But Paul said, “I am a Jew, from Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of no insignificant city. I beg you, allow me to speak to the people.”
Parallel Translations
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But Paul said, “I am a Jew, from Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of no insignificant city. I beg you, allow me to speak to the people.”
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But Paul sayde: I am a man which am a Iewe of Tharsus a cite in Cicill a Citesyn of no vyle cite I beseche the soffre me to speake vnto the people.
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Then Paul sayde, Doubtlesse, I am a man which am a Iewe, and citizen of Tarsus, a famous citie of Cilicia, and I beseech thee, suffer mee to speake vnto the people.
Cross-references (13)
Passages linked to Acts 21:39 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Acts 22:3 “I am indeed a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, instructed according to the strict tradition of the law of our fathers, being zealous for God, even as you all are today.
- Acts 9:11 The Lord said to him, “Arise, and go to the street which is called Straight, and inquire in the house of Judah for one named Saul, a man of Tarsus. For behold, he is praying,
- Acts 6:9 But some of those who were of the synagogue called “The Libertines”, and of the Cyrenians, of the Alexandrians, and of those of Cilicia and Asia arose, disputing with Stephen.
- Acts 23:27 “This man was seized by the Jews, and was about to be killed by them, when I came with the soldiers and rescued him, having learned that he was a Roman.
- Acts 9:30 When the brothers knew it, they brought him down to Caesarea, and sent him off to Tarsus.
- Acts 15:23 They wrote these things by their hand: “The apostles, the elders, and the brothers, to the brothers who are of the Gentiles in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia: greetings.
- Acts 15:41 He went through Syria and Cilicia, strengthening the assemblies.
- Acts 16:37 But Paul said to them, “They have beaten us publicly without a trial, men who are Romans, and have cast us into prison! Do they now release us secretly? No, most certainly, but let them come themselves and bring us out!”
- Acts 21:37 As Paul was about to be brought into the barracks, he asked the commanding officer, “May I speak to you?” He said, “Do you know Greek?
- Acts 22:25-29 When they had tied him up with thongs, Paul asked the centurion who stood by, “Is it lawful for you to scourge a man who is a Roman, and not found guilty?” When the centurion heard it, he went to the commanding officer and told him, “Watch what you are about to do, for this man is a Roman!” The commanding officer came and asked him, “Tell me, are you a Roman?” He said, “Yes.” The commanding officer answered, “I bought my citizenship for a great price.” Paul said, “But I was born a Roman.” Immediately those who were about to examine him departed from him, and the commanding officer also was afraid when he realized that he was a Roman, because he had bound him.
- Acts 23:34 When the governor had read it, he asked what province he was from. When he understood that he was from Cilicia, he said,
- 1 Peter 3:15 But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts. Always be ready to give an answer to everyone who asks you a reason concerning the hope that is in you, with humility and fear,
- 1 Peter 4:15-16 For let none of you suffer as a murderer, or a thief, or an evil doer, or a meddler in other men’s matters. But if one of you suffers for being a Christian, let him not be ashamed; but let him glorify God in this matter.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (14 sources)
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John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain 39 But Paul said, I am a man which…
39 But Paul said, I am a man which am a Jew of Tarsus, a city in Cilicia, a citizen of no mean city: and, I beseech thee, suffer me to speak unto the people.
Ver. 39. Of no mean city] And yet more ennobled by Paul than Paul was by it; like as Hippo was better known by Austin than Austin was by Hippo, whereof he was bishop; the island Cos by Hippocrates than Hippocrates by Cos; King Archelaus by his friend Euripides than Euripides by Archelaus.
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 No mean city; it being the metropolis, or chief…
No mean city; it being the metropolis, or chief city, in Cilicia, built by Perseus, as some think; howsoever, having the privilege of the Roman freedom; as Act 22:28.
I beseech thee: St. Paul begs leave to speak unto the people, that he might not seem to affect popularity, or to be guilty of any insurrection or tumult. Thus he had leave also of Agrippa, before that he made that famous apology, Act 26:1.
