For I see that you are in the poison of bitterness and in the bondage of iniquity.”
Parallel Translations
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For I see that you are in the poison of bitterness and in the bondage of iniquity.”
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For I perceave that thou arte full of bitter gall and wrapped in iniquite.
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For I see that thou art in the gall of bitternes, and in the bonde of iniquitie.
Cross-references (17)
Passages linked to Acts 8:23 in the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, ordered by reader-vote popularity; verse text shown in World English Bible.
- Proverbs 5:22 The evil deeds of the wicked ensnare him. The cords of his sin hold him firmly.
- Isaiah 58:6 “Isn’t this the fast that I have chosen: to release the bonds of wickedness, to undo the straps of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and that you break every yoke?
- John 8:34 Jesus answered them, “Most certainly I tell you, everyone who commits sin is the bondservant of sin.
- Hebrews 12:15 looking carefully lest there be any man who falls short of the grace of God, lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and many be defiled by it,
- Titus 3:3 For we were also once foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving various lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another.
- Deuteronomy 29:18-20 lest there should be among you man, woman, family, or tribe whose heart turns away today from Yahweh our God, to go to serve the gods of those nations; lest there should be among you a root that produces bitter poison; and it happen, when he hears the words of this curse, that he bless himself in his heart, saying, “I shall have peace, though I walk in the stubbornness of my heart,” to destroy the moist with the dry. Yahweh will not pardon him, but then Yahweh’s anger and his jealousy will smoke against that man, and all the curse that is written in this book will fall on him, and Yahweh will blot out his name from under the sky.
- Deuteronomy 32:32-33 For their vine is of the vine of Sodom, of the fields of Gomorrah. Their grapes are poison grapes. Their clusters are bitter. Their wine is the poison of serpents, the cruel venom of asps.
- Psalms 116:16 Yahweh, truly I am your servant. I am your servant, the son of your servant girl. You have freed me from my chains.
- Isaiah 28:22 Now therefore don’t be scoffers, lest your bonds be made strong; for I have heard a decree of destruction from the Lord, Yahweh of Armies, on the whole earth.
- Jeremiah 4:18 “Your way and your doings have brought these things to you. This is your wickedness; for it is bitter, for it reaches to your heart.”
- Jeremiah 9:15 Therefore Yahweh of Armies, the God of Israel, says, “Behold, I will feed them, even this people, with wormwood and give them poisoned water to drink.
- Lamentations 3:5 He has built against me, and surrounded me with bitterness and hardship.
- Lamentations 3:19 Remember my affliction and my misery, the wormwood and the bitterness.
- Romans 6:17-22 But thanks be to God, that, whereas you were bondservants of sin, you became obedient from the heart to that form of teaching to which you were delivered. Being made free from sin, you became bondservants of righteousness. I speak in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh, for as you presented your members as servants to uncleanness and to wickedness upon wickedness, even so now present your members as servants to righteousness for sanctification. For when you were servants of sin, you were free from righteousness. What fruit then did you have at that time in the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. But now, being made free from sin and having become servants of God, you have your fruit of sanctification and the result of eternal life.
- 2 Peter 2:4 For if God didn’t spare angels when they sinned, but cast them down to Tartarus, and committed them to pits of darkness to be reserved for judgment;
- 2 Peter 2:19 promising them liberty, while they themselves are bondservants of corruption; for a man is brought into bondage by whoever overcomes him.
- Job 20:14 yet his food in his bowels is turned. It is cobra venom within him.
