Acts 22:10-22

Context
22:10 So I asked,¹ ‘What should I do, Lord?’ The Lord said to me, ‘Get up² and go to Damascus; there you will be told about everything³ that you have been designated⁴ to do.’ 22:11 Since I could not see because of⁵ the brilliance⁶ of that light, I came to Damascus led by the hand of⁷ those who were with me. 22:12 A man named Ananias,⁸ a devout man according to the law,⁹ well spoken of by all the Jews who live there,¹⁰ 22:13 came¹¹ to me and stood beside me¹² and said to me, ‘Brother Saul, regain your sight!’¹³ And at that very moment¹⁴ I looked up and saw him.¹⁵ 22:14 Then he said, ‘The God of our ancestors¹⁶ has already chosen¹⁷ you to know his will, to see¹⁸ the Righteous One,¹⁹ and to hear a command²⁰ from his mouth, 22:15 because you will be his witness²¹ to all people²² of what you have seen and heard. 22:16 And now what are you waiting for?²³ Get up,²⁴ be baptized, and have your sins washed away,²⁵ calling on his name.’²⁶ 22:17 When²⁷ I returned to Jerusalem and was praying in the temple, I fell into a trance²⁸ 22:18 and saw the Lord²⁹ saying to me, ‘Hurry and get out of Jerusalem quickly, because they will not accept your testimony about me.’ 22:19 I replied,³⁰ ‘Lord, they themselves know that I imprisoned and beat those in the various synagogues³¹ who believed in you. 22:20 And when the blood of your witness³² Stephen was shed,³³ I myself was standing nearby, approving,³⁴ and guarding the cloaks³⁵ of those who were killing him.’³⁶ 22:21 Then³⁷ he said to me, ‘Go, because I will send you far away to the Gentiles.’”

The Roman Commander Questions Paul

22:22 The crowd³⁸ was listening to him until he said this.³⁹ Then⁴⁰ they raised their voices and shouted,⁴¹ “Away with this man⁴² from the earth! For he should not be allowed to live!”⁴³

[22:10] ¹tn Grk “So I said.”

[22:10] ²tn Grk “Getting up.” The participle ἀναστάς (anasta") is an adverbial participle of attendant circumstance and has been translated as a finite verb.

[22:10] ³tn Grk “about all things.”

[22:10] ⁴tn Or “assigned,” “ordered.” BDAG 991 s.v. τάσσω 2.a has “act. and pass., foll. by acc. w. inf.…περὶ πάντων ὧν τέτακταί σοι ποιῆσαι concerning everything that you have been ordered to do 22:10.” There is an allusion to a divine call and commission here.

[22:11] ⁵tn BDAG 106 s.v. ἀπό 5.a has “οὐκ ἐνέβλεπον ἀπὸ τῆς δόξης τοῦ φωτός I could not see because of the brilliance of the light Ac 22:11.”

[22:11] ⁶tn Or “brightness”; Grk “glory.”

[22:11] ⁷tn Grk “by” (ὑπό, Jupo), but this would be too awkward in English following the previous “by.”

[22:12] ⁸tn Grk “a certain Ananias.”

[22:12] ⁹sn The law refers to the law of Moses.

[22:12] ¹⁰tn BDAG 534 s.v. κατοικέω 1.a translates this present participle “ὑπὸ πάντων τῶν (sc. ἐκεῖ) κατοικούντων ᾿Ιουδαίων by all the Jews who live there Ac 22:12.”

[22:13] ¹¹tn Grk “coming.” The participle ἐλθών (elqwn) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[22:13] ¹²tn Grk “coming to me and standing beside [me] said to me.” The participle ἐπιστάς (epistas) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[22:13] ¹³tn Grk “Brother Saul, look up” (here an idiom for regaining one’s sight). BDAG 59 s.v. ἀναβλέπω places this usage under 1, “look up Ac 22:13a. W. εἰς αὐτόν to show the direction of the glance…22:13b; but perh. this vs. belongs under 2a.” BDAG 59 s.v. 2.a.α states, “of blind persons, who were formerly able to see, regain sight.” The problem for the translator is deciding between the literal and the idiomatic usage and at the same time attempting to retain the wordplay in Acts 22:13: “[Ananias] said to me, ‘Look up!’ and at that very moment I looked up to him.” The assumption of the command is that the effort to look up will be worth it (through the regaining of sight).

