Acts 16:21

and advocate customs which it is not lawful for us to accept or to observe, being Romans.”

World English Bible
Learn

Your notes

Private to you. Anything you write on this verse, here or while reading, shows up here and in My study.

Other translations

WEBBE

and advocate customs which it is not lawful for us to accept or to observe, being Romans.”

BSB

by promoting customs that are unlawful for us Romans to adopt or practice.”

KJV

And teach customs, which are not lawful for us to receive, neither to observe, being Romans.

ASV

and set forth customs which it is not lawful for us to receive, or to observe, being Romans.

BBE

Teaching rules of living which it is not right for us to have or to keep, being Romans.

Original Greek

Look up a word

Tap a word to see what it means and everywhere else it's used.

καὶ kai and G2532 καταγγέλλουσιν katangellousin preach G2605 ἔθη ethē customs G1485 ἃ ha that G3739 οὐκ ouk not G3756 ἔξεστιν exestin it is lawful G1832 ἡμῖν hēmin for us G3165 παραδέχεσθαι paradechesthai to accept G3858 οὐδὲ oude nor G3761 ποιεῖν poiein to practice G4160 Ῥωμαίοις Rhōmaiois Romans G4514 οὖσιν ousin being G1510

The early church

What sayest thou? Dost thou believe the demon? Why not here also? He saith, They are "servants of the most high God;" thou sayest, "They exceedingly trouble our city:" he saith, "They show us the way of salvation;" thou sayest, "They teach customs which are not lawful for us to receive." Observe, how they do not attend even to the demon, but look only to one thing, their covetousness.
John Chrysostom · d. 407Homilies on Acts
"And teach customs, which are not lawful for us to receive, neither to observe, being Romans." They made a charge of treason of it. Why did they not say, Because they cast out the demon, they were guilty of impiety against God? For this was a defeat to them: but instead of that, they have recourse to a charge of treason: like the Jews when they said, "We have no king but Caesar: whoso maketh himself a king speaketh against Caesar."
John Chrysostom · d. 407Homilies on Acts

Commentary

Matthew Henry · Verses 16–24

Satan, though the father of lies, will declare the most important truths, when he can thereby serve his purposes. But much mischief is done to the real servants of Christ, by unholy and false preachers of the gospel, who are confounded with them by careless observers. Those who do good by drawing men from sin, may expect to be reviled as troublers of the city. While they teach men to fear God, to believe in Christ, to forsake sin, and to live godly lives, they will be accused of teaching bad customs.

Read Matthew Henry on Acts 16 →

Cross-references

4

Topics

FalsehoodAccusation, FalseFalse TeachersIndictmentsHeresy

Cross-references: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge. Hebrew and Greek data from STEPBible.org (Tyndale House, Cambridge), CC BY 4.0. Library: sources.