Acts 26:22

26:22-23 Paul stressed God’s protection as he carried out his witness (cp. 3:18; 10:43; Luke 24:25-27, 44-47). Paul then called on his hearers to believe his message, that Jesus is the Messiah who fulfills the promises of the Old Testament (see Luke 24:27, 44).

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Act 26:22. Ἐπικουρίας, help) Ammonius observes; βοηθεῖ is said of the assistance given by one who is with another; ἐπικουρεῖ, of that of one who comes from without to the help of another. When all the Jews were either attacking, or else not defending Paul, God suddenly sent Romans to his help from the camp. Thus the promise which Jesus had given in Act 26:17 was fulfilled.—τυχὼν) In relation to us, not in relation to GOD, such things are fortuitous [τυγχάνω properly implies chance].—ἕσητκα, I have stood, I stand [continue]) safe and uninjured.—μεγάλῳ, to great) as in the present instance.—μελλόντων) The Genitive depends on ὧν.—καὶ) and, in particular, Moses, an extraordinary prophet.—εἰ) whether. Elegantly used. The fact was clear: the Jews had called it in question; Act 26:3, “questions among the Jews.”—παθητὸς, is liable to—capable of—suffering) The Jews had denied that Messiah can suffer.—πρῶτος, the first) 1Co 15:23.—φῶς, a light) Act 26:13; Act 26:18.—μέλλει καταγγέλλειν, is about to show) by the Gospel, as was foretold.

Bengel's Gnomon of the New Testament — English translation (T&T Clark, Edinburgh, 1860) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Act 26:22 . ἐπικουρίας … τῆς παρὰ ( ἀπὸ ) Θεοῦ : “the help that is from God,” R.V., i.e. , the help which cometh from God only; only here in N.T., cf. Wis 13:18 ( ἐμπειρίας , 2 ), for the use of the same phrase cf. instances in Wetstein from Polybius; the word is found in Josephus, but also frequently in classical Greek, of succour against foes. τυχὼν : no idea of chance, cf. 2Ti 2:10 ; the aid was divine, not human. οὖν , see Wendt, and references, Blass, Gram. , p. 267, Winer-Moulton, liii., 10, 4. ἕστηκα : sto salvus , Bengel, after these repeated dangers. The A.V. hardly gives the force of the word; it is a Pauline expression, cf. Eph 6:13-14 , Col 4:12 , so Knabenbauer, subsisto incolumis . μαρτυρούμενος : “testifying,” A.V., yet μαρτυρόμενος , see critical note, would rather signify “testifying,” so R.V., see on Act 6:3 . Grimm-Thayer, if the reading in T.R. is retained, evidently considers that it should be rendered as passive, “testified to both by small and great”. But μαρτυρόμενος marks most appropriately the office of bearing testimony to which Paul was appointed. μικρῷ τε καὶ μεγάλῳ : if taken to mean “both small and great,” the words would have a special force in thus being spoken before Festus and Agrippa, but if = young and old, i.e. , before all men, cf. Act 8:10 , Heb 8:11 ; cf. Gen 19:4 ; Gen 19:11 , etc., but in Rev 11:18 ; Rev 13:16 ; Rev 19:5 , reference is made rather to rank than to age, and the latter meaning may well be included here; cf. Deu 1:17 , Job 3:19 , Wis 6:7 . οὐδὲν ἐκτὸς λ . ὧν τε οἱ πρ .… μελλόντων = οὐδὲν ἐκτὸς τούτων ἅ … ἐλάλησαν μέλλοντᾳ , cf. Rev 17:8 Simcox, Language of the N.T. , p. 135. μελλ . γίγ ., cf. Luk 21:36 ; ἐκτὸς , cf. 1Co 15:27 ; the word is only used by St. Paul elsewhere in N.T. (except Mat 23:26 ), cf. 1Ki 10:13 , 2Ch 9:12 ; 2Ch 17:19 . οἱ προφ .… καὶ Μ .: more naturally Moses and the prophets, Luk 16:29 ; Luk 16:31 , and cf. Act 28:23 , but Moses may have been mentioned to influence the Sadducean element in the audience: the historical Christ was always the subject of St. Paul’s preaching “Jesus is the Christ,” and the historical Christ was also the ideal Christ; cf. Act 3:13 , 1Co 15:3 . See on this verse critical note, and Wendt (1899), p. 397, note.

