ACTS

1:1 the first account (refers to the Gospel of Luke ^{1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8}, addressed to Theophilus, Lk. 1:3)

I (refers to Luke, “me” in Luke 1:3, who was a traveling companion of Paul’s, Col. 4:14; 2 Tim. 4:11; Philemon 1:24; “we” and “us” in Acts 16:10-17; 20:5 – 21:18; 27:1 – 28:16) ^{1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 ,7, 8} In the 100’s AD, Irenaeus, a pupil of Polycarp, who was a pupil of the Apostle John, says Luke wrote the Gospel of Luke. Early church leaders agree.

1:2 given orders (ellipsis – to stay in Jerusalem until they were endued with power from the promised Holy Spirit, Acts 1:4; Lk. 24:49 ¹; and then they were to go into the world as witnesses, Acts 1:8; Lk. 24:47 ^{1, 3, 4, 5, 7}; and make disciples/converts, Matt. 28:19, 20 ^{3, 7})

apostles (Gk. “apostoloi” literally meaning “ones sent from” ¹¹ and came to mean personal representatives of the one sending them, Lk. 6:13; Mk. 3:14) ⁹

1:3 suffering (synecdoche – includes His death on the cross, Lk. 24:20, 26, 46).

convincing proofs (sight, touch, miracles, and conversations with Him, Matt. 28:16-20; Lk. 24:36-51; Jn. 20:19-29; 21:1-22; 1 Cor. 15:5-7) ^{1, 7}

kingdom of God (has various meanings, here, it probably means God’s rule on earth in the person of Christ during the Millennium, vs. 6; Rev. 20:4-6; 22:1-5; Matt. 24:29-31; 25:31-34; Isa. 9:6, 7; 2:3, 4; Lk. 1:32, 33; Dan. 7:18, 22, 27 ¹; or it may refer to Christ’s spiritual rule, starting with Christ’s first coming and continuing on ⁷ until His second coming, at which time it will be both a spiritual and earthly, political rule ^{5, 9})

1:4 to wait for what the Father had promised, which you heard of from Me (i.e., the Holy Spirit, Acts 1:5, 8; Lk. 24:49; Jn. 14:16; 15:26; 16:7; Joel 2:28; Ezek. 36:27) ^{1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7}

1:5 baptized with the Holy Spirit (united with ¹; or baptized “in” the Holy Spirit ⁷; or placed into union with the Holy Spirit so as to alter the person’s condition or relationship to his/her previous environment or condition ¹²).

not many days from now (litotes – a few, about 10 days, since He already appeared to them over a 40 day period, Lev. 23:15, 16 ^{3, 7}; see Acts 2:1 at Pentecost) ⁶

1:7 epochs (dates selected).

1:8 power (ellipsis – supernatural ^{1, 2}; spiritual ⁴; heavenly ⁵)

1:10 two men in white clothing (the color of angels’ garb, Matt. 28:3; Jn. 20:12 ^{2, 5}; angels in human form, as in Lk. 24:4 ^{3, 4, 5, 6})

1:11 will come … go (visibly, physically, in a cloud, to Mt. Olivet, vs. 12; Rev. 1:7; Zech. 14:4 ^{1, 2, 3, 5})

1:12 a Sabbath day’s journey (idiom – about 3,000 ft. or a bit more than one half mile ^{1, 2}; about 2,000 cubits ^{3, 5}; or 6-8 furlongs ^{5, 7})

1:14 one mind (harmonious agreement ^{4, 8} about Jesus being the Messiah, His coming back to restore the kingdom to Israel, and the promised Holy Spirit’s coming, vss. 5, 6, 8, 11)

brothers (Jesus’ half-brothers, Matt. 12:46; 13:55) ^{1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7}

1:15 brethren (believers ²; disciples ^{4, 6}; followers ⁵, vss. 13, 14).

1:16 the Scripture (Psalm 41:9; 69:25; 109:8 with Acts 1:20) ^{1, 2, 6, 7}

1:17 counted among us (idiom – a physical member of the believing community) ⁴

received his portion in this ministry (metaphor – was chosen by God and given his place in Jesus’ ministry) ⁷

1:18 acquired (ellipsis – indirectly through the Jewish priests using Judas’ betrayal money to buy it in Judas’ name, Matt. 27:3-10) ^{1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 8}. A metonymy; the effect is put for the cause producing it. E.g., “acquired” for “caused to be acquired”. ¹⁵

a field (ellipsis – for burying strangers in, Matt. 27:7)

the price of his wickedness (metaphor – the 30 pieces of silver Judas was given by the priests to betray and deliver Jesus to them, Matt. 26:14-16)

falling headlong, he burst open in the middle … (probably after Judas hung himself over a cliff, Matt. 27:5, either the rope or branch of the tree he was using broke, and he fell on rocks or another sharp object and burst open) ^{1, 2, 5, 6, 7}

1:20 his office (bishopric ^{1, 3, 4, 7, 8}; charge ³; office of overseer ^{2, 4, 6, 7, 8}; position ⁵; Psa. 109:8).

1:21 it is therefore necessary (ellipsis – because of the prophecy that Judas’ vacancy be filled, as stated in vs. 20; Psa. 109:8)

went in and out among us (idiom – constantly interacted with us) ⁸

1:25 apostleship (brachylogy – the office and dignity/honor of an apostle) ^{4, 7}

his own place (euphemism – destruction, Jn. 17:12; his awful future ³; hell ^{4, 7}; befitting his awful sin) ⁸

1:26 drew lots (probably the 2 names were written on stones, placed in a container, shaken out of the container, and then the first stone to fall out was considered the Lord’s choice. ¹ This method of choosing had an Old Testament precedent in Prov. 16:33) ^{2, 4, 5, 6, 7}. This method of determining God’s will is no longer recommended, as we now have the completed word/will of God in the Bible.

numbered (metaphor – counted in as a member) ⁷

2:1 Pentecost (an annual feast. It is of Greek derivation, meaning 50^th because it was the 50^th day after the Firstfruits feast, Lev. 23:16; it was also called the Feast of Weeks ^{1, 2, 4, 5}; the 50^th from the day after the first Passover Sabbath ³; it’s the 50^th day from the first Sunday after Passover ⁵; also called the feast of harvest, its primary object was to thank God for the blessings of harvest ⁸; after the exile, it became the feast to remember the giving of the law, Torah ⁶).

one place (synopsis – probably the upper room of 1:13 ², but near the temple where they then went ⁵; or the temple precincts itself, as 7:47 refers to the temple as a house ¹)

2:2 noise like a … wind (simile – noise similar to a violent, rushing wind, symbolizing the Spirit’s power ^{1, 2, 3, 7}; e.g., Ezek. 37:9; Jn. 3:8; 20:22 ³) ^{4, 5}

2:3 as of fire (simile – portraying the presence of God, as fire did in Gen. 15:17; Ex. 3:2-6; 13:21, 22 ^{1, 5, 7}; tongues similar to fire ^{2, 3, 4, 6, 7, 8}, symbolizing the holiness of the Holy Spirit ^{6, 7})

rested on each one (showing that all believers were God’s people regardless of position)

2:4 filled with the Holy Spirit (endowed or enabled with God the Spirit’s power to live holy and to do God’s will ^{4, 9}; it comes from the Greek word “eplerosen”, which has the idea of “control or influence”, see 5:3 ¹; the word “filled” here means “completely under the influence of” ¹⁴; the filling with the Spirit can happen at conversion and/or on any number of occasions after conversion, 4:8, 31; 6:3, 5; 7:55; 9:17; 13:9, 52 ^{1, 2, 5}; it is different from the baptism of the Spirit, which only happens once at conversion when all believers are joined into one body, the body of Christ, which is the Church, 1 Cor. 12:13. ^{1, 2, 5} The word “filled” (in Greek “pletho” and pleroo”) when used in connection with the Holy Spirit always appears in the passive voice. ⁹ And in the passive voice, the subject is being acted upon by an outside agent or is receiving the action – Dr. R. Summers, Essentials of New Testament Greek, p. 35. So to be filled with the Spirit is to be influenced completely, controlled, and enabled by the Holy Spirit.). People are involuntarily filled with the Spirit, e.g., Lk. 1:15, 44 (John the Baptist); 1:41, 42 (Elizabeth); 1:67 (Zacharias), and they are voluntarily filled with the Spirit, Eph. 5:18, by conscious dependency upon and submissive attitude toward God and His Word.

other tongues (metonymy – vss. 6, 8-11, spoken living languages, not ecstatic utterances) ^{1, 3, 6, 7, 15}. “Glossa”, tongues, is used synonymously with “dialektos”, languages, in these verses. It’s not something they sought, prayed for, or even knew would happen. God just caused it to happen. The spiritual gift of speaking in tongues, known human languages, ended by 70 AD when General Titus and the Roman army destroyed Jerusalem and murdered or captured many Jews. The spiritual gift had served its primary, God-given purpose of being a sign of impending judgment upon the unbelieving-in-Jesus Jews, 1 Cor. 13:8; 14:21, 22, even as it was a sign of impending judgment upon the unbelieving-in-God Jews of Isaiah’s time, Isa. 9:13, 14; 28:11-13.

2:5 living in Jerusalem (ellipsis – for the feast of Pentecost ⁵)

under heaven (idiom – on the civilized earth)

2:10 proselytes (Gentiles converts to Judaism)

2:13 full of sweet wine (euphemism – drunk, vs. 15)

2:14 the eleven (ellipsis – eleven apostles, 1:26)

2:15 third hour (9am Roman time ^{1, 2, 3, 4, 7, 8}; third hour after sunrise ⁵; this is Jewish time, sunrise being at 6am Roman time).

2:17 last days (idiom – in the Old Testament it referred to the Messianic era of the kingdom of God, Isa. 2:1, 2; Hosea 3:5 ^{2, 3, 6}; but Peter is saying that it begins with the times or age of the gospel ^{2, 4}; it began with Christ’s first coming, Heb. 1:2; 1 Pet. 1:20, and will end with His second coming, Acts 2:19, 20 with Matt. 24:29- 31; Rev. 6:12 ⁵)

pour forth of My Spirit (metaphor – freely give My Spirit abundantly) ^{3, 4}

all mankind/flesh (synecdoche – all God’s people ²; Gentile as well as Jewish believers ^{3, 4, 5}; all kinds of people, without distinction of age, sex, or rank/condition ^{3, 4, 8}; but not every human being on the earth inclusively).

prophesy (proclaim and/or predict direct revelation received from God) ^{9, 10, 11, 12, 13}. Since the spiritual gift of prophecy ended, 1 Cor. 13:8-10, when the NT or Bible was completed in 95 AD, and since visions and dreams are two ways that God delivers His prophecies to people to prophesy ^{1, 5}, Acts 2:19; therefore, visions and dreams are not needed any longer and ended the same time as the gift of prophecy in 95 AD with the completion of the book of Revelation. The words “the perfect” in 1 Cor. 13:10 are the Greek words “to teleion”, meaning “the completed/entire thing” ¹⁴. And in the context of 1 Cor. 13:9, 10, “the perfect or completed thing” is of the same kind/thing as that which is “partial or in part”, which is “prophecies and supernatural knowledge”. So all of these ended by 95 AD.

visions (divine revelations given to a person while awake ^{8, 10}, see 16:9 ³, but in a trance-like state ⁷, e.g., 11:5, and is a part of the gift of prophecy ⁵)

dreams (divine revelations given to a person while asleep ^{7, 8, 10}, e.g., Matt. 1:20, 24, and is a part of the gift of prophecy ⁵)

2:18 bondslaves (slaves of men, in Joel 2:29 ⁶, who became believers, who become servants of God/Jesus at conversion ¹², e.g., Rom. 1:1)

2:19, 20 And I will grant … day of the Lord (these verses were not fulfilled at Pentecost, but will be fulfilled soon before Christ’s second coming to earth) ^{1, 2, 3, 6}

wonders (focuses on the astonishment that the miracle produces in the observer) ^{9, 10}

signs (a mark or indication that is used of miracles or wonders as signs of Divine authority and power ¹¹. It emphasizes the authenticating aspect of the miracle as an indication that supernatural power was involved ⁹)

blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke (events right before Christ’s second coming, as seen in Rev. 9:17, 18; 14:20; 17:4-6; 18:8, 9, 18)

sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood (metaphor – for the color of blood; events immediately preceding Christ’s second coming, Matt. 24:29-31; Rev. 6:12 with 11:15; 19:11-16; 20:4, 6, 11)

the great and glorious day of the Lord (metonymy – is the day of Christ’s second coming to earth to establish His kingdom in the world with power and glory ¹, Matt. 24:3, 29-31; Rev. 19:11-16; 20:4, 6, also a day of judgment ⁷ and of salvation to believers ⁵)

2:21 Lord (the prophet Joel used the word “Lord” to refer to God or Jehovah, but Peter, Paul, and the early church use the word to refer to Jesus Christ ², vs. 36; 22:14-16; Rom. 10:9, 13)

calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved (idiom – To “call on God” is to ask God to act ⁹, e.g., 1 Kings 18:24, especially for deliverance, whether for physical deliverance, Psa. 18:3; 145:18, 19, or for spiritual deliverance from sin’s punishment ⁴, Rom. 10:11-14, unto salvation, as a result of the person’s acknowledging and believing in the one true God as seen in the OT, Gen. 12:8, or in the NT, a person realizing his/her need ⁷ for a Savior and acknowledging and believing in Jesus Christ as such. It’s virtually synonymous with “believe in” 1 Cor. 1:2; 2 Tim. 2:22; Acts 9:14, 21; 22:16)

2:22 attested (proved; affirmed)

2:23 predetermined plan (Jesus’ crucifixion was all part of God’s fixed purpose, Zech. 13:7; Isa. 53:3-7, will, Acts 4:27, 28; 17:2, 3; Rom. 8:32; Lk. 24:25, 46, from eternity past, 2 Tim. 1:9; 1 Pet. 1:18-20; Eph. 1:4; Rev. 13:8) ^{1, 3, 4}

foreknowledge (means “the prearrangement”, Thayer’s Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament, p. 538. Or, “choosing beforehand”, F. W. Gingrich, Shorter Lexicon of the Greek New Testament, p. 183. Or, “previous determination or appointment” ¹⁴ and H. Moulton’s The Analytical Gk. Lexicon Revised, p. 342)

godless men (Roman authorities)

2:27, 31 not abandon my soul to Hades (not desert/forsake Jesus’ invisible, spirit-being to the under/unseen world of departed spirits. In Hebrew it’s “Sheol”, the place/abode of the dead) ^{2, 4, 5}. As a prophet, vs. 30, David spoke this about the coming Messiah/Christ, vs. 31.

undergo decay (body to decay/rot, but rather be resurrected, vs. 31)

2:29 Brethren (fellow Hebrews) ⁶

patriarch (a family or racial ruler/leader ¹¹, or ancestor ¹⁰, or founder of a royal dynasty ⁵)

2:30 prophet (one who was divinely inspired to communicate God’s will/word to His people and to disclose the future to them, vs. 31 ^{10, 13}; they spoke to their situation primarily by means of warnings and encouragements concerning the future ¹³; one who got direct revelation from God to speak to those who God wanted ^{2, 3})

seat one of his descendants upon his throne (Jesus Christ was a descendant of David, Matt. 1:1, 17, who would be given the throne of his father/ancestor, David, Lk. 1:32; Psa. 132:11; 89:3, 4) ⁴

2:33 right hand of God (anthropomorphism – as He is Spirit, Jn. 4:24, and doesn’t have a hand, Lk. 24:39; symbolism – for the place of honor ⁴, 1 Kings 2:19, and power, Mk. 14:62 ^{5, 9, 10, 13}; idiom – for coregency ^{4, 5, 9})

see and hear (referring to the speaking in the various people’s native languages, vs. 6)

2:34 The LORD said to my LORD (Yahweh/God spoke to David’s LORD, who is Christ) ^{1, 2, 5, 6}

2:35 a footstool for Thy feet (metaphor – subdued ²; in complete subjugation ⁷ to You).

feet (synecdoche – you)

2:36 the house (metonymy – family/people) ^{9, 11}

made Him (exalted Him as) ⁵

Lord (Gk. “kurios”, here, meaning God/Jehovah ^{1, 5}; in Hebrew “YHWH” or “Yahweh”). That “Lord” (“kurios”) here means “God” can be seen by comparing OT passages referring to God with NT passages quoting them, but which use “kurios”, “Lord”, in place of the OT word for “God/Lord”. For example, Acts 2:21 with Joel 2:32 and Phil. 2:6, 9-11 with Isa. 45:22, 23.