Cross-references from openbible.info (CC BY 4.0)
Explain this verse (14 sources)
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain 23. In the gall of bitterness. Peter doth sharply…
23. In the gall of bitterness. Peter doth sharply reprove Simon again, and striketh him with God’s judgment. For unless he had been compelled to descend into himself, he would never have been turned in good earnest unto God. For there is nothing more deadly for men which are blockish than when we flatter them, or when we do but a little scrape the skin, whereas they ought rather to be thrust through. Therefore, until such time as a sinner shall conceive sorrow and true heaviness by reason of his sin, we must use such severity as may wound his mind; otherwise the rotten sore shall be nourished within, which shall by little and little consume the man himself. Yet let us always observe this mean, that we provide for men’s salvation so much as in us lieth. Moreover, there be two excellent fine metaphors in Peter’s words; the one whereof seemeth to be taken out of Moses, where he forbiddeth that there be not in us any root, from which springeth gall and wormwood, (Deuteronomy 29.) By which speech is noted the inward wickedness of the heart; when as it hath so conceived the poison of ungodliness, that being therewith infected, it can bring forth nothing but bitterness. To the same end tendeth the binding of iniquity: to wit, when the whole heart is kept bound and tied by Satan. For it falleth out sometimes that men which are otherwise given very godlily, do break out into evil works, who have not their heart corrupt inwardly with poison. We know that hypocrisy is engendered in man’s nature; but when as the Spirit of God doth shine, we are so blinded in our vices, that we nourish them within as if it were some hidden bundle. Therefore Peter’s meaning is, that Simon fell not only in one point, but that his very heart root was corrupt and bitter; that he fell into Satan’s snares not only in one kind of sin, but that all his senses were ensnared, so that he was wholly given over to Satan, and was become the bond-slave of iniquity. In the mean season, we are taught that the greatness of offenses is esteemed not so much according to the fact which appeareth, as according to the affection of the heart.
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.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain He calleth the inward malice of the heart, and…
He calleth the inward malice of the heart, and that venomous and devilish wickedness wherewith this Magician was wholly replenished, the gall of bitterness: and he is said to be in the gall as though he were wholly overwhelmed with gall, and buried in it.
Entangled in the bonds of iniquity.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain 23 For I perceive that thou art in the…
23 For I perceive that thou art in the gall of bitterness, and in the bond of iniquity.
Ver. 23. Thou art in the gall, &c.] The apostle alludeth to Deu 29:18. Sin is a bitter potion, a deadly poison, which therefore we must quickly cast up again by confession, ere it get to the vitals. Simon Magus is here convinced by the very show of godliness, under which he hoped to have lurked; as the fish sepia is betrayed by the black colour which she casteth out to cover her.
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 The gall of bitterness; the same with gall and…
The gall of bitterness; the same with gall and wormwood, Deu 29:18; or gall and bitterness; signifying a very bad constitution and disposition of soul or mind, such as may be compared unto that meat which the gall of any creature hath corrupted. And for Simon Magus to be in the gall of bitterness, is yet worse than to have the gall of bitterness in him; as to be born in sin, which the Pharisees upbraided the blind man with, Joh 11:34, denotes more intended thereby than that he had sin from his birth in him: thus David bewails that he was shapen in iniquity, Psa 51:5 and thus may those expressions of St. Paul be understood, of being in the flesh, and being in the Spirit, Rom 8:9. This also shows (if any sensible or outward thing could show it) what a bitter and poison my thing sin is, no gall so bitter, no poison so deadly.
The bond of iniquity; either the judgment St. Peter had threatened to deter him from sin was this bond, or his sin itself might be rather so called: the we read of the bands of wickedness, Isa 58:6. One sin is twisted with another, hard to be severed or broken, and draws on judgment powerfully.
