Acts 22 18

Acts 22:18 kjv

And saw him saying unto me, Make haste, and get thee quickly out of Jerusalem: for they will not receive thy testimony concerning me.

Acts 22:18 nkjv

and saw Him saying to me, 'Make haste and get out of Jerusalem quickly, for they will not receive your testimony concerning Me.'

Acts 22:18 niv

and saw the Lord speaking to me. 'Quick!' he said. 'Leave Jerusalem immediately, because the people here will not accept your testimony about me.'

Acts 22:18 esv

and saw him saying to me, 'Make haste and get out of Jerusalem quickly, because they will not accept your testimony about me.'

Acts 22:18 nlt

I saw a vision of Jesus saying to me, 'Hurry! Leave Jerusalem, for the people here won't accept your testimony about me.'

Acts 22 verses

Acts 22 18 Meaning

Acts 22:18 recounts a pivotal vision in which the risen Lord Jesus commanded Paul to depart Jerusalem immediately and with urgency. The divine directive stemmed from Jesus' foreknowledge that the inhabitants of Jerusalem, particularly the Jewish people, would unequivocally reject Paul's testimony about Him. This served as a crucial redirection for Paul's early ministry, signifying God's sovereign strategy in the propagation of the Gospel.

Acts 22 18 Context

Acts 22:18 is part of Paul's impassioned defense before the hostile Jewish crowd in Jerusalem (Acts 21:37–22:21) following his arrest. After describing his dramatic conversion experience on the road to Damascus, Paul recounts a subsequent, less-known vision that occurred during his first return to Jerusalem as a believer (Acts 9:26-30; Gal 1:18). While praying in the revered Temple, the very heart of Jewish worship and his former zealous domain, Paul receives a direct revelation from the resurrected Jesus. This particular command explains why Paul, despite his deep Jewish heritage and desire to minister to his own people, ultimately focused his mission away from Jerusalem and towards the Gentiles. It provides a divine explanation for the direction of his apostolic ministry, demonstrating that it was not a personal preference but an explicit instruction from Christ Himself, preempting inevitable rejection.

Acts 22 18 Word analysis

• and saw Him saying: This indicates Paul had a direct, visual, and auditory encounter with Jesus, much like his Damascus Road experience. "Him" explicitly refers to the risen Lord Jesus. This personal revelation establishes the indisputable divine authority behind the subsequent command and emphasizes Jesus' active involvement in directing His apostles.
• to me: The instruction was highly personal and specific to Paul, not a general directive for all.
• ‘Make haste: Greek: σπεῦσον (speuson). This imperative signifies extreme urgency and immediate action. Paul was not to deliberate but to act quickly.
• and get out of Jerusalem: A precise geographical command to physically depart from the sacred city. Despite Jerusalem's religious significance, it was a place of rejection for Paul's specific testimony, thus a place to leave for strategic reasons.
• quickly: Reinforces the "Make haste," using another term emphasizing speed and no delay. The situation demanded a swift exit.
• for they will not accept: Greek: οὐ γὰρ δέξονταί (ou gar dexontai). This is a strong negative prediction, indicating a certainty of non-acceptance and spiritual resistance. "They" refers primarily to the Jewish populace of Jerusalem listening to Paul's testimony.
• your testimony: Refers to Paul's personal witness, informed by his encounter with Christ and his understanding of the Gospel message. It was a testimony about what God had done in Christ and through Paul.
• about Me’: Clearly identifies the core subject of Paul's witness: the person, identity, and saving work of Jesus Christ. This underscores the Christ-centered nature of Paul’s preaching.

Words-group by words-group analysis:

• "and saw Him saying to me": Paul’s claim of a direct, personal, and vivid encounter with the resurrected Christ lends immense, irrefutable divine authority to his subsequent apostolic calling and decisions. It presents his Gentile mission not as a deviation but as a divinely ordered path.
• "Make haste and get out of Jerusalem quickly": This group of words emphasizes a firm, urgent, and unambiguous command for immediate physical removal from Jerusalem. This divine "evacuation" serves both to protect Paul from hostility and to strategically direct the mission where the Gospel might be more effectively received.
• "for they will not accept your testimony about Me": This phrase provides the explicit divine rationale behind the command. It's a sobering statement about the determined resistance and unresponsiveness of a specific audience to the core truth of the Gospel. It underscores the reality that rejection is a part of missionary endeavor and that God in His sovereignty sometimes re-directs His messengers from hardened hearts.

Acts 22 18 Bonus section

This divine instruction serves as part of Paul’s defense, validating his later focus on Gentile ministry. It demonstrates that his actions were not based on personal preference or ambition, but on explicit, repeated directives from the resurrected Lord. For Paul, a zealous Jew deeply attached to his people, accepting this command would have required immense personal humility and faith, as it meant leaving the spiritual center of his heritage. This episode parallels the concept of shaking the dust off one's feet (Matthew 10:14) when the Gospel is rejected, but it is delivered as a direct prophetic word from Jesus Himself, offering a rare glimpse into the specific strategic counsel God provides for His servants in ministry. It illustrates that effective missionary work often involves recognizing unresponsive ground and seeking new, more receptive fields under divine guidance.

Acts 22 18 Commentary

Acts 22:18 is a cornerstone passage, revealing divine guidance for Paul's missionary strategy. Praying in the very heart of Judaism, Paul received a direct vision and explicit command from the risen Jesus, not an inference or human calculation. The urgency to "make haste and get out of Jerusalem quickly" stemmed from Jesus' sovereign foreknowledge that the local Jewish populace would remain obstinately unreceptive to Paul's testimony about Christ. This command was not a reflection of Paul's failure or cowardice, but rather a strategic divine redirection, affirming the sorrowful reality of the Gospel's rejection by many, even within God's chosen people. Ultimately, this divine counsel pivoted Paul towards his global mission to the Gentiles, confirming his apostleship was directed by the Lord Himself, not by human will or circumstance.