Lectionary Calendar
Monday, November 24th, 2025
the Week of Christ the King / Proper 29 / Ordinary 34
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Read the Bible

Murdock Translation

Acts 14:16

He, in former ages, left all the nations to go in their own ways:

Bible Study Resources

Concordances:

- Nave's Topical Bible - Barnabas;   Gentiles;   God Continued...;   Homage;   Lycaonia;   Lystra;   Minister, Christian;   Paul;   Zeal, Religious;   Scofield Reference Index - Elders;   Thompson Chain Reference - Missions, World-Wide;   The Topic Concordance - Worship;  

Dictionaries:

- Bridgeway Bible Dictionary - Galatians, letter to the;   Lystra;   Mission;   Paul;   Baker Evangelical Dictionary of Biblical Theology - Providence of God;   Charles Buck Theological Dictionary - Jesus Christ;   Ordination;   Fausset Bible Dictionary - Acts of the Apostles;   Iconium;   Lycaonia;   Holman Bible Dictionary - Acts;   Gods, Pagan;   Lycaonia;   Proverbs, Book of;   Revelation of God;   Timothy;   Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible - Canon of the New Testament;   Messiah;   Way;   Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament - Galatia ;   Galatians Epistle to the;   Garlands ;   God;   Inspiration and Revelation;   Morrish Bible Dictionary - Lystra ;   The Hawker's Poor Man's Concordance And Dictionary - Iconium;   People's Dictionary of the Bible - Lycaonia;   Lystra;  

Encyclopedias:

- Condensed Biblical Cyclopedia - Saul of Tarsus;   International Standard Bible Encyclopedia - Doctrine;   Forgiveness;   Philosophy;   Revelation;   Way;  

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
In past generations he allowed all the nations to go their own way,
King James Version (1611)
Who in times past, suffred all nations to walke in their owne wayes.
King James Version
Who in times past suffered all nations to walk in their own ways.
English Standard Version
In past generations he allowed all the nations to walk in their own ways.
New American Standard Bible
"In past generations He permitted all the nations to go their own ways;
New Century Version
In the past, God let all the nations do what they wanted.
Amplified Bible
"In generations past He permitted all the nations to go their own ways;
New American Standard Bible (1995)
"In the generations gone by He permitted all the nations to go their own ways;
Legacy Standard Bible
In the generations gone by He permitted all the nations to go their own ways;
Berean Standard Bible
In past generations, He let all nations go their own way.
Contemporary English Version
In times past, God let each nation go its own way.
Complete Jewish Bible
In times past, he allowed all peoples to walk in their own ways;
Darby Translation
who in the past generations suffered all the nations to go in their own ways,
Easy-to-Read Version
"In the past God let all the nations do what they wanted.
Geneva Bible (1587)
Who in times past suffered all the Gentiles to walke in their owne waies.
George Lamsa Translation
Who in generations past suffered all nations to walk in their own ways.
Good News Translation
In the past he allowed all people to go their own way.
Lexham English Bible
who in generations that are past permitted all the nations to go their own ways.
Literal Translation
who in the generations which have passed allowed all the nations to go in their own ways,
American Standard Version
who in the generations gone by suffered all the nations to walk in their own ways.
Bible in Basic English
Who in the past let all nations go in the ways which seemed good to them.
Hebrew Names Version
who in the generations gone by allowed all the nations to walk in their own ways.
International Standard Version
In past generations he allowed all the nations to go their own ways,Psalm 81:12; Acts 17:30; 1 Peter 4:3;">[xr]
Etheridge Translation
who in former generations left all nations to walk in ways of their own;
Bishop's Bible (1568)
The which in tymes past suffred all nations to walke in their owne wayes.
English Revised Version
who in the generations gone by suffered all the nations to walk in their own ways.
World English Bible
who in the generations gone by allowed all the nations to walk in their own ways.
Wesley's New Testament (1755)
Yet he left not himself without witness,
Weymouth's New Testament
In times gone by He allowed all the nations to go their own ways;
Wycliffe Bible (1395)
which in generaciouns passid suffride alle folkis to gon in to her owne weies.
Update Bible Version
who in the generations gone by allowed all the nations to walk in their own ways.
Webster's Bible Translation
Who in times past suffered all nations to walk in their own ways.
New English Translation
In past generations he allowed all the nations to go their own ways,
New King James Version
who in bygone generations allowed all nations to walk in their own ways.
New Living Translation
In the past he permitted all the nations to go their own ways,
New Life Bible
Long ago He allowed all people to live the way they wanted to.
New Revised Standard
In past generations he allowed all the nations to follow their own ways;
J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
Who in the bygone generations suffered all the nations to be going on in their own ways, -
Douay-Rheims Bible
(14-15) Who in times past, suffered all nations to walk in their own ways.
Revised Standard Version
In past generations he allowed all the nations to walk in their own ways;
Tyndale New Testament (1525)
the which in tymes past suffred all nacions to walke in their awne wayes.
Young's Literal Translation
who in the past generations did suffer all the nations to go on in their ways,
Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
which in tymes past suffred all ye Heythen to walke after their awne wayes.
Mace New Testament (1729)
who in past ages has let all Nations proceed in their own ways.
THE MESSAGE
"In the generations before us, God let all the different nations go their own way. But even then he didn't leave them without a clue, for he made a good creation, poured down rain and gave bumper crops. When your bellies were full and your hearts happy, there was evidence of good beyond your doing." Talking fast and hard like this, they prevented them from carrying out the sacrifice that would have honored them as gods—but just barely.
Simplified Cowboy Version
Up until recently, God had let folks go their own ways,