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 But Paul said, I am a man which am…
But Paul said, I am a man which am a Jew of Tarsus,.... And not that Egyptian; he was not of that country, much less that man; but a Jew, both by birth and religion; he was born of Jewish parents, and brought up in the Jewish religion; though his native place was Tarsus, a city in Cilicia, where it is placed by Pliny (n), Ptolomy (o), and Mela (p); and is by some thought to be the same with the Tarshish of the Old Testament:
a citizen of no mean city; Pliny (q) calls it a free city, and Solinus (r) says it is the mother, or chief of cities, and Curtius (s) speaks of it as a very opulent one; which when Alexander drew near to with his army, the inhabitants of it set fire to, that he might not possess their riches; which he understanding, sent Parmenio to prevent it: through this city, as the same historian, in agreement with Pliny and others, observes, ran the river Cydnus; and it being summer time when Alexander was here, and very hot weather, and being covered with dust and sweat, he put off his clothes, and cast himself into the river to wash himself; but as soon as he was in, he was seized with such a numbness of his nerves, that had he not been immediately taken out by his soldiers, and for the extraordinary care of his physician, he had at once expired. Josephus (t) calls this city the most famous of the cities in Gallicia; and derives it, and the whole country, from Tarshish, the grandson of Japheth, Gen 10:4 his words are,
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"Tharsus gave name to the Tharsians, for so Cilicia was formerly called, of which this is an evidence; for the most famous of the cities with them, and which is the metropolis, is called Tarsus; Theta being changed into Tau for appellation sake.''
Though some say it was built by Perseus, the son of Jupiter and Danae, and called Tharsus, of the hyacinth stone, which is said to be found about it: others think it was so called, , because the places of this country were first dried up after the flood: it was not only a city of stately buildings, as it was repaired by Sardanapalus, and increased after the times of Alexander; but there was a famous academy in it, which, for men of learning, exceeded Athens and Alexandria (u); though these exceeded that in number of philosophers: here it is thought lived Aratus the poet, from whom the apostle cites a passage, in Act 17:28 and of this place was the famous Chrysippus, who is called "a Tarsian" (w), as the apostle is here. Hermogenes, a very celebrated rhetorician, some of whose works are still extant, came from hence (x). Jerom (y) reports it as a tradition, that the parents of the Apostle Paul were of Giscalis, a town in Judea; which with the whole province being destroyed by the Romans, they removed to Tarsus, a city of Cilicia, whither Paul when a young man followed them; but certain it is, that the apostle was born there, as he himself says, in Act 22:3. Ignatius, in (z) the "second" century, writing to the church at Tarsus, calls them citizens and disciples of Paul; citizens, because he was of this city; and disciples, because of the same faith with him; and very likely the first materials of the church in this place were converts of his; since it is evident that he went hither after he was a preacher; see Act 9:30.
And I beseech thee suffer me to speak unto the people; first he desired to speak with the captain, and that was in order to obtain leave to speak to the people; and which he asks in a very handsome and submissive manner, and hopes to have his request granted him, since he was not the person he took him for, but was a Jew by birth, and a citizen of a very considerable Roman city; and was not a mean, sordid, vagabond creature, nor need he fear that he would sow any discord and sedition among the people.
(n) Nat. Hist. l. 5. c. 27. (o) Geograph. l. 5. c. 8. (p) De orbis situ, l. 1. c. 13. (q) Ib. ut supra. (Nat. Hist. l. 5. c. 27.) (r) Polyhist. c. 51. (s) Hist. l. 3. c. 4. (t) Antiqu. l. 1. c. 6. sect. 1. (u) Strabo, Geograph. l. 14. (w) Laert. Vit. Philosoph. l. 7. (x) Vid. Fabricii Bibl. Graec. l. 4. c. 31. sect. 4. 5. (y) Catalog. Script. Eccles. sect. 15. fol. 90. G. & Comment. in Philemon. ver. 23. Tom. 9. fol. 116. L. (z) Ep. ad Tarsenses, p. 75.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain Verse 39. I am a man which am a…
Verse 39. I am a man which am a Jew] A periphrasis for, I am a Jew. See Clarke on Ac 7:2.
