Acts 6:1

The Appointment of the First Seven Deacons

6:1 Now in those ¹  days, when the disciples were growing in number, ²  a complaint arose on the part of the Greek-speaking Jews ³  against the native Hebraic Jews, ⁴  because their widows ⁵  were being overlooked ⁶  in the daily distribution of food. ⁷ 

Acts 11:20

11:20 But there were some men from Cyprus ⁸  and Cyrene ⁹  among them who came ¹⁰  to Antioch ¹¹  and began to speak to the Greeks ¹²  too, proclaiming the good news of the Lord Jesus.

[6:1]  ¹ tn Grk “these.” The translation uses “those” for stylistic reasons.

[6:1]  ² tn Grk “were multiplying.”

[6:1]  ³ tn Grk “the Hellenists,” but this descriptive term is largely unknown to the modern English reader. The translation “Greek-speaking Jews” attempts to convey something of who these were, but it was more than a matter of language spoken; it involved a degree of adoption of Greek culture as well.

[6:1]  ⁴ tn Grk “against the Hebrews,” but as with “Hellenists” this needs further explanation for the modern reader.

[6:1]  ⁵ sn The care of widows is a major biblical theme: Deut 10:18; 16:11, 14; 24:17, 19-21; 26:12-13; 27:19; Isa 1:17-23; Jer 7:6; Mal 3:5.

[6:1]  ⁶ tn Or “neglected.”

[6:1]  ⁷ tn Grk “in the daily serving.”

[11:20]  ⁸ sn Cyprus was a large island in the Mediterranean off the south coast of Asia Minor.

[11:20]  ⁹ sn Cyrene was a city on the northern African coast west of Egypt.

[11:20]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “among them, coming to Antioch began to speak.” The participle ἐλθόντες (elqonte") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[11:20]  ¹¹ sn Antioch was a city in Syria (not Antioch in Pisidia). See the note in 11:19.

[11:20]  ¹² sn The statement that some men from Cyprus and Cyrene…began to speak to the Greeks shows that Peter’s experience of reaching out to the Gentiles was not unique.