Christ (Messiah or Anointed One: King, Son of God ^{2, 4, 5}, Redeemer/Deliverer ⁹, Prophet and Priest) ¹⁰

2:37 pierced to the heart (metaphor – convicted ^{1, 6, 7, 8} and convinced) ^{2, 4, 5}

2:38 repent (is the Gk. word “metanoeo” meaning, to change one’s mind/outlook/heart/thinking ⁴, here, as to who Jesus was/is, so that they believe in Him as the Lord and Christ, vs. 36 ^{1, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11}, instead of as a false, blaspheming prophet). So, “repent” is virtually synonymous with “believe in Jesus as the Christ”, as seen in 3:14, 15, 18, 19 (“repent”) with 4:4 (“believed”)

baptized (Gk. “baptizo” means “completely submerged” ¹², and here, it means, in water, as that is what believers were externally baptized into as an expression of their faith in and identification with Jesus Christ ^{3, 5}, and as a testimony that their sins were forgiven/washed away ¹² by Christ’s blood payment, Rev. 1:5, when they believed, Acts 10:43; 13:38, 39; 15:9)

in the name of (in the person of; in identification with. Here, the believer is identifying with Christ in His death, burial, and resurrection, as baptism pictures/symbolizes this ¹²)

for (is the Greek word “eis”, and it can mean “on account of” or “on the basis of” or “because” as it does in Matt. 3:11; 12:41; Mk. 1:4. ^{1, 7} If “for” does take this meaning, then believers are baptized because they’ve already been forgiven due to their repenting – Wuest’s Word Studies, vol. 1, “Mark”, p. 18)

and let each of you be baptized in the name of … (if the word “for” is, on the other hand, taken to mean “in order to be”, then the phrase “and let each … name of Jesus Christ” is taken as a parenthetical since “Repent” and “your” are in the plural forms and go with each other; whereas, “be baptized” is in the singular, setting it off from the rest of the sentence. ¹ Also, there’s a change of person from the second person plural, “you”, to the third person singular, “each”. ⁷) Water baptism is not a requirement for forgiveness or salvation, only faith in Christ is.

2:39 the promise (ellipsis – of the Holy Spirit, 1:5, 8; 2:33) ^{1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 7}

you and your children (metaphor – believing Israelites/Jews) ^{1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7}

all who are far off (metonymy – believing Gentiles, Eph. 2:13, 17, 19) ^{1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8}

call (Gk. “proskaleo” is to call toward; elect, Rom. 8:30 ¹; effectually summon into the fellowship of Jesus Christ ⁵, and only those God calls/summons can come ⁴, Jn. 6:44, 65 and will come to Jesus Christ in faith, Jn. 6:37, 45; 10:16; Rom. 8:30; bring ⁶; summon ¹¹, draw, or save ⁹; sovereignly chose for salvation ¹⁰). In Matt. 22:14, it says that many are “called” (a different Greek word, “kletos”, meaning “invited”), but few are “chosen” (Gk. “eklektos” meaning “laid out” or picked) to enter the kingdom of heaven, 22:2.

2:41 added (ellipsis – to the church, body of believers)

souls (people) ^{4, 7, 10, 11}

2:42 fellowship (the common activities of the breaking of bread and prayer ^{1, 2}; sharing in a common interest ^{7, 9, 11}; active participation in a common interest ⁸)

the breaking of bread (idiom or metonymy – a common meal together, vs. 46, with the Lord’s Supper or communion ^{4, 6, 8, 15, p. 840}; synecdoche – for the bread and wine) ^{1, 2, 3, 5, 7}

2:43 wonders and signs (see vs. 19 notes)

2:44 had all things in common (this was not socialism or communism because it was voluntary, 4:32-35; 5:4 ⁴, and the goods were not evenly distributed but were given to meet other believers’ needs as they arose ^{1, 7}, vs. 45)

2:45 with all (ellipsis – all the believers there in Jerusalem ^{2, 4, 5, 6, 7}, vs. 44)

2:46 one mind (harmonious agreement ⁸ about the apostles’ teachings and fellowship, vs. 42)

3:1 the hour of prayer (3pm Roman time was one of three times that Jews went to the temple to pray; 9am and 12pm are the other two times) ¹

3:2 alms (benefaction or charitable donations ¹¹ whether it be money, food, etc.) ¹⁰

3:6 in the name of (metonymy – by the authorization of ⁴; in the power of ¹¹)

3:10 filled (consumed)

3:11 Solomon’s portico (a part of the Jewish temple area where a series of columns set at regular intervals supported the base of a roof structure, which was a sheltered place for walking, running the length of the east side of the outer court) ¹

3:13 our fathers (ancestors) ¹

glorified (exalted) ^{1, 5}

delivered up (ellipsis – to be crucified).

3:14 Holy and Righteous One (antonomasia – for Jesus, vs. 13)

3:15 Prince/Author of life (antonomasia – for Jesus, vs. 13; 2:22-24)

3:16 in His name (in Him, the Lord Jesus Christ, God, Savior, and Messiah) ¹

the name of (metonymy – the power of ^{4, 5, 6}, or the authority invested in us by ^{4, 14}; the person and power/characteristics of ¹)

the faith which comes through Him (the very faith to believe, its source, comes from Him/Christ ⁷ as a gift ⁴ , Eph. 2:8, 9)

3:17 brethren (fellow Jews)

3:18 by the mouth of all the prophets, that His Christ should suffer (see Isa. 53:3-12 as an example)

3:19 Repent (see 2:38 note)

return (ellipsis – to God. ^{2, 5, 7}, as they had rejected Him and His word for their own traditions or gods, Matt. 15:6-9; Acts 7:42, 43, 51-53. If Israel returned to God as a nation, as it some day will, Rom. 11:25, 26, then God’s kingdom would come to earth ^{1, 2} physically and visibly)

wiped away (metaphor – forgiven) ^{1, 8}. See 2:38 note.

times of refreshing …and send Jesus (metaphor – the coming of Christ’s kingdom at His second coming, the Millennium, Isa. 11:6-9; 32:17, 18; 33:5, 6; 66:10-14; 49:8, 9) ^{1, 4, 5, 6}

3:21 heaven must receive (personification – God will keep in heaven)

period of restoration of all things (metonymy – the restoration of the kingdom to Israel, Matt. 17:11; 19:28; Mk. 9:12; Acts 1:6; Rom. 8:19-23) ^{1, 2, 5, 6}

3:23 soul (person, see 2:41 note)

3:25 you (Jews) ^{1, 2, 4, 5, 6}

sons of (metaphor – heirs of) ^{1, 3, 4, 5}

the covenant (agreement between two ⁷; testament ⁸; a promise, agreement, or obligation undertaken by a single person toward one or more people ¹¹; a clear statement of God’s purposes and intentions expressed in terms that bind God by solemn oath to perform what He has promised ⁹)

fathers (ancestors) ¹

seed (descendant ⁵; antonomasia – Christ, Gal. 3:16 ^{4, 5, 6})

all the families of the earth (synecdoche or ellipsis – all the people of the world who believe in Jesus as Christ/Savior, whether Jew or Gentile, Rom. 4:12, 16; Gal. 3:29; Eph. 3:6) ^{1, 2}

blessed (spoken well of ^{9, 11, 12}; given benefits ¹², as in kingdom salvation ^{3, 4}; made to prosper ¹¹)

3:26 you (Jews) ^{1, 2, 4, 7}

first (the Jews were God’s chosen people that had the first opportunity for salvation, then the Gentiles next, Rom. 1:16)

His Servant (antonomasia – Jesus) ^{1, 3, 4, 5, 6}

bless (speak well of ^{9, 11}; confer benefits upon ¹², as in salvation ^{3, 4})

4:1 Sadducees (a religious party in New Testament times. At this time, most of the priests and high priests were Sadducees, 5:17 ⁷. They didn’t believe in bodily resurrections ³, angels, or spirits ⁴, 23:8. They were loyal to the Roman government; desired to maintain the status quo; associated with the wealthy class; and adhered only to the Pentateuch) ^{1, 2, 5, 9}

4:3 laid hands on them (idiom – arrested them) ^{1, 2, 6}

4:5 scribes (professional teachers of the Law who were usually Pharisees) ⁵

4:7 By what power, or in what name (By what or whose authority) ^{1, 2, 4, 5, 14}

4:8 filled with the Holy Spirit (see 2:4 note)

4:10 by the name of (by the power of ^{1, 2, 11} and/or authority of) ^{4, 5, 6}

4:11 the stone ( a quote from Psa 118:22 referring to Israel, but here refers metaphorically to Jesus Christ ^{1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7})

corner stone (the foundation or crowning point, refers metaphorically to Jesus Christ ¹)

builders (metaphor – Jewish religious leaders) ^{3, 4, 5, 6, 7}

4:12 name (metonymy – person ^{4, 6}; delegated authority ¹⁴)

4:13 uneducated and untrained (unschooled in the traditional or formal Jewish/rabbinical schools of the scribes and were ordinary/common laymen, without professional knowledge/training) ^{1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8}

4:15 Council/Sanhedrin (the supreme court and administrative body of the Jews, consisting of 71 members, including the high priest. Most of them were Sadducees, the rest scribes and Pharisees. They had authority to maintain the purity of Jewish custom and practice.) ^{1, 9, 11}

4:17 in this name (about the person of Jesus, vs. 18) ^{1, 2, 4, 5, 7}

4:24 one accord (one mind; harmonious agreement; though one spoke, they all prayed the same in their hearts/minds) ⁴

4:25 father (ancestor, see 3:13, 25 note)

Why did the Gentiles rage … against His Christ (a quotation from Psa. 2:1, 2 and which is prophetic of the Tribulation with the Gentile nations fighting against Christ, but is used here by Peter in a preliminary sense of opposition to Jesus at His first coming) ^{3, 4, 5, 6, 7}

4:26 Christ (Anointed One or Messiah) ^{1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7}

4:27 anoint (metaphor – appoint or commission ⁹; make Messiah ⁵; inaugurated as King Messiah ^{7, 8}, to set apart for God’s use. It comes from the Greek word “chrio” meaning “rub or spread oil, perfume, or ointment” ^{5, 9})

4:28 Thy hand (anthropomorphism and symbolism – God’s power) ^{8, 9, 10, 13, 14}

predestined (decided beforehand sovereignly ^{1, 4, 9, 12}; predetermined ^{2, 9}; foreordained counsel ^{5, 7}). To say that man has a free will is neither biblical nor logical. It’s not biblical because the Bible not only never states or implies that man has a free will, but, in fact, teaches the opposite. And for man to have a free will is not logical because it makes God a puppet of man and not the sovereign God that He is, 1 Tim. 6:15; Psa. 103:19. To say that man has a free will means that he has the innate ability/capacity to choose to please God or not; to think, say, or do right or not; or to do good with biblical/right motives or not; and that he has the ability to override the plans and purposes of God by the choices he makes. However, the Bible teaches otherwise. Mankind is born in sin with a sin nature that can only sin and not do, choose, or think right, spiritual, or good from right motives (Rom. 8:5-8 with Psa. 51:5; 58:3; Rom. 5:19, 6; 6:17; 7:5; Eph. 2:3; Gen. 6:5; 8:21; 1 Cor. 2:14; Rom. 3:11, 12; Jn. 8:44; Matt. 7:17, 18; 12:34, 35; 15:18, 19; Lk. 6:43, 45; Mk. 7:21-23; Gal. 5:19-21; Jer. 17:9; Rom. 7:18; and Isa. 64:6) unless God intervenes (Phil. 2:13; Eph. 1:4, 5, 11; 2 Tim. 1:9; Jn. 1:12, 13; 10:26; 2 Thes. 2:13; Acts 13:48; 16:14; Jn. 8:43, 45, 47; Eph. 2:8; Acts 3:16; 5:31; Rom. 11:5-8; Matt. 11:27; Jn. 12:37-40; 6:37, 44, 45, 65; 10:16, 27, 28; Rom. 8:29, 30; and 9:11-24), and no one can stop God’s plans or purpose (Dan. 4:35; Psa. 135:6; Rom. 11:29; Lam. 2:17; Job. 42:2; and Isa. 46:9-11). People will do all God’s will/purpose (Acts 13:22, 36) because He works in people both to will and to do of His good pleasure (Phil. 2:13). Only when something is outside of or does not interfere with God’s will/plan/purpose can man, by God’s permission (Acts 14:26), choose to say or do something from his/her own will, but, of course, it still won’t be something good if done from the sin nature, and non-Christians only have this one nature.

