Acts 18:19

18:19 When they reached Ephesus, ¹  Paul ²  left Priscilla and Aquila ³  behind there, but he himself went ⁴  into the synagogue ⁵  and addressed ⁶  the Jews.

Acts 18:28

18:28 for he refuted the Jews vigorously ⁷  in public debate, ⁸  demonstrating from the scriptures that the Christ ⁹  was Jesus. ¹⁰ 

Acts 20:21

20:21 testifying ¹¹  to both Jews and Greeks about repentance toward God and faith in our Lord Jesus. ¹² 

Acts 12:3

12:3 When he saw that this pleased the Jews, ¹³  he proceeded to arrest Peter too. (This took place during the feast of Unleavened Bread.) ¹⁴ 

Acts 14:4

14:4 But the population ¹⁵  of the city was divided; some ¹⁶  sided with the Jews, and some with the apostles.

Acts 17:17

17:17 So he was addressing ¹⁷  the Jews and the God-fearing Gentiles ¹⁸  in the synagogue, ¹⁹  and in the marketplace every day ²⁰  those who happened to be there.

Acts 24:5

24:5 For we have found ²¹  this man to be a troublemaker, ²²  one who stirs up riots ²³  among all the Jews throughout the world, and a ringleader ²⁴  of the sect of the Nazarenes. ²⁵ 

Acts 11:19

Activity in the Church at Antioch

11:19 Now those who had been scattered because of the persecution that took place over Stephen ²⁶  went as far as ²⁷  Phoenicia, ²⁸  Cyprus, ²⁹  and Antioch, ³⁰  speaking the message ³¹  to no one but Jews.

Acts 18:5

18:5 Now when Silas and Timothy arrived ³²  from Macedonia, ³³  Paul became wholly absorbed with proclaiming ³⁴  the word, testifying ³⁵  to the Jews that Jesus was the Christ. ³⁶ 

Acts 19:17

19:17 This became known to all who lived in Ephesus, ³⁷  both Jews and Greeks; fear came over ³⁸  them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was praised. ³⁹ 

Acts 21:20

21:20 When they heard this, they praised ⁴⁰  God. Then they said to him, “You see, brother, how many thousands of Jews ⁴¹  there are who have believed, and they are all ardent observers ⁴²  of the law. ⁴³ 

Acts 24:27

24:27 After two years ⁴⁴  had passed, Porcius Festus ⁴⁵  succeeded Felix, ⁴⁶  and because he wanted to do the Jews a favor, Felix left Paul in prison. ⁴⁷ 

Acts 25:9

25:9 But Festus, ⁴⁸  wanting to do the Jews a favor, asked Paul, “Are you willing to go up to Jerusalem and be tried ⁴⁹  before me there on these charges?” ⁵⁰ 

[18:19]  ¹ sn Ephesus was an influential city in Asia Minor. It was the location of the famous temple of Artemis. In 334 b.c. control of the city had passed to Alexander the Great, who contributed a large sum to the building of a new and more elaborate temple of Artemis, which became one of the seven wonders of the ancient world and lasted until destroyed by the Goths in a.d. 263. This major port city would be reached from Corinth by ship. It was 250 mi (400 km) east of Corinth by sea.

[18:19]  ² tn Grk “he”; the referent (Paul) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[18:19]  ³ tn Grk “left them”; the referents (Priscilla and Aquila) have been specified in the translation for clarity.

[18:19]  ⁴ tn Grk “going”; the participle εἰσελθών (eiselqwn) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[18:19]  ⁵ sn See the note on synagogue in 6:9.

[18:19]  ⁶ tn Although the word διελέξατο (dielexato; from διαλέγομαι, dialegomai) is frequently translated “reasoned,” “disputed,” or “argued,” this sense comes from its classical meaning where it was used of philosophical disputation, including the Socratic method of questions and answers. However, there does not seem to be contextual evidence for this kind of debate in Acts 18:19. As G. Schrenk (TDNT 2:94-95) points out, “What is at issue is the address which any qualified member of a synagogue might give.” Other examples of this may be found in the NT in Matt 4:23 and Mark 1:21.

[18:28]  ⁷ tn Or “vehemently.” BDAG 414 s.v. εὐτόνως has “vigorously, vehemently…εὐ. διακατελέγχεσθαί τινι refute someone vigorously Ac 18:28.”

