Acts 5:18

5:18 They ¹  laid hands on ²  the apostles and put them in a public jail.

Acts 6:12

6:12 They incited the people, the ³  elders, and the experts in the law; ⁴  then they approached Stephen, ⁵  seized him, and brought him before the council. ⁶ 

Acts 8:3

8:3 But Saul was trying to destroy ⁷  the church; entering one house after another, he dragged off ⁸  both men and women and put them in prison. ⁹ 

Acts 9:2

9:2 and requested letters from him to the synagogues ¹⁰  in Damascus, so that if he found any who belonged to the Way, ¹¹  either men or women, he could bring them as prisoners ¹²  to Jerusalem. ¹³ 

Acts 12:1-3

James is Killed and Peter Imprisoned

12:1 About that time King Herod ¹⁴  laid hands on ¹⁵  some from the church to harm them. ¹⁶  12:2 He had James, the brother of John, executed with a sword. ¹⁷  12:3 When he saw that this pleased the Jews, ¹⁸  he proceeded to arrest Peter too. (This took place during the feast of Unleavened Bread.) ¹⁹ 

Acts 16:19-24

16:19 But when her owners ²⁰  saw their hope of profit ²¹  was gone, they seized ²²  Paul and Silas and dragged ²³  them into the marketplace before the authorities. 16:20 When ²⁴  they had brought them ²⁵  before the magistrates, they said, “These men are throwing our city into confusion. ²⁶  They are ²⁷  Jews 16:21 and are advocating ²⁸  customs that are not lawful for us to accept ²⁹  or practice, ³⁰  since we are ³¹  Romans.”

16:22 The crowd joined the attack ³²  against them, and the magistrates tore the clothes ³³  off Paul and Silas ³⁴  and ordered them to be beaten with rods. ³⁵  16:23 After they had beaten them severely, ³⁶  they threw them into prison and commanded ³⁷  the jailer to guard them securely. 16:24 Receiving such orders, he threw them in the inner cell ³⁸  and fastened their feet in the stocks. ³⁹ 

Matthew 10:16-17

Persecution of Disciples

10:16 “I ⁴⁰  am sending you out like sheep surrounded by wolves, ⁴¹  so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. 10:17 Beware ⁴²  of people, because they will hand you over to councils ⁴³  and flog ⁴⁴  you in their synagogues. ⁴⁵ 

Luke 22:52

22:52 Then ⁴⁶  Jesus said to the chief priests, the officers of the temple guard, ⁴⁷  and the elders who had come out to get him, “Have you come out with swords and clubs like you would against an outlaw? ⁴⁸ 

Luke 22:54

Jesus’ Condemnation and Peter’s Denials

22:54 Then ⁴⁹  they arrested ⁵⁰  Jesus, ⁵¹  led him away, and brought him into the high priest’s house. ⁵²  But Peter was following at a distance.

John 18:12

Jesus Before Annas

18:12 Then the squad of soldiers ⁵³  with their commanding officer ⁵⁴  and the officers of the Jewish leaders ⁵⁵  arrested ⁵⁶  Jesus and tied him up. ⁵⁷ 

[5:18]  ¹ tn Grk “jealousy, and they.” In the Greek text this is a continuation of the previous sentence, but a new sentence has been started here in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[5:18]  ² tn Or “they arrested.”

[6:12]  ³ tn Grk “and the,” 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.

[6:12]  ⁴ tn Or “and the scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 4:5.

[6:12]  ⁵ tn Grk “approaching, they seized him”; the referent (Stephen) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[6:12]  ⁶ tn Or “the Sanhedrin” (the highest legal, legislative, and judicial body among the Jews). Stephen suffers just as Peter and John did.

[8:3]  ⁷ tn Or “began to harm [the church] severely.” If the nuance of this verb is “destroy,” then the imperfect verb ἐλυμαίνετο (elumaineto) is best translated as a conative imperfect as in the translation above. If instead the verb is taken to mean “injure severely” (as L&N 20.24), it should be translated in context as an ingressive imperfect (“began to harm the church severely”). Either option does not significantly alter the overall meaning, since it is clear from the stated actions of Saul in the second half of the verse that he intended to destroy or ravage the church.

