Verse Lens · Concise explanation
Acts 23:5 Explained in Context
Use this verse as a doorway into the larger passage—not as an isolated saying.
Verse 5. 5Then said Paul, I wist not, brethren, that he was the high priest: for it is written, Thou shalt not speak evil of the ruler of thy people.
King James Version — public domain in the United States · Bible text and permissions
Quick Meaning
Records Paul's claimed ignorance and Torah-based correction.
Read It With
- Acts 23:1–23:5
Read Acts 23:5 with 23:1–23:5. In isolation, this contribution—records Paul's claimed ignorance and Torah-based correction—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 says he has lived with good conscience, the high priest orders him struck, Paul condemns the illegal blow, and then withdraws the insult when told the speaker is high priest, citing Torah.
What Remains True
Acts 23:5's particular contribution—records Paul's claimed ignorance and Torah-based correction—shows that faithful witness remains accountable to the verse's speaker, narrated setting, affected people, and the complete movement of Acts 23:1–23:5.
How It Can Shape Life
- Practice Acts 23:5's particular contribution—records Paul's claimed ignorance and Torah-based correction—through this passage-controlled response: Challenge unlawful violence respectfully, correct speech when warranted, and keep conscience claims open to evidence and accountability.
Continue in Context
The full thought-unit study remains the final contextual authority for this Verse Lens.
Read Acts 23:1–23:5 — Paul's conscience claim meets an unlawful blowSources 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 23:1–23:5, 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 23:1-23:5
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 23:1-23:5
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 23:1–23:5
Open source ↗