Acts 18:25

Easy-to-Read Version

He had been taught about the Lord and was always excited to talk to people about Jesus. What he taught was right, but the only baptism he knew about was the baptism that John taught.

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
He had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he was speaking and teaching accurately about Jesus, although he knew only John’s baptism.

King James Version (1611)
This man was instructed in the way of the Lord, and being feruent in the spirit, he spake and taught diligently the things of the Lord, knowing onely the baptisme of Iohn.

King James Version
This man was instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in the spirit, he spake and taught diligently the things of the Lord, knowing only the baptism of John.

English Standard Version
He had been instructed in the way of the Lord. And being fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things concerning Jesus, though he knew only the baptism of John.

New American Standard Bible
This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he was accurately speaking and teaching things about Jesus, being acquainted only with the baptism of John;

New Century Version
He had been taught about the way of the Lord and was always very excited when he spoke and taught the truth about Jesus. But the only baptism Apollos knew about was the baptism that John taught.

Amplified Bible
This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord, and being spiritually impassioned, he was speaking and teaching accurately the things about Jesus, though he knew only the baptism of John;

New American Standard Bible (1995)
This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he was speaking and teaching accurately the things concerning Jesus, being acquainted only with the baptism of John;

Legacy Standard Bible
This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he was speaking and teaching accurately the things concerning Jesus, being acquainted only with the baptism of John;

Berean Standard Bible
He had been instructed in the way of the Lord and was fervent in spirit. He spoke and taught accurately about Jesus, though he knew only the baptism of John.

Contemporary English Version
He also knew much about the Lord's Way, and he spoke about it with great excitement. What he taught about Jesus was right, but all he knew was John's message about baptism.

Complete Jewish Bible
This man had been informed about the Way of the Lord, and with great spiritual fervor he spoke and taught accurately the facts about Yeshua, but he knew only the immersion of Yochanan.

Darby Translation
He was instructed in the way of the Lord, and being fervent in his spirit, he spoke and taught exactly the things concerning Jesus, knowing only the baptism of John.

Geneva Bible (1587)
The same was instructed in the way of the Lorde, and hee spake feruently in the Spirite, and taught diligently the things of the Lord, & knew but the baptisme of Iohn onely.

George Lamsa Translation
He had been converted to the way of the LORD, and was fervent in the spirit; he spoke and taught very fully concerning Jesus, but he knew only the baptism of John.

Good News Translation
He had been instructed in the Way of the Lord, and with great enthusiasm he proclaimed and taught correctly the facts about Jesus. However, he knew only the baptism of John.

Lexham English Bible
This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord, and being enthusiastic in spirit, he was speaking and teaching accurately the things about Jesus, although he knew only the baptism of John.

Literal Translation
This one having been taught by mouth in the way of the Lord, and being fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things about the Lord, having understood only the baptism of John.

American Standard Version
This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he spake and taught accurately the things concerning Jesus, knowing only the baptism of John:

Bible in Basic English
This man had been trained in the way of the Lord; and burning in spirit, he gave himself up to teaching the facts about Jesus, though he had knowledge only of John's baptism:

Hebrew Names Version
This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things concerning Yeshua, although he knew only the immersion of Yochanan.

International Standard Version
He had been instructed in the Lord's way, and with spiritual fervor he kept speaking and teaching accurately about Jesus, although he knew only about John's baptism.Acts 19:3; Romans 12:11;">[xr]

Etheridge Translation
This was discipled in the way of the Lord, and was fervid in spirit, and he spake and taught freely concerning Jeshu, while knowing not any thing but the baptism of Juhanon.

Murdock Translation
He had been instructed in the ways of the Lord, and was fervent in spirit; and he discoursed and taught fully respecting Jesus, while yet he knew nothing except the baptism of John.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
The same was infourmed in the way of the Lorde, and spake feruently in the spirite, & taught diligently the thynges of the Lorde, and knewe but the baptisme of Iohn only.

English Revised Version
This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he spake and taught carefully the things concerning Jesus, knowing only the baptism of John:

World English Bible
This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things concerning Jesus, although he knew only the baptism of John.

Wesley's New Testament (1755)
This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord, and being fervent in spirit, he spake and taught diligently the things of Jesus, knowing only the baptism of John.

Weymouth's New Testament
He had been instructed by word of mouth in the way of the Lord, and, being full of burning zeal, he used to speak and teach accurately the facts about Jesus, though he knew of no baptism but John's.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
This man was tauyt the weie of the Lord, and was feruent in spirit, and spak, and tauyte diligentli tho thingis that weren of Jhesu, and knew oonli the baptym of Joon.

Update Bible Version
This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things concerning Jesus, knowing only the baptism of John:

Webster's Bible Translation
This man was instructed in the way of the Lord: and being fervent in the spirit, he spoke and taught diligently the things of the Lord, knowing only the baptism of John.

