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Further Trouble for the Apostles

17 Now the high priest rose up, and all those with him (that is, the religious party of the Sadducees[a]),[b] and they were filled with jealousy.[c] 18 They[d] laid hands on[e] the apostles and put them in a public jail. 19 But during the night an angel of the Lord[f] opened[g] the doors of the prison,[h] led them out,[i] and said, 20 “Go and stand in the temple courts[j] and proclaim[k] to the people all the words of this life.” 21 When they heard this, they entered the temple courts[l] at daybreak and began teaching.[m]

Now when the high priest and those who were with him arrived, they summoned the Sanhedrin[n]—that is, the whole high council[o] of the Israelites[p]—and sent to the jail to have the apostles[q] brought before them.[r] 22 But the officers[s] who came for them[t] did not find them in the prison, so they returned and reported,[u] 23 “We found the jail locked securely and the guards standing at the doors, but when we opened them,[v] we found no one inside.” 24 Now when the commander[w] of the temple guard[x] and the chief priests heard this report,[y] they were greatly puzzled concerning it,[z] wondering what this could[aa] be. 25 But someone came and reported to them, “Look! The men you put in prison are standing in the temple courts[ab] and teaching[ac] the people!” 26 Then the commander[ad] of the temple guard[ae] went with the officers[af] and brought the apostles[ag] without the use of force[ah] (for they were afraid of being stoned by the people).[ai]

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Footnotes

  1. Acts 5:17 sn See the note on Sadducees in 4:1.
  2. Acts 5:17 sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.
  3. Acts 5:17 sn Filled with jealousy. In Acts, the term “jealousy” (ζήλος, zēlos) occurs only here and in Acts 13:45. It is a key term in Judaism for religiously motivated rage (1 Macc 2:24; 1QH 14:13-15; m. Sanhedrin 9:5). It was a zeal motivated by a desire to maintain the purity of the faith.
  4. Acts 5:18 tn Grk “jealousy, and they.” In the Greek text this is a continuation of the previous sentence, but a new sentence has been started here in the translation for stylistic reasons.
  5. Acts 5:18 tn Or “they arrested.”
  6. Acts 5:19 tn Or “the angel of the Lord.” Linguistically, “angel of the Lord” is the same in both testaments (and thus, he is either “an angel of the Lord” or “the angel of the Lord” in both testaments). For arguments and implications, see ExSyn 252; M. J. Davidson, “Angels,” DJG, 9; W. G. MacDonald argues for “an angel” in both testaments: “Christology and ‘The Angel of the Lord’,” Current Issues in Biblical and Patristic Interpretation, 324-35.
  7. Acts 5:19 tn Grk “opening the doors of the prison.” The participle ἀνοίξας (anoixas) has been translated as a finite verb due to the requirements of contemporary English style.
  8. Acts 5:19 tn Greek φυλακῆς (phulakēs), a different word from the one in v. 18 (τήρησις, tērēsis, “jail”).
  9. Acts 5:19 tn Or “brought them out.” Grk “and leading them out, said.” The participle ἐξαγαγών (exagagōn) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.sn Led them out. The action by God served to vindicate the apostles. It showed that whatever court the Jewish leaders represented, they did not represent God.
  10. Acts 5:20 tn Grk “the temple.” This is actually a reference to the courts surrounding the temple proper, and has been translated accordingly.
  11. Acts 5:20 tn Or “speak.”
  12. Acts 5:21 tn Grk “the temple.” See the note on the same phrase in the preceding verse.
  13. Acts 5:21 tn The imperfect verb ἐδίδασκον (edidaskon) has been translated as an ingressive imperfect.
  14. Acts 5:21 tn Or “the council” (the highest legal, legislative, and judicial body among the Jews).
  15. Acts 5:21 tn A hendiadys (two different terms referring to a single thing) is likely here (a reference to a single legislative body rather than two separate ones) because the term γερουσίαν (gerousian) is used in both 1 Macc 12:6 and Josephus, Ant. 13.5.8 (13.166) to refer to the Sanhedrin.
  16. Acts 5:21 tn Grk “sons of Israel.”
  17. Acts 5:21 tn Grk “have them”; the referent (the apostles) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  18. Acts 5:21 tn The words “before them” are not in the Greek text but are implied.
  19. Acts 5:22 tn The Greek term ὑπηρέτης (hupēretēs) generally means “servant,” but in the NT is used for many different types of servants, like attendants to a king, the officers of the Sanhedrin (as here), assistants to magistrates, and (especially in the Gospel of John) Jewish guards in the Jerusalem temple (see L&N 35.20).
  20. Acts 5:22 tn The words “for them” are not in the Greek text but are implied.
  21. Acts 5:22 tn Grk “reported, saying.” The participle λέγοντες (legontes) is redundant in English and has not been translated.
  22. Acts 5:23 tn The word “them” is not in the Greek text, but is implied. Direct objects in Greek were often omitted when clear from the context, but must be supplied for the modern English reader.
  23. Acts 5:24 tn Or “captain.”
  24. Acts 5:24 tn Grk “the official of the temple,” a title for the commander of the Jewish soldiers guarding the temple (thus the translation, “the commander of the temple guard”). See L&N 37.91.
  25. Acts 5:24 tn Grk “heard these words.”
  26. Acts 5:24 tn Grk “concerning them,” agreeing with the plural antecedent “these words.” Since the phrase “these words” was translated as the singular “this report,” the singular “concerning it” is used here.
  27. Acts 5:24 tn The optative verb here expresses confused uncertainty.
  28. Acts 5:25 tn Grk “the temple.” This is actually a reference to the courts surrounding the temple proper, and has been translated accordingly.
  29. Acts 5:25 sn Obeying God (see v. 29), the apostles were teaching again (4:18-20; 5:20). They did so despite the risk.
  30. Acts 5:26 tn Or “captain.”
  31. Acts 5:26 tn Grk “the official [of the temple],” a title for the commander of the Jewish soldiers guarding the temple (thus the translation, “the commander of the temple guard”). See L&N 37.91.
  32. Acts 5:26 tn The Greek term ὑπηρέτης (hupēretēs) generally means “servant,” but in the NT is used for many different types of servants. See the note on the word “officers” in v. 22.
  33. Acts 5:26 tn Grk “brought them”; the referent (the apostles) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
  34. Acts 5:26 tn Or “without violence.” It is clear, as well, that the apostles did not resist arrest.
  35. Acts 5:26 tn Grk “for they feared lest they be stoned by the people.” The translation uses a less awkward English equivalent. This is an explanatory note by the author.

