^21:17When we arrived in Jerusalem, the brothers welcomed us gladly.⁵⁹^21:18The next day Paul went in with us to see James, and all the elders were there.⁶⁰^21:19When Paul⁶¹ had greeted them, he began to explain⁶² in detail⁶³ what God⁶⁴ had done among the Gentiles through his ministry. ^21:20When they heard this, they praised⁶⁵ God. Then they said to him, “You see, brother, how many thousands of Jews⁶⁶ there are who have believed, and they are all ardent observers⁶⁷ of the law.⁶⁸^21:21They have been informed about you—that you teach all the Jews now living⁶⁹ among the Gentiles to abandon⁷⁰ Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children⁷¹ or live⁷² according to our customs. ^21:22What then should we do? They will no doubt⁷³ hear that you have come. ^21:23So do what⁷⁴ we tell you: We have four men⁷⁵ who have taken⁷⁶ a vow;⁷⁷^21:24take them and purify⁷⁸ yourself along with them and pay their expenses,⁷⁹ so that they may have their heads shaved.⁸⁰ Then⁸¹ everyone will know there is nothing in what they have been told⁸² about you, but that you yourself live in conformity with⁸³ the law.⁸⁴^21:25But regarding the Gentiles who have believed, we have written a letter, having decided⁸⁵ that they should avoid⁸⁶ meat that has been sacrificed to idols⁸⁷ and blood and what has been strangled⁸⁸ and sexual immorality.” ^21:26Then Paul took the men the next day,⁸⁹ and after he had purified himself⁹⁰ along with them, he went to the temple and gave notice⁹¹ of the completion of the days of purification,⁹² when⁹³ the sacrifice would be offered for each⁹⁴ of them. ^21:27When the seven days were almost over,⁹⁵ the Jews from the province of Asia⁹⁶ who had seen him in the temple area⁹⁷ stirred up the whole crowd⁹⁸ and seized⁹⁹ him, ^21:28shouting, “Men of Israel,¹⁰⁰ help! This is the man who teaches everyone everywhere against our people, our law,¹⁰¹ and this sanctuary!¹⁰² Furthermore¹⁰³ he has brought Greeks into the inner courts of the temple¹⁰⁴ and made this holy place ritually unclean!”¹⁰⁵

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Footnotes

59 Or “warmly” (see ἀσμένως).
60 παραγίνομαι 1 has this use under the broad category of meaning “draw near, come, arrive, be present.” All the elders were there. This meeting shows how the Jerusalem church still regarded Paul and his mission with favor, but also with some concerns because of the rumors circulating about his actions.
61 Grk “he”; the referent (Paul) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
62 Or “to report,” “to describe.” The imperfect verb ἐξηγεῖτο (exēgeito) has been translated as an ingressive imperfect.
63 εἷς 5.e has “καθʼ ἕν one after the other (hence τὸ καθʼ ἕν ‘a detailed list’: PLille 11, 8 [III bc]; PTebt. 47, 34; 332, 16) J 21:25. Also καθʼ ἕν ἕκαστον … Ac 21:19.”
64 Note how Paul credited God with the success of his ministry.
65 Or “glorified.”
66 Grk “how many thousands there are among the Jews.” How many thousands of Jews. See Acts 2–5 for the accounts of their conversion, esp. 2:41 and 4:4. Estimates of the total number of Jews living in Jerusalem at the time range from 20,000 to 50,000.
67 Or “are all zealous for the law.” ζηλωτής 1.a.β has “of thing … τοῦ νόμου an ardent observer of the law Ac 21:20.”
68 That is, the law of Moses. These Jewish Christians had remained close to their Jewish practices after becoming believers (1 Cor 7:18–19; Acts 16:3).
69 κατά B.1.a has “τοὺς κ. τὰ ἔθνη Ἰουδαίους the Judeans (dispersed) throughout the nations 21:21.” The Jews in view are not those in Palestine, but those who are scattered throughout the Gentile world.
70 Or “to forsake,” “to rebel against.” ἀποστασία has “ἀποστασίαν διδάσκεις ἀπὸ Μωϋσέως you teach (Judeans) to abandon Moses Ac 21:21.” The charge that Paul was teaching Jews in the Diaspora to abandon Moses was different from the issue faced in Acts 15, where the question was whether Gentiles needed to become like Jews first in order to become Christians. The issue also appears in Acts 24:5–6, 13–21; 25:8.
71 That is, not to circumcise their male children. Biblical references to circumcision always refer to male circumcision.
72 Grk “or walk.”
73 L&N 71.16 has “pertaining to being in every respect certain—‘certainly, really, doubtless, no doubt.’ … ‘they will no doubt hear that you have come’ Ac 21:22.”
74 Grk “do this that.”
75 Grk “There are four men here.”
76 L&N 33.469 has “ ‘there are four men here who have taken a vow’ or ‘we have four men who …’ Ac 21:23.”
77 On the term for “vow,” see εὐχή 2.
78 That is, undergo ritual cleansing. Paul’s cleansing would be necessary because of his travels in “unclean” Gentile territory. This act would represent a conciliatory gesture. Paul would have supported a “law-free” mission to the Gentiles as an option, but this gesture would represent an attempt to be sensitive to the Jews (1 Cor 9:15–22).
79 L&N 57.146 has “δαπάνησον ἐπʼ αὐτοῖς ‘pay their expenses’ Ac 21:24.”
80 The future middle indicative has causative force here. ξυράω has “mid. have oneself shaved … τὴν κεφαλήν have one’s head shaved … Ac 21:24.” Having their heads shaved probably involved ending a voluntary Nazirite vow (Num 6:14–15).