4:29 bond-servants (Gk. “doulos” meaning “humble, permanent servants”) ¹²

4:30 signs and wonders (see 2:19 note)

the name of (see vs. 10 note)

4:31 filled with the Holy Spirit (see 2:4 note)

4:32 of one heart and soul (metaphor – spiritually unified ^{1, 6} experiencing a sense of oneness/unity ², Christian unity ^{3, 4, 5} harmony in thought and affection ⁷)

4:33 grace (favor from God ^{4, 11}; power in action from God ^{9, 13}; unearned/unmerited favor ¹²)

4:35 each (ellipsis – believer)

lay them at the apostles’ feet (idiom – give them to the apostles to supervise) ²

4:36 Son of Encouragement (antonomasia – evidently because of Barnabas’ character and ability) ^{1, 2, 3, 5}

5:3 filled (metaphor – from the Gk. word “eplerosen”, which has the idea of “controlled or influenced”) ¹

heart (metaphor – mind or will ⁴; mental and moral activity, both the rational and emotional elements ^{10, 11})

5:4 your own … under control (believers had the right to keep their money, showing that this was not Christian socialism) ¹

5:5 breathed his last (euphemism – died) ^{1, 2, 5, 7}

5:9 to put the Spirit of the Lord to the test (idiom – to see how much you could get away with before being detected or judged by God) ^{1, 2, 3, 5}

the feet of those (synecdoche – the people) ^{7, 8}

5:11 church (all believers ^{1, 2, 7, 11}, or saved individuals ¹²; from the Gk. word “ekklesia” meaning “called out from” ^{2, 9, 12}; it is never used of a building in the New Testament ²; a/the community of believers in Jesus ^{5, 9, 11}; the Christian community ^{3, 9}; all believers from Pentecost to the Rapture ¹⁰)

5:12 at the hands of (idiom – through the authority/power by God invested in)

signs and wonders (miracles; see 2:19 note)

one accord (one mind; harmonious agreement)

5:13 none of the rest (no believer or hypocrite) ¹

5:16 unclean spirits (demons) ¹

5:17 filled (controlled or influenced; see vs. 3 note)

sect (party) ^{2, 4}

5:18 laid hands on (see 4:3 note)

5:20 of this Life (metonymy – of this gospel ¹; the Christian message ²; ellipsis – eternal, spiritual life ^7,8 in the risen Christ ³) ⁴

5:21 the Council/Sanhedrin (see 4:15 note)

the sons of Israel (idiom – the people of ^{7, 8} Israel; or Israelites) ⁹

5:28 in this name (ellipsis – of Jesus ^{1, 2, 6}; in Jesus’ authority, 4:19; 5:29; 10:42; or about the person of, see 4:17 note).

filled (metaphor – spread all over) ⁴

blood (metonymy – death or crucifixion ^{2, 5}; the guilt and shame of Jesus’ death ⁴)

5:30 our fathers (Jewish ancestors) ⁴

raised up (ellipsis – from the dead) ^{1, 2}

cross (Gk. word “xulon” meaning “wood” or “anything made of wood”, and can mean “tree” or “cross”) ^{9, 11} A metonymy. ¹⁵

5:31 right hand (see 2:33 note)

grant (Gk. word “didomi” meaning “to give” ^{4, 11} or “dispense” ^{3, 14}. It’s Jesus who gives this repentance, change of mind, to Israel about believing in Him/Jesus as Savior ⁴)

repentance (see 2:38 note)

5:32 “Obey” (Gk. “peitharcheo”) means “to obey authority”. Often the word “obey” has the meaning of “believe”, and the words “not obey” or “disobey” the meaning of “disbelieve”. For example, in Jn. 3:36, the KJV and the NIV translate the Gk. word “apeitheo” as “believeth not” and “reject”; whereas, the NASB translates it as “does not obey”. Yet in Acts 14:2, the NASB translates it as “disbelieved”. So, to “not obey” is to “not believe” when referring to Jesus or the gospel, see 1 Pet. 4:17; 2 Thes. 1:8; 1 Pet. 2:7, 8; Rom. 15:31 with Acts 22:17, 18; and 25:18, 19. Sometimes it’s referred to as the “obedience of faith, Rom. 1:5; 16:25, 26. Dr. A.T. Robertson on page 204 of his book states, “the word ‘apeitheo’ means to be ‘apeithes’, to be unwilling to be persuaded or to withhold belief and then also to withhold obedience. The two meanings run into each other. To disbelieve the word of God is to disobey God.” ⁵ “Disbelieve” and “disobey” are used interchangeably, as is the contrast between “being persuaded” with “being disobedient”, Acts 19:8, 9, and with “not believing”, Acts 28:24. In Rom. 10:16, Paul states that the Jews did not all “heed” (obey) the glad tidings (gospel), and then quotes Isaiah from which he made his statement. But in Isa. 53:1, it says, “who has ‘believed’ our report (message or gospel)?” Paul substitutes the word “heed” (obey) for the word “believed”; thereby, showing their similar meaning when dealing with the gospel.

obey Him (ellipsis – that is, to believe in Him, Jesus, as the Savior and Messiah ^{1, 6}, Mk. 1:14, 15; Jn. 6:27-29.

5:33 cut to the quick (idiom – enraged, infuriated, or exasperated) ^{1, 4, 5, 7, 8}

5:34 Pharisee (a committed group of men, which originated in about 135 BC who determined to follow in exact detail everything required in the Mosaic Law. Though they believed in the resurrection, angels, and Satan, 23:8, their interpretations of and additions to the Torah/Law had equal or greater authority to the written Torah. Thus they placed their oral law or traditions above God’s written Word, Matt. 15:2, 16. They also rejected the idea that force should be used to win political freedom. ^{9, 11} Though a small religious party, they had great popularity and influence among the Jewish people; and therefore, greater influence among the Sadducees, who outnumbered them. ² The name, Pharisee, means “separated”. They were against Hellenism – Greek culture – and ceremonial uncleanness) ¹⁰

5:34 the Law (is from the Hebrew word “torah” meaning “teaching/instruction”. It has many usages in the Bible. It can mean: 1) rules enacted by men or human government, Lk. 20:22; 2 Tim. 2:5; 2) the Law of Moses, which was a divinely instituted rule of life mediated through Moses to govern God’s covenant people, Israel, in Canaan. It regulated their common everyday conduct. It included the Ten Commandments, Ex. 20:1-17; the “Judgments” stipulating Israel’s social life, Ex. 21:1 – 23:33; and “Ordinances” directing Israel’s worship, Ex. 25:1 – 31:18. But all this came to an end with the death of Christ, Jn. 1:17; Rom. 10:4. 3) the whole or part of the Old Testament, Rom. 3:19; 2:17-27. 4) the Pentateuch, first 5 books of the OT, Lk. 24:44. 5) the will of God, Rom. 3:20; 4:15; 7:16. 6) an operating/governing principle or force, Rom. 3:27; 7:21, 23; 8:2. So, we see that the word “Law/law” has many usages) ^{9, 10, 11, 13} In this verse, it has the meaning of #2.

5:37 census (ellipsis – by the official emissary of Syria, P.S. Quirinius in AD 6 to determine the amount of tribute to be paid by Judea to the imperial treasury) ⁵

5:40 in the name of (in His authority, see vs. 28 note)

5:41 His/the name (Him, Jesus) ^{1, 4, 7}

6:1 disciples (Gk. “mathetes” means “a pupil or learner”. When used in reference to being a disciple of Jesus by Jesus, it meant a total commitment to Him, to surrender everything to live in obedience to Jesus, Lk. 14:26, 33. Another meaning is that of an adherent of a movement, Mk. 2:18. And in the book of Acts, a disciple is synonymous with being a “believer”, “a follower of Jesus” ⁵, “convert”, or “Christian”, 11:26. One was a fully trained disciple when he was like his teacher, Lk. 6:40) ^{9, 11}

Hellenistic Jews (Greek speaking and Greek-speaking-synagogue-attending Jews) ⁵

daily serving (ellipsis – to poorer members of the church in Jerusalem from the common fund wealthier members contributed to) ⁵

6:2 the twelve (brachylogy – apostles) ^{1, 2, 4, 5, 6}

neglect (ellipsis – teaching and preaching) ^{3, 4, 6}

the word (metonymy or idiom – the preaching of the gospel) ^{5, 6, 15, p. 832}

serve tables (metonymy – the place where funds and supplies, primarily food, were administered for widows) ^{1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8}

6:3 brethren (believers, here, were Jewish Hellenists converted to Christianity, except for Nicolas, a Greek who first converted to Judaism, then to Christianity) ¹

full of the Spirit and of wisdom (zeugma – completely under the influence of the Spirit and also abounding in wisdom ¹⁴; metaphor – influenced greatly by the Spirit and wisdom).

6:4 the ministry (preaching ^{3, 4, 5, 7} and teaching) ⁶

the word (brachylogy – God’s word ²; metonymy – the gospel ⁵) ⁶

6:5 full of faith and of the Holy Spirit (zeugma – abounding in faith and fully influenced by the Holy Spirit ¹⁴)

6:6 laid their hands on them (idiom – a gesture signifying commissioning and granting of authority ¹, or ordaining them to their office ²; a ceremony expressing formal association/identification with, to discharge a special duty ⁵; a gesture expressing identification with them in their work for which they had been chosen ⁶)

6:7 word of God (metonymy – the gospel, 11:1) ^{1, 3, 4, 5}

obedient to the faith (metonymy – believers, 1 Jn. 3:23; Rom. 1:5; 16:26) ^{1, 2, 4, 5, 6, 7}

the faith (metonymy – the gospel ⁷; or ellipsis - in Jesus Christ ⁸)

6:8 full of (metaphor – abounding in) ¹⁴

grace (see 4:33 note)

power (metonymy – mighty deeds, miracles, and/or ability) ^{10, 11}

wonders and signs (see 2:19, 20 note)

6:9 Synagogue (gathering, assembly, or assembling, usually of Jews for religious purposes; or by metonymy – the building in which the gathering is held ^{9, 10, 11, 13}. It was composed of 10 or more Jews who met together for the reading and interpretation of the Scriptures ^{2, 5})

of the Freedman (those who themselves or their forbearers in Rome were set free from being prisoners of war or from slavery) ^{1, 3, 6, 7, 8}

6:11 blasphemous (irreverent or degrading)

6:13 holy place (metonymy – the temple, vs. 14; 21:28; Mk. 14:58) ^{1, 4, 5, 7}

the Law (see 5:34 note).

6:14 this place (the temple).

6:15 like the face of an angel (simile – glowing with glory, e.g., Ex. 34:29 ^{1, 5, 7}; supernatural radiance ³).

7:2 brethren (fellow Jews)

fathers (metaphor – members of the Sanhedrin/Council, as those who exercised religious authority over Israel) ¹¹

glory (Divine splendor and perfection) ¹¹

father (ancestor).

7:5 not even a foot of ground (as Abraham lived like a nomad in a tent in the promised land, Gen. 18:1)

7:6 foreign land (Egypt).

7:7 this place (Israel).

7:8 the covenant (see 3:25 note).

circumcision (the cutting off of the fold of skin covering the end of the male sex organ. This rite symbolized submission to God and belief in God’s covenant promise) ⁹

the covenant of circumcision (see Genesis 17. Those who were circumcised would partake of God’s promises, and those who didn’t would be cut off from His people. It was an agreement between God and Abraham and his descendants, of which circumcision was the token/seal/sign of it) ^{2, 3, 4, 7, 8, 9}

patriarchs (progenitors ¹; founders/ancestors/roots of the 12 tribes of Israel ^{3, 4, 5}; family rulers ¹¹)

7:10 household (kingdom, Gen. 41:40) ²

7:12 fathers (ancestors).

7:14 seventy-five persons (This seems to contradict Gen. 46:27 and Ex. 1:5, where it says in the Hebrew text that 70 people were in Jacob’s family, However, the Septuagint – the Greek translation of the Hebrew OT – states there were 75 people in both passages. One solution to this apparent contradiction is that the Hebrew text includes Jacob, Joseph, and Joseph’s two sons (a total of 70), but that the Septuagint omits Jacob and Joseph, but includes Joseph’s seven grandchildren – mentioned in 1 Chron. 7:14, 15, 20-25. This is supported by the Hebrew in Gen. 46:8-26 which enumerates 66 names, omitting Jacob, Joseph, and Joseph’s two sons. And Stephen, a Greek-speaking Jew, used and quoted from the Septuagint here in Acts 7:14.) ¹ Or, the 75 in Acts 7:14 includes other relations not mentioned as part of the 66 direct descendents of Jacob in Gen. 46:26. ^{15, p. 419}

7:15 passed away (euphemism – died).

7:16 Abraham had purchased (metonymy – for Jacob, Abraham’s grandson, who actually purchased the plot of ground in Shechem, Gen. 33:19) ¹ Similar to the metonymies in 1 Ki. 12:16 (where David is used for Rehoboam) or Jn. 4:1, 2 (where Jesus is used for His disciples).

laid in the tomb (synopsis – actually Jacob was buried in Hebron in the cave that Abraham bought, Gen, 23:16; 49:29-32; 50:13, while Joseph was buried at Shechem in the plot that Jacob bought, Joshua 24:32) ¹ Jerome says “the fathers” were buried at Shechem. ^{15, p. 76}

7:17 the time of promise (ellipsis – to give their descendents possession of the land of Canaan).

7:19 fathers (ancestors).

expose (ellipsis – to the harsh, hot environment, or euphemism – put out to die).

7:22 power in words and deeds (power and weight in what he said and did rather than in how he said it, Ex. 4:10) ^{3, 7}

7:26 brethren (fellow Hebrews).

7:30 an/the angel of the Lord (metonymy – the angel of the Lord is a pre-incarnate form of the Son of God, Ex. 3:2-6 ³; Judges 13:21, 22; Gen. 24:7, 40, 48; Hosea 12:3-5 with Gen. 32:24-30).

7:33 holy ground (consecrated to God and separated from sinful use; devoted to God; set apart for God) ^{9, 10, 11, 12}

7:34 My people (the Hebrews, sons of Israel).

7:36 wonders and signs (miracles).

wilderness (of Sinai, of Sin, of Paran, of Zin) ¹⁰

7:37 a prophet like me from your brethren (refers to Jesus, who was of Jewish descent). Jesus better fits this description than does Mohammad: (1) Moses and Jesus were Israelites, while Mohammad was an Ishmaelite (which is the most important fact); (2) Moses and Jesus both left Egypt to perform God’s work (Heb. 11:27; Matt. 2:15), Mohammad never was in Egypt; (3) Moses (Heb. 11:25, 26) and Jesus (2 Cor. 8:9) forsook great wealth to share the poverty of their people, while Mohammad did not; (4) Moses (Num. 12:6-8; Deut. 34:10) and Jesus (Jn. 16:19, 28-30; 17:5; 1:1, 2, 14-17) knew the Lord face-to-face, while Mohammad only was communicated to allegedly by Gabriel; (5) Moses (Deut. 34:10-12) and Jesus (Jn. 6:2; 20:30, 31) did great signs and wonders (miracles), while Mohammad performed no signs or wonders (Qur’an, Surah 6:37, 57). (6) Moses (Ex. 34:29, 30) and Jesus (Matt. 17:2) both had their faces shining after having direct contact with God, while Mohammad did not since he never had direct contact with God.

7:38 fathers (ancestors)

living (metaphor – filled with the vitality of God Himself – Homer Kent, The Epistle to the Hebrews, p. 89; idiom – excellent ^{15, p. 830})

oracles (the OT or Mosaic Law, Ex. 20, etc ^{2, 11}; the Ten Commandments and the other instructions God gave to Moses for Israel; these words of God, which are certain, infallible, and of unquestionable authority and obligation ⁴; Divine utterance/speech ^{9, 11})

7:39 hearts (minds, thinking).

7:42 the book of the prophets (i.e., Amos 5:25; from the 12 minor prophets, the 12 smaller prophetical books, which the Jews count as one book) ⁷

house (metonymy – members or people) ¹¹

7:43 the tabernacle (tent ^{2, 7}; portable tent, temple ⁸)

Moloch (the god of the Amorites to whom children were offered as live sacrifices. This god had an ox-headed image with arms outstretched in which children were placed and hollow underneath so that fire could burn underneath) ^{7, 8}

Rompha (supposedly the Coptic name for the star/planet, Saturn, to which the Egyptians, Arabs, and Phoenicians gave worship) ^{7, 8}

7:44 fathers (ancestors).

of testimony (witnessing to the presence of God in their midst, Ex. 25:9, 40; 26:30; 27:8) ^{2, 3, 5}

7:46 find (build) ^{5, 7}

7:47 house (temple) ^{15, p. 621}

7:49 Heaven is My throne (metaphor – heaven is where God dwells/rests ^{1, 4} in the fullness of His glory and from where He rules).

the earth is the footstool of My feet (metaphor – showing that God fills and rules the world) ^{2, 4}

7:50 My hand (anthropomorphism and symbolism – see 4:28 note).

7:51 stiff-necked (idiom – stubborn) ⁴

uncircumcised in heart and ears (metaphor – grossness of inner being and spiritual deafness ³; not devoted or obedient or responsive to God) ^{4, 5}

resisting (refusing to obey ⁷ the testimony of the Holy Spirit as given by the prophets ^{15, p. 542} – a metonymy).

