Acts 23:12-30

The Plot to Kill Paul

23:12 When morning came, ¹  the Jews formed ²  a conspiracy ³  and bound themselves with an oath ⁴  not to eat or drink anything ⁵  until they had killed Paul. 23:13 There were more than forty of them who formed this conspiracy. ⁶  23:14 They ⁷  went ⁸  to the chief priests ⁹  and the elders and said, “We have bound ourselves with a solemn oath ¹⁰  not to partake ¹¹  of anything until we have killed Paul. 23:15 So now you and the council ¹²  request the commanding officer ¹³  to bring him down to you, as if you were going to determine ¹⁴  his case ¹⁵  by conducting a more thorough inquiry. ¹⁶  We are ready to kill him ¹⁷  before he comes near this place.” ¹⁸ 

23:16 But when the son of Paul’s sister heard about the ambush, ¹⁹  he came and entered ²⁰  the barracks ²¹  and told Paul. 23:17 Paul called ²²  one of the centurions ²³  and said, “Take this young man to the commanding officer, ²⁴  for he has something to report to him.” 23:18 So the centurion ²⁵  took him and brought him to the commanding officer ²⁶  and said, “The prisoner Paul called ²⁷  me and asked me to bring this young man to you because he has something to tell you.” 23:19 The commanding officer ²⁸  took him by the hand, withdrew privately, and asked, “What is it that you want ²⁹  to report to me?” 23:20 He replied, ³⁰  “The Jews have agreed to ask you to bring Paul down to the council ³¹  tomorrow, as if they were going to inquire more thoroughly about him. 23:21 So do not let them persuade you to do this, ³²  because more than forty of them ³³  are lying in ambush ³⁴  for him. They ³⁵  have bound themselves with an oath ³⁶  not to eat or drink anything ³⁷  until they have killed him, and now they are ready, waiting for you to agree to their request.” ³⁸  23:22 Then the commanding officer ³⁹  sent the young man away, directing him, ⁴⁰  “Tell no one that you have reported ⁴¹  these things to me.” 23:23 Then ⁴²  he summoned ⁴³  two of the centurions ⁴⁴  and said, “Make ready two hundred soldiers to go to Caesarea ⁴⁵  along with seventy horsemen ⁴⁶  and two hundred spearmen ⁴⁷  by ⁴⁸  nine o’clock tonight, ⁴⁹  23:24 and provide mounts for Paul to ride ⁵⁰  so that he may be brought safely to Felix ⁵¹  the governor.” ⁵²  23:25 He wrote ⁵³  a letter that went like this: ⁵⁴ 

23:26 Claudius Lysias to His Excellency Governor ⁵⁵  Felix, ⁵⁶  greetings. 23:27 This man was seized ⁵⁷  by the Jews and they were about to kill him, ⁵⁸  when I came up ⁵⁹  with the detachment ⁶⁰  and rescued him, because I had learned that he was ⁶¹  a Roman citizen. ⁶²  23:28 Since I wanted to know ⁶³  what charge they were accusing him of, ⁶⁴  I brought him down to their council. ⁶⁵  23:29 I found he ⁶⁶  was accused with reference to controversial questions ⁶⁷  about their law, but no charge against him deserved death or imprisonment. ⁶⁸  23:30 When I was informed ⁶⁹  there would be a plot ⁷⁰  against this man, I sent him to you at once, also ordering his accusers to state their charges ⁷¹  against him before you.

Acts 24:27

24:27 After two years ⁷²  had passed, Porcius Festus ⁷³  succeeded Felix, ⁷⁴  and because he wanted to do the Jews a favor, Felix left Paul in prison. ⁷⁵ 

Acts 25:3-5

25:3 Requesting him to do them a favor against Paul, ⁷⁶  they urged Festus ⁷⁷  to summon him to Jerusalem, planning an ambush ⁷⁸  to kill him along the way. 25:4 Then Festus ⁷⁹  replied that Paul was being kept at Caesarea, ⁸⁰  and he himself intended to go there ⁸¹  shortly. 25:5 “So,” he said, “let your leaders ⁸²  go down there ⁸³  with me, and if this man has done anything wrong, ⁸⁴  they may bring charges ⁸⁵  against him.”