[18:28]  ⁸ tn L&N 33.442 translates the phrase τοῖς ᾿Ιουδαίοις διακατηλέγχετο δημοσίᾳ (toi" Ioudaioi" diakathlenceto dhmosia) as “he defeated the Jews in public debate.” On this use of the term δημόσιος (dhmosio") see BDAG 223 s.v. 2.

[18:28]  ⁹ tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.” Again the issue is identifying the Christ as Jesus (see 5:42; 8:5; 9:22; 18:5).

[18:28]  ¹⁰ tn Although many English translations have here “that Jesus was the Christ,” in the case of two accusatives following a copulative infinitive, the first would normally be the subject and the second the predicate nominative. Additionally, the first accusative here (τὸν χριστόν, ton criston) has the article, a further indication that it should be regarded as subject of the infinitive.

[20:21]  ¹³ tn BDAG 233 s.v. διαμαρτύρομαι 1 has “testify of, bear witness to (orig. under oath)…of repentance to Judeans and Hellenes Ac 20:21.”

[20:21]  ¹⁴ tc Several mss, including some of the more important ones (Ì⁷⁴ א Α C [D] E 33 36 323 945 1175 1241 1505 1739 pm and a number of versions), read Χριστόν (Criston, “Christ”) at the end of this verse. This word is lacking in B H L P Ψ 614 pm. Although the inclusion is supported by many earlier and better mss, internal evidence is on the side of the omission: In Acts, both “Lord Jesus” and “Lord Jesus Christ” occur, though between 16:31 and the end of the book “Lord Jesus Christ” appears only in 28:31, perhaps as a kind of climactic assertion. Thus, the shorter reading is to be preferred.

[12:3]  ¹⁹ tn This could be a reference to the Jewish people (so CEV) or to the Jewish leaders (so NLT). The statement in v. 4 that Herod intended to bring Peter “out to the people” (i.e., for a public trial) may suggest the former is somewhat more likely.

[12:3]  ²⁰ sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.

[14:4]  ²⁵ tn BDAG 825 s.v. πλῆθος 2.b.γ has this translation for πλῆθος (plhqo").

[14:4]  ²⁶ tn These clauses are a good example of the contrastive μὲν…δέ (men…de) construction: Some “on the one hand” sided with the Jews, but some “on the other hand” sided with the apostles.

[17:17]  ³¹ tn Although the word διελέξατο (dielexato; from διαλέγομαι, dialegomai) is frequently translated “reasoned,” “disputed,” or “argued,” this sense comes from its classical meaning where it was used of philosophical disputation, including the Socratic method of questions and answers. However, there does not seem to be contextual evidence for this kind of debate in Acts 17:17. As G. Schrenk (TDNT 2:94-95) points out, “What is at issue is the address which any qualified member of a synagogue might give.” Other examples of this may be found in the NT in Matt 4:23 and Mark 1:21.

[17:17]  ³² tn Or “and the devout,” but this is practically a technical term for the category called God-fearers, Gentiles who worshiped the God of Israel and in many cases kept the Mosaic law, but did not take the final step of circumcision necessary to become a proselyte to Judaism. See further K. G. Kuhn, TDNT 6:732-34, 743-44, and the note on the phrase “God-fearing Greeks” in 17:4.

[17:17]  ³³ sn See the note on synagogue in 6:9.

[17:17]  ³⁴ tn BDAG 437 s.v. ἡμέρα 2.c has “every day” for this phrase in this verse.

[24:5]  ³⁷ tn Grk “For having found.” The participle εὑρόντες (Jeurontes) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[24:5]  ³⁸ tn L&N 22.6 has “(a figurative extension of meaning of λοιμός ‘plague,’ 23.158) one who causes all sorts of trouble – ‘troublemaker, pest.’ … ‘for we have found this man to be a troublemaker” Ac 24:5.”

[24:5]  ³⁹ tn Or “dissensions.” While BDAG 940 s.v. στάσις 3 translates this phrase “κινεῖν στάσεις (v.l. στάσιν) τισί create dissension among certain people Ac 24:5,” it is better on the basis of the actual results of Paul’s ministry to categorize this usage under section 2, “uprising, riot, revolt, rebellion” (cf. the use in Acts 19:40).

