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And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord.
Acts 22:16 · King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB Now why do you wait? Arise, be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord.’
  • BSB And now what are you waiting for? Get up, be baptized, and wash your sins away, calling on His name.’
  • NKJV And now why are you waiting? Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord.’
  • NASB Now why do you delay? Get up and be baptized, and wash away your sins by calling on His name.’
  • NLT What are you waiting for? Get up and be baptized. Have your sins washed away by calling on the name of the Lord.’

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

Ananias urges Paul to rise, be baptized, wash away his sins, and call on the Lord's name. Paul is summoned to respond openly to the grace he has received.

Overview

Baptism here is the outward sign accompanying the inward washing that comes through faith and calling on Christ (compare Acts 2:38; 1 Peter 3:21). The cleansing of sins is grounded in the Lord's name, not the water itself; baptism signifies and seals what Christ accomplishes. Calling on the name of the Lord is the believer's response of saving faith (Romans 10:13).

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 15

  • Acts 2:38Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
  • Acts 2:21And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.
  • Heb 10:22Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water.
  • Titus 3:5Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost;
  • 1 Cor 6:11And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God.
  • 1 Pet 3:21The like figure whereunto even baptism doth also now save us (not the putting away of the filth of the flesh, but the answer of a good conscience toward God,) by the resurrection of Jesus Christ:
  • 1 Cor 12:13For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.
  • Ps 119:60I made haste, and delayed not to keep thy commandments.
  • Gal 3:27For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.
  • Rom 6:3–4Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death?
  • Acts 9:14And here he hath authority from the chief priests to bind all that call on thy name.
  • Rom 10:12–14For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him.
  • Acts 9:18And immediately there fell from his eyes as it had been scales: and he received sight forthwith, and arose, and was baptized.
  • 1 Cor 1:2Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both theirs and ours:
  • Jer 8:14Why do we sit still? assemble yourselves, and let us enter into the defenced cities, and let us be silent there: for the LORD our God hath put us to silence, and given us water of gall to drink, because we have sinned against the LORD.

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 22:16YouTube · 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 22:16 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.