[8:3]  ⁸ tn The participle σύρων (surwn) has been translated as an finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[8:3]  ⁹ tn BDAG 762 s.v. παραδίδωμι 1.b has “εἰς φυλακήν put in prison Ac 8:3.”

[9:2]  ¹⁰ sn See the note on synagogue in 6:9.

[9:2]  ¹¹ sn The expression “the way” in ancient religious literature refers at times to “the whole way of life fr. a moral and spiritual viewpoint” (BDAG 692 s.v. ὁδός 3.c), and it has been so used of Christianity and its teachings in the book of Acts (see also 19:9, 23; 22:4; 24:14, 22). It is a variation of Judaism’s idea of two ways, the true and the false, where “the Way” is the true one (1 En. 91:18; 2 En. 30:15).

[9:2]  ¹² tn Grk “bring them bound”; the translation “bring someone as prisoner” for δεδεμένον ἄγειν τινά (dedemenon agein tina) is given by BDAG 221 s.v. δέω 1.b.

[9:2]  ¹³ sn From Damascus to Jerusalem was a six-day journey. Christianity had now expanded into Syria.

[12:1]  ¹⁴ sn King Herod was Herod Agrippa I, the grandson of Herod I (Herod the Great). His mediocre career is summarized in Josephus, Ant. 18-19. This event took place in a.d. 42 or 43.

[12:1]  ¹⁵ tn Or “King Herod had some from the church arrested.”

[12:1]  ¹⁶ tn Or “to cause them injury.”

[12:2]  ¹⁷ sn The expression executed with a sword probably refers to a beheading. James was the first known apostolic martyr (Eusebius, Eccl. Hist. 2.9.1-3). On James, not the Lord’s brother, see Luke 5:10; 6:14. This death ended a short period of peace noted in Acts 9:31 after the persecution mentioned in 8:1-3.

[12:3]  ¹⁸ 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]  ¹⁹ sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.

[16:19]  ²⁰ tn Or “masters.”

[16:19]  ²¹ tn On this use of ἐργασία (ergasia), see BDAG 390 s.v. 4. It is often the case that destructive practices and commerce are closely tied together.

[16:19]  ²² tn Grk “was gone, seizing.” The participle ἐπιλαβόμενοι (epilabomenoi) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[16:19]  ²³ tn On the term ἕλκω ({elkw) see BDAG 318 s.v. 1.

[16:20]  ²⁴ tn Grk “And when.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

[16:20]  ²⁵ tn Grk “having brought them.” The participle ἐπιλαβόμενοι (epilabomenoi) has been taken temporally. It is also possible in English to translate this participle as a finite verb: “they brought them before the magistrates and said.”

[16:20]  ²⁶ tn BDAG 309 s.v. ἐκταράσσω has “agitate, cause trouble to, throw into confusion” for the meaning of this verb.

[16:20]  ²⁷ tn Grk “being Jews, and they are proclaiming.” The participle ὑπάρχοντες (Juparconte") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[16:21]  ²⁸ tn Grk “proclaiming,” but in relation to customs, “advocating” is a closer approximation to the meaning.

[16:21]  ²⁹ tn Or “acknowledge.”

[16:21]  ³⁰ 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]  ³¹ tn Grk “we being Romans.” The participle οὖσιν (ousin) has been translated as a causal adverbial participle.

[16:22]  ³² tn L&N 39.50 has “the crowd joined the attack against them” for συνεπέστη (sunepesth) in this verse.

[16:22]  ³³ tn Grk “tearing the clothes off them, the magistrates ordered.” The participle περιρήξαντες (perirhxante") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style. Although it may be possible to understand the aorist active participle περιρήξαντες in a causative sense (“the magistrates caused the clothes to be torn off Paul and Silas”) in the mob scene that was taking place, it is also possible that the magistrates themselves actively participated. This act was done to prepare them for a public flogging (2 Cor 11:25; 1 Thess 2:2).

[16:22]  ³⁴ tn Grk “off them”; the referents (Paul and Silas) have been specified in the translation for clarity.

[16:22]  ³⁵ tn The infinitive ῥαβδίζειν (rJabdizein) means “to beat with rods or sticks” (as opposed to fists or clubs, BDAG 902 s.v. ῥαβδίζω).

