Acts 16:21

16:21 and are advocating ¹  customs that are not lawful for us to accept ²  or practice, ³  since we are ⁴  Romans.”

Acts 26:3

26:3 because you are especially ⁵  familiar with all the customs and controversial issues ⁶  of the Jews. Therefore I ask ⁷  you to listen to me patiently.

Acts 15:1

The Jerusalem Council

15:1 Now some men came down from Judea ⁸  and began to teach the brothers, “Unless you are circumcised ⁹  according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.”

Acts 6:14

6:14 For we have heard him saying that Jesus the Nazarene will destroy this place and change the customs ¹⁰  that Moses handed down to us.”

Acts 21:21

21:21 They have been informed about you – that you teach all the Jews now living ¹¹  among the Gentiles to abandon ¹²  Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children ¹³  or live ¹⁴  according to our customs.

Acts 25:16

25:16 I answered them ¹⁵  that it was not the custom of the Romans to hand over anyone ¹⁶  before the accused had met his accusers face to face ¹⁷  and had been given ¹⁸  an opportunity to make a defense against the accusation. ¹⁹ 

Acts 28:17

Paul Addresses the Jewish Community in Rome

28:17 After three days ²⁰  Paul ²¹  called the local Jewish leaders ²²  together. When they had assembled, he said to them, “Brothers, ²³  although I had done ²⁴  nothing against our people or the customs of our ancestors, ²⁵  from Jerusalem ²⁶  I was handed over as a prisoner to the Romans. ²⁷ 

[16:21]  ¹ tn Grk “proclaiming,” but in relation to customs, “advocating” is a closer approximation to the meaning.

[16:21]  ² tn Or “acknowledge.”

[16:21]  ³ sn Customs that are not lawful for us to accept or practice. Ironically, the charges are similar to those made against Jesus in Luke 23:2, where Jews argued he was “twisting” their customs. The charge has three elements: (1) a racial element (Jewish); (2) a social element (unlawful); and (3) a traditional element (not their customs).

[16:21]  ⁴ tn Grk “we being Romans.” The participle οὖσιν (ousin) has been translated as a causal adverbial participle.

[26:3]  ⁵ tn BDAG 613 s.v. μάλιστα 1 states, “μ. γνώστην ὄντα σε since you are outstandingly familiar Ac 26:3.”

[26:3]  ⁶ tn Grk “several controversial issues.” BDAG 428 s.v. ζήτημα states, “in our lit. only in Ac, w. the mng. it still has in Mod. Gk. (controversial) question, issue, argument…Ac 15:2; 26:3. ζ. περί τινος questions about someth.…18:15; 25:19.”

[26:3]  ⁷ tn BDAG 218 s.v. δέομαι states, “In our lit. only w. the mng. to ask for something pleadingly, ask, request,” and then in section a.α states, “w. inf. foll.…Ac 26:3.”

[15:1]  ⁹ sn That is, they came down from Judea to Antioch in Syria.

[15:1]  ¹⁰ 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.

[6:14]  ¹³ tn Or “practices.”

[21:21]  ¹⁷ tn BDAG 511 s.v. κατά B.1.a has “τοὺς κ. τὰ ἔθνη ᾿Ιουδαίους the Judeans (dispersed) throughout the nations 21:21.” The Jews in view are not those in Palestine, but those who are scattered throughout the Gentile world.

[21:21]  ¹⁸ tn Or “to forsake,” “to rebel against.” BDAG 120 s.v. ἀποστασία has “ἀποστασίαν διδάσκεις ἀπὸ Μωϋσέως you teach (Judeans) to abandon Moses Ac 21:21.”

[21:21]  ¹⁹ sn That is, not to circumcise their male children. Biblical references to circumcision always refer to male circumcision.

[21:21]  ²⁰ tn Grk “or walk.”

[25:16]  ²¹ tn Grk “to whom I answered.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, the relative pronoun (“whom”) has been replaced with a personal pronoun (“them”) and a new sentence started in the translation at the beginning of v. 16.

[25:16]  ²² tn Grk “any man.” This is a generic use of ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpos).

[25:16]  ²³ tn Or “has met his accusers in person.”

[25:16]  ²⁴ tn Grk “and receives.”

[25:16]  ²⁵ tn Or “indictment” (a legal technical term). BDAG 273-74 s.v. ἔγκλημα 1 states, “legal t.t.…ἀπολογία περὶ τοῦ ἐ. defense against the accusation Ac 25:16.” L&N 56.6 defines ἔγκλημα (enklhma) as “(a technical, legal term) a formal indictment or accusation brought against someone – ‘indictment, accusation, case.’ …‘and might receive an opportunity for a defense against the indictment’ Ac 25:16.”

[28:17]  ²⁵ tn Grk “It happened that after three days.” 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.

[28:17]  ²⁶ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Paul) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[28:17]  ²⁷ tn L&N 33.309 has “‘after three days, he called the local Jewish leaders together’ Ac 28:17.”

[28:17]  ²⁸ tn Grk “Men brothers,” but this is both awkward and unnecessary in English.

[28:17]  ²⁹ tn The participle ποιήσας (poihsas) has been translated as a concessive adverbial participle.

[28:17]  ³⁰ tn Or “forefathers”; Grk “fathers.”

[28:17]  ³¹ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[28:17]  ³² tn Grk “into the hands of the Romans,” but this is redundant when παρεδόθην (paredoqhn) has been translated “handed over.”