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parallelVerse INT GEN EXO LEV NUM DEU JOB JOS JDG RUTH 1SA 2SA PSA AMOS HOS 1KI 2KI 1CH 2CH PRO ECC SNG JOEL MIC ISA ZEP HAB JER LAM YNA NAH OBA DAN EZE EZRA EST NEH HAG ZEC MAL YHN MARK MAT LUKE ACTs YAC GAL 1TH 2TH 1COR 2COR ROM COL PHM EPH PHP 1TIM TIT 1PET 2PET 2TIM HEB YUD 1YHN 2YHN 3YHN REV
Acts Intro C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6 C7 C8 C9 C10 C11 C12 C13 C14 C15 C16 C17 C18 C19 C20 C21 C22 C23 C24 C25 C26 C27 C28
Acts 17 V1 V2 V3 V4 V5 V6 V7 V8 V9 V10 V11 V12 V13 V14 V15 V16 V17 V18 V19 V20 V21 V22 V23 V24 V25 V26 V27 V28 V30 V31 V32 V33 V34
Note: This view shows ‘verses’ which are not natural language units and hence sometimes only part of a sentence will be visible. Normally the OET discourages the reading of individual ‘verses’, but this view is only designed for doing comparisons of different translations. Click on any Bible version abbreviation down the left-hand side to see the verse in more of its context. The OET segments on this page are still very early looks into the unfinished texts of the Open English Translation of the Bible. Please double-check these texts in advance before using in public.
Text critical issues=small word differences Clarity of original=clear Importance=normal (All still tentative.)
OET (OET-RV) So since we are God’s offspring, we shouldn’t be putting gold or silver or stone craftsmanship in the same class as the divine.
OET-LV Therefore being descent of_ the _god, we_ought not to_be_thinking about_gold or silver or a_stone mark of_the_craft and thoughts of_human_origin, to_be similar the divine.
SR-GNT Γένος οὖν ὑπάρχοντες τοῦ ˚Θεοῦ, οὐκ ὀφείλομεν νομίζειν χρυσῷ ἢ ἀργύρῳ ἢ λίθῳ χαράγματι τέχνης καὶ ἐνθυμήσεως ἀνθρώπου, τὸ θεῖον εἶναι ὅμοιον. ‡
(Genos oun huparⱪontes tou ˚Theou, ouk ofeilomen nomizein ⱪrusōi aʸ argurōi aʸ lithōi ⱪaragmati teⱪnaʸs kai enthumaʸseōs anthrōpou, to theion einai homoion.)
Key: khaki:verbs, light-green:nominative/subject, orange:accusative/object, pink:genitive/possessor, cyan:dative/indirect object, red:negative.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the OET-RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).
ULT Therefore, being offspring of God, we ought not to consider the Divine to be similar to gold or silver or stone—images of the skill and imagination of man.
UST Therefore, because we are God’s children, we should not think that God is like an idol that a person would design and make out of gold, silver, or stone.
BSB Therefore, being offspring of God, we should not think that the Divine Being is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by man’s skill and imagination.
BLB Therefore, being offspring of God, we ought not to consider the Divine Being to be like to gold or to silver or to stone, a graven thing of man's craft and imagination.
AICNT “Being then the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the divine nature is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and thought of man.
OEB Therefore, as the offspring of God, we must not think that the Deity has any resemblance to anything made of gold, or silver, or stone – a work of human art and imagination.
WEBBE Being then the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold, or silver, or stone, engraved by art and design of man.
WMBB (Same as above)
NET So since we are God’s offspring, we should not think the deity is like gold or silver or stone, an image made by human skill and imagination.
LSV Being, therefore, offspring of God, we ought not to think the Godhead to be like to gold, or silver, or stone, [an] engraving of art and imagination of man;
FBV Since we are his family we shouldn't think that God is like gold, or silver, or stone, shaped by human artistry and thinking.
TCNT § Being then the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the divine being is like gold, silver, or stone, an image formed by the skill and imagination of man.
T4T Therefore, because we are God’s children and can communicate like God does, we (inc) should not think that he is anything like an image that people have made of gold or silver or stone which cannot communicate. Those images are designed and skillfully made {People design and make those images}, but they are not alive.
LEB Therefore, because we[fn] are offspring of God, we ought not to think the divine being is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by human skill and thought.
17:29 *Here “because” is supplied as a component of the participle (“are”) which is understood as causal
BBE If then we are the offspring of God, it is not right for us to have the idea that God is like gold or silver or stone, formed by the art or design of man.
Moff No Moff ACTs book available
Wymth Since then we are God's offspring, we ought not to imagine that His nature resembles gold or silver or marble, or anything sculptured by the art and inventive faculty of man.
ASV Being then the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and device of man.
DRA Being therefore the offspring of God, we must not suppose the divinity to be like unto gold, or silver, or stone, the graving of art, and device of man.
