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For I see that you are poisoned by bitterness and captive to iniquity.”
Acts 8:23 · Berean Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB For I see that you are in the poison of bitterness and in the bondage of iniquity.”
  • KJV For I perceive that thou art in the gall of bitterness, and in the bond of iniquity.
  • NKJV For I see that you are poisoned by bitterness and bound by iniquity.”
  • NASB For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bondage of unrighteousness.”
  • NLT for I can see that you are full of bitter jealousy and are held captive by sin.”

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

Peter discerned that Simon was full of bitterness and bound by sin. His true spiritual condition was one of corruption and bondage, not salvation.

Overview

Peter describes Simon as in 'the poison of bitterness' and 'the bondage of iniquity,' echoing warnings about a poisonous root in Israel (Deuteronomy 29:18). This diagnosis suggests Simon's profession was not true saving faith. It illustrates that sin enslaves and that only Christ can free the captive heart.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 17

  • Prov 5:22The iniquities of a wicked man entrap him; the cords of his sin entangle him.
  • Isa 58:6Isn’t this the fast that I have chosen: to break the chains of wickedness, to untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and tear off every yoke?
  • John 8:34Jesus replied, “Truly, truly, I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin.
  • Heb 12:15See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God, and that no root of bitterness springs up to cause trouble and defile many.
  • Titus 3:3For at one time we too were foolish, disobedient, misled, and enslaved to all sorts of desires and pleasures—living in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another.
  • Deut 32:32–33But their vine is from the vine of Sodom and from the fields of Gomorrah. Their grapes are poisonous; their clusters are bitter.
  • Isa 28:22So now, do not mock, or your shackles will become heavier. Indeed, I have heard from the Lord GOD of Hosts a decree of destruction against the whole land.
  • Rom 6:17–22But thanks be to God that, though you once were slaves to sin, you wholeheartedly obeyed the form of teaching to which you were committed.
  • 2 Pet 2:4For if God did not spare the angels when they sinned, but cast them deep into hell, placing them in chains of darkness to be held for judgment;
  • Ps 116:16Truly, O LORD, I am Your servant; I am Your servant, the son of Your maidservant; You have broken my bonds.
  • Lam 3:19Remember my affliction and wandering, the wormwood and the gall.
  • 2 Pet 2:19They promise them freedom, while they themselves are slaves to depravity. For a man is a slave to whatever has mastered him.
  • Deut 29:18–20Make sure there is no man or woman, clan or tribe among you today whose heart turns away from the LORD our God to go and worship the gods of those nations. Make sure there is no root among you that bears such poisonous and bitter fruit,
  • Lam 3:5He has besieged me and surrounded me with bitterness and hardship.
  • Jer 9:15Therefore this is what the LORD of Hosts, the God of Israel, says: “Behold, I will feed this people wormwood and give them poisoned water to drink.
  • Jer 4:18“Your ways and deeds have brought this upon you. This is your punishment; how bitter it is, because it pierces to the heart!”
  • Job 20:14yet in his stomach his food sours into the venom of cobras within him.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (7)

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 8:23YouTube · 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 8:23 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.