Acts 23:22
What does Acts 23:22 mean?
A plain-English look at Acts 23:22 in WEB alongside six other public-domain English translations, with cross-references and chapter context.
What Acts 23:22 means
The chief captain dismisses the young man with a strict command to tell no one he has reported these things. Secrecy is vital to frustrate the conspirators and to shield the informant. The officer’s instruction also preserves the element of surprise for the protective operation he will organize. This quiet wisdom stands in contrast to the open clamor of the council; deliberate, disciplined action replaces reactive violence. The commander demonstrates responsible authority, valuing life and due process. In God’s hands, this prudence becomes the means of delivering His apostle, aligning civil order with divine promise.
Parallel translations
WEB
World English Bible · 2000So the chief captain let the young man go, charging him, Tell no man that thou hast signified these things to me.
KJV
King James Version · 1611So the chief captain then let the young man depart, and charged him, See thou tell no man that thou hast shewed these things to me.
ASV
American Standard Version · 1901So the chief captain let the young man go, charging him, Tell no man that thou hast signified these things to me.
BBE
Bible in Basic English · 1949So the chief captain let the young man go, saying to him, Do not say to anyone that you have given me word of these things.
YLT
Young's Literal Translation · 1862The chief captain, then, indeed, let the young man go, having charged <FI>him<Fi> to tell no one, `that these things thou didst shew unto me;'
DRA
Douay-Rheims (Challoner) · 1752The tribune therefore dismissed the young man, charging him that he should tell no man that he had made known these things unto him.
DBY
Darby Bible · 1890The chiliarch then dismissed the youth, commanding [him], Utter to no one that thou hast represented these things to me.
Context
With the intelligence secured, the commander moves from information-gathering to implementation. The first step is protecting the source and the plan’s confidentiality. Next, he will assemble an impressive military escort and arrange a nighttime departure for Cæsarea. This marks a decisive narrative shift: Paul will leave Jerusalem’s immediate danger and move under Roman protection to the governor’s jurisdiction, where formal proceedings can continue apart from the murderous pressure of the conspiracy.
v.21Do not thou therefore yield unto them: for there lie in wait for him of them more than forty men, who have bound themselves under a curse, neither to eat nor to drink till they have slain him: and now are they ready, looking for the promise from thee.
v.22This passage
v.23And he called unto him two of the centurions, and said, Make ready two hundred soldiers to go as far as Cæsarea, and horsemen threescore and ten, and spearmen two hundred, at the third hour of the night:
Cross references
Related passages from across Scripture, drawn from the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge.
- Mark 1:44
and saith unto him, See thou say nothing to any man: but go show thyself to the priest, and offer for thy cleansing the things which Moses commanded, for a testimony unto them.
- Joshua 2:14
And the men said unto her, Our life for yours, if ye utter not this our business; and it shall be, when Jehovah giveth us the land, that we will deal kindly and truly with thee.
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