Notes

Introduction

[1]. See especially the introduction of Joseph A. Fitzmyer, The Acts of the Apostles, Anchor Bible 31 (New York: Doubleday, 1998), 98–103 and 580. Compare Ben Witherington III, The Acts of the Apostles: A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1997), 480–86; and C. K. Barrett, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Acts of the Apostles, 2 vols. (Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 1994–98), 2: xxv–xxx and 773. Luke Timothy Johnson, The Acts of the Apostles, Sacra Pagina 5 (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 1992), 296–97, discusses the main possibilities without giving a strong opinion.

[2]. Readers may discern other themes in Acts by considering the entries in the Index of Pastoral Topics beginning on p. 390.

[3]. On Evangelization in the Modern World (Evangelii Nuntiandi), 51.

[4]. Ibid., 14.

[5]. Novo Millennio Ineunte (At the Beginning of the New Millennium), 40.

Luke’s Introduction to Acts (Acts 1:1–11)

[1]. The NAB does not capitalize “holy,” presumably to indicate that the Holy Spirit was not yet a fixed title for the Third Person of the Trinity.

[2]. The Greek syntax is ambiguous and scholars disagree as to whether the phrase “through the Holy Spirit” goes with “giving instructions” (as in the NAB, NRSV, NIV) or with “chose the apostles” (as in the NJB), that is, whether Luke describes the Spirit as influencing Jesus’ final instructions or his choice of the apostles. The context seems to support the majority of translations, which prefer the former interpretation.

[3]. See Jaroslav Pelikan, The Acts of the Apostles, Brazos Theological Commentary on the Bible (Grand Rapids: Brazos Press, 2005), 96–98 on “Miracles as ‘Signs.’”

[4]. Compare Richard Bauckham, Jesus and the Eyewitnesses: The Gospels as Eyewitness Testimony (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2006).

[5]. Irenaeus, Against Heresies 1.3.2 [ANF 1:319]; Pelikan, Acts, 39.

[6]. Luke presumes that his readers know what “kingdom of God” means, for he does not define it either in his Gospel or in Acts (Joseph A. Fitzmyer, The Acts of the Apostles, Anchor Bible 31 [New York: Doubleday, 1998], 199).

[7]. It is announced by John the Baptist in all four Gospels (Matt 3:11; Mark 1:8; Luke 3:16; John 1:33) and by Jesus himself here in Acts 1:5 and is recalled by Peter in Acts 11:16. See also Jesus’ promises of the Holy Spirit (the Paraclete or Advocate) in John 14:15–17, 25–26; 15:26; 16:7–15.

[8]. See Isa 32:15; 44:2–3; Ezek 39:29; Joel 3:1; Zech 12:10.

[9]. See Larry W. Hurtado, Lord Jesus Christ: Devotion to Jesus in Earliest Christianity (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2003).

[10]. See Kenneth Duncan Litwak, Echoes of Scripture in Luke-Acts: Telling the History of God’s People Intertextually, Journal for the Study of the New Testament: Supplement Series 282 (London, New York: T&T Clark International, 2005), 152–53.

[11]. Redemptoris Missio, 3.

[12]. Evangelii Nuntiandi, 75.

[13]. Homily at St. Patrick’s Cathedral, New York City, April 19, 2008.

[14]. According to Jewish tradition, Moses too had been taken up into heaven; see the Jewish apocryphal work Ascension of Moses.

[15]. See William S. Kurz, What Does the Bible Say about the End Times? A Catholic View (Cincinnati: St. Anthony Messenger Press, 2004), a Catholic reading of biblical end-times prophecy in response to the Left Behind novels by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins.

Prayer in the Upper Room (Acts 1:12–26)

[1]. Jews of Jesus’ day were allowed to walk 2,000 cubits (less than a mile) on the Sabbath, according to rabbinic interpretation of Exod 16:29 and Num 35:5. See Joseph A. Fitzmyer, The Acts of the Apostles, Anchor Bible 31 (New York: Doubleday, 1998), 213.

[2]. See sidebar on solidarity in fellowship and prayer, p. 86.

[3]. Luke often uses about to indicate a round number, sometimes as a historian’s concession that he did not actually count the number of people, as in Luke 9:14, “Now the men there numbered about five thousand.” Sometimes he uses about to relativize a number in order to introduce a biblical allusion. “About eight days” (instead of Matthew and Mark’s “six days”), which introduces Luke’s transfiguration account, foreshadows Jesus’ resurrection on “the eighth day,” the first day of the new week (Luke 9:28). See also Acts 19:7, “Altogether there were about twelve men.”

[4]. See Lev 16:8; Num 33:54; Josh 19:1–40; 1 Chron 24:3–5.

The Coming of the Holy Spirit and the Birth of the Church (Acts 2)

[1]. In the †Septuagint numbering this is Joel 3:18.

[2]. See Pope Paul VI, Evangelii Nuntiandi, 75.

[3]. The Homilies of S. John Chrysostom on the Acts of the Apostles, Part I, Hom. I–XXVIII (Oxford: John Henry Parker; London: F. and J. Rivington, 1851), “Homily IV, Acts ii.1, 2,” 60–61.

[4]. See Isa 2:2; Dan 2:28; Hosea 3:5.

[5]. Isa 44:1–5; Ezek 39:25–29; Zech 12:10.

[6]. The Messiah’s suffering was necessary in God’s biblical plan of salvation, according to Luke 9:22; 13:33; 17:25; 24:7, 26, 44; Acts 17:3. God’s plan also incorporated Judas’s free decision to betray Jesus (Acts 1:16), and the necessity for Paul (Acts 9:16) and all Christians (Acts 14:22) to suffer as well as the Messiah.

[7]. The common Jewish understanding of the time was that David was author of most of the Psalms and had prophesied through them.

[8]. See Catechism, 640.

