Acts 21:9
New International Version
He had four unmarried daughters who prophesied.

New Living Translation
He had four unmarried daughters who had the gift of prophecy.

English Standard Version
He had four unmarried daughters, who prophesied.

Berean Standard Bible
He had four unmarried daughters who prophesied.

Berean Literal Bible
And with this man there were four daughters, virgins prophesying.

King James Bible
And the same man had four daughters, virgins, which did prophesy.

New King James Version
Now this man had four virgin daughters who prophesied.

New American Standard Bible
Now this man had four virgin daughters who were prophetesses.

NASB 1995
Now this man had four virgin daughters who were prophetesses.

NASB 1977
Now this man had four virgin daughters who were prophetesses.

Legacy Standard Bible
Now this man had four virgin daughters who prophesied.

Amplified Bible
He had four virgin daughters who had the gift of prophecy.

Christian Standard Bible
This man had four virgin daughters who prophesied.

Holman Christian Standard Bible
This man had four virgin daughters who prophesied.

American Standard Version
Now this man had four virgin daughters, who prophesied.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
And he had four virgin daughters who did prophesy.

Contemporary English Version
and he had four unmarried daughters who prophesied.

Douay-Rheims Bible
And he had four daughters, virgins, who did prophesy.

English Revised Version
Now this man had four daughters, virgins, which did prophesy.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
Philip had four unmarried daughters who had the ability to speak what God had revealed.

Good News Translation
He had four unmarried daughters who proclaimed God's message.

International Standard Version
He had four unmarried daughters who could prophesy.

Literal Standard Version
and this one had four daughters, virgins, prophesying.

Majority Standard Bible
He had four unmarried daughters who prophesied.

New American Bible
He had four virgin daughters gifted with prophecy.

NET Bible
(He had four unmarried daughters who prophesied.)

New Revised Standard Version
He had four unmarried daughters who had the gift of prophecy.

New Heart English Bible
Now this man had four virgin daughters who prophesied.

Webster's Bible Translation
And the same man had four daughters, virgins, who prophesied.

Weymouth New Testament
Now Philip had four unmarried daughters who were prophetesses;

World English Bible
Now this man had four virgin daughters who prophesied.

Young's Literal Translation
and this one had four daughters, virgins, prophesying.

Additional Translations ...
Audio Bible



Context
Paul Visits Philip the Evangelist
8Leaving the next day, we went on to Caesarea and stayed at the home of Philip the evangelist, who was one of the Seven. 9 He had four unmarried daughters who prophesied. 10After we had been there several days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea.…

Cross References
Ezekiel 13:17
Now, O son of man, set your face against the daughters of your people who prophesy out of their own imagination. Prophesy against them

Luke 2:36
There was also a prophetess named Anna, the daughter of Phanuel, of the tribe of Asher, who was well along in years. She had been married for seven years,

Acts 13:1
Now in the church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen (who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch), and Saul.

1 Corinthians 11:5
And every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head, for it is just as if her head were shaved.


Treasury of Scripture

And the same man had four daughters, virgins, which did prophesy.

virgins.

1 Corinthians 7:25-34,38
Now concerning virgins I have no commandment of the Lord: yet I give my judgment, as one that hath obtained mercy of the Lord to be faithful…

which.

Acts 2:17
And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:

Exodus 15:20
And Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a timbrel in her hand; and all the women went out after her with timbrels and with dances.

Judges 4:4
And Deborah, a prophetess, the wife of Lapidoth, she judged Israel at that time.

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Acts 21
1. Paul calls at the house of Philip, whose daughters prophesy.
10. Agabus, foretelling what should befall him at Jerusalem,
13. he will not be dissuaded from going thither.
17. He comes to Jerusalem;
27. where he is apprehended, and in great danger, but by the chief captain is rescued;
37. and requests, and is permitted to speak to the people.














