1. The word "Sabbath" is translated into "day of rest" since that is its literal meaning. Then the italicized phrase ". . . called the Sabbath" are added here also in an attempt to bring out the dynamics being communicated.
3. We know that these are His brothers because of Matthew 13:55.
Also, Jesus' adopted father was probably dead at this point – maybe before His ministry even began. It would have most likely been impossible for Jesus to walk in His ministry while His adopted father was alive because He would have had to submit to him even while he did not understand Jesus' ministry.
4. The events in the book of Ester happened after the ones of Nehemiah and Ezra, when the Jews had returned to the land of Israel from the Diaspora (Jeremiah 25:11), which occurred during the Babylonian captivity.
It is taught that during this Diaspora the Jews had forgotten the Hebrew language and began to speak Aramaic. However, in Ester 8:9 it says that the decree that had been sent out throughout the whole known world was written, "to the Jews in their own script and language." And remember this is originating from an Aramaic nation – Syria.
Here in Acts 1:19 it makes this same comment, saying, "And it became known to all those who were living in Jerusalem, so that in their own language that field was called Akeldama (that is, Field of Blood.)"
There are two words for field in the Hebrew language: sade (שׂדה) and khelkot (חלקת). However, in Araimaic, the word for field is bar (בר). Knowing this, akeldama is most likely not a word coming from the Araimaic language.
On the other hand, we can see that this word derives from the Hebrew language because the word for blood in Hebrew is: dam (דם). But that’s not all, with this, and then with the Hebrew word khelkot (חלקת), we can see that the Greek word used here in Acts 1:19 is akeldamax (ακελδαμάχ), and is the Greek form of the two Hebrew words khelkot (field) and dam (blood) mixed together.
Put another way, this word comes about from the mixture of the Hebrew prefix for the word "the (ha)," the word for "field (khelkot)," and the word for "blood (dam)" – all three of them coming together to become the transliteration into the Greek as hakheldam-a or Akheldama.
5. The Greek word commonly translated as casting lots is edokan klerous (ἔδωκαν κλήρους), and it literally means, "giving a portion." It doesn’t tell us what the portion was, but it could have been straws or broken pieces of sticks.
The word translated "straws" in this publication is actually used twice. However, it as been translated here as "it" the second time.
6. Acts 2:1 says that they were all in one place (about 120 of them (Acts 1:15), maybe even only counting the men). This is different than what it says in Acts 1:13 when it mentions that they were in the upper room.
This being so, it is very possible that when they were "in one place" it was at the House of God, somewhere on the Temple mount, maybe in the courtyard near the altar where there was a continual fire (Leviticus 6:13).
This also, by the way, could quite possible be the source of the separate tongues of fire (Acts 2:3).
7. The expression "the house" is the term used for what we call the Temple, which is something that, in fact, God was angry with Israel for doing. He was angry at them for treating His house as if it were a temple. A temple was where a stone or wood idol was contained, while "the house of God" was the house on Mount Mariah, which God Himself resided within (2 Chronicles 6:18).
With that in mind, it is commonly assumed that "the house," mentioned here, is in reference to the upper room that Jesus and His disciples had eaten "the Last Supper." But this may not be the case.
It may not be, for one thing because of what is going on around them. All around them are Jews from all areas of the whole Roman Empire (Acts 2:8-11) that have come to Jerusalem to celebrate the feast of Pentecost. And being that they had come from all over to celebrate this feast, they would have celebrated it in no other place but "the Temple."
It seems unlikely for them to have been in the upper-room. One reason is because there were even those there who had blamed them of being drunk on wine when they became filled with the Holy Spirit (v. 13); and given that, why would these strangers – antagonists – be in such a private area as the upper room?
The "tongues of fire" that had come and rested upon them, could have originated from the altar that was just outside the Holy place of the Temple. This does seem to be the sense of the text when it says how the tongues of fire had "distributed themselves" (Acts 2:3). The fire on the alter (Leviticus 6:12) had been separated, and then distributed by the Holy Spirit onto the disciples, who in turn prophesied.
On another point, the Greek says "the house . . . where they were sitting." Well, it is quite possible that that was not meant as a descriptive word to indicate that all of the 120 people were actually sitting at the time this event happened. The word sitting at this point very possibly has the more general meaning of to dwell or stay, as some of the translations in other parts of the Bible have it. The word that translates into English as "sit," is a word that has the very common Hebrew understanding of to dwell.
8. There are two words in the Greek language, which are used interchangeably. They are dialedto (διαλέκτω) (the word from which we get our word dialect), and glossais (γλώσσαις) (the word from which we get our word glossary, meaning a word that needs explaining and is translated as both tongue and/or language).
9. The Greek word used here for the word prophecy, literally means "to speak forth."
11. It is taught that "new wine" was grape juice and "old wine" is alcoholic wine. However, this cannot be because here the disciples are being accused of being drunk on new wine. And who has ever heard of anyone getting drunk on grape juice?
12. A.K.A,, the Day of the Lord. Also see endnote 10:21.
13. Their understanding that all this was "according to the council of God" is from, and not limited to, Genesis 1:26; when God councils with Himself saying, "Let us make man in Our image."
14. The words, "lifted up and nailed to a cross" is my amplification of the Greek word "crucified."
15. The Greek word translated here as "camp out in hope" comes from the Greek word kataskenosei (κατας κηνώσει), which means, "to pitch ones tent."
In Psalm 16:9 (the place this verse originates) the Hebrew word from which the translation ". . . camp out . . ."ultimately come from is shakan (שכן). It is the same word that is used to describe the way God dwelt among His people, Israel (Exodus 25:8 and 29:46).
The Greek in Acts 2:26 translates this word with the word kataskenosei (κατας κηνώσει), which means to pitch ones tent. And the Hebrew word from which the Greek word, translated as "hope," is the word betakh (בטח); which has more the meaning of "security" or "safety," which denotes trust.
16. See endnote 5:50 and 7:74.
17. "Release" and "forgiveness" are two meanings incorporated into the one Greek word aphesin (ᾄφεσιν). (Also see endnote 11:34.)
18. The Greek literally reads, "coming into being" or "happening."
19. Or actually, "This faith that comes through Him has given this man complete wholeness." And concerning the phrase "whom you have denied," it is added because it is implied in the text.
21. The word "return," just previously said (coming from Acts 3:19), implies the phrase, "as God has promised." For are the Jews not the ones to whom the promises and oracles of God have been given (Romans 3:1-2)? Return, then, could only mean to return to something that you have previously had, or to a place you have already been. Besides, isn’t this what has just been indicated in verse eighteen?
22. Or as it would be said literally, "So they arrested them and then threw them into jail until the next day."
