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Acts 19:6

in Acts 19

And when Paul laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied.

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV

ASV

And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Spirit came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied.

KJV

And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied.

This verse in Acts 19

Commentary

4 notes on this verse

A commentator

Adam Clarke

1762–1832

Commentary on the Bible · Written before 1832.

They spake with tongues, and prophesied - They received the miraculous gift of different languages; and in those languages they taught to the people the great doctrines of the Christian religion; for this appears to be the meaning of the word προεφητευον, prophesied, as it is used above.

This site's exposition

baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus

on Acts 19:5-7

On hearing this they are baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus, and when Paul lays his hands on them the Holy Ghost comes upon them, they speak with tongues and prophesy, the third of the book's distinct outpourings after Jerusalem and Caesarea. About twelve men in all receive this experience, a small but complete company that Luke bothers to count, as he counted the hundred and twenty of chapter 1. The scene sits at the center of the church's discussion of the relationship between water baptism, the laying on of hands, and the reception of the Spirit, with continuationist and cessationist readers alike drawing on it, and the text itself leaves the sequence in narrative rather than settling it as doctrine. The bench notes that tongues and prophecy here, as at Pentecost and Cornelius's house, confirm to onlookers what has happened inwardly rather than existing merely for private experience.

The record, by era

The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

This was intended to introduce the gospel at Ephesus, and to awaken in the minds of men an expectation of some great things from it; and some think that it was further designed to qualify these twelve men for the work of the ministry, and that these twelve were the elders of Ephesus, to whom Paul committed the care and government of that church.
Modern Voices1 voice
This passage reinforces the idea that speaking in tongues is a persistent sign of the Holy Spirit's baptism, occurring consistently across different times and cultural contexts. It underscores the continuity of this experience within the early church.

The words behind it

19 Greek words

Every Greek word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.

A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.

The walk

8 stops

Each card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.

  • Through

    Mark 16:17

    And these signs will accompany those who believe: In My name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues;

    it leads to

    • 1 Corinthians 12:10

      to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in various tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues.

      Reached by 2 separate paths from here.

    • Acts 5:16

      Crowds also gathered from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing the sick and those tormented by unclean spirits, and all of them were healed.

    • 1 Corinthians 12:28

      And in the church God has appointed first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracles, and those with gifts of healing, helping, administration, and various tongues.

    • Acts 8:7

      With loud shrieks, unclean spirits came out of many who were possessed, and many of the paralyzed and lame were healed.

    • Luke 10:17

      The seventy-two returned with joy and said, “Lord, even the demons submit to us in Your name.”

  • Through

    Acts 2:4

    And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.

    it leads to

    • Mark 16:17

      And these signs will accompany those who believe: In My name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues;

    • Acts 13:52

      And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.

    • Acts 4:31

      After they had prayed, their meeting place was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke the word of God boldly.

Where this verse is studied

About Acts

The Ascension — Gustave Doré (engraving, public domain)
The Ascension — Gustave Doré (engraving, public domain)

This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Charlie Shamp, Speaking in Tongues: The Definitive Evidence of the Baptism of the Holy Spirit; John Chrysostom, Homilies on the Acts of the Apostles and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.