7:52 fathers (Jewish ancestors)

the Righteous One (antonomasia – Jesus the Messiah, Isa. 53:11; Jer. 23:6; see 3:14 note) ^{3, 5}

7:53 ordained (given ⁴; mediated ⁵; given through the agency of; disposed; arranged ⁸)

7:54 cut to the quick (see 5:33 note).

7:55 glory (majesty; splendor) ^{9, 11}

7:56 Son of Man (antonomasia – a Messianic title based on Daniel 7:13, 14, designating the Messiah, Jn. 12:34, as a heavenly, supernatural being, and refers to Jesus, Matt. 26:63, 64; Mk. 8:31) ^{1, 2, 5}. He will have universal dominion on the earth. ^{15, p. 842}

7:59 spirit (the immaterial, immortal element of life in a person; the disembodied person) ¹¹

7:60 fell asleep (euphemism or metaphor – died) ^{1, 2, 3, 5, 7, 8}

8:1, 3 the church (see 5:11 note).

8:4 preaching the word (metonymy – vss. 5, 25, the gospel of Christ) ^{2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7}

8:5 proclaiming Christ (vs. 12, that Jesus is the Messiah, the Savior) ^{2, 4, 5}

8:6 one accord (one mind or interest) ⁴

signs (attesting miracles; see 2:19 note).

8:7 unclean spirits (demons).

8:10 smallest to greatest (merism – all the people in Samaria).

the Great Power of God (antonomasia – a word, “Great”, used by Greeks to designate the Jewish God ²; a spark of God Himself ⁷)

8:12 the kingdom of God (see 1:3 note).

the name of (the Person of, as to Who He is, Savior and Messiah).

8:14 word of God (metonymy – the gospel, vs. 12; also see 6:7; 11:1, 17) ^{5, 7}

8:15 that they might receive the Holy Spirit (This incident falls within the brief period – probably a few weeks or months – between Pentecost and the preaching of the gospel to the Gentiles in Acts 10. By the time of Acts 10, believers in Jesus Christ as Savior received the Holy Spirit upon believing the gospel, see 10:43-45 with 11:17. In 11:17, the phrase “after/upon believing” or “having believed” is the Gk. word “pisteusasin”, which is a first aorist active participle in the dative case. ⁷ The aorist active tense means “upon completion of the act” and the dative case means that “believing” is the object of the preposition “after” – R. Summers, Essentials of N.T. Greek. So, at the moment of the act of believing in Jesus Christ, they received the Holy Spirit. So why did the Samaritan believers in Acts 8 not receive the Holy Spirit immediately upon believing? Probably because it was a sign to Hebrew Christians, both those present, vss. 14-17, and those who would hear about it through them, that even Samaritans, whom the Jews hated, Jn. 4:9, were to be included in the kingdom of God because of their belief in the Lord Jesus Christ, and, thereby, have unity in the church, Rom. 10:12; Col. 3:11; Eph. 4:3-6. Also, Eph. 1:13, 14 and Gal. 3:2, 3 teach that the Holy Spirit is given to and received when a person believes in Jesus Christ.

8:16 fallen upon (metaphor – been received by, vs. 15 ^{4, 5}; baptized ² and indwelt by) ¹

baptized (in water, vs. 12) ²

in the name of the Lord Jesus (into spiritual union or communion with the person of the Lord Jesus; ⁸ or synecdoche – into spiritual union/oneness/identification, Jn. 17:11, with the Being of the Trinity, Matt. 28:19, as Jesus represents the whole Trinity).

8:17 laying their hands on them (idiom – a token of fellowship and solidarity and sign of incorporation into the Church of the Spirit ^{2, 5, 6}; a sign of identification with, or a sign of conferring the Holy Spirit upon these believers ⁴)

8:20 silver perish with you (zeugma – “perish”, Gk. “apollumi”, silver be utterly destroyed and Simon come to ruin, loss of well-being) ¹¹

the gift of God (the authority of an apostle ^{5, 6, 7}, or the gift of apostleship itself ⁴, which is given by God, 1 Cor. 12:28).

8:21 You have no part or portion in this matter (ellipsis – of which we are talking, vs. 19 ⁸; or, of conferring the Holy Spirit upon believers ^{4, 5, 6, 7}

heart (motive; moral life).

8:22 repent of (change your thinking and decision regarding).

that if possible (“if” is the Gk. word “ei”, and when used with the indicative mood, the mood which confirms the reality of the action, in the “if” clause, the word “if” has the meaning of “since”. And the word “forgiven”, Gk. “aphethesetai”, is in the future indicative mood. ¹⁴ – Dr. Summers, Essentials of N.T. Greek, p. 109. So Simon should repent and pray “since” the sinful intention of his heart will be forgiven him if he does.)

8:23 gall of bitterness (metaphor – an awful, odious condition) ^{3, 4}

bondage of iniquity (metaphor – enslavement to the old, sinful habits of your former, unconverted life) ^{2, 5}

8:27 eunuch (a castrated man employed in a palace).

8:32 as a sheep (simile – willingly following) ¹

8:33 His judgment was taken away (His justice or fair trial was done away with/denied by His being crucified) ^{2, 3, 7}

Who shall relate His generation (who will declare the wickedness of His contemporaries ³ who killed Him).

8:35 this Scripture (i.e., Isa. 53:7, 8).

8:36 baptized (from the Gk. word “baptize” means “submerged” or “placed” ¹², here, into water).

8:39 snatched Philip away (physically, suddenly, and miraculously removed Philip so that he disappeared ^{3, 6 7, 8}, as in 1 Kings 18:12; 2 Kings 2:16; 1 Thes. 4:17; miraculously caught Philip up in the air in the eunuch’s sight and carried him away out of the eunuch’s sight ⁴)

9:1 breathing (metaphor – constantly producing in rage) ^{3, 4, 7}

disciples (followers of; believers in ⁵)

9:2 letters (ellipsis – of authority, vs. 14, as Caesar had granted the high priest and Sanhedrin jurisdiction over Jews in foreign cities) ⁷

the Way (idiom – the Christian faith or Christianity) ^{2, 5, 7, 8}

9:4 me (metonymy – My People who belong to Me) ^{15, p. 583}

9:7 hearing the voice [idiom – When the participle “hearing” is followed by the genitive case (the case of description), here, describing the traveling men, the meaning of “hearing” is “hearing the sound of the voice”, but they did not understand what was said, 22:9.]. ^{15, p. 829}

9:12 lay his hands on him (a gesture signifying the bestowal of healing by the authority invested in him by God; see 6:6).

9:13 saints (Gk. word “hagiois” meaning “set apart ones”, referring to believers ^{1, 2} or Christians ^{4, 5, 7})

9:14 to bind (ellipsis – and arrest)

who call upon Thy name (idiom – who are believers ⁵; see 2:21 note).

9:15 chosen (elected/selected in God’s sovereignty or divine choice, uninfluenced by anyone or anything outside of the Godhead , Rom. 1:1; Gal. 1:15) ^{3, 5, 7}

instrument (tool, vessel ⁷, messenger ⁵, witness ¹)

to bear My name (to teach and preach Jesus as the Savior, Messiah, Son of God, vss. 20, 22)

Gentiles (non-Jewish people).

sons of Israel (Hebrew/Jewish people).

9:16 for My name’s sake (for Me/Christ ⁴ because of his identification with and preaching of Jesus as the Christ)

9:17 Brother (brachylogy – Christian/spiritual brother; or, brother in Christ) ^{7, 8}

filled with the Holy Spirit (see 2:4 note).

9:18 like scales (simile – similar to a thin coating ¹ or flaky substance ^{2, 5} or a white film ⁷)

9:20 Son of God (idiom – meaning “God” ⁷). The phrase “son of” indicates that the person or thing so described stands in some relation to the object mentioned after the phrase “son of”. That relation may be one of quality (as here, the quality of Deity, Col. 2:9; Jn. 10:30), resemblance (e.g., immortal angels or Christians), derivation (e.g., angels and Christians), or destiny (e.g., hell/perdition) – Dr. W. Hendriksen, NT Commentary – Luke, p. 587. The article “the” means that this is the unique, one of a kind, Son of God, not merely just one of many. The word “son”, when qualified by another noun, often denotes in some way the nature/character of the person he’s the “son of” ^{9, 15}; here it’s God, as the promised Messiah was known to be, Heb. 1:8, 9; Acts 9:22; Jn. 11:27; Jer. 23:5, 6; Isa. 9:6; 7:14 with Matt. 1:23; Mk. 14:61 ^{2, 5}

9:21 destroyed (Gk. “porthesas” – laid waste, ravaged, harassed, vs. 13; 8:3 ¹⁴; murdered, 9:1 ⁷).

who called on this name (see 2:21; 9:14 notes).

9:22 strength (powerful speaking) ⁵

Christ (see 2:36 note).

9:23 do away with (euphemism – murder, vs. 24) ^{1, 3, 7, 8}

9:24 watching the gates (metonymy – watching for him to leave the city ^{2, 4} in order to seize him) ⁷

9:25 disciples (converts to Christianity).

through an opening in the wall (ellipsis – through a window which opened into the house on the inside of the wall) ^5,7

9:27, 28 in the name of Jesus (metonymy – in the authority or power of Jesus; see 3:6 note).

9:29 talking and arguing (ellipsis – about Jesus being the Christ, the Son of God, vss. 20, 22).

9:30 the brethren (see 1:15 note).

9:31 the church (body of believers; see 5:11 note).

built up (ellipsis – spiritually in the faith, 16:5) ^{1, 2}

fear of the Lord (reverential respect of God by hating sin, Prov. 8:13)

9:35 turned to the Lord (metaphor – got saved ¹ or converted to the Lord ^{2, 3}; ellipsis – from Judaism to Christ for salvation ⁴)

9:36 disciple (convert to Christianity; believer in Jesus Christ ⁵).

9:37 washed her body (ellipsis – in accordance with the Jewish custom of purification of the dead) ⁵

9:41 saints (see vs. 13 note).

9:42 the Lord (Jesus, vs. 17; 10:36).

10:1 centurion (an officer over a hundred soldiers).

cohort (one of ten divisions of a Roman legion; a battalion of 300 to 600 foot soldiers plus cavalry).

10:2 feared God (reverenced/worshipped God ^{1, 2, 7} by hating evil/sin, Prov. 8:13)

alms (see 3:2 note).

continually (regularly ²; at the stated daily Jewish times ^{3, 4}; see 3:1 note).

10:3 vision (see 2:17 note).

10:4 as a memorial (as a pleasing, sweet smelling aroma/sacrifice noticed and remembered by God as a worthy spiritual offering/sacrifice, Rev. 5:8; Lev. 2:9; 6:15) ^{3, 4, 5}

10:10 trance (a state of being beyond self-control , deep absorption ^{2, 7, 8}; a state of total contemplation so as to not be aware of external surroundings ⁴).

10:12 all (Gk. “panta” is the neuter plural of “pas” and is used without the article, here, meaning “an indefinite number of things, but not very many” ¹¹; synecdoche – “all kinds of” ^{15, p. 617}).

10:14 unholy (brachylogy – ceremonially; common/unclean ¹¹; impure, because God chose to call it so for His Old Testament people ⁹; not separated to God ³).

unclean (brachylogy – ceremonially ^{7, 11} impure, according to Jewish law, Lev. 11).

10:15 cleansed (metonymy – declared to be ceremonially clean) ^{15, p. 572}

10:23 brethren (Hebrew/Jewish Christians, see vs. 45 note).

10:25 worshipped (prostrated, stretched out with face on the ground in adoration or submission and reverence) ⁵

10:28 unlawful (There is no OT regulation forbidding such social contact with Gentiles, though the rabbis had added it and had made it binding by custom – A. Edersheim, Jewish Social Life, pp. 26-28).

10:35 fears (reverences ¹; worships ⁴ by hating evil/sin, Prov. 8:13)

right (the will of God, Jn. 9:31, as much as he is aware of, e.g., alms giving and prayer to God, 10:2, 4 ⁵, but only which he can do by God’s grace, 1 Cor. 15:10, as no one can do good/right on their own, Rom. 3:10-12, apart from God’s enablement, Phil. 2:13; Jn. 15:5)

welcome to Him (accepted by God, when a person responds positively by faith to whatever or as much light/info that he/she has available about God and God’s will, Jn. 9:31; Rev. 11:18; 14:6, 7; Heb. 11:1, 2, 39. But even that faith is a gift from God/Jesus, Eph. 2:8; Acts 3:16; 14:27. The ultimate basis for acceptance, however, is because of Jesus’ death payment for their sins, Jn. 14:6; 2 Tim. 1:9; Col. 1:19-22; Eph. 1:4-7).

10:36 The word (Lk. 1:79; 2:14; e.g., Isa. 7:14; 9:1, 2, 6, 7; 53:1-12; Eph. 2:14-17, about the coming Messiah).

peace (ellipsis – with God in salvation, Rom. 5:1; Isa. 9:6; Lk. 1:79; 2:14).

Lord of all (God, see 2:36 note, of both Jews and Gentiles ^{3, 7}, Rom. 10:12).

10:38 anointed Him (metaphor – commissioned and declared Him to be His Son, the Messiah, as “Messiah” means “Anointed One” ^{1, 3, 5}, at His baptism, Lk. 3:22, by sending the Holy Spirit upon Him, Isa. 61:1, 2; 42:1-3; 11:1, 2, and giving Him power/miraculous abilities, Jn. 5:8, 9, 19, 30; 8:28; 9:32, 33, as Jesus had willingly given up the independent right to use His godly attributes, Phil. 2:6, 7).

all (ellipsis – that He came in contact with).

10:39 cross (see 5:30 note).

10:41 all the people (the unbelievers at large ⁵).

witnesses who were chosen beforehand by God, to us (God selected the 11 apostles in advance to see the resurrected Christ).

10:42 appointed by God as Judge (i.e., Jesus, Jn. 5:22, 27; Acts 17:31; 2 Tim. 4:1; 1 Pet. 4:5).

10:43 His name (Him/Jesus/the Messiah, vs. 38; 13:33, 38 ^{1, 5, 8}).

believes in Him (as the Savior, which is the only requirement to be forgiven of all your sins, Col. 2:12b-14).

10:44 who were listening to the message (ellipsis – with faith, believing it, 11:17). The verb “akouovtas”, meaning “to hear or listen” is used idiomatically when followed by the accusative case in Greek, as it is here (“the word” in Gk. is “λογον”, which is in the accusative case). It then means “to listen with understanding, receiving and believing” the message. ^{15, p. 829}

message (idiom – the Gospel) ^{15, p. 832}

10:45 circumcised believers (metonymy – Jewish/Hebrew Christians) ^{1, 2, 5, 8}

10:46 speaking with tongues (see 2:4 note). Though the primary purpose for the spiritual gift of speaking in tongues, languages previously unlearned by the speaker, was for a sign to the unbelieving-in-Jesus Christ Jews of impending judgment upon them, a secondary reason was to show the believing Jews, vs. 45, that Gentiles could and would be part of God’s chosen people now in the form of the Church, Eph. 2:11-19, if/when they believed in Jesus Christ as their Savior. Speaking in tongues would be the external evidence to these believing Jews that these believing Gentiles had received the Holy Spirit, just as the believing Jews did in Acts 2, and that these Gentiles were saved and granted eternal life, 11:14-18. Once believing-in-Jesus Jews heard of or realized this fact, this experience of speaking in tongues upon receiving the Holy Spirit would never need to be repeated again with believing Gentiles for this secondary reason.

