For you have brought these men here, who are neither robbers of temples nor blasphemers of your goddess.
Parallel Translations
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For you have brought these men here, who are neither robbers of temples nor blasphemers of your goddess.
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For ye have brought hyther these me whiche are nether robbers of churches nor yet despisers of youre goddes.
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For yee haue brought hither these men, which haue neither committed sacrilege, neither doe blaspheme your goddesse.
Cross-references (4)
Passages linked to Acts 19:37 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Romans 2:22 You who say a man shouldn’t commit adultery, do you commit adultery? You who abhor idols, do you rob temples?
- 2 Corinthians 6:3 We give no occasion of stumbling in anything, that our service may not be blamed,
- Acts 25:8 while he said in his defense, “Neither against the law of the Jews, nor against the temple, nor against Caesar, have I sinned at all.”
- 1 Corinthians 10:32 Give no occasion for stumbling, whether to Jews, or to Greeks, or to the assembly of God;
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (15 sources)
Historical commentary, presented as a primary source — not an endorsement.
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain 37. Men which are neither church-robbers. He doth both…
37. Men which are neither church-robbers. He doth both truly and well deny that they be church-robbers; but he doth shortly after falsely define the kind of church-robbery to speak blasphemously against Diana. For seeing that all superstition is profane and polluted, it followeth that those be sacrilegious persons who translate the honor which is due to God alone unto idols. But the wisdom of the town-clerk, and that carnal, is here commended, and not his godliness. For he had respect unto this alone to extinguish the heat of the uproar; and therefore doth he at length conclude, if Demetrius have any private matter, there be judgment-seats and magistrates. And that public affairs must be handled in a lawful, and not in a disordered assembly — in an assembly gathered by the commandment of the magistrates, and not in a concourse which is without consideration, run together through the motion of one man, and to satisfy his appetite. He calleth them deputies, in the plural number, not that Asia had more than one, but because legates did sometimes keep courts in the place of the deputies. Also, he appeaseth them by putting them in fear, because the deputy had occasion offered to punish and fine the city sore.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain 37 For ye have brought hither these men, which…
37 For ye have brought hither these men, which are neither robbers of churches, nor yet blasphemers of your goddess.
Ver. 37. Blasphemers of your goddess] This was false: but this politician held it lawful to redeem peace with a lie. Not so St Paul, who knew that after his departure from Ephesus grievous wolves would enter in, Act 20:29. And yet, because he could not stay to preach unless he would have restored some Pharisaical observations, and unless, for peace’s sake, he would have yielded to the rites and image of Diana, he left the place, because he must not do the greatest good by any evil means.
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.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain Neither robbers of churches; for they had not entered…
Neither robbers of churches; for they had not entered into their temple.
Nor yet blasphemers of your goddess; Paul had barely preached this truth amongst them, not upbraiding them for their idolatry; as Michael, the archangel, brought no railing accusation against the devil, when he contended with him, Jud 1:9.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain And when he had thus spoken,.... Or delivered this…
And when he had thus spoken,.... Or delivered this oration, made use of the above arguments, reasonings, and expostulations:
he dismissed the assembly; he ordered them to break up, and every one to return home in peace, and go about his own business; and thus Paul, and his companions, were delivered from an imminent danger they were exposed to.
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Next: Acts Chapter 20
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain Nor blasphemers of your goddess - They simply declared…
Nor blasphemers of your goddess - They simply declared the one God, and the vanity of idols in general.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 37. These men - are neither robbers of…
Verse 37. These men - are neither robbers of churches] ιρεσυλους; Spoilers of sacred places. As his design evidently was to appease and conciliate the people, he fixed first on a most incontrovertible fact: These men have not spoiled your temples; nor is there any evidence that they have even blasphemed your goddess. The apostles acted as prudent men should: they endeavoured to enlighten the minds of the multitude, that the absurdity of their gross errors might be the more apparent; for, when they should know the truth, it was likely that they would at once abandon such gross falsehood.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain For ye ... - Demetrius and his friends. The…
For ye ... - Demetrius and his friends. The blame was to be traced to them.
Which are neither robbers of churches - The word “churches” we now apply to edifices reared for purposes of Christian worship. Since no such churches had then been built, this translation is unhappy, and is not at all demanded by the original. The Greek word ἱεροσύλους hierosulous is applied properly to those who commit sacrilege; who plunder temples of their sacred things. The meaning here is that Paul and his companions had not been guilty of robbing the temple of Diana, or any other temple. The charge of sacrilege could not be brought against them. Though they had preached against idols and idol worship, yet they had offered no violence to the temples of idolaters, nor had they attempted to strip them of the sacred utensils employed in their service. What they had done, they had done peaceably.
