Acts 8:29

8:29 Then the Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and join this chariot.”

Acts 10:19-20

10:19 While Peter was still thinking seriously about ¹  the vision, the Spirit said to him, “Look! Three men are looking for you. 10:20 But get up, ²  go down, and accompany them without hesitation, ³  because I have sent them.”

Acts 13:2

13:2 While they were serving ⁴  the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart ⁵  for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.”

Acts 13:4

Paul and Barnabas Preach in Cyprus

13:4 So Barnabas and Saul, ⁶  sent out by the Holy Spirit, went down to Seleucia, ⁷  and from there they sailed to Cyprus. 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 

Acts 16:6-7

Paul’s Vision of the Macedonian Man

16:6 They went through the region of Phrygia ¹⁵  and Galatia, ¹⁶  having been prevented ¹⁷  by the Holy Spirit from speaking the message ¹⁸  in the province of Asia. ¹⁹  16:7 When they came to ²⁰  Mysia, ²¹  they attempted to go into Bithynia, ²²  but the Spirit of Jesus did not allow ²³  them to do this, ²⁴ 

John 16:13

16:13 But when he, ²⁵  the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide ²⁶  you into all truth. ²⁷  For he will not speak on his own authority, ²⁸  but will speak whatever he hears, and will tell you ²⁹  what is to come. ³⁰ 

John 16:2

16:2 They will put you out of ³¹  the synagogue, ³²  yet a time ³³  is coming when the one who kills you will think he is offering service to God. ³⁴ 

John 2:2

2:2 and Jesus and his disciples were also invited to the wedding. ³⁵ 

Revelation 22:17

22:17 And the Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let the one who hears say: “Come!” And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who wants it take the water of life free of charge.

[10:19]  ¹ tn The translation “think seriously about” for διενθυμέομαι (dienqumeomai) is given in L&N 30.2. Peter was “pondering” the vision (BDAG 244 s.v.).

[10:20]  ² tn Grk “But getting up, go down.” The participle ἀναστάς (anastas) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[10:20]  ³ tn The term means “without doubting” or “without deliberation.” It is a term of conscience and discernment. In effect, Peter is to listen to them rather than hesitate (BDAG 231 s.v. διακρίνω 6).

[13:2]  ⁴ tn This term is frequently used in the LXX of the service performed by priests and Levites in the tabernacle (Exod 28:35, 43; 29:30; 30:20; 35:19; 39:26; Num 1:50; 3:6, 31) and the temple (2 Chr 31:2; 35:3; Joel 1:9, 13; 2:17, and many more examples). According to BDAG 591 s.v. λειτουργέω 1.b it is used “of other expression of religious devotion.” Since the previous verse described the prophets and teachers in the church at Antioch, it is probable that the term here describes two of them (Barnabas and Saul) as they were serving in that capacity. Since they were not in Jerusalem where the temple was located, general religious service is referred to here.

[13:2]  ⁵ tn Or “Appoint.”

[13:4]  ⁶ tn Grk “they”; the referents (Barnabas and Saul) have been specified in the translation for clarity.

[13:4]  ⁷ sn Seleucia was the port city of Antioch in Syria.

[13:4]  ⁸ sn Cyprus was a large island in the Mediterranean off the south coast of Asia Minor.

[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.

[16:6]  ¹⁵ sn Phrygia was a district in central Asia Minor west of Pisidia.

[16:6]  ¹⁶ sn Galatia refers to either (1) the region of the old kingdom of Galatia in the central part of Asia Minor (North Galatia), or (2) the Roman province of Galatia, whose principal cities in the 1st century were Ancyra and Pisidian Antioch (South Galatia). The exact extent and meaning of this area has been a subject of considerable controversy in modern NT studies.

[16:6]  ¹⁷ tn Or “forbidden.”

[16:6]  ¹⁸ tn Or “word.”