The Apostles Jailed and Freed

17 But the high priest rose up and those with him (that is (A)the sect of (B)the Sadducees), and they were filled with jealousy. 18 And they laid hands on the apostles and (C)put them in a public jail. 19 But during the night (D)an angel of the [a]Lord opened the doors of the prison, and taking them out, he said, 20 “Go, stand and [b]speak to the people in the temple [c](E)the whole message of this Life.” 21 Upon hearing this, they entered into the temple (F)about daybreak and began to teach.

Now when (G)the high priest and those with him came, they called (H)the Sanhedrin together, even all the Council of the sons of Israel, and sent orders to the jailhouse for them to be brought. 22 But (I)the officers who came did not find them in the prison, and they returned and reported back, 23 saying, “We found the jailhouse locked quite securely and the guards standing at the doors, but we opened it and found no one inside.” 24 Now when (J)the captain of the temple guard and the chief priests heard these words, they were greatly perplexed about them as to what [d]would come of this. 25 But someone came and reported to them, “The men whom you put in prison are standing in the temple and teaching the people!” 26 Then (K)the captain went along with (L)the officers and proceeded to bring them back without violence (for (M)they were afraid of the people, that they might be stoned).

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Footnotes

  1. Acts 5:19 In OT, Yahweh, cf. 2 Kin 1:3
  2. Acts 5:20 Or continue to speak
  3. Acts 5:20 Lit all the words
  4. Acts 5:24 Lit this would become