New King James Version
Acts 13:21
21And afterward they asked for a king; so God gave them Saul the son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, for forty years.
Acts 13:21 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And afterward they desired a king: and God gave unto them Saul the son of Cis, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, by the space of forty years.
- New International Version (NIV)Then the people asked for a king, and he gave them Saul son of Kish, of the tribe of Benjamin, who ruled forty years.
- English Standard Version (ESV)Then they asked for a king, and God gave them Saul the son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, for forty years.
- New Living Translation (NLT)Then the people begged for a king, and God gave them Saul son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, who reigned for forty years.
Context of Acts 13:21
19And when He had destroyed seven nations in the land of Canaan, He distributed their land to them by allotment. 20“After that He gave them judges for about four hundred and fifty years, until Samuel the prophet. And afterward they asked for a king; so God gave them Saul the son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, for forty years. 22And when He had removed him, He raised up for them David as king, to whom also He gave testimony and said, ‘I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after My own heart, who will do all My will.’ 23From this man’s seed, according to the promise, God raised up for Israel a Savior—Jesus—
Read all of Acts 13Acts 13:21 word by word
κἀκεῖθεν ᾐτήσαντο βασιλέα, καὶ ἔδωκεν αὐτοῖς ὁ θεὸς τὸν Σαοὺλ υἱὸν Κίς, ἄνδρα ἐκ φυλῆς Βενιαμίν, ἔτη τεσσεράκοντα·Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- And afterwardκἀκεῖθενkakeithen · and from thereG2547
- they desiredαἰτέωaiteō · to askG154
- a kingβασιλεύςbasileus · kingG935
- andκαίkai · andG2532
- Godὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
- Godθεόςtheos · GodG2316
- gaveδίδωμιdidōmi · to giveG1325
- unto themαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
- SaulΣαούλSaoul · SaulG4549
- the sonυἱόςuihos · sonG5207
- of CisΚίςKis · KishG2797
- a manἀνήρanēr · manG435
- ofἐκek ex · out fromG1537
- the tribeφυλήphulē · tribeG5443
- of BenjaminΒενιαμίνBeniamin · BenjaminG958
- by the space of fortyτεσσαράκονταtessarakonta · fortyG5062
- yearsἔτοςetos · yearG2094
Cross-references for Acts 13:21
- 1 Samuel 8:5and said to him, “Look, you are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now make us a king to judge us like all the nations.”
- 1 Samuel 12:12And when you saw that Nahash king of the Ammonites came against you, you said to me, ‘No, but a king shall reign over us,’ when the Lord your God was your king.
- 1 Samuel 10:1Then Samuel took a flask of oil and poured it on his head, and kissed him and said: “Is it not because the Lord has anointed you commander over His inheritance?
- 1 Samuel 11:15So all the people went to Gilgal, and there they made Saul king before the Lord in Gilgal. There they made sacrifices of peace offerings before the Lord, and there Saul and all the men of Israel rejoiced greatly.
- 1 Samuel 15:1Samuel also said to Saul, “The Lord sent me to anoint you king over His people, over Israel. Now therefore, heed the voice of the words of the Lord.
- 1 Samuel 9:1There was a man of Benjamin whose name was Kish the son of Abiel, the son of Zeror, the son of Bechorath, the son of Aphiah, a Benjamite, a mighty man of power.
- 1 Samuel 10:21When he had caused the tribe of Benjamin to come near by their families, the family of Matri was chosen. And Saul the son of Kish was chosen. But when they sought him, he could not be found.
Commentaries on Acts 13:21
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 21Saul the son of Cis - In all proper names quoted from the Old Testament, we should undoubtedly follow, as nearly as possible, the same orthography: קיש Kish, was the name of this king's father, and so we spell it in the Old Testament, and yet have transformed it into Cis in the New, where the orthography is almost entirely lost. The space of forty years - Reckoning from the time of his anointing by Samuel to the time of his death, from a.m. 2909 to 2949.Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 21And afterward they desired a king - See 1 Samuel 8:5; Hosea 13:10. It was predicted that they would have a king, Deuteronomy 17:14-15. Saul, the son of Cis - is the Greek mode of writing the Hebrew name Kish. In the Old Testament it is uniformly written as “Kish,” and it is to be regretted that this has not been retained in the New Testament. See 1 Samuel 9:1. By the space of forty years - During forty years. The Old Testament has not mentioned the time…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 14-31Verses 14-31 When we come together to worship God, we must do it, not only by prayer and praise, but by the reading and hearing of the word of God. The bare reading of the Scriptures in public assemblies is not enough; they should be expounded, and the people exhorted out of them. This is helping people in doing that which is necessary to make the word profitable, to apply it to themselves. Every thing is touched upon in this sermon, which might best…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 17-22To establish common ground with his audience, Paul traced Jewish history starting from the Israelite exodus from Egypt. He emphasized: the Israelites' escape from Egyptian slavery, their settlement in Canaan, the establishment of the kingdom of Israel, the removal of King Saul, and the special role of King David.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 18-2218-22. forty years suffered he their manners--rather, according to what appears the true reading, "cherished he them" (as a nurse the infant in her bosom).Read the comment
Topics related to Acts 13:21
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Acts 13
- 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
- Luther’s Commentary on Selected Bible Passages
- 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
New King James Version — © 1982 Thomas Nelson, Inc
Commentaries