10:48 in the name of Jesus Christ (see 8:16 note).

10:43-48 Notice that the believing Gentiles received the Holy Spirit before they were baptized. According to a “wrong” interpretation of 2:38, false teachers say that one has to be baptized to be forgiven of one’s sins. But if that was true, then one would also have to be baptized to receive the Holy Spirit as 2:38 goes on to say, going by the “wrong” interpretation, if one was to be consistent with the logic and grammar of the “wrong” interpretation. Yet, in 10:44-48, the believers received the Spirit before being baptized. So, they were also forgiven before baptism because of their belief, as it says in 10:43.

11:1 brethren (Jewish Christians).

word of God (see 6:7; 8:12, 14, 25; 10:43; 11:14, 19, 20; 12:24; 13:26; 19:20; metonymy – the Gospel) ²

11:2 those of the circumcision or those who were circumcised (metonymy – Jewish Christians who still held to the Law of Moses ^{1, 5}; or, the Judaizing or Pharisaic wing, Gal. 2:12, who thought circumcision was necessary for all Gentile converts, 15:5) ^{2, 6, 7}

11:3 uncircumcised (Gentile)

11:12 brethren (Jewish Christians).

11:14 words (10:37-43; the gospel).

by which you will be saved (ellipsis – when you believe them)

all your household (ellipsis – too when they believe these words, the gospel message).

11:15 at the beginning (ellipsis – of the Church on the day of Pentecost) ^{1, 2, 5, 7}

11:16 baptized with the Holy Spirit (see 2:4 note).

11:17 If (is in a first-class conditional clause in Greek, expressed by the Greek word “ei”, “if”, with the indicative mood, thereby affirming the reality of the condition, and is best translated by and has the meaning of “since”.)

them (believing Gentiles).

same gift (the Holy Spirit, 10:45, 47).

us (believing-in-Jesus Jews).

after believing (“believing”, Gk. “pisteusasin”, is a first aorist participle in the dative case, meaning “upon completion of the act of believing”; instantaneous to believing).

11:18 has granted (has initiated ¹ because of His unmerited favor ³ toward, by convincing and giving) ^{4, 5}

repentance (see 2:38 note; change of thinking, here, so as to believe in the Lord Jesus Christ).

to life (brachylogy – eternal, spiritual life) ^{3, 4, 5}

11:19 the word (the gospel, vss. 1, 14, 20; 10:43).

11:21 the hand of the Lord (anthropomorphism and metaphor – for the power of God) ^{4, 5, 11}

turned to the Lord (ellipsis – Jesus ⁵, in allegiance, as the true God ⁷)

11:22 ears (idiom – attention).

11:23 grace (undeserved favor in granting these Greeks salvation).

with resolute heart (that they with firm determination).

11:24 full of the Holy Spirit and of faith (see 6:5 note).

brought to the Lord (became believers).

11:26 Christians (belonging to the party of Christ ¹; people who follow Christ ^{5, 7, 8}) ²

11:27 prophets (those who speak out the counsel of God with clearness, energy, and authority which sprang from the consciousness of speaking in God’s name, and having received a direct message from God to deliver ¹²; people who are authorized to speak for God ⁹; one in whom the message from God springs forth; one to whom and through whom God speaks, Num. 12:2, 6; Amos 3:7, 8; 1 Sam. 9:9 ^{8, 10, 11, 13} under direct inspiration of the Holy Spirit ^{2, 4})

11:28 all over the world (hyperbole – the Roman Empire) ^{1, 3, 5, 7}

11:29 disciples (Christians, vs. 26).

the brethren (Hebrew Christians).

11:30 elders (see 14:23 note).

12:1 laid hands on (idiom – arrested).

12:3 the Feast of Unleavened Bread (a 7 day spring feast that followed immediately after the Passover ^{1, 3, 5} that were holy days ²)

12:4 the Passover (the Jewish religious, memorial day commemorating the historic day in Ex. 12, when the destroying angel “passed over” the homes of the Israelites, which were identified by the blood of a lamb sprinkled on the doorposts ^{9, 13}. Technically, it’s the day before the 7 days of unleavened bread, but here, it’s used interchangeably with the unleavened bread week ^{2, 8}; the combined 8 day festival, the Passover itself followed by the 7 days of unleavened bread ^{1, 3, 5, 7})

12:8 gird yourself (fasten the article of clothing around your undergarment) ⁷

cloak (a loose outer garment) ⁷

12:11 came to himself (idiom – awakened to the reality of what was happening).

the hand of (metonymy – the power of) ¹¹

the hand of Herod (synecdoche – Herod).

12:15 out of your mind (idiom – imagining things ²; mad/crazy ^{3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 11}).

his angel (guardian angel ^{2, 7}, e.g., Dan. 10:21; Matt. 18:10; they believed that an angel was capable of assuming the bodily appearance of the human being whom he protected) ^{1, 5, 8}

12:17 James (Jesus’ half-brother; see 1:14; Matt. 13:55) ^{1, 2, 5, 6, 7}

the brethren (the other Christians of the church in Jerusalem).

12:18 no small disturbance (litotes – a big disturbance).

12:19 led away (ellipsis – to execution because by Roman law, a guard who allowed a prisoner to escape became liable to the same penalty as the escaped prisoner would have suffered) ^{2, 5}

12:20 one accord (same mind/thinking, that being to gain king Herod’s favor) ⁷

chamberlain (a chief officer in the household of a king).

12:23 glory (praise, credit)

worms (intestinal worms while still alive, but then) ⁷

12:24 the word of the Lord (metonymy – the gospel, 10:38-43 with 11:1; also see 6:7 note) ^{4, 5}

to grow and be multiplied (metaphor – increased and spread, e.g., 13:49 ¹, by way of new believing converts added and then also evangelizing ⁴)

13:1 tetrarch (the king or governor of the fourth part of a province; here, it’s Herod Antipas. See Lk. 3:1 for the others.).

13:2 ministering to (worshipping ^{1, 7}; ellipsis – by performing the ministries of the church ^{3, 5}; by teaching, preaching, and praying ^{4, 7}) ⁸ Similar to Matt. 25:35-40.

fasting (Old Testament fasts usually lasted from sunrise to sunset. They might be partial fasts, abstaining from meat or other foods rather than from all foods, as the Hebrew word “sum” means “to abstain from food”. In the OT, fasts are religious in character and never to lose weight. Four common reasons for fasting: (1) to express depth of feeling, 1 Sam. 31:13; (2) to underline the seriousness of personal (Neh. 1:4) and national (Jer. 36:1-10) appeals to God in times of deep trouble; (3) to show true repentance, Jonah 3:5-10; (4) and to express the solemn character of the Day of Atonement, Lev. 16:29, 31; 23:26-32, by denying self. In Jesus’ day the religious Jews expressed their zeal by fasting each Monday and Thursday, Lk. 18:12. But it is one’s heart attitude and the focus of attention on God that make fasting acceptable and helpful. It’s an adjunct/addition to worship, Acts 13:2, but is not taught in the Epistles ⁹. In the Christian Church, it was frequently joined by prayer in order that the mind, unencumbered with earthly matter, might devote itself with less distraction to the contemplation of divine things ¹⁰)

the work (ellipsis – of evangelism; preaching the gospel, e.g., 13:23, 32-34, 47; 14:7, 15, 21).

called (summoned; sovereignly chosen).

13:3 laid their hands on them (symbolized approval of the mission ^{2, 7}; it identified the church with their ministry and acknowledged God’s direction for them ¹; symbol of commissioning, with the church’s blessing ^{5, 7}. See 6:6 note.)

13:5, 7 the word of God (the gospel; see 6:7; 12:24; 17:2, 3, 18; 18:5).

13:8 the faith (metonymy – the gospel ^{4, 5, 6}, from accepting it. See 6:7).

13:9 filled with (metaphor – Gk. word “plestheis” meaning “completely under the influence of”) ¹⁴

13:10 full of (metaphor – Gk. word “pleres” meaning “abounding in”)

all (Gk. word “pantos” meaning “all kinds of”) ¹

son of (idiom – meaning “like or resembling” ^{4, 7} “and belongs to” ^{15, p. 833})

make crooked the straight ways (metaphor – distort the truth ^{1, 5}; lead people astray from ³; distort or misrepresent the right ways of Christ ^{4, 7})

13:11 the hand of the Lord (see 11:21 note).

a mist and a darkness fell upon him (an inflammation of the eye that gives it a cloudy appearance ²; a blindness ^{1, 4, 5})

13:12 believed (ellipsis – their message, the gospel).

13:14 the Sabbath day (the seventh day of the week ^{4, 9, 11}; Saturday).

13:15 reading (ellipsis – sections of).

the Law (here, it means the Pentateuch ^{1, 5, 6}, which are the first 5 books of the Old Testament)

the Prophets (metonymy – the inspired writings/books of the Old Testament prophets ^{5, 11}; the OT books other than the Pentateuch ¹)

Brethren (fellow Hebrews).

13:16 who fear God (Gentile converts to Judaism, vs. 43) ⁵

13:17 fathers (Hebrew/Jewish patriarchs ⁵).

uplifted arm (anthropomorphism and metaphor – display of power ²; mighty power ⁵; Ex. 6:6; Psa. 136:10-15)

13:19 four hundred and fifty years (oppression in Egypt for 400 years, wilderness sojourn for 40 years, and conquest of Canaan under Joshua for 10 years) ¹

13:22 will do all My will – (in spite of committing adultery and murder indirectly, David did do all God’s purpose for his life, 13:36).

13:23 according to promise (Psa. 132:11; 2 Sam. 7:16; Isa. 11:1-10; Jer. 23:5f ⁷ that the messianic deliverer/king would come from the family of David) ⁵

13:24 baptism of repentance (a sign expressing that the person had repented ⁴ or changed his mind and life ⁷ regarding sinful living to that of living holy in anticipation of the coming Messiah, Matt. 3:2, 8, 11)

13:25 the sandals of whose feet I am unworthy to untie (idiom – in whose lowest service I’m unworthy to be employed ⁴, Jn. 1:27 ¹)

13:26 sons of (descendants of) ^{9, 11}

13:29 all that was written (ellipsis – in the Old Testament prophecies) ⁵

13:32 promise (ellipsis – of a Messiah ⁴, the Son of David ⁵, and King ¹, Psa. 2:6, 7; Dan. 9:25, 26; Zech. 9:9; Deut. 18:15).

fathers (Jewish ancestors).

13:33 raised up (sent or brought to appear in history) ^{2, 5, 7}

Son (metaphor – in position or role ⁹ as Messiah to the world ²; as King, Psa. 2:6, 7; Lk. 23:3).

begotten Thee (metaphor – constituted/appointed/set up/made as Son and/or King ¹⁴; publicly declared Jesus as His, Matt. 3:17; 17:5).

13:36 fell asleep (euphemism – died).

fathers (ancestors).

13:39 freed from all things (absolved from all charges of the law ³; justified from all guilt and sin ^{4, 5}).

Law of Moses (Old Testament commandments/laws).

13:43 grace (favor).

13:45 filled with (metaphor – boiling with ⁷; moved by ¹).

blaspheming (talking abusively against) ^{1, 2, 5, 7}

13:46 word of God (the gospel of salvation, vs. 47).

13:47 as a light (simile – as a revelator, Lk. 2:32 ^{5, 7}).

bring salvation (ellipsis – through preaching the gospel, 14:7, 21)

13:48 glorifying (honoring ^{4, 10, 11}; giving a high valuation to ⁹; praising ^{10, 11})

had been appointed (had been assigned/arranged ⁷ /elected ¹; ordained ³ /predestined ^{2, 4, 5}; enrolled ⁵; it’s the cause of believing, not the effect of believing ^{3, 4, 7})

believed (ellipsis – trusted in the gospel of Jesus Christ) ^{2, 4, 5}

13:49 the word of the Lord (the gospel; see 6:7; 11:1; 17:2, 3, 18; 18:5).

13:51 shook off the dust of their feet (Matt. 10:14, indicating the breaking off of all interaction or discourse between them ^{2, 5, 7, 8}; an expression, protest, gesture, or ceremony signifying that of having nothing more to do with and detestation of them ^{4, 7, 8})

13:52 filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit (zeugma – abounding in joy and completely under the influence of the Holy Spirit ¹⁴; see 6:5 note).

14:1 believed (ellipsis – in the gospel of Jesus Christ).

14:2 disbelieved (Gk. “apeitheo”, literally meaning “did not obey”, referring to the gospel; see 5:32 note).

brethren (believers).

14:3 the word of His grace (metonymy – the gospel ^{3, 4, 5}; also see vss. 7, 15, 21; 17:2, 3, 18; 18:5; 20:21, 24)

signs and wonders (see 2:19 note).

by their hands (synecdoche – by them)

14:13 garlands (wreaths to be worn on the head).

14:14 apostles (Gk. “apostoloi” – see 1:2 note. There are different kinds of apostles: (1) those personally chosen and sent out by Jesus Christ to be His witnesses and who had seen the resurrected Christ, which includes the original 12, Lk. 6:13-16; Jn. 15:16; Acts 1:8 and Saul/Paul, Acts 26:15-18; 1 Cor. 15:5-8; (2) and then there are those who were either sent out by the Holy Spirit and/or the church, like Barnabas, Acts 13:2-4; 14:14, Andronicus and Junias, Rom. 16:7, Epaphroditus, Phil. 2:25, and others, 2 Cor. 8:23. ¹¹ The spiritual gift of apostle, 1 Cor. 12:28, refers to the original 12 minus Judas and to the addition of Paul, as there are only 12 names of apostles of the Lamb/Jesus on the wall of the heavenly city, Jerusalem, plus they had to have seen the resurrected Christ to qualify as an apostle, 1 Cor. 9:1, and be personally commissioned by Jesus. Therefore, the gift of apostle ended in the 1^st century AD.).

14:15 vain things (worthless, man-made gods, vs. 13) ¹⁵

14:16 He permitted (only when God permits does mankind have the freedom to choose what he wants to do, but even then the non-Christian can only choose non-spiritual, non-good, or amoral things, Rom. 3:10-12; 1 Cor. 2:14. See 4:28 note.).

14:17 without witness (Everyone world-wide knows that there is one, good, eternally powerful, Creator, vs. 17; Rom. 1:19, 20; Psa. 19:1-4, and if anyone who never hears specifically about Jesus would fear/worship/believe in this Creator God and do what he knows is God’s will or what’s right, then God would accept that person, Acts 10:35; Jn. 9:31; Rev. 11:18; 14:6, 7. The ability to do God’s will or what’s right and fear/believe in God comes from God, e.g., Jer. 24:7; 1 Ki. 18:37; 2 Chron. 30:12; Haggai 1:14; Ezra 1:1, 2, 5; 6:22; 7:21, 27; Prov. 21:1; 16:9; Rom. 11:30 with Heb. 11:1, 2, 4, 7, 31; Josh. 2:1, 9-11; Eph. 2:8; Acts 14:27; 3:16; 16:14; 11:18; Phil. 2:13. Their acceptance by God is ultimately because of Jesus’ death for their sins, even if they don’t realize it, 2 Tim. 1:9.).

14:20, 21 disciples (converts to Christianity).

