Darby Bible
Acts 21:39
39But Paul said, I am a Jew of Tarsus, citizen of no insignificant city of Cilicia, and I beseech of thee, allow me to speak to the people.
Acts 21:39 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)But Paul said, I am a man which am a Jew of Tarsus, a city in Cilicia, a citizen of no mean city: and, I beseech thee, suffer me to speak unto the people.
- New International Version (NIV)Paul answered, “I am a Jew, from Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of no ordinary city. Please let me speak to the people.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)Paul replied, "I am a Jew, from Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of no obscure city. I beg you, permit me to speak to the people."
- New King James Version (NKJV)But Paul said, “I am a Jew from Tarsus, in Cilicia, a citizen of no mean city; and I implore you, permit me to speak to the people.”
Context of Acts 21:39
37But as he was about to be led into the fortress, Paul says to the chiliarch, Is it allowed me to say something to thee? And he said, Dost thou know Greek? 38Thou art not then that Egyptian who before these days raised a sedition and led out into the wilderness the four thousand men of the assassins? But Paul said, I am a Jew of Tarsus, citizen of no insignificant city of Cilicia, and I beseech of thee, allow me to speak to the people. 40And when he had allowed him, Paul, standing on the stairs, beckoned with his hand to the people; and a great silence having been made, he addressed them in the Hebrew tongue, saying,
Read all of Acts 21Acts 21:39 word by word
Εἶπεν δὲ ὁ Παῦλος· ἐγὼ ἄνθρωπος μέν εἰμι Ἰουδαῖος Ταρσεὺς τῆς Κιλικίας οὐκ ἀσήμου πόλεως πολίτης, δέομαι δέ σου· ἐπίτρεψόν μοι λαλῆσαι πρὸς τὸν λαόν.Read the interlinear
- PaulΠαῦλοςPaulos · PaulG3972
- saidλέγωlegō · to sayG3004
- amεἰμίeimi · to beG1510
- JewἸουδαῖοςIoudaios · JewG2453
- TarsusΤαρσεύςTarseus · of TarsusG5018
- citizenπολίτηςpolitēs · citizenG4177
- cityπόλιςpolis · cityG4172
- CiliciaΚιλικία, ΚιλικίαKilikia · CiliciaG2791
- allowἐπιτρέπωepitrepō · to permitG2010
- speakλαλέωlaleō · to speakG2980
- peopleλαόςlaos · a peopleG2992
Cross-references for Acts 21:39
- Acts 9:11And the Lord [said] to him, Rise up and go into the street which is called Straight, and seek in the house of Judas one by name Saul, [he is] of Tarsus: for, behold, he is praying,
- Acts 22:3I am a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but brought up in this city, at the feet of Gamaliel, educated according to [the] exactness of the law of [our] fathers, being zealous for God, as ye are all this day;
- Acts 23:34And having read [it], and asked of what eparchy he was, and learned that [he was] of Cilicia,
- Acts 6:9And there arose up certain of those of the synagogue called of freedmen, and of Cyrenians, and of Alexandrians, and of those of Cilicia and Asia, disputing with Stephen.
- Acts 15:23having by their hand written [thus]: The apostles, and the elders, and the brethren, to the brethren who are from among [the] nations at Antioch, and [in] Syria and Cilicia, greeting:
- Acts 16:37But Paul said to them, Having beaten us publicly uncondemned, us who are Romans, they have cast us into prison, and now they thrust us out secretly? no, indeed, but let them come themselves and bring us out.
- Acts 22:25But as they stretched him forward with the thongs, Paul said to the centurion who stood [by], Is it lawful for you to scourge a man [who is] a Roman and uncondemned?
- Acts 23:27This man, having been taken by the Jews, and being about to be killed by them, I came up with the military and took out [of their hands], having learned that he was a Roman.
- Acts 21:37But as he was about to be led into the fortress, Paul says to the chiliarch, Is it allowed me to say something to thee? And he said, Dost thou know Greek?
- 1 Peter 3:15but sanctify [the] Lord the Christ in your hearts, and [be] always prepared to [give] an answer [to] every one that asks you to give an account of the hope that [is] in you, but with meekness and fear;
- 1 Peter 4:15Let none of you suffer indeed as murderer, or thief, or evildoer, or as overseer of other people's matters;
Commentaries on Acts 21:39
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 39I am a man which am a Jew - A periphrasis for, I am a Jew. See the note on Acts 7:2. Of Tarsus - no mean city - In the notes on Acts 9:11, I have shown that Tarsus was a city of considerable importance, and in some measure a rival to Rome and Athens; and that, because of the services tendered to the Romans by the inhabitants, Julius Caesar endowed them with all the rights and privileges of Roman citizens. When St. Paul calls it no mean city, he speaks a…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 39A Jew of Tarsus - A Jew by birth. Of no mean city - Not obscure, or undistinguished. He could claim an honorable birth, so far as the place of his nativity was concerned. See the notes on Acts 9:11. Tarsus was much celebrated for its learning, and was at one time the rival of Alexandria and Athens. Xenophon calls it a great and flourishing city. Josephus (Antiq., book 2, chapter 6, section 6) says that it was the metropolis, and most renowned city among…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 21:39
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
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