81 Grk “and.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was begun in the translation, and καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the logical sequence.
82 The verb here describes a report or some type of information ( κατηχέω 1).
83 Grk “adhere to the keeping of the law.” L&N 41.12 has “στοιχέω: to live in conformity with some presumed standard or set of customs—‘to live, to behave in accordance with.’ ”
84 The law refers to the law of Moses.
85 L&N 13.154 has “ ‘having decided that they must keep themselves from food offered to idols, from blood, from an animal that has been strangled, and from sexual immorality’ Ac 21:25.” Having decided refers here to the decision of the Jerusalem council (Acts 15:6–21). Mention of this previous decision reminds the reader that the issue here is somewhat different: It is not whether Gentiles must first become Jews before they can become Christians (as in Acts 15), but whether Jews who become Christians should retain their Jewish practices. Sensitivity to this issue would suggest that Jewish Christians and Gentile Christians might engage in different practices.
86 This is a different Greek word than the one used in Acts 15:20, 29. φυλάσσω 3 has “to be on one’s guard against, look out for, avoid … of pers. or thing avoided … Ac 21:25.” The Greek word used in Acts 15:20, 29 is ἀπέχω (apechō). The difference in meaning, although slight, has been maintained in the translation.
87 There is no specific semantic component in the Greek word εἰδωλόθυτος that means “meat” (see εἰδωλόθυτος; L&N 5.15). The stem -θυτος means “sacrifice” (referring to an animal sacrificially killed) and thereby implies meat.
88 What has been strangled. That is, to refrain from eating animals that had been killed without having the blood drained from them. According to the Mosaic law (Lev 17:13–14) Jews were forbidden to eat flesh with the blood still in it (note the preceding provision in this verse, and blood).
89 ἔχω 11.b.β has “temporal, to be next, immediately following … τῇ ἐχομένῃ … on the next day Lk 13:33 … Ac 20:15; ἡμέρᾳ added … 21:26.”
90 That is, after he had undergone ritual cleansing. The aorist passive participle ἁγνισθείς (hagnistheis) has been taken temporally of antecedent action.
91 Grk “entered the temple, giving notice.” The participle διαγγέλλων (diangellōn) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.
92 The days of purification refers to the days of ritual cleansing.
93 Grk “until” ( ἕως 1.b.β.א), but since in English it is somewhat awkward to say “the completion of the days of purification, until the sacrifice would be offered,” the temporal clause was translated “when the sacrifice would be offered.” The point is that the sacrifice would be offered when the days were completed. Paul honored the request of the Jewish Christian leadership completely. As the following verse makes clear, the vow was made for seven days.
94 Grk “for each one.”
95 συντελέω 4 has “to come to an end of a duration, come to an end, be over … Ac 21:27.”
96 Grk “Asia”; in the NT this always refers to the Roman province of Asia, made up of about one-third of the west and southwest end of modern Asia Minor. Asia lay to the west of the region of Phrygia and Galatia. The words “the province of” are supplied to indicate to the modern reader that this does not refer to the continent of Asia. Note how there is a sense of Paul being pursued from a distance. These Jews may well have been from Ephesus, since they recognized Trophimus the Ephesian (v. 29).
97 Grk “in the temple.” See the note on the word “temple” in v. .
98 Or “threw the whole crowd into consternation.” L&N 25.221 has “συνέχεον πάντα τὸν ὅχλον ‘they threw the whole crowd into consternation’ Ac 21:27. It is also possible to render the expression in Ac 21:27 as ‘they stirred up the whole crowd.’ ”
99 Grk “and laid hands on.”
100 Or “Israelite men,” although this is less natural English. The Greek term here is ἀνήρ (anēr), which only exceptionally is used in a generic sense of both males and females. In this context, it is conceivable that this is a generic usage since “the whole crowd” is mentioned in v. 27, although it can also be argued that these remarks were addressed primarily to the men present, even if women were there.
101 The law refers to the law of Moses.
102 Grk “this place.” This sanctuary refers to the temple. The charges were not new, but were similar to those made against Stephen (Acts 6:14) and Jesus (Luke 23:2).
103 ἔτι 2.b has “ἔ. δὲ καί furthermore … al. ἔ. τε καί … Lk 14:26; Ac 21:28.” This is a continuation of the same sentence in Greek, but due to the length and complexity of the Greek sentence and the tendency of contemporary English to use shorter sentences, a new sentence was begun here in the translation.
104 Grk “into the temple.” The specific reference is to the Court of the Sons of Israel (see the note following the term “unclean” at the end of this verse). To avoid giving the modern reader the impression that they entered the temple building itself, the phrase “the inner courts of the temple” has been used in the translation.
105 Or “and has defiled this holy place.” Has brought Greeks … unclean. Note how the issue is both religious and ethnic, showing a different attitude by the Jews. A Gentile was not permitted to enter the inner temple precincts (contrast Eph 2:11–22). According to Josephus ( 15.11.5 [15.417]; 5.5.2 [5.193], cf. 5.5.6 [5.227]), the inner temple courts (the Court of the Women, the Court of the Sons of Israel, and the Court of the Priests) were raised slightly above the level of the Court of the Gentiles and were surrounded by a wall about 5 ft (1.5 m) high. Notices in both Greek and Latin (two of which have been discovered) warned that any Gentiles who ventured into the inner courts would be responsible for their own deaths. See also Philo, 31 (212). In Middot 2:3 this wall was called “soreq” and according to Sanhedrin 9:6 the stranger who trespassed beyond the soreq would die by the hand of God.