But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira, his wife, sold a possession,
Parallel translations
- KJV But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession,
- BSB Now a man named Ananias, together with his wife Sapphira, also sold a piece of property.
- NKJV But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession.
- NASB But a man named Ananias, with his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property,
- NLT But there was a certain man named Ananias who, with his wife, Sapphira, sold some property.
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 and his wife Sapphira also sold a piece of property. Their story begins as a contrast to the sincere giving just described.
Overview
The word 'but' signals a sharp contrast with Barnabas's genuine generosity. Ananias and Sapphira appear to imitate the church's sacrificial giving, yet their hearts harbor deceit. Their account serves as a sober warning that God sees beyond outward acts to inner motives. The episode reveals that sin and hypocrisy can intrude even into a Spirit-filled community, and that God takes such deceit seriously.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 5
- Lev 10:1–3Nadab and Abihu, the sons of Aaron, each took his censer, and put fire in it, and laid incense on it, and offered strange fire before Yahweh, which he had not commanded them.
- 2 Tim 2:20Now in a large house there are not only vessels of gold and of silver, but also of wood and of clay. Some are for honor, and some for dishonor.
- Matt 13:47–48“Again, the Kingdom of Heaven is like a dragnet, that was cast into the sea, and gathered some fish of every kind,
- John 6:37All those whom the Father gives me will come to me. He who comes to me I will in no way throw out.
- Josh 6:1Now Jericho was tightly shut up because of the children of Israel. No one went out, and no one came in.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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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 5:1 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.