The Expositor's Greek Testament, edited by W. Robertson Nicoll (1897–1910) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Christ is the end of the Law and the Prophets.

To everyone.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

having obtained help--"succor."

from God--"that [which cometh] from God."

I continue--"stand," "hold my ground."

unto this day, witnessing, &c.--that is, This life of mine, so marvellously preserved, in spite of all the plots against it, is upheld for the Gospel's sake; therefore I "witnessed," &c.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 22. Having - obtained help of God] According to the gracious promise made to him: see Ac 26:17.

Witnessing both to small and great] Preaching before kings, rulers, priests, and peasants; fearing no evil, though ever surrounded with evils; nor slackening in my duty, notwithstanding the opposition I have met with both from Jews and Gentiles. And these continual interpositions of God show me that I have not mistaken my call, and encourage me to go forward in my work.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(22) Having therefore obtained help of God.—The Greek noun for “help” is not used elsewhere in the New Testament. It implies the kind of assistance which one friend or ally gives to another of inferior power. It is found in the Greek of Wis_13:18. Here the word seems used as being more intelligible to those who are outside the kingdom of God than the more spiritual, more theological, “grace” of which the Apostle habitually spoke.

Witnessing both to small and great.—The English version gives the right rendering of the best supported reading. Some MSS., however, have “witnessed to by small and great;” but this, besides the want of authority, and its involving an unusual construction, is at variance with the context. It was true that St. Paul’s life was spent in bearing witness that Jesus was Christ. It was not true that he had a good report of all men. The words “small and great” were significant as spoken when he was standing before two men like Festus and Agrippa. The phrase may be noted as occurring in Act_8:10, and again in Rev_11:18; Rev_13:16; Rev_19:5; Rev_19:18; Rev_20:12.

The prophets and Moses.—The more natural order of “Moses and the prophets” (Luk_16:29; Luk_16:31), and the order of the words in the Greek, which the prophets said should come, and Moses, suggests the thought that the sentence would have stopped naturally at “come,” and that the name of Moses was added by an instantaneous after-thought to meet the case of those among the hearers who, like the Sadducees, placed the Pentateuch on a higher level of authority than the Prophets.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

22. Having therefore obtained help of God [R. V. the help that is from God.] The “therefore” implies that against such attempts the help which alone could deliver him was divine. The word for “help” means the succour of an ally, and recalls God’s promise “Surely I will be with thee.”

I continue [R.V. stand] unto this day] The Apostle has in mind the many attempts to cast him down which had been made by Jews, and Gentiles too, during his missionary journeys. He has been rescued in many ways, and is still there standing safe and sound through the help which God hath sent him. He does not forget human agency, but this, whatever it was, was all sent of God.

witnessing [R. V. testifying] both to small and great] He was now before two who would be named great, and he knew that God had declared that he should testify “before kings” (Act_9:15).

the prophets and Moses] i.e. the whole Old Testament Scriptures. The form of the phrase is usually “Moses and the prophets” according to the order of the O.T. books. Sometimes we have “the Law and the prophets,” and once (Luk_24:44) “the law of Moses, the prophets and the Psalms.”

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

That Christ should suffer,.... Great afflictions in soul and body, and death itself; this is recorded by Moses, Gen 3:15 and is the sense of many of the types, as of the passover, brazen serpent, &c. and of all the sacrifices which from God were appointed by him, and is the constant account of all the prophets from the beginning to the end; see Psa 22:1 Dan 9:26. The sufferer is Christ, or the Messiah, not the Father, nor the Spirit, but the Word, or Son of God, and not in his divine nature, which was incapable of suffering, but in his human nature; though sufferings may be ascribed to his whole person, both natures being united in him: and hence they became efficacious to answer the purposes for which they were endured; and which he endured, not for himself, nor for angels, but for chosen men, sinners, and ungodly persons; in order to make peace and reconciliation for them, procure the pardon of their sins, obtain eternal redemption for them, deliver them from all evil, and from all enemies, and bring them nigh to God: and what he suffered were no other than what had been foretold in the writings of the Old Testament, which all along represent the Messiah as a suffering one; and in particular that he should suffer in his character, be reproached, and accounted a worm, and no man, Isa 53:3 and in his soul and body, and be put to death and buried, as the above prophecies referred to show; the several circumstances leading on to, or attending his sufferings and death, are distinctly expressed; as the betraying him by one of his disciples, selling him for thirty pieces of silver, his being forsaken by all his disciples, his crucifixion between two thieves, the parting of his garments, giving him gall and vinegar to drink, and the piercing his side with a spear, Psa 41:9. And to this agreed the doctrine of the apostle, who taught that Jesus of Nazareth was the Christ that was to come, and that he had suffered all that Moses and the prophets did say should come upon him: but these were not the present sentiments of the Jews, who expected the Messiah to be a temporal Prince and Saviour, and to live in great outward prosperity, and for ever.