New English Translation
He had been instructed in the way of the Lord, and with great enthusiasm he spoke and taught accurately the facts about Jesus, although he knew only the baptism of John.

New King James Version
This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things of the Lord, though he knew only the baptism of John.

New Living Translation
He had been taught the way of the Lord, and he taught others about Jesus with an enthusiastic spirit and with accuracy. However, he knew only about John's baptism.

New Life Bible
He had been taught in the way of the Lord. And with a strong desire in his heart, he taught about Jesus. What he said was true, but he knew only about the baptism of John.

New Revised Standard
He had been instructed in the Way of the Lord; and he spoke with burning enthusiasm and taught accurately the things concerning Jesus, though he knew only the baptism of John.

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
The same, had been orally taught the way of the Lord, and, being fervent in his spirit, began speaking and teaching accurately, the things concerning Jesus, - properly knowing, only the immersion of John.

Douay-Rheims Bible
This man was instructed in the way of the Lord: and being fervent in spirit, spoke and taught diligently the things that are of Jesus, knowing only the baptism of John.

Revised Standard Version
He had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things concerning Jesus, though he knew only the baptism of John.

Tyndale New Testament (1525)
The same was informed in the waye of the Lorde and he spake fervently in the sprete and taught diligently the thinges of the Lorde and knewe but the baptim of Iohn only.

Young's Literal Translation
this one was instructed in the way of the Lord, and being fervent in the Spirit, was speaking and teaching exactly the things about the Lord, knowing only the baptism of John;

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
the same was infourmed in the waye of the LORDE, and spake feruently in the sprete, and taughte diligently the thinges of the LORDE, and knewe but the baptyme off Ihon onely.

Mace New Testament (1729)
he had been instructed in the doctrine of the gospel, and being full of zeal, he harangued with great assiduity about what related to Jesus, though he had been only instituted in the baptism of John.

Simplified Cowboy Version
He was really good at gathering folks to ride for the brand of Jesus. But he only went as far as the baptism of John because that's all he knew.

Contextual Overview

²⁴ A Jew named Apollos came to Ephesus. Born in the city of Alexandria, he was an educated man who knew the Scriptures well. ²⁵ He had been taught about the Lord and was always excited to talk to people about Jesus. What he taught was right, but the only baptism he knew about was the baptism that John taught. ²⁶ Apollos began to speak very boldly in the synagogue. When Priscilla and Aquila heard him speak, they took him to their home and helped him understand the way of God better. ²⁷ Apollos wanted to go to Achaia. So the believers in Ephesus helped him. They wrote a letter to the Lord's followers in Achaia and asked them to accept Apollos. When he arrived there, he was a great help to those who had believed in Jesus because of God's grace. ²⁸ He argued very strongly against the Jews before all the people. He clearly proved that the Jews were wrong. He used the Scriptures and showed that Jesus is the Messiah.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

instructed: Acts 13:10, Acts 16:17, Acts 19:9, Acts 19:23, Genesis 18:19, Judges 2:22, 1 Samuel 12:23, Psalms 25:8, Psalms 25:9, Psalms 119:1, Isaiah 40:3, Jeremiah 6:16, Hosea 14:9, Matthew 3:3, Mark 1:3, Mark 12:14, Luke 3:4, John 1:23

fervent: Romans 12:11, Colossians 1:28, Colossians 1:29, 2 Timothy 2:4, James 5:16

knowing: Acts 19:3, Matthew 3:1-17, Luke 3:1-38, John 1:19-36

Reciprocal: Psalms 67:2 - thy way Amos 8:14 - manner Acts 18:28 - convinced 2 Timothy 3:16 - for instruction

Cross-References

Genesis 18:1
Later, the Lord again appeared to Abraham near the oak trees of Mamre. It was the hottest part of the day, and Abraham was sitting at the door of his tent.

Genesis 18:2
He looked up and saw three men standing in front of him. When he saw the men, he ran to them and bowed before them.

Genesis 18:5
I will get some food for you, and you can eat as much as you want. Then you can continue your journey." The three men said, "Do as you wish."

Genesis 18:6
Abraham hurried to the tent. He said to Sarah, "Quickly, prepare enough flour for three loaves of bread."

Genesis 18:7
Then Abraham ran to his cattle. He took his best young calf and gave it to the servant there. He told the servant to quickly kill the calf and prepare it for food.

Genesis 18:10
Then one of them said, "I will come again in the spring. At that time your wife Sarah will have a son." Sarah was listening in the tent and heard these things.

Genesis 18:11
Abraham and Sarah were very old. Sarah was past the right age for women to have children.

Genesis 18:12
So she laughed to herself and said, "I am old, and my husband is old. I am too old to have a baby."

Genesis 18:13
Then the Lord said to Abraham, "Sarah laughed and said she was too old to have a baby.

Genesis 18:17
The Lord said to himself, "Should I tell Abraham what I am going to do now?

