Acts 4:17

Acts 4:17 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)But that it spread no further among the people, let us straitly threaten them, that they speak henceforth to no man in this name.
• New International Version (NIV)But to stop this thing from spreading any further among the people, we must warn them to speak no longer to anyone in this name.”
• English Standard Version (ESV)But in order that it may spread no further among the people, let us warn them to speak no more to anyone in this name."
• New King James Version (NKJV)But so that it spreads no further among the people, let us severely threaten them, that from now on they speak to no man in this name.”

Context of Acts 4:17

15They told Peter and John to go out of the room where the leaders were meeting. Then they talked together to decide what they should do. 16‘What should we do with these men?’ they said. ‘Everyone who lives in Jerusalem knows about this miracle. They know that Peter and John did a great thing for that man. So we cannot say that they did not do it. But we do not want any more people to know what has happened. So we must say to these men, “You must stop using the name of Jesus. You must stop teaching people about him.” ’ 18Then the Jewish leaders told Peter and John to come back into the room. They said to them, ‘You must not use the authority of Jesus to teach people any more. You must not speak about him.’ 19Then Peter and John replied to the leaders, ‘What do you think God wants us to do? Should we obey you? Or should we obey God? You decide!

Acts 4:17 word by word

ἀλλ᾽ ἵνα μὴ ἐπὶ πλεῖον διανεμηθῇ εἰς τὸν λαόν, ἀπειλησώμεθα αὐτοῖς μηκέτι λαλεῖν ἐπὶ τῷ ὀνόματι τούτῳ μηδενὶ ἀνθρώπων.Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• Butἀλλάalla · butG235
• thatἵναhina · in order that/toG2443
• it spreadδιανέμωdianemō · to spreadG1268
• noμήmē · notG3361
• furtherπλείων, πλεῖονpleiōn pleion pleon · greaterG4119
• ·ἐπίepi · upon/to/againstG1909
• amongεἰςeis · towardG1519
• the peopleὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• the peopleλαόςlaos · a peopleG2992
• let usἀπειλέωapeileō · to threatenG546
• straitlyἀπειλήapeilē · threatG547
• themαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
• that they speakλαλέωlaleō · to speakG2980
• henceforthμηκέτιmēketi · never againG3371
• to noμηδείςmēdeis mēdemia mēden · nothingG3367
• manἄνθρωποςanthrōpos · a humanG444
• thisοὗτοςhoutos houtoi hautē hautai · this/he/she/itG3778
• nameὄνομαonoma · nameG3686

Cross-references for Acts 4:17

• Acts 5:39But perhaps what they are doing really does come from God himself. If that is true, then you cannot stop them. You might even find that you are fighting against God!’
• Psalms 2:1Why are nations making plans to turn against the Lord? All their plans will fail!
• Daniel 2:34While you looked, someone cut out a large stone from a mountain. But no human hand did this. The stone hit the statue on its iron and clay feet. The stone broke them into pieces.
• Romans 10:16But not every person who hears the good news obeys its message. Isaiah said this: ‘Lord God, it seems that nobody has believed our message.’
• Romans 15:18But I will only speak about the work that Christ has made me able to do. I have lived among the Gentiles and I have spoken God's message to them. They have obeyed God as a result of Christ's work through me.
• 1 Thessalonians 1:8Because of you, people in many places have clearly heard the message about the Lord. It is not only the people in Macedonia and in Achaia who have heard it. People everywhere now know how you trust God. So, as we travel to different places, we do not need to tell people anything.
• Acts 4:21The Jewish leaders were angry. They told Peter and John that they must obey them. Then they let Peter and John go free. All the people there were praising God because of the miracle. So the leaders could not decide how to punish Peter and John.
• Acts 5:24The leader of the police of the temple and the leaders of the priests heard the news. They could not understand what had happened. They were afraid of what might happen next.
• 2 Chronicles 25:15So the Lord became angry with Amaziah. He sent a prophet to him with a message. The prophet said to Amaziah, ‘You should not worship these foreign gods! They could not even save their own people from your power!’
• Isaiah 30:8Go and write this message down for them to see. Yes, write it in a book so that it will always be there to read. In the future, it will always show what is true.
• Jeremiah 20:1Immer's son Pashhur was the priest who had authority in the Lord's temple. He heard Jeremiah's message about Jerusalem.
• Jeremiah 29:25‘The Lord Almighty, Israel's God says, “You sent a letter on your own authority to all the people in Jerusalem. Those people included the priest Zephaniah, Maaseiah's son, and all the other priests. In your letter, you said to Zephaniah:
• Jeremiah 38:4When the officers heard that, they said to the king, ‘You must punish this man with death. He is making our soldiers who remain in the city afraid. The things that he says are making all the people in the city very afraid. He does not want to help our people. He wants to destroy them.’
• Amos 2:12‘But you told the Nazirites to drink wine, like everyone else. And you said to the prophets, “Do not speak messages from God.”
• Amos 7:12Then Amaziah said to Amos, ‘Go away, you prophet! Go back to your own country, Judah. Speak your messages from God to get your food there!
• Micah 2:6The people say to me, ‘Do not prophesy against us! Do not say that we will have trouble. God will not make us ashamed!’

Commentaries on Acts 4:17

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 17But that it spread no farther - Not the news of the miraculous healing of the lame man, but the doctrine and influence which these men preach and exert. More than a thousand people had already professed faith in Christ in consequence of this miracle, (see Acts 4:4;), and if this teaching should be permitted to go on, probably accompanied with similar miracles, they had reason to believe that all Jerusalem (themselves excepted, who had steeled their hearts…Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 15-18Verses 15-18 What shall we do to these men? - The object which they had in view was evidently to prevent their preaching. The miracle was performed, and it was believed by the people to have been made. This they could not expect to be able successfully to deny. Their only object, therefore, was to prevent the apostles from making the use which they saw they would to convince the people that Jesus was the Messiah. The question was, in what way they should…Read the comment
• Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 15-22Verses 15-22 All the care of the rulers is, that the doctrine of Christ spread not among the people, yet they cannot say it is false or dangerous, or of any ill tendency; and they are ashamed to own the true reason; that it testifies against their hypocrisy, wickedness, and tyranny. Those who know how to put a just value upon Christ's promises, know how to put just contempt upon the world's threatenings. The apostles look with concern on perishing souls…Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 16-18They acknowledged the miracle but still tried to prevent the message. Jesus had experienced similar resistance (Matthew 19:8; Mark 10:5; see also Deuteronomy 10:16; 30:6; Jeremiah 4:4).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 13-1713-17. perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men--that is, uninstructed in the learning of the Jewish schools, and of the common sort; men in private life, untrained to teaching. took knowledge of them that they had been with Jesus--recognized them as having been in His company; remembering possibly, that they had seen them with Him [Meyer, Bloomfield, Alford]; but, more probably, perceiving in their whole bearing what identified them with…Read the comment

Topics related to Acts 4:17

• Caiaphas
• Court
• Government
• Intolerance, Religious
• John
• Persecution
• Peter
• Priest

In the dictionaries

• Counsel
• Hold
• Notable
• Possess
• Sanhedrim
• Threaten
• Threatening
• Acts of the Apostles
• Courts, Judicial
• Miracle

Commentaries on Acts 4

• 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