Acts 8:9-24

New English Translation

Footnotes

1. Acts 8:9 tn On the idiom προϋπῆρχεν μαγεύων (proupērchen mageuōn) meaning “had been practicing magic” see BDAG 889 s.v. προϋπάρχω.
2. Acts 8:10 tn Grk “all of them”; the referent (the people) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
3. Acts 8:10 tn Or “This man is what is called the Great Power of God.” The translation “what is called the Great Power of God” is given by BDAG 263 s.v. δύναμις 5, but the repetition of the article before καλουμένη μεγάλη (kaloumenē megalē) suggests the translation “the power of God that is called ‘Great.’”
4. Acts 8:12 sn The kingdom of God is also what Jesus preached; see Acts 1:3. The term reappears in Acts 14:22; 19:8; 28:23, 31. The nature of the kingdom of God in the NT and in Jesus’ teaching has long been debated by interpreters and scholars, with discussion primarily centering around the nature of the kingdom (earthly, heavenly, or both) and the kingdom’s arrival (present, future, or both). An additional major issue concerns the relationship between the kingdom of God and the person and work of Jesus himself. See also Luke 6:20; 11:20; 17:20-21.
5. Acts 8:12 tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”
6. Acts 8:12 tn The imperfect verb ἐβαπτίζοντο (ebaptizonto) has been translated as an ingressive imperfect.
7. Acts 8:13 tn Or “he kept close company with.”
8. Acts 8:13 sn He was amazed. Now Simon, the one who amazed others, is himself amazed, showing the superiority of Philip’s connection to God. Christ is better than anything the culture has to offer.
9. Acts 8:14 tn Or “message.”
10. Acts 8:14 sn They sent. The Jerusalem church with the apostles was overseeing the expansion of the church, as the distribution of the Spirit indicates in vv. 15-17.
11. Acts 8:15 tn Grk “who.” The relative pronoun was replaced by the phrase “these two” and a new sentence was begun in the translation at this point to improve the English style.
12. Acts 8:16 tn Grk “For he”; the referent (the Spirit) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
13. Acts 8:16 tn Or “fallen on.”
14. Acts 8:16 sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.
15. Acts 8:17 tn Grk “on them”; the referent (the Samaritans) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
16. Acts 8:17 sn They received the Holy Spirit. It is likely this special distribution of the Spirit took place because a key ethnic boundary was being crossed. Here are some of “those far off” of Acts 2:38-40.
17. Acts 8:18 tc Most witnesses (P^45,74 A* C D E Ψ 33 1739 M latt sy bo) here read “the Holy Spirit” (τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον, to pneuma to hagion), while a few key mss have simply τὸ πνεῦμα (א A^c B sa mae). Although it is possible that some scribes omitted τὸ ἅγιον because of its perceived superfluity (note vv. 15, 17, 19), it is far more likely that others added the adjective out of pious motives.
18. Acts 8:19 tn Or “ability”; Grk “authority.”
19. Acts 8:20 tn Grk “May your silver together with you be sent into destruction.” This is a strong curse. The gifts of God are sovereignly bestowed and cannot be purchased.
20. Acts 8:20 tn Or “obtain.”
21. Acts 8:21 tn The translation “share or part” is given by L&N 63.13.
22. Acts 8:21 tn Since the semantic range for λόγος (logos) is so broad, a number of different translations could be given for the prepositional phrase here. Something along the lines of “in this thing” would work well, but is too colloquial for the present translation.
23. Acts 8:22 tn Or “and implore the Lord.”
24. Acts 8:22 tn Grk “that if possible the intent of your heart may be forgiven you.” The passive construction is somewhat awkward in contemporary English and has thus been converted to an active construction in the translation.
25. Acts 8:23 tn Grk “in the gall of bitterness,” an idiom meaning to be particularly envious or resentful of someone. In this case Simon was jealous of the apostles’ power to bestow the Holy Spirit by the laying on of hands, and wanted that power for himself. The literal phrase does not convey this to the modern reader, and in fact some modern translations have simply rendered the phrase as involving bitterness, which misses the point of the envy on Simon’s part. See L&N 88.166. The OT images come from Deut 29:17-18 and Isa 58:6.
26. Acts 8:24 tn Grk “Simon answered and said.”sn Given that Simon does not follow Peter’s call for repentance, many interpreters read this reply as flippant rather than sincere. But the exact nature of Simon’s reply is not entirely clear.
27. Acts 8:24 tn Grk “may come upon.”