Acts 5:22
What does Acts 5:22 mean?
A plain-English look at Acts 5:22 in WEB alongside six other public-domain English translations, with cross-references and chapter context.
What Acts 5:22 means
The officers sent to fetch the apostles report back that they are not in the prison. This simple discovery undermines the council’s assumption of control. Human systems can confine bodies, but they cannot restrain God’s mission. The verse marks the beginning of official confusion and loss of face, contrasting with the apostles’ clarity and purpose in the temple. It shows that the problem for the leaders is not merely disobedience but the undeniable signs that God is at work in ways they cannot predict or stop. The narrative builds suspense toward the revelation of where the apostles actually are.
Parallel translations
WEB
World English Bible · 2000But the officers that came found them not in the prison; and they returned, and told,
KJV
King James Version · 1611But when the officers came, and found them not in the prison, they returned, and told,
ASV
American Standard Version · 1901But the officers that came found them not in the prison; and they returned, and told,
BBE
Bible in Basic English · 1949But the men who were sent saw that they were not in the prison, and came back with the news,
YLT
Young's Literal Translation · 1862and the officers having come, did not find them in the prison, and having turned back, they told,
DRA
Douay-Rheims (Challoner) · 1752But when the ministers came and opening the prison found them not there, they returned and told,
DBY
Darby Bible · 1890And when the officers were come, they did not find them in the prison; and returned and reported
Context
Having convened the council and issued orders, the authorities expect full compliance. Instead, they meet the first sign that something extraordinary has happened. The report in this verse will be expanded in the next one, detailing the secure prison and present guards. This deepens the mystery and prepares for the decisive news: the apostles are openly teaching in the temple. The sequence magnifies the futility of resisting God and enhances the coming confrontation when the apostles are brought again before the council for questioning.
v.21And when they heard this, they entered into the temple about daybreak, and taught. But the high priest came, and they that were with him, and called the council together, and all the senate of the children of Israel, and sent to the prison-house to have them brought.
v.22This passage
v.23saying, The prison-house we found shut in all safety, and the keepers standing at the doors: but when we had opened, we found no man within.
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