14:22 strengthening (fortifying/making firm/building up by warning them of hard times to come and by the promise of entering Christ’s glorious, future, earthly kingdom) ^{1, 3, 4, 7}

souls (wills/resolve ⁴)

the faith (their Christianity, as in 1 Tim. 5:8 ⁷; or, their Christian witness ⁵)

tribulations (hard times ^{1, 5}; suffering ³; persecution ⁷)

kingdom of God (see 1:3 note).

14:23 elders (spiritual leaders of churches, 1 Tim. 5:17 ^{2, 4, 5, 8}, whose qualifications are found in Titus 1:5-9; 1 Tim. 3:1-7. “Elder” is the Jewish name and “bishop” the Greek name for the same person. ⁸ These groups of believers in various cities already constituted churches before they ever had elders) ⁷

commended (entrusted) ⁷

14:25 the word (the gospel; see vss. 7, 15, 21; 17:2, 3, 18).

14:26 the work (ellipsis – of preaching the gospel; see 13:2 note).

14:27 the church (the believers/Christians).

opened a door of faith (metaphor – given access/entrance into the kingdom of God through faith ^{3, 7}; inclined or given the wills or hearts to believe/accept/receive the gospel, 16:14) ⁴

15:1 some men (Notice that they are not called disciples, brethren, Christians, saints, chosen, called, or believers, that’s because they appear to be Judaizers, false brethren ³) ^{6, 7}

brethren (Gentile Christians).

be saved (idiom – have Messianic salvation, which salvation denied the efficacy of the work of Christ) ⁷

15:2 dissension (disagreement).

15:3 conversion (ellipsis – to Christianity).

brethren (Christians).

15:5 certain ones of the sect of the Pharisees (Judaizers were a group of Jews who were confused about the gospel, as they added works of the Old Testament law to faith in Jesus as the Christ, both for salvation and for Christian living, Phil. 3:2, 3; Gal. 2:3-5, 16; 3:2-5. The OT rite of circumcision was of special concern to them. They insisted that it was necessary for salvation/justification. They didn’t omit faith in Christ but added works of the flesh. Circumcision was a sign of the covenant between God and the Jews, not between God and Gentiles or Christians, Gen. 17:10. They are false teachers. ¹ – Dr. J. Muller, The New International Commentary on the NT, Philippians, p. 106; Dr. A. Greenway, The Epistle to the Philippians, p. 49; Dr. W. Hendriksen, New Testament Commentary, Philippians, pp. 150, 151). These Judaizers are called “the false circumcision” (false people of God) in Phil. 3:2 and “false brethren” (false believers, not true Christians) in Gal. 2:4 ^{3, 4, 6, 7}. They insisted that Gentiles become Jews in order to become Christians ^{2, 7}. Paul condemned these who preached a different gospel, Gal. 1:6-9. They are not saved because salvation is by grace alone, vs. 11; Eph. 2:8, 9; Rom. 11:6; 3:28; 4:5, 6, 9-16; 6:23, not grace plus works or Law of Moses keeping.

had believed (ellipsis – that Jesus was/is the Christ/Messiah ^{2, 4}, but were Judaizers, false brethren ^{3, 6, 7}, who clung to the Law of Moses as a requirement for salvation).

Law of Moses (see 5:34 note).

15:7 early days (ellipsis – of the church , in Acts 10, which is about 10 to 12 years prior to this council of AD. 49) ^{1, 5, 7}

by my mouth the Gentiles should hear the word (i.e., Cornelius and group, 10:19 – 11:1) ^{1, 2}

15:8 them … us (believing Gentiles … believing Jews).

15:9 us and them (believing Jews and believing Gentiles, vs. 7).

cleansing (forgiving).

hearts (metaphor – the very core of their being) ^{9, 11}

faith (ellipsis – in the gospel of Jesus Christ alone for salvation, 10:43; 13:38, 39) ⁵

15:10 the test (see how far you can go ¹; being provoked ³; calling into question a decision of God’s ^{4, 7}).

neck (synecdoche or metaphor – lives)

disciples (Gentile believers) ¹

a yoke (metaphor – obligation ¹ and burden) ^{2, 3, 4, 5, 15}

our fathers (ancestors/forefathers) ⁵

we (Jews/Hebrews).

15:11 we believe (i.e., apostles and elders, vs. 6).

we are saved (i.e., believing Jews).

saved (from the penalty of sin unto a position of holiness; given eternal life in the kingdom of heaven). To be forgiven of your sins by God is to be saved, and this is obtained by grace through faith, vss. 9, 11; Eph. 2:8, 9, and not faith plus Law/Old Testament commandment keeping, Gal. 2:16.

grace (undeserved favor).

they (believing Gentiles).

15:13 James (Jesus’ half-brother and leader of the Jerusalem church) ^{1, 2, 3, 5, 7}

15:14 Simeon (Peter, vs. 7).

for His name (for Himself; or ellipsis – for bringing honor/glory/praise to Himself/God ^{3, 4, 5})

15:15 the Prophets (the OT Jewish prophets of which Amos is a representative)¹

15:16 I (God through Jesus)⁵

return (second coming at the beginning of the Millennium)⁵

15:17 called by My name (Jewish idiom – worship Me ⁷; are Mine, vs. 14, believers in Me).

15:19 trouble (ellipsis – by demanding that they get circumcised and keep the Law of Moses, vs. 5) ^{2, 4}

turning to God (metaphor – believing in God in Christ) ⁴

15:20 abstain from (ellipsis – not for the purpose of earning salvation, but to not offend Jewish/Hebrew believers ¹ and be able to fellowship with them ^{2, 3, 5}).

things contaminated by idols (metaphor – food sacrificed to idols, vs. 29; Rev. 2:14, 20, and therefore, impure/unfit ceremonially – the use of an idol’s temple for banquets and celebrations, as in 1 Cor. 10:14-22 ¹; or, meat purchased in the market places that had been sacrificed in pagan temples to heathen deities. Eating this meat offended Jews, even Hebrew Christians, because they viewed it as taking part in the worship of idols ^{2, 3, 8}) ⁴

what is strangled (idiom – meat whose blood had not been drained, Gen. 9:4; Lev. 17:10-14, and was offensive to Jewish brethren) ^{1, 2, 3, 5, 8}

from blood (brachylogy – eating blood as a food because it offended Jewish believers and would hinder the fellowship of Gentiles with Hebrews, Lev. 17:10-14) ^{1, 2, 3, 4}

15:21 those (Jews)¹

him (Moses, his words, the Law of Moses) ^{5, 15}

15:22 with the whole church (It appears that the Judaizers at least passively accepted the decision/judgment of the apostles and elders regarding not imposing circumcision and the Mosaic Law upon these Gentile Christians. If they hadn’t, the elders and apostles would have had to apply Titus 3:10 and/or Rom. 16:17, 18. Meanwhile, they were applying 2^nd Tim. 2:24-26.).

brethren (believers in the Jerusalem church).

15:23 brethren (believers in Jesus Christ).

15:24 some of our number (Judaizers who were among the Jerusalem church ² who were false teachers ⁴ or false brethren, Gal. 2:4; Phil. 3:2; an unauthorized party who belonged to the Jerusalem church ^{3, 5}; see 15:5 note) ^{7, 8} Notice that they are not called brethren, disciples, believers, saints, chosen, called, or Christians.

souls (minds) ^{2, 4, 7, 8}

15:25 one mind (the same thinking; unanimous conclusion ⁷; ellipsis – the apostles and elders were in unanimity regarding what it took to be saved and how to act as Gentile believers among people who come from a Jewish background, vss. 11-20; 16:4).

15:26 the name of (the person of ^{1, 4}; metonymy – preaching the true gospel of ^{4, 5}).

15:28 essentials (ellipsis – to encourage fellowship and unity between believing Gentiles and believing Jews, not as requirements for salvation).

15:29 do well (ellipsis – in encouraging fellowship and unity between Gentile and Jewish believers).

15:32, 33 brethren (Gentile believers).

15:36 brethren (believers).

the word of the Lord (the gospel; see 6:7; 11:1; 17:2, 3, 18; 18:5; 20:21, 24).

15:38 should not take him along who had deserted (John Mark, 13:13)

to the work (ellipsis – of evangelism, vs. 36 ^{4, 7}; the work of 14:26 is seen as evangelism in 14:7, 15, 21; 13:29-39, 46-49). Unfaithfulness is seen by Paul as a disqualifying factor in being part of a missionary team. Barnabus probably wanted John Mark to go because he was his cousin, Col. 4:10.

15:40 being committed by the brethren (evidence that the church at Antioch thought that Paul was correct in his decision to not take John Mark, but Silas instead. Therefore, they publicly supported/backed/stood behind and encouraged Paul and Silas and prayed for the success of their ministry through the Lord’s help, 13:3 ^{4, 7, 8})

grace (favor and blessings).

15:41 strengthening the churches (ellipsis – spiritually in the faith, 16:5, by teaching correct and appropriate doctrine, 15:32).

16:1 disciple (believer).

16:2 brethren (believers).

16:3 circumcised him because of the Jews (the Jews to whom Paul would be preaching the gospel would be offended if a man with a Jewish mother, because by Jewish law Timothy was considered a Jew, was uncircumcised, and the reception of the gospel could be unnecessarily hindered. It was performed for practical reasons rather than as a religious rite ⁵) ^{1, 2, 3, 7}. This differs from Titus’ situation in Gal. 2:3-5, where Judaizers (15:1, 5) wanted Gentile believers to keep the Mosaic Law to be saved, and so Paul refused to have Titus circumcised. ⁵ See 7:8 note.

his father was a Greek (apparently Timothy was not circumcised because of his father’s influence) ¹

16:4 the decrees (see 15:28, 29)

16:5 the churches (the believers).

the faith (their Christian beliefs and convictions).

16:6 the word (the gospel; see vss. 10, 17; 6:7; 11:1; 17:2, 3, 18; 18:5; 20:21, 24) ⁵

Asia (the west coast province of Asia Minor; present day western Turkey).

16:9 a vision (while awake ³; see 2:17 note).

16:10 we (Luke seems to have joined Paul’s missionary journey at this point ^{1, 2}. He was a follower of Paul’s, Col. 4:14; 2 Tim. 4:11; Philemon 1:24)

16:13 Sabbath day (Saturday).

16:14 the Lord opened her heart to respond (metaphor – God’s sovereignty in and election/choosing of some to salvation ¹; responding to the truth/gospel originates as a work of God’s grace, not man’s will ^{3, 6}, Jn. 1:12, 13; God opened her – and by way of synecdoche, her household’s – understanding ⁷ and her will in His grace so that she and they would, Jn. 6:37; 10:16, receive the gospel ⁴)

16:15 her household (synopsis – her household had obviously believed the gospel prior to being baptized, similar to what happened in vss. 31-33.).

16:16 a spirit of divination (a demon, Python spirit – the god Apollo was supposedly embodied in a python snake, and when possessed by him, a person could predict the future – by which she predicted the future) ^{1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8}

16:17 bond-servants (loyal, humble, life-time servants) ¹²

the Most High God (the Supreme Being) ^{5, 7}

16:18 in the name of (metonymy – in the authority of ⁵; in the power of ⁴) ¹¹

come out of her (because the gospel could be damaged by an association with a demon-possessed person) ^{1, 6}

16:20 our city (metonymy – the people of this city)

being Jews (these Philippians did not know the difference between Jews and Christians. ¹ And recently, as seen in 18:2, Claudius Caesar had decreed the Jews expelled from Rome. So the slave-masters appealed to race prejudice.) ⁷

16:21 not lawful for us to accept (proselytization of Roman citizens was not permitted) ^{1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8}

being Romans (brachylogy – Roman citizens) ^{1, 2, 5}

16:29 called for lights (quite possibly, from his household members who lived above the prison, see vs. 34 note).

16:30 saved (brachylogy – spiritually, eternally, vss. 17, 31) ^{3, 7}

16:31 Believe in the Lord Jesus (trust in Jesus as the Lord/God/Supreme One ^{1, 5}, Savior ³, Messiah/Christ ⁴; see vs. 32).

be saved (justified ¹; rescued from eternal ruin and brought to eternal life and blessedness ⁴).

you and your household (whoever would trust in Jesus as Lord and Savior ¹; the jailor’s family members, who were there, had to also believe to be saved, which they did, vs. 34. By synecdoche, the jailor represented his family.).

16:32 the word of the Lord (a fuller explanation of the gospel; see vss. 6, 10, 17; 6:7; 11:1; 17:2, 3, 18; 18:5; 20:21, 24) ^{3, 4, 5, 7}

16:34 brought them into (Gk. “anagagon” – brought them up into from a lower to a higher place ^{5, 7, 11, 14}. It looks as if the jailer’s house was above the prison ⁷. Apparently the baptism took place in the pool or tank in which he bathed Paul and Silas or the basin in the court for receiving rain water or the bath found within the walls of the prison ⁷.)

believed in God (referring to Lord/God Jesus, vs. 31).

16:37 Romans (see vs. 21 note).

16:40 brethren (believers).

17:3 suffer (euphemism – die, be crucified).

17:4 God-fearing (one-true-God worshipping ⁴, 16:14 ¹; 18:7).

17:5 the city (metonymy – the people of the city).

17:6 brethren (other believers).

the world (hyperbole – meaning, other provinces of the Roman Empire) ^{1, 5, 7}

17:7 decrees of Caesar (forbidding predictions or inquiries affecting affairs of state or the emperor’s personal well-being, such as promoting another king. E.g., see 1 Thes. 1:9, 10) ⁵

17:9 pledge (bond/financial deposit that Paul and Silas would leave the city) ^{1, 5}

17:11 noble-minded (open-minded) ²

the word (the gospel; see 6:7; 11:1; 17:2, 3, 18; 18:5; 20:21, 24) ⁴

17:13 the word of God (see vs. 11 note).

17:14 brethren (believers).

17:16 his spirit (his mind) ³

provoked (greatly distressed ¹; deeply moved /concerned ^{2, 4}; revolted ³; indignation ^{4, 5}; irritated ⁷)

17:17 in the synagogue … in the market place … with those who happened to be present (for years now, since chapter 13, Paul and the others who evangelized did so to complete strangers. They didn’t wait to build friendships “to earn the right to be heard”. “Friendship evangelism” is both a cowardly cop-out as well as unbiblical. John 4 with Jesus witnessing to the woman at the well is often used as an example of friendship evangelism, but actually, it’s an example of stranger, aggressive/initiative evangelism.).

17:18 Epicurean philosophers (thought and taught that the chief end of man was pleasure and happiness, attained by avoiding excesses and the fear of death, by seeking tranquility and freedom from pain, and by loving mankind. If gods exist, they don’t become involved in human events ^{1, 2, 5, 7}; the soul was material and annihilated at death ⁸ no after-life ⁷, and this led to gross sensualism ^{7, 8})

Stoic philosophers (pantheistic in view, i.e., the worship of all gods; they felt a great “Purpose” was directing history. Man’s responsibility was to fit himself and align himself with this Purpose through tragedy and triumph, which often resulted in inordinate pride and self-sufficiency. ^{1, 3, 5, 7} The happy life was lived in accordance with nature. Since God was in all people, all men were brothers. ² Pleasure was not good and pain not evil. Everything governed fate, and there was no universal or perpetual immortality of the soul ⁸)

17:19 Areopagus (literally, hill of Ares. It was a meeting place of the Council of Areopagus, the supreme body for judicial and legislative matters in Athens. In the Apostolic Age, its power had been reduced to oversight over religion and education) ^{1, 2, 5, 7}

17:20 ears (metonymy – attention; mind/thinking).