[9]. The affirmation that Jesus is “at the right hand of God,” sharing in God’s divine authority, occurs in Mark 16:19; Luke 22:69; Acts 2:33; 5:31; 7:55–56; Rom 8:34; Col 3:1; Heb 10:12; 1 Pet 3:22.

[10]. On repentance in Luke and Acts, see Luke 24:46–47; Acts 3:19; 8:20–24; 17:30–31; 26:20.

[11]. Raymond E. Brown, Introduction to the New Testament, Anchor Bible Reference Library (New York: Doubleday, 1997), 285–86.

[12]. See the Catechism 2, 232–34.

[13]. See Isa 32:15; 44:3; Ezek 11:19; 36:26–27; 37:14.

[14]. Deut 32:5 has “corrupt and depraved generation”; Ps 78:8 has “corrupt and rebellious generation” (my translations from the †Septuagint).

[15]. Acts 2:47; 5:14; 6:1, 7; 9:31; 11:21; 16:5.

[16]. Skeptics have suggested that since Luke did not personally witness the early years of the Church in Jerusalem, his report of this period is fictional—too good to be true. While Luke clearly intends to present the Church after Pentecost as a model, there is no reason to doubt the overall veracity of the picture he paints. During his travels with Paul, Luke would have had plenty of contact with early members of the Jerusalem community, such as Silas, especially if Luke accompanied Paul to Jerusalem. Also, a careful reading of Acts’ history of the Jerusalem Church reveals a certain realism about community problems as well as achievements.

[17]. See Johnson’s discussion of this proverb in Hellenistic writings and Philo, as well as of communities like Qumran that practiced strict community of goods not based on friendship ideals (Luke Timothy Johnson, The Acts of the Apostles, Sacra pagina 5 [Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 1992], 58–59).

[18]. See Vatican II, Gaudium et Spes, 2.

[19]. The Lay Members of Christ’s Faithful People (Christifideles Laici), 59.

[20]. Pope Paul VI, Evangelii Nuntiandi, 20.

Healing Spurs the Growth of the Church (Acts 3:1–4:4)

[1]. Peter and John are the two whom Jesus sent to prepare for the Passover (Luke 22:8). They are also listed as those commissioned by the apostles to investigate the new developments in Samaria (Acts 8:14). Luke changes usual †synoptic order in the list of the Twelve, “Peter, James, and John,” to “Peter, John, and James” in Acts 1:13; Luke 8:51; 9:28 to highlight Peter and John as a team.

[2]. Since the first hour begins with sunrise (about 6:00 a.m.), the ninth hour is about 3:00 p.m.

[3]. See Mikeal C. Parsons, “The Character of the Lame Man in Acts 3–4,” Journal of Biblical Literature 124 (2005): 306.

[4]. Most manuscripts, patristic witnesses, and ancient translations include the words “rise and,” though some early manuscripts omit it.

[5]. The term “Nazorean” could simply mean “of Nazareth” but may also be an allusion to the Davidic “shoot” (Hebrew nezer) that God promised would “sprout from the stump of Jesse” (Isa 11:1). “Nazoreans” may have been a Jewish term for Jesus’ disciples before the term “Christians” became common (see Acts 11:26; 24:5).

[6]. Mal 3:20 in the Hebrew Old Testament and NAB is Mal 4:2 in the LXX and most English translations.

[7]. Although lacking in some important manuscripts, this part of the verse is fundamental to Luke’s key themes of forgiveness for acts done in ignorance (see also Acts 7:60; 13:27).

[8]. Isa 42:1–9; 49:1–7; 50:4–11; 52:13–53:12; Pss 22; 55; 69; 88. See the commentary on Acts 2:29–31; see also Joshua W. Jipp, “Luke’s Scriptural Suffering Messiah: A Search for Precedent, a Search for Identity,” Catholic Biblical Quarterly 72, no. 2 (April 2010): 255–74.

[9]. The verb for “refresh” can be used for relief from work (Exod 23:12) or the refreshment that comes from food, water, or a friend’s kindness (Judg 15:19; 2 Sam 16:14; 2 Tim 1:16).

[10]. Elijah and, to a lesser extent, his disciple Elisha had been regarded as prophets like Moses because they were the only prophets besides Moses who were celebrated for working signs and wonders (1 Kings 17–2 Kings 13). The writing prophets, such as Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Hosea, were known primarily for their oracles, for accounts of their calls, and for some of their nonmiraculous prophetic signs, like Jeremiah’s breaking a pot to emphasize his message.

Bold Testimony and a New Outpouring of the Spirit (Acts 4:5–31)

[1]. For similar statements see Mark 16:15–16; John 3:36; 14:6; 1 Tim 2:5; 1 John 5:12.

[2]. See the sustained demonstration in Keith Warrington, “Acts and the Healing Narratives: Why?,” Journal of Pentecostal Theology 14, no. 2 (2006): 189–217; his thesis is stated on 189: “The healings indicate that Jesus is present among the believers. The ascension of Jesus does not indicate his absence. The healings are reminiscent of the way Jesus healed. It is as if he was performing them himself; in reality, he is.”

Sharing of Goods: Two Contrary Examples (Acts 4:32–5:11)

[1]. See the Catechism, 949–53.

[2]. See Luke Timothy Johnson, The Literary Function of Possessions in Luke-Acts (Missoula, MT: Scholars Press, 1977).

[3]. Bar means “son” in Aramaic, but the linguistic foundation for the translation “son of encouragement” is unclear.

[4]. See Luke 1:15, 41, 67; Acts 2:4; 4:8, 31; 6:5; 7:55; 11:24; 13:9, 52.

[5]. In a similar way Daniel questions segregated false witnesses in Susanna’s trial (Dan 13:45–64).

Signs and Wonders and Trials (Acts 5:12–42)

[1]. But some scholars consider that “they” refers to the apostles, and “the others” in v. 13 refers to the believers in general. See Luke Timothy Johnson, The Acts of the Apostles, Sacra pagina 5 (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 1992), 95; and Joseph A. Fitzmyer, The Acts of the Apostles, Anchor Bible 31 (New York: Doubleday, 1998), 328.