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Nor yet blasphemers of your goddess - They had not used harsh or reproachful language of Diana. This had not been charged on them, nor is there the least evidence that they had done it. They had opposed idolatry; had reasoned against it; and had endeavored to turn the people from it. But there is not the least evidence that they had ever done it in harsh or reproachful language. This shows that people should employ reason, and not harsh or reproachful language against a pervading evil; and that the way to remove it is to enlighten the minds of people, and to convince them of the error of their ways. People gain nothing by bitter and reviling words; and it is much to obtain the testimony of even the enemies of religion as Paul did of the chancellor of Ephesus - that no such words had been used in describing their crimes and follies.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain Nor of blasphemy against your goddess. St. John Chrysostom…
Nor of blasphemy against your goddess. St. John Chrysostom takes notice, that to calm the people, he says more than was true. (Witham)
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain For ye have brought hither these men, which are…
For ye have brought hither these men, which are neither robbers of churches--"temple-plunderers," or sacrilegious persons.
nor yet blasphemers of your goddess--This is a remarkable testimony, showing that the apostle had, in preaching against idolatry, studiously avoided (as at Athens) insulting the feelings of those whom he addressed--a lesson this to missionaries and ministers in general.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain 37. Robbers of churches—The Greek pagan phrase signifies temple-pillagers…
37. Robbers of churches—The Greek pagan phrase signifies temple-pillagers or blasphemers. Some have supposed the townclerk here, in giving the Christians so quiet a character, to have slipped into a smooth untruth. But it must be remembered that Paul was not present; and the two who were apprehended may have been, for-all that appeared, as innocent as the townclerk made them.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 37. For … robbers of churches] Better, robbers of…
37. For … robbers of churches] Better, robbers of temples with Rev. Ver. As the temple at Ephesus had a great treasure-chamber, the offence might not be unknown among them. All that was placed under the guardianship of the goddess would be for the time the property of the temple, to steal which would be sacrilege.
nor yet blasphemers of your goddess] The “yet” has nothing to represent it in the original, and the oldest MSS. read “our goddess.” In a popular address it is natural that such a speaker would identify himself with his fellow-citizens. We may gather from this verse that the language of St Paul and his companions had been measured when they had spoken about the special worship of Ephesus. They had inculcated the great principle that those were no gods which were made with hands and had allowed that to do its work. We find the same restraint put on himself by St Paul at Athens, though he was greatly moved to see the city wholly given to idolatry. Different conduct in either of these cities would most likely have deprived him of all chance of a hearing.
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.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain (37) These men, which are neither robbers of churches.—Better,…
(37) These men, which are neither robbers of churches.—Better, robbers of temples. It was not unusual for the writers of the Elizabethan age to apply the term, which we confine to Christian buildings, to heathen temples. They would speak, e.g., of the “church” of Diana, or the “chapel” of Apollo. The corresponding noun for “robbing temples,” or “sacrilege,” is found in inscriptions discovered by Mr. Wood (vi. 1, p. 14) among the ruins of the Temple, as denoting a crime to which the severest penalties were attached. The testimony to the general character of St. Paul and his companions, as shown both in word and deed, indicates the quietness and calmness with which they had preached the truth. They persuaded, but they did not ridicule or revile. This was, probably, more than could be said for Alexander and the Jews who put him forward. (See Note on Act_19:33.)
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain Temples for churches, A.V.; , or for nor yet,…
Temples for churches, A.V.; , or for nor yet, A.V.; our for your, A.V. Ye have brought, etc.
Agein is especially used of "bringing before a magistrate," "leading to execution," etc. (Luk_21:12 Luk_23:1; Act_6:12 Act_17:19 Act_18:12; Mar_13:11) Robbers of temples; iJerosuloi found only here in the New Testament. The verb iJerosulein occurs in Rom_2:22. Blasphemers of our goddess. If the A.V. is right, perhaps we may see in the phrase "your goddess" an indication that the town-clerk himself was more or less persuaded by St. Paul"s preaching, that "they are no gods which are made with hands," and did not care to speak of Diana as his own goddess. It appears also that St. Paul had not launched out into abuse of the heathen gods in general, or Diana in particular, but had preached the more excellent way by faith in Jesus Christ, to draw them from their idols. (1Th_1:9)
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
B. W. Johnson 1891 · Public Domain 37. These men. Gaius and Aristarchus (see verse 29),…
37. These men. Gaius and Aristarchus (see verse 29), men against whom there was no charge. They were neither robbers of temples (see the Revision) nor blasphemers of Diana.
If Demetrius. If they have anything to charge there are courts of justice. Deputies. Proconsuls.
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We are in danger. The Roman law made it a capital offence to incite a riot, nor did the Roman officials wink at any disturbance in the provinces. Ephesus was what was called “a free city;” that is, it governed itself in local matters. It might have its liberties taken away for just such occurrences as those of this day.
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.
J. W. McGarvey 1914 · Public Domain See notes on verse 35
See notes on verse 35
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.