Of Tarsus - no mean city] In Clarke's notes on "Ac 9:11", I have shown that Tarsus was a city of considerable importance, and in some measure a rival to Rome and Athens; and that, because of the services tendered to the Romans by the inhabitants, Julius Caesar endowed them with all the rights and privileges of Roman citizens. When St. Paul calls it no mean city, he speaks a language that was common to those who have had occasion to speak of Tarsus. XENOPHON, Cyri Anabas. i., calls it, πολιν μεγαλην και ευδαιμονα, a great and flourishing city. JOSEPHUS, Ant. lib. i. cap. 6, sec. 6, says that it was παρ' αυτοις των πολεων ἡ αξιολογωτατη μητροπολις ουσα, the metropolis and most renowned city among them (the Cilicians.) And AMMIANUS MARCELLINUS, xiv. 8, says, Ciliciam Tarsus nobilitat, urbs perspicabilis: "Tarsus, a very respectable city; adorns Cilicia."
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain A Jew of Tarsus - A Jew by birth.
A Jew of Tarsus - A Jew by birth.
Of no mean city - Not obscure, or undistinguished. He could claim an honorable birth, so far as the place of his nativity was concerned. See the notes on Act 9:11. Tarsus was much celebrated for its learning, and was at one time the rival of Alexandria and Athens. Xenophon calls it a great and flourishing city. Josephus (Antiq., book 2, chapter 6, section 6) says that it was the metropolis, and most renowned city among them (the Cilicians).
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 I am indeed a Jew, by birth and education.…
I am indeed a Jew, by birth and education. (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 a citizen of no mean city--(See on Act 16:37).
a citizen of no mean city--(See on Act 16:37).
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 39. A citizen—Implying a full possession of all the…
39. A citizen—Implying a full possession of all the civil rights of a great free city.
No mean city—The metropolis of Cilicia, rich by commerce, and noted for its schools of philosophy. It was open by good roads, to the north by the Cilician Gates, and into Palestine by the Syrian Gates. The graceful Greek, the honourable origin, and the impressive manner of the apostle, are producing their effect upon the chiliarch. He doubts his first impression that a criminal or culprit is before him; and, by the very boldness of Paul’s request, put with the unconscious air of conscious power, he is inspired with the idea that the prisoner may be able to appease and sway the angry mob, and explain his own mysterious case.
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 39. But Paul said, I am a man which…
39. But Paul said, I am a man which am a Jew of Tarsus] The A. V. does not often follow the Greek so closely as this. And here it is better to read with the Rev. Ver., “I am a Jew of Tarsus in Cilicia” (see Act_6:9, notes).
a citizen of no mean city] Tarsus was the metropolis of Cilicia, and a city remarkable for its culture, and the zeal of its inhabitants for philosophic studies.
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and … people] An objection has been here raised that it is extremely improbable that the chief captain could have held this conversation with St Paul amid the tumult, and also that he would have granted permission to speak to a man whom he had just taken as his prisoner, and whom he afterwards arranges to examine by scourging (Act_22:24). But we have only to remember that the Apostle and his interlocutor were high up above the crowd, and so away from the noise; that the staircase crowded with soldiers, who could not rapidly be withdrawn because they were restraining the multitude, made some delay absolutely unavoidable, and that, added to this was the surprise of the chief captain that his prisoner could speak Greek, and we have enough warrant for accepting the story as it is here told. Moreover the Greek which the Apostle used was of a very polished character, shewing the education and refinement of the speaker, and making good his claim to respect.
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 (39) A citizen of no mean city.—The boast was…
(39) A citizen of no mean city.—The boast was quite a legitimate one. In addition to all its fame for culture, the town of Tarsus bore on its coins the word METROPOLIS-AUTONOMOS (Independent).
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 I am a Jew for I am a man…
I am a Jew for I am a man which am a Jew, A.V.; in for a city in, A.V.; give me leave for suffer me, A.V. A citizen of no mean city; oujk ajshmou polewv, an elegant classical expression. Oujk ashmov jEllhnwn poliv (Euripides, "Ion.," 8).
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain Paul said, I am a man which am ……
Act_21:39
Paul said, I am a man which am … a citizen of no mean city.
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Citizenship
1. Paul might well be proud of his birthplace, for historically, geographically, intellectually, and commercially it was no mean city. All that could be said about Tarsus can be said of many a modern town, and if as much cannot be said about that in which we live, still surely there are some features which may fill us with honourable pride. If this pride is at times chastened by the thought of its evils, let it be no fault of ours that we cannot claim to be citizens of no mean city.
2. This love of city has characterised and been the inspiration of some of the noblest of minds. Think how Jerusalem, Athens, Rome, were loved, and what this love wrought in their citizens--not to speak of modern instances.
