Kisah Para Rasul 2:42-47

The Fellowship of the Early Believers

2:42 They were devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to fellowship, ¹  to the breaking of bread and to prayer. ²  2:43 Reverential awe ³  came over everyone, ⁴  and many wonders and miraculous signs ⁵  came about by the apostles. 2:44 All who believed were together and held ⁶  everything in common, 2:45 and they began selling ⁷  their property ⁸  and possessions and distributing the proceeds ⁹  to everyone, as anyone had need. 2:46 Every day ¹⁰  they continued to gather together by common consent in the temple courts, ¹¹  breaking bread from ¹²  house to house, sharing their food with glad ¹³  and humble hearts, ¹⁴  2:47 praising God and having the good will ¹⁵  of all the people. And the Lord was adding to their number every day ¹⁶  those who were being saved.

Kisah Para Rasul 4:32-37

Conditions Among the Early Believers

4:32 The group of those who believed were of one heart and mind, ¹⁷  and no one said that any of his possessions was his own, but everything was held in common. ¹⁸  4:33 With ¹⁹  great power the apostles were giving testimony ²⁰  to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was on them all. 4:34 For there was no one needy ²¹  among them, because those who were owners of land or houses were selling ²²  them ²³  and bringing the proceeds from the sales 4:35 and placing them at the apostles’ feet. The proceeds ²⁴  were distributed to each, as anyone had need. 4:36 So Joseph, a Levite who was a native of Cyprus, called by the apostles Barnabas (which is translated “son of encouragement”), ²⁵  4:37 sold ²⁶  a field ²⁷  that belonged to him and brought the money ²⁸  and placed it at the apostles’ feet.

[2:42]  ¹ sn Fellowship refers here to close association involving mutual involvement and relationships.

[2:42]  ² tn Grk “prayers.” This word was translated as a collective singular in keeping with English style.

[2:43]  ³ tn Or “Fear.”

[2:43]  ⁴ tn Grk “on every soul” (here “soul” is an idiom for the whole person).

[2:43]  ⁵ tn In this context the miraculous nature of these signs is implied. Cf. BDAG 920 s.v. σημεῖον 2.a.

[2:44]  ⁶ tn Grk “had.”

[2:45]  ⁷ tn The imperfect verb has been translated as an ingressive (“began…”). Since in context this is a description of the beginning of the community of believers, it is more likely that these statements refer to the start of various activities and practices that the early church continued for some time.

[2:45]  ⁸ tn It is possible that the first term for property (κτήματα, kthmata) refers to real estate (as later usage seems to indicate) while the second term (ὑπάρξεις, Juparxeis) refers to possessions in general, but it may also be that the two terms are used together for emphasis, simply indicating that all kinds of possessions were being sold. However, if the first term is more specifically a reference to real estate, it foreshadows the incident with Ananias and Sapphira in Acts 5:1-11.

[2:45]  ⁹ tn Grk “distributing them” (αὐτά, auta). The referent (the proceeds of the sales) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[2:46]  ¹⁰ tn BDAG 437 s.v. ἡμέρα 2.c has “every day” for this phrase.

[2:46]  ¹¹ tn Grk “in the temple.” This is actually a reference to the courts surrounding the temple proper, and has been translated accordingly.

[2:46]  ¹² tn Here κατά (kata) is used as a distributive (BDAG 512 s.v. B.1.d).

[2:46]  ¹³ sn The term glad (Grk “gladness”) often refers to joy brought about by God’s saving acts (Luke 1:14, 44; also the related verb in 1:47; 10:21).

[2:46]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “with gladness and humbleness of hearts.” It is best to understand καρδίας (kardias) as an attributed genitive, with the two nouns it modifies actually listing attributes of the genitive noun which is related to them.

[2:47]  ¹⁵ tn Or “the favor.”

[2:47]  ¹⁶ tn BDAG 437 s.v. ἡμέρα 2.c has “every day” for this phrase.

[4:32]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “soul.”

[4:32]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “but all things were to them in common.”

[4:32]  sn Everything was held in common. The remark is not a reflection of political philosophy, but of the extent of their spontaneous commitment to one another. Such a response does not have the function of a command, but is reflective of an attitude that Luke commends as evidence of their identification with one another.

[4:33]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “And with.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

[4:33]  ²⁰ tn Or “were witnessing.”

[4:34]  ²¹ tn Or “poor.”

[4:34]  ²² tn Grk “houses, selling them were bringing.” The participle πωλοῦντες (pwlounte") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[4:34]  ²³ tn The word “them” is not in the Greek text, but is implied. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context, but must be supplied for the modern English reader.

[4:35]  ²⁴ tn Grk “It” (or “They,” plural). The referent of the understood pronoun subject, the proceeds from the sales, of the verb διεδίδετο (diedideto) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[4:36]  ²⁵ sn This is a parenthetical note by the author. Note how the actions of Barnabas are in keeping with the meaning of his nickname. He stands in contrast to Ananias and Sapphira in 5:1-11.

[4:37]  ²⁶ tn Grk “selling a field that belonged to him, brought” The participle πωλήσας (pwlhsa") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[4:37]  ²⁷ tn Or “a farm.”

[4:37]  ²⁸ tn Normally a reference to actual coins (“currency”). See L&N 6.68.