Psalms 31:15

31:15 You determine my destiny! ¹ 

Rescue me from the power of my enemies and those who chase me.

Ecclesiastes 3:17

3:17 I thought to myself, “God will judge both the righteous and the wicked;

for there is an appropriate time for every activity,

and there is a time of judgment ²  for every deed.

Ecclesiastes 8:6-7

8:6 For there is a proper time and procedure for every matter,

for the oppression ³  of the king ⁴  is severe upon his victim. ⁵ 

8:7 Surely no one knows the future, ⁶ 

and no one can tell another person what will happen. ⁷ 

Ecclesiastes 9:11-12

Wisdom Cannot Protect against Seemingly Chance Events

9:11 Again, ⁸  I observed this on the earth: ⁹ 

the race is not always ¹⁰  won by the swiftest,

the battle is not always won by the strongest;

prosperity ¹¹  does not always belong to those who are the wisest,

wealth does not always belong to those who are the most discerning,

nor does success ¹²  always come to those with the most knowledge –

for time and chance may overcome ¹³  them all.

9:12 Surely, no one ¹⁴  knows his appointed time! ¹⁵ 

Like fish that are caught in a deadly ¹⁶  net, and like birds that are caught in a snare –

just like them, all people ¹⁷  are ensnared ¹⁸  at an unfortunate ¹⁹  time that falls upon them suddenly.

Isaiah 60:22

60:22 The least of you will multiply into ²⁰  a thousand;

the smallest of you will become a large nation.

When the right time comes, I the Lord will quickly do this!” ²¹ 

Daniel 2:21

2:21 He changes times and seasons,

deposing some kings

and establishing others. ²² 

He gives wisdom to the wise;

he imparts knowledge to those with understanding; ²³ 

Luke 21:22-24

21:22 because these are days of vengeance, ²⁴  to fulfill ²⁵  all that is written. 21:23 Woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing their babies in those days! For there will be great distress ²⁶  on the earth and wrath against this people. 21:24 They ²⁷  will fall by the edge ²⁸  of the sword and be led away as captives ²⁹  among all nations. Jerusalem ³⁰  will be trampled down by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled. ³¹ 

Acts 1:7

1:7 He told them, “You are not permitted to know ³²  the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority.

Acts 17:26

17:26 From one man ³³  he made every nation of the human race ³⁴  to inhabit the entire earth, ³⁵  determining their set times ³⁶  and the fixed limits of the places where they would live, ³⁷ 

Acts 17:1

Paul and Silas at Thessalonica

17:1 After they traveled through ³⁸  Amphipolis ³⁹  and Apollonia, ⁴⁰  they came to Thessalonica, ⁴¹  where there was a Jewish synagogue. ⁴² 

Acts 5:1

The Judgment on Ananias and Sapphira

5:1 Now a man named Ananias, together with Sapphira his wife, sold a piece of property.

Acts 5:1

The Judgment on Ananias and Sapphira

5:1 Now a man named Ananias, together with Sapphira his wife, sold a piece of property.

Acts 4:1

The Arrest and Trial of Peter and John

4:1 While Peter and John ⁴³  were speaking to the people, the priests and the commander ⁴⁴  of the temple guard ⁴⁵  and the Sadducees ⁴⁶  came up ⁴⁷  to them,

Acts 6:15

6:15 All ⁴⁸  who were sitting in the council ⁴⁹  looked intently at Stephen ⁵⁰  and saw his face was like the face of an angel. ⁵¹ 

Acts 6:2

6:2 So the twelve ⁵²  called ⁵³  the whole group ⁵⁴  of the disciples together and said, “It is not right for us to neglect the word of God to wait on tables. ⁵⁵ 

Acts 2:3

2:3 And tongues spreading out like a fire ⁵⁶  appeared to them and came to rest on each one of them.

Acts 3:7-8

3:7 Then ⁵⁷  Peter ⁵⁸  took hold ⁵⁹  of him by the right hand and raised him up, and at once the man’s ⁶⁰  feet and ankles were made strong. ⁶¹  3:8 He ⁶²  jumped up, ⁶³  stood and began walking around, and he entered the temple courts ⁶⁴  with them, walking and leaping and praising God.

[31:15]  ¹ tn Heb “in your hand [are] my times.”

[3:17]  ² tn The phrase “a time of judgment” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[8:6]  ³ tn Heb “evil”; or “misery.”

[8:6]  ⁴ tn Heb “the man.”

[8:6]  ⁵ tn Heb “upon him.”

[8:7]  ⁶ tn Heb “what will be.”

[8:7]  ⁷ tn Heb “Who can tell him what will be?”