YLT 'Being, therefore, offspring of God, we ought not to think the Godhead to be like to gold, or silver, or stone, graving of art and device of man;
Drby Being therefore [the] offspring of [fn]God, we ought not to think that which is divine to be like gold or silver or stone, [the] graven form of man's art and imagination.
17.29 Elohim
RV Being then the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and device of man.
Wbstr Being then the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like to gold, or silver, or stone graven by art and man's device.
KJB-1769 Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man’s device.
KJB-1611 [fn]Forasmuch then as wee are the offspring of God, wee ought not to thinke that the Godhead is like vnto golde, or siluer, or stone grauen by arte, and mans deuice.
(Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to thinke that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone graven by arte, and mans deuice.)
17:29 Esai 40.18
Bshps Forasmuch then as we are the offpring of God, we ought not to thynke that the Godhead is lyke vnto golde, siluer, or stone, grauen by art, and mans deuice.
(Forasmuch then as we are the offpring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, silver, or stone, graven by art, and mans deuice.)
Gnva Forasmuch then, as we are the generation of God, we ought not to thinke that ye Godhead is like vnto gold, or siluer, or stone grauen by arte and the inuention of man.
(Forasmuch then, as we are the generation of God, we ought not to thinke that ye/you_all Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone graven by art and the invention of man. )
Cvdl For as moch then as we are the generacion of God, we oughte not to thinke that the Godheade is like vnto golde or syluer, or ymagery worke of the crafte or ymaginacion of man.
(For as much then as we are the generation of God, we oughte not to thinke that the Godheade is like unto gold or silver, or imagery work of the crafte or imagineacion of man.)
TNT For as moche then as we are the generacion of God we ought not to thynke that the godhed is lyke vnto golde silver or stone graven by crafte and ymaginacion of man.
(For as much then as we are the generation of God we ought not to think that the godhed is like unto gold silver or stone graven by crafte and imagineacion of man. )
Wycl Therfor sithen we ben the kynde of God, we schulen not deme, that godli thing is lijk gold, and siluer, ethir stoon, ethir to grauyng of craft and thouyt of man.
(Therefore since we been the kind of God, we should not deme, that godli thing is like gold, and silver, ethir stone, ethir to grauyng of craft and thouyt of man.)
Luth So wir denn göttliches Geschlechts sind, sollen wir nicht meinen, die GOttheit sei gleich den güldenen, silbernen und steinernen Bildern, durch menschliche Gedanken gemacht.
(So we/us because göttliches Geschlechts are, sollen we/us not meinen, the Godheit be gleich the güldenen, silbernen and steinernen Bildern, through menschliche Gedanken made.)
ClVg Genus ergo cum simus Dei, non debemus æstimare auro, aut argento, aut lapidi, sculpturæ artis, et cogitationis hominis, divinum esse simile.[fn]
(Genus therefore when/with simus of_God, not/no debemus æstimare with_gold, aut argento, aut lapidi, sculpturæ artis, and cogitationis of_man, divinum esse simile. )
17.29 Genus ergo, etc., non debemus. RAB. Homo in medio est, habens Deum superiorem, aurum ex argentum, cum cæteris hujusmodi inferiora, quæ non debent ei comparari.
17.29 Genus therefore, etc., non debemus. RAB. Homo in in_the_middle it_is, habens God superiorem, aurum from argentum, when/with cæteris huyusmodi inferiora, which not/no debent to_him comparari.
UGNT γένος οὖν ὑπάρχοντες τοῦ Θεοῦ, οὐκ ὀφείλομεν νομίζειν χρυσῷ, ἢ ἀργύρῳ, ἢ λίθῳ χαράγματι τέχνης καὶ ἐνθυμήσεως ἀνθρώπου, τὸ θεῖον εἶναι ὅμοιον.
(genos oun huparⱪontes tou Theou, ouk ofeilomen nomizein ⱪrusōi, aʸ argurōi, aʸ lithōi ⱪaragmati teⱪnaʸs kai enthumaʸseōs anthrōpou, to theion einai homoion.)
SBL-GNT γένος οὖν ὑπάρχοντες τοῦ θεοῦ οὐκ ὀφείλομεν νομίζειν χρυσῷ ἢ ἀργύρῳ ἢ λίθῳ, χαράγματι τέχνης καὶ ἐνθυμήσεως ἀνθρώπου, τὸ θεῖον εἶναι ὅμοιον.
(genos oun huparⱪontes tou theou ouk ofeilomen nomizein ⱪrusōi aʸ argurōi aʸ lithōi, ⱪaragmati teⱪnaʸs kai enthumaʸseōs anthrōpou, to theion einai homoion.)
TC-GNT § Γένος οὖν ὑπάρχοντες τοῦ Θεοῦ, οὐκ ὀφείλομεν νομίζειν χρυσῷ ἢ ἀργύρῳ ἢ λίθῳ, χαράγματι τέχνης καὶ ἐνθυμήσεως ἀνθρώπου, τὸ θεῖον εἶναι ὅμοιον.