[22:13] ¹⁴tn Grk “hour,” but ὥρα (Jwra) is often used for indefinite short periods of time (so BDAG 1102-3 s.v. ὥρα 2.c: “αὐτῇ τῇ ὥρᾳ at that very time, at once, instantly…Lk 2:38, 24:33; Ac 16:18; 22:13”). A comparison with the account in Acts 9:18 indicates that this is clearly the meaning here.

[22:13] ¹⁵tn Grk “I looked up to him.”

[22:14] ¹⁶tn Or “forefathers”; Grk “fathers.”

[22:14] ¹⁷tn L&N 30.89 has “‘to choose in advance, to select beforehand, to designate in advance’…‘the God of our ancestors has already chosen you to know his will’ Ac 22:14.”

[22:14] ¹⁸tn Grk “and to see.” This 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.

[22:14] ¹⁹sn The Righteous One is a reference to Jesus Christ (Acts 3:14).

[22:14] ²⁰tn Or “a solemn declaration”; Grk “a voice.” BDAG 1071-72 s.v. φωνή 2.c states, “that which the voice gives expression to: call, cry, outcry, loud or solemn declaration (… = order, command)…Cp. 22:14; 24:21.”

[22:15] ²¹tn Or “a witness to him.”

[22:15] ²²tn Grk “all men,” but this is a generic use of ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo").

[22:16] ²³tn L&N 67.121 has “to extend time unduly, with the implication of lack of decision – ‘to wait, to delay.’ νῦν τί μέλλεις… ἀναστὰς βάπτισαι ‘what are you waiting for? Get up and be baptized’ Ac 22:16.”

[22:16] ²⁴tn Grk “getting up.” The participle ἀναστάς (anasta") is an adverbial participle of attendant circumstance and has been translated as a finite verb.

[22:16] ²⁵sn The expression have your sins washed away means “have your sins purified” (the washing is figurative).

[22:16] ²⁶sn The expression calling on his name describes the confession of the believer: Acts 2:17-38, esp. v. 38; Rom 10:12-13; 1 Cor 1:2.

[22:17] ²⁷tn Grk “It happened to me that.” 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.

[22:17] ²⁸tn BDAG 309 s.v. ἔκστασις 2 has “γενέσθαι ἐν ἐκστάσει fall into a trance Ac 22:17.”

[22:18] ²⁹tn Or “Jesus”; Grk “him.” The referent (the Lord, cf. v. 19) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[22:19] ³⁰tn Grk “And I said.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai, in καγώ [kagw]) has not been translated here.

[22:19] ³¹tn For the distributive sense of the expression κατὰ τὰς συναγωγάς (kata ta" sunagwga") BDAG 512 s.v. κατά B.1.d has “of places viewed serially, distributive use w. acc.…κατ᾿ οἶκαν from house to house…Ac 2:46b; 5:42…Likew. the pl.…κ. τὰς συναγωγάς 22:19.” See also L&N 37.114.

[22:20] ³²sn Now Paul referred to Stephen as your witness, and he himself had also become a witness. The reversal was now complete; the opponent had now become a proponent.

[22:20] ³³sn When the blood of your witness Stephen was shed means “when your witness Stephen was murdered.”

[22:20] ³⁴tn Grk “and approving.” This 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.

[22:20] ³⁵tn Or “outer garments.”

[22:20] ³⁶tn Or “who were putting him to death.” For the translation of ἀναιρούντων (anairountwn) as “putting to death” see BDAG 64 s.v. ἀναιρέω 2.

[22:21] ³⁷tn Grk “And.” Since this represents a response to Paul’s reply in v. 19, καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the logical sequence.

[22:22] ³⁸tn Grk “They were listening”; the referent (the crowd) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[22:22] ³⁹tn Grk “until this word.”

[22:22] ⁴⁰tn Grk “And.” To indicate the logical sequence, καί (kai) has been translated as “then” here.

[22:22] ⁴¹tn Grk “and said.”

[22:22] ⁴²tn Grk “this one.”

[22:22] ⁴³tn BDAG 491 s.v. καθήκω has “to be appropriate, come/reach to, be proper/fitting…Usu. impers. καθήκει it comes (to someone)…foll. by acc. and inf….οὐ καθῆκεν αὐτὸν ζῆν he should not be allowed to live Ac 22:22.”