[9:11]  ⁸ tn Heb “I returned and.” In the Hebrew idiom, “to return and do” means “to do again.”

[9:11]  ⁹ tn Heb “under the sun.”

[9:11]  ¹⁰ tn The term “always” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation (five times in this verse) for clarity.

[9:11]  ¹¹ tn Heb “bread.”

[9:11]  ¹² tn Heb “favor.”

[9:11]  ¹³ tn Heb “happen to.”

[9:12]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “man.” The term is used here in a generic sense and translated “no one.”

[9:12]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “time.” BDB 773 s.v. עֵת 2.d suggests that עֵת (’et, “time”) refers to an “uncertain time.” On the other hand, HALOT 901 s.v. עֵת 6 nuances it as “destined time,” that is, “no one knows his destined time [i.e., hour of destiny].” It is used in parallelism with זְמָן (zÿman, “appointed time; appointed hour”) in 3:1 (HALOT 273 s.v. זְמָן; BDB 273 s.v. זְמָן). Eccl 3:9-15 teaches God’s sovereignty over the appointed time-table of human events. Similarly, Qoheleth here notes that no one knows what God has appointed in any situation or time. This highlights the limitations of human wisdom and human ability, as 9:11 stresses.

[9:12]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “bad, evil.” The moral connotation hardly fits here. The adjective would seem to indicate that the net is the instrument whereby the fish come to ruin.

[9:12]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “the sons of man.”

[9:12]  ¹⁸ tn The Masoretes pointed the consonantal form יוקשׁים (“are ensnared”) as יוּקָשִׁים (yuqashim, Pual participle mpl from ַָיקֹשׁ, yaqosh, “to be ensnared”). This is an unusual form for a Pual participle: (1) The characteristic doubling of the middle consonant was omitted due to the lengthening of the preceding short vowel from יֻקָּשִׁים to יוּקָשִׁים (GKC 74 §20.n and 143 §52.s), and (2) The characteristic prefix מְ (mem) is absent, as in a few other Pual participles, e.g., Exod 3:2; Judg 13:8; 2 Kgs 2:10; Isa 30:24; 54:11 (GKC 143 §52.s). On the other hand, the consonant form יוקשים might actually be an example of the old Qal passive participle which dropped out of Hebrew at an early stage, and was frequently mistaken by the Masoretes as a Pual form (e.g., Jer 13:10; 23:32) (GKC 143 §52.s). Similarly, the Masoretes pointed אכל as אֻכָּל (’ukkal, Pual perfect 3rd person masculine singular “he was eaten”); however, it probably should be pointed אֻכַל (’ukhal, old Qal passive perfect 3rd person masculine singular “he was eaten”) because אָכַל (’akhal) only occurs in the Qal (see IBHS 373-74 §22.6a).

[9:12]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “evil.” The term רָעָה (ra’ah, “evil; unfortunate”) is repeated in v. 12 in the two parts of the comparison: “fish are caught in an evil (רָעָה) net” and “men are ensnared at an unfortunate (רָעָה) time.”

[60:22]  ²⁰ tn Heb “will become” (so NASB, NIV).

[60:22]  ²¹ tn Heb “I, the Lord, in its time, I will quickly do it.”

[2:21]  ²² tn Aram “kings.”

[2:21]  ²³ tn Aram “the knowers of understanding.”

[21:22]  ²⁴ tn Or “of punishment.” This is a time of judgment.

[21:22]  ²⁵ tn The passive construction with the infinitive πλησθῆναι (plhsqhnai) has been translated as an active construction for simplicity, in keeping with contemporary English style.

[21:23]  ²⁶ sn Great distress means that this is a period of great judgment.

[21:24]  ²⁷ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[21:24]  ²⁸ tn Grk “by the mouth of the sword” (an idiom for the edge of a sword).

[21:24]  ²⁹ sn Here is the predicted judgment against the nation until the time of Gentile rule has passed: Its people will be led away as captives.

[21:24]  ³⁰ tn Grk “And Jerusalem.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[21:24]  ³¹ sn Until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled implies a time when Israel again has a central role in God’s plan.

[1:7]  ³² tn Grk “It is not for you to know.”

[17:26]  ³³ sn The one man refers to Adam (the word “man” is understood).

[17:26]  ³⁴ tn Or “mankind.” BDAG 276 s.v. ἔθνος 1 has “every nation of humankind Ac 17:26.”

[17:26]  ³⁵ tn Grk “to live over all the face of the earth.”

[17:26]  ³⁶ tn BDAG 884-85 s.v. προστάσσω has “(οἱ) προστεταγμένοι καιροί (the) fixed times Ac 17:26” here, but since the following phrase is also translated “fixed limits,” this would seem redundant in English, so the word “set” has been used instead.