[2]. But “the others” could refer to Christians who were reluctant to join the apostles in the public area of Solomon’s Portico from fear of the Sanhedrin.

[3]. See John 17:3. Luke refers to Jesus as “the author of life” (Acts 3:15) and to Christian conversion as “life-giving repentance” (Acts 11:18). Those who believe the gospel are “destined for eternal life” (Acts 13:48).

[4]. See Num 11:28–29; 12:1–10; 16:1–35; Pss 73:2–3; 106:16; Ezek 35:11.

[5]. Rom 13:13; 1 Cor 3:3; 2 Cor 12:20; Phil 1:15; 1 Tim 6:4–5; see also James 3:14–16.

[6]. Peter accuses the Jews of Jerusalem (Acts 2:36) and the Jewish leaders (Acts 4:10) of crucifying Jesus and asking that a murderer, Barabbas, be released to them instead (3:14). In Matthew’s account of the passion, the Jewish crowd cries out to Pilate, “His blood be upon us and upon our children” (Matt 27:25), an acceptance of responsibility for Jesus’ death that ironically is also a cry for mercy, since the blood of Jesus is the source of redemption and the forgiveness of sins (Matt 26:28; Acts 20:28; Rom 3:25).

[7]. Being “at the right hand” means sharing in a ruler’s power and honor in Ps 16:11; 45:10; Zech 6:13. Jesus testifies before the Sanhedrin that he will sit at God’s “right hand” (Luke 22:69), alluding to Ps 110:1. The early Christians often used this phrase to express the divine power and authority of the risen Jesus (Acts 2:33–34; 5:31; 7:56; Rom 8:34; Eph 1:20; Heb 1:3, 13; 8:1; 10:12; 1 Pet 3:22).

[8]. Jesus is called archēgos four times in the New Testament: Acts 3:15; 5:31; Heb 2:10; 12:2. See Fitzmyer, Acts, 286.

[9]. According to Josephus, Judas’s rebellion took place during the tax census ordered by Caesar Augustus in AD 6 (not the census of Jesus’ birth, Luke 2:1). Josephus places Theudas’s movement much later than Judas’s and later than the events of Acts 5, in AD 45–46. See Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews 17.271–72; 18.1–10; 20.97–99; Fitzmyer, Acts, 339–40.

[10]. See Acts 16:25; Rom 5:3; Col 1:24; James 1:2; 1 Pet 2:19–21.

The Ordination of the Seven and the Preaching of Stephen (Acts 6:1–15)

[1]. Acts 2:41, 47; 4:4; 5:14; 6:7; 12:24; 19:20. See Luke Timothy Johnson, The Acts of the Apostles, Sacra pagina 5 (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 1992), 107.

Stephen’s Overview of Biblical History (Acts 7:1–53)

[1]. See Josh 24; Ezek 20:5–44; Neh 9:7–31; Pss 78; 105.

[2]. See Susan R. Garrett, “Exodus from Bondage: Luke 9:31 and Acts 12:1–24,” Catholic Biblical Quarterly 52, no. 4 (1990): 656–80. She argues that the exodus from bondage achieved by Jesus and his followers in Luke-Acts is primarily an †eschatological and cosmic victory over Satan and his bondage (see Luke 10:18).

[3]. Luke 4:35, 41; 8:2, 33; 9:1, 42; 10:17; 11:14, 20; 13:32; Acts 8:7; 16:16–18.

[4]. The Hebrew version of Gen 46:27 and Exod 1:5 mentions only seventy persons, but the †Septuagint has 75, perhaps counting Joseph’s grandsons and great-grandsons who were born in Egypt.

[5]. The NAB note to Acts 7:2 points out these further discrepancies between Genesis and Stephen’s version in Acts 7:16: thus Gen 50:13 has Jacob buried in Machpelah near Hebron, rather than at Shechem. And Gen 33:19 and Josh 24:32 say that Jacob, not Abraham, purchased the land in Shechem. Narrating from memory and condensing multiple events into one account might account for these discrepancies.

[6]. In Exod 33:20 God tells Moses, “You cannot see my face, for no one can see me and live.” See also Gen 32:31 (30 NRSV); Judg 13:22; Isa 6:5; John 1:16–18.

[7]. See also Jubilees 1.29; Philo, On Dreams 1.141–43; Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews 15.136.

[8]. See, for instance, 1 Sam 12:20–21; Isa 2:8; 44:12–17; 66:1–2; Bar 6:1–72.

[9]. Fitzmyer traces the term “hosts of heaven” to 1 Kings 22:19; Jer 7:18; Neh 9:6, denoting either the stars or the spirits “thought to govern their movements” (Joseph A. Fitzmyer, The Acts of the Apostles, Anchor Bible 31 [New York: Doubleday, 1998], 381).

[10]. The compression seems to occur already in the †Septuagint, which Stephen is citing. The Septuagint puts the verb “carry away” in the aorist tense rather than the future tense, implying a past event—that is, the Israelites were already carrying the idolatrous images during their desert journey.

[11]. C. K. Barrett, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Acts of the Apostles, 2 vols. (Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 1994–98), 1:370–71. Other than the calf incident (Exod 32), Old Testament reports do not specify that Israelites practiced idolatrous worship in the desert. However, the idolatry could have taken place during the people’s forty-year punishment of desert exile.

[12]. Most older manuscripts have “house of Jacob,” but some corrections in these manuscripts and some later manuscripts have “God of Jacob,” which is the Greek translation of Ps 132:5 (“dwelling place for the God of Jacob”) to which this phrase alludes.

[13]. Many OT texts and even Jesus and Christians continued, of course, to show reverence for the temple. But Jesus also referred to his body as the new temple, replacing the destroyed temple (as in John 2:19–21).

[14]. “Made by human hands” is frequently used in Scripture as a negative term for idols. A close paraphrase of the term appears in Acts 7:41, when the people sacrificed to the calf as idol (see Exod 32) “and reveled in the works of their hands.”