Acts 25:9

25:9 But Festus, ⁸⁶  wanting to do the Jews a favor, asked Paul, “Are you willing to go up to Jerusalem and be tried ⁸⁷  before me there on these charges?” ⁸⁸ 

Job 31:31

31:31 if ⁸⁹  the members of my household ⁹⁰  have never said, ⁹¹ 

‘If only there were ⁹²  someone

who has not been satisfied from Job’s ⁹³  meat!’ –

[23:12]  ¹ tn Grk “when it was day.”

[23:12]  ² tn Grk “forming a conspiracy, bound.” The participle ποιήσαντες (poihsantes) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[23:12]  ³ tn L&N 30.72 has ‘some Jews formed a conspiracy’ Ac 23:12”; BDAG 979 s.v. συστροφή 1 has “Judeans came together in a mob 23:12. But in the last pass. the word may also mean – 2. the product of a clandestine gathering, plot, conspiracy” (see also Amos 7:10; Ps 63:3).

[23:12]  ⁴ tn Or “bound themselves under a curse.” BDAG 63 s.v. ἀναθεματίζω 1 has “trans. put under a curse τινά someone…pleonastically ἀναθέματι ἀ. ἑαυτόν Ac 23:14…ἀ. ἑαυτόν vss. 12, 21, 13 v.l.” On such oaths see m. Shevi’it 3:1-5. The participle λέγοντες (legontes) is redundant in English and has not been translated.

[23:12]  ⁵ tn The word “anything” 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.

[23:13]  ⁶ tn L&N 30.73 defines συνωμοσία (sunwmosia) as “a plan for taking secret action someone or some institution, with the implication of an oath binding the conspirators – ‘conspiracy, plot.’ …‘there were more than forty of them who formed this conspiracy’ Ac 23:13.”

[23:14]  ⁷ tn Grk “who.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, the relative pronoun (“whom”) was translated by the third person plural pronoun (“them”) and a new sentence begun in the translation.

[23:14]  ⁸ tn Grk “going.” The participle προσελθόντες (proselqonte") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[23:14]  ⁹ sn They went to the chief priests. The fact that the high priest knew of this plot and did nothing shows the Jewish leadership would even become accomplices to murder to stop Paul. They would not allow Roman justice to take its course. Paul’s charge in v. 3 of superficially following the law is thus shown to be true.

[23:14]  ¹⁰ tn Or “bound ourselves under a curse.” BDAG 63 s.v. ἀναθεματίζω 1 has “trans. put under a curse τινά someone…pleonastically ἀναθέματι ἀ. ἑαυτόν Ac 23:14…ἀ. ἑαυτόν vss. 12, 21, 13 v.l.” The pleonastic use ἀναθέματι ἀνεθεματίσαμεν (literally “we have cursed ourselves with a curse”) probably serves as an intensifier following Semitic usage, and is represented in the translation by the word “solemn.” On such oaths see m. Nedarim 3:1, 3.

[23:14]  ¹¹ tn This included both food and drink (γεύομαι [geuomai] is used of water turned to wine in John 2:9).

[23:15]  ¹² tn Grk “the Sanhedrin” (the Sanhedrin was the highest legal, legislative, and judicial body among the Jews).

[23:15]  ¹³ tn Grk “the chiliarch” (an officer in command of a thousand soldiers). See note on the term “commanding officer” in v. 10.

[23:15]  ¹⁴ tn Or “decide.” BDAG 227 s.v. διαγινώσκω has “ἀκριβέστερον τὰ περὶ αὐτοῦ to make a more thorough examination of his case Ac 23:15.”

[23:15]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “determine the things about him.”

[23:15]  ¹⁶ tn The expression “more thorough inquiry” reflects the comparative form of ἀκριβέστερον (akribesteron).

[23:15]  ¹⁷ sn “We are ready to kill him.” Now those Jews involved in the conspiracy, along with the leaders as accomplices, are going to break one of the ten commandments.

