Acts 26:20

Acts 26:20 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)But shewed first unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the coasts of Judea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance.
• New International Version (NIV)First to those in Damascus, then to those in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and then to the Gentiles, I preached that they should repent and turn to God and demonstrate their repentance by their deeds.
• English Standard Version (ESV)but declared first to those in Damascus, then in Jerusalem and throughout all the region of Judea, and also to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, performing deeds in keeping with their repentance.
• New King James Version (NKJV)but declared first to those in Damascus and in Jerusalem, and throughout all the region of Judea, and then to the Gentiles, that they should repent, turn to God, and do works befitting repentance.

Context of Acts 26:20

18You will help them to understand what is really true. They are like people who live in the dark. Teach them what is true about me. Then they will be like people who live in the light. Now Satan has power over them. Lead them from there into God's kingdom. Then God will forgive them for the wrong things that they have done. Because they believe in me, God will accept them as his own people.” ’ 19‘So you should know this, King Agrippa. I obeyed the things that I heard from heaven that day. First, I taught God's message to the Jews in Damascus. Then I also taught God's message to the Jews in Jerusalem and in all of Judea region. Later I also spoke to the Gentiles. I said to all of them, “You must stop doing wrong things. You must turn to God. You must do good things. That will show that you have really changed how you live.” 21That is the reason that the Jews took hold of me in the yard of the temple. That is also the reason why they wanted to kill me. 22But God has helped me every day, even until today. So now I stand here and I can tell you what is true. I say the same thing to people who are very important and to people who are not important. I am telling you the same things that Moses and God's other prophets wrote about. They also said that these things would happen.

Acts 26:20 word by word

ἀλλὰ τοῖς ἐν Δαμασκῷ πρῶτόν τε καὶ Ἱεροσολύμοις, πᾶσάν τε τὴν χώραν τῆς Ἰουδαίας, καὶ τοῖς ἔθνεσιν ἀπήγγελλον μετανοεῖν καὶ ἐπιστρέφειν ἐπὶ τὸν θεὸν ἄξια τῆς μετανοίας ἔργα πράσσοντας.Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Butἀλλάalla · butG235
• shewedἀπαγγέλλωapaggellō · to announceG518
• firstπρῶτονprōton · firstG4412
• unto themὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• ofἐνen · in/on/amongG1722
• DamascusΔαμασκόςDamaskos · DamascusG1154
• andκαίkai · andG2532
• at JerusalemἹεροσόλυμαHierosoluma · JerusalemG2414
• andτεte · and/bothG5037
• throughoutεἰςeis · towardG1519
• allπᾶςpas · allG3956
• the coastsχώραchōra · countryG5561
• of JudeaἸουδαίαIoudaia · JudeaG2449
• to the Gentilesἔθνοςethnos · GentilesG1484
• that they should repentμετανοέωmetanoeō · to repentG3340
• turnἐπιστρέφωepistrephō · to turnG1994
• toἐπίepi · upon/to/againstG1909
• Godθεόςtheos · GodG2316
• and doπράσσωprassō · to do/requireG4238
• worksἔργονergon · workG2041
• meetἄξιοςaxios · worthyG514
• for repentanceμετάνοιαmetanoia · repentanceG3341