( § Genos oun huparⱪontes tou Theou, ouk ofeilomen nomizein ⱪrusōi aʸ argurōi aʸ lithōi, ⱪaragmati teⱪnaʸs kai enthumaʸseōs anthrōpou, to theion einai homoion. )
Key for above GNTs: yellow:punctuation differs (from our SR-GNT base).
17:16-34 In this chapter, we see Paul presented as a model witness for Christ, engaging the thinkers of his day and challenging them with the Christian message. Paul quoted writers his audience would be familiar with and showed the relevance of the gospel by dialoguing with them, critiquing their assumptions, and offering Jesus as a constructive alternative (see Col 1:28). Paul reminded these proud intellectuals that there is a living God to whom all human beings are answerable; that they will be judged by him through Jesus, whom God raised from the dead; and that they should therefore repent and put their faith in Jesus.
The Unknown God
When Paul spoke to the Areopagus, the “high council of the city” of Athens (Acts 17:19), he was speaking to people who did not share his faith in the God of Abraham and Moses who had revealed himself “many times and in many ways to [his] ancestors through the prophets” (Heb 1:1). The members of his audience had a very different definition of the divine. A host of divinities inhabited their world, and the common people retained much of their belief in the ancient gods. But many of the cultural elite of Athens no longer believed in the gods in any literal sense. Instead, they held to either a form of materialism (the physical is everything) or pantheism (the divine inhabits everything).
What they all shared in common was the absence of the idea that there is one true God who is Lord of all. Their myths told of the activities of various gods, but they did not have faith that the ultimate reality, God himself, could be known. Instead, they reasoned and discussed “the latest ideas,” hoping for a better understanding of the nature of things.
There were a wide variety of philosophical ideas current in Athens when Paul visited, but two main schools of thought dominated, Stoicism and Epicureanism (Acts 17:18).
Zeno of Citium (334~262 BC) founded Stoicism. Stoics studied nature’s laws and believed in the Logos, a pervasive organizing and sustaining force that gives all things their essential nature and so gives life and reason to humanity. The good life is one in which reason rules, and peace of mind and harmony with nature prevail. Many prominent statesmen were Stoics or influenced by Stoicism, including Cicero, Seneca, and Marcus Aurelius. Stoic ideas proved attractive to some Christians because of the similarities between the Stoic logos and the divine Logos (John 1:1-18), and between the idea of natural law and the law of God.
Those who followed Epicurus (341–270 BC) were empiricists; they relied upon sense experience (as opposed to reason) for knowledge. Epicureans were concerned with natural evidence and were unenthusiastic about mathematics. Their focus was ethics, the study of right behavior; they judged the value of an action or thing in terms of the pleasure or pain it brought. Epicurus saw belief in gods (meddling and powerful beings who terrified ordinary mortals) as a serious threat to tranquility. For him and his followers, neither the gods nor death (which is the end) should be feared.
When Paul spoke in that context, he used their own poets to proclaim things that they could barely comprehend: That the God who made everything is both personal and knowable; that he revealed himself clearly, historically, and definitively in Jesus Christ; that death is not followed by either the cessation of existence or the migration of the soul, but by judgment; and that the proof of all of this is the resurrection of Christ from the dead.
What was foolishness to most of the Greeks of Athens turns out to be the ultimate truth: God is knowable, and can be known through Jesus Christ.
Passages for Further Study
Ps 50:7-15; Isa 42:5-7; Acts 17:16-32; Rom 1:18-32; Col 1:15-23; 2:6-12; 1 Thes 1:9-10; Heb 1:1-4
Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor
γένος & ὑπάρχοντες τοῦ Θεοῦ
descent & being ¬the ˱of˲_God
Paul is speaking as if people were literally God’s offspring or children. He means that God created people, and they are his creatures. If it would be clearer in your language, you could express this metaphor as a simile. Alternate translation: [being like God’s children]
Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / nominaladj
τὸ θεῖον
the divine
Paul is using the adjective Divine as a noun to mean God, who is divine. ULT capitalizes the word to show this. Your language may use adjectives in the same way. If not, you could translate this word with an equivalent phrase. Alternate translation: [God]
Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / metonymy
χρυσῷ, ἢ ἀργύρῳ, ἢ λίθῳ
˱about˲_gold or silver or /a/_stone
Paul is referring to idols by association with the materials out of which people made idols. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use an equivalent expression or express the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: [to idols made of gold or silver or stone]
Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / possession
χαράγματι τέχνης καὶ ἐνθυμήσεως ἀνθρώπου
mark ˱of˲_/the/_craft and thoughts ˱of˲_human_origin
Paul is using the possessive form not to mean images that resemble human skill and imagination but to describe the qualities that people use to create images or idols. Alternate translation: [images that people create by using their skill and imagination]
Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / gendernotations
ἀνθρώπου
˱of˲_human_origin
Although the term man is masculine, Paul is using the word in a generic sense that includes both men and women. If it would be helpful to your readers, you could use a term in your language that is clearly inclusive of both men and women. Alternate translation: [of humans]