Acts 20
Lexham English Bible
Paul Travels Through Macedonia and Greece
20 Now after the turmoil had ceased, Paul summoned[a] the disciples, and after[b] encouraging them,[c] he said farewell and[d] departed to travel to Macedonia. 2 And after he[e] had gone through those regions and encouraged them at length,[f] he came to Greece 3 and stayed[g] three months. Because[h] a plot was made against him by the Jews as he[i] was about to set sail for Syria, he came to a decision to return through Macedonia. 4 And Sopater son of Pyrrhus from Berea, and Aristarchus and Secundus from Thessalonica, and Gaius from Derbe, and Timothy, and Tychicus and Trophimus from Asia, were accompanying him. 5 And these had gone on ahead and[j] were waiting for us in Troas. 6 And we sailed away from Philippi after the days of Unleavened Bread and came to them at Troas within five days, where we stayed seven days.
Eutychus Falls from a Window
7 And on the first day of the week, when[k] we had assembled to break bread, Paul began conversing[l] with them, because he[m] was going to leave on the next day, and he extended his[n] message until midnight. 8 Now there were quite a few lamps in the upstairs room where we were gathered. 9 And a certain young man named[o] Eutychus who was sitting in the window was sinking into a deep sleep while[p] Paul was conversing at length. Being overcome by sleep, he fell down from the third story and was picked up dead. 10 But Paul went down and[q] threw himself on him, and putting his arms around him,[r] said, “Do not be distressed, for his life is in him.” 11 So he went up and broke bread,[s] and when he[t] had eaten and talked for a long time, until dawn, then he departed. 12 And they led the youth away alive, and were greatly[u] comforted.
The Voyage to Miletus
13 But we went on ahead to the ship and[v] put out to sea for Assos, intending to take Paul on board there. For having made arrangements in this way, he himself was intending to travel by land. 14 And when he met us at Assos, we took him on board and[w] went to Mitylene. 15 And we sailed from there on the next day, and[x] arrived opposite Chios. And on the next day we approached Samos, and on the following day we came to Miletus. 16 For Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus so that he would not be having to spend time in Asia.[y] For he was hurrying if it could be possible for him to be in Jerusalem on the day of Pentecost.
Paul’s Farewell to the Ephesian Elders
17 And from Miletus he sent word[z] to Ephesus and[aa] summoned the elders of the church. 18 And when they came to him, he said to them, “You know from the first day on which I set foot in Asia[ab] how I was the whole time with you— 19 serving the Lord with all humility and with tears, and with the trials that happened to me through the plots of the Jews— 20 how I did not shrink from proclaiming to you anything that would be profitable, and from teaching you in public and from house to house, 21 testifying both to Jews and to Greeks with respect to repentance toward God and faith in our Lord Jesus.
22 “And now behold, bound by the Spirit I am traveling to Jerusalem, not knowing the things that will happen to me there,[ac] 23 except that the Holy Spirit testifies to me in town after town, saying that bonds and persecutions await me. 24 But I consider my[ad] life as worth nothing[ae] to myself, in order to finish my mission and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.
25 “And now behold, I know that all of you, among whom I went about proclaiming the kingdom, will see my face no more. 26 Therefore I testify to you on this very day that I am guiltless of the blood of all of you,[af] 27 for I did not shrink from proclaiming to you the whole purpose of God. 28 Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock among which the Holy Spirit has appointed you as overseers, to shepherd the church of God which he obtained through the blood of his own Son.[ag] 29 I know that after my departure fierce wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. 30 And from among you yourselves men will arise, speaking perversions of the truth[ah] in order to draw away the disciples after them. 31 Therefore be on the alert, remembering that night and day for three years I did not stop warning each one of you[ai] with tears.
32 “And now I entrust you to God and to the message of his grace, which is able to build you[aj] up and to give you[ak] the inheritance among all those who are sanctified. 33 I have desired no one’s silver or gold or clothing! 34 You yourselves know that these hands served to meet[al] my needs and the needs of[am] those who were with me. 35 I have shown you with respect to all things that by[an] working hard in this way it is necessary to help those who are in need, and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus that he himself said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive.”[ao]
36 And when he[ap] had said these things, he fell to his knees and[aq] prayed with them all. 37 And there was considerable weeping by all, and hugging[ar] Paul, they kissed him, 38 especially distressed at the statement that he had said, that they were going to see his face no more. And they accompanied him to the ship.
