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Acts 21:24-40

Context
21:24 take them and purify¹ yourself along with them and pay their expenses,² so that they may have their heads shaved.³ Then⁴ everyone will know there is nothing in what they have been told⁵ about you, but that you yourself live in conformity with⁶ the law.⁷ 21:25 But regarding the Gentiles who have believed, we have written a letter, having decided⁸ that they should avoid⁹ meat that has been sacrificed to idols¹⁰ and blood and what has been strangled¹¹ and sexual immorality.” 21:26 Then Paul took the men the next day,¹² and after he had purified himself¹³ along with them, he went to the temple and gave notice¹⁴ of the completion of the days of purification,¹⁵ when¹⁶ the sacrifice would be offered for each¹⁷ of them. 21:27 When the seven days were almost over,¹⁸ the Jews from the province of Asia¹⁹ who had seen him in the temple area²⁰ stirred up the whole crowd²¹ and seized²² him, 21:28 shouting, “Men of Israel,²³ help! This is the man who teaches everyone everywhere against our people, our law,²⁴ and this sanctuary!²⁵ Furthermore²⁶ he has brought Greeks into the inner courts of the temple²⁷ and made this holy place ritually unclean!”²⁸ 21:29 (For they had seen Trophimus the Ephesian in the city with him previously, and²⁹ they assumed Paul had brought him into the inner temple courts.)³⁰ 21:30 The whole city was stirred up,³¹ and the people rushed together.³² They seized³³ Paul and dragged him out of the temple courts,³⁴ and immediately the doors were shut. 21:31 While they were trying³⁵ to kill him, a report³⁶ was sent up³⁷ to the commanding officer³⁸ of the cohort³⁹ that all Jerusalem was in confusion.⁴⁰ 21:32 He⁴¹ immediately took⁴² soldiers and centurions⁴³ and ran down to the crowd.⁴⁴ When they saw⁴⁵ the commanding officer⁴⁶ and the soldiers, they stopped beating⁴⁷ Paul. 21:33 Then the commanding officer⁴⁸ came up and arrested⁴⁹ him and ordered him to be tied up with two chains;⁵⁰ he⁵¹ then asked who he was and what⁵² he had done. 21:34 But some in the crowd shouted one thing, and others something else,⁵³ and when the commanding officer⁵⁴ was unable⁵⁵ to find out the truth⁵⁶ because of the disturbance,⁵⁷ he ordered Paul⁵⁸ to be brought into the barracks.⁵⁹ 21:35 When he came to the steps, Paul⁶⁰ had to be carried⁶¹ by the soldiers because of the violence⁶² of the mob, 21:36 for a crowd of people⁶³ followed them,⁶⁴ screaming, “Away with him!” 21:37 As Paul was about to be brought into the barracks,⁶⁵ he said⁶⁶ to the commanding officer,⁶⁷ “May I say⁶⁸ something to you?” The officer⁶⁹ replied,⁷⁰ “Do you know Greek?⁷¹ 21:38 Then you’re not that Egyptian who started a rebellion⁷² and led the four thousand men of the ‘Assassins’⁷³ into the wilderness⁷⁴ some time ago?”⁷⁵ 21:39 Paul answered,⁷⁶ “I am a Jew⁷⁷ from Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of an important city.⁷⁸ Please⁷⁹ allow me to speak to the people.” 21:40 When the commanding officer⁸⁰ had given him permission,⁸¹ Paul stood⁸² on the steps and gestured⁸³ to the people with his hand. When they had become silent,⁸⁴ he addressed⁸⁵ them in Aramaic,⁸⁶

[21:24] ¹sn That is, undergo ritual cleansing. Paul’s cleansing would be necessary because of his travels in “unclean” Gentile territory. This act would represent a conciliatory gesture. Paul would have supported a “law-free” mission to the Gentiles as an option, but this gesture would represent an attempt to be sensitive to the Jews (1 Cor 9:15-22).

[21:24] ²tn L&N 57.146 has “δαπάνησον ἐπ᾿ αὐτοῖς ‘pay their expenses’ Ac 21:24.”

[21:24] ³tn The future middle indicative has causative force here. BDAG 686 s.v. ξυράω has “mid. have oneself shaved…τὴν κεφαλήν have one’s head shaved…Ac 21:24.”

