Acts 7:12

7:12 So when Jacob heard that there was grain ¹  in Egypt, he sent our ancestors ²  there ³  the first time.

Acts 1:1

Jesus Ascends to Heaven

1:1 I wrote ⁴  the former ⁵  account, ⁶  Theophilus, ⁷  about all that Jesus began to do and teach

Acts 15:14

15:14 Simeon ⁸  has explained ⁹  how God first concerned himself ¹⁰  to select ¹¹  from among the Gentiles ¹²  a people for his name.

Acts 3:26

3:26 God raised up ¹³  his servant and sent him first to you, to bless you by turning ¹⁴  each one of you from your iniquities.” ¹⁵ 

Acts 26:20

26:20 but I declared to those in Damascus first, and then to those in Jerusalem and in all Judea, ¹⁶  and to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, ¹⁷  performing deeds consistent with ¹⁸  repentance.

Acts 13:46

13:46 Both Paul and Barnabas replied courageously, ¹⁹  “It was necessary to speak the word of God ²⁰  to you first. Since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy ²¹  of eternal life, we ²²  are turning to the Gentiles. ²³ 

[7:12]  ¹ tn Or possibly “food,” since in a number of extrabiblical contexts the phrase σιτία καὶ ποτά (sitia kai pota) means “food and drink,” where solid food is contrasted with liquid nourishment (L&N 3.42).

[7:12]  ² tn Or “forefathers”; Grk “fathers.”

[7:12]  ³ tn The word “there” is not in the Greek text. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context, but must be supplied for the modern English reader.

[1:1]  ⁴ tn Or “produced,” Grk “made.”

[1:1]  ⁵ tn Or “first.” The translation “former” is preferred because “first” could imply to the modern English reader that the author means that his previous account was the first one to be written down. The Greek term πρῶτος (prwtos) does not necessarily mean “first” in an absolute sense, but can refer to the first in a set or series. That is what is intended here – the first account (known as the Gospel of Luke) as compared to the second one (known as Acts).

[1:1]  ⁶ tn The Greek word λόγος (logos) is sometimes translated “book” (NRSV, NIV) or “treatise” (KJV). A formal, systematic treatment of a subject is implied, but the word “book” may be too specific and slightly misleading to the modern reader, so “account” has been used.

[1:1]  ⁷ tn Grk “O Theophilus,” but the usage of the vocative in Acts with ὦ (w) is unemphatic, following more the classical idiom (see ExSyn 69).

[15:14]  ⁷ sn Simeon is a form of the apostle Peter’s Aramaic name. James uses Peter’s “Jewish” name here.

[15:14]  ⁸ tn Or “reported,” “described.”

[15:14]  ⁹ tn BDAG 378 s.v. ἐπισκέπτομαι 3 translates this phrase in Acts 15:14, “God concerned himself about winning a people fr. among the nations.”

[15:14]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “to take,” but in the sense of selecting or choosing (accompanied by the preposition ἐκ [ek] plus a genitive specifying the group selected from) see Heb 5:1; also BDAG 584 s.v. λαμβάνω 6.

[15:14]  ¹¹ sn In the Greek text the expression “from among the Gentiles” is in emphatic position.

[3:26]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “God raising up his servant, sent him.” The participle ἀναστήσας (anasthsa") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style. Some translations (e.g., NIV, NRSV) render this participle as temporal (“when God raised up his servant”).

[3:26]  ¹¹ sn The picture of turning is again seen as the appropriate response to the message. See v. 19 above. In v. 19 it was “turning to,” here it is “turning away from.” The direction of the two metaphors is important.

[3:26]  ¹² tn For the translation of plural πονηρία (ponhria) as “iniquities,” see G. Harder, TDNT 6:565. The plural is important, since for Luke turning to Jesus means turning away from sins, not just the sin of rejecting Jesus.

[26:20]  ¹³ tn BDAG 1093-94 s.v. χώρα 2.b states, “of the provincial name (1 Macc 8:3) ἡ χώρα τῆς ᾿Ιουδαίας Ac 26:20.”

[26:20]  ¹⁴ sn That they should repent and turn to God. This is the shortest summary of Paul’s message that he preached.

[26:20]  ¹⁵ tn BDAG 93 s.v. ἄξιος 1.b, “καρποὶ ἄ. τῆς μετανοίας fruits in keeping with your repentance…Lk 3:8; Mt 3:8. For this ἄ. τῆς μετανοίας ἔργα Ac 26:20.” Note how Paul preached the gospel offer and the issue of response together, side by side.

[13:46]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “Both Paul and Barnabas spoke out courageously and said.” The redundancy is removed in the translation and the verb “replied” is used in keeping with the logical sequence of events. The theme of boldness reappears: Acts 4:24-30; 9:27-28.

[13:46]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “It was necessary that the word of God be spoken.” For smoothness and simplicity of English style, the passive construction has been converted to active voice in the translation.

[13:46]  ¹⁸ tn Or “and consider yourselves unworthy.”

[13:46]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “behold, we.” In this context ἰδού (idou) is not easily translated into English.

[13:46]  ²⁰ sn This turning to the Gentiles would be a shocking rebuke to 1st century Jews who thought they alone were the recipients of the promise.