Semantic Analysis

Semantic Analysis — Acts (Full Book) — English → Nepali

Methodology

This analysis follows the Romans Language Package baseline exactly where terms recur (translation reused verbatim, risk tier reused verbatim) and extends the package with new terms required by Acts. For every load-bearing term the following fields are given: Original (Koine Greek), Transliteration, Literal meaning, Semantic range, English variants (how English versions render it), Contextual theological meaning, and Nepali rendering risk. Chapters that introduce no new theological vocabulary state this explicitly and cross-reference the chapter where the term first occurs. Baseline-established terms are marked [BASELINE — REUSE]; new terms are marked [NEW — ACTS].

Doctrines governing this curriculum: The Holy Spirit and Pentecost; The Gospel to Jews and Gentiles; Repentance and Baptism; The Church as Community; Apostolic Authority and Miracles; Persecution and Bold Witness; Conversion of Paul; Justification apart from the Law; The Great Commission Fulfilled.

PART 1 — CORE PASSAGE: Acts 2:1-41 (Verse-by-Verse)

Acts 2:1

Πεντηκοστή (Pentēkostē) — “fiftieth [day].” [NEW — ACTS]

Semantic range: the Jewish Feast of Weeks (Shavuot), fifty days after Passover, celebrating the giving of the Torah at Sinai and the firstfruits harvest.
English variants: Pentecost; Feast of Weeks.
Contextual meaning: Luke deliberately sets the giving of the Spirit on the day traditionally associated with the giving of the Law — a new covenant counterpart to Sinai.
Nepali rendering: पेन्तिकोस (Pentikos, transliteration retained as a proper festival name). Risk: Medium. No natural Nepali equivalent exists; a brief explanatory gloss is needed for readers unfamiliar with the Jewish calendar. Doctrine: The Holy Spirit and Pentecost.

Acts 2:2-4

πνοή βιαία (“violent wind/breath”) and γλῶσσαι ὡσεὶ πυρός (“tongues as of fire”) — theophanic imagery, not separate glossary terms but noting Spirit-wind/fire symbolism echoed from Hebrew ruach and Sinai imagery (Exodus 19). No new risk term required; flag for translators as literary/theophanic imagery to render literally without domesticating into local nature-spirit language.

πλησθέντες Πνεύματος Ἁγίου (“filled with the Holy Spirit”) — reuses holy_spirit [BASELINE — REUSE] पवित्र आत्मा (Critical). Contextual meaning here: the definitive, once-for-all inaugurating fullness of the Spirit poured out corporately on the gathered disciples, not a repeatable ecstatic possession event.

ἐλάλουν ἑτέραις γλώσσαις (“began to speak in other tongues”) [NEW — ACTS]

γλῶσσα (glōssa): literally “tongue”; semantic range covers the physical organ, a human language, and (here) a Spirit-given utterance in a language not previously learned.
English variants: tongues; other languages; other tongues.
Contextual theological meaning: a sign accompanying the Spirit’s outpouring, immediately intelligible as real human languages (v.6, 8, 11) — not unintelligible ecstatic speech in this instance.
Nepali rendering: अन्य भाषा (anya bhasha) / verb phrase “अन्य भाषामा बोल्नु.” Risk: High. Nepal’s indigenous shamanic traditions (dhami-jhankri trance practice, common in hill and Himalayan communities) feature spirit-possession trance speech; the Nepali rendering and any accompanying teaching material must clearly frame this as intelligible, Spirit-given human language for gospel proclamation, not an impersonal trance possession phenomenon. Doctrine: The Holy Spirit and Pentecost.

Acts 2:5-8

διάλεκτος (dialektos, “dialect/native language”) — minor descriptive term reinforcing the tongues-as-real-languages point; no separate risk entry needed beyond the tongues entry above.

Acts 2:9-11

List of nations/peoples (Parthians, Medes, Elamites, etc.) — proper nouns, no theological rendering risk; theological significance (foreshadowing the universal, Jew-and-Gentile scope of the gospel even within the diaspora-Jewish audience) is carried by context, not vocabulary, and connects forward to the doctrine Gospel to Jews and Gentiles.