And that he should be the first that should rise from the dead: by his own power, and to an immortal life, as Jesus did; and so is the firstborn from the dead, and the first fruits of them that slept: a type of this, in the deliverance of Isaac, is recorded by Moses in Gen 22:12 compared with Heb 11:19 and the thing itself is foretold by many of the prophets, Psa 16:10.

and should show light unto the people, and to the Gentiles: in his own person to the people of the Jews, and by his apostles to the Gentiles. In the writings of Moses he is spoken of as the great prophet God would raise up in Israel, to whom they should hearken; and as the Shiloh to whom the gathering of the people should be, Deu 17:15 and that he should be a light to both Jews and Gentiles, through the ministration of the Gospel, is said by the prophets, Isa 9:2 and these were the things which the apostle asserted in his ministry, in perfect agreement with those writings.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

22 Having therefore obtained help of God, I continue unto this day, witnessing both to small and great, saying none other things than those which the prophets and Moses did say should come:

Ver. 22. Saying none other thing] Truth is one and the same in all ages; it is also ancient, and ever at agreement with itself. As on the other side, error is new, manifold, dissonant, and contradictory to itself, and much more to the truth. Paul delivered no new truths, but stood in the good old way of Moses and the prophets, and followed them, κατα ποδα. Those that stumble from the ancient ways, to walk in "new paths, in a way not cast up," they are people that "forget God," Jer 18:15, to sacrifice to new gods, that came newly up, Deu 32:17; they are none of God’s ancient people, Isa 44:7, but an upstart generation that knew not Joseph.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Having therefore obtained help of God - Paul had seen and felt his danger. He had known the determined malice of the Jews, and their efforts to take his life. He had been rescued by Lysias, and had made every effort himself to avoid the danger and to save his life; and at the end of all; he traced his safety entirely to the help of God. It was not by any power of his own that he had been preserved; it was because God had interposed and rescued him. Those who have been delivered from danger, if they have just views, will delight to trace it all to God. They will recognize his hand, and will feel that whatever wisdom they may have had, or whatever may have been the kindness of their friends to them, yet that all this also is to be traced to the superintending providence of God.

Witnessing - Bearing testimony to what he had seen, according to the command of Christ, Act 26:16.

To small - To those in humble life; to the poor, the ignorant, and the obscure. Like his Master, he did not despise them, but regarded it as his duty and privilege to preach the gospel to them.

And great - The rich and noble; to kings, princes, and governors. He had thus stood on Mars’ Hill at Athens; he had declared the same gospel before Felix, Festus, and now before Agrippa. He offered salvation to all. He passed by none because they were poor; and he was not deterred by the fear of the rich and the great from making known their sins and calling them to repeatance. What an admirable illustration of the proper duties of a minister of the gospel!

Saying none other things ... - Delivering no new doctrine, but maintaining only that the prophecies had been fulfilled. As he had done this only, there was no reason for the opposition and persecution of the Jews.

Should come - Should come to pass, or should take place. Paul here evidently means to say that the doctrine of the atonement, and of the resurrection of Christ, is taught in the Old Testament.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

I continue unto this day: that Paul, continued till then alive, notwithstanding all the fraud and force of his enemies, is acknowledged by him to be from God; from whence he infers towards his justification, that what he had done was but in a becoming gratitude towards that God who had maintained him in life unto that very day.

Witnessing both to small and great; witnessing to all sorts, princes or people; implying, that the truths of the gospel, and the things of God, concerned Agrippa as well as the meanest of his auditors; and indeed with God there is no respect of persons, and that we are all one in Christ Jesus, Gal 3:28.

The prophets and Moses; Moses was himself also a prophet, but he is here made especial mention of, because of his excellency above the other prophets, (unto whom God spoke face to face), as also because he was the lawgiver to the Jews, and to whom, upon all occasions, they pretended to yield obedience.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

22. Help—A military term signifying the aid a warrior receives from auxiliary or allied forces. The warrior was the apostle; the enemy the Jews; the auxiliary was God.

