Limitless Word
They returned to the fortress the next morning, while the mounted troops took him on to Caesarea.
Acts 23:32 · New Living Translation
Parallel translations
  • WEB But on the next day they left the horsemen to go with him, and returned to the barracks.
  • KJV On the morrow they left the horsemen to go with him, and returned to the castle:
  • BSB The next day they returned to the barracks and let the horsemen go on with him.
  • NKJV The next day they left the horsemen to go on with him, and returned to the barracks.
  • NASB But on the next day they let the horsemen go on with him, and they returned to the barracks.

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 mounted escort continues with Paul to Caesarea while the foot soldiers return to Jerusalem. It shows the careful Roman effort to protect Paul from the plot against his life.

Overview

Having moved Paul out of Jerusalem by night, the larger infantry escort is no longer needed once they are clear of danger, so they return to the barracks while the horsemen complete the journey. The detail underscores how seriously the tribune Lysias took the conspiracy against Paul. God providentially uses Roman law and military order to preserve his servant for the witness still ahead in Caesarea and Rome (Acts 23:11).

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 2

  • Acts 23:10When a great argument arose, the commanding officer, fearing that Paul would be torn in pieces by them, commanded the soldiers to go down and take him by force from among them, and bring him into the barracks.
  • Acts 23:23He called to himself two of the centurions, and said, “Prepare two hundred soldiers to go as far as Caesarea, with seventy horsemen, and two hundred men armed with spears, at the third hour of the night.”

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (6)

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 23:32YouTube · 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 23:32 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.