Acts 5:23

Act 5:23. Κεκλεισμένον, shut) The angel again had shut it, after having opened it for Peter: Act 5:19.

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

Act 5:23 . ἐν πάσῃ ἀσφαλείᾳ , “in all safety,” R.V. (not cum omni diligentia , Vulgate); “in omni firmitate,” Flor.; in LXX generally μετά with genitive; cf. 2Ma 3:22 ; 2Ma 15:1 , μετὰ πάσης ἀσφ . The Vulgate is misleading; the words mean not that the prison had been carefully shut, but that it was found in a state of perfect security.

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

the prison . . . shut . . . keepers . . . before the doors, but . . . no man within--the reverse of the miracle in Act 16:26; a similar contrast to that of the nets at the miraculous draughts of fishes (Luk 5:6; Joh 21:11).

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 23. The prison truly found we shut] All the doors were properly bolted, and the keepers at their post; but when we had opened, for it appears they were alone in possession of the keys; how much must this have increased their astonishment when they found that the doors were not broken open, the guards properly posted, and every thing as they left it, for they themselves had put the apostles in prison; but, when they had opened, there was no man within!

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

23. The prison truly found we shut] The word rendered truly is omitted in the best MSS.

and the keepers standing without before the doors] The best MSS. read, and the keepers standing at the doors. Of course they were unconscious that their charge was no longer there.

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.

Now when the high priest,.... Or "the priests", as it is read in most copies; the Complutensian edition reads, "the high priest"; and he is certainly designed, since he is distinguished from the chief priests after mentioned: the Vulgate Latin, Syriac, and Ethiopic versions, leave out this word; as does also the Alexandrian copy:

and the captain of the temple; the same versions read in the plural number; See Gill on Luk 22:4, Luk 22:52, Act 4:1.

and the chief priests heard these things; which the officers related, that the prison doors were shut and sure, and the keepers upon their watch, and yet the apostles gone:

they doubted of them, whereunto this would grow; they did not doubt of the truth of the things their officers told them, but they were amazed at them, and hesitated in their minds about them, and were anxiously thoughtful; what this would, or should be, or how this should be done; that the prison doors should be shut, and yet the prisoners gone; they were in suspense and anxiety of mind, what to impute it to; whether to a divine and supernatural power, or to magic art; and were uneasy in their minds what would be the issue of so strange and surprising an event.

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

23 Saying, The prison truly found we shut with all safety, and the keepers standing without before the doors: but when we had opened, we found no man within.

Ver. 23. We found no man within] This might well have made them to desist. But what said the prophet long before? "Lord, when thy hand is lifted up, they will not see;" howbeit, "they shall see, and be ashamed for their envy at thy people," &c., Isa 26:11.

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.

Found we shut - It had not been broken open; and there was therefore clear proof that they had been delivered by the interposition of God. Nor could they have been released by the guard, for they were keeping watch, as if unconscious that anything had happened, and the officers had the only means of entering the prison.

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

All means imaginable were used to secure their prisoners; but when God will deliver, what can keep them? When God will work, who can hinder? Job 11:10. It is strange, that so great evidence of the innocence of the apostles, and truth of their doctrine, should be ineffectual; but prejudice is insuperable, unless to the mighty power of the grace of God; and this blindness cannot be cured, but by God’s Ephphatha.

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

23. Shut with all safety—The supernatural agent had not only opened the prison doors and sent the apostle from prison to temple, but had again closed the prison, and all so quietly that the keepers tranquilly supposed that the prisoners were still in custody.

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

Prison-house for prison, A.V., as in ver. 21; we found shut in all safety for truly found we shut with all safety, A.V. at the doors for without before the doors, A.V. and T.R. But the within at the end of the verse seems to require the without of the T.R.

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

We found the prison shut - The angel probably had shut the doors again.

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

See notes on verse 22

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.

23. The prison truly found we shut. All was as usual and the guards before the doors, but the prisoners gone.

B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.

23. μὲν omitted with אABD.

ἔξω omitted with אABDEP. It is not represented in Vulg.

ἐπὶ for πρὸ with אABD. Vulg. has ‘ante.’

23. τοὺς φύλακας, the guards, who were of course unconscious that their prisoners were gone.

ἐπὶ τῶν θυρῶν. This, the oldest reading, is not the usual mode of expressing by, at, beside, ἐπὶ with the genitive usually means upon or over, which can hardly be meant here. We find however ἐπὶ τῶν θυρῶν = at the doors, 1Ma 1:55, and the singular ἐπὶ τῆς θύρας, in a like sense, LXX. Num 11:10; Num 12:5; Num 27:2.

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.

23. ἐν πάς. ἀσφ.] Not, as Vulg., ‘cum omni diligentia’ (so Luth.), nor as E. V. ‘with all safety’ (?); but in all security—‘in a state of perfect safety.’

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