Acts 11:28 NIV

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Acts 11:27-30

When our Lord Jesus ascended on high he gave gifts unto men, not only apostles and evangelists, but prophets, who were enabled by the Spirit to foresee and foretel things to come, which not only served for a confirmation of the truth of Christianity (for all that these prophets foretold came to pass, which proved that they were sent of God, Deut. 18:22; Jer. 28:9), but was also of great use to the church, and served very much for its guidance. Now here we have, I. A visit which some of these... read more

William Barclay

William Barclay's Daily Study Bible - Acts 11:27-30

11:27-30 In these days prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. One of them called Agabus stood up and, through the Holy Spirit, gave a sign that a great famine was to come upon the whole land. This happened in the reign of Claudius. But each of the disciples, in proportion to his resources, fixed upon an amount for a relief fund to send to the brethren who lived in Judaea. This they did and despatched it to the elders through the hands of Barnabas and Saul. Here the prophets come... read more

John Gill

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Acts 11:28

And there stood up one of them named Agabus ,.... The same name with Hagaba in Nehemiah 7:48 and with Hagabah, or Hagab in Ezra 2:45 and which the Septuagint there call Agaba and Agab. The name signifies a "grasshopper", Leviticus 11:22 or "a locust", 2 Chronicles 7:13 . In a book that goes under the name of Jerom F18 De nominibus Hebraicis, fol. 101. H. , it is interpreted, "a messenger of tribulation"; respecting, it may be, not the true signification of the word, as the... read more

Adam Clarke

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Acts 11:28

Agabus - This prophet, of whom we know nothing, is once more mentioned, Acts 21:10 . He was probably a Jew, but whether converted now to Christianity we cannot tell. Great dearth throughout all the world - The words εφ ' ὁλην την οικουμενην probably here mean the land of Judea; though sometimes by this phrase the whole Roman empire is intended. In the former sense the disciples appear to have understood it, as the next verse informs us; for they determined to send relief to their... read more

John Calvin

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Acts 11:28

Verse 28 28.He signified by the Spirit. Luke doth plainly express that the Spirit of God was the author of this prophecy, that we may know that it was not a conjecture taken by the stars, or some other natural causes; again, that Agabus did not play the philosopher after the manner of men, but he uttered that which God had appointed by the secret inspiration of the Spirit. Barrenness may indeed be sometimes foretold by the disposition of the stars, but there is no certainty in such... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Acts 11:1-28

The mystery. The beginning and the close of this chapter refer to events of precisely similar character, which took place almost simultaneously, at all events without any concert or communication, in Palestine and in Syria; the reception of the Word of God by Gentiles, and their admission into the Church of God. It is difficult for us, after the lapse of eighteen centuries and a half, during which this has been the rule of the kingdom of heaven, to realize the startling strangeness of such... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Acts 11:27-30

God's bounty and our well-being. The reference, in these verses, to "a great dearth throughout all the world" ( Acts 11:28 ), and to the sending of relief by the disciples, according to their several ability, to the brethren in Judaea ( Acts 11:29 ), may suggest to us thoughts concerning the provision which God has made for us in his Divine goodness and also in his Divine wisdom. We look at— I. HIS PROVISION FOR OUR TEMPORAL WELL - BEING . The great multitudes of... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Acts 11:27-30

Practical sympathy between Jew and Gentile. I. The test of REAL UNION must be an appeal to self-sacrifice. Antioch was wealthy; Judaea was poor. The prophets came from Jerusalem; the return was relief sent to poor brethren, both as a sign of obedience to the Spirit and as a pledge of future oneness. There could be no more decided evidence that the Gentile converts were really incorporated into the apostolic Church. II. The prophetic element quite consistent with the maintenance... read more

Spence, H. D. M., etc.

The Pulpit Commentary - Acts 11:28

A great famine for great dearth, A.V.; over for throughout, A.V.; Claudius for Claudius Caesar, A.V. and T.R. The world ; ἡ οἰκουμένη , the inhabited earth, the common expression for the whole Roman empire. But the expression must be taken bore as hyperbolical, just as Josephus says that Ahab sent messengers to search for Elijah, κατὰ πᾶσαν τὴν οικουμένην , where, of course, only the neighboring countries to Judaea can be meant, strictly speaking ('Ant. Jud.,'8. 13.4).... read more

Albert Barnes

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Acts 11:28

Named Agabus - This man is mentioned but in one other place in the New Testament. In Acts 21:10-11, he is referred to as having foretold that Paul would be delivered into the hands of the Gentiles. It is not expressly said that he was a Christian, but the connection seems to imply that he was.And signified - See John 12:33. The word usually denotes “to indicate by signs, or with a degree of obscurity and uncertainty, not to declare in explicit language.” But here it seems to denote simply “to... read more

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Acts 11:27-30

William Barclay's Daily Study Bible - Acts 11:27-30

John Gills Exposition of the Bible Commentary - Acts 11:28

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible - Acts 11:28

John Calvin's Commentary on the Bible - Acts 11:28

The Pulpit Commentary - Acts 11:1-28

The Pulpit Commentary - Acts 11:27-30

The Pulpit Commentary - Acts 11:27-30

The Pulpit Commentary - Acts 11:28

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Whole Bible - Acts 11:28

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