Verse Lens · Concise explanation
Acts 20:21 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 21. 21Testifying both to the Jews, and also to the Greeks, repentance toward God, and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
Summarizes testimony to Jews and Greeks as repentance and faith.
Miletus hears a servant's record and a life placed below a finished witness
This verse is one part of that explanation in Acts 20:17–20:24. The complete section carries the connected meaning and how it should shape life.
Read It With
- Acts 20:17–20:24
Read Acts 20:21 with 20:17–20:24. In isolation, this contribution—summarizes testimony to Jews and Greeks as repentance and faith—can be mistaken for the scene's whole claim, detached from its speaker or narrator, or separated from its outcome. The complete unit establishes: Paul summons Ephesian elders to Miletus, recalls humble and tearful public and household teaching amid plots, summarizes repentance and faith, and says the Spirit-bound journey matters more than preserving his life if he completes his witness.
What Remains True
Acts 20:21's particular contribution—summarizes testimony to Jews and Greeks as repentance and faith—shows that faithful witness remains accountable to the verse's speaker, narrated setting, affected people, and the complete movement of Acts 20:17–20:24.
Continue in Context
Read the complete section for the connected explanation and how it should shape life. This verse is a doorway into that passage, not a saying that stands alone.
Read Acts 20:17–20:24 — Paul reviews his service and accepts a costly courseSources used for this Verse Lens
How certain is this explanation? strong
These are the sources used directly for this lens. Language, grammar, disagreements, and the complete source shelf remain attached to the full thought-unit research record.
Biblical text
King James (Authorized) Version — eng-kjv2006
eBible.org and CrossWire Bible Society
USFM archive eng-kjv2006_usfm.zip; source files dated 2026-08-19; downloaded 2026-08-24; archive SHA-256 aec1b3b26c622fd3d963d2bbac963016b9513246ffbfa20da00bb100372ea007; normalized corpus SHA-256 09aef51d90488aa7b9722b3fd9a93f4b25f6bf2064c5fd798fb39673c300ddf2.
Supports: Exact displayed KJV wording, order, paragraph metadata, supplied-word markup, and unit coverage.
Exact location: Acts 20:17–20:24, pinned eng-kjv2006 USFM-derived repository corpus
Open source ↗Greek textual evidence
The Greek New Testament: SBL Edition
Michael W. Holmes, editor; Society of Biblical Literature and Logos
Society of Biblical Literature and Logos Bible Software, 2010
Supports: Greek wording and punctuation control, without pretending one edition is a complete apparatus.
Exact location: SBLGNT official text, Acts 20:17-20:24
Open the Acts Greek text file ↗Lexical and grammatical evidence
STEP Bible Data
Tyndale House Cambridge
Tyndale House Cambridge, repository snapshot verified 2026
Supports: Morphology and lexical cross-check for words explicitly discussed in this unit.
Exact location: STEP Bible Data, TAGNT rows for Acts 20:17-20:24
Open source ↗open translation and translator notes
NET Bible First Edition Notes: Acts
Biblical Studies Press
Biblical Studies Press, 2006
Supports: Verse-attached textual, translation, language, geography, chronology, and historical notes actually printed for the unit.
Exact location: NET Bible First Edition Acts PDF, printed pp. 2104-2205, exact tn/tc/sn entries attached to 20:17–20:24
Open source ↗