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 Then answered Simon, and said,.... Whose conscience might be…
Then answered Simon, and said,.... Whose conscience might be touched, and smote with what Peter had said; and he might be terrified with the wrath of God, and filled with fear of his judgment coming upon him for his wickedness, and might now stand trembling before the apostles: and if this was not his case, he was a most hardened and audacious wretch; and his following words must be understood in a different sense, from what they might seem to have, when they came out of his mouth:
pray ye to the Lord for me; the Arabic version reads, "pray ye two"; the words are addressed both to Peter and John; for though Peter only spake to him, yet John joined with him, and assented to what he said, and approved of it; and which he might signify either by word or gesture; wherefore Simon desires both of them, that they would pray to the Lord for him; but whether he was serious, and in good earnest in this, is a question; since there is no reason to believe he truly repented, from the accounts given of him by ancient writers; who always represent him as an opposer of the apostles and their doctrine, as the father of all heresies, as a blasphemous wretch; who gave out that he was the Father in Samaria, the Son in Judea, and the Holy Ghost in other places; and as a very lewd and wicked man, who carried about with him a whore, whose name was Helena; whom he called the mother of the universe, and gave out the angels were made by her, and the world by them; with many other errors, blasphemies, and impieties: so that it should rather seem, that though Peter was serious in his advice to Simon, yet he was not so in his request to him; but in a sarcastic sneering way, desired his prayers for him; suggesting, that he was not in any pain about what he had said: and if he was in earnest, he did not take Peter's advice to pray for himself; nor did he declare any repentance for his sin; and his desire that the apostles would pray for him, might not be from any sense he had of the evil of his sin, but from a slavish fear of the evil, or mischief, that was like to come upon him for his sin, as appears by what follows:
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that none of these things which ye have spoken come upon me; as that his money should perish with him, and he with that; or that he should go into destruction; that everlasting destruction and ruin would be his portion; and that he should have no part nor lot in eternal life, unless he repented, and his sin was pardoned: and this confirms what has been before observed, that John assented to what Peter spoke, or said the same, or such like things to Simon as he did.
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 23. The gall of bitterness] A Hebraism for…
Verse 23. The gall of bitterness] A Hebraism for excessive bitterness: gall, wormwood, and such like, were used to express the dreadful effects of sin in the soul; the bitter repentance, bitter regret, bitter sufferings, bitter death, c., c., which it produces. In De 29:18, idolatry and its consequences are expressed, by having among them a root that beareth GALL and WORMWOOD. And in Heb 12:15, some grievous sin is intended, when the apostle warns them, lest any root of BITTERNESS springing up, trouble you, and thereby many be defiled.
Bond of iniquity.] An allusion to the mode in which the Romans secured their prisoners, chaining the right hand of the prisoner to the left hand of the soldier who guarded him as if the apostle had said, Thou art tied and bound by the chain of thy sin justice hath laid hold upon thee, and thou hast only a short respite before thy execution, to see if thou wilt repent.
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 I perceive - That is, by the act…
For I perceive - That is, by the act which he had done. His offer had shown a state of mind that was wholly inconsistent with true religion. One single sin “may” as certainly show that there is no true piety as many acts of iniquity. It may be so decided, so malignant, so utterly inconsistent with just views as at once to determine what the character is. The sin of Simon was of this character. Peter here does not appear to have claimed the power of judging the “heart”; but he judged, as all other people would, by the act.
In the gall - This word denotes properly “bile,” or “that bitter, yellowish-green fluid that is secreted in the liver.” Hence, it means anything very bitter; and also any bad passion of the mind, as anger, malice, etc. We speak of “bitterness” of mind, etc.
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Of bitterness - This is a Hebraism; the usual mode of expressing the “superlative,” and means “excessive bitterness.” The phrase is used respecting idolatry Deu 29:18, “Lest there should be among you a root that beareth gall and wormwood.” A similar expression occurs in Heb 12:15, “Lest any root of bitterness springing up, trouble you.” “Sin” is thus represented as a “bitter” or poisonous thing; a tiring not only “unpleasant” in its consequences, but ruinous in its character, as a poisonous plant would be in the midst of other plants, Jer 2:19, “It is an evil and bitter thing that thou hast forsaken the Lord thy God”; Jer 4:18; Rom 3:14, “Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness”; Eph 4:31. The meaning here is, that the heart of Simon was full of dreadful, malignant sin.
Bond of iniquity - Or, that thou art “bound by” iniquity. That is, that it has the rule over you, and “binds” you as a captive. Sin is often thus represented as “bondage” and “captivity,” Psa 116:16; Pro 5:22, “He shall be holden with the cords of his sins”; Rom 7:23-24. These expressions prove conclusively that Simon was a stranger to religion.