[23:15]  ¹⁸ tn The words “this place” are not in the Greek text, but are implied.

[23:16]  ¹⁹ tn Or “plot” (BDAG 334 s.v. ἐνέδρα).

[23:16]  ²⁰ tn Grk “coming and entering…, he told.” The participles παραγενόμενος (paragenomeno") and εἰσελθών (eiselqwn) have been translated as finite verbs due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[23:16]  ²¹ tn 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.”

[23:17]  ²² tn Grk “calling…Paul said.” The participle προσκαλεσάμενος (proskalesameno") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[23:17]  ²³ sn See the note on the word centurion in 10:1.

[23:17]  ²⁴ tn Grk “the chiliarch” (an officer in command of a thousand soldiers). See note on the term “commanding officer” in v. 10.

[23:18]  ²⁵ tn Grk “he”; the referent (the centurion) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[23:18]  ²⁶ tn Grk “the chiliarch” (an officer in command of a thousand soldiers). See note on the term “commanding officer” in v. 10.

[23:18]  ²⁷ tn Grk “calling.” The participle προσκαλεσάμενος (proskalesameno") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[23:19]  ²⁸ tn Grk “the chiliarch” (an officer in command of a thousand soldiers). See note on the term “commanding officer” in v. 10.

[23:19]  ²⁹ tn Grk “you have,” but the expression “have to report” in English could be understood to mean “must report” rather than “possess to report.” For this reason the nearly equivalent expression “want to report,” which is not subject to misunderstanding, was used in the translation.

[23:20]  ³⁰ tn Grk “He said.”

[23:20]  ³¹ tn Grk “the Sanhedrin” (the Sanhedrin was the highest legal, legislative, and judicial body among the Jews).

[23:21]  ³² tn Grk “do not be persuaded by them.” The passive construction μὴ πεισθῇς αὐτοῖς (mh peisqh" autoi") has been converted to an active construction in the translation, and the phrase “to do this” supplied to indicate more clearly the object of their persuasion.

[23:21]  ³³ tn Grk “forty men of them.” In the expression ἐξ αὐτῶν ἄνδρες (ex autwn andre") “men” is somewhat redundant and has not been included in the English translation.

[23:21]  ³⁴ tn Grk “are lying in wait for him” (BDAG 334 s.v. ἐνεδρεύω); see also v. 16.

[23:21]  ³⁵ tn Grk “for him, who.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, the relative pronoun (“who”) was translated by the third person plural pronoun (“they”) and a new sentence begun in the translation.

[23:21]  ³⁶ tn Or “bound themselves under a curse.” BDAG 63 s.v. ἀναθεματίζω 1 has “trans. put under a curse τινά someone… ἀ. ἑαυτόν vss. 12, 21, 13 v.l.”

[23:21]  ³⁷ tn The word “anything” 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.

[23:21]  ³⁸ tn Grk “waiting for your approval,” “waiting for your agreement.” Since it would be possible to misunderstand the literal translation “waiting for your approval” to mean that the Jews were waiting for the commander’s approval to carry out their plot or to kill Paul (as if he were to be an accomplice to their plot), the object of the commander’s approval (their request to bring Paul to the council) has been specified in the translation as “their request.”

[23:22]  ³⁹ tn Grk “the chiliarch” (an officer in command of a thousand soldiers). See note on the term “commanding officer” in v. 10.

[23:22]  ⁴⁰ tn BDAG 760 s.v. παραγγέλλω has “to make an announcement about someth. that must be done, give orders, command, instruct, direct of all kinds of persons in authority, worldly rulers, Jesus, the apostles…παραγγέλλειν w. an inf. and μή comes to mean forbid to do someth.: π. τινί w. aor. inf. Lk 5:14; 8:56; without the dat., which is easily supplied fr. the context Ac 23:22.” However, if the direct discourse which follows is to be retained in the translation, a different translation must be used since it is awkward to introduce direct discourse with the verb to forbid. Thus the alternative to direct was used.

