25
The term "Jew" is an Anglicization of "Judean" which comes from the Greek Ἰουδαῖος (Ioudaios). Technically, it can simply be a regional distinction, that is someone who is from Judea. But it can of course represent one's ethnicity. Greek who happened to grow up in Judea would not have identified himself as a Judean.
In the book of Esther, the Hebrew "...
23
In the NLT, it's quite straightforward:
Acts 20:26 (NLT)
26 I declare today that I have been faithful. If anyone suffers eternal death, it’s not my fault,
I was actually amused by the "it's not my fault" part; reminds me of a child. :P
Anyway, other more-literal translations give variations of the following:
Acts 20:26 (NIV)
26 ...
23
It is important to understand that we do not have an "original copy" of any book of the Bible. What we have are copies of copies of copies... (manuscripts), from which "Textual Critics" seek to ascertain the original wording. It is the original wording that most Bible scholars hold to be perfect and inspired by God.
Many modern Christians view "The Bible" ...
17
1. The Jews persecuted Christians for Blasphemy
From the perspective of the High Priest, the followers of the Way were violating the primary profession of the Jewish Faith: "Hear O Israel, the Lord your God is One."
Jesus, in claiming to be God, was, according to the High Priest, blaspheming. Those who followed him would, to the Jewish mind, have been ...
15
In many languages today there is the equivalent of the English word "acquire." In Russian "priobrel" means acquire - in contrast "buy" in Russian would be kupit.
In Azerbaijani language for "buy" we use a word "almaq" which has many meanings like buy, take, gain.
This word acquire in the original Greek does not necessarily mean that someone put down real ...
15
The answer is perhaps best given in 1 Corinthians 9:20-23 (emphasis added):
To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though not being myself under the law) that I might win those under the law. To those outside the law I became as one outside the law (not being outside the law of God but ...
14
I know the answer will be extremely unsatisfying, but the answer is right there in the question. Verses 24-26. They didn't know which to pick, so they prayed and asked God to show them by directing the outcome of casting lots, then they trusted Him to do so. There's really nothing more said, and really no reason to say more.
In essence, they threw up ...
14
Theophilus was the person addressed in both the Gospel of Luke and in the Acts of the Apostles (ie "Luke" and "Acts"). The identity of Theophilus is unknown. Per Wikipedia there are multiple possible options:
He was a specific individual
Theories say that it could have possibly referred to a Jewish priest, a Roman official, or a lawyer friend of Luke's.
...
12
The ESV Study Bible includes this note about the purchase of the property in the Acts account:
That is, the field was acquired indirectly by Judas, through the agency of the chief priests. As Matt. 27:3–7 records, Judas brought the 30 pieces of silver back to the chief priests and elders. The chief priests then purchased the potter’s field with Judas’s ...
12
Two fourth-century fathers clearly make this connection. First, Cyril of Jerusalem:
The multitude of the hearers was confounded;—it was a second confusion, in the room of that first evil one at Babylon. For in that confusion of tongues there was division of purpose, because their thought was at enmity with God; but here minds were restored and united, ...
11
By the time of the New Testament "Jew" and "Israelite" had effectively become synonyms. This is because the large majority of people who returned from the Exile were from the former Kingdom of Judah. So Acts 21:29 is talking about his nationality, not his tribe.
11
J. A. T. Robinson, in Redating the New Testament (1976), lays out a thorough case for a pre-70 date for the publication of Acts. His main points are also maintained by other conservative scholars, such as D. A. Carson, Douglas Moo, and Leon Morris in their Introduction to the New Testament, and in the Reformed Study Bible. The key points are:
Evidence for ...
10
The simple answer is that in the very early days the followers of Jesus considered themselves to be Jews. They saw Jesus as the fulfilment of the Jewish laws and prophecies - that he had come to redeem Judaism and the Jews, not to set up another religion. The idea that Gentiles might be followers of Jesus without also becoming Jews would only be ...
10
You are correct. Asia as referred to in the bible was a province in the Roman Empire. See: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asia_(Roman_province)
For further information, refer to the etymology section of the main Wikipedia article on Asia.
