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Acts 21:32

New Testament Historical ASV (1901)

What does Acts 21:32 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “And forthwith he took soldiers and centurions, and ran down upon them: and they, when they saw the chief captain and the soldiers, left off beating Paul.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

And forthwith he took soldiers and centurions, and ran down upon them: and they, when they saw the chief captain and the soldiers, left off beating Paul.
Acts 21:32 — American Standard Version

Context — Acts 21

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
29For they had before seen with him in the city Trophimus the Ephesian, whom they supposed that Paul had brought into the temple.
30And all the city was moved, and the people ran together; and they laid hold on Paul, and dragged him out of the temple: and straightway the doors were shut.
31And as they were seeking to kill him, tidings came up to the chief captain of the band, that all Jerusalem was in confusion.
32And forthwith he took soldiers and centurions, and ran down upon them: and they, when they saw the chief captain and the soldiers, left off beating Paul.
33Then the chief captain came near, and laid hold on him, and commanded him to be bound with two chains; and inquired who he was, and what he had done.
34And some shouted one thing, some another, among the crowd: and when he could not know the certainty for the uproar, he commanded him to be brought into the castle.
35And when he came upon the stairs, so it was that he was borne of the soldiers for the violence of the crowd;
← Acts 21:31Acts 21:33 →
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What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“Who immediately took soldiers and centurions, etc.] A very large number of soldiers, for they are called an army, in (<442327>Acts 23:27) with a sufficient number of officers called centurions, who were each of them over an hundred men, to command them, and put them in order: and ran down unto them: from the tower to the temple, the outer part of it; perhaps the mountain of the house, where they had dragged Paul, and were beating him; hither the captain, with his officers and soldiers, came in great haste; all which shows his vigilance, prudence, and quick dispatch; and in which there was a remarkable appearance of divine providence in favour of the apostle, who otherwise in all likelihood…”
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Jamieson, Fausset & Brown
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“the chief captain--"the chiliarch," or tribune of the Roman cohort, whose full number was one thousand men.”
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Barnes' Notes
Albert Barnes (1798–1870) · Notes on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“Centurions - Captains of 100 men. return to 'Top of Page'”
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Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · Cross-reference reference work
“took: Act 23:23, Act 23:24 and ran: Act 23:27, Act 24:7 beating: Act 5:40, Act 18:17, Act 22:19; Isa 3:15 Acts 21:33”
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Related study paths

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Sources and verification