Acts 22:14
What does Acts 22:14 mean?
A plain-English look at Acts 22:14 in WEB alongside six other public-domain English translations, with cross-references and chapter context.
What Acts 22:14 means
Ananias explains that “The God of our fathers” appointed Paul to know His will, to see “the Righteous One,” and to hear a voice from His mouth. The phrase roots Paul’s calling in Israel’s story. “The Righteous One” is a Messianic title, pointing to Jesus as the perfectly just Servant of God. Paul’s encounter was not a private epiphany but a prophetic commissioning: to receive revelation from the Messiah Himself. Seeing and hearing ground his later witness. This shows continuity, not rupture: the God of Abraham is revealing His Messiah to Paul, entrusting him with truth meant to be proclaimed, not hoarded.
Parallel translations
WEB
World English Bible · 2000And he said, The God of our fathers hath appointed thee to know his will, and to see the Righteous One, and to hear a voice from his mouth.
KJV
King James Version · 1611And he said, The God of our fathers hath chosen thee, that thou shouldest know his will, and see that Just One, and shouldest hear the voice of his mouth.
ASV
American Standard Version · 1901And he said, The God of our fathers hath appointed thee to know his will, and to see the Righteous One, and to hear a voice from his mouth.
BBE
Bible in Basic English · 1949And he said, You have been marked out by the God of our fathers to have knowledge of his purpose, and to see the Upright One and to give ear to the words of his mouth.
YLT
Young's Literal Translation · 1862and he said, The God of our fathers did choose thee beforehand to know His will, and to see the Righteous One, and to hear a voice out of his mouth,
DRA
Douay-Rheims (Challoner) · 1752But he said: The God of our fathers hath preordained thee that thou shouldst know his will and see the Just One and shouldst hear the voice from his mouth.
DBY
Darby Bible · 1890And he said, TheGod of our fathers has chosen thee beforehand to know his will, and to see the just one, and to hear a voice out of his mouth;
Context
After the healing, verse 14 interprets what God is doing: appointment, revelation, and authority to speak. This sets up verse 15’s commission to witness to all people and verse 16’s call to baptism. The flow moves from sign to meaning to mission. For the listening crowd, the language connects Paul’s experience with their own Scriptures and hopes, challenging them to see Jesus—the Righteous One—as the fulfillment of God’s promises.
Cross references
Related passages from across Scripture, drawn from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge.
- Acts 9:15
But the Lord said unto him, Go thy way: for he is a chosen vessel unto me, to bear my name before the Gentiles and kings, and the children of Israel:
- Acts 22:18
and saw him saying unto me, Make haste, and get thee quickly out of Jerusalem; because they will not receive of thee testimony concerning me.
- 1 Corinthians 15:8
and last of all, as to the child untimely born, he appeared to me also.
- Acts 5:30
The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew, hanging him on a tree.
- Exodus 3:13
And Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you; and they shall say to me, What is his name? What shall I say unto them?
- 1 Corinthians 9:1
Am I not free? am I not an apostle? have I not seen Jesus our Lord? are not ye my work in the Lord?
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