Lectionary Calendar
Tuesday, September 23rd, 2025
the Week of Proper 20 / Ordinary 25
Attention!
For 10¢ a day you can enjoy StudyLight.org ads
free while helping to build churches and support pastors in Uganda.
Click here to learn more!

Read the Bible

Complete Jewish Bible

Acts 15:6

The emissaries and the elders met to look into this matter.

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Antioch;   Bigotry;   Catholicity;   Church;   Circumcision;   Council;   Doctrines;   Elder;   Law;   Titus;   Thompson Chain Reference - Church;   Government;   The Topic Concordance - Gentiles/heathen;   Holy Spirit;   Israel/jews;   Salvation;   Torrey's Topical Textbook - Jerusalem;   Justification before God;  

Dictionaries:

- American Tract Society Bible Dictionary - Circumcision;   Council;   Meats;   Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Antioch in syria;   Apostle;   Elder;   Timothy;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Amos, Theology of;   Sermon on the Mount;   Worship;   Charles Buck Theological Dictionary - Abstinence;   Ordination;   Presbyterians;   Easton Bible Dictionary - John;   Peter;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - John the Apostle;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Acts;   Barnabas;   Council of Jerusalem;   Disciples;   Galatians, Letter to the;   Romans, Book of;   Temptation;   Unity;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Antioch;   Bishop;   Council;   Galatians, Epistle to the;   James;   James, Epistle of;   Law;   Paul the Apostle;   Peter;   Power of the Keys;   Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament - Aristion (Aristo);   Church;   Divisions;   Ebionism (2);   Jerusalem;   Resurrection of Christ;   Word;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Barnabas ;   Elders;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Antioch;   Smith Bible Dictionary - John the Apostle;   Paul;   Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary - Council;   Synods;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - Law of Moses, the;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Acts of the Apostles;   Apostle;   Bishop;   Church;   Presbyter;   The Jewish Encyclopedia - New Testament;   Saul of Tarsus;  

Devotionals:

- Every Day Light - Devotion for November 10;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
The apostles and the elders gathered to consider this matter.
King James Version (1611)
And the Apostles & Elders came together for to consider of this matter.
King James Version
And the apostles and elders came together for to consider of this matter.
English Standard Version
The apostles and the elders were gathered together to consider this matter.
New American Standard Bible
The apostles and the elders came together to look into this matter.
New Century Version
The apostles and the elders gathered to consider this problem.
Amplified Bible
The apostles and the elders came together to consider this matter.
New American Standard Bible (1995)
The apostles and the elders came together to look into this matter.
Legacy Standard Bible
Both the apostles and the elders came together to look into this matter.
Berean Standard Bible
So the apostles and elders met to look into this matter.
Contemporary English Version
The apostles and church leaders met to discuss this problem about Gentiles.
Darby Translation
And the apostles and the elders were gathered together to see about this matter.
Easy-to-Read Version
Then the apostles and the elders gathered to study this problem.
Geneva Bible (1587)
Then the Apostles and Elders came together to looke to this matter.
George Lamsa Translation
Then the apostles and elders assembled to consider this matter.
Good News Translation
The apostles and the elders met together to consider this question.
Lexham English Bible
Both the apostles and the elders assembled to deliberate concerning this matter.
Literal Translation
And the apostles and the elders were assembled to see about this matter.
American Standard Version
And the apostles and the elders were gathered together to consider of this matter.
Bible in Basic English
And the Apostles and the rulers of the church came together and gave thought to the question.
Hebrew Names Version
The apostles and the Zakenim were gathered together to see about this matter.
International Standard Version
So the apostles and the elders met to consider this statement.
Etheridge Translation
But the apostles and presbyters assembled to consider this doctrine.
Murdock Translation
And the legates and Elders assembled, to look into this matter.
Bishop's Bible (1568)
And the Apostles and elders came together, for to consider of this matter.
English Revised Version
And the apostles and the elders were gathered together to consider of this matter.
World English Bible
The apostles and the elders were gathered together to see about this matter.
Wesley's New Testament (1755)
And the apostles and elders came together, to consider of this matter.
Weymouth's New Testament
Then the Apostles and Elders met to consider the matter;
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And the apostlis and eldre men camen togidre, to se of `this word.
Update Bible Version
And the apostles and the elders were gathered together to consider of this matter.
Webster's Bible Translation
And the apostles and elders came together to consider of this matter.
New English Translation
Both the apostles and the elders met together to deliberate about this matter.
New King James Version
Now the apostles and elders came together to consider this matter.
New Living Translation
So the apostles and elders met together to resolve this issue.
New Life Bible
The missionaries and church leaders got together to talk about this.
New Revised Standard
The apostles and the elders met together to consider this matter.
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And the Apostles and Elders were gathered together to see about this matter.
Douay-Rheims Bible
And the apostles and ancients assembled to consider of this matter.
Revised Standard Version
The apostles and the elders were gathered together to consider this matter.
Tyndale New Testament (1525)
And ye Apostles and elders came to geder to reason of this matter.
Young's Literal Translation
And there were gathered together the apostles and the elders, to see about this matter,
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
But the Apostles and Elders came together, to reason vpon this matter.
Mace New Testament (1729)
The apostles therefore, and the presbyters assembled to deliberate upon this affair.
THE MESSAGE
The apostles and leaders called a special meeting to consider the matter. The arguments went on and on, back and forth, getting more and more heated. Then Peter took the floor: "Friends, you well know that from early on God made it quite plain that he wanted the pagans to hear the Message of this good news and embrace it—and not in any secondhand or roundabout way, but firsthand, straight from my mouth. And God, who can't be fooled by any pretense on our part but always knows a person's thoughts, gave them the Holy Spirit exactly as he gave him to us. He treated the outsiders exactly as he treated us, beginning at the very center of who they were and working from that center outward, cleaning up their lives as they trusted and believed him.
Simplified Cowboy Version
So the jigger bosses, along with Jesus's handpicked cowboys, met together to come up with a decision on the matter.