Contextual Overview

8 And a certain man dwelt in the city Lystra, who was afflicted in his feet, a cripple from his mother's womb, who had never walked. 9 He heard Paul speak: and when Paul saw him, and knew that he had faith to live; 10 he said to him, with a loud voice: In the name of our Lord Jesus Messiah, I say to thee, Rise upon thy feet. And he sprang up, stood, and walked. 11 And the assembly of people, when they saw what Paul had done, raised their voice, and said, in the language of the country: The gods have assumed the likeness of men, and have come down to us. 12 And they named Barnabas the Lord of the Gods; and Paul Hermes, because he commenced the speaking. 13 And the priest of the Lord of the Gods, who was without the city, brought oxen and garlands to the gate of the court where they lodged, and was disposed to offer sacrifices to them. 14 But Barnabas and Paul, when they heard [fn] , rent their garments, and sprang and went among the throng, 15 and called out, and said: Men, what do ye? We also are frail mortals like yourselves, who preach to you, that ye should turn from these useless things, unto the living God, who made heaven and earth and seas, and whatever is in them. 16 He, in former ages, left all the nations to go in their own ways: 17 although he did not leave himself without testimony, while he did them good from heaven, and sent down the rain, and made the fruits to grow in their seasons, and filled their hearts with food and pleasure.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

suffered: Acts 17:30, Psalms 81:12, Psalms 147:20, Hosea 4:17, Romans 1:21-25, Romans 1:28, Ephesians 2:12, 1 Peter 4:3

Reciprocal: Deuteronomy 18:14 - hath not suffered Ecclesiastes 11:9 - walk Isaiah 44:18 - for he hath Isaiah 60:2 - the darkness Isaiah 63:19 - are thine Daniel 3:7 - all the people Acts 26:20 - and then Romans 1:19 - that which Romans 1:24 - God Romans 2:14 - which Ephesians 2:3 - in times

Gill's Notes on the Bible

Who in times past,.... For many hundred years past; even ever since God chose and separated the people of Israel from the rest of the nations, to be a peculiar people to himself: from that time he

suffered all nations to walk in their own ways; of ignorance, superstition, and idolatry; which they devised, and chose, and delighted in: not that he gave them any licence to walk in these ways, without being chargeable with sin, or with impunity; but he left them to themselves, to the dim light and law of nature, and gave them no written law, nor any external revelation of his mind and will; nor did he send any prophets or ministers of his unto them, to show them the evil of their ways, and turn them from them, and direct them to the true God, and the right way of worshipping him; but left them to take their own methods, and pursue the imagination of their own hearts: but the apostle suggests, that the case was now altered, and God had sent them and other ministers of his, among all nations of the world, to protest against their superstition and idolatry; and to reclaim them from their evil ways, and to direct them to the true and living God, and his worship, and to preach salvation by his Son Jesus Christ.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Who in times past - Previous to the gospel; in past ages.

Suffered all nations - Permitted all nations; that is, all Gentiles, Acts 17:30. “And the times of this ignorance God winked at.”

To walk in their own ways - To conduct themselves without the restraints and instructions of a written law. They were permitted to follow their own reason and passions, and their own system of religion. God gave them no written laws, and sent to them no messengers. Why he did this we cannot determine. It might have been, among other reasons, to show to the world conclusively:

(1) The insufficiency of reason to guide people in the matters of religion. The experiment was made under the most favorable circumstances. The most enlightened nations, the Greeks and Romans, were left to pursue the inquiry, and failed no less than the most degraded tribes of people. The trial was made for four thousand years, and attended with the same results everywhere.

(2) It showed the need of revelation to guide man.

(3) It evinced, beyond the possibility of mistake, the depravity of man. In all nations, in all circumstances, people had shown the same alienation from God. By suffering them to walk in their own ways, it was seen that those ways were sin, and that some power more than human was necessary to bring people back to God.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Acts 14:16. Who in times past suffered all nations, c.] The words παντα τα εθνη, which we here translate, all nations, should be rendered, all the Gentiles, merely to distinguish them from the Jewish people: who having a revelation, were not left to walk in their own ways but the heathens, who had not a revelation, were suffered to form their creed, and mode of worship, according to their own caprice.


 
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