Acts 2:12-13

Amazement and mockery (“they are filled with new wine”) — contrastive irony against “filled with the Holy Spirit” (v.4); no new glossary term, reuse holy_spirit.

Acts 2:14-21 (Peter cites Joel 2:28-32)

ἐν ταῖς ἐσχάταις ἡμέραις (“in the last days”) [NEW — ACTS]

Literal: “in the last/final days.”
Semantic range: the eschatological era inaugurated by the Messiah’s first coming, running until his return.
Contextual meaning: Pentecost itself is presented as the beginning of the promised last days, not merely a future event.
Nepali: अन्तिम दिनहरू. Risk: Low-Medium. Straightforward, but should be distinguished from cyclical Hindu yuga eschatology (declining ages within an endless cosmic cycle) — the biblical “last days” are linear and move toward a definite consummation, not a recurring dissolution/re-creation.

ἐκχεῶ ἀπὸ τοῦ Πνεύματός μου (“I will pour out my Spirit”) [NEW — ACTS]

ἐκχέω (ekcheō): literally “to pour out, spill out.”
Semantic range: liquid pouring; figuratively, lavish, abundant divine bestowal.
English variants: pour out; pour forth.
Contextual meaning: God’s abundant, universal (v.17, “all flesh”) self-giving of the Spirit, marking the new covenant era.
Nepali: खन्याउनु. Risk: Medium. No indigenous ritual collision, but the universality clause (“on all flesh… sons and daughters… menservants and maidservants”) must be translated without softening, given its direct relevance to caste- and gender-based exclusion patterns in Nepali social history. Cross-reference doctrine: Universal Scope of the Gospel (Romans baseline) and Gospel to Jews and Gentiles.

προφητεύσουσιν (“shall prophesy”) — reuses prophecy [BASELINE — REUSE] अगमवाणी (Low), verb form अगमवाणी बोल्नु / भविष्यवाणी गर्नु. Contextual note: prophecy here is Spirit-enabled proclamation, not astrological or fortune-telling prediction, and — significantly — is extended to “sons and daughters,” breaking gendered access to the prophetic role.

σημεῖα καὶ τέρατα (“signs and wonders”) — see full entry under Chapter 2 summary term list below; reuse Acts-wide term established here. [NEW — ACTS, first occurrence]

ἡμέρα Κυρίου (“the day of the Lord”) — eschatological judgment/deliverance day; reuse lord [BASELINE — REUSE] प्रभु (Critical) as the head noun; combined phrase Nepali: प्रभुको दिन. Risk: Medium, standard eschatological term.

πᾶς ὃς ἂν ἐπικαλέσηται τὸ ὄνομα Κυρίου σωθήσεται (“everyone who calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved”) [NEW — ACTS, but MUST align with Romans 10:13 rendering]

ἐπικαλέομαι: literally “to call upon, invoke.”
Semantic range: to appeal to, invoke a name for help/rescue; here, a confessional act of dependent trust.
Contextual meaning: this is the salvation-confession formula quoted again at Romans 10:13; it must be rendered identically across both curricula.
Nepali: “जसले प्रभुको नाउँ पुकारला, त्यो बचाइनेछ।” — verb पुकारनु (“to call out/cry out to”) paired with salvation [BASELINE — REUSE] उद्धार root. Risk: High. Cross-document consistency requirement: this phrase must match whatever exact wording is finalized for Romans 10:13 in the shared Language Package. Flag for theologian review.

Acts 2:22-24

Ἰησοῦν τὸν Ναζωραῖον (“Jesus the Nazarene”) [NEW — ACTS] — Nepali: नासरी (established Nepali Bible geographic-epithet form). Risk: Low.

δυνάμεσι καὶ τέρασι καὶ σημείοις (“by mighty works and wonders and signs”) — full triad; reuse power_of_god [BASELINE — REUSE] परमेश्वरको सामर्थ्य (High; never शक्ति) for δύναμις, plus [NEW — ACTS] τέρας (teras, “wonder, portent”) and σημεῖον (sēmeion, “sign”) rendered together as चिन्ह र आश्चर्यकर्म. Risk: High. Doctrine: Apostolic Authority and Miracles. Must be distinguished from Hindu/Buddhist siddhi (supernatural attainments through yogic or tantric discipline) and from Nepali shamanic (jhankri/dhami) healing displays — biblical signs authenticate a specific historical message about Jesus, not a practitioner’s spiritual attainment.