[16:6]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “Asia”; in the NT this always refers to the Roman province of Asia, made up of about one-third of the west and southwest end of modern Asia Minor. Asia lay to the west of the region of Phrygia and Galatia. The words “the province of” are supplied to indicate to the modern reader that this does not refer to the continent of Asia.

[16:7]  ²⁰ tn BDAG 511 s.v. κατά B.1.b has “to Mysia” here.

[16:7]  ²¹ sn Mysia was a province in northwest Asia Minor.

[16:7]  ²² sn Bithynia was a province in northern Asia Minor northeast of Mysia.

[16:7]  ²³ tn Or “permit”; see BDAG 269 s.v. ἐάω 1.

[16:7]  ²⁴ tn The words “do this” are not in the Greek text, but are supplied for stylistic reasons, since English handles ellipses differently than Greek.

[16:13]  ²⁵ tn Grk “that one.”

[16:13]  ²⁶ tn Or “will lead.”

[16:13]  ²⁷ sn Three important points must be noted here. (1) When the Holy Spirit comes, he will guide the disciples into all truth. What Jesus had said in 8:31-32, “If you continue to follow my teaching you are really my disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free,” will ultimately be realized in the ongoing ministry of the Holy Spirit to the disciples after Jesus’ departure. (2) The things the Holy Spirit speaks to them will not be things which originate from himself (he will not speak on his own authority), but things he has heard. This could be taken to mean that no new revelation is involved, as R. E. Brown does (John [AB], 2:714-15). This is a possible but not a necessary inference. The point here concerns the source of the things the Spirit will say to the disciples and does not specifically exclude originality of content. (3) Part at least of what the Holy Spirit will reveal to the disciples will concern what is to come, not just fuller implications of previous sayings of Jesus and the like. This does seem to indicate that at least some new revelation is involved. But the Spirit is not the source or originator of these things – Jesus is the source, and he will continue to speak to his disciples through the Spirit who has come to indwell them. This does not answer the question, however, whether these words are addressed to all followers of Jesus, or only to his apostles. Different modern commentators will answer this question differently. Since in the context of the Farewell Discourse Jesus is preparing the twelve to carry on his ministry after his departure, it is probably best to take these statements as specifically related only to the twelve. Some of this the Holy Spirit does directly for all believers today; other parts of this statement are fulfilled through the apostles (e.g., in giving the Book of Revelation the Spirit speaks through the apostles to the church today of things to come). One of the implications of this is that a doctrine does not have to be traced back to an explicit teaching of Jesus to be authentic; all that is required is apostolic authority.

[16:13]  ²⁸ tn Grk “speak from himself.”

[16:13]  ²⁹ tn Or will announce to you.”

[16:13]  ³⁰ tn Grk “will tell you the things to come.”

[16:2]  ³¹ tn Or “expel you from.”

[16:2]  ³² sn See the note on synagogue in 6:59.

[16:2]  ³³ tn Grk “an hour.”

[16:2]  ³⁴ sn Jesus now refers not to the time of his return to the Father, as he has frequently done up to this point, but to the disciples’ time of persecution. They will be excommunicated from Jewish synagogues. There will even be a time when those who kill Jesus’ disciples will think that they are offering service to God by putting the disciples to death. Because of the reference to service offered to God, it is almost certain that Jewish opposition is intended here in both cases rather than Jewish opposition in the first instance (putting the disciples out of synagogues) and Roman opposition in the second (putting the disciples to death). Such opposition materializes later and is recorded in Acts: The stoning of Stephen in 7:58-60 and the slaying of James the brother of John by Herod Agrippa I in Acts 12:2-3 are notable examples.

[2:2]  ³⁵ sn There is no clue to the identity of the bride and groom, but in all probability either relatives or friends of Jesus’ family were involved, since Jesus’ mother and both Jesus and his disciples were invited to the celebration. The attitude of Mary in approaching Jesus and asking him to do something when the wine ran out also suggests that familial obligations were involved.