[21:24] ⁴tn Grk “and.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was begun in the translation, and καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the logical sequence.

[21:24] ⁵tn The verb here describes a report or some type of information (BDAG 534 s.v. κατηχέω 1).

[21:24] ⁶tn Grk “adhere to the keeping of the law.” L&N 41.12 has “στοιχέω: to live in conformity with some presumed standard or set of customs – ‘to live, to behave in accordance with.’”

[21:24] ⁷sn The law refers to the law of Moses.

[21:25] ⁸tn L&N 13.154 has “‘having decided that they must keep themselves from food offered to idols, from blood, from an animal that has been strangled, and from sexual immorality’ Ac 21:25.”

[21:25] ⁹tn This is a different Greek word than the one used in Acts 15:20, 29. BDAG 1068 s.v. φυλάσσω 3 has “to be on one’s guard against, look out for, avoid…w. acc. of pers. or thing avoided…Ac 21:25.” The Greek word used in Acts 15:20, 29 is ἀπέχω (apecw). The difference in meaning, although slight, has been maintained in the translation.

[21:25] ¹⁰tn There is no specific semantic component in the Greek word εἰδωλόθυτος that means “meat” (see BDAG 280 s.v. εἰδωλόθυτος; L&N 5.15). The stem –θυτος means “sacrifice” (referring to an animal sacrificially killed) and thereby implies meat.

[21:25] ¹¹sn What has been strangled. That is, to refrain from eating animals that had been killed without having the blood drained from them. According to the Mosaic law (Lev 17:13-14) Jews were forbidden to eat flesh with the blood still in it (note the preceding provision in this verse, and blood).

[21:26] ¹²tn BDAG 422 s.v. ἔχω 11.b.β has “temporal, to be next, immediately following…τῇ ἐχομένῃ…on the next day Lk 13:33…Ac 20:15; w. ἡμέρᾳ added…21:26.”

[21:26] ¹³tn That is, after he had undergone ritual cleansing. The aorist passive participle ἁγνισθείς (Jagnisqei") has been taken temporally of antecedent action.

[21:26] ¹⁴tn Grk “entered the temple, giving notice.” The participle διαγγέλλων (diangellwn) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[21:26] ¹⁵sn The days of purification refers to the days of ritual cleansing.

[21:26] ¹⁶tn Grk “until” (BDAG 423 s.v. ἕως 1.b.β.א), but since in English it is somewhat awkward to say “the completion of the days of purification, until the sacrifice would be offered,” the temporal clause was translated “when the sacrifice would be offered.” The point is that the sacrifice would be offered when the days were completed. Paul honored the request of the Jewish Christian leadership completely. As the following verse makes clear, the vow was made for seven days.

[21:26] ¹⁷tn Grk “for each one.”

[21:27] ¹⁸tn BDAG 975 s.v. συντελέω 4 has “to come to an end of a duration, come to an end, be over…Ac 21:27.”

[21:27] ¹⁹tn Grk “Asia”; in the NT this always refers to the Roman province of Asia, made up of about one-third of the west and southwest end of modern Asia Minor. Asia lay to the west of the region of Phrygia and Galatia. The words “the province of” are supplied to indicate to the modern reader that this does not refer to the continent of Asia.

[21:27] ²⁰tn Grk “in the temple.” See the note on the word “temple” in v. 28.

[21:27] ²¹tn Or “threw the whole crowd into consternation.” L&N 25.221 has “συνέχεον πάντα τὸν ὄχλον ‘they threw the whole crowd into consternation’ Ac 21:27. It is also possible to render the expression in Ac 21:27 as ‘they stirred up the whole crowd.’”

[21:27] ²²tn Grk “and laid hands on.”

[21:28] ²³tn Or “Israelite men,” although this is less natural English. The Greek term here is ἀνήρ (anhr), which only exceptionally is used in a generic sense of both males and females. In this context, it is conceivable that this is a generic usage since “the whole crowd” is mentioned in v. 27, although it can also be argued that these remarks were addressed primarily to the men present, even if women were there.

[21:28] ²⁴sn The law refers to the law of Moses.

[21:28] ²⁵tn Grk “this place.”

