Acts 16:37 — meaning, Hebrew and Greek word study, commentary
Acts 16:37
But Paul said unto them, They have beaten us openly uncondemned, being Romans, and have cast us into prison; and now do they thrust us out privily? nay verily; but let them come themselves and fetch us out.
to come or go (in a great variety of applications · verb — second aorist active participle, nominative plural masculine
themselves
αὐτοὶautoi
G846
the reflexive pronoun self · personal pronoun — nominative plural masculine
fetch
ἐξαγαγέτωσαν.exagagetōsan
G1806
to lead forth · verb — second aorist active imperative, 3rd person plural
us
ἡμᾶςhēmâs
G2248
us
out
ἐξάγωexágō
G1806
to lead forth
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
Acts 22:25-29 And as they bound him with thongs, Paul said unto the centurion that stood by, Is it lawful for you to scourge a man that is a Roman, and un…
Psalms 58:1-2 Do ye indeed speak righteousness, O congregation? do ye judge uprightly, O ye sons of men?
Psalms 94:20 Shall the throne of iniquity have fellowship with thee, which frameth mischief by a law?
Proverbs 28:1 The wicked flee when no man pursueth: but the righteous are bold as a lion.
Daniel 3:25-26 He answered and said, Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt; and the form of the fourth is like…
Matthew 10:16 Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves: be ye therefore wise as serpents, and harmless as doves.
Acts 16:20-24 And brought them to the magistrates, saying, These men, being Jews, do exceedingly trouble our city,
Psalms 82:1-2 God standeth in the congregation of the mighty; he judgeth among the gods.
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Acts 16:35–end
In these verses we have,
I. Orders sent for the discharge of Paul and Silas out of prison Act 16:35, Act 16:36. 1. The magistrates that had so basely abused them the day before gave the orders; and their doing it so early, as soon as it was day, intimates that either they were sensible the terrific earthquake they felt at midnight was intended to plead the cause of their prisoners, or their consciences had smitten them for what they had done and made them very uneasy. While the persecuted were singing in the stocks, the persecutors were full of tossings to and fro upon their beds, through anguish of mind, complaining more of the lashes of their consciences than the prisoners did of the lashe…
Paul said unto them--to the sergeants who had entered the prison along with the jailer, that they might be able to report that the men had departed.
They have beaten us openly--The publicity of the injury done them, exposing their naked and bleeding bodies to the rude populace, was evidently the most stinging feature of it to the apostle's delicate feeling, and to this accordingly he alludes to the Thessalonians, probably a year after: "Even after we had suffered before, and were shamefully entreated (or 'insulted') as ye know at Philippi" (Th1 2:2).
uncondemned--unconvicted on trial.
being Romans--(See on Act 22:28).
and cast us into prison--both illegal. Of Silas' citizenship, if m…
They have beaten us openly - being Romans - St. Paul well knew the Roman laws; and on their violation by the magistrates he pleads. The Valerian law forbade any Roman citizen to be bound. The Porcian law forbade any to be beaten with rods. "Poreia lex virgas ab omnium civium Romanorum corpore amovit." And by the same law the liberty of a Roman citizen was never put in the power of the lictor. "Porcia lex libertatem civium lictori eripuit." See Cicero, Orat. pro Rabirio. Hence, as the same author observes, In Verrem, Orat. 5: "Facinus est vinciri civem Romanum, scelus verberari." It is a transgression of the law to bind a Roman citizen: it is wickedness to scourge him. And the illegality of t…
The Church Fathers
"They beat us publicly." He shows a twofold protest when he says: Therefore they beat us publicly, etc., because both the Romans and the cause being proclaimed and the public manner. For he often frames human reasons with indulgence, for fear that he appear dismissed as one condemned by judgment, or as one who had sinned, and for fear that the matter be ascribed to their favor. [CHRYSOSTOM]
Knowing also that it is right to be subject to princes and powers, he called himself a Roman. For perhaps the emperor of the Romans held all the land, even Judea. For they themselves paid tribute to Caesar: not adding to the Roman principality and dominion, as other Jews, misleading themselves, who said that God alone was the true King and not a man; yet in fact as offshoots they were subject and paid tribute: denying the name indeed, but in fact subject; whom even Vespasian attacked as if not subject. [AMMONIUS]
But Paul said unto them: that he may not seem to be receiving his liberty as one condemned, and as one that has done wrong: therefore it is that he says, Having openly beaten us uncondemned - that it may not be matter of grace on their part. And besides, they wish the jailer himself to be out of danger, that he may not be called to account for this afterwards. And they do not say, Having beaten us, who have wrought miracles: for they the magistrates did not even heed these: but, that which was most effectual to shake their minds, uncondemned, and being Romans.
