Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Acts 22:21
And he said unto me, Depart: for I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles.
21. I will send thee far hence, &c.] Rev. Ver. “will send thee forth far hence, &c.” We need not understand the command as implying that the Apostle’s missionary labours were to begin from that moment, but that God’s work for him was now appointed, and would begin in His own time, but would be not among Jews or Greeks at Jerusalem, but among the Gentiles in distant places.
unto the Gentiles ] St Paul had kept back the word which he was sure would rouse their anger as long as ever he could, and we may well suppose from the conciliatory tone of much of his speech that the attention of the crowd had been enlisted, for the speaker was a man of culture and spake their own tongue. But when the Gentiles are spoken of as recipients of God’s message they break forth into all the excitement of an Oriental mob.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
And he said unto me, Depart – Because the Christians at Jerusalem would not receive him.
Far hence – Paul traveled far in the pagan nations. A large part of his ministry was spent in remote countries, and in the most distant regions then known. See Rom 15:19.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 21. I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles.] This was the particular appointment of St. Paul: he was the apostle of the Gentiles; for, though he preached frequently to the Jews, yet to preach the Gospel to the Gentiles, and to write for the conversion and establishment of the Gentile world, were his peculiar destination. Hence we find him and his companions travelling every where; through Judea, Phoenicia, Arabia, Syria, Cilicia, Pisidia, Lycaonia, Pamphylia, Galatia, Phrygia, Macedonia, Greece, Asia, the Isles of the Mediterranean Sea, the Isles of the AEgean Sea, Italy, and some add Spain and even Britain. This was the diocess of this primitive bishop: none of the apostles travelled, none preached, none laboured as this man; and, we may add, none was so greatly owned of God. The epistles of Peter, John, James, and Jude, are great and excellent; but, when compared with those of Paul, however glorious they may be, they have no glory comparatively, by reason of that glory which excelleth. Next to Jesus Christ, St. Paul is the glory of the Christian Church. Jesus is the foundation; Paul, the master-builder.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
God repeats his command, and by that answers all Pauls reasonings; whatsoever the event be, whether the Gentiles will hear, or whether they will forbear, he must go unto them. When the will of God is manifest we must do it, whatsoever success we are like to have.
I will send thee far hence; this was verified; God sent Paul, and he went very far, as appears, Act 9:15; Rom 15:19; Gal 1:17; 2:8.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
21. depart for I will send thee farhence unto the Gentilesthat is, “Enough; thy testimony isnot to be thrown away upon Jerusalem; the Gentiles, afar off, are thypeculiar sphere.”
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And he said unto me, depart,…. At once from Jerusalem, and out of the land of Judea:
for I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles; to the nations afar off, even as far as Illyricum, Pannonia, or Hungary, where the apostle went and preached, Ro 15:19 and so by a divine mission and commission he became the apostle of the Gentiles, and preached the Gospel among them with great success, to the conversion of many thousands of them, and to the planting of many churches in the midst of them.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
I will send thee forth far hence unto the Gentiles ( ). Future active of the double (, out, , off or away) compound of , common word in the Koine (cf. Lu 24:49). This is a repetition by Jesus of the call given in Damascus through Ananias (9:15). Paul had up till now avoided the word Gentiles, but at last it had to come, “the fatal word” (Farrar).
Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament
Gentiles. “The fatal word, which hitherto he had carefully avoided, but which it was impossible for him to avoid any longer, was enough…. The word ‘Gentiles, ‘ confirming all their worst suspicions, fell like a spark on the inflammable mass of their fanaticism” (Farrar, ” Life and Work of Paul “).
Fuente: Vincent’s Word Studies in the New Testament
1) “And He said unto me, Depart: (kai eipen pros me poreuou) “And He said to me, go,” from this place, get away, get out of Jerusalem, where you have been for some fifteen days, after your three years in Arabia, Gal 1:11-21; Act 9:26-30.
2) “For I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles.” (hoti ego eis ethne makran eksapistelo se) “Because I will send you forth afar into the nations,” into the idolatrous, heathen, Gentile countries and continents, in distant places away from Jerusalem and Judea, at God’s own appointed time, to begin some yet nine years later, Act 9:30; Act 13:1-4.
The mere mention of the Gentiles, for whom they held hate in their hearts, roused fury in them, similar to their outburst, Act 21:28 and at the murder of Stephen, Act 7:57-60.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
(21) I will send thee . . .It may be noted, in connection with the question discussed in the Note on Act. 22:17, that the words convey the promise of a mission rather than the actual mission itself. The work immediately before him was to depart and wait till the way should be opened to him, and the inward call be confirmed, as in Act. 13:2, by an outward and express command.
Far hence unto the Gentiles.The crowd had listened, impatiently, we may believe, up to this point, as the speaker had once listened to St. Stephen. This, that the Christ should be represented as sending His messenger to the Gentiles, and not to Jews, was more than they could bear.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
“And he said to me, ‘Depart, for I will send you forth far hence to the Gentiles.’ ”
He has been trying to impress on them that as a thorough Jew, he had only acted at the command of the God of the Jews all the way through. It had not been his choice. But when he told them what it was that God had next told him to do, his words were like petrol poured on a bonfire, turning a flame into a furnace. He informed them that God had then told him, ‘Depart, for I will send you forth far hence to the Gentiles.’ Now strictly the idea of going to the Gentiles should not have upset them. The Old Testament had already spoken of the light being taken out to the Gentiles by the Jews, and especially by the coming Servant (Isa 42:6; Isa 49:6). And all Judaism looked for Gentile converts who would become proselytes, (although few actually sought them). And they actually welcomed into the synagogues questioning God-fearers (although not of course as equals). Furthermore he was pointing out that he had gone to the Jews first, as was always his mission, and it was only when they had turned him away that he had gone to the Gentiles. Thus he could claim to be fulfilling Isaiah’s prophecy.