[21:28] ²⁶tn BDAG 400 s.v. ἔτι 2.b has “ἔ. δὲ καί furthermore…al. ἔ. τε καί…Lk 14:26; Ac 21:28.” This is a continuation of the same sentence in Greek, but due to the length and complexity of the Greek sentence and the tendency of contemporary English to use shorter sentences, a new sentence was begun here in the translation.

[21:28] ²⁷tn Grk “into the temple.” The specific reference is to the Court of the Sons of Israel (see the note following the term “unclean” at the end of this verse). To avoid giving the modern reader the impression that they entered the temple building itself, the phrase “the inner courts of the temple” has been used in the translation.

[21:28] ²⁸tn Or “and has defiled this holy place.”

[21:29] ²⁹tn Grk “whom.”

[21:29] ³⁰tn On the phrase “inner temple courts” see the note on the word “temple” in v. 28.

[21:30] ³¹tn On this term see BDAG 545 s.v. κινέω 2.b.

[21:30] ³²tn Or “the people formed a mob.” BDAG 967 s.v. συνδρομή has “formation of a mob by pers. running together, running together…ἐγένετο σ. τοῦ λαοῦ the people rushed together Ac 21:30.”

[21:30] ³³tn Grk “and seizing.” The participle ἐπιλαβόμενοι (epilabomenoi) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style. Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was begun in the translation, and καί (kai) has not been translated here.

[21:30] ³⁴tn Grk “out of the temple.” See the note on the word “temple” in v. 28.

[21:31] ³⁵tn Grk “seeking.”

[21:31] ³⁶tn Or “information” (originally concerning a crime; BDAG 1050 s.v. φάσις).

[21:31] ³⁷tn Grk “went up”; this verb is used because the report went up to the Antonia Fortress where the Roman garrison was stationed.

[21:31] ³⁸tn Grk “the chiliarch” (an officer in command of a thousand soldiers). In Greek the term χιλίαρχος (ciliarco") literally described the “commander of a thousand,” but it was used as the standard translation for the Latin tribunus militum or tribunus militare, the military tribune who commanded a cohort of 600 men.

[21:31] ³⁹sn A cohort was a Roman military unit of about 600 soldiers, one-tenth of a legion.

[21:31] ⁴⁰tn BDAG 953 s.v. συγχέω has “Pass. w. act.force be in confusion…ὅλη συγχύννεται ᾿Ιερουσαλήμ 21:31.”

[21:32] ⁴¹tn Grk “who.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence and the tendency of contemporary English to use shorter sentences, the relative pronoun (“who”) was translated as a pronoun (“he”) and a new sentence was begun here in the translation.

[21:32] ⁴²tn Grk “taking…ran down.” The participle κατέδραμεν (katedramen) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[21:32] ⁴³sn See the note on the word centurion in 10:1.

[21:32] ⁴⁴tn Grk “to them”; the referent (the crowd) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[21:32] ⁴⁵tn Grk “seeing.” The participle ἰδόντες (idonte") has been taken temporally.

[21:32] ⁴⁶tn Grk “the chiliarch” (an officer in command of a thousand soldiers). See note on the term “commanding officer” in v. 31.

[21:32] ⁴⁷sn The mob stopped beating Paul because they feared the Romans would arrest them for disturbing the peace and for mob violence. They would let the Roman officials take care of the matter from this point on.

[21:33] ⁴⁸tn Grk “the chiliarch” (an officer in command of a thousand soldiers). See note on the term “commanding officer” in v. 31.

[21:33] ⁴⁹tn Grk “seized.”

[21:33] ⁵⁰tn The two chains would be something like handcuffs (BDAG 48 s.v. ἅλυσις and compare Acts 28:20).

[21:33] ⁵¹tn Grk “and he.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was begun in the translation, and καί (kai) has been replaced with a semicolon. “Then” has been supplied after “he” to clarify the logical sequence.

[21:33] ⁵²tn Grk “and what it is”; this has been simplified to “what.”

[21:34] ⁵³tn L&N 33.77 has “ἄλλοι δὲ ἄλλο τι ἐπεφώνουν ἐν τῷ ὄχλῳ ‘some in the crowd shouted one thing; others, something else’ Ac 21:34.”

[21:34] ⁵⁴tn Grk “he”; the referent (the commanding officer) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[21:34] ⁵⁵tn This genitive absolute construction has been translated temporally; it could also be taken causally: “and since the commanding officer was unable to find out the truth.”