[24:5]  ⁴⁰ tn This term is yet another NT hapax legomenon (BDAG 894 s.v. πρωτοστάτης).

[24:5]  ⁴¹ sn The sect of the Nazarenes is a designation for followers of Jesus the Nazarene, that is, Christians.

[11:19]  ⁴³ sn The phrase over Stephen means in connection with Stephen’s death. See Acts 8:1b-3.

[11:19]  ⁴⁴ tn Or “finally reached.” The translations “went as far as” and “finally reached” for διῆλθον (dihlqon) in this verse are given in L&N 15.17.

[11:19]  ⁴⁵ sn Phoenicia was an area along the Mediterranean coast north of Palestine.

[11:19]  ⁴⁶ tn Grk “and Cyprus,” but καί (kai) has not been translated since English normally uses a coordinating conjunction only between the last two elements in a series of three or more.

[11:19]  ⁴⁷ sn Antioch was a city in Syria (not Antioch in Pisidia). This was probably the third largest city in the Greco-Roman world (Alexandria in Egypt was the second largest, and Rome the largest) and was the seat of government in Syria. Five miles away was a major temple to Artemis, Apollo, and Astarte, major pagan deities.

[11:19]  ⁴⁸ tn Grk “word.”

[18:5]  ⁴⁹ tn Grk “came down.”

[18:5]  ⁵⁰ sn Macedonia was the Roman province of Macedonia in Greece.

[18:5]  ⁵¹ tn BDAG 971 s.v. συνέχω 6 states, “συνείχετο τῷ λόγῳ (Paul) was wholly absorbed in preaching Ac 18:5…in contrast to the activity cited in vs. 3.” The imperfect συνείχετο (suneiceto) has been translated as an ingressive imperfect (“became wholly absorbed…”), stressing the change in Paul’s activity once Silas and Timothy arrived. At this point Paul apparently began to work less and preach more.

[18:5]  ⁵² tn BDAG 233 s.v. διαμαρτύρομαι 2 has “testify of, bear witness to solemnly (orig. under oath)…W. acc. and inf. foll. Ac 18:5.”

[18:5]  ⁵³ tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”

[19:17]  ⁵⁵ map For location see JP1 D2; JP2 D2; JP3 D2; JP4 D2.

[19:17]  ⁵⁶ tn Grk “fell on.” BDAG 377 s.v. ἐπιπίπτω 2 has “φόβος ἐ. ἐπί τινα fear came upon someone…Ac 19:17.”

[19:17]  ⁵⁷ tn Or “exalted.”

[21:20]  ⁶¹ tn Or “glorified.”

[21:20]  ⁶² tn Grk “how many thousands there are among the Jews.”

[21:20]  ⁶³ tn Or “are all zealous for the law.” BDAG 427 s.v. ζηλωτής 1.a.β has “of thing…τοῦ νόμου an ardent observer of the law Ac 21:20.”

[21:20]  ⁶⁴ sn That is, the law of Moses. These Jewish Christians had remained close to their Jewish practices after becoming believers (1 Cor 7:18-19; Acts 16:3).

[24:27]  ⁶⁷ tn Grk “After a two-year period.”

[24:27]  ⁶⁸ sn Porcius Festus was the procurator of Palestine who succeeded Felix; neither the beginning nor the end of his rule (at his death) can be determined with certainty, although he appears to have died in office after about two years. Nero recalled Felix in a.d. 57 or 58, and Festus was appointed to his vacant office in a.d. 57, 58, or 59. According to Josephus (Ant. 20.8.9-10 [20.182-188]; J. W. 2.14.1 [2.271-272]), his administration was better than that of his predecessor Felix or his successor Albinus, but Luke in Acts portrays him in a less favorable light: He was willing to sacrifice Paul to court Jewish favor by taking him to Jerusalem for trial (v. 9), regardless of Paul’s guilt or innocence. The one characteristic for which Festus was noted is that he dealt harshly with those who disturbed the peace.

[24:27]  ⁶⁹ tn Grk “Felix received as successor Porcius Festus.”

[24:27]  ⁷⁰ tn Grk “left Paul imprisoned.”

[25:9]  ⁷³ sn See the note on Porcius Festus in 24:27.

[25:9]  ⁷⁴ tn Or “stand trial.”

[25:9]  ⁷⁵ tn Grk “concerning these things.”