Martyrdom, Persecution, and Mission (Acts 7:54–8:40)

[1]. Luke 4:20; 22:56; Acts 1:11; 3:4, 12; 6:15.

[2]. See Gen 16:13; 32:30; Deut 5:24; Judg 6:22; 13:22; Isa 6:5; John 1:18; 1 Tim 6:16.

[3]. Daniel’s vision is also applied to Jesus in Rev 14:14.

[4]. See Luke Timothy Johnson, The Acts of the Apostles, Sacra pagina 5 (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 1992), 139. Angelic beings stand in God’s presence, such as Gabriel (Luke 1:19) and the seraphim (Isa 6:2). Another possibility Johnson and others mention is that Jesus is standing in judgment, as in Isa 3:13, “The LORD rises to accuse, stands to try his people.” Psalm 82 begins, “God stands in the assembly of the gods, and in the midst he judges gods” (translation mine).

[5]. Roman law reserved capital punishment to be authorized by Roman authorities (see John 18:31). So how could the Sanhedrin stone Stephen? At least three possibilities have been proposed. Some speculate that this act was the equivalent of a lynching that Stephen’s opponents got away with due to popular outrage at his alleged offense. Some think the event occurred during an interregnum in AD 36–37, when Pilate went to Rome to answer charges brought against him. Finally, some think that blasphemy against the temple, of which Stephen was accused, belonged to a narrow category of exceptions for which the Jews were allowed to impose capital punishment.

[6]. This expression gives us a rough idea of when Saul, also called Paul, was born. The Greek word for young man, neanias, referred to a man between the ages of 24 and 40. In Philem 9 Paul describes himself as “an old man,” presbytēs, usually referring to someone over 50. If the stoning of Stephen occurs in the mid-30s and Philemon was written about AD 60, Paul was likely born in the first decade of the first century.

[7]. Greek homothymadon, as in Acts 1:14; 2:46; 4:24; 5:12; 15:25; etc.

[8]. See Peter’s rebuke of Simon (Acts 8:20–23), Paul’s rebuke of and imposition of temporary blindness on the magician Bar-Jesus (13:6–11), Paul’s exorcism of a slave girl with an oracular spirit (16:16–18), the fiasco of the itinerant Jewish exorcists (19:13–16), and the burning of books of magic in Ephesus (19:17–19).

[9]. The Greek for “became devoted to” is proskartereō, with a basic meaning “stay with.” It can also mean “associate closely with” or “adhere firmly to” someone.

[10]. See John Paul II, On Catechesis in Our Time, 19.

[11]. In the part of his Summa theologica devoted to baptism (III, QQ. 66–71), Thomas Aquinas indicates the importance of proper dispositions and preparation for the efficacy of baptism. He specifically mentions repentance and faith, devotion, sincerity, instruction, exorcism, follow-up after baptism, responsible and knowledgeable godparents, and desire. See also Augustine, Sermons 269.2.

[12]. Programs available to help bring alive the graces of baptism and confirmation include the Life in the Spirit Seminar, Cursillo, the Alpha Course, and Philip Course.

[13]. The term “eunuch” was sometimes used more broadly to refer to a royal official who was not literally castrated. For instance, Gen 39:1 in both Hebrew and Greek uses the term “eunuch” for the married official Potiphar.

[14]. This alternation between angel and Spirit exemplifies the biblical pattern in which God is portrayed as mysteriously present and acting even when he does so through the ministry of angels (see, for example, Exod 3:2–6; 33:2, 14; Judg 6:12, 14).

[15]. See, for instance, the allusions to this passage in Mark 10:45; John 12:38; Rom 10:16; 1 Pet 2:21–25.

[16]. The Essenes at Qumran, a first-century Jewish sect, similarly interpreted numerous passages as prophesying their leader, the “Teacher of Righteousness.”

Paul’s Conversion and Baptism (Acts 9:1–22)

[1]. I will generally use the name “Saul” when Acts does, and “Paul” after Acts begins using that name (Acts 13:9, except in later references to his conversion) and when discussing his letters, which always use “Paul.”

[2]. See Acts 22:4–8; 26:9–15; Gal 1:13; Phil 3:5–6; 1 Tim 1:13–16.

[3]. See also Acts 24:14.

[4]. Within the Bible, only Acts uses this expression for the Christian movement (see especially 18:25–26; 19:9, 23; 24:5, 14, 22). “The Way” is analogous to the Jewish term halakah, which refers to the laws, customs, and traditions that guide daily Jewish life.

[5]. See Acts 18:25; Gen 18:19; Judg 2:22; 2 Kings 21:22; Isa 40:3; Ezek 33:17, 20.

[6]. See Gen 22:11; 46:2–3; Exod 3:4; 1 Sam 3:7–10.

[7]. See Luke 7:22; Acts 4:20; 22:15; John 3:32; and especially the insistence on personal witness in 1 John 1:3: “What we have seen and heard we proclaim now to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us.”

[8]. In Luke-Acts, Jesus’ calling a name twice has a reproachful connotation: “Martha, Martha” (Luke 10:41); “Jerusalem, Jerusalem” (Luke 13:34); “Simon, Simon” (Luke 22:31).

[9]. See, for instance, Rom 8:18; 1 Cor 4:11–13; 2 Cor 1:2–11; 4:8–10; 11:23–28; Phil 3:7–11; 2 Tim 2:8–13.

[10]. The Greek expressions he uses, “what I also received” (paralambanō), and now “handed on to you” (paradidōmi), are both technical expressions used for receiving and passing on tradition, in Paul’s case possibly the earliest baptismal creed.

