American Standard Version
Acts 21:40
40And when he had given him leave, Paul, standing on the stairs, beckoned with the hand unto the people; and when there was made a great silence, he spake unto them in the Hebrew language, saying,
Acts 21:40 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And when he had given him licence, Paul stood on the stairs, and beckoned with the hand unto the people. And when there was made a great silence, he spake unto them in the Hebrew tongue, saying,
- New International Version (NIV)After receiving the commander’s permission, Paul stood on the steps and motioned to the crowd. When they were all silent, he said to them in Aramaic:
- English Standard Version (ESV)And when he had given him permission, Paul, standing on the steps, motioned with his hand to the people. And when there was a great hush, he addressed them in the Hebrew language, saying:
- New King James Version (NKJV)So when he had given him permission, Paul stood on the stairs and motioned with his hand to the people. And when there was a great silence, he spoke to them in the Hebrew language, saying,
Context of Acts 21:40
38Art thou not then the Egyptian, who before these days stirred up to sedition and led out into the wilderness the four thousand men of the Assassins? 39But Paul said, I am a Jew, of Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of no mean city: and I beseech thee, give me leave to speak unto the people. And when he had given him leave, Paul, standing on the stairs, beckoned with the hand unto the people; and when there was made a great silence, he spake unto them in the Hebrew language, saying,
Read all of Acts 21Acts 21:40 word by word
ἐπιτρέψαντος δὲ αὐτοῦ ὁ Παῦλος ἑστὼς ἐπὶ τῶν ἀναβαθμῶν κατέσεισεν τῇ χειρὶ τῷ λαῷ, πολλῆς δὲ σιγῆς γενομένης προσεφώνησεν τῇ Ἑβραΐδι διαλέκτῳ λέγων·¶Read the interlinear
- PaulΠαῦλοςPaulos · PaulG3972
- standingἵστημιhistēmi · to standG2476
- stairsἀναβαθμόςanabathmos · stairsG304
- handχείρcheir · handG5495
- peopleλαόςlaos · a peopleG2992
- greatπολύςpolus polos · muchG4183
- silenceσιγήsigē · silenceG4602
- HebrewἙβραΐςHebrais · HebrewG1446
- languageδιάλεκτοςdialektos · languageG1258
- sayingλέγωlegō · to sayG3004
Cross-references for Acts 21:40
- Acts 21:35And when he came upon the stairs, so it was that he was borne of the soldiers for the violence of the crowd;
- 2 Kings 9:13Then they hasted, and took every man his garment, and put it under him on the top of the stairs, and blew the trumpet, saying, Jehu is king.
- Acts 12:17But he, beckoning unto them with the hand to hold their peace, declared unto them how the Lord had brought him forth out of the prison. And he said, Tell these things unto James, and to the brethren. And he departed, and went to another place.
- Acts 13:16And Paul stood up, and beckoning with the hand said, Men of Israel, and ye that fear God, hearken:
- Acts 19:33And they brought Alexander out of the multitude, the Jews putting him forward. And Alexander beckoned with the hand, and would have made a defence unto the people.
- Acts 22:2And when they heard that he spake unto them in the Hebrew language, they were the more quiet: and he saith,
- Acts 6:1Now in these days, when the number of the disciples was multiplying, there arose a murmuring of the Grecian Jews against the Hebrews, because their widows were neglected in the daily ministration.
- Acts 26:14And when we were all fallen to the earth, I heard a voice saying unto me in the Hebrew language, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? it is hard for thee to kick against the goad.
- Luke 23:38And there was also a superscription over him, THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS.
- John 5:2Now there is in Jerusalem by the sheepgatea pool, which is called in Hebrew Bethesda, having five porches.
- John 19:13When Pilate therefore heard these words, he brought Jesus out, and sat down on the judgment-seat at a place called The Pavement, but in Hebrew, Gabbatha.
- Revelation 9:11They have over them as king the angel of the abyss: his name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in the Greek tongue he hath the name Apollyon.
- Revelation 16:16And they gathered them together into the place which is called in Hebrew Har-Magedon.
Commentaries on Acts 21:40
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 40Paul stood on the stairs - Where he was out of the reach of the mob, and was surrounded by the Roman soldiers. Beckoned with the hand - Waving the hand, which was the sign that he was about to address the people. So Virgil says of Turnus, when he wished, by single combat between himself and Aeneas, to put an end to the war: - Significatque manu, et magno simul incipit ore: Parcite jam, Rutuli; et vos tela inhibete, Latini. He beckoned with his hand, and…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 40Licence - Liberty; permission. On the stairs - See the notes on Acts 21:35. Beckoned with the hand - Waving the hand as a sign that he was about to address them, and to produce silence and attention. See Acts 12:17. In the Hebrew tongue - The language which was spoken by the Jews, which was then a mixture of the Chaldee and Syriac, called Syro-Chaldaic. This language he doubtless used on this occasion in preference to the Greek, because it was understood…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 27-40Verses 27-40 In the temple, where Paul should have been protected as in a place of safety, he was violently set upon. They falsely charged him with ill doctrine and ill practice against the Mosaic ceremonies. It is no new thing for those who mean honestly and act regularly, to have things laid to their charge which they know not and never thought of. It is common for the wise and good to have that charged against them by malicious people, with which they…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 37-40The commander had mistaken Paul for an Egyptian false messiah who had planned to seize power from the Romans around AD 54 (roughly three years earlier; see Josephus, War 2.13.5). Paul corrected the mistake, gained permission to speak to the people, and addressed the crowd in Aramaic, the common language of Judea. He gave a strong statement of his faith in Jesus as the Messiah (Acts 22:1–21).Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 37-4037-40. Art not thou that Egyptian, &c.--The form of the question implies that the answer is to be in the negative, and is matter of some surprise: "Thou art not then?" &c.Read the comment
Topics related to Acts 21:40
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Acts 21
- 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
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
American Standard Version — 1901 — Public Domain
Commentaries