(9) The same man had four daughters, virgins, which did prophesy.--Both elements of the description are full of interest as throwing light on the life of the Apostolic Church. (1) The four daughters were "virgins." The word then, as afterwards, probably indicated, not merely the bare fact that they were as yet unmarried, but that they had devoted themselves, if not by irrevocable vows, yet by a steadfast purpose, to that form of service. In the organisation of women's work in the Church they formed apparently a distinct class, the complement of that of the widows of 1Timothy 5:10. St. Paul had distinctly sanctioned such a life, as presenting a higher standard of excellence than the duties of domestic life (1Corinthians 7:8), and on grounds which, in their general character, went beyond the "present distress" of a time of persecution (1Corinthians 7:26; 1Corinthians 7:34). It was, indeed, a matter on which he had no commandment from the Lord (1Corinthians 7:25), and in which he was therefore open to the teachings of experience, and these seem to have modified his judgment at a later date, and led him to the conclusion that it was better that the younger "widows" should marry (1Timothy 5:14), and that they should only be received into the list of those who were maintained by the Church in return for their services as "widows," at a more advanced age (1Timothy 5:9). The order of "virgin," however, continued to exist, and the term Virgo, sometimes with Ancilla Domini (the handmaid of the Lord; comp. Romans 16:1) added to it, is found in the inscriptions from the catacombs now in the Museums of the Collegio Romano and the Lateran. So Pliny, in his letter to Trajan (Ep. 10 ? 6), speaks of the women who were then called ministrae among the Christians, the latter term being probably used as the equivalent for "deaconesses." (2) These virgins "prophesied." The word comprised much more than mere prediction of the future, and included all words that came into the mind of the speaker as an inspiration, and to the hearers as a message from God. (Comp. Notes on Acts 2:17; Acts 19:6; 1Corinthians 14:24-25.) In other words, they preached. We ask when, and where? Did they prophesy in the assemblies of the Church? It is true that St. Paul had forbidden this at Corinth (1Corinthians 14:34), and forbade it afterwards at Ephesus (1Timothy 2:12); but the very prohibition proves that the practice was common (see also 1Corinthians 11:5), and it does not follow that St. Paul's rules of discipline as yet obtained in all the churches. It is perfectly possible, however, that they may have confined their ministrations to those of their own sex, and, accompanying their father in his missionary journeys, have gained access to women, both among Jews and Gentiles, and brought them to the knowledge of the Truth. It is obvious that the services of women, acting as deaconesses, would be needed as a matter of decorum in the baptism of female converts. . . . Verse 9. - Now this man for and the same man, A.V. Virgins. This certainly conveys the impression that they had dedicated their lives to the service of God (1 Corinthians 7:34-38). Which did prophesy. The question arises - Did they exercise their gift of prophecy in the Church or in private? The passage 1 Corinthians 11:5 seems to indicate that in the Church of Corinth women did pray and prophesy in the congregation, while, on the other hand, 1 Corinthians 14:34, 35 seems peremptorily to forbid women to speak or teach in Church, as does 1 Timothy 2:11, 12. How, then, is this apparent contradiction to be reconciled? It must be either by supposing

(1) that the gift of prophecy spoken of here and in 1 Corinthians 11:5 was exercised in private only; or

(2) that the prohibition did not apply to the extraordinary operation of the Holy Spirit speaking by prophet or prophetesses as the case might be. The latter seems the most probable (see Acts 13:1, note). On the office of prophets in the early Church, see Acts 11:27; Acts 13:1; Acts 15:32; Acts 19:6; Romans 12:6; 1 Corinthians 12:10, 28, 29; 1 Corinthians 13:2, 8; 1 Corinthians 14:6, 29, etc.; Ephesians 3:5; Ephesians 4:11; 1 Thessalonians 5:20 (see Alford, on Acts 11:27). As regards these daughters of Philip, there are conflicting statements in early Church writers. Eusebius ('Eccl. Hist.,' 3:30) quotes Clement of Alexandria as saying that both Peter and Philip among the apostles were married and had children, and that Philip moreover gave his daughters in marriage to husbands. But in the next chapter

(3) he quotes Polycrates, Bishop of Ephesus at the end of the second century, as saying that Philip the apostle and his two daughters, who had grown old in their virginity, were buried at Hierapolis; and that another daughter of his, "who had her conversation in the Holy Spirit," was buried at Ephesus. Eusebius himself thinks that these daughters of Philip the evangelist were meant. If they were, it does not necessarily follow that those who, according to Clemens Alexandrinus, were married were of the four mentioned here. They might be sisters. Polycrates seems to speak of three sisters who lived a religious life (in the technical sense); the fourth may have died young. But it is quite possible that Clemens may really be speaking of Philip the apostle, and Polycrates also; the more so as Philip the apostle, according to the tradition recorded by Nicephorns, suffered martyrdom at Hierapolis. However, the confusion between the two Philips is quite certain in the Menaeum (or Calendar) of the Greek Church, where we read, "On the 4th of September is the commemoration of Saint Hermione, one of the four daughters of the Apostle Philip, who baptized the eunuch of Candace. She and her sister Eutychis came into Asia after the death of the Apostle John. She was buried at Ephesus." A fragment of Caius (in Eusebius, 'Eccl. Hist.,' 3:31) increases the confusion by speaking of" the four daughters of Philip, prophetesses, who were buried in Hierapolis" (see Routh's 'Reliq. Sac.,' vol. 1. pp. 378-380).

Parallel Commentaries ...


Greek
[He]
τούτῳ (toutō)
Demonstrative Pronoun - Dative Masculine Singular
Strong's 3778: This; he, she, it.

had
ἦσαν (ēsan)
Verb - Imperfect Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural
Strong's 1510: I am, exist. The first person singular present indicative; a prolonged form of a primary and defective verb; I exist.

four
τέσσαρες (tessares)
Adjective - Nominative Feminine Plural
Strong's 5064: Four. Or neuter tessara a plural number; four.

unmarried
παρθένοι (parthenoi)
Noun - Nominative Feminine Plural
Strong's 3933: Of unknown origin; a maiden; by implication, an unmarried daughter.

daughters
θυγατέρες (thygateres)
Noun - Nominative Feminine Plural
Strong's 2364: Apparently a primary word; a female child, or descendant.

who prophesied.
προφητεύουσαι (prophēteuousai)
Verb - Present Participle Active - Nominative Feminine Plural
Strong's 4395: From prophetes; to foretell events, divine, speak under inspiration, exercise the prophetic office.


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