Limitless Word
On the following day Paul went in with us to James, and all the elders were present.
Acts 21:18 · New King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB The day following, Paul went in with us to James; and all the elders were present.
  • KJV And the day following Paul went in with us unto James; and all the elders were present.
  • BSB The next day Paul went in with us to see James, and all the elders were present.
  • NASB And the following day Paul went in with us to James, and all the elders were present.
  • NLT The next day Paul went with us to meet with James, and all the elders of the Jerusalem church were present.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Quick answer

The next day Paul meets with James and all the elders. He reports to the leadership of the Jerusalem church.

Overview

James, the Lord's brother and leader of the Jerusalem church, gathers the elders to receive Paul. This formal meeting reflects the orderly leadership of the early church and Paul's accountability to it. The encounter sets up the discussion of how to address concerns among Jewish believers about Paul's ministry.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 11

  • Gal 1:19But of the other apostles I saw no one, except James, the Lord’s brother.
  • Acts 11:30which they also did, sending it to the elders by the hands of Barnabas and Saul.
  • Acts 15:13After they were silent, James answered, “Brothers, listen to me.
  • Gal 2:9and when they perceived the grace that was given to me, James and Cephas and John, they who were reputed to be pillars, gave to me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship, that we should go to the Gentiles, and they to the circumcision.
  • Acts 20:17From Miletus he sent to Ephesus, and called to himself the elders of the assembly.
  • Acts 12:17But he, beckoning to them with his hand to be silent, declared to them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. He said, “Tell these things to James, and to the brothers.” Then he departed, and went to another place.
  • Acts 15:23They wrote these things by their hand: “The apostles, the elders, and the brothers, to the brothers who are of the Gentiles in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia: greetings.
  • Acts 15:6The apostles and the elders were gathered together to see about this matter.
  • Matt 10:2Now the names of the twelve apostles are these. The first, Simon, who is called Peter; Andrew, his brother; James the son of Zebedee; John, his brother;
  • Acts 15:2Therefore when Paul and Barnabas had no small discord and discussion with them, they appointed Paul and Barnabas, and some others of them, to go up to Jerusalem to the apostles and elders about this question.
  • Jas 1:1James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which are in the Dispersion: Greetings.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (4)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Acts videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Acts 21:18YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on ActsMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

Acts is the risen Christ continuing his work by the Spirit through the church, as the apostles preach that there is salvation in no other name under heaven.

How Acts 21:18 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Original language

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.