Footnotes
- Acts 20:1 Here the participle (“summoned”) has been translated as a finite verb in keeping with English style
- Acts 20:1 Here “after” is supplied as a component of the participle (“encouraging”) which is understood as temporal
- Acts 20:1 *Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
- Acts 20:1 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“departed”) has been translated as a finite verb
- Acts 20:2 Here “after” is supplied as a component of the participle (“had gone through”) which is understood as temporal
- Acts 20:2 Literally “with many a word”
- Acts 20:3 Here the participle (“stayed”) has been translated as a finite verb in keeping with English style
- Acts 20:3 Here “because” is supplied as a component of the causal genitive absolute participle (“was made”)
- Acts 20:3 Here “as” is supplied as a component of the participle (“was about to”) which is understood as temporal
- Acts 20:5 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“had gone on ahead”) has been translated as a finite verb
- Acts 20:7 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the temporal genitive absolute participle (“had assembled”)
- Acts 20:7 The imperfect tense has been translated as ingressive here (“began conversing”)
- Acts 20:7 Here “because” is supplied as a component of the participle (“was going to”) which is understood as causal
- Acts 20:7 Literally “the”; the Greek article is used here as a possessive pronoun
- Acts 20:9 Literally “by name”
- Acts 20:9 Here “while” is supplied as a component of the temporal genitive absolute participle (“was conversing”)
- Acts 20:10 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“went down”) has been translated as a finite verb
- Acts 20:10 *Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
- Acts 20:11 *This participle and the previous one (“went up”) have been translated as finite verbs in keeping with English style
- Acts 20:11 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the participle (“had eaten”) which is understood as temporal
- Acts 20:12 Literally “were not moderately”
- Acts 20:13 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“went on ahead”) has been translated as a finite verb
- Acts 20:14 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“took … on board”) has been translated as a finite verb
- Acts 20:15 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“sailed”) has been translated as a finite verb
- Acts 20:16 A reference to the Roman province of Asia (modern Asia Minor)
- Acts 20:17 Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
- Acts 20:17 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“sent”) has been translated as a finite verb
- Acts 20:18 A reference to the Roman province of Asia (modern Asia Minor)
- Acts 20:22 Literally “in it”
- Acts 20:24 Literally “the”; the Greek article is used here as a possessive pronoun
- Acts 20:24 Or “not a single word”; literally “not any thing”
- Acts 20:26 *The words “of you” are not in the Greek text but are implied
- Acts 20:28 Or “through his own blood”; the Greek construction can be taken either way, with “Son” implied if the meaning is “through the blood of his own”
- Acts 20:30 Literally “crooked things”
- Acts 20:31 The words “of you” are not in the Greek text but are implied
- Acts 20:32 Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
- Acts 20:32 Here the direct object is supplied from context in the English translation
- Acts 20:34 The words “to meet” are not in the Greek text but are supplied for clarity
- Acts 20:34 The words “the needs of” are supplied in keeping with English style to maintain the parallelism with the earlier phrase “my needs”
- Acts 20:35 Here “by” is supplied as a component of the participle (“working hard”) which is understood as means
- Acts 20:35 Perhaps an allusion to Matt 10:8; these exact words are not found in the NT gospels
- Acts 20:36 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the participle (“had said”) which is understood as temporal
- Acts 20:36 Here “and” is supplied because the previous participle (“fell to”) has been translated as a finite verb
- Acts 20:37 Literally “falling on the neck of”
Acts 20
New King James Version
Journeys in Greece
20 After the uproar had ceased, Paul called the disciples to himself, embraced them, and (A)departed to go to Macedonia. 2 Now when he had gone over that region and encouraged them with many words, he came to (B)Greece 3 and stayed three months. And (C)when the Jews plotted against him as he was about to sail to Syria, he decided to return through Macedonia. 4 And Sopater of Berea accompanied him to Asia—also (D)Aristarchus and Secundus of the Thessalonians, and (E)Gaius of Derbe, and (F)Timothy, and (G)Tychicus and (H)Trophimus of Asia. 5 These men, going ahead, waited for us at (I)Troas. 6 But we sailed away from Philippi after (J)the Days of Unleavened Bread, and in five days joined them (K)at Troas, where we stayed seven days.
