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While they were trying to kill him, the commander of the Roman regiment received a report that all Jerusalem was in turmoil.
Acts 21:31 · Berean Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB As they were trying to kill him, news came up to the commanding officer of the regiment that all Jerusalem was in an uproar.
  • KJV And as they went about to kill him, tidings came unto the chief captain of the band, that all Jerusalem was in an uproar.
  • NKJV Now as they were seeking to kill him, news came to the commander of the garrison that all Jerusalem was in an uproar.
  • NASB While they were intent on killing him, a report came up to the commander of the Roman cohort that all Jerusalem was in confusion.
  • NLT As they were trying to kill him, word reached the commander of the Roman regiment that all Jerusalem was in an uproar.

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

As they try to kill Paul, word reaches the Roman commander that all Jerusalem is in turmoil. Roman authority is about to intervene.

Overview

News of the uproar quickly reaches the tribune of the cohort stationed at the Antonia Fortress overlooking the temple. Roman intervention, which will rescue Paul from the mob, begins God's providential use of the empire to preserve His servant. What appears to be Paul's undoing becomes the means by which he will testify before governors, a king, and Caesar himself.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 16

  • 2 Cor 11:23–33Are they servants of Christ? I am speaking like I am out of my mind, but I am so much more: in harder labor, in more imprisonments, in worse beatings, in frequent danger of death.
  • Acts 17:5The Jews, however, became jealous. So they brought in some troublemakers from the marketplace, formed a mob, and sent the city into an uproar. They raided Jason’s house in search of Paul and Silas, hoping to bring them out to the people.
  • Acts 26:9–10So then, I too was convinced that I ought to do all I could to oppose the name of Jesus of Nazareth.
  • Acts 24:6and he even tried to desecrate the temple; so we seized him.
  • John 16:2They will put you out of the synagogues. In fact, a time is coming when anyone who kills you will think he is offering a service to God.
  • Acts 19:40For we are in jeopardy of being charged with rioting for today’s events, and we have no justification to account for this commotion.”
  • John 18:12Then the band of soldiers, with its commander and the officers of the Jews, arrested Jesus and bound Him.
  • Acts 24:22Then Felix, who was well informed about the Way, adjourned the hearing and said, “When Lysias the commander comes, I will decide your case.”
  • Acts 10:1At Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion in what was called the Italian Regiment.
  • Acts 23:17Then Paul called one of the centurions and said, “Take this young man to the commander; he has something to tell him.”
  • 1 Kgs 1:41Now Adonijah and all his guests were finishing their feast when they heard the sound of the ram’s horn. “Why is the city in such a loud uproar?” asked Joab.
  • Mark 14:2“But not during the feast,” they said, “or there may be a riot among the people.”
  • Acts 22:22The crowd listened to Paul until he made this statement. Then they lifted up their voices and shouted, “Rid the earth of him! He is not fit to live!”
  • Acts 25:23The next day Agrippa and Bernice came with great pomp and entered the auditorium, along with the commanders and leading men of the city. And Festus ordered that Paul be brought in.
  • Matt 26:5“But not during the feast,” they said, “or there may be a riot among the people.”
  • Acts 21:38“Aren’t you the Egyptian who incited a rebellion some time ago and led four thousand members of the ‘Assassins’ into the wilderness?”

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (5)

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 21:31YouTube · 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 21:31 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.