Acts 8:26

Philip and the Ethiopian Eunuch

8:26 Then an angel of the Lord ¹  said to Philip, ²  “Get up and go south ³  on the road that goes down from Jerusalem ⁴  to Gaza.” (This is a desert ⁵  road.) ⁶ 

Acts 9:15

9:15 But the Lord said to him, “Go, because this man is my chosen instrument ⁷  to carry my name before Gentiles and kings and the people of Israel. ⁸ 

Acts 15:7

15:7 After there had been much debate, ⁹  Peter stood up and said to them, “Brothers, you know that some time ago ¹⁰  God chose ¹¹  me to preach to the Gentiles so they would hear the message ¹²  of the gospel ¹³  and believe. ¹⁴ 

Mark 16:15

16:15 He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature.

[8:26]  ¹ tn Or “the angel of the Lord.” See the note on the word “Lord” in 5:19.

[8:26]  ² tn Grk “Lord spoke to Philip, saying.” The redundant participle λέγων (legwn) has not been translated.

[8:26]  ³ tn Or “Get up and go about noon.” The phrase κατὰ μεσημβρίαν (kata meshmbrian) can be translated either “about noon” (L&N 67.74) or “toward the south” (L&N 82.4). Since the angel’s command appears to call for immediate action (“Get up”) and would not therefore need a time indicator, a directional reference (“toward the south”) is more likely here.

[8:26]  ⁴ map For the location of Jerusalem see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[8:26]  ⁵ tn Or “wilderness.”

[8:26]  ⁶ tn The words “This is a desert road” are probably best understood as a comment by the author of Acts, but it is possible they form part of the angel’s speech to Philip, in which case the verse would read: “Get up and go south on the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza – the desert road.”

[9:15]  ⁷ tn Or “tool.”

[9:15]  ⁸ tn Grk “the sons of Israel.” In Acts, Paul is a minister to all nations, including Israel (Rom 1:16-17).

[15:7]  ⁹ tn Or “discussion.” This term is repeated from v. 2.

[15:7]  ¹⁰ tn Or “long ago” (an idiom, literally “from ancient days”). According to L&N 67.26, “this reference to Peter having been chosen by God sometime before to bring the gospel to the Gentiles can hardly be regarded as a reference to ancient times, though some persons understand this to mean that God’s decision was made at the beginning of time. The usage of ἀφ᾿ ἡμερῶν ἀρχαίων is probably designed to emphasize the established nature of God’s decision for Peter to take the gospel to the Gentiles beginning with the centurion Cornelius. The fact that this was relatively early in the development of the church may also serve to explain the use of the idiom.”

[15:7]  ¹¹ sn God chose. The theme of God’s sovereign choice is an important point, because 1st century Jews believed Israel’s unique position and customs were a reflection of God’s choice.

[15:7]  ¹² tn Or “word.”

[15:7]  ¹³ tn Or “of the good news.”

[15:7]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “God chose among you from my mouth the Gentiles to hear the message of the gospel and to believe.” The sense of this sentence in Greek is difficult to render in English. The Greek verb ἐκλέγομαι (eklegomai, “choose”) normally takes a person or thing as a direct object; in this verse the verb has neither clearly stated. The translation understands the phrase “from my mouth,” referring to Peter, as a description of both who God chose and the task to be done. This coupled with the following statement about Gentiles hearing the message of the gospel leads to the more dynamic rendering in the translation.