Acts 9:38

9:38 Because Lydda ¹  was near Joppa, when the disciples heard that Peter was there, they sent two men to him and urged him, “Come to us without delay.” ² 

Acts 10:7

10:7 When the angel who had spoken to him departed, Cornelius ³  called two of his personal servants ⁴  and a devout soldier from among those who served him, ⁵ 

Acts 19:10

19:10 This went on for two years, so that all who lived in the province of Asia, ⁶  both Jews and Greeks, heard the word of the Lord. ⁷ 

Acts 19:34

19:34 But when they recognized ⁸  that he was a Jew, they all shouted in unison, ⁹  “Great is Artemis ¹⁰  of the Ephesians!” for about two hours. ¹¹ 

Acts 24:27

24:27 After two years ¹²  had passed, Porcius Festus ¹³  succeeded Felix, ¹⁴  and because he wanted to do the Jews a favor, Felix left Paul in prison. ¹⁵ 

[9:38]  ¹ sn Lydda was a city northwest of Jerusalem on the way to Joppa.

[9:38]  ² tn Grk “Do not delay to come to us.” It is somewhat smoother to say in English, “Come to us without delay.”

[10:7]  ³ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Cornelius) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[10:7]  ⁴ tn Or “domestic servants.” The Greek word here is οἰκέτης (oiketh"), which technically refers to a member of the household, but usually means a household servant (slave) or personal servant rather than a field laborer.

[10:7]  ⁵ tn The meaning of the genitive participle προσκαρτερούντων (proskarterountwn) could either be “a soldier from the ranks of those who served him” (referring to his entire command) or “a soldier from among his personal staff” (referring to a group of soldiers who were his personal attendants). The translation “from among those who served him” is general enough to cover either possibility.

[19:10]  ⁵ 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.

[19:10]  ⁶ sn The word of the Lord is a technical expression in OT literature, often referring to a divine prophetic utterance (e.g., Gen 15:1, Isa 1:10, Jonah 1:1). In the NT it occurs 15 times: 3 times as ῥῆμα τοῦ κυρίου (rJhma tou kuriou; Luke 22:61, Acts 11:16, 1 Pet 1:25) and 12 times as λόγος τοῦ κυρίου (logo" tou kuriou; here and in Acts 8:25; 13:44, 48, 49; 15:35, 36; 16:32; 19:20; 1 Thess 1:8, 4:15; 2 Thess 3:1). As in the OT, this phrase focuses on the prophetic nature and divine origin of what has been said.

[19:34]  ⁷ tn Grk “But recognizing.” The participle ἐπιγνόντες (epignonte") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[19:34]  ⁸ tn Grk “[they shouted] with one voice from all of them” (an idiom).

[19:34]  ⁹ sn Artemis was a Greek goddess worshiped particularly in Asia Minor, whose temple, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, was located just outside the city of Ephesus, 1.25 mi (2 km) northeast of the Grand Theater. Dimensions were 418 ft by 239 ft (125 m by 72 m) for the platform; the temple proper was 377 ft by 180 ft (113 m by 54 m). The roof was supported by 117 columns, each 60 ft (18 m) high by 6 ft (1.8 m) in diameter. The Emperor Justinian of Byzantium later took these columns for use in construction of the Hagia Sophia, where they still exist (in modern day Istanbul).

[19:34]  ¹⁰ sn They all shouted…for about two hours. The extent of the tumult shows the racial and social tensions of a cosmopolitan city like Ephesus, indicating what the Christians in such locations had to face.

[24:27]  ⁹ tn Grk “After a two-year period.”

[24:27]  ¹⁰ sn Porcius Festus was the procurator of Palestine who succeeded Felix; neither the beginning nor the end of his rule (at his death) can be determined with certainty, although he appears to have died in office after about two years. Nero recalled Felix in a.d. 57 or 58, and Festus was appointed to his vacant office in a.d. 57, 58, or 59. According to Josephus (Ant. 20.8.9-10 [20.182-188]; J. W. 2.14.1 [2.271-272]), his administration was better than that of his predecessor Felix or his successor Albinus, but Luke in Acts portrays him in a less favorable light: He was willing to sacrifice Paul to court Jewish favor by taking him to Jerusalem for trial (v. 9), regardless of Paul’s guilt or innocence. The one characteristic for which Festus was noted is that he dealt harshly with those who disturbed the peace.

[24:27]  ¹¹ tn Grk “Felix received as successor Porcius Festus.”

[24:27]  ¹² tn Grk “left Paul imprisoned.”