10
Two prominent advocates of this view are Rudolf Stier (1800–62) and Lloyd John Ogilvie (1930–). They argue both that the apostles erred, and that ultimately the evidence points to Paul being the true 12th apostle. They make several arguments:
The method of selection, particularly the casting of lots, was improper
The selection was unnecessarily hasty
The ...
10
The exact value of a "Sabbath day's walk" is 2,000 cubits, which works out to about 5/8 of a mile, or one kilometer. Commentator Craig S. Keener explains the logic and biblical basis:
The figures were natural extrapolations from Exod 16:29 (one must not leave one's place on the Sabbath) and Num 35:5 (identifying one's place as 2,000 cubits square) [Acts, ...
9
Hah! She sounds like a wily one. I'm no expert in Feng-Shui (or your Aunt), but here are some relevant Biblical principles:
Wisdom In Silence If a person is not truly interested in seeking/knowing the truth (e.g. a person who just wants to push their views on you), there is Biblical precedence for keeping silent. (Proverbs 23:9, Matthew 27:12-14)
"He ...
9
As much as the Jubilee is important in Scripture, there is no evidence that one was ever actually declared in Israel's history.
This is noted as such by Jeffrey Fager and D.P. O'Brien in unrelated papers.
As such, there is no base from which to calculate the 50th year. More to the point for this question, there is no archeological or historical evidence ...
9
The following comes from a mainly Calvinist view point:
The power you are looking for is the power granted to Christians by the Holy Spirit. Probably one of the most clear examples of this was in Acts 2 on the day of Pentecost.
5 Now there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. 6 When they heard this sound, a crowd ...
9
The physical circumcision alone would not have been sufficient for the Jews. The Bris ceremony would have had to have been observed, so there would have been a Mohel to testify.
The same traditions are still carried out in Judaism today. Supporting references:
http://www.myjewishlearning.com/life/Life_Events/Conversion/Conversion_Process/Circumcision....
9
The Bible does not anywhere indicate that the ‘most’ evil people are killed directly by God. God rather often, according to the purposes of his will, postpones the eternal judgment for sin a long while. Even the very worst of criminals may live long and prosperous lives and we must not expect full justice in this world. The injustice in the world is part ...
9
Good question.
First, casting lots is not the same thing as divination. Divination is one of the forbidden practices mentioned in the Old Testament, and it involved the attempt to foretell future events or discover hidden knowledge by occult or supernatural means. Diviners were just one class of people forbidden to practice their "arts" in Israel's ...
9
The Bible does not reveal the the legalities or illegalities of all the killings it records. From the scanty histories available, most scholars seem to think that at the time of Pontius Pilate, only the Roman governor had the authority to order capital punishment . We must remember, however, people back then did not enjoy the equal protection of the law we ...
8
From Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zealotry I'll quote an interesting part here.
The Zealots objected to Roman rule and violently sought to eradicate it by
generally targeting Romans and Greeks. Zealots engaged in violence against
other Jews were called the Sicarii.[9] They raided Jewish habitations and
killed Jews they considered ...
8
Great question! I'm sure it was a miracle because John would not have bothered to mention the locked doors otherwise.
On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jewish leaders, Jesus came and stood among them and said, ‘Peace be with you!’
John 20:19
So how did it happen? Jesus ...
8
It is clear that the verse cited, Acts 16:31, is a promise. The question is, to whom does the promise apply? Taken in context, it is a promise to a particular individual in a specific instance. This verse is lifted from the narrative of Paul and Silas in jail in Phillipi, to which they had been delivered by the owners of a slave girl from whom they had ...
7
Here are some suggestions, none of which I am claiming as necessarily the answer:
Naming people draws attention to them. The writers probably didn't want their readers going to find out what these people were writing
Naming people makes them exclusive. If the writer says "don't listen to Marcus and Suetonius" that leaves Octavius free to spread his teaching....
7
The supposed inconsistency here is clearly that some passages say it's OK to eat anything, but that in Acts 2:15, James judges that non-Jewish Christians should be "not troubled" with the Law except as follows:
19 “Therefore it is my judgment that we do not trouble those who are
turning to God from among the Gentiles, 20 but that we write to them
that ...
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