προσπήξαντες ἀνείλατε (“you nailed to a cross and killed”) / implicit σταυρόω (crucify) — reuse crucifixion imagery consistent with Romans baseline treatment of the cross (not a separate glossary term in the baseline, but doctrinally load-bearing here as the accusation of guilt before the resurrection vindication). Nepali: क्रूसमा टाँगेर मार्नुभयो — standard established Nepali Bible phrase. Risk: Critical by association (core gospel fact); no forbidden-term risk identified, but must not be softened or blame-diffused given the sermon’s rhetorical force (v.23, “you crucified”).

ὁ Θεὸς ἀνέστησεν (“God raised him up”) — reuses resurrection [BASELINE — REUSE] पुनरुत्थान (Critical; never पुनर्जन्म). Contextual note: this is the first of many resurrection affirmations in Acts (see Chapters 1, 4, 17, 23, 24, 26 below); consistency is essential across the whole book, not only the core passage.

λύσας τὰς ὠδῖνας τοῦ θανάτου (“having loosed the pangs/cords of death”) — idiom describing the impossibility of death holding Christ; reuse resurrection term context; no new glossary entry required, but flag idiom for natural (not literal “birth-pang”) Nepali rendering: मृत्युको बन्धनबाट मुक्त गरी — caution: use मुक्त (freed) only in this non-soteriological idiomatic sense, not as a substitute for उद्धार (salvation), per baseline salvation rules.

Acts 2:25-28 (Psalm 16 quotation)

ᾅδης (Hadēs) — realm of the dead. Nepali: पातालम्/मृतकहरूको लोक — established descriptive rendering, not to be equated with Hindu naraka (hell-realm) or Buddhist hell-realms in the six-realm cosmology. Risk: Medium. Doctrine tie: Resurrection of Christ.

Ὅσιος (Hosios, “Holy One”) — see full entry under Holy and Righteous One below (first full occurrence at Acts 3:14; Acts 2:27 anticipates it via the psalm quotation). Reuse holy [BASELINE — REUSE] पवित्र (High).

διαφθορά (diaphthora, “corruption, decay”) — bodily decay in the grave; contrasted with resurrection. Nepali: सडेर नष्ट हुने अवस्था. Risk: Low; reinforces the bodily, historical nature of resurrection (not a spiritual-only survival).

Acts 2:29-32

πατριάρχης (patriarch) — reuse david [BASELINE — REUSE] दाऊद (Medium) as referent; Nepali: कुलपिता/पितृपुरुष दाऊद. Risk: Low.

μνημεῖον/τάφος (tomb) — minor descriptive term; no risk beyond confirming a literal, empty, locatable tomb (anti-docetic, anti-legendary emphasis important for Resurrection of Christ doctrine).

μάρτυρες (“we are witnesses”) [NEW — ACTS] — see full entry below (Witness/Testify). First major occurrence.

Acts 2:33

τῇ δεξιᾷ τοῦ Θεοῦ ὑψωθείς (“exalted to the right hand of God”) [NEW — ACTS]

ὑψόω (hypsoō): literally “to lift up, raise high.”
Semantic range: physical elevation; honorific exaltation; enthronement.
English variants: exalted; lifted up; raised to the right hand.
Contextual meaning: royal enthronement of the risen Christ at God’s right hand — supreme, unique honor, not one exalted figure among many.
Nepali: उच्च पारिनुभयो / महिमित तुल्याइनुभयो, paired with reused glory [BASELINE — REUSE] महिमा (High) where relevant. Risk: High. The “right hand of God” idiom should render as परमेश्वरको दाहिने हात, an established anthropomorphic biblical idiom; caution translators against rendering in a way that suggests a literal deity-with-hands debate, but retain the idiom as Scripture itself does. Doctrine: Lordship of Christ, Deity of Christ (both baseline Critical doctrines, directly extended here).

