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Acts 11:28

King James Version (KJV)

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— D.L. Moody

Acts 11:28

Verse 28 of 30

Scripture focus

And there stood up one of them named Agabus, and signified by the spirit that there should be great dearth throughout all the world: which came to pass in the days of Claudius Caesar.

Acts 11:28 — KJV

Commentary

Commentary on Acts 11:28

Theological / Devotional

Agabus. The same prophet appears later in the narrative at Caesarea (ch. 21:10, 11).

Signified by the Spirit. Compare the statement of ch. 21:11.

Great dearth. This famine is probably that mentioned by Josephus (Antiquities xx. 2.5), who tells how Helena, queen of Adiabene, east of the Tigris, while visiting at Jerusalem helped the people by obtaining for them corn from Alexandria and dried figs from Cyprus. This famine may be seen as a partial fulfillment of Jesus’ prophecy in Matt. 24:7. For its bearing on NT chronology see pp. 98, 100; Additional Notes on ch. 12, Note 1.

World. Gr. oikoumene, a word referring to the inhabited earth. In Luke 2:1 ; 4:5, and elsewhere in the NT, it is used for the Roman Empire.

Claudius Caesar. Textual evidence attests (cf. p. 10) the omission of “Caesar.” The reign of Claudius lasted from A.D. 41 to 54, which period was memorable for frequent famines (Suetonius Claudius xviii. 2; Tacitus Annals xii. 43).

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