[11]. The RSV (and NRSV) word order, which follows the Greek word order, is clearer than the NAB at Luke 5:32: “I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”

Saul’s Escape; Peter’s Healing of Aeneas and Tabitha (Acts 9:23–43)

[1]. See especially Luke Timothy Johnson, The Acts of the Apostles, Sacra pagina 5 (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 1992), 173–74, where he discusses both the minor disagreements between the two accounts and the more substantial agreements between them (also 170–73). Compare Joseph A. Fitzmyer, The Acts of the Apostles, Anchor Bible 31 (New York: Doubleday, 1998), 437–41.

[2]. Luke strongly emphasizes the Christian practice of almsgiving. See, for instance, Luke 11:41; 12:33; Acts 10:2, 4, 31; 24:17.

[3]. Luke 8:51 does not state that Jesus put the mourners out (compare Matt 9:24–25; Mark 5:40) but says, “He allowed no one to enter with him except Peter and John and James, and the child’s father and mother.” The Gospels frequently emphasize the importance of faith in Jesus’ miracles, both negatively (Matt 13:58; Mark 6:5–6) and positively (Luke 7:50; 8:48; 17:19; 18:42; see also Acts 14:9).

[4]. The parallel in Luke 8:54 does not include the Aramaic transliteration but simply translates, “Child, arise!”

The Conversion of Cornelius (Acts 10:1–11:18)

[1]. See Exod 29:38–39; Dan 9:21; Acts 3:1.

[2]. The term “trance” (Greek ekstasis) is uncommon for visions in the New Testament (but see Acts 22:17), but occurs several times in the †Septuagint (such as Adam in Gen 2:21 and Abraham in Gen 15:12).

[3]. See Lev 10:10, “You must be able to distinguish . . . between what is clean [katharos] and what is unclean [Greek akathartos].”

[4]. Some scholars regard “unclean” (akathartos) and “profane” (koinos) as synonymous in this passage (Joseph A. Fitzmyer, The Acts of the Apostles, Anchor Bible 31 [New York: Doubleday, 1998], 453–55; Luke Timothy Johnson, The Acts of the Apostles, Sacra pagina 5 [Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 1992], 184–85). However, Mikeal C. Parsons, Acts, Paideia: Commentaries on the New Testament (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2008), 150, 146–47, translates koinos as “contaminated” (by contact with what is unclean). In this interpretation, “unclean” refers to the animals that were intrinsically unclean (such as reptiles), and “profane” refers to the clean animals that were contaminated by contact with the unclean.

[5]. Greek anthrōpos, “human” as a species, with RSV, JB, NJB, NIV; see NRSV “mortal.”

[6]. Jubilees 22.16, in The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha, ed. James H. Charlesworth (Garden City, NY: Doubleday, 1985), 2:98. See also C. K. Barrett, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Acts of the Apostles, 2 vols. (Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 1994–98), 1:515.

[7]. The Greek of these verses is difficult, and the NAB, RSV, and NRSV all move You know forward from v. 37 to v. 36, treating the two verses as in apposition, the second explaining and developing the first. NIV repeats “You know” before both verses. NJB translates the Greek more literally, with “You know” only before v. 37.

[8]. Paul makes a similar declaration in 1 Cor 15:4.

[9]. See Luke 3:3; 24:47; Acts 5:31; 13:38; 26:18.

[10]. Parsons, Acts, 155, has a fuller list of other such artificially interrupted speech in Acts, including 17:32; 23:7; 26:24. Acts 11:15 is Peter’s report of this interruption in 10:44.

[11]. Johnson, Acts, 197.

[12]. See Robert W. Wall, “Reading Paul with Acts: The Canonical Shaping of a Holy Church,” in Holiness and Ecclesiology in the New Testament, ed. Kent E. Brower and Andy Johnson (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2007), 129–47, who interprets from the perspectives of both Paul (especially 1 Corinthians) and Acts (especially Acts 15) the dangers to a mixed Jewish-Gentile Christian community from eating meat sacrificed to idols and from pagan forms of sexual immorality (porneia).

[13]. Luke 5:25–26; 7:16; 13:13; 17:15; and see Luke 23:47; Acts 10:46.

Church Growth at Antioch; Peter’s Escape (Acts 11:19–12:24)

[1]. The Greek text of Acts 11:20 has Hellēnistas, “Hellenists,” which in Acts 6 means Greek-speaking Jews; but here Luke clearly refers to a new outreach to non-Jewish ethnic or cultural Greeks, in contrast to the previous preaching “to no one but Jews” (11:19).

[2]. This expression is especially common in Ezekiel, where it introduces visions (1:3; 8:1; 37:1; 40:1), expresses God’s power physically moving the prophet (3:14), and enables Ezekiel to prophesy (33:22). New Testament examples are primarily from Luke, who uses it to express God’s favor on the Baptist as a baby (Luke 1:66) and divine punishment in Paul’s curse of Elymas (Acts 13:11).

[3]. However, Mark uses a different Greek word for “repent,” metanoeō, meaning to change one’s mind, feel remorse, be converted.

[4]. Those who are “filled with the holy Spirit” in Luke-Acts include John the Baptist (Luke 1:15), Elizabeth (1:41), Zechariah (1:67), Jesus (4:1); the 120 disciples (Acts 2:4), Peter (4:8), the gathered Jerusalem church (4:31), Stephen (7:55), Paul (9:17; 13:9).

[5]. For example, Joseph A. Fitzmyer, The Acts of the Apostles, Anchor Bible 31 (New York: Doubleday, 1998), 478, quotes the Roman author Tacitus, Annals 15.44: “Those people, loathed for (their) vices, whom the rabble used to call Christians” (see also Fitzmyer, Acts, 477–78, and Luke Timothy Johnson, The Acts of the Apostles, Sacra pagina 5 [Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 1992], 204–5).

[6]. The Greek is oikoumenē, “inhabited earth,” which often signifies the Greek world or the Roman Empire, excluding “barbarian” places outside of it. The statement is an example of literary hyperbole in referring to the known Roman world or even simply to the surrounding region.

