Acts 28:26

“saying, ‘Go to this people and say, “You will indeed hear and never understand, and you will indeed see and never perceive.”
Acts 28:26 · direct translation from the Greek

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With the Greek beneath

saying,λέγων‘GoΠορεύθητιtoπρὸςthisτοῦτονpeopleτὸν λαὸνandκαὶsay,εἰπόν“You will indeed hearἈκοῇ ἀκούσετεandκαὶneverοὐ μὴunderstand,συνῆτεandκαὶyou will indeed seeβλέποντες βλέψετεandκαὶneverοὐ μὴperceive.ἴδητε

Quotation · Isaiah 6:9-10

Go to Isaiah 6:9-10

Paul quotes Isaiah 6:9-10 at the end of Acts and attributes it to the Holy Spirit (28:25). Like Matthew 13:15, he tells it as a fact: “the heart of this people has grown fat.”

Formula: λέγων “saying” (Acts 28:26)

See the original texts

Greek of the New Testament: λέγων Πορεύθητι πρὸς τὸν λαὸν τοῦτον καὶ εἰπόν Ἀκοῇ ἀκούσετε καὶ οὐ μὴ συνῆτε καὶ βλέποντες βλέψετε καὶ οὐ μὴ ἴδητε ἐπαχύνθη γὰρ ἡ καρδία τοῦ λαοῦ τούτου καὶ τοῖς ὠσὶν βαρέως ἤκουσαν καὶ τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς αὐτῶν ἐκάμμυσαν μήποτε ἴδωσιν τοῖς ὀφθαλμοῖς καὶ τοῖς ὠσὶν ἀκούσωσιν καὶ τῇ καρδίᾳ συνῶσιν καὶ ἐπιστρέψωσιν καὶ ἰάσομαι αὐτούς

Hebrew (Masoretic text): וַיֹּאמֶר לֵךְ וְאָמַרְתָּ לָעָם הַזֶּה שִׁמְעוּ שָׁמוֹעַ וְאַל תָּבִינוּ וּרְאוּ רָאוֹ וְאַל תֵּדָעוּ הַשְׁמֵן לֵב הָעָם הַזֶּה וְאָזְנָיו הַכְבֵּד וְעֵינָיו הָשַׁע פֶּן יִרְאֶה בְעֵינָיו וּבְאָזְנָיו יִשְׁמָע וּלְבָבוֹ יָבִין וָשָׁב וְרָפָא לוֹ

Septuagint (Isaiah 6:8-10 in the Septuagint numbering): καὶ ἥκουσα τῆς φωνῆς Κυρίου λέγοντος Τίνα ἀποστείλω, καὶ τίς πορεύσεται πρὸς τὸν λαὸν τοῦτον; καὶ εἶπα Ἰδού εἰμι ἐγώ· ἀπόστειλόν με. καὶ εἶπεν Πορεύθητι καὶ εἰπὸν τῷ λαῷ τούτῳ Ἀκοῇ ἀκούσετε καὶ οὐ μὴ συνῆτε, καὶ βλέποντες βλέψετε καὶ οὐ μὴ ἴδητε. ἐπαχύνθη γὰρ ἡ καρδία τοῦ λαοῦ τούτου, καὶ τοῖς ὠσὶν αὐτῶν βαρέως ἥκουσαν, καὶ τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς αὐτῶν ἐκάμμυσαν, μή ποτε ἴδωσιν τοῖς ὀφθαλμοῖς καὶ τοῖς ὠσὶν ἀκούσωσιν, καὶ τῇ καρδίᾳ συνῶσιν καὶ ἐπιστρέψωσιν, καὶ ἰάσομαι αὐτούς.

The Greek of the NT matches the Septuagint word for word in 23 consecutive words: “Ἀκοῇ ἀκούσετε καὶ οὐ μὴ συνῆτε καὶ βλέποντες βλέψετε καὶ οὐ μὴ ἴδητε ἐπαχύνθη γὰρ ἡ καρδία τοῦ λαοῦ τούτου καὶ τοῖς ὠσὶν.”

Septuagint, Swete’s text, First1KGreek transcription (with reading errors), CC BY-SA 4.0

Acts 28:26, word by word

sayingλέγωνlegōn

say

To express something in words to others.

Where else “legōn” appears

‘GoΠορεύθητιPoreuthēti

To go somewhere, set out.

Where else “Poreuthēti” appears

peopleλαὸνlaon

people

A people, above all Israel, God's people.

Where else “laon” appears

“You will indeed hearἈκοῇAkoēi

hearing

The ability to perceive sounds and words; repeated, it stresses truly listening.

Where else “Akoēi” appears

“You will indeed hearἀκούσετεakousete

hear

To perceive a sound, a voice or words with the ears.

Where else “akousete” appears

understandσυνῆτεsynēte

understand

Understand, grasp.

Where else “synēte” appears

you will indeed seeβλέποντεςblepontes

see

To use the eyes to perceive something; also to look with intent.

Where else “blepontes” appears

perceiveἴδητεidēte

perceive

To realize, understand.

Where else “idēte” appears

Translation note

Isaiah 6:9-10, quoted the same as in Matthew 13:14-15.

Parallel passages

Other books that tell the same thing or quote these words.

Quotation · Isaiah 6:9-10

Paul quotes Isaiah 6:9-10 at the end of Acts and attributes it to the Holy Spirit (28:25). Like Matthew 13:15, he tells it as a fact: “the heart of this people has grown fat.”

See them side by side

Acts 28:26

²⁶saying, ‘Go to this people and say, “You will indeed hear and never understand, and you will indeed see and never perceive.

Isaiah 6:9-10

⁹And he said, “Go, and say to this people, ‘Keep hearing, but do not understand; keep seeing, but do not know.’

The context

25And being in disagreement with one another, they began to leave, after Paul had said one word: “Well did the Holy Spirit speak through Isaiah the prophet to your fathers,

26 · This verse (above)

27For the heart of this people has grown dull, and with their ears they have heard with difficulty, and they have closed their eyes, so that they do not see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their heart and turn, and I will heal them.”’

Read all of Acts 28

To study Acts 28 in a group

1. What it says
How did the people of Malta treat the shipwrecked, and what happened to Paul and the viper? (vv. 1-6)
2. What it means
The last verses say Paul proclaimed the kingdom of God "without hindrance" (vv. 30-31). What does it suggest to you that the book ends this way?
3. How I live it
The people of the island welcomed strangers with kindness (v. 2). Whom could you welcome or help this week?

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