[16:23]  ³⁶ tn Grk “Having inflicted many blows on them.” The participle ἐπιθέντες (epiqente") has been taken temporally. BDAG 384 s.v. ἐπιτίθημι 1.a.β has “inflict blows upon someone” for this expression, but in this context it is simpler to translate in English as “they had beaten them severely.”

[16:23]  ³⁷ tn Grk “commanding.” The participle παραγγείλαντες (parangeilante") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[16:24]  ³⁸ tn Or “prison.”

[16:24]  ³⁹ tn L&N 6.21 has “stocks” for εἰς τὸ ξύλον (ei" to xulon) here, as does BDAG 685 s.v. ξύλον 2.b. However, it is also possible (as mentioned in L&N 18.12) that this does not mean “stocks” but a block of wood (a log or wooden column) in the prison to which prisoners’ feet were chained or tied. Such a possibility is suggested by v. 26, where the “bonds” (“chains”?) of the prisoners loosened.

[10:16]  ⁴⁰ tn Grk “Behold I.” The Greek word ἰδού (idou) has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1).

[10:16]  ⁴¹ sn This imagery of wolves is found in intertestamental Judaism; see Pss. Sol. 8:23, 30.

[10:17]  ⁴² tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[10:17]  ⁴³ sn Councils in this context refers to local judicial bodies attached to the Jewish synagogue. This group would be responsible for meting out justice and discipline within the Jewish community.

[10:17]  ⁴⁴ tn BDAG 620 s.v. μαστιγόω 1.a states, “of flogging as a punishment decreed by the synagogue (Dt 25:2f; s. the Mishna Tractate Sanhedrin-Makkoth, edited w. notes by SKrauss ’33) w. acc. of pers. Mt 10:17; 23:34.”

[10:17]  ⁴⁵ sn See the note on synagogues in 4:23.

[22:52]  ⁴⁶ tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[22:52]  ⁴⁷ tn This title, literally “official of the temple” (στρατηγὸς τοῦ ἱεροῦ, strathgo" tou Jierou), referred to the commander of the Jewish soldiers who guarded and maintained order in the Jerusalem temple. Here, since the term is plural, it has been translated “officers of the temple guard” rather than “commanders of the temple guard,” since the idea of a number of commanders might be confusing to the modern English reader.

[22:52]  ⁴⁸ tn Or “a revolutionary.” This term can refer to one who stirs up rebellion: BDAG 594 s.v. λῃστής 2 has “revolutionary, insurrectionist, guerrilla” citing evidence from Josephus (J. W. 2.13.2-3 [2.253-254]). However, this usage generally postdates Jesus’ time. It does refer to a figure of violence. Luke uses the same term for the highwaymen who attack the traveler in the parable of the good Samaritan (10:30).

[22:54]  ⁴⁹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[22:54]  ⁵⁰ tn Or “seized” (L&N 37.109).

[22:54]  ⁵¹ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[22:54]  ⁵² sn Putting all the gospel accounts together, there is a brief encounter with Annas (brought him into the high priest’s house, here and John 18:13, where Annas is named); the meeting led by Caiaphas (Matt 26:57-68 = Mark 14:53-65; and then a Sanhedrin meeting (Matt 27:1; Mark 15:1; Luke 22:66-71). These latter two meetings might be connected and apparently went into the morning.

[18:12]  ⁵³ tn Grk “a cohort” (but since this was a unit of 600 soldiers, a smaller detachment is almost certainly intended).

[18:12]  ⁵⁴ tn Grk “their 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 militaris, the military tribune who commanded a cohort of 600 men.

[18:12]  ⁵⁵ tn Or “the Jewish authorities”; Grk “the Jews.” In NT usage the term ᾿Ιουδαῖοι (Ioudaioi) may refer to the entire Jewish people, the residents of Jerusalem and surrounding territory, the authorities in Jerusalem, or merely those who were hostile to Jesus. (For further information see R. G. Bratcher, “‘The Jews’ in the Gospel of John,” BT 26 [1975]: 401-9.) Here the phrase refers to the Jewish leaders, who were named as “chief priests and Pharisees” in John 18:3.

[18:12]  ⁵⁶ tn Or “seized.”

[18:12]  ⁵⁷ tn Or “bound him.”