But in the context of his stated rejection by Jerusalem he was to their minds saying that he was going to the Gentiles instead of to Jews, because Jerusalem had rejected him and he no longer had any time for them, and that he was going to the Gentiles as Gentiles, not as those who had sought the Jewish fold. And in the light of the rumours about him this was too much for them. It appeared to confirm their worst fears. They had simply not taken in his argument, or possibly rather had not wanted to.
To Paul it was, of course, all perfectly logical. He probably could not see how they failed to understand it. And it all appeared to him so reasonable. He was a true Jew and had been called by the God of the Jews in a revelation in which had been revealed to him the Shekinah glory. How could he not then, as a true Jew, obey Him? But the problem was that it both threw the blame on them, which they did not like, and that it involved doing what horrified their ‘righteous’ souls, going to the Gentiles direct. That might be all right for the Messiah or The Prophet when He came, but not for people like Paul.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
21 And he said unto me, Depart: for I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles.
Ver. 21. And he said unto me, Depart ] Which good Paul was full loth to do; having (with the vinedresser in the Gospel, Luk 13:8 ) both digged and begged for his unworthy countrymen, till there was no remedy, 2Ch 36:16 , till the very last period of their day of grace, Act 13:46 . See Trapp on “ Act 13:46 “
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
21 .] The object of Paul in relating this vision appears to have been to shew that his own inclination and prayer had been, that he might preach the Gospel to his own people : but that it was by the imperative command of the Lord Himself that he went to the Gentiles.
Fuente: Henry Alford’s Greek Testament
Act 22:21 . : the mere mention of the Gentiles roused their fury, and they saw in it a justification of the charge in Act 21:28 ; the scene closely resembled the tumultuous outburst which led to the murder of St. Stephen.
Fuente: The Expositors Greek Testament by Robertson
send. Greek. exapostello. App-174.
Gentiles = nations. Greek. ethnos.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
21.] The object of Paul in relating this vision appears to have been to shew that his own inclination and prayer had been, that he might preach the Gospel to his own people: but that it was by the imperative command of the Lord Himself that he went to the Gentiles.
Fuente: The Greek Testament
Act 22:21. , unto the Gentiles) He implies, though not directly, that the tidings as to Jesus Christ would reach even to the Romans.
Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament
Depart: Act 9:15
for: Act 9:15, Act 13:2, Act 13:46, Act 13:47, Act 18:6, Act 26:17, Act 26:18, Rom 1:5, Rom 11:13, Rom 15:16, Rom 16:26, Gal 1:15, Gal 1:16, Gal 2:7, Gal 2:8, Eph 3:6-8, 1Ti 2:7, 2Ti 1:11
Reciprocal: Jdg 6:39 – dry Pro 8:1 – General Son 8:8 – what Isa 6:8 – Whom Isa 65:5 – Stand Zec 11:3 – for their Mat 10:5 – Go Mat 15:26 – It is not Mat 20:11 – they murmured Mar 7:27 – Let Luk 4:28 – were Luk 10:2 – the Lord Luk 14:23 – Go Luk 15:28 – he Luk 18:9 – and despised Joh 7:35 – teach Act 9:23 – the Jews Act 10:28 – that it Act 11:18 – hath Act 13:41 – for Act 20:24 – and the Act 26:20 – and then Act 28:28 – sent Rom 1:1 – called Rom 1:14 – debtor Rom 3:29 – General Rom 10:15 – And how 1Co 1:1 – an Gal 2:15 – sinners Gal 5:11 – why Eph 2:13 – were Eph 3:2 – the dispensation Eph 3:3 – by 1Th 2:16 – Forbidding 2Ti 1:12 – the which
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
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Act 22:21. The Lord still knew best and was not willing for Paul’s labors to be given to these inappreciative people. The apostle was to be sent away to preach the Gospel among the Gentiles.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Act 22:21. And he said onto me, Depart: for I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles. He thus traces step by step, very briefly but clearly, how he was led by the directly expressed will of God to adopt the cause which he once persecuted; how he was shown that his lifes work lay not with his own people, but with those races and nations who lay without the narrow pale of Israel. The object of Paul in relating this vision appears to have been to show that his own inclination and prayer had been, that he might preach the gospel to his own people; but that it was by the imperative command of the Lord Himself that he went to the Gentiles (Dean Alford).
Fuente: A Popular Commentary on the New Testament
See notes on verse 17
Fuente: McGarvey and Pendleton Commentaries (New Testament)
Paul was to go to the Gentiles, the Messiah revealed to him, because the Jews would not accept his witness. Specifically the Lord directed Paul to go to the Gentiles who were far away, namely, Gentiles who had no relationship to Judaism (cf. Act 2:39).
F. F. Bruce concluded that in narrating Paul’s speeches Luke followed the precedent of the Greek historian Thucydides. Thucydides wrote that he composed the speeches in his history but tried to reproduce the general meaning of what the speakers said. [Note: Bruce, "Paul’s Apologetics . . .," p. 379.] Under the Holy Spirit’s inspiration Luke received guidance to write exactly what God wanted written. Almost all scholars agree that Luke summarized most if not all of the speeches that he recorded in Acts.