Witnessing—According to his apostolic office. (See note on Act_26:16.)

Small and great—Whether of rank, stature, or age.

Prophets and Moses—Hence Christianity is true Old Testament religion, and Paul has not by forsaking his national religion incurred the penalty of death.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

The help that is from God for help of God, A.V.; stand for continue, A.V.; testifying for witnessing, A.V.; nothing but what for none other things than those which, A.V.. Help, etc.; ejpikouria, here only and in RAPC Wis 13:18, still of Divine help; in medical writers frequently, of aid from medicine and physicians; common also in classical writers, of auxiliary forces. It is properly spoken of help and allies from without (Bengel). I stand; i.e. I continue unmoved, steadfast, and, by God"s help, not crushed by my enemies. Testifying. The natural rendering of the R.T. marturomenov. The T.R. marturoumenov, followed by uJpo, would mean "borne witness to," "approved," as in menov Act_6:3 Act_10:22, etc., and so Meyer understands it here. But marturu makes much better sense, and is much better supported by manuscript authority. It is in close agreement with Act_9:15 and Act_22:15, that St Paul should thus testify" to small and great.

The believing retrospect.

therefore obtained help of God, I continue unto this day." Times when retrospect and the grateful acknowledgment which flows from it are especially profitable. At the critical junctures of life. When a testimony for God is demanded of us for the sake of others. "Unto this day.

I THE HIGHER VIEW OF LIFE.

1. A mission, a testimony.

2. A co-operation with the Divine work, running parallel with the line of infinite wisdom and righteousness.

3. A gracious fruit of heavenly bestowment. "Help from God.

4. A life lived by prayer, linked on to the throne of grace.

II AN ENCOURAGING AND STIMULATING EXAMPLE. The profitable use which should be made of biography. The lessons of Paul"s life. Divine strength made perfect in human weakness, Teaching us:

1. To follow the Spirit.

2. To depend upon the Divine control of circumstances and of the oppositions of men.

3. To maintain confidence and courage by laying hold of a great future.

4. To be bold in speaking for Christ, especially when we can say, as Paul could, that he "said nothing but what the prophets and Moses said." The sure ground is the written Word. To preach ourselves is to obtain no help from God; to magnify his Word is to ensure his blessing and be sustained to the end. R.

Vers. 22, 23. A good confession.

If Festus and Agrippa had known half of what Paul had been passing through since his journey to Damascus was so peremptorily stopped, they would well understand why he interposes the acknowledgment, so full of dependence and of humble gratitude, "Therefore having obtained help of God, I continue unto this day" Paul takes credit to himself for neither his work, nor suffering, nor safety. These are all due to his sovereign Leader" and "Commander" and Protector. But he makes a good confession indeed, one, if true and none deny its truth most worthy of imitation, of all and every one who would in any measure be a follower in his work. He claims justly, and not boastfully, but for manifestly other reason, that he has maintained

I A PERSEVERING WITNESS.

II AN IMPARTIAL WITNESS.

III AN UNCHANGING CONSISTENT SCRIPTURAL WITNESS. Paul wishes to lay stress on this, that he had been to the Law and the testimony and the prophets;" and had been true to them; had not gone beside nor beyond them, and had not fallen short of them, as his people and opponents were, in fact, guilty of doing.

IV A STRONG WITNESS TO FOUR THINGS IN ESPECIAL. These were the four grand truths imbedded in the Law, enshrined in the testimony, and many a time bursting out like hope"s own light from the prophets. These were

(1) the death,

(2) the resurrection, of Christ;

(3) the "great Light" he would be to "his people,

(4) to all the world.

V A WITNESS MARVELLOUSLY OWNED BY THE "HELP OF GOD." In a lower sense, no doubt, but in a very true sense, Paul had done and suffered the things that none other could, "save God were with him. B.

Vers. 22, 23. St. Paul"s message compared with prophecy.

