (in Greek the word for “nation” and “Gentile” is the same).

[15:17]  ⁴ tn Grk “all the Gentiles on whom my name has been called.” Based on well-attested OT usage, the passive of ἐπικαλέω (epikalew) here indicates God’s ownership (“all the Gentiles who belong to me”) or calling (“all the Gentiles whom I have called to be my own”). See L&N 11.28.

[15:17]  ⁵ sn A quotation from Amos 9:11-12 LXX. James demonstrated a high degree of cultural sensitivity when he cited a version of the text (the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Old Testament) that Gentiles would use.

[17:21]  ⁶ tn The imperfect verb ηὐκαίρουν (hukairoun) has been translated as a customary or habitual imperfect.

[17:21]  ⁷ tn BDAG 406-7 s.v. εὐκαιρέω has “used to spend their time in nothing else than telling Ac 17:21.”

[17:21]  ⁸ sn This is a parenthetical note by the author. The reference to newness may be pejorative.