Acts 16:20-22

New English Translation

Footnotes

1. Acts 16:20 tn Grk “And when.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.
2. Acts 16:20 tn Grk “having brought them.” The participle ἐπιλαβόμενοι (epilabomenoi) has been taken temporally. It is also possible in English to translate this participle as a finite verb: “they brought them before the magistrates and said.”
3. Acts 16:20 tn BDAG 309 s.v. ἐκταράσσω has “agitate, cause trouble to, throw into confusion” for the meaning of this verb.
4. Acts 16:20 tn Grk “being Jews, and they are proclaiming.” The participle ὑπάρχοντες (huparchontes) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.
5. Acts 16:21 tn Grk “proclaiming,” but in relation to customs, “advocating” is a closer approximation to the meaning.
6. Acts 16:21 tn Or “acknowledge.”
7. Acts 16:21 sn Customs that are not lawful for us to accept or practice. Ironically, the charges are similar to those made against Jesus in Luke 23:2, where Jews argued he was “twisting” their customs. The charge has three elements: (1) a racial element (Jewish); (2) a social element (unlawful); and (3) a traditional element (not their customs).
8. Acts 16:21 tn Grk “we being Romans.” The participle οὖσιν (ousin) has been translated as a causal adverbial participle.
9. Acts 16:22 tn L&N 39.50 has “the crowd joined the attack against them” for συνεπέστη (sunepestē) in this verse.
10. Acts 16:22 tn Grk “tearing the clothes off them, the magistrates ordered.” The participle περιρήξαντες (perirēxantes) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style. Although it may be possible to understand the aorist active participle περιρήξαντες in a causative sense (“the magistrates caused the clothes to be torn off Paul and Silas”) in the mob scene that was taking place, it is also possible that the magistrates themselves actively participated. This act was done to prepare them for a public flogging (2 Cor 11:25; 1 Thess 2:2).
11. Acts 16:22 tn Grk “off them”; the referents (Paul and Silas) have been specified in the translation for clarity.
12. Acts 16:22 tn The infinitive ῥαβδίζειν (rhabdizein) means “to beat with rods or sticks” (as opposed to fists, BDAG 902 s.v. ῥαβδίζω).