[7]. The Passover was the first day in a weeklong celebration of the Feast of Unleavened Bread (see Exod 12:3–20; 34:18; Lev 23:4–8; Num 9:2–14; 28:16–17; Deut 16:1–8). Luke 22:1 treats them as synonymous.

[8]. “They said, ‘Not during the festival, for fear that there may be a riot among the people’” (Mark 14:2; the parallel text in Luke 22:2 omits this detail).

[9]. See David T. N. Parry, “Release of Captives: Reflections on Acts 12,” in Luke’s Literary Achievement: Collected Essays, ed. Christopher M. Tuckett, Journal for the Study of the New Testament: Supplement Series 116 (Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1995), 156–64, especially 160–61.

[10]. See Susan R. Garrett, “Exodus from Bondage: Luke 9:31 and Acts 12:1–24,” Catholic Biblical Quarterly 52 (1990): 656–80, especially 660–64.

[11]. Ibid., her translation on 662.

[12]. See Fitzmyer, Acts, 489. The reference to “his angel” is to Peter’s guardian angel, an example of the biblical notion of angels who guard and help humans. Thus Israel praises “the angel who rescues me from all evil” (Gen 48:16 LXX, my translation). Tobit assures his wife regarding their son that “a good angel will go with him, his journey will be successful, and he will return in good health” (Tob 5:22). Jesus refers to the guardian angels of children: “I say to you that their angels in heaven always look upon the face of my heavenly Father” (Matt 18:10).

[13]. See Robert W. Wall, “Successors to ‘the Twelve’ according to Acts 12:1–17,” Catholic Biblical Quarterly 53, no. 4 (October 1991): 628–43. One transition Wall accentuates in this passage is the transition of authority in Jerusalem from Peter to James, from the original Twelve to postapostolic leadership (641–43).

[14]. Antiquities of the Jews 19.8.2, §345.

The Mission of Barnabas and Saul (Acts 12:25–13:52)

[1]. Luke Timothy Johnson, The Acts of the Apostles, Sacra pagina 5 (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 1992), 216. Joseph A. Fitzmyer, The Acts of the Apostles, Anchor Bible 31 (New York: Doubleday, 1998), 493, also argues for a similar translation and suggests taking the “phrase eis Ierousalēm” (Jerusalem) not with the verb “to return,” but with the following participle “having completed,” and using an alternate meaning of “in” for eis, thus: “having completed their ministry in Jerusalem,” they returned to Antioch with John Mark.

[2]. Rom 12:6–8; 1 Cor 12:28; Eph 4:11; see also Didache 15.1: “Therefore appoint for yourselves bishops and deacons worthy of the Lord, . . . for they too carry out for you the ministry of the prophets and teachers.” From The Apostolic Fathers: Greek Texts and English Translations, ed. and rev. Michael W. Holmes (Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 1999), 266–67.

[3]. Acts mentions apostles in 2:42–43; 4:33–5:12; presbyters in 11:30. Both will act as leaders in Acts 15.

[4]. Fitzmyer, Acts, 496–97.

[5]. It is unlikely that this gesture refers to ordination here, since Barnabas was previously sent by the Jerusalem church to pastor the community in Antioch (Acts 11:22) and Paul attributes his apostolic authority to a direct commissioning by the risen Lord (Gal 1:1, 15–16).

[6]. See Luke 4:20; 22:56; Acts 1:10; 3:4, 12; 6:15; 7:55; 10:4; 11:6; 14:9; 23:1.

[7]. Peter, similarly, had accused the magician Simon: “I see that you are filled with bitter gall and are in the bonds of iniquity” (Acts 8:23).

[8]. See Fitzmyer, Acts, 507–8.

[9]. The 450 years refer to some 400 years in Egypt (Gen 15:13; Acts 7:6), forty years in the desert (Num 14:33–34), and about ten years for the conquest of Canaan. See Fitzmyer, Acts, 511.

[10]. Paul/Saul, who belonged to the tribe of Benjamin (see Rom 11:1; Phil 3:5), was probably named after King Saul, the most famous Benjamite.

[11]. See 1 Sam 13:14; 16:7. First and Second Kings hold up David as the standard by which the other kings of Judah are measured, particularly because of his avoidance of idolatry (see 1 Kings 15:3, 11; 2 Kings 14:3).

[12]. Catechism 642, 664, 858, 1124.

[13]. Luke 3:3; 24:47; Acts 10:43; 26:18.

[14]. See also Acts 10:43; 26:18.

[15]. The Hebrew of Hab 1:5 says, “Look over the nations and see! Be utterly amazed!” The †Septuagint reads, “Behold, you scoffers, and look, and be greatly amazed, and vanish.”

[16]. Eternal life is repeatedly mentioned in Luke and Acts, although with less emphasis than in the Gospel of John. In Luke’s Gospel the term refers to unending life after death (Luke 10:25; 18:18); in Acts it is mentioned only here in 13:46 and 48.

Paul in Asia Minor: Iconium, Lystra, Derbe (Acts 14:1–28)

[1]. The Greek kata to auto can mean either “together” or “in the same way”; NRSV has “The same thing occurred” and NIV “as usual.” The context seems to favor “in the same way” to indicate that they did not change their standard approach of entering synagogues first in each location.

The Jerusalem Council (Acts 15:1–35)

[1]. James, the relative of Jesus, probably assumed the leadership after Peter left Jerusalem (Acts 12:17).

[2]. See Exod 19:5; 34:10; Joseph A. Fitzmyer, The Acts of the Apostles, Anchor Bible 31 (New York: Doubleday, 1998), 548.

[3]. The Hebrew form of the name, after Jacob’s second son (Gen 29:33), is Shimʿon.

[4]. The wording is similar to Jer 13:11 LXX, “to be for me a people of name,” or “of my name.”

[5]. NABRE translates this as “bring them back.”

[6]. The relationship between Galatians and what Acts reports about the decree of the Jerusalem Council is debated among scholars; see the overview by Charles B. Cousar, “Jerusalem, Council of,” in Anchor Bible Dictionary, ed. David N. Freedman (New York: Doubleday, 1992), 3:766–68.