[23:22]  ⁴¹ tn On this verb, see BDAG 325-26 s.v. ἐμφανίζω 2. The term was frequently used of an official report to authorities. In modern terms, this was a police tip.

[23:23]  ⁴² tn Grk “And.” Since this represents a response to the reported ambush, καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the logical sequence.

[23:23]  ⁴³ tn Grk “summoning…he said.” The participle προσκαλεσάμενος (proskalesameno") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[23:23]  ⁴⁴ sn See the note on the word centurion in 10:1.

[23:23]  ⁴⁵ sn Caesarea was a city on the coast of Palestine south of Mount Carmel (not Caesarea Philippi). See the note on Caesarea in Acts 10:1. This was a journey of about 65 mi (just over 100 km).

[23:23]  ⁴⁶ tn Or “cavalrymen.”

[23:23]  ⁴⁷ tn A military technical term of uncertain meaning. BDAG 217 s.v. δεξιολάβος states, “a word of uncertain mng., military t.t., acc. to Joannes Lydus…and Theophyl. Sim., Hist. 4, 1 a light-armed soldier, perh. bowman, slinger; acc. to a scholion in CMatthaei p. 342 body-guard….Spearman Goodspd., NRSV; ‘security officer’, GDKilpatrick, JTS 14, ’63, 393f.”

[23:23]  ⁴⁸ tn Grk “from.”

[23:23]  ⁴⁹ tn Grk “from the third hour of the night.”

[23:24]  ⁵⁰ tn Grk “provide mounts to put Paul on.”

[23:24]  ⁵¹ sn Felix the governor was Antonius Felix, a freedman of Antonia, mother of the Emperor Claudius. He was the brother of Pallas and became procurator of Palestine in a.d. 52/53. His administration was notorious for its corruption, cynicism, and cruelty. According to the historian Tacitus (History 5.9) Felix “reveled in cruelty and lust, and wielded the power of a king with the mind of a slave.”

[23:24]  ⁵² tn Grk “Felix the procurator.” The official Roman title has been translated as “governor” (BDAG 433 s.v. ἡγεμών 2).

[23:25]  ⁵³ tn Grk “writing.” Due to the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was begun here in the translation, supplying “he” (referring to the commanding officer, Claudius Lysias) as subject. The participle γράψας (grayas) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[23:25]  ⁵⁴ tn Grk “having this form,” “having this content.” L&N 33.48 has “γράψσς ἐπιστολὴν ἔχουσαν τὸν τύπον τοῦτον ‘then he wrote a letter that went like this’ Ac 23:25. It is also possible to understand ἐπιστολή in Ac 23:25 not as a content or message, but as an object (see 6.63).”

[23:26]  ⁵⁵ tn Grk “Procurator.” The official Roman title has been translated as “governor” (BDAG 433 s.v. ἡγεμών 2).

[23:26]  ⁵⁶ sn Governor Felix. See the note on Felix in v. 24.

[23:27]  ⁵⁷ tn The participle συλλημφθέντα (sullhmfqenta) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style. The remark reviews events of Acts 21:27-40.

[23:27]  ⁵⁸ tn Grk “and was about to be killed by them.” The passive construction has been converted to an active one in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[23:27]  ⁵⁹ tn Or “approached.”

[23:27]  ⁶⁰ tn Normally this term means “army,” but according to BDAG 947 s.v. στράτευμα, “Of a smaller detachment of soldiers, sing. Ac 23:10, 27.” In the plural it can be translated “troops,” but it is singular here.

[23:27]  ⁶¹ tn In Greek this is a present tense retained in indirect discourse.

[23:27]  ⁶² tn The word “citizen” is supplied here for emphasis and clarity.

[23:28]  ⁶³ tn Or “determine.”

[23:28]  ⁶⁴ tn Grk “to know the charge on account of which they were accusing him.” This has been simplified to eliminate the prepositional phrase and relative pronoun δι᾿ ἣν (di’ }hn) similar to L&N 27.8 which has “‘I wanted to find out what they were accusing him of, so I took him down to their Council’ Ac 23:28.”

[23:28]  ⁶⁵ tn Grk “their Sanhedrin” (the Sanhedrin was the highest legal, legislative, and judicial body among the Jews).

