Acts 18:21

But bade them farewell, saying, I must by all means keep this feast that cometh in Jerusalem: but I will return again unto you, if God will. And he sailed from Ephesus.

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Word by word — the Greek

Word	Greek	Strong’s	Meaning
But	ἀλλ᾽ all᾽	G235	properly · conjunction
bade	ἀποταξάμενος apotaxamenos	G657	literally · verb — aorist middle participle, nominative singular masculine
them	αὐτός autós	G846	the reflexive pronoun self
farewell	ἀποτάσσομαι apotássomai	G657	literally
saying	εἰπών eipōn	G2036	to speak or say (by word or writing) · verb — second aorist active participle, nominative singular masculine
I	με me	G3165	me · personal pronoun — 1st person accusative singular
must	δεῖ dei	G1163	also deon deh-on' · verb — present active indicative, 3rd person singular
means	πάντως pantōs	G3843	entirely · adverb
keep	ποιῆσαι poiēsai	G4160	to make or do (in a very wide application · verb — aorist active infinitive
feast	ἑορτὴν he'ortēn	G1859	a festival · noun — accusative singular feminine
cometh	ἐρχομένην erchomenēn	G2064	to come or go (in a great variety of applications · verb — present middle or passive deponent participle, accusative singular feminine
in	εἰς eis	G1519	to or into (indicating the point reached or entered) · preposition
Jerusalem	Ἱεροσόλυμα· Hi'erosoluma	G2414	Hierosolyma (i.e. Jerushalaim) · noun — accusative plural neuter, a place
but	δέ dé	G1161	but
return	ἀνακάμψω anakampsō	G344	to turn back · verb — future active indicative, 1st person singular
again	πάλιν palin	G3825	(adverbially) anew · adverb
unto	πρὸς pros	G4314	a preposition of direction · preposition
you	ὑμᾶς hymâs	G5209	you (as the objective of a verb or preposition)
if	θέλοντος, thelontos	G2309	to determine (as an active option from subjective impul… · verb — present active participle, genitive singular masculine
God	θεοῦ theou	G2316	figuratively · noun — genitive singular masculine, a title
will	θέλω thélō	G2309	to determine (as an active option from subjective impul…
And	καί kaí	G2532	and
sailed	ἀνήχθη anēchthē	G321	to lead up · verb — aorist passive indicative, 3rd person singular
from	ἀπὸ apo	G575	"off · preposition
Ephesus	Ἐφέσου. Ephesou	G2181	Ephesus · noun — genitive singular feminine, a place

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

1 Corinthians 4:19 But I will come to you shortly, if the Lord will, and will know, not the speech of them which are puffed up, but the power.
James 4:15 For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.
Acts 20:16 For Paul had determined to sail by Ephesus, because he would not spend the time in Asia: for he hasted, if it were possible for him, to be a…
Romans 1:10 Making request, if by any means now at length I might have a prosperous journey by the will of God to come unto you.
Romans 15:32 That I may come unto you with joy by the will of God, and may with you be refreshed.
Hebrews 6:3 And this will we do, if God permit.
Deuteronomy 16:1 Observe the month of Abib, and keep the passover unto the LORD thy God: for in the month of Abib the LORD thy God brought thee forth out of…
Matthew 26:39 And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: neverthel…

Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Acts 18:18-23

We have here Paul in motion, as we have had him at Corinth for some time at rest, but in both busy, very busy, in the service of Christ; if he sat still, if he went about, still it was to do good. Here is, I. Paul's departure from Corinth, Act 18:18. 1. He did not go away till some time after the trouble he met with there; from other places he had departed when the storm arose, but not from Corinth, because there it had no sooner risen than it fell again. Some tell us that Gallio did privately countenance Paul, and took him into his favour, and that this occasioned a correspondence between Paul and Seneca, Gallio's brother, which some of the ancients speak of. After this he tarried there yet…

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Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Acts 18:21

I must . . . keep this feast--probably Pentecost, presenting a noble opportunity of preaching the Gospel. but I will return--the fulfilment of which promise is recorded in Act 19:1.

Adam Clarke on Acts 18:21

I must - keep this feast - Most likely the passover, at which he wished to attend for the purpose of seeing many of his friends, and having the most favorable opportunity to preach the Gospel to thousands who would attend at Jerusalem on that occasion. The whole of this clause, I must by all means keep this feast that cometh in Jerusalem, is wanting in ABE, six others; with the Coptic, Ethiopic, Armenian, and Vulgate. Griesbach leaves it in the text, with the mark of doubtfulness; and Professor White, in his Crisews, says, probabiliter delenda. Without this clause the verse will read thus: But he bade them farewell, saying, I will return again unto you, if God will. And this he did before th…

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John Gill on Acts 18:21

But bade them farewell, saying,.... As follows: I must by all means keep this feast that cometh in Jerusalem; which perhaps was the passover, since that often went by the name of the feast: the why he must by all means keep it, was not because it was obligatory upon him; nor did he always observe it, as appears from his long stay at Corinth, and other places; and besides, as a Christian, he had nothing to do with it; but either because of his vow, Acts 18:18 or because he knew he should have an opportunity of preaching the Gospel to great numbers; the Vulgate Latin and Ethiopic versions omit this clause: but I will return again unto you, if God will; he promises to return to them, but not…

The Church Fathers

He departed from Ephesus, and descending, he went up to Caesarea and greeted the church. He says Caesarea, the metropolis of Cappadocia. For he had not yet come to Syria of Phoenicia. Formerly called Mosacha from Mosoc, the son of Japheth, later it received the name Caesarea from Caesar Augustus.
— Bede, Commentary on Acts

"And Paul departed from Ephesus and went down to Caesarea," etc. Walking out of there, Paul came down to Caesarea, where he saluted the congregation of the church. Then he left for Antioch and, after staying there for some time, traveled through the countries of Galatia and Phrygia, confirming all the disciples, so that they should continue in the rules they had received. A certain Apollo, an Alexandrian-born Jew, who was an eloquent man and fervent in spirit, came to Ephesus. There, as he spoke boldly with the Jews in the synagogue, Aquila and Priscilla took him to them and taught him the Lord's Scriptures more diligently, revealing the truth. And as he was desirous to go to Achaia, they wrote that the devout people should receive him confidently. It then came to pass that he convinced the Jews confidently and decisively.
— Cassiodorus, Complexiones on the Acts of the Apostles

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

Ephesians, Epistle to — Was written by Paul at Rome about the same time as that to the Colossians, which in many points it resembles. Contents of. The Epistle to the Colossians is mainly polemical, designed to refute…
Paul — =Saul (q.v.) was born about the same time as our Lord. His circumcision-name was Saul, and probably the name Paul was also given to him in infancy “for use in the Gentile world,” as “Saul” would be…
Ephesus · Paul visits and preaches in — Paul visits and preaches in
Scribes · Persecuted the Christians — Persecuted the Christians
Will · OF GOD, THE SUPREME RULE OF DUTY — OF GOD, THE SUPREME RULE OF DUTY

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).

Acts 18:21

Word by word — the Greek

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Acts 18:18-23

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Acts 18:21

Adam Clarke on Acts 18:21

John Gill on Acts 18:21

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

Acts 18:21

Word by word — the Greek

Cross-references

Commentary

Matthew Henry on Acts 18:18-23

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Acts 18:21

Adam Clarke on Acts 18:21

John Gill on Acts 18:21

The Church Fathers

Dictionary and topics

John Calvin on Acts 18:18-23

Tyndale Open Study Notes on Acts 18:21