[7]. Eventually the Council of Florence in 1442 pronounced that this decree was a temporary measure and no longer applied (see sidebar, p. 243).

[8]. Outside of Acts, Silas is usually called by his Roman name, Silvanus (2 Cor 1:19; 1 Thess 1:1; 2 Thess 1:1; 1 Pet 5:12).

[9]. Paul treats this matter with delicate pastoral sensitivity. See George T. Montague, First Corinthians, Catholic Commentary on Sacred Scripture (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2011), 140–82.

The Separation of Paul and Barnabas (Acts 15:36–16:15)

[1]. Jewish descent is traditionally traced through the mother. The first written evidence to this custom is in the Mishnah, which is dated after Luke-Acts, but Acts 16 gives the impression that Luke considered this to be Timothy’s case (Luke Timothy Johnson, The Acts of the Apostles, Sacra pagina 5 [Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 1992], 284). Moreover, Timothy’s mother and grandmother seem to have raised him as a Jew (2 Tim 1:5; 3:14–15).

[2]. Luke frequently points out such growth, as in Acts 2:41; 4:4; 6:1, 7; 12:24; 13:49; 19:20.

[3]. Since a previous section (15:41–16:5) showed Paul already active in towns of southern Galatia (Iconium, Derbe, and Lystra), this mention of passing through Galatian territory must refer not to the Roman province of Galatia, but to North Galatia, whose main towns were Ancyra, Pessinus, and Tavium (Joseph A. Fitzmyer, The Acts of the Apostles, Anchor Bible 31 [New York: Doubleday, 1998], 578).

[4]. Its only other biblical occurrence is “the Spirit of Jesus Christ” in Phil 1:19; see also Rom 8:9; Gal 4:6.

Imprisonment and Release at Philippi (Acts 16:16–40)

[1]. The term literally means “military leaders” and is used here because Philippi was a Roman colony founded by retired Roman army veterans.

[2]. Bruce M. Metzger, A Textual Commentary on the Greek New Testament, 2nd ed. (Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, 1994), 398.

[3]. Partly due to a twentieth-century tendency to disbelieve claims about Paul in Acts that are not explicitly substantiated in Paul’s own letters, some scholars have questioned whether Paul actually was a Roman citizen, but his Roman name (Paul) supports that claim, which will be insisted on even more in Acts 22:25–29. See Joseph A. Fitzmyer, The Acts of the Apostles, Anchor Bible 31 (New York: Doubleday, 1998), 590.

Paul in Thessalonica, Beroea, and Athens (Acts 17:1–34)

[1]. The Greek is almost identical: “according to his custom” (Luke 4:16) and, literally, “according to Paul’s custom” (Acts 17:2).

[2]. See William S. Kurz, “Hellenistic Rhetoric in the Christological Proof of Luke-Acts,” Catholic Biblical Quarterly 42 (1980): 171–95.

[3]. Rosalind Moss, “All This and Heaven, Too,” in Honey from the Rock: Sixteen Jews Find the Sweetness of Christ, ed. Roy Schoeman (San Francisco: Ignatius Press, 2007), 164–69.

[4]. The council itself came to be called “the Areopagus,” even when it met in another location, so some scholars believe that Paul was brought to speak before the council rather than to the place called Mars Hill.

[5]. See Johnson, Acts, 315; Fitzmyer, Acts, 607.

[6]. See Catechism, 360; Pope Pius XII, Humani Generis, 37.

[7]. See Pss 27:8; 105:4; Prov 28:5; Wis 13:6; Isa 55:6.

[8]. A well-known Christian mystical writer of the fifth century wrote under the pseudonym of Dionysius (or Denys) the Areopagite to indicate that he followed in the footsteps of this philosopher who found fulfillment in the Christian faith. See Frank E. Wheeler, “Dionysius,” in Anchor Bible Dictionary, ed. David N. Freedman (New York: Doubleday, 1992), 2:201.

Paul’s Mission in Corinth (Acts 18:1–28)

[1]. Suetonius, Life of Claudius 25.

[2]. See Acts 18:18–19; Rom 16:3–5; 2 Tim 4:19; and comments on Acts 18:26.

[3]. Although Christians gathered to worship on Sunday, the Lord’s day (Acts 20:7; Rev 1:10), Jewish Christians like Paul continued to observe the Jewish Sabbath. The transition to Sunday as the Christian day of rest was gradual.

[4]. The more likely manuscript reading is Titius Justus. Although he could be the same person as Paul’s coworker Titus, mentioned in Galatians and 2 Corinthians and to whom the Letter to Titus is addressed, no evidence besides the name supports this identification.

[5]. See 1 Cor 5:9 and 2 Cor 2:3–4 for mention of two letters that were not preserved for posterity.

[6]. See Mikeal C. Parsons, Acts, Paideia: Commentaries on the New Testament (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2008), 261; Luke Timothy Johnson, The Acts of the Apostles, Sacra pagina 5 (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 1992), 329–30; and Joseph A. Fitzmyer, The Acts of the Apostles, Anchor Bible 31 (New York: Doubleday, 1998), 634.

[7]. Acts 18:2, 18, 26; Rom 16:3; 1 Cor 16:19; 2 Tim 4:19.

Ephesus (Acts 19:1–41)

[1]. See Joseph A. Fitzmyer, The Acts of the Apostles, Anchor Bible 31 (New York: Doubleday, 1998), 643–44.

[2]. A silver piece—a drachma—was a day’s wage for a manual laborer.

[3]. Luke 9:31; 13:33–34; 18:31; Acts 20:22–23; 21:11–13.

[4]. See the commentary (above) on Acts 9:1–2.

[5]. See F. W. Beare, “Artemis,” in The Interpreter’s Dictionary of the Bible, ed. George A. Buttrick (Nashville: Abingdon, 1962), 1:241–42; and Hubert M. Martin Jr., “Artemis,” in Anchor Bible Dictionary, ed. David N. Freedman (New York: Doubleday, 1992), 1:464–65.