[23:29]  ⁶⁶ tn Grk “whom I found.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, the relative pronoun (“whom”) has been changed to a personal pronoun (“he”) and a new sentence begun in the translation at this point.

[23:29]  ⁶⁷ tn 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. – In 23:29, since περί had already been used, the subj. of the discussion is added in the gen. ζ. τοῦ νόμου αὐτῶν.”

[23:29]  ⁶⁸ tn Grk “but having no charge worthy of death or imprisonment.” BDAG 273-74 s.v. ἔγκλημα 1 has “legal t.t.…ἔ. ἄξιον θανάτου ἢ δεσμῶν a charge deserving death or imprisonment 23:29.”

[23:30]  ⁶⁹ tn Grk “It being revealed to me.” The participle μηνυθείσης (mhnuqeish") has been taken temporally.

[23:30]  ⁷⁰ tn The term translated “plot” here is a different one than the one in Acts 23:16 (see BDAG 368 s.v. ἐπιβουλή).

[23:30]  ⁷¹ tn Grk “the things against him.” This could be rendered as “accusations,” “grievances,” or “charges,” but since “ordered his accusers to state their accusations” sounds redundant in English, “charges” was used instead.

[24:27]  ⁷² tn Grk “After a two-year period.”

[24:27]  ⁷³ 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]  ⁷⁴ tn Grk “Felix received as successor Porcius Festus.”

[24:27]  ⁷⁵ tn Grk “left Paul imprisoned.”

[25:3]  ⁷⁶ tn Grk “Requesting a favor against him”; the referent (Paul) has been specified in the translation, the understood direct object of “requesting” has been supplied, and the phrase “to do them” supplied for clarity.

[25:3]  ⁷⁷ tn Grk “him”; the referent (Festus) has been specified in the translation for clarity. The words “they urged him” are in v. 2 in the Greek text.

[25:3]  ⁷⁸ sn Planning an ambush. The Jewish leadership had not forgotten the original plan of several years ago (see 23:16). They did not trust the Roman legal process, but preferred to take matters into their own hands.

[25:4]  ⁷⁹ sn See the note on Porcius Festus in 24:27.

[25:4]  ⁸⁰ sn Caesarea was a city on the coast of Palestine south of Mount Carmel (not Caesarea Philippi). See the note on Caesarea in Acts 10:1.

[25:4]  ⁸¹ tn The word “there” is not in the Greek text but is implied.

[25:5]  ⁸² tn Grk “let those who are influential among you” (i.e., the powerful).

[25:5]  ⁸³ tn The word “there” is not in the Greek text, but is implied.

[25:5]  ⁸⁴ tn Grk “and if there is anything wrong with this man,” but this could be misunderstood in English to mean a moral or physical defect, while the issue in context is the commission of some crime, something legally improper (BDAG 149 s.v. ἄτοπος 2).

[25:5]  ⁸⁵ tn BDAG 533 s.v. κατηγορέω 1 states, “nearly always as legal t.t.: bring charges in court.” L&N 33.427 states for κατηγορέω, “to bring serious charges or accusations against someone, with the possible connotation of a legal or court context – ‘to accuse, to bring charges.”

[25:9]  ⁸⁶ sn See the note on Porcius Festus in 24:27.

[25:9]  ⁸⁷ tn Or “stand trial.”

[25:9]  ⁸⁸ tn Grk “concerning these things.”

[31:31]  ⁸⁹ tn Now Job picks up the series of clauses serving as the protasis.

[31:31]  ⁹⁰ tn Heb “the men of my tent.” In context this refers to members of Job’s household.

[31:31]  ⁹¹ sn The line is difficult to sort out. Job is saying it is sinful “if his men have never said, ‘O that there was one who has not been satisfied from his food.’” If they never said that, it would mean there were people out there who needed to be satisfied with his food.

[31:31]  ⁹² tn The optative is again expressed with “who will give?”

[31:31]  ⁹³ tn Heb “his”; the referent (Job) has been specified in the translation for clarity.