Limitless Word
When the horsemen arrived in Caesarea, they delivered the letter to the governor and presented Paul to him.
Acts 23:33 · Berean Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB When they came to Caesarea and delivered the letter to the governor, they also presented Paul to him.
  • KJV Who, when they came to Caesarea, and delivered the epistle to the governor, presented Paul also before him.
  • NKJV When they came to Caesarea and had delivered the letter to the governor, they also presented Paul to him.
  • NASB When these horsemen had come to Caesarea and delivered the letter to the governor, they also presented Paul to him.
  • NLT When they arrived in Caesarea, they presented Paul and the letter to Governor Felix.

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 soldiers reach Caesarea, hand the governor Felix the tribune's letter, and present Paul to him. Paul now enters the formal Roman judicial process.

Overview

Caesarea was the seat of Roman administration in Judea, and Felix the procurator. The orderly delivery of both the letter and the prisoner marks Paul's transfer from mob justice in Jerusalem to a Roman court. This begins the long sequence of hearings through which the gospel reaches governors and a king, fulfilling Christ's word that Paul would bear his name before rulers (Acts 9:15).

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 4

  • Acts 23:23–24Then he called two of his centurions and said, “Prepare two hundred soldiers, seventy horsemen, and two hundred spearmen to go to Caesarea in the third hour of the night.
  • Acts 23:26Claudius Lysias, To His Excellency, Governor Felix: Greetings.
  • Acts 28:16When we arrived in Rome, Paul was permitted to stay by himself, with a soldier to guard him.
  • Acts 8:40But Philip appeared at Azotus and traveled through that region, preaching the gospel in all the towns until he came to Caesarea.

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 23:33YouTube · 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 23:33 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.