[21:34] ⁵⁶tn Or “find out what had happened”; Grk “the certainty” (BDAG 147 s.v. ἀσφαλής 2).

[21:34] ⁵⁷tn Or “clamor,” “uproar” (BDAG 458 s.v. θόρυβος).

[21:34] ⁵⁸tn Grk “him”; the referent (Paul) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[21:34] ⁵⁹tn Or “the headquarters.” BDAG 775 s.v. παρεμβολή 2 has “barracks/headquarters of the Roman troops in Jerusalem Ac 21:34, 37; 22:24; 23:10, 16, 32.”

[21:35] ⁶⁰tn Grk “he”; the referent (Paul) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[21:35] ⁶¹sn Paul had to be carried. Note how the arrest really ended up protecting Paul. The crowd is portrayed as irrational at this point.

[21:35] ⁶²tn This refers to mob violence (BDAG 175 s.v. βία b).

[21:36] ⁶³tn Grk “the multitude of people.” While πλῆθος (plhqo") is articular, it has been translated “a crowd” since it was probably a subset of the larger mob that gathered in v. 30.

[21:36] ⁶⁴tn 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.

[21:37] ⁶⁵tn Or “the headquarters.” BDAG 775 s.v. παρεμβολή 2 has “barracks/headquarters of the Roman troops in Jerusalem Ac 21:34, 37; 22:24; 23:10, 16, 32.”

[21:37] ⁶⁶tn Grk “says” (a historical present).

[21:37] ⁶⁷tn Grk “the chiliarch” (an officer in command of a thousand soldiers) See note on the term “commanding officer” in v. 31.

[21:37] ⁶⁸tn Grk “Is it permitted for me to say” (an idiom).

[21:37] ⁶⁹tn Grk “He”; the referent (the officer) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[21:37] ⁷⁰tn Grk “said.”

[21:37] ⁷¹sn “Do you know Greek?” Paul as an educated rabbi was bilingual. Paul’s request in Greek allowed the officer to recognize that Paul was not the violent insurrectionist he thought he had arrested (see following verse). The confusion of identities reveals the degree of confusion dominating these events.

[21:38] ⁷²tn L&N 39.41 has “οὐκ ἄρα σὺ εἶ ὁ Αἰγύπτιος ὁ πρὸ τούτων τῶν ἡμερῶν ἀναστατώσας ‘then you are not that Egyptian who some time ago started a rebellion’ Ac 21:38.”

[21:38] ⁷³tn Grk “of the Sicarii.”

[21:38] ⁷⁴tn Or “desert.”

[21:38] ⁷⁵tn Grk “before these days.”

[21:39] ⁷⁶tn Grk “said.”

[21:39] ⁷⁷tn Grk “a Jewish man.”

[21:39] ⁷⁸tn Grk “of a not insignificant city.” The double negative, common in Greek, is awkward in English and has been replaced by a corresponding positive expression (BDAG 142 s.v. ἄσημος 1).

[21:39] ⁷⁹tn Grk “I beg you.”

[21:40] ⁸⁰tn The referent (the commanding officer) has been supplied here in the translation for clarity.

[21:40] ⁸¹tn Grk “Giving him permission.” The participle ἐπιτρέψαντος (epitreyanto") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[21:40] ⁸²tn Grk “standing.” The participle ἑστώς (Jestws) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[21:40] ⁸³tn Or “motioned.”

[21:40] ⁸⁴tn γενομένης (genomenhs) has been taken temporally. BDAG 922 s.v. σιγή has “πολλῆς σιγῆς γενομένης when a great silence had fallen = when they had become silent Ac 21:40.”

[21:40] ⁸⁵tn Or “spoke out to.” L&N 33.27 has “to address an audience, with possible emphasis upon loudness – ‘to address, to speak out to.’ πολλῆς δέ σιγῆς γενομένης προσεφώνησεν τῇ ᾿Εβραίδι διαλέκτῳ ‘when they were quiet, he addressed them in Hebrew’ Ac 21:40.”

[21:40] ⁸⁶tn Grk “in the Hebrew dialect, saying.” This refers to the Aramaic spoken in Palestine in the 1st century (BDAG 270 s.v. ῾Εβραΐς). The participle λέγων (legwn) is redundant in English and has not been translated.