The Meaning of Acts 22:12 Explained

Acts 22:12

KJV: And one Ananias, a devout man according to the law, having a good report of all the Jews which dwelt there,

YLT: and a certain one, Ananias, a pious man according to the law, being testified to by all the Jews dwelling there,

Darby: And a certain Ananias, a pious man according to the law, borne witness to by all the Jews who dwelt there,

ASV: And one Ananias, a devout man according to the law, well reported of by all the Jews that dwelt there,

KJV Reverse Interlinear

And  one  Ananias,  a devout  man  according  to the law,  having a good report  of  all  the Jews  which dwelt  [there], 

What does Acts 22:12 Mean?

Context Summary

Acts 22:1-16 - How His Life Was Changed
What a sermon Paul preached! His pulpit, the steps that ascended from the Temple level to the Castle of Antonia. His audience, the frenzied crowds who filled the court below him, but who were calmed to silence as they heard the venerable Hebrew speech, which was unintelligible to the Romans around them. His text, the real and personal interposition of the living Christ to arrest his course of persecution and convert him. Here was a fact, which to the Apostle was the greatest of all facts, namely, that he had seen Jesus Christ, and had been transformed by what he had seen and heard. No light thing could have revolutionized his life. His zeal for the Old Covenant and his persecution of the Christian sect were guarantees of his anti-Christian bias. He was not shallow or fickle, or likely to be moved by anything less than an imperative revelation.
We must obey a step at a time. God says much to us directly, but He loves to employ servants like Ananias, who live in immediate touch with Him. Paul never forgot that salutation, Brother. Be very careful how you treat young converts; they need the kindest and most sympathetic handling as they step out into their new life.
We are chosen of God for three things: to know His will; to see Him; and to hear His voice, Acts 22:14. [source]

Chapter Summary: Acts 22

1  Paul declares how he was converted to the faith,
17  and called to his apostleship
22  At the very mentioning of the Gentiles the people exclaim on him
24  He would have been scourged;
25  but claiming the privilege of a Roman, he escapes

Greek Commentary for Acts 22:12

A devout man according to the law [ευλαβης κατα τον νομον]
See note on Acts 2:5, note on Acts 8:2, and note on Luke 2:25 for the adjective ευλαβης — eulabēs Paul adds “according to the law” to show that he was introduced to Christianity by a devout Jew and no law-breaker (Lewin). [source]
A devout man, etc []
In Acts 9:10, he is called a disciple. Paul here “affirms that he was not introduced to Christianity by an opponent of Judaism, but by a strict Jew” (Gloag). [source]

Reverse Greek Commentary Search for Acts 22:12

Luke 2:25 Devout [ευλαβης]
Used only by Luke (Acts 2:5; Acts 8:2; Acts 22:12) in the N.T. Common in ancient Greek from Plato on. It means taking hold well or carefully (ευ — eu and λαβειν — labein) and so reverently, circumspectly. [source]
John 9:31 A worshipper of God [θεοσεβὴς]
Only here in the New Testament. The kindred word, θεοσέβεια , godliness, occurs only at 1 Timothy 2:10. Compounded with Θεός , God, and σέβομαι , to worship, the same verb which appears in εὐσεβής , devout (Acts 10:2, Acts 10:7; Acts 22:12), and εὐσέβεια , godliness (Acts 3:12; 1 Timothy 2:2, etc.). See on 2 Peter 1:3. These two latter words, while they may mean reverence toward God, may also mean the due fulfillment of human relations; while θεοσεβὴς , worshipper of God, is limited to piety towards God. [source]
Acts 8:2 Devout [ευλαβεις]
Only four times in the N.T. (Luke 2:25; Acts 2:5; Acts 8:2; Acts 22:12). Possibly some non-Christian Jews helped. The burial took place before the Christians were chiefly scattered. [source]
Acts 9:10 Ananias [ανανιας]
Name common enough (cf. Acts 5:1 for another Ananias) and means “Jehovah is gracious.” Nomen et omen (Knowling). This Ananias had the respect of both Jews and Christians in Damascus (Acts 22:12). [source]
Acts 9:10 In a vision [εν οραματι]
Zeller and others scout the idea of the historicity of this vision as supernatural. Even Furneaux holds that “it is a characteristic of the Jewish Christian sources to point out the Providential ordering of events by the literary device of a vision,” as “in the early chapters of Matthew‘s and Luke‘s Gospels.” He is content with this “beautiful expression of the belief” with no interest in the actual facts. But that is plain illusion, not to say delusion, and makes both Paul and Luke deceived by the story of Ananias (Acts 9:10-18; Acts 22:12-16, Acts 22:26). One MS. of the old Latin Version does omit the vision to Ananias and that is basis enough for those who deny the supernatural aspects of Christianity. [source]

What do the individual words in Acts 22:12 mean?

Ananias then certain a man devout according to the law borne witness to by all the dwelling [there] Jews
Ἁνανίας δέ τις ἀνὴρ εὐλαβὴς κατὰ τὸν νόμον μαρτυρούμενος ὑπὸ πάντων τῶν κατοικούντων Ἰουδαίων

Ἁνανίας  Ananias 
Parse: Noun, Nominative Masculine Singular
Root: Ἁνανίας  
Sense: a certain Christian at Jerusalem, the husband of Sapphira Acts 5:–6.
τις  certain 
Parse: Interrogative / Indefinite Pronoun, Nominative Masculine Singular
Root: τὶς  
Sense: a certain, a certain one.
ἀνὴρ  a  man 
Parse: Noun, Nominative Masculine Singular
Root: ἀνήρ  
Sense: with reference to sex.
εὐλαβὴς  devout 
Parse: Adjective, Nominative Masculine Singular
Root: εὐλαβής  
Sense: taking hold well.
κατὰ  according  to 
Parse: Preposition
Root: κατά 
Sense: down from, through out.
νόμον  law 
Parse: Noun, Accusative Masculine Singular
Root: νόμος  
Sense: anything established, anything received by usage, a custom, a law, a command.
μαρτυρούμενος  borne  witness  to 
Parse: Verb, Present Participle Middle or Passive, Nominative Masculine Singular
Root: μαρτυρέω  
Sense: to be a witness, to bear witness, i.e. to affirm that one has seen or heard or experienced something, or that he knows it because taught by divine revelation or inspiration.
κατοικούντων  dwelling  [there] 
Parse: Verb, Present Participle Active, Genitive Masculine Plural
Root: κατοικέω 
Sense: to dwell, settle.
Ἰουδαίων  Jews 
Parse: Adjective, Genitive Masculine Plural
Root: Ἰουδαῖος  
Sense: Jewish, belonging to the Jewish race.