Acts 19:21 — meaning, Hebrew and Greek word study, commentary
Acts 19:21
After these things were ended, Paul purposed in the spirit, when he had passed through Macedonia and Achaia, to go to Jerusalem, saying, After I have been there, I must also see Rome.
to make replete · verb — aorist passive indicative, 3rd person singular
Paul
ΠαῦλοςPaulos
G3972
(little · noun — nominative singular masculine, a proper name
purposed
ἔθετοetheto
G5087
to place (in the widest application · verb — second aorist middle indicative, 3rd person singular
in
ἐνen
G1722
"in · preposition
spirit
πνεύματιpneumati
G4151
a current of air · noun — dative singular neuter
through
διελθὼνdielthōn
G1330
to traverse (literally) · verb — second aorist active participle, nominative singular masculine
Macedonia
ΜακεδονίανMakedonian
G3109
Macedonia · noun — accusative singular feminine, a place
and
καὶkai
G2532
and · conjunction
Achaia
ἈχαΐανAchaian
G882
Achaia (i.e. Greece) · noun — accusative singular feminine, a place
go
πορεύεσθαιporeuesthai
G4198
to traverse · verb — present middle or passive deponent infinitive
to
εἰςeis
G1519
to or into (indicating the point reached or entered) · preposition
Jerusalem
ἹερουσαλήμHierousalḗm
G2419
Hierusalem (i.e. Jerushalem)
saying
εἰπὼνeipōn
G2036
to speak or say (by word or writing) · verb — second aorist active participle, nominative singular masculine
After
μετὰmeta
G3326
properly · preposition
I
μεme
G3165
me · personal pronoun — 1st person accusative singular
been
γενέσθαιgenesthai
G1096
to cause to be ("gen"-erate) · verb — second aorist middle deponent infinitive
there
ἐκεῖ,ekei
G1563
there · adverb
I
μεme
G3165
me · personal pronoun — 1st person accusative singular
must
δεῖdei
G1163
also deon deh-on' · verb — present active indicative, 3rd person singular
also
καὶkai
G2532
and · conjunction
see
ἰδεῖν.idein
G1492
used only in certain past tenses · verb — second aorist active infinitive
Rome
ῬώμηνRhōmēn
G4516
strength · noun — accusative 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
Acts 20:22 And now, behold, I go bound in the spirit unto Jerusalem, not knowing the things that shall befall me there:
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…
Acts 23:11 And the night following the Lord stood by him, and said, Be of good cheer, Paul: for as thou hast testified of me in Jerusalem, so must thou…
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.…
Romans 1:13 Now I would not have you ignorant, brethren, that oftentimes I purposed to come unto you, (but was let hitherto,) that I might have some fru…
Galatians 2:1 Then fourteen years after I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, and took Titus with me also.
Lamentations 3:37 Who is he that saith, and it cometh to pass, when the Lord commandeth it not?
Acts 16:6-10 Now when they had gone throughout Phrygia and the region of Galatia, and were forbidden of the Holy Ghost to preach the word in Asia,
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Acts 19:21–end
I. Paul is here brought into some trouble at Ephesus, just when he is forecasting to go thence, and to cut out work for himself elsewhere. See here,
1. How he laid his purpose of going to other places, Act 19:21, Act 19:22. He was a man of vast designs for God, and was for making his influences as widely diffusive as might be. Having spent above two years at Ephesus, (1.) He designed a visit to the churches of Macedonia and Achaia, especially of Philippi and Corinth, the chief cities of those provinces, Act 19:21. There he had planted churches, and now is concerned to visit them. He purposed in the spirit, either in his own spirit, not communicating his purpose as yet, but keeping it to hims…
After these things were ended--completed, implying something like a natural finish to his long period of labor at Ephesus.
Paul purposed . . . when he had passed through Macedonia and Achaia, to go to Jerusalem . . . After I have been there, I must also see Rome--Mark here the vastness of the apostle's missionary plans. They were all fulfilled, though he "saw Rome" only as a prisoner.