[17:26]  ³⁷ tn Grk “the boundaries of their habitation.” L&N 80.5 has “fixed limits of the places where they would live” for this phrase.

[17:1]  ³⁸ tn BDAG 250 s.v. διοδεύω 1 has “go, travel through” for this verse.

[17:1]  ³⁹ sn Amphipolis. The capital city of the southeastern district of Macedonia (BDAG 55 s.v. ᾿Αμφίπολις). It was a military post. From Philippi this was about 33 mi (53 km).

[17:1]  ⁴⁰ sn Apollonia was a city in Macedonia about 27 mi (43 km) west southwest of Amphipolis.

[17:1]  ⁴¹ sn Thessalonica (modern Salonica) was a city in Macedonia about 33 mi (53 km) west of Apollonia. It was the capital of Macedonia. The road they traveled over was called the Via Egnatia. It is likely they rode horses, given their condition in Philippi. The implication of v. 1 is that the two previously mentioned cities lacked a synagogue.

[17:1]  ⁴² sn See the note on synagogue in 6:9.

[4:1]  ⁴³ tn Grk “While they”; the referents (Peter and John) have been specified in the translation for clarity.

[4:1]  ⁴⁴ tn Or “captain.”

[4:1]  ⁴⁵ tn Grk “the official of the temple,” a title for the commander of the Jewish soldiers guarding the temple (thus the translation, “the commander of the temple guard”). See L&N 37.91.

[4:1]  ⁴⁶ sn The Sadducees controlled the official political structures of Judaism at this time, being the majority members of the Sanhedrin. They were known as extremely strict on law and order issues (Josephus, J. W. 2.8.2 [2.119], 2.8.14 [2.164-166]; Ant. 13.5.9 [13.171-173], 13.10.6 [13.293-298], 18.1.2 [18.11], 18.1.4 [18.16-17], 20.9.1 [20.199]; Life 2 [10-11]). See also Matt 3:7; 16:1-12; 22:23-34; Mark 12:18-27; Luke 20:27-38; Acts 5:17; 23:6-8.

[4:1]  ⁴⁷ tn Or “approached.” This verb often denotes a sudden appearing (BDAG 418 s.v. ἐφίστημι 1).

[6:15]  ⁴⁸ tn Grk “And all.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

[6:15]  ⁴⁹ tn Or “Sanhedrin” (the highest legal, legislative, and judicial body among the Jews).

[6:15]  ⁵⁰ tn Grk “at him”; the referent (Stephen) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[6:15]  ⁵¹ sn His face was like the face of an angel. This narrative description of Stephen’s face adds to the mood of the passage. He had the appearance of a supernatural, heavenly messenger.

[6:2]  ⁵² sn The twelve refers to the twelve apostles.

[6:2]  ⁵³ tn Grk “calling the whole group…together, said.” The participle προσκαλεσάμενοι (proskalesamenoi) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[6:2]  ⁵⁴ tn Or “the multitude.”

[6:2]  ⁵⁵ tn Grk “to serve tables.”

[2:3]  ⁵⁶ tn Or “And divided tongues as of fire.” The precise meaning of διαμερίζομαι (diamerizomai) in Acts 2:3 is difficult to determine. The meaning could be “tongues as of fire dividing up one to each person,” but it is also possible that the individual tongues of fire were divided (“And divided tongues as of fire appeared”). The translation adopted in the text (“tongues spreading out like a fire”) attempts to be somewhat ambiguous.

[3:7]  ⁵⁷ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “Then” to reflect the sequence of events.

[3:7]  ⁵⁸ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Peter) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[3:7]  ⁵⁹ tn Grk “Peter taking hold of him…raised him up.” The participle πιάσας (piasas) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[3:7]  ⁶⁰ tn Grk “his”; the referent (the man) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[3:7]  ⁶¹ sn At once the man’s feet and ankles were made strong. Note that despite the past lameness, the man is immediately able to walk. The restoration of his ability to walk pictures the presence of a renewed walk, a fresh start at life; this was far more than money would have given him.

[3:8]  ⁶² tn Grk “And he.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, the conjunction καί (kai) has not been translated here. Instead a new English sentence is begun.

[3:8]  ⁶³ tn Grk “Jumping up, he stood.” The participle ἐξαλλόμενος (exallomeno") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style. It is possible that the paralyzed man actually jumped off the ground, but more probably this term simply refers to the speed with which he stood up. See L&N 15.240.

[3:8]  ⁶⁴ tn Grk “the temple.” This is actually a reference to the courts surrounding the temple proper, and has been translated accordingly.