The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).
Dictionary and topics
Citizenship — The rights and privileges of a citizen in distinction from a foreigner (Luke 15:15; 19:14; Acts 21:39). Under the Mosaic law non-Israelites, with the exception of the Moabites and the Ammonites and…
Freedom — The law of Moses pointed out the cases in which the servants of the Hebrews were to receive their freedom (Ex. 21:2-4, 7, 8; Lev. 25:39-42, 47-55; Deut. 15:12-18). Under the Roman law the “freeman”…
Philippi — (1.) Formerly Crenides, “the fountain,” the capital of the province of Macedonia. It stood near the head of the Sea, about 8 miles north-west of Kavalla. It is now a ruined village, called…
Scourging — (1 Kings 12:11). Variously administered. In no case were the stripes to exceed forty (Deut. 25:3; comp. 2 Cor. 11:24). In the time of the apostles, in consequence of the passing of what was called…
Silas — Wood, a prominent member of the church at Jerusalem; also called Silvanus. He and Judas, surnamed Barsabas, were chosen by the church there to accompany Paul and Barnabas on their return to Antioch…
Stripes — As a punishment were not to exceed forty (Deut. 25:1-3), and hence arose the custom of limiting them to thirty-nine (2 Cor. 11:24). Paul claimed the privilege of a Roman citizen in regard to the…
Beating · As a punishment — As a punishment
Criminals · Confined in pri — Confined in pri
Paul · A Roman citizen — A Roman citizen
Philippi · (A city of Macedonia) -Paul preaches in — (A city of Macedonia) -Paul preaches in
But Paul said unto them,.... The sergeants, who were present when the jailer reported to Paul the message they came with from the magistrates; though the Syriac version reads in the singular number, "Paul said to him", to the jailer:
they have beaten us openly uncondemned, being Romans, and have cast us into prison; what the magistrates ordered to be done to them, is reckoned all one as if they had done it themselves; and which was done "openly", before all the people, in the most public manner; to their great reproach, being put to open shame, as if they had been the most notorious malefactors living; when they were "uncondemned", had done nothing worthy of condemnation, being innocent and…
Acts 16:35-40
35. And when it was day, the magistrates sent the apparitors, [officers,] saying, Let those men go. 36. And the keeper of the prison told these words to Paul, The magistrates have sent to loose you: now therefore going out, depart in peace. 37. And Paul said to them, After that they have beaten us openly, before our cause was known, seeing that we be Romans, they have cast us into prison; and now they cast us out privily? No, surely; but let them come themselves and fetch us out. 38. And the apparitors [officers] told these words to the magistrates; who feared, after that they heard that they were Romans 39. And they came and besought them; and when they had brought them out,…
Paul and Silas were both Roman citizens, so the beating and imprisonment (16:22-24) had been illegal. After the city officials learned of this, they were justifiably alarmed because they had committed a crime against Rome. • Let them come themselves to release us: Paul made use of his rights as a Roman citizen in order to clear his name and ensure that no disrepute would attach to the Christian message or those who accepted it. Luke intended to show that Christianity should enjoy the same status as Judaism in the Roman Empire as a permitted religion—the Christian faith was compatible with the life of a Roman citizen. Accordingly, it was important to note that Paul made use of his rights as a…
Roman Empire, The · Allusions to citizenship of: Exempted from the degradation scourging — Allusions to citizenship of: Exempted from the degradation scourging
Silas · Impri — Impri
Trial · The right of — The right of
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
