Ezra 7:16-18

7:16 along with all the silver and gold that you may collect ¹  throughout all the province of Babylon and the contributions of the people and the priests for the temple of their God which is in Jerusalem. 7:17 With this money you should be sure to purchase bulls, rams, and lambs, along with the appropriate ²  meal offerings and libations. You should bring them to the altar of the temple of your God which is in Jerusalem. 7:18 You may do whatever seems appropriate to you and your colleagues ³  with the rest of the silver and the gold, in keeping with the will of your God.

Acts 24:17

24:17 After several years ⁴  I came to bring to my people gifts for the poor ⁵  and to present offerings, ⁶ 

Acts 24:3

24:3 Most excellent Felix, ⁷  we acknowledge this everywhere and in every way ⁸  with all gratitude. ⁹ 

Acts 1:6-8

1:6 So when they had gathered together, they began to ask him, ¹⁰  “Lord, is this the time when you are restoring the kingdom to Israel?” 1:7 He told them, “You are not permitted to know ¹¹  the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority. 1:8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the farthest parts ¹²  of the earth.”

[7:16]  ¹ tn Aram “find.”

[7:17]  ² tn Aram “their meal offerings and their libations.”

[7:18]  ³ tn Aram “brothers.”

[24:17]  ⁴ tn BDAG 401 s.v. ἔτος has “δι᾿ ἐ. πλειόνων after several years 24:17.”

[24:17]  ⁵ tn Grk “to bring alms,” but the term “alms” is not in common use today, so the closest modern equivalent, “gifts for the poor,” is used instead.

[24:17]  ⁶ tn Or “sacrifices.” BDAG 887 s.v. προσφορά 1 has “προσφοράς ποιεῖν have sacrifices made Ac 24:17,” but this may be overly specific. It is not clear from the immediate context whether the offering of sacrificial animals (so BDAG assumes) or offerings of some other sort (such as financial gifts) are in view. The combination with ἐλεημοσύνας (elehmosuna") in the preceding clause may suggest monetary offerings. Some have suggested this is an allusion to the payments made by Paul on behalf of the four other men mentioned in Acts 21:23-26, but the text here seems to suggest something Paul had planned to do before he came, while the decision to pay for the expenses of the men in 21:23ff. was made at the suggestion of the Jerusalem leadership after he arrived. In either case, Paul was portraying himself as a pious worshiper of his God.

[24:3]  ⁷ sn Most excellent Felix. See the note on Felix in 23:24.

[24:3]  ⁸ tn Grk “in every way and everywhere.”

[24:3]  ⁹ tn Or “with complete thankfulness.” BDAG 416 s.v. εὐχαριστία 1 has “μετὰ πάσης εὐ.…with all gratitude Ac 24:3.” L&N 31.26 has “‘we acknowledge this anywhere and everywhere with complete thankfulness’ Ac 24:3.”

[1:6]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “they began to ask him, saying.” The participle λέγοντες (legontes) is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated. The imperfect tense of the Greek verb ἠρώτων (hrwtwn) has been translated as an ingressive imperfect.

[1:7]  ¹¹ tn Grk “It is not for you to know.”

[1:8]  ¹² tn Or “to the ends.”