Acts 5:40

Context
5:40 and they summoned the apostles and had them beaten.¹ Then² they ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus and released them.

Acts 23:23

Context
23:23 Then³ he summoned⁴ two of the centurions⁵ and said, “Make ready two hundred soldiers to go to Caesarea⁶ along with seventy horsemen⁷ and two hundred spearmen⁸ by⁹ nine o’clock tonight,¹⁰

[5:40] ¹sn Had them beaten. The punishment was the “forty lashes minus one,” see also Acts 22:19; 2 Cor 11:24; Mark 13:9. The apostles had disobeyed the religious authorities and took their punishment for their “disobedience” (Deut 25:2-3; m. Makkot 3:10-14). In Acts 4:18 they were warned. Now they are beaten. The hostility is rising as the narrative unfolds.

[5:40] ²tn The word “Then” is supplied as the beginning of a new sentence in the translation. The construction in Greek has so many clauses (most of them made up of participles) that a continuous English sentence would be very awkward.

[23:23] ³tn 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] ⁴tn Grk “summoning…he said.” The participle προσκαλεσάμενος (proskalesameno") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[23:23] ⁵sn See the note on the word centurion in 10:1.

[23:23] ⁶sn 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] ⁷tn Or “cavalrymen.”

[23:23] ⁸tn 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] ⁹tn Grk “from.”

[23:23] ¹⁰tn Grk “from the third hour of the night.”