EasyEnglish Bible 2018
Acts 9:2
2Saul asked him, ‘Please will you write some letters for me? Then I can give one of these letters to the leader of each Jewish group in Damascus. That will give me authority to take hold of any believers that I find there.’ Saul wanted to find anyone who agreed with the Way of the Lord Jesus. Then he would tie them and bring them back to Jerusalem, whether they were men or they were women.
Acts 9:2 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And desired of him letters to Damascus to the synagogues, that if he found any of this way, whether they were men or women, he might bring them bound unto Jerusalem.
- New International Version (NIV)and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem.
- English Standard Version (ESV)and asked him for letters to the synagogues at Damascus, so that if he found any belonging to the Way, men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.
- New King James Version (NKJV)and asked letters from him to the synagogues of Damascus, so that if he found any who were of the Way, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.
Context of Acts 9:2
1All this time, Saul was still speaking strongly against the disciples of the Lord Jesus. He wanted to kill all the believers. So he went to see the most important priest in Jerusalem. Saul asked him, ‘Please will you write some letters for me? Then I can give one of these letters to the leader of each Jewish group in Damascus. That will give me authority to take hold of any believers that I find there.’ Saul wanted to find anyone who agreed with the Way of the Lord Jesus. Then he would tie them and bring them back to Jerusalem, whether they were men or they were women. 3He travelled towards Damascus. He was very near the city when a bright light suddenly appeared. The light came from the sky, and it shone all around him. 4Saul fell down onto the ground. He heard a voice which said to him, ‘Saul, Saul, why do you fight against me?’
Read all of Acts 9Acts 9:2 word by word
ᾐτήσατο παρ᾽ αὐτοῦ ἐπιστολὰς εἰς Δαμασκὸν πρὸς τὰς συναγωγάς, ὅπως ἐάν τινας εὕρῃ τῆς ὁδοῦ ὄντας ἄνδρας τε καὶ γυναῖκας, δεδεμένους ἀγάγῃ εἰς Ἰερουσαλήμ.Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And desiredαἰτέωaiteō · to askG154
- ofπαράpara · from/with/besideG3844
- himαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
- lettersἐπιστολήepistolē · epistleG1992
- toεἰςeis · towardG1519
- DamascusΔαμασκόςDamaskos · DamascusG1154
- toπρόςpros · to/withG4314
- the synagoguesὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
- the synagoguesσυναγωγήsunagōgē · synagogueG4864
- thatὅπωςhopōs · thatG3704
- ifἐάνean · ifG1437
- he foundεὑρίσκωheuriskō · to find/meetG2147
- anyτιςtis · oneG5100
- of this wayὁδόςhodos · roadG3598
- whetherτεte · and/bothG5037
- they wereεἰμίeimi · to beG1510
- menἀνήρanēr · manG435
- orκαίkai · andG2532
- womenγυνήgunē · womanG1135
- he might bringἄγωagō · to bringG71
- them boundδέωdeō · to bindG1210
- JerusalemἹερουσαλήμHierousalēm · JerusalemG2419
Cross-references for Acts 9:2
- Acts 9:14Now he has come here to Damascus, and he has brought letters with him from the leaders of the priests. They have given him authority, so that he will take hold of everyone who believes in you. He will tie them and put them in prison.’
- Acts 7:19He was very cruel to our ancestors and he caused them to suffer. When new babies were born, he said that our people must put them out of their homes. He said that because he wanted the babies to die.
- Acts 22:5The most important priest and all the group of Jewish leaders can tell you that this is true. They gave me letters for the Jewish leaders in Damascus. So I travelled to Damascus to take hold of the believers in that city. I wanted to tie them up and bring them back to Jerusalem. Then the leaders here could punish them.’
- Acts 26:12For that reason, one day I was travelling to Damascus. The leaders of the priests in Jerusalem had sent me there. They had given me authority to take hold of the believers there.
- Esther 3:8Then Haman said to King Xerxes, ‘There is a group of people who live in many regions of your kingdom. They have different customs to all the other people. They refuse to obey the laws of your kingdom. It is not good for you to let them live among all the other people in your kingdom.
- Psalms 82:2He asks them, ‘How long will you continue to judge people in a way that is not fair? How long will you say that wicked people are right? Selah.
- Acts 6:9But some men spoke against Stephen. They did not agree with what he taught people. These men were from one of the Jewish meeting places in Jerusalem. People called them, ‘The Group of Free Men’. These men were Jews from the cities called Cyrene and Alexandria. Some of them were from towns in Cilicia and Asia. They began to argue with Stephen.
- Acts 13:14Paul and Barnabas left Perga, and they went to a town called Antioch in Pisidia. On the Jewish day of rest, they went into the meeting place and they sat down.
- Acts 28:17After three days, Paul asked the leaders of the Jews in Rome to meet with him. When they met together, Paul said to them, ‘Friends, I am a Jew as you are. I tell you that I have never done anything bad against our people. I have always obeyed the rules that our ancestors gave to us. But the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem took hold of me. They gave me to the Roman rulers so that they would judge me.
- Acts 19:9But some of them did not accept what Paul said. They refused to believe the message about Jesus. Some of them said bad things against the Way of the Lord Jesus and many people in the group heard this. So Paul stopped speaking to people in that meeting place. He left there and he took with him the other believers. Every day he talked with people in another place. It was a large room, where a man called Tyrannus usually taught people.
- Acts 28:22But we know that people everywhere are saying bad things about your new group. So we would like you to tell us your ideas.’
Commentaries on Acts 9:2
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 2Letters to Damascus to the synagogues - Damascus, anciently called דמסק Damask, and דרמסק Darmask, was once the metropolis of all Syria. It was situated at fifty miles' distance from the sea; from which it is separated by lofty mountains. It is washed by two rivers, Amara or Abara, which ran through it, and Pharpar, called by the Greeks Chrysorrhoas, the golden stream, which ran on the outside of its walls. It is one of the most ancient cities in the…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 2And desired of him - This shows the intensity of his wish to persecute the Christians, that he was willing to ask for such an employment. Letters - Epistles, implying a commission to bring them to Jerusalem for trial and punishment. From this it seems that the Sanhedrin at Jerusalem claimed jurisdiction over all synagogues everywhere. To Damascus - This was a celebrated city of Syria, and long the capital of a kingdom of that name. It is situated in a…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 2A synagogue (Greek sunagōgē, meaning “gathering place”) was a local Jewish meeting place. After the exile to Babylon, Jewish people began to meet in synagogues in their towns. These places became centers for teaching and worship. After Israel returned from exile in Babylon, Jews began using synagogues for instruction and worship. In the synagogue, people read from the Law and the Prophets. Leaders explained the meaning of the Scriptures. The people also…Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 22. desired ... letters--of authorization. to Damascus--the capital of Syria and the great highway between eastern and western Asia, about one hundred thirty miles northeast of Jerusalem; the most ancient city perhaps in the world, and lying in the center of a verdant and inexhaustible paradise. It abounded (as appears from Josephus, Wars of the Jews, 2.20,2) with Jews, and with Gentile proselytes to the Jewish faith. Thither the Gospel had penetrated; and…Read the comment
Topics related to Acts 9:2
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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