Ministering at Troas
7 Now on (L)the first day of the week, when the disciples came together (M)to break bread, Paul, ready to depart the next day, spoke to them and continued his message until midnight. 8 There were many lamps (N)in the upper room where [a]they were gathered together. 9 And in a window sat a certain young man named Eutychus, who was sinking into a deep sleep. He was overcome by sleep; and as Paul continued speaking, he fell down from the third story and was taken up dead. 10 But Paul went down, (O)fell on him, and embracing him said, (P)“Do not trouble yourselves, for his life is in him.” 11 Now when he had come up, had broken bread and eaten, and talked a long while, even till daybreak, he departed. 12 And they brought the young man in alive, and they were not a little comforted.
From Troas to Miletus
13 Then we went ahead to the ship and sailed to Assos, there intending to take Paul on board; for so he had [b]given orders, intending himself to go on foot. 14 And when he met us at Assos, we took him on board and came to Mitylene. 15 We sailed from there, and the next day came opposite Chios. The following day we arrived at Samos and stayed at Trogyllium. The next day we came to Miletus. 16 For Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus, so that he would not have to spend time in Asia; for (Q)he was hurrying (R)to be at Jerusalem, if possible, on (S)the Day of Pentecost.
The Ephesian Elders Exhorted
17 From Miletus he sent to Ephesus and called for the elders of the church. 18 And when they had come to him, he said to them: “You know, (T)from the first day that I came to Asia, in what manner I always lived among you, 19 serving the Lord with all humility, with many tears and trials which happened to me (U)by the plotting of the Jews; 20 how (V)I kept back nothing that was helpful, but proclaimed it to you, and taught you publicly and from house to house, 21 (W)testifying to Jews, and also to Greeks, (X)repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. 22 And see, now (Y)I go bound in the spirit to Jerusalem, not knowing the things that will happen to me there, 23 except that (Z)the Holy Spirit testifies in every city, saying that chains and tribulations await me. 24 [c]But (AA)none of these things move me; nor do I count my life dear to myself, (AB)so that I may finish my [d]race with joy, (AC)and the ministry (AD)which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.
25 “And indeed, now I know that you all, among whom I have gone preaching the kingdom of God, will see my face no more. 26 Therefore I testify to you this day that I am (AE)innocent[e] of the blood of all men. 27 For I have not [f]shunned to declare to you (AF)the whole counsel of God. 28 (AG)Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit (AH)has made you overseers, to shepherd the church [g]of God (AI)which He purchased (AJ)with His own blood. 29 For I know this, that after my departure (AK)savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock. 30 Also (AL)from among yourselves men will rise up, speaking [h]perverse things, to draw away the disciples after themselves. 31 Therefore watch, and remember that (AM)for three years I did not cease to warn everyone night and day with tears.
32 “So now, brethren, I commend you to God and (AN)to the word of His grace, which is able (AO)to build you up and give you (AP)an inheritance among all those who are sanctified. 33 I have coveted no one’s silver or gold or apparel. 34 [i]Yes, you yourselves know (AQ)that these hands have provided for my necessities, and for those who were with me. 35 I have shown you in every way, (AR)by laboring like this, that you must support the weak. And remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ”
36 And when he had said these things, he knelt down and prayed with them all. 37 Then they all (AS)wept [j]freely, and (AT)fell on Paul’s neck and kissed him, 38 sorrowing most of all for the words which he spoke, that they would see his face no more. And they accompanied him to the ship.
Footnotes
- Acts 20:8 NU, M we
- Acts 20:13 arranged it
- Acts 20:24 NU But I do not count my life of any value or dear to myself
- Acts 20:24 course
- Acts 20:26 Lit. clean
- Acts 20:27 avoided declaring
- Acts 20:28 M of the Lord and God
- Acts 20:30 misleading
- Acts 20:34 NU, M omit Yes
- Acts 20:37 Lit. much
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Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.