Amplified Bible
Acts 9:31
31So the church throughout Judea and Galilee and Samaria enjoyed peace [without persecution], being built up [in wisdom, virtue, and faith]; and walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort and encouragement of the Holy Spirit, it continued to grow [in numbers].
Acts 9:31 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)Then had the churches rest throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria, and were edified; and walking in the fear of the Lord, and in the comfort of the Holy Ghost, were multiplied.
- New International Version (NIV)Then the church throughout Judea, Galilee and Samaria enjoyed a time of peace and was strengthened. Living in the fear of the Lord and encouraged by the Holy Spirit, it increased in numbers.
- English Standard Version (ESV)So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria had peace and was being built up. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it multiplied.
- New King James Version (NKJV)Then the churches throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace and were edified. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, they were multiplied.
Context of Acts 9:31
29He was talking and arguing with the Hellenists (Greek-speaking Jews); but they were attempting to kill him. 30When the brothers found out [about the plot], they brought him down to Caesarea [Maritima] and sent him off to Tarsus [his home town]. So the church throughout Judea and Galilee and Samaria enjoyed peace [without persecution], being built up [in wisdom, virtue, and faith]; and walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort and encouragement of the Holy Spirit, it continued to grow [in numbers]. 32Now as Peter was traveling throughout the land, he went down to [visit] the saints (God’s people) who lived at Lydda. 33There he found a man named Aeneas, who had been bedridden for eight years and was paralyzed.
Read all of Acts 9Acts 9:31 word by word
Ἡ μὲν οὖν ἐκκλησία καθ᾽ ὅλης τῆς Ἰουδαίας καὶ Γαλιλαίας καὶ Σαμαρείας εἶχεν εἰρήνην, οἰκοδομουμένη καὶ πορευομένη τῷ φόβῳ τοῦ κυρίου, καὶ τῇ παρακλήσει τοῦ ἁγίου πνεύματος ἐπληθύνετο.¶Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- ·ὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
- Thenοὖνoun · therefore/thenG3767
- hadἔχωechō · to have/beG2192
- the churchesἐκκλησίαekklēsia · assemblyG1577
- restεἰρήνηeirēnē · peaceG1515
- throughoutκατάkata · according toG2596
- allὅλοςholos · allG3650
- JudeaἸουδαίαIoudaia · JudeaG2449
- andκαίkai · andG2532
- GalileeΓαλιλαίαGalilaia · GalileeG1056
- SamariaΣαμάρειαSamareia · SamariaG4540
- and were edifiedοἰκοδομέωoikodomeō · to buildG3618
- walkingπορεύωporeuomai · to travelG4198
- in the fearφόβοςphobos · fearG5401
- of the Lordκύριοςkurios · lord: GodG2962
- in the comfortπαράκλησιςparaklēsis · encouragementG3874
- of the Holyἅγιοςhagios · holyG40
- Ghostπνεῦμαpneuma · spirit/breath: spiritG4151
- were multipliedπληθύνωplēthunō · to multiplyG4129
- ·μένmen · on the other handG3303
Cross-references for Acts 9:31
- Acts 8:1Saul wholeheartedly approved of Stephen’s death. And on that day a great and relentless persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem; and the believers were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except for the apostles.
- Deuteronomy 12:10When you cross the Jordan and live in the land which the Lord your God is giving you to inherit, and He gives you rest from all your enemies around you so that you live in security,
- Joshua 21:44The Lord gave them rest [from conflict] on every side, in accordance with everything that He had sworn to their fathers, and not one of all their enemies stood before them [in battle]; the Lord handed over all their enemies to them.
- Judges 3:30So Moab was subdued and humbled that day under the hand of Israel, and the land was at rest for eighty years.
- 1 Chronicles 22:9Behold, a son will be born to you, who will be a man of peace. I will give him rest from all his enemies on every side; for his name shall be Solomon, and I will give peace and quiet to Israel in his days.