Gill's Notes on the Bible

This man was instructed in the way of the Lord,.... Which John, whose baptism he only knew, came to prepare: the word here used signifies "catechised"; and suggests, that he was trained up by his parents in this way, who might have been the disciples of John, though afterwards removed from Judea to Alexandria; and that he only had been taught the rudiments of the Christian religion, or doctrine of the Gospel; here called the way of the Lord, or which directs and leads unto him, as the only Saviour, and is the path of faith and truth; or as some copies read, "the word of the Lord"; and which accounts for what is afterwards said of him:

and being fervent in the spirit; either in or by the Spirit of God, being made so by him, who is, compared to fire, and who, in the form of cloven tongues of fire, sat upon the disciples at the day of Pentecost, and upon others; among whom this Apollos is by some thought to be, though without any reason; however, he might be inspired with zeal by the Spirit of God: or "in his own spirit", as the Ethiopic version renders it; his soul was inflamed with zeal for the glory of God, the honour of Christ, and the good of souls; his ministry was very affectionate, warm, and lively; see Romans 12:11 He spake and taught diligently the things of the Lord; or "of Jesus", as read the Alexandrian copy, the Vulgate Latin, Syriac, and Ethiopic versions; according to the measure of light and grace he had received, he spake out freely and fully, and taught the people with great industry, and with all the exactness he could, the things he knew concerning the person, offices, and grace of the Lord Jesus:

knowing only the baptism of John; which must be understood, not of the ordinance of baptism singly, as administered by John, but of the whole ministry of John; as of that ordinance, so of his doctrine concerning repentance and remission of sins; and concerning Christ that was to come, and concerning his being come, and who he was, whom John pointed at, and taught the people to believe in: but perhaps he might know very little, if anything, of the miracles of Christ, or of his death and resurrection from the dead, and the benefits and effects thereof; and of the pouring out of the Holy Ghost upon the apostles, and the light and knowledge which were communicated thereby.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

This man was instructed - Greek: was catechised. He was instructed, in some degree, into the knowledge of the Christian religion. By whom this was done we have no information.

In the way of the Lord - The word “way” often refers to doctrine, Matthew 21:32. It means here that he had been correctly taught in regard to the Messiah, yet his knowledge was imperfect, Acts 18:26. The amount of his knowledge seems to have been:

(1) He had correct views of the Messiah to come - views which he had derived from the study of the Old Testament. He was expecting a Saviour that would be humble, obscure, and a sacrifice, in opposition to the prevailing notions of the Jews.

(2) He had heard of John; had embraced his doctrine; and probably had been baptized with reference to him that was to come. Compare Matthew 3:2; Acts 19:4. But it is clear that he had not heard that Jesus was the Messiah. With his correct views in regard to the coming of the Messiah he was endeavoring to instruct and reform his countrymen. He was just in the state of mind to welcome the announcement that the Messiah had come, and to embrace Jesus of Nazareth as the hope of the nation.

Being fervent in the spirit - Being zealous and ardent. See the notes on Romans 12:11.

Taught diligently - Defended with zeal and earnestness his views of the Messiah.

The things of the Lord - The doctrines pertaining to the Messiah as far as he understood them.

Knowing only the baptism of John - Whether he had himself heard John, and been baptized by him. has been made a question which cannot now be decided. It is not necessary, however, to suppose this, as it seems that the knowledge of John’s preaching and baptism had been propagated extensively in other nations beside Judea, Acts 19:1-3. The Messiah was expected about that time. The foreign Jews would be waiting for him; and the news of John’s ministry, doctrine, and success would be rapidly propagated from synagogue to synagogue in the surrounding nations. John preached repentance, and baptized with reference to him that was to come after him Acts 19:4, and this doctrine Apollos seems to have embraced.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Acts 18:25. This man was instructed in the way of the Lord — κατηχημενος; He was catechized, initiated, in the way, the doctrine, of Jesus as the Christ.

Being fervent in the spirit — Being full of zeal to propagate the truth of God, he taught diligently, ακριβως accurately, (so the word should be translated,) the things of Christ as far as he could know them through the ministry of John the Baptist; for it appears he knew nothing more of Christ than what John preached. Some suppose we should read ουκ, not, before ακριβως, correctly, or accurately, because it is said that Aquila and Priscilla expounded the way of the Lord, ακριβεστερον, more perfectly, rather more accurately; but of this emendation there is not the slightest necessity; for surely it is possible for a man to teach accurately what he knows; and it is possible that another, who possesses more information on the subject than the former, may teach him more accurately, or give him a larger portion of knowledge. Apollo knew the baptism of John; but he knew nothing farther of Jesus Christ than that baptism taught; but, as far as he knew, he taught accurately. Aquila and Priscilla were acquainted with the whole doctrine of the Gospel: the doctrine of Christ dying for our sins, and rising again for our justification; and in this they instructed Apollo; and this was more accurate information than what he had before received, through the medium of John's ministry.