3. We owe much to our city. It provides us with a home, means of subsistence, society, culture; all its trade, thought, and activity, in one way or another make for our good. Let us pay our debt--
I. By knowing our city. The crass ignorance of the average citizen of the place in which he lives is proverbial. Features which strike a stranger at once, names which challenge curiosity, historical facts which have contributed to the making of the nation, the great men who have lived or died in the vicinity--of all this he usually knows next to nothing. Of facts which have transpired, men who have flourished, things which command attention elsewhere, he has read and perhaps has seen in his travels. He can tell you what is worth seeing and what has happened in a continental city--but you inquire in vain about these if they lie within a few yards of his own door. This is not fair to our city, nor ourselves, nor our friends who come to visit us. Let us explore our city, study its history, inspect its ecclesiastical or secular monuments or institutions, examine into its relations past and present with other places, trace the origin of its customs, and thus many an evening will, without much effort, be spent in a pleasant and profitable way.
II. By working for our city.
1. By industry in our own business. Every article we sell enlarges by so much the area of its trade. This may not be a very powerful motive, since there is already one sufficiently strong. But it is an elevating one, and will lift trade out of the sordid selfishness into which it is so prone to sink.
2. By encouraging its trade. The habit of sending for nearly everything elsewhere is not a commendable one. Our fellow citizens have to live, and it is only by dealing with them that they can live. But things are dearer. Let there be more buyers at home and that will make them cheaper.
3. By interesting ourselves in its government. The number of citizens who fail here is appalling. No wonder, then, that the management of our towns falls into incompetent or unworthy hands. Not everyone, of course, can aspire to civic honours, but everyone can help to prevent those honours falling where they will be abused. Just think what depends on apathy or interest, on an unintelligent or enlightened public opinion--disease or health through bad or good drainage and water supply; inconvenience or comfort through the state of the roads, domestic appointments, etc.; heavy or light rates through waste or economy in finance.
4. By the support of intellectual or humanitarian institutions. Libraries, art galleries, baths, hospitals, etc.
III. By promoting religion in our city. This is the salt without which every other improvement will be but as a covering for corruption. We may promote this--
1. By personal piety, without which all religious effort will be deprived of a good deal of its value. The mere example which a Christian citizen sets at home, behind the counter, in the council chamber or elsewhere, is of incalculable worth.
2. By the godly upbringing of the citizens of the future. What is seen and heard in the nursery today will determine the character of our town five-and-twenty years hence.
3. By cordial support of and cooperation, with our own Church. Here principles are inculcated, the adoption of which makes our city mean or noble; and here bad citizens may be influenced for good.
4. By generous union with other Churches. It is the combined force of Christianity in any given town that tells. There should be no isolated or discordant voices when flagrant wrong is to be rectified, or obvious good to be encouraged. (J. W. Burn.)
Pauls birthplace
Caesar boasted of his native Rome; Lycurgus of Sparta; Virgil of Andes; Demosthenes of Athens; Archimedes of Syracuse; and Paul of Tarsus. I should suspect a man of base heartedness who had no feeling of complacency in regard to the place of his residence; who gloried not in its arts, behaviour, prosperity, embellishments, and its scientific attainments. Men never like a place where they have not behaved well. Swarthout did not like New York; nor Dr. Webster, Boston. Men who have free rides in prison vans never like the city that furnishes the vehicle. When I see in history Argos, Rhodes, Smyrna, Chios, Colophon, and several other cities claiming Homer, I conclude that Homer behaved well. (T. De Witt Talmage.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
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.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 Connecting Statement:
Connecting Statement:
Paul begins to defend what he did.
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I ask you
"I beg you" or "I plead with you"
allow me
"please allow me" or please permit me"
the captain had given him permission
The word "permission" can be stated as a verb. AT: "the captain permitted Paul to speak" or "the captain allowed Paul to speak" (See: Abstract Nouns)
Paul stood on the steps
The word "steps" here refers to the steps on the stairway to the fortress.
motioned with the hand to the people
It can be stated explicitly why Paul motioned with the hand. AT: "motioned with his hand for the people to be quiet" (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)
When there was a deep silence
"When the people were completely silent"
translationWords
Paul
Jew
Tarsus
Cilicia
citizen
Hebrew
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.