17:23 I also found an altar … ‘TO AN UNKNOWN GOD’ (Sometimes Paul used an object or topic familiar to his audience to make a smooth transition into preaching the gospel ⁷).

17:24 The God … is Lord of heaven and earth (The one God who made the Universe is Supreme Ruler over all. ¹ He’s not just one of the 30,000 gods of the Athenians who owned, possessed, or ruled various parts of it ⁷).

17:25 as though He needed anything (We are not doing God any favors by serving Him in evangelism or anything else, as He will accomplish His purposes/will with or without us. Rather, we are the ones who benefit both here and hereafter by obeying God and serving Him.).

17:26 one (ellipsis – man, Adam ¹; or, common source ^{2, 3} or origin ⁷) ^{4, 5} Adam and Eve had the genetic make-up from which all races originated – One Blood, Dr. Ken Ham.

having determined their appointed times … (having sovereignly decreed/prearranged the history or periods or existence and boundaries/exact places for the nations) ^{1, 3, 4, 8}

17:27 seek God (to enter into or pursue to secure a relationship with God ¹¹; God created mankind to focus attention on Him, worship, and obey Him; give priority to and follow after Him ⁹; e.g., Dan. 9:3-10)

grope for Him (metaphor – the spiritually darkened heathen mind blindly feeling for God ⁷, Rom. 1:21; Deut. 28:15, 29)

not far from each one of us (ellipsis – as He is omnipresent ⁴ and can be seen, some of His attributes, in all creation, Rom. 1:20; Acts 14:17; Psa. 19:1-4).

17:28 His offspring (metaphor – God’s creations, dependent upon Him) ^{1, 2, 4, 5}

17:29 the Divine Nature (i.e., God).

17:30 overlooked (patiently endured, 14:16) ^{1, 2, 3, 4, 5}

the times of ignorance (ellipsis – of fuller knowledge of God ⁵ in Christ ⁷ during the Gentile history of idolatry ⁴, when all they had was the general revelation of God’s creation ¹)

repent (change their thinking as to who the true God is and wants/expects, which includes Jesus and the gospel ^{5, 6}).

17:31 a Man (brachylogy – for the Son of Man, referring to the Messianic King/Judge of Dan. 7:13, 14 and Matt. 25:31-46; Jn. 5:22; Jesus) ^{1, 5, 7}. Notice how the gospel is tailored to different audiences. To Gentiles, it’s believing in the Lord (Supreme One; God) Jesus and all that is associated with this word of the Lord (16:30-34; 1 Cor. 15:1-4). To other polytheistic Gentiles, it’s repenting from their polytheistic, idolatrous thinking/beliefs and thinking/believing correctly about Jesus/God being the One Supreme Lord/God/Divine Nature Creator and Judge of the Universe, who died and was resurrected, and is to be sought (17:18-31; 14:11-17). To Jews or Jewish-influenced, God-fearing or proselytized Gentiles, it’s explaining and giving evidence that Jesus is the Christ (the OT prophesied One, who was to die, be buried, and resurrected and set up a kingdom), so that they believe this if they were ignorant of this, or they repent (change their thinking) if they thought wrongly about who Jesus is/was and what it takes to be forgiven of their sins (2:22-38; 3:13-21; 4:8-12; 5:30, 31; 8:5, 12, 14; 9:20, 22; 10:2, 36-43 with 11:17, 18; 13:14-39; 15:7-11; 17:1-4; 18:4, 5, 28; 19:8; 20:24, 25; 28:23, 31).

18:4 reasoning (to try to persuade someone to believe something through reasoning, logic, or appealing to one’s mind through explanation is not wrong, but biblical, e.g., Isa. 1:18; Acts 11:4; 18:19, 24, 26, 28; 19:8, 9; 28:23).

18:5 the word (that Jesus is the Christ; the gospel) ^{1, 2, 5}

18:6 blasphemed (spoke reproachfully of Christ, and in Him of God Himself) ⁴

shook out his garments (same meaning as the “dust” in 13:51 note) ^{1, 4, 5, 7}

Your blood be upon your own heads (metaphor – the responsibility for your destruction is your own ^{1, 4}; you will bear the guilt for your own sin ^{3, 4})

am clean (metaphor – have done my part; fulfilled my responsibility ^{4, 5, 7}; free from blame ⁵; or, ellipsis – from the blood of your souls ^{4, 7})

18:8 heard (ellipsis – the gospel).

18:9 a vision (see 2:17 note).

speaking (ellipsis – My word).

18:10 many people (ellipsis – predestined people ⁴; or idiom – chosen people of God; the Gk. word “laos”, translated “people”, is often used of God’s people Israel. Christians were to temporarily take the place of His Chosen People, the Jews, Rom. 11:11-21 ¹; many people elected, appointed, or chosen to eternal life by God, Acts 13:48 ^{3, 7}) ⁵

18:11 the word of God (the gospel and edifying teaching for believers) ⁴

18:12 one accord (unanimity) ^{1, 4}

18:13 the law (brachylogy – Roman law, as it was against Roman law to teach a new religion to Roman citizens) ^{1, 2, 5, 7}

18:15 names (ellipsis – as to whether Jesus should be called Christ/Messiah) ⁷

look after it yourselves (idiom – settle it among yourselves) ^{4, 5}

18:18 brethren (believers).

hair cut … vow (a Nazirite vow, an Old Testament act of thanksgiving or of dedication to God, Num. 6:1-21, during which time – probably at least a year and a half, which began before the Lord gave him the vision in vss. 9, 10 – Paul let his hair grow, and now the vow was over, so he got his hair cut ^{1, 2, 4, 5}; or, it could have been a private vow for some mercy received or thanks given ^{3, 7, 8})

18:19 reasoned (reasoning, logic, and use of one’s mind in the work of the Lord is not anti-spiritual or anti-Holy Spirit, but rather God-ordained and exemplified, e.g., Isa. 1:18; Lk. 24:27, 32; Acts 17:2, 3; 18:4, 9, 28; 19:8, 9; 28:23; 8:35, 36)

18:23 strengthening (see 15:41; 16:5).

18:24 mighty (metaphor – skillfully knowledgeable in the use of) ^{3, 4, 7, 8}

Scriptures (metonymy – Old Testament) ^{1, 3}

18:25 the way of the Lord (metonymy – the Messiahship of Jesus in fulfillment of OT prophecies, excluding His death and resurrection) ^{2, 6, 7}

fervent in spirit (spiritually enthusiastic ^{5, 7, 8}; idiom – exceedingly zealous ^{15, p. 832}).

baptism (ellipsis – of repentance; signifying a change of thinking about how they were living, to confess and turn from sin to righteousness in anticipation of the coming Messiah, which was later revealed to be Jesus, Jn. 1:25-34; Mk. 1:1-9).

18:26 the way of God more accurately (metonymy – the Messiahship of Jesus, which included His death, burial, and resurrection) ^{2, 6, 7}

18:27 brethren (believers).

disciples (converts to Christianity).

believed through grace (faith is an unearned gift and favor that God gives to some, 14:27; 3:16; Eph. 2:8 ^{3, 4}, i.e., His predestined ones, Rom. 8:29, 30; 2 Tim. 1:9; Eph. 1:4, 5, 11).

19:1 disciples (believers in a coming Messiah, vs. 3; Lk. 3:3-6, but not knowing that either it was Jesus, Lk. 3:15 or not knowing about His death and resurrection ⁷).

19:2 believed (ellipsis – John the Baptist’s message, vs. 3). See vs. 4 note.

19:3 John’s baptism (which was a sign/symbol of repentance, vs. 4) ¹

19:4 baptism of repentance (a baptism signifying a confession and forsaking of one’s sins in anticipation of the coming Messiah ⁴ they were to believe in, who they now found out was to be Jesus ⁷).

19:5 heard this (ellipsis – and believed it).

in the name of the Lord Jesus (in identification with; showing symbolically their spiritual union with the Lord Jesus Christ; or, on the authority of the Lord Jesus, Matt. 28:19. ⁷ See 8:16 note).

19:6 laid his hands upon (see 8:17 note).

speaking with tongues (Another aspect of showing that speaking in tongues was a sign of judgment upon unbelieving Israel is that Jerusalem and Israel/Palestine are no longer in the center of God’s program. For these believers in Jesus to receive the Holy Spirit and speak in tongues in Ephesus rather than in Israel/Palestine was to show that God was operating outside of the nation of Israel, where the capital of the Messianic Age was supposed to be located, Isa. 2. A new age had begun, the Church Age, and unbelieving Israel was being judged by being by-passed as the center of God’s program. Now that this was demonstrated, this experience of speaking in tongues after receiving the Holy Spirit shortly after believing in the gospel of the Jesus Christ didn’t need to be repeated again, and there’s no biblical record of it happening again; plus its purpose was completed by 70 AD). See 2:4 and 10:46 notes.

prophesying (see 2:17 note).

19:8 kingdom of God (see 1:3 note).

19:9 disobedient (unbelieving ^{2, 7}, refusing to repent, that is, to obey/believe in the gospel that Jesus is the Christ, 3:19).

the Way (Christianity/the Christian faith).

disciples (converts to Christianity).

School of Tyrannus (probably a public building or lecture hall by this name) ⁷

19:10 the word of the Lord (the gospel) ^{1, 2, 4, 5, 7}

19:13 exorcists (people who expel demons by commanding them to leave through the use of a formula or spell).

to name … the name of the Lord Jesus (to invoke/use as a charm or spell, the designation/word/name of Jesus) ^{1, 2, 5, 7}

19:17 the name of (metonymy – the person of)

19:18 coming (ellipsis – to Paul).

confessing and disclosing their practices (According to magical theory, the potency of a spell is bound up in its secrecy. If it’s divulged, it becomes ineffective. So these converted magicians/sorcerers/spiritists renounced their magical powers by rendering their spells inoperative.) ^{1, 2, 5}

19:19 fifty thousand (50,000 days’ wages or 137 years worth of wages or $4,110,000 if you made $30,000 per year).

19:20 the word of the Lord (the gospel, see vs. 10) ^{4, 5}

growing mightily (metaphor – spreading greatly) ^{1, 5}

prevailing (triumphing by gaining converts) ^{4, 5, 7}

19:21 in the spirit (either the Holy Spirit ⁵, or his human spirit/mind ⁷) ^{1, 2, 4}

19:22 ministered to (served) ¹¹

19:23 no small disturbance (litotes – a big disturbance, a riot) ^{1, 2, 7}

19:24 no little business (litotes – a big, very profitable or thriving business) ^{1, 2, 5}

19:27 all of Asia and the world (hyperbole – meaning, many cities of Asia and the civilized world ^{1, 3, 7}, some 33 places ^{2, 5})

19:28 filled with (wholly/completely/absolutely ⁴ feeling/experiencing/consumed with or controlled by).

Artemis (in Latin, Diana).

19:29 one accord (the same confused mob mentality) ⁷

19:30 disciples (believers).

19:31 Asiarchs (10 officers elected by cities in the province who celebrated at their own cost public games and festivals. They supervised the funds connected with the worship of the emperor and presided at games and festivals even when the services were to gods like Artemis.) ⁷

19:34 he was a Jew (at this point anti-Semitism took over) ¹

them all (the Ephesian Gentiles).

19:35 heaven (literally, Jupiter in Latin, Zeus in Greek, who was considered lord of the sky/heaven, and so by metonymy, heaven) ⁷

19:38 proconsuls (provincial governors).

19:40 accused of a riot (ellipsis – by the Roman government) ¹

20:1 disciples (believers).

20:4 accompanied by… (Notice that Paul was training men from different cities by their being with him).

20:6 the days of Unleavened Bread (7 day feast that followed the Passover, Abib/Nisan 14^th; see 12:3 note).

20:7 break bread (take the Lord’s Supper/communion ^{4, 5} after the common meal together ⁷; see 2:42 note ⁸).

20:10 fell upon him (metaphor – lay upon, as in 1 Kings 17:21; 2 Kings 4:34 ¹; as a sign, it represented the descent of the divine power upon the dead body for the putting of life into it again ⁴; suggests artificial respiration ⁵)

20:11 and eaten (the fellowship meal of which communion was a part) ^{1, 3, 4, 5, 6}

20:16 Asia (modern day western part of Turkey).

day of Pentecost (see 2:1 note).

20:21 repentance toward God (to have a change of mind about living sinfully and instead, fear/worship the one, true God or direct our lives to God ^{3, 4, 9}; or, to change the mind from one of unbelief to one of belief in the one, true God ¹).

20:22 bound in spirit (metaphor – compelled by the Holy Spirit’s guidance ^{1, 3}, as in 16:6, on his own spirit ⁴; or, from a high sense of duty ^{7, 8}) ⁵

20:23 the Holy Spirit testifies (ellipsis – presumably through believers who had the gift of prophecy ^{1, 3, 4, 5}, as in 21:4, 10, 11)

bonds (metonymy – arrest and imprisonment in chains, 21:11, 33) ²

20:24 of any account as dear to myself (idiom – as something so valuable so as to selfishly keep or protect it) ^{4, 5, 8}

my course (my God-given purpose in life).

the gospel of the grace of God (the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ) ^{1, 5}

20:25 the kingdom (entering the Lord’s millennial reign on earth with salvation; see 1:3 note) ¹

20:26 innocent of (free of the responsibility for) ⁵

the blood (metaphor – the spiritual death of perishing souls) ⁴

all men (ellipsis – in Ephesus ¹, because “I was with you the whole time”, vs. 18).

20:27 the whole purpose of God (ellipsis – regarding the redemption of people through Jesus Christ) ^{3, 4, 5, 7}

20:28 on guard (metaphor – take care or attend to) ^{1, 4}

the flock (metaphor – the church of God ^{1, 5}; saints/Christians ⁴ in Ephesus).

shepherd (metaphor – feed spiritually ^{3, 6, 7} with wholesome doctrine and evangelical discipline ⁴, and tend, take care of and protect) ^{7, 8}

His own blood (Jesus’ ^{1, 3, 4, 5, 7}, as Jesus is God/Lord, 2:36).

20:29 savage wolves (metaphor – false teachers from outside the church) ^{1, 3, 4, 5, 7}

come in (infiltrate).

not sparing (ellipsis – from being injured or corrupted spiritually ³; or litotes – but devouring or destroying spiritually ^{3, 7})

20:30 among your own selves (people or leaders within your own church) ^{4, 5}

speaking perverse things (distorting the truth of the gospel and other doctrines ^{1, 4, 7}; speaking heresy ²)

the disciples (believers).

20:32 commend you to God (commit/entrust to God’s care ^{4, 5}; place/deposit you with God ⁷)

word of His grace (God’s word/message through the apostles’ teaching, in redeeming and sanctifying His people ^{5, 7} by grace).

build you up (ellipsis – spiritually) ⁵

the inheritance (ellipsis – in God’s/Christ’s kingdom, Eph. 5:5, in heaven ⁴, Col. 1:5, 12; Eph. 1:14 with 2:6; 1 Pet. 1:4)

those who are sanctified (i.e., God’s people ⁵; the heirs of glory/heaven ³; those born again ⁴; those separated by God to Himself).

20:33 coveted (selfishly wanted for myself).

20:34 these hands ministered to (by making tents to help support) ^{2, 5, 7}

20:37 kissed (both a cultural and Christian expression of love/affection for) ^{1, 10}

20:38 his face (synecdoche – him/Paul).