- Psalms 94:13That You may grant him [power to calm himself and find] peace in the days of adversity, Until the pit is dug for the wicked and ungodly.
- Proverbs 16:7When a man’s ways please the Lord, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him.
- Isaiah 11:10Then in that day The nations will make supplications to the Root of Jesse Who will stand as a signal for the peoples; And His resting place will be glorious.
- Zechariah 9:1The oracle (a burdensome message) of the word of the Lord is against the land of Hadrach [in Syria], with Damascus as its resting place (for the eyes of men, especially of all the tribes of Israel, are toward the Lord),
- Hebrews 4:9So there remains a [full and complete] Sabbath rest for the people of God.
- Romans 14:19So then, let us pursue [with enthusiasm] the things which make for peace and the building up of one another [things which lead to spiritual growth].
- 1 Corinthians 3:9For we are God’s fellow workers [His servants working together]; you are God’s cultivated field [His garden, His vineyard], God’s building.
- 1 Corinthians 14:4One who speaks in a tongue edifies himself; but one who prophesies edifies the church [promotes growth in spiritual wisdom, devotion, holiness, and joy].
- 2 Corinthians 10:8For even though I boast rather freely about the authority the Lord gave us for building you up and not for destroying you, I will not be ashamed [of the truth],
- 2 Corinthians 12:19All this time you have been thinking that we are [merely] defending ourselves to you. It is in the sight of God that we have been speaking [as one] in Christ; and everything, dearly beloved, is to strengthen you [spiritually].
- 2 Corinthians 13:10For this reason I am writing these things while absent from you, so that when I come, I will not need to deal severely [with you], in my use of the authority which the Lord has given me [to be used] for building you up and not for tearing you down.
Commentaries on Acts 9:31
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 31Then had the Churches rest - Instead of ̔ , the Churches, ABC, several others, the Syriac, Coptic, Ethiopic, Armenian, and Vulgate, have ̔, the Church. Every assembly of God's people was a Church; the aggregate of these assemblies was The Church. The word, which we translate rest, and which literally signifies peace, evidently means, in this place, prosperity; and in this sense both it and the Hebrew שלום shalom are repeatedly used. But what was the cause…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 31Then had the churches rest - That is, the persecutions against Christians ceased. Those persecutions had been excited by the opposition made to Stephen Acts 11:19; they had been greatly promoted by Saul Acts 8:3; and they had extended doubtless throughout the whole land of Palestine. The precise causes of this cessation of the persecution are not known. Probably they were the following: (1) It is not improbable that the great mass of Christians had been…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 23-31Verses 23-31 When we enter into the way of God, we must look for trials; but the Lord knows how to deliver the godly, and will, with the temptation, also make a way to escape. Though Saul's conversion was and is a proof of the truth of Christianity, yet it could not, of itself, convert one soul at enmity with the truth; for nothing can produce true faith, but that power which new-creates the heart. Believers are apt to be too suspicious of those against…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 31This verse is one of several in Acts that describe how the church grew in numbers and in faithfulness (see also 2:41; 4:4; 5:14; 6:1, 7; 12:24; 21:20). The first Christians were learning an important truth: “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom.” This means that true knowledge starts with honoring and respecting God (Proverbs 1:7; 9:10; compare Job 28:28; Psalm 111:10; Ecclesiastes 12:13; see Luke 7:16). As they learned to honor God, they grew…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 3131. Then had all the churches rest--rather, "the Church," according to the best manuscripts and versions. But this rest was owing not so much to the conversion of Saul, as probably to the Jews being engrossed with the emperor Caligula's attempt to have his own image set up in the temple of Jerusalem [Josephus, Antiquities, 18.8.1, &c.]. throughout all Judea, and Galilee, and Samaria--This incidental notice of distinct churches already dotting all the…Read the comment
Topics related to Acts 9:31
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Acts 9
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Illustrated New Testament
- Burkitt’s Expository Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Family Bible Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- The People’s New Testament
- Robertson’s Word Pictures
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- The Fourfold Gospel and Commentary on Acts
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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