Contextual Overview

6 The emissaries and the elders met to look into this matter. 7 After lengthy debate, Kefa got up and said to them, "Brothers, you yourselves know that a good while back, God chose me from among you to be the one by whose mouth the Goyim should hear the message of the Good News and come to trust. 8 And God, who knows the heart, bore them witness by giving the Ruach HaKodesh to them, just as he did to us; 9 that is, he made no distinction between us and them, but cleansed their heart by trust. 10 So why are you putting God to the test now by placing a yoke on the neck of the talmidim which neither our fathers nor we have had the strength to bear? 11 No, it is through the love and kindness of the Lord Yeshua that we trust and are delivered — and it's the same with them." 12 Then the whole assembly kept still as they listened to Bar-Nabba and Sha'ul tell what signs and miracles God had done through them among the Gentiles. 13 Ya‘akov broke the silence to reply. "Brothers," he said, "hear what I have to say. 14 Shim‘on has told in detail what God did when he first began to show his concern for taking from among the Goyim a people to bear his name. 15 And the words of the Prophets are in complete harmony with this for it is written,

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Acts 15:25, Acts 6:2, Acts 21:18, Proverbs 15:22, Matthew 18:20, Hebrews 13:7, Hebrews 13:17

Reciprocal: Proverbs 11:14 - General Matthew 18:17 - tell Acts 11:30 - to the Acts 14:23 - elders Acts 16:4 - they delivered Acts 20:17 - the elders Galatians 2:6 - in 1 Timothy 5:1 - an elder 1 Peter 5:1 - elders

Cross-References

Genesis 15:3
You haven't given me a child," Avram continued, "so someone born in my house will be my heir."
Genesis 15:6
He believed in Adonai , and he credited it to him as righteousness.
Genesis 15:14
But I will also judge that nation, the one that makes them slaves. Afterwards, they will leave with many possessions.
Genesis 15:20
the Hitti, the P'rizi, the Refa'im,
Psalms 106:31
That was credited to him as righteousness, through all generations forever.
Romans 4:9
Now is this blessing for the circumcised only? Or is it also for the uncircumcised? For we say that Avraham's trust was credited to his account as righteousness ;
Romans 4:11
In fact, he received circumcision as a sign, as a seal of the righteousness he had been credited with on the ground of the trust he had while he was still uncircumcised. This happened so that he could be the father of every uncircumcised person who trusts and thus has righteousness credited to him,
2 Corinthians 5:19
which is that God in the Messiah was reconciling mankind to himself, not counting their sins against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.
Hebrews 11:8
By trusting , Avraham obeyed, after being called to go out to a place which God would give him as a possession; indeed, he went out without knowing where he was going.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And the apostles and elders came together,.... And also the brethren, or private members of the church, even the whole church, as appears from Acts 15:22. Whether all the apostles were here present, is not certain; Peter, James, and John were; but who else, cannot be said: these met together

for to consider of this matter; to hear what was to be said on both sides of the question, and then to judge what advice was proper to be given to the Gentiles.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

And the apostles and elders ... - They came together in accordance with the authority in Matthew 18:19-20. It would seem, also, that the whole church was convened on this occasion, and that the church concurred, at least, in the judgment expressed in this case. See Acts 15:12, Acts 15:22-23.

For to consider of this matter - Not to decide it arbitrarily, or even by authority, without deliberation; but to compare their views, and to express the result of the whole to the church at Antioch. It was a grave and difficult question, deeply affecting the entire constitution of the Christian church, and they therefore solemnly engaged in deliberation on the subject.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Acts 15:6. The apostles and elders came together — This was the first council ever held in the Christian Church; and we find that it was composed of the apostles and elders simply.


 
adsfree-icon
Ads FreeProfile