21:4 they (the prophets among the disciples/believers in the church at Tyre) ^{2, 3, 4, 5}

through the Spirit (ellipsis – who gave them the gift of prophecy, which revealed to them the dangers/suffering Paul would face, as in vs. 11, if he went. They, therefore, told him) ^{1, 2, 4, 5}

not to set foot (ellipsis – if he didn’t want to suffer. Paul wasn’t being disobedient by going ⁷, as the Holy Spirit was guiding him ⁵. See 19:21; 20:22).

21:7 brethren (believers).

21:8 one of the seven (brachylogy or ellipsis – who served food to the believing widows in Jerusalem, 6:2-5) ^{1, 2, 5}

21:13 breaking my heart (metaphor – making it emotionally hard on me, discouraging me ⁴; trying to soften or weaken my will /determination ^{2, 5, 7})

bound (arrested).

the name of (metonymy – the person of) ⁵

21:16 disciple (believer).

21:20 glorifying (praising).

brother (brachylogy – Christian).

believed (ellipsis – in Jesus as the Messiah).

the Law (keeping Jewish customs, vs. 21) ¹

21:21 forsake Moses (what Moses taught that came from God, e.g., circumcision) ^{5, 15}

the customs (brachylogy – Jewish ^{1, 3}; Old Testament ²)

21:23 under a vow (brachylogy – evidently, a Nazirite vow to dedicate themselves to the Lord, Num. 6:2) ^{1, 2, 4, 5, 7}

21:24 purify yourself (ellipsis – by association in sharing/taking the vow of dedication to the Lord with them and paying their expenses ⁷ and staying with them, as Jewish law required, until their vow expired, vs. 27) ⁸. Or, Paul’s purification may have been just a general one from ritual defilement, Num. 19:12. ⁵

pay their expenses (underwrite the expenses of their sacrifices, Num. 6:13-17) ^{1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 8}. If Paul took the Nazirite vow with them, then he apparently looked at the sacrifices as memorials of Christ’s death, which will be their significance in the Millennium, Ezek. 43:18 – 46:24; Mal. 1:11; 3:3, 4.

shave their heads (metonymy – the hair on their heads, Num. 6:5, 18) ⁸

the Law (of Moses, see 5:34 note).

21:25 meat sacrificed to idols … strangled (see 15:20 note).

21:26 purifying himself (see vs. 24. This was a matter of Jewish custom, not of salvation/justification or of sanctification, and so is not a contradiction to his teaching about the Gentiles and salvation, 15:2; 1 Cor. 9:20; Gal. 2:16) ^{1, 2, 5, 7}

the sacrifice (see Num. 6:13-17 for the purification offerings)

21:27 laid hands on (seized) ^{1, 7}

21:28 all men everywhere (hyperbole – a lot of people in a lot of cities; similar to 19:27)

our people (the Jews).

Law (ellipsis – of Moses) ^{5, 7}

this place (i.e., the temple) ^{5, 7}

defiled this holy place (ceremonially polluted or made unclean the Temple by bringing Gentiles in it, into the inner court, the court of Israel) ^{2, 5, 7}

21:40 Hebrew dialect (Jewish Aramaic) ^{1, 2, 5, 7}

22:1 Brethren (fellow Hebrews/Jews) ⁷

fathers (official representatives of the Jews, e.g., priests, rabbis) ⁷

22:3 fathers (i.e., Jewish ancestors) ⁵

22:4 this Way (the followers; see 9:2 note).

to the death (to their deaths, 26:10).

22:5 the brethren (our fellow Jews).

22:9 understand/hear [idiom – When the verb “hear” is followed by the accusative case (the direct object case), the meaning of “hear” is “to hear with understanding, with faith.]. ^{15, p. 829}

22:14 fathers (ancestors).

the Righteous One (Jesus Christ; see 7:52 note).

22:15 all (all kinds/races of)

22:16 wash away your sins (metaphor – refers to the “symbolism” of baptism, which is a picture of God’s inner work of washing away sin, 1 Pet. 3:18-21, ¹ by the blood of Christ ⁷, Rev. 1:5, not by water baptism.).

calling on His name (the Greek aorist participle “epikalesamenos” refers either to action which is simultaneous with or before that of the main verb, “wash”. Ellipsis or idiom – here, Paul’s calling on Christ’s name, the Righteous One, for salvation, Rom. 10:13, acknowledging Jesus as the Christ preceded his water baptism. The participle may be translated “having called on His name” ^{1, 3}. The washing away of sin is due to calling on the Lord’s name, acknowledging and believing in Him, for salvation. – Dr. C. Ryrie, A Survey of Bible Doctrine, p. 138; see 2:21 note). In NT Greek it reads, “Rising up, be baptized, and calling on His name, wash away your sins.”

22:23 throwing off … into the air (are expressions of intense anger or hostility) ^{1, 2, 4, 5, 7}

22:24 scourging (whipping; the whip consisting of leather straps/thongs weighted with rough pieces of metal or bone and attached to a stout wooden handle. It could kill or leave a person permanently crippled. This differed from the Jewish 39 lashes which used long-strapped whips.) ^{1, 5}

22:25 thongs (straps) ⁷

Roman (brachylogy – citizen, vs. 28).

23:1 Brethren (fellow Jews).

23:3 white-washed wall (metaphor – outwardly nice looking, but inwardly weak and deteriorating ¹; hypocrite ^{3, 4, 7}; a mud wall plastered over ⁴; a tottering wall whose precarious condition has been disguised by a generous coat of whitewash ^{2, 5})

in violation of the Law (it was against Jewish law to punish someone until proven guilty) ^{1, 5}

23:5 I was not aware … that he was high priest (either Paul is speaking ironically, meaning that he didn’t think a man who spoke like that in vs. 2 could possibly be the high priest, who himself violated the Law; or Paul didn’t know who actually spoke the words in vs. 2; or Paul didn’t really know, for various reasons, that Ananias was the high priest ^{1, 2, 5}. Since Paul was no longer under the Mosaic Law as a believer, he didn’t have to abide by Ex. 22:28 if he didn’t want to. And even during the time of the Law, prophets were exempt when speaking on God’s behalf, e.g., 1 Kings 18:18; Isa. 1:23; Ezek. 22:6, 7; Matt. 3:7; Ezra 9:2; Micah 3:1-11)

23:10 torn to pieces (idiom – fiercely attacked).

23:11 the Lord (i.e., Jesus) ^{5, 7}

23:23 third hour of the night (Jewish time; 9pm Roman time).

23:24 mounts (beasts for riding and carrying baggage ⁷; horses ⁵).

23:35 Herod’s Praetorium (governor’s official residence/palace) ^{5, 7}

24:2 providence (forethought) ⁷

24:5 dissension (partisan and contentious quarreling).

the world (hyperbole – many parts of the Roman Empire) ⁷

the sect of the Nazarenes (The attorney made Paul’s faith appear to be cultic and bizarre, heretical. ¹ The term was first applied to Jesus because His hometown was Nazareth. Now it’s applied to Jesus’ followers, Jewish Christians ⁵).

24:6 desecrate (treat irreverently).

24:7 with much violence (by force) ²

24:9 the Jews (the deputation from, group of people appointed to represent, the Sanhedrin) ⁵

24:12 synagogues (see 6:9 note).

24:14, 22 the Way (the Christian faith).

a sect (a schismatic, heretical religious, splinter group).

24:17 alms (donations for the poor Jewish Christians) ⁵

offerings (thank offerings for God’s blessing on his ministry) ¹

24:18 been purified (completed the Jewish sacrifices, in fulfillment of the vow of dedication to the Lord, which had gone on for 7 days, 21:27) ⁷

24:23 ministering (assisting in his needs) ²

24:25 righteousness, self-control, … (things Felix needed to hear, as he was on his third marriage and that he attained by breaking up his present wife’s former marriage, and his regime was marked by injustices) ¹

24:26 money (a bribe) ^{1, 2, 5, 7}

25:6 tribunal (judgment seat) ⁷

25:10 “I am standing before Caesar’s tribunal” (“I appeal to go before the supreme court of Caesar”, as a Roman citizen, vss. 11, 21) ^{2, 5}

25:24 all the people (hyperbole – a lot of people).

26:4 all Jews (i.e., all Paul’s contemporaries) ⁵

26:6 for the hope of the promise made by God to our fathers (vss. 7, 8; 24:15; 13:32. The hope of the resurrection from the dead and of the Messiah ^{3, 7}; of Israel’s future glory and blessing centering in the person of the Messiah. The resurrection of Jesus proved Him to be the Holy One and the Hope of Israel ^{5, 6})

26:7 twelve tribes (ellipsis – of Israel. Jacob’s sons, Gen. 35:22b-26; the people of our nation).

26:9 the name of (metonymy – the cause, movement, or followers of) ^{1, 2, 5}

26:10 saints (believers/Christians).

26:11 blaspheme (renounce or recant their faith in Jesus Christ ^{1, 2, 4}; to call Jesus accursed and apostatize ⁵)

26:14 It is hard for you to kick against the goads (metaphor – it’s futile to persecute the church ¹; proverb ⁷ or metaphor ⁸ – it’s painful to stifle the conviction or pricking of your conscience that maybe the Christian case/cause/belief is true ^{3, 5}, though you weren’t really sure, 1 Tim. 1:13. It was painful and futile to fight against the Lord and His church)

26:16 minister (servant/messenger) ^{5, 11}

26:18 to open their eyes (metaphor or ellipsis – spiritually; to be enlightened ^{2, 4} by preaching the gospel and their believing it).

darkness (metaphor – false ideas and beliefs and error ⁴).

light (metaphor and/or ellipsis – truth ⁴, in Christ ¹).

dominion of Satan (rulership ¹¹ of Satan, Eph. 2:2; 6:12).

inheritance ... sanctified (in God’s kingdom with those who have been set apart to God for salvation; see 20:32 note).

26:20 repent (change their thinking/beliefs about who Jesus/God are, their involvement in sin, and need for forgiveness ⁴).

turn to God (ellipsis – the true God in faith, to believe in Jesus as the Christ and Savior, vss. 22, 23; 9:15, 20, 22).

26:22 small and great (merism – everyone he could).

what the Prophets and Moses said was going to take place (e.g., Jesus’ suffering and resurrection, vs. 23; Isa. 50:6; 53:5-9; Psa. 22:16; 2:7; 16:10).

26:23 the first (ellipsis – to rise from the dead and not die again) ⁵

proclaim light (ellipsis – by pointing the way to salvation ⁵ in Himself/Christ, Jn. 8:12; 12:46; 10:9; Isa. 49:6).

26:26 done in a corner (idiom – secretly).

26:29 such as I am (a Christian) ^{1, 2, 4, 5, 7}

chains (ellipsis – manacles/shackles as a prisoner, on account of being a Christian or for proclaiming the gospel, 22:29) ^{2, 4}

27:1 we (16:10; 1:1; Lk. 1:3, referring to Luke and Paul ^{1, 3, 5} and Aristarchus, vs. 2) ^{2, 6, 7}

27:4 contrary (blowing in the opposite direction they wanted to sail) ¹

27:9 the fast (the Day of Atonement, occurring at the end of September or early in October, Lev. 16:29-31; 23:27-29; Num. 29:7 ^{1, 2, 3, 8}; but on Oct. 5^th in A.D. 59 ^{5, 7})

27:13 weighed (lifted the) ⁷

27:20 no small storm (litotes ⁷ – an awesome storm) ¹

saved (delivered from the storm).

27:24 granted you (ellipsis – the lives of).

27:28 soundings (measurements). fathom (six feet).

27:30 bow (front of the ship).

27:34 not a hair from the head of any of you (proverb ⁷ and/or synecdoche – meaning, none of you) ^{2, 4, 5}

27:40 casting off (cutting away) ¹

27:41 prow (front of the ship) stern (back of the ship)

28:3 viper (poisonous snake).

28:8 laid his hands on him (idiom – a gesture expressing the discharge of a miraculous healing, a spiritual gift from God) ⁷ The spiritual gift of healings is called a miracle (Acts 19:11, 12; 4:14, 16, 22), a sign (Jn. 4:47, 48, 50, 54; 11:45-47), and a wonder (Mk. 2:9-12; 5:35, 41, 42; Lk. 5:24-26; Acts 3:6-10). And miracles, signs, and wonders were used to prove to people that the one doing them was a messenger from God whose message was from God (Acts 2:22; Jn. 20:30, 31; 2 Cor. 12:11, 12; Heb. 2:2-4). This spiritual gift of healings was only given to those who received direct messages from God/Jesus, whether by prophecy, visions, dreams, or an angel of God and were directly sent by God to preach the gospel. For example, this is true of Peter (Acts 3:6-8; 10:9-15; 11:5-9; Jn. 21:11-22; Matt. 28:16-20), Saul/Paul (Acts 9:4-6, 15; 26:14-19; 28:8), and Philip (Acts 8:5, 7, 26-35). When God stopped giving direct revelations to people with the completion of the Bible (1 Cor. 13:8-10) in AD 95, there was no longer a need for the gift of healings, so it too ceased by AD 95.

28:11 figurehead (the figure on the front of a ship).

28:14, 15 brethren (believers) ^{1, 2, 4, 5, 7}

28:17, 21 Brethren (fellow Jews) ^{1, 2, 4, 5}

our people (Jews/Israelites)

28:20 the hope of Israel (the Messiah coming as king of Israel and Lord of all the nations) ^{1, 15}

28:22 this sect (Christianity; see 24:14 note) ^{1, 2, 4, 5, 7}

everywhere (ellipsis – in the Roman Empire, where it is known ^{15, p. 619}).

28:23, 31 kingdom of God (see 1:3 note).

concerning Jesus (ellipsis – that He is both Lord/God and Christ, vs. 31).

28:25 fathers (ancestors).

28:27 heart (metaphor – mind) ⁴

dull (metaphor – calloused ¹ to spiritual truth ²; blind spiritually ⁴)

closed their eyes (metaphor – spiritually)

heal (metaphor – spiritually of their sins, as in 1 Pet. 2:24; Isa. 53:5 ⁹) ^{11, 14}

Bibliography

1. The Bible Knowledge Commentary, NT, by Drs. J. Walvoord and R. Zuck.

2. The Wycliffe Bible Commentary, by Drs. C. Pheiffer and E. Harrison.

3. Commentary on the Whole Bible, by Drs. R. Jamieson, A. Fausset, and D. Brown.

4. Matthew Henry’s Commentary on the Whole Bible, vol. 3, by Matthew Henry.

5. The New International Comm. on the New Testament – The Book of the Acts, by Dr. F.F. Bruce.

6. The Acts of the Apostles by Dr. A. Gaebelein.

7. Word Pictures in the New Testament, vol. 3, by Dr. A.T. Robertson.

8. Word Studies in the New Testament, vol. 1, by Dr. M.R. Vincent.

9. Expository Dictionary of Bible Words, by Dr. L. Richards.

10. Unger’s Bible Dictionary, by Dr. M. Unger.

11. An Expository Dictionary of Biblical Words, by Drs. W. Vine, M. Unger, and W. White, Jr.

12. Wuest Word Studies in the Greek New Testament, vol. 3, “Vocabulary” by Dr. Kenneth Wuest.

13. The New Bible Dictionary, by Dr. J.D. Douglas.

14. The New Analytical Greek Lexicon, by Dr. W. Perschbacher.

15. Figures of Speech Used in the Bible, by Dr. E. Bullinger.