Reference to and support from Holy Scripture was a characteristic feature of the apostle"s public teachings and preachings. To understand the importance of this feature of his work we should take into consideration not only the general views entertained of Scripture as the revealed and authoritative Word of God, but also, and more particularly, the sentiment concerning Scripture cherished by pious Jews. It is almost impossible to exaggerate in speaking of their reverence for it. It was their final court of appeal. It was the voice of their God to them. It was the ground of their hope that Messiah, the Deliverer and Prince, would come. It may also be noticed that they much more readily found Messianic references in prophecy and promise than we can do; and we find it difficult to see the points which even the New Testament writers make, probably because our characteristic logical and critical qualities of mind differ so materially from the figurative and imaginative characteristics of the Eastern mind. How St. Paul used appeals to Scripture, and especially Scripture prophecy, may be illustrated from his speech at Antioch in Pisidia, (Act_13:16-41) and from his Epistles. Further illustration of the method, as peculiar to the apostles and Christian teachers, may be found in St. Peter"s speech at Pentecost, and the Epistle to the Hebrews. In our text Moses is mentioned with the prophets, because there were some who placed the Pentateuch in a higher rank than the rest of the Old Testament Scriptures. St. Paul gives the leading points of his preaching, and affirms, what he would be prepared quite fully to illustrate and to prove, that these points are not really new, but have been all foreshadowed and declared by Jehovah"s prophets. He takes three topics.

1. Messiah was to suffer.

2. Messiah was to rise from the dead.

3. Messiah was to be the Light of life to both Jew and Gentile.

I MESSIAH WAS TO SUFFER, or should be capable of suffering. The great body of the Jews had fixed their thoughts only on the prophetic visions of the glories of the Messiah"s kingdom. Even the disciples of Jesus were slow to receive any other thought than that of conquest and triumph. It was not until they were led, after the Crucifixion and the Resurrection, into our Lord"s own school of prophetic interpretation, and l aught to recognize the under-current of types and prophecies that pointed to a righteous Sufferer as well as to a righteous King, that they were able to receive the truth." Show

(1) the prophetic figure of a suffering Messiah from Psalm 22. and Isaiah lilt., with references to passages in Jeremiah and Lamentations; and

(2) point out how precisely the historical facts of our Lord"s sufferings fit into the preparatory prophecy.

II MESSIAH WAS TO RISE FROM THE DEAD. Illustrate the prophecies on this point from Psa_16:10 Psa_30:3 Psa_41:10 Psa_118:7; Hos_6:2, etc. Show how the fact of his resurrection answers to the prophecy. Aid may be found in St. Peter"s speeches recorded in Ac 2 and Ac 3.

III MESSIAH WAS TO BE THE LIGHT OF LIFE TO BOTH JEW AND GENTILE. This had been one of St. Paul"s strongest points, and he had abundant Old Testament references to show that Messiah"s mission was not limited to Jews. Refer in illustration to Ps 45; Isa_11:10 Isa_42:1, etc. Show that the apostle could direct attention to the fact that God had opened the door of faith to the Gentiles by the vision given to St. Peter at Joppa, and the admission of Cornelius to the Church. He could also plead that in the Gentile cities God had attended the preaching of his gospel with the power of the Holy Ghost, and Churches among the Gentiles had been founded on the faith of Christ. So prophecy had been fulfilled; it was satisfied in Jesus of Nazareth, who suffered for our sins, rose again for our justification, and is preached in all the world as the all-sufficient Savior. R.T.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Having obtained help from God - When all other help failed, God sent the Roman from the castle, and so fulfilled the promise he had made, ver. 17.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

22. “Therefore having received help from God, I stand unto this day, testifying both to small and great, saying nothing else than those things which the prophets and Moses said would come to pass,

William B. Godbey, Commentary on the New Testament (1896–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

22, 23. That the Jews had not succeeded, with all their mobs, and conspiracies, and corruption of rulers, in destroying his life, was a matter of astonishment, and Agrippa might well admit that it was owing to the protecting providence of God. (22) " Having, however, obtained help from God, I have stood until this day, testifying both to small and great, saying nothing else than those things which Moses and the prophets did say should be, (23) that the Christ should suffer, and that he first, by his resurrection from the dead, should show light to the people and to the Gentiles. " Here he assumes that, instead of dishonoring Moses, he and his brethren alone were teaching the things which both Moses and the prophets had foretold; that it was required, by their writings, that the Messiah should suffer and rise from the dead.

By the statement that Christ first showed light to the people and the Gentiles by his resurrection, he must mean that he was the first to bring the subject into clear light, by an actual resurrection to glory; for there had already been some light upon it, as is proved by Paul's previous statement in reference to the hope to which the twelve tribes had been, in all their worship, seeking to attain.

