Acts 28:5

Acts 28:5 in other versions

• King James Version (KJV)And he shook off the beast into the fire, and felt no harm.
• New International Version (NIV)But Paul shook the snake off into the fire and suffered no ill effects.
• English Standard Version (ESV)He, however, shook off the creature into the fire and suffered no harm.
• New King James Version (NKJV)But he shook off the creature into the fire and suffered no harm.

Context of Acts 28:5

3Paul gathered a bundle of brushwood and put it on the fire. The heat forced a poisonous snake out of the brushwood. The snake bit Paul’s hand and wouldn’t let go. 4When the people who lived on the island saw the snake hanging from his hand, they said to each other, “This man must be a murderer! He may have escaped from the sea, but justice won’t let him live.” Paul shook the snake into the fire and wasn’t harmed. 6The people were waiting for him to swell up or suddenly drop dead. But after they had waited a long time and saw nothing unusual happen to him, they changed their minds and said he was a god. 7A man named Publius, who was the governor of the island, had property around the area. He welcomed us and treated us kindly, and for three days we were his guests.

Acts 28:5 word by word

Ὁ μὲν οὖν τὸ θηρίον εἰς τὸ πῦρ ἔπαθεν οὐδὲν κακόν.Read the interlinear

Words taken from the KJV.

• ·ὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
• Andοὖνoun · therefore/thenG3767
• ·μένmen · on the other handG3303
• he shook offἀποτινάσσωapotinassō · to shake offG660
• the beastθηρίονthērion · wild animalG2342
• intoεἰςeis · towardG1519
• the fireπῦρpur · fireG4442
• and feltπάσχωpaschō pathō penthō · to sufferG3958
• noοὐδείςoudeis · noneG3762
• harmκακόςkakos · evil/harm: harmG2556

Cross-references for Acts 28:5

• Numbers 21:6So the Lord sent poisonous snakes among the people. They bit the people, and many of the Israelites died.
• Psalms 91:13You will step on lions and cobras. You will trample young lions and snakes.
• Mark 16:18They will pick up snakes, and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them. They will place their hands on the sick and cure them.”
• Luke 10:19I have given you the authority to trample snakes and scorpions and to destroy the enemy’s power. Nothing will hurt you.
• John 3:14“As Moses lifted up the snake ⌞on a pole⌟ in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up.
• Romans 16:20The God of peace will quickly crush Satan under your feet. May the good will of our Lord Jesus be with you!
• Revelation 9:3Locusts came out of the smoke onto the earth, and they were given power like the power of earthly scorpions.

Commentaries on Acts 28:5

• Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 5Shook off the beast into the fire, and felt no harm - This is a presumptive evidence that the viper did not bite St. Paul: it fastened on his hand, but had no power to injure him.Read the comment
• Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 5And he shook off … - In this was remarkably fulfilled the promise of the Saviour Mark 16:18; “They shall take up serpents,” etc.Read the comment
• Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 3-6The people of Malta believed that justice was a personal power or a god who punished criminals. When nothing bad happened to Paul, they changed their minds. They saw that he was not harmed by the snake. So they thought he had power over snakes and said that he must be a god (compare 14:11–12). But this was not true. Paul did not have special power in himself. Instead, his survival showed that God was protecting him (compare Mark 16:17–18).Read the comment
• Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 4-64-6. No doubt this man is a murderer--His chains, which they would see, might strengthen the impression. whom ... vengeance suffereth not to live--They believed in a Supreme, Resistless, Avenging Eye and Hand, however vague their notions of where it resided.Read the comment

Topics related to Acts 28:5

• Melita (Malta)
• Minister, Christian
• Miracles
• Paul
• Serpent

In the dictionaries

• Attain
• Compass
• Concern
• Confidence
• Constrain
• Escape
• Foreship
• James
• Kindness
• Melita

Commentaries on Acts 28

• 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