Cross-references for Acts 26:20

• Acts 9:19Then Saul ate some food and he became strong again. Saul stayed with the believers in Damascus for a few days.
• Acts 11:26When Barnabas found him, he brought him back to Antioch. For one whole year, Barnabas and Saul met together with the group of believers there. They taught very many of them about Jesus. Antioch was the first place where the believers were called Christians.
• Acts 9:28After that, Saul stayed with the apostles. He went everywhere in Jerusalem and he bravely taught people the message about the Lord Jesus.
• Acts 22:17So then I returned to Jerusalem. I went into the temple and I was praying there. I had a vision.
• Acts 26:17I will send you to speak about me to Jews and to Gentiles. Some of them will want to hurt you. But I will keep you safe.
• Acts 13:46But Paul and Barnabas were not afraid of them. They said to them, ‘It was right that we first tell you who are Jews the message from God. But now you say that God's message is not true. You have shown that you do not deserve true life with God. So we will leave you now. We will go and tell this message to the Gentiles.
• Acts 14:16In past times, God let people everywhere do what they wanted to do.
• Acts 22:21But the Lord said to me, “Go! I will now send you a long way away. You must go to the Gentiles and tell them my message.” ’
• Romans 11:18Israel's people are like the branches that God broke off. But you must not think that you are better than those branches. Remember that you are still only a branch. You do not make the root strong. No, it is the root that holds you up and makes you strong.
• Acts 2:38Peter said to them, ‘Each of you must stop doing wrong things. You must change how you live. If you believe in Jesus Christ, then we will baptize you. God will forgive you for the wrong things that you have done. Then you will receive the Holy Spirit, who is God's gift to you.
• Acts 3:19So you must stop doing wrong things. Change how you live and turn to God. Then God will forgive you for all the wrong things that you have done.
• Acts 11:18The Jewish believers heard what Peter said. They could not say anything more against him. Instead, they praised God and they said, ‘We now see that God has also let Gentiles have life with him. He will accept them if they stop doing bad things and turn to him.’
• Acts 17:30In past times people did not know the true things about God. Because of this, God did not punish them. But now God tells people everywhere, “Stop doing bad things and turn to me!”
• Acts 20:21I have taught the same things both to Jewish people and to Gentiles. I have said clearly to them all, “You must stop doing wrong things. Change the way that you live and turn to God. Believe in our Lord Jesus.”
• Jeremiah 31:19After we turned away from you, we were sorry that we had done that. We understood what we had done, and we showed that we were sad. We were ashamed and upset, because of the disgusting things that we did when we were young.”
• Ezekiel 18:30The Almighty Lord says this to you, Israel's people: I will judge each of you as you deserve for the way that you live. So change how you live! Turn away from all the wicked things that you do. Then your sins will not finally destroy you.

Commentaries on Acts 26:20

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 20But showed first unto them of Damascus - He appears to have preached at Damascus, and in the neighboring parts of Arabia Deserta, for about three years; and afterwards he went up to Jerusalem. See Galatians 1:17, Galatians 1:18; and see the note on Acts 9:23. That they should repent - Be deeply humbled for their past iniquities, and turn to God as their Judge and Savior, avoiding all idolatry and all sin; and thus do works meet for repentance; that is…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 20See Acts 9:20-23. The 20th verse contains a summary of his labors in obedience to the command of the Lord Jesus. His argument is that the Lord Jesus had from heaven commanded him to do this, and that he had done no more than to obey his injunction. The word “then” in this verse is supplied by our translators, and is not necessary to the proper explanation of the passage. It would seem from that word that he had not preached “to the Gentiles” until after…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 12-23Verses 12-23 Paul was made a Christian by Divine power; by a revelation of Christ both to him and in him; when in the full career of his sin. He was made a minister by Divine authority: the same Jesus who appeared to him in that glorious light, ordered him to preach the gospel to the Gentiles. A world that sits in darkness must be enlightened; those must be brought to know the things that belong to their everlasting peace, who are yet ignorant of them. A…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 1-23In his careful defense before King Agrippa, Paul argued that his message agreed fully with the Jewish faith. He began by respectfully recognizing Agrippa’s knowledge of Jewish matters (26:2–3). He then described his early life, his training in Judaism, and his membership in the Pharisees (a Jewish group known for strict obedience to the law; 26:4–5). Paul explained that the charges against him were only because he believed that God had fulfilled the…Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 19-2119-21. Whereupon, O King Agrippa, I was not disobedient unto the heavenly vision--This musical and elevated strain, which carries the reader along with it, and doubtless did the hearers, bespeaks the lofty region of thought and feeling to which the apostle had risen while rehearsing his Master's communications to him from heaven.Read the comment

Topics related to Acts 26:20

• Converts
• Court
• Damascus
• Defense
• Repentance
• Testimony
• Zeal, Religious

In the dictionaries

• Damascus
• God
• Jerusalem
• Judea
• Judaea, or Judea
• Judea, Judah
• god, false god, goddess, idol, idolater, idolatrous, idolatry
• Above
• Agrippa II.
• Beside

Commentaries on Acts 26

• 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