J. W. McGarvey (with Philip Y. Pendleton), Commentaries on the New Testament (The Fourfold Gospel, 1914; Acts; and the epistles) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Connecting Statement:

Paul finishes giving his defense to King Agrippa.

about nothing more than what

This can be stated in positive form. AT: "about the exact thing that"

what the prophets

Paul is referring to the collective writings of the Old Testament prophets.

that Christ must suffer

You can make explicit that Christ must also die. AT: "that Christ must suffer and die" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)

to rise

to come back to life

from the dead

The phrase "the dead" refers to the spirits of people who have died. To rise from among them speaks of becoming alive again.

he would proclaim light

"he would proclaim the message about the light." To tell people about how God saves people is spoken of as if a person were speaking about the light. AT: "he would proclaim the message about how God saves people" (See: Metaphor)

translationWords

God

testimony

prophet

Moses

Christ

suffer

resurrection

die

raise

preach

light

Jew

Gentile

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

22. ἐπικουρίας οὖν τυχὲν τῆς ἀπὸ τοῦ θεοῦ, having therefore obtained the help that is from God. The connexion by οὖν implies that only help divine could have saved him in such perils. ἐπικουρία means such succour as an ally gives, and recalls God’s promise, ‘Surely I will be with thee.’

ἄχρι τῆς ἡμέρας ταύτης ἕστηκα, I stand unto this day. The Apostle has in mind the many attempts to cast him down which had been made by Jews, and Gentiles too, during his missionary journeys. He has been rescued in many ways, and is still there standing safe and sound through the help which God hath sent him. He does not forget human agency, but this, whatever it was, was all sent of God.

μαρτυρόμενος μικρῷ τε καὶ μεγάλῳ, testifying both to small and great. St Paul was now in the presence of two who would be named great, and he knew that God had declared he was to testify ‘before kings’ (Act 9:15).

ὧν. For the government, see Act 1:1.

οἱ προφῆται … καὶ Μωϋσῆς, the prophets and Moses, i.e. the whole Old Testament Scriptures. The form of the phrase is usually ‘Moses and the prophets,’ according to the order of the O.T. books. Sometimes we have ‘the Law and the prophets,’ and once (Luk 24:44) ‘the law of Moses, the prophets and the Psalms.’

μελλόντεν γίνεσθαι, were about to come. The attraction of μελλόντων into the case of the relative preceding is an uncommon occurrence. The plain construction of the whole sentence would be ἐκτὸς τούτων ἂ οἱ προφῆται ἐλάλησαν μέλλοντα, ‘except those things which the prophets spake of as about to come.’ But τούτων being dropped, the relative is attracted into the case of the lost antecedent, and draws the participle in its train.

Cambridge Greek Testament for Schools and Colleges (Cambridge University Press, 1896; 21 vols, various authors incl. Carr, Maclear, Plummer, Farrar, Lumby, Moule, M. R. James, Simcox) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

22.] The οὖν refers to the whole course of deliverances which he had had from God, not merely to the last. It serves to close the narrative, by shewing how it was that he was there that day,—after such repeated persecutions, crowned by this last attempt to destroy him.

μαρτυρόμενος] The mere love of paradox and difficulty, as it seems to me, has led De Wette and Meyer to prefer the ordinary reading -ρούμενος, although very weakly supported by MSS., and yielding hardly any appropriate sense. μαρτυρούμενος must be passive, and signify (see reff. below) ‘testified to,’ ‘borne witness of:’ the datives μικρῷ and μεγάλῳ must be the agents, ‘by small and great’ (to which there is no objection grammatically, but every objection analogically, see ch. 10:22; 16:2; 22:12, in all which μαρτύρουμαι is followed by ὑπό), and λέγων must be predicative, ‘as saying:’ i.e., ‘that I say.’ But this would be contrary to the fact: Paul was not thus borne witness of by all, but on the contrary accused of being a despiser of the law by a great majority of his own countrymen. There can, I think, be no question either critically or exegetically of the correctness of the other reading μαρτυρόμενος, bearing witness, as directly appropriate to the office to which Paul was appointed,—that of a witness (ver. 16); and then μικρῷ τε καὶ μεγάλῳ, to small and great, so flat and meaningless on the other interpretation, admirably suits the occasion,—standing as he was before an assembly of the greatest of the land.

Henry Alford, The Greek Testament (1849–1861) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Help of God [επικουριας της παρα του θεου] . Lit., "help that is from God." The article defines the nature of the help more sharply than A. V. The word for help originally meant alliance.

Marvin R. Vincent, Word Studies in the New Testament (1887–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.