Acts 22:29

Then those who were about to interrogate him stayed away ¹  from him, and the commanding officer ²  was frightened when he realized that Paul ³  was ⁴  a Roman citizen ⁵  and that he had had him tied up. ⁶ 

biblegateway Act 22:29

Those who were about to question him withdrew immediately. The commander himself was alarmed when he realised that he had put Paul, a Roman citizen, in chains.

biblegateway Act 22:29

Therefore those who were about to examine him immediately let go of him; and the commander also was afraid when he found out that he was a Roman, and because he had put him in chains.

biblegateway Act 22:29

The soldiers who were about to interrogate Paul quickly withdrew when they heard he was a Roman citizen, and the commander was frightened because he had ordered him bound and whipped.

biblegateway Act 22:29

That put a stop to the interrogation. And it put the fear of God into the captain. He had put a Roman citizen in chains and come within a whisker of putting him under torture!

SABDAweb Act 22:29

Then those who were about to put him to the test went away: and the chief captain was in fear, seeing that he was a Roman, and that he had put chains on him.

bibleoremus Act 22:29

Immediately those who were about to examine him drew back from him; and the tribune also was afraid, for he realized that Paul was a Roman citizen and that he had bound him.

biblegateway Act 22:29

Then immediately those who were about to examine him withdrew from him; and the commander was also afraid after he found out that he was a Roman, and because he had bound him.

biblegateway Act 22:29

Then those who were about to interrogate him stayed away ¹  from him, and the commanding officer ²  was frightened when he realized that Paul ³  was ⁴  a Roman citizen ⁵  and that he had had him tied up. ⁶ 

¹ tn BDAG 158 s.v. ἀφίστημι 2.b has “keep away…ἀπό τινος… Lk 4:13; Ac 5:38; 2 Cor 12:8…cp. Ac 22:29.” In context, the point would seem to be not that the interrogators departed or withdrew, but that they held back from continuing the flogging.

² tn Grk “the chiliarch” (an officer in command of a thousand soldiers). See note on the term “commanding officer” in v. 24.

³ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Paul) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁴ tn This is a present tense (ἐστιν, estin) retained in indirect discourse. It must be translated as a past tense in contemporary English.

⁵ tn The word “citizen” is supplied here for emphasis and clarity.

⁶ sn Had him tied up. Perhaps a reference to the chains in Acts 21:33, or the preparations for the lashing in Acts 22:25. A trial would now be needed to resolve the matter. The Roman authorities’ hesitation to render a judgment in the case occurs repeatedly: Acts 22:30; 23:28-29; 24:22; 25:20, 26-27. The legal process begun here would take the rest of Acts and will be unresolved at the end. The process itself took four years of Paul’s life.