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Acts 23:20

in Acts 23

He answered, “The Jews have agreed to ask you to bring Paul to the Sanhedrin tomorrow on the pretext of acquiring more information about him.

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾

ASV

And he said, The Jews have agreed to ask thee to bring down Paul to-morrow unto the council, as though thou wouldest inquire somewhat more exactly concerning him.

KJV

And he said, The Jews have agreed to desire thee that thou wouldest bring down Paul to morrow into the council, as though they would enquire somewhat of him more perfectly.

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This verse in Acts 23

Commentary

5 notes on this verse
And he said ... - In what way this young man had received intelligence of this, we can only conjecture. It is not improbable that he was a student under some one of the Jewish teachers, and that he might have learned it of him. It is not at all probable that the purpose of the 40 men would be very closely kept. Indeed, it is evident that they were not themselves very anxious about concealing their oath, as they mentioned it freely to the chief priests and elders, Act 23:14.

This site's exposition

The Jews have agreed to ask

on Acts 23:20-22

The nephew repeats the plot exactly, which gives the commander what he needs to act. His order to tell no one protects the boy from reprisal and shows a competent officer handling a security matter.

The record, by era

The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices

And he said, the Jews have agreed to desire thee,.... By the Jews are meant, the Jewish sanhedrim, for the young man had not only intelligence of the conspiracy, and lying in wait of the forty men or more; but also of the agreement which the sanhedrim at the motion of these men were come into, to make the following request to the chief captain; which seems to confirm the above conjecture, that this young man might be a student under the president of the council, or one of the doctors, whereby he came at the knowledge of these things: that thou wouldst bring down Paul tomorrow into the council, &c. See Gill on Act 23:15.

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

proposed

The chief captain's care of Paul's safety, by which he prevented the execution of the design; he sent him away immediately under a strong guard from Jerusalem to Cæsarea, which was now the residence of Felix, the Roman governor, and there he safely arrived,

The Nineteenth Century1 voice

A commentator

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown

1802–1910

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)

Paul's sister's son--(See on Ac 9:30). If he was at this time residing at Jerusalem for his education, like Paul himself, he may have got at the schools those hints of the conspiracy on which he so promptly acted.

The words behind it

24 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.

Related verses

5 in all, six open

The number beside each verse is how many compiled reference works tie it to this one. The strongest six stand open.

Acts 23:14–15They went to the chief priests and elders and said, “We have bound ourselves with a solemn oath not to eat anything until we have killed Paul.3 worksActs 23:30When I was informed that there was a plot against the man, I sent him to you at once. I also instructed his accusers to present their case against him before you.3 worksPsalms 12:2They lie to one another; they speak with flattering lips and a double heart.2 worksDaniel 6:5–12Finally these men said, “We will never find any charge against this Daniel, unless we find something against him concerning the law of his God.”2 worksActs 23:1Paul looked directly at the Sanhedrin and said, “Brothers, I have conducted myself before God in all good conscience to this day.”2 works

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

    Psalms 12:2

    They lie to one another; they speak with flattering lips and a double heart.

    it leads to

    • Romans 16:18

      For such people are not serving our Lord Christ, but their own appetites. By smooth talk and flattery they deceive the hearts of the naive.

    • Jeremiah 9:8

      Their tongues are deadly arrows; they speak deception. With his mouth a man speaks peace to his neighbor, but in his heart he sets a trap for him.

    • Psalms 41:6

      My visitor speaks falsehood; he gathers slander in his heart; he goes out and spreads it abroad.

    • Psalms 144:8

      whose mouths speak falsehood, whose right hands are deceitful.

  • Through

    Acts 23:1

    Paul looked directly at the Sanhedrin and said, “Brothers, I have conducted myself before God in all good conscience to this day.”

    it leads to

    • Acts 24:16

      In this hope, I strive always to maintain a clear conscience before God and man.

    • 2 Timothy 1:3

      I thank God, whom I serve with a clear conscience as did my forefathers, as I constantly remember you night and day in my prayers.

    • 2 Corinthians 1:12

      And this is our boast: Our conscience testifies that we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially in relation to you, in the holiness and sincerity that are from God—not in worldly wisdom,…

    • Hebrews 13:18

      Pray for us; we are convinced that we have a clear conscience and desire to live honorably in every way.

Where this verse is studied

About Acts

The Pentecost, El Greco, about 1600, Museo del Prado. Public domain.
The Pentecost, El Greco, about 1600, Museo del Prado. Public domain.
Acts: the study guide →Read Acts 23 →

This page draws on Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the New Testament (1746-1748); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.

Read on in Acts 23 →