Adam Clarke on Acts 19:21
Paul purposed in the spirit, etc. - Previously to this he appears to have concerted a journey to Macedonia, and a visit to Corinth, the capital of Achaia, where he seems to have spent a considerable time, probably the whole winter of a.d. 58; see Co1 16:5, Co1 16:6; and afterwards to go to Jerusalem; but it is likely that he did not leave Ephesus till after pentecost, a.d. 59. (Co1 16:8) And he resolved, if possible, to see Rome, which had been the object of his wishes for a considerable time. See Rom 1:10, Rom 1:13; Rom 16:23.
It is generally believed that, during this period, while at Ephesus, he wrote his first epistle to the Corinthians. He had heard that some strange disorders had enter…
He no longer speaks here after the manner of a man, or, He purposed to pass through those regions, without tarrying longer. Wherefore does he send away Timothy and Erastus? Of this I suppose he says, "Wherefore when we could no longer forbear, we thought it good to be left at Athens alone. He sent away," it says, "two of those who ministered to him" both to announce his coming, and to make them more eager.
Afflictions cut us off from the sympathy we have for the present world, as appears in this, that we wish for death immediately, and cease to be loving of the body: which very thing is the greatest part of wisdom, to have no hankering, no ties to the present life. The soul which is afflicted does not wish to be concerned about many things: repose and stillness are all it desired, content for its part to have done with the things present, even though there be nothing else to follow.
He sends Timothy and Erastus into Macedonia, but himself remains at Ephesus. Having made a long enough stay in that city, he wishes to remove elsewhere again. But how is it, that having from the first chosen to depart into Syria, he turns back to Macedonia? "He purposed," it says, "in the Spirit," showing that all that he did was done not of his own power. Now he prophesies, saying, "I must also see Rome:" perhaps to comfort them with the consideration of his not remaining at a distance, but coming nearer to them again, and to arouse the minds of the disciples by the prophecy.
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
Achaia — The name originally of a narrow strip of territory in Greece, on the north-west of the Peloponnesus. Subsequently it was applied by the Romans to the whole Peloponnesus, now called the Morea, and the…
Diana — So called by the Romans; called Artemis by the Greeks, the “great” goddess worshipped among heathen nations under various modifications. Her most noted temple was that at Ephesus. It was built…
John, Third Epistle of — Is addressed to Caius, or Gaius, but whether to the Christian of that name in Macedonia (Acts 19: 29) or in Corinth (Rom. 16:23) or in Derbe (Acts 20:4) is uncertain. It was written for the purpose…
Romans, Epistle to the — This epistle was probably written at Corinth. Phoebe (Rom. 16:1) of Cenchrea conveyed it to Rome, and Gaius of Corinth entertained the apostle at the time of his writing it (16:23; 1 Cor. 1:14), and…
Roman Empire, The · Rome the capitol of — Rome the capitol 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).
After these things were ended,.... After that the apostle had disputed with the Jews in their synagogue, for the space of three months, and in the school of Tyrannus about two years; and after many souls had been converted at Ephesus, and were formed into a church state, and were established in the faith:
when he had passed through Macedonia and Achaia: in the former of which were the cities of Philippi, Thessalonica, and Berea, and in the latter, Corinth; where the apostle had already been, and preached the Gospel with success, and had laid the foundation of a Gospel church state in each place; but was willing to visit them again, both to confirm them in the doctrines of the Gospel, and, i…
Acts 19:18-22
18. And many of those which believed came, confessing, and showing their works. 19. And many of those which used curious arts, bringing their books, burnt them before them all; and when they had cast the price of them, they found it fifty thousand pieces of silver. 20. So mightily grew the word of the Lord, and was confirmed. 21. And when these things were accomplished, Paul purposed in spirit, having passed over Macedonia and Achaia, to go to Jerusalem, saying, After that I have been there, I must also see Rome. 22. And when he had sent two of those which ministered to him into Macedonia, to wit, Timotheus and Erastus, he stayed for a time in Asia.
18. Many which believed. L…
felt compelled by the Spirit: No doubt Paul was troubled by what he had heard about the situation in Corinth (see 1 Corinthians Book Introduction). Instead of going immediately himself, he sent . . . Timothy, who was carrying a letter, 1 Corinthians, from Paul to the Corinthians (1 Cor 4:17; 16:10-11). Paul himself did go over to Macedonia and Achaia not long afterward (Acts 20:1-3). • “I must go on to Rome!”: Perhaps compelled by his proven strategy (see study note on 16:8), Paul wanted to proclaim the Good News in the most significant city in the world.