[6]. Luke Timothy Johnson, The Acts of the Apostles, Sacra pagina 5 (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 1992), 348; Fitzmyer, Acts, 659.

[7]. See Mikeal C. Parsons, Acts, Paideia: Commentaries on the New Testament (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2008), 276; Fitzmyer, Acts, 660–61.

[8]. Greek grammateus, the word used in the Gospels for Jewish scribes.

[9]. See Parsons, Acts, 276.

Paul the Itinerant Pastor (Acts 20:1–16)

[1]. See Matt 28:1. Along with Rev 1:10 and 1 Cor 16:2, here Acts 20:7 is one of three New Testament texts that mention the Christian day of worship.

[2]. See Exod 24:3–11; Neh 8:8–10.

[3]. Address to a pastoral conference of the diocese of Rome, May 26, 2009.

Paul’s Farewell Speech (Acts 20:17–38)

[1]. Greek euchairōs, achairōs, literally, “in season, out of season.”

[2]. This is Luke’s only use of this word, although he does use the cognate episkopē, “office” for the replacement of Judas (Acts 1:20). Both words denote “watching over.”

[3]. Luke-Acts, like the rest of the New Testament, mostly uses the word “God” to refer to God the Father and “Lord” to refer to Jesus.

[4]. See Matt 7:15; 24:11, 24; Luke 21:8; Eph 4:14; 1 Tim 1:3–7; 4:1–3; 2 Tim 3:1–9, 13; 4:3–4; 2 Pet 2:1; 1 John 2:26; Rev 2:2, 14, 20.

Paul’s Journey to Jerusalem (Acts 21:1–26)

[1]. What actually happens is that a Roman commander arrests Paul when a Jewish mob tries to kill him (21:27–33). Later the Jewish leaders press charges against Paul to the Roman governor (24:1; 25:2).

[2]. Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History 2.1.2.

[3]. This could be the case if the later regulation in the Mishnah (Oholot 2:3) was in force at this time (see Joseph A. Fitzmyer, The Acts of the Apostles, Anchor Bible 31 [New York: Doubleday, 1998], 694). On the other hand, Palestinian Jews commonly engaged in ritual purification before entering the temple (John 11:55), and archaeologists have unearthed extensive purification facilities in Jerusalem.

[4]. Numbers 6:14–15 prescribes the offering of a lamb, a ewe lamb, a ram, and a basket of bran cakes mixed with oil, along with other grain offerings and libations.

[5]. Augustine, Letters 82, in ACCS 264.

Paul’s Arrest and Defense (Acts 21:27–23:35)

[1]. See the commentary on 21:23–26 and sidebar on Nazirite vows, p. 286.

[2]. F. F. Bruce, The Book of Acts, rev. ed., New International Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1988), 409.

[3]. Antiquities of the Jews 20.8.6, §§169–72; Jewish War 2.13.5, §§261–63.

[4]. In Acts, the Greek kyrios usually means “Lord,” which seems a more appropriate translation for a heavenly appearance, even when its identity is not known, than the more neutral “sir.”

[5]. The Greek word phonē, used at Acts 9:7 and 22:9, can mean either “voice” or “sound.”

[6]. Thus Peter refers to Jesus as “the Holy and Righteous One” (Acts 3:14) and Stephen calls him “the righteous one” (Acts 7:52). “Righteous” connotes faithfulness to God’s law and innocence of wrongdoing (the same word is used by the centurion in Luke 23:47 and there is translated “innocent”).

[7]. In the first recorded papal visit to a synagogue on April 13, 1986, in Rome, Pope John Paul II addressed Jews as “our dearly beloved brothers, . . . our elder brothers.”

[8]. F. F. Bruce, “Citizenship,” in Anchor Bible Dictionary, ed. David N. Freedman (New York: Doubleday, 1992), 1:1048–49.

[9]. According to F. F. Bruce (Acts, 425), Ananias “brought no credit to the sacred office. Josephus tells how his servants went to the threshing floors to seize the tithes that ought to have gone to the common priests [Antiquities of the Jews 20.206], while the Talmud preserves a parody of Ps 24:7 in which his greed was lampooned. . . . He did not scruple to use violence and assassination to further his interests.” Ananias was assassinated by fellow Jews at the beginning of the Jewish War in AD 66.

[10]. Acts 14:19–22; 16:22–28; 20:22–24; 1 Cor 4:11–12; 2 Cor 4:7–11; 11:23–25; 12:10.

Trials before Roman Governors (Acts 24:1–25:12)

[1]. Charles H. Talbert, Reading Acts: A Literary and Theological Commentary on the Acts of the Apostles, Reading the New Testament series (New York: Crossroad, 1997), 202.

[2]. Ibid., 205.

Paul before Agrippa (Acts 25:13–26:32)

[1]. Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews 20.7.3, §§145–46.

[2]. Joseph A. Fitzmyer, The Acts of the Apostles, Anchor Bible 31 (New York: Doubleday, 1998), 758–59.

Shipwreck en Route to Rome (Acts 27:1–44)

[1]. F. F. Bruce, The Book of Acts, rev. ed., New International Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1988), 477.

[2]. Both here in 27:24 and in v. 26, the NAB uses “destined” to translate the Greek dei, which literally means, “it is necessary.” This is a word that Luke often uses to indicate that something must happen for God’s will to be fulfilled.

[3]. For the same reason, the Philippian jailer was tempted to suicide when he thought his prisoners had escaped (Acts 16:27).

From Malta to Rome (Acts 28:1–16)

[1]. See Luke Timothy Johnson, The Acts of the Apostles, Sacra pagina 5 (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 1992), 464–65; Joseph A. Fitzmyer, The Acts of the Apostles, Anchor Bible 31 (New York: Doubleday, 1998), 787–88.

Testimony in Rome (Acts 28:17–31)

[1]. First Clement 5.7.