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 In the gall of bitterness. In the bitter gall…
In the gall of bitterness. In the bitter gall of hypocrisy, in the bonds, fetters, and chains of sin and iniquity. (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 in the gall of bitterness and . . .…
in the gall of bitterness and . . . bond of iniquity--expressing both the awfulness of his condition and the captivity to it in which he was held.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain 23. For I perceive that thou art in the…
23. For I perceive that thou art in the gall of bitterness, and in the bond of iniquity] The preposition in makes a great difficulty in this verse. The word in the original means into or for. The construction has been compared with that of the Hebrew preposition ל = for after the verb “to be” in passages such as Eze_37:22, “I will make them one nation,” literally, “unto one nation.” But instances of this construction are not common enough in the O.T. for an imitation of it in the N. T. to be probable. It seems better therefore not to take “gall of bitterness” and “bond of iniquity” as thus in apposition with the subject of the sentence, but rather to regard the preposition as used with the sense of motion towards a place or state and subsequent rest there. So it is found in Luk_11:7, “My children are with me in (εἰς) bed,” where the meaning is “They have come into and are remaining in bed.” For the expression “gall of bitterness,” cp. Deu_29:18, where those who serve false gods are spoken of as “a root that beareth gall and wormwood.” See also the “root of bitterness,” Heb_12:15. The second expression is found as “bands of wickedness” (Isa_58:6). The whole sentence would thus imply that Simon had gone from one evil to another till he had reached and was remaining in a stage which deserved the reprobation spoken against idolatry in the O.T., and had allowed evil to make him its prisoner.
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 (23) In the gall of bitterness, and in the…
(23) In the gall of bitterness, and in the bond of iniquity.—On “gall,” in its literal sense, see Note on Mat_27:34. This is the only passage in the New Testament in which it is used figuratively. “Bitterness” meets us, as expressing extreme moral depravity, in Rom_3:14, Eph_4:31, Heb_12:15. The latter phrase implies that the iniquity of Simon bound him as with the iron chains of a habit from which he could not free himself.
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 See for perceive, A.V. In the gall of bitterness,…
See for perceive, A.V. In the gall of bitterness, etc. The passage from which both this expression and the similar one in Heb_12:15 are taken is manifestlyza Deu_29:18, where the Greek of the LXX has, rJi anw fuousa ejn colh kaia. The context there also shows conclusively that the "gall and bitterness" ("wormwood," A.V.) of which Moses speaks is the spirit of idolatry or defection from God springing up in some professing member of the Church, and defiling and corrupting others, as it is expounded in Heb_12:15, Heb_12:16. This, as St. Peter saw, was exactly the case with Simon, whose heart was not straight with God, but "had turned away from him," as it is said in Deuteronomy. Though baptized, he was still an idolater in heart, and likely to trouble many. "The gall of bitterness" is the same as "gall and wormwood," or "bitterness." "Gall," or "bile," is in classical Greek and other languages a synonym for "bitterness," especially in a figurative sense. (see Lam_3:15, 19 pikri kai, LXX) The uncommon phrase, the bond of iniquity, seems to be borrowed from Isa_58:6, where the LXX have the same words, lu pandesmon ajdikiav, "loose the bands of wickedness," A.V. Simon was still bound in these bands.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
William B. Godbey 1900 · Public Domain 23. “For I perceive that thou art in the…
23. “For I perceive that thou art in the gall of bitterness and the bond of iniquity.” This verse shows clearly that Simon had never been saved from inbred sin abiding in his heart after regeneration, and even amid those wonderful revival scenes getting the upper hand and again slaying him by his old predilection of money-love.
William B. Godbey, Commentary on the New Testament (1896–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
J. W. McGarvey 1914 · Public Domain See notes on verse 20
See notes on verse 20
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.