Acts 2:34-35 (Psalm 110 quotation)

“The Lord said to my Lord… sit at my right hand” — reuse lord [BASELINE — REUSE] प्रभु (Critical) twice, distinguishing the two referents (God the Father and the Messiah) as the baseline’s Lordship-of-Christ doctrine requires. This is a key proof-text; must render both occurrences of κύριος with प्रभु while context (not a different word) carries the distinction, exactly as historic Nepali Bible translation practice does.

Acts 2:36

κύριον καὶ Χριστόν (“both Lord and Christ”) — the sermon’s climactic double title. Reuse lord प्रभु (Critical) + messiah [BASELINE — REUSE] मसीह (Critical). Nepali: प्रभु र मसीह. Risk: Critical. This verse is the Christological summit of the sermon and must be flagged for mandatory human theologian review in every occurrence, per baseline escalation rules for Messianic Promise, Lordship of Christ, and Deity of Christ.

Acts 2:37

κατενύγησαν τὴν καρδίαν (“were cut to the heart”) [NEW — ACTS]

κατανύσσομαι (katanyssomai): literally “to be pierced/stabbed.”
Semantic range: physical piercing; figuratively, deep emotional/spiritual conviction.
English variants: cut to the heart; pierced in heart; deeply troubled.
Contextual meaning: Spirit-produced conviction of sin preceding repentance — not mere emotional distress.
Nepali: हृदयमा गहिरो चोट लाग्यो / मनमा चोट पर्‍यो. Risk: Low-Medium. Natural Nepali idiom exists; ensure it is not confused with generic guilt or shame (honor/shame social dynamics) divorced from repentance toward God.

Acts 2:38

μετανοήσατε (“Repent”) — see full entry below (Repentance). First imperative occurrence, paired directly with baptism and forgiveness — the doctrinal core of Repentance and Baptism.

βαπτισθήτω ἐπὶ τῷ ὀνόματι Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ (“be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ”) — see full entry below (Baptism). Note the “in the name of” formula ties directly to lord/jesus [BASELINE — REUSE] and must not be abbreviated to a generic ritual-washing phrase.

εἰς ἄφεσιν τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν ὑμῶν (“for the forgiveness of your sins”) — see full entry below (Forgiveness of Sins). Reuse sin [BASELINE — REUSE] पाप (High).

λήμψεσθε τὴν δωρεὰν τοῦ Ἁγίου Πνεύματος (“you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit”) — δωρεά (dōrea, “gift, free gift”) [NEW — ACTS]; ties to spiritual_gifts [BASELINE — REUSE] आत्मिक वरदान and to grace [BASELINE — REUSE] अनुग्रह conceptually (unearned divine bestowal). Nepali: वरदान (in this specific phrase, “पवित्र आत्माको वरदान”). Risk: Medium. Ensure वरदान here is not read as a Hindu deity-grants-a-boon transaction (per baseline’s existing caution on वरदान used alone) — always pair with पवित्र आत्माको to anchor it as the Spirit’s own self-gift, not a negotiated favor.

Acts 2:39

ἡ ἐπαγγελία (“the promise”) — reuse covenant [BASELINE — REUSE] करार conceptually; Nepali for “promise” itself: प्रतिज्ञा (established, distinct word from करार but doctrinally linked). Risk: Medium.

ὅσους ἂν προσκαλέσηται Κύριος ὁ Θεὸς ἡμῶν (“as many as the Lord our God calls”) — reuse called/calling [BASELINE — REUSE] बोलाइएका/बोलावट (High). Doctrine: Divine Calling / Effectual Calling, now extended explicitly to “all who are far off” (τοῖς εἰς μακράν) — a key Gentile-inclusion signal within Peter’s very first sermon, anticipating the fuller Gentile mission narrative of Acts 10-15.

Acts 2:40

διεμαρτύρετο καὶ παρεκάλει (“he testified and exhorted”) — reuse witness/testify [NEW — ACTS, entry below] and exhort [BASELINE — REUSE] उत्साहित पार्नु (Low; here closer to the “urgent appeal” sense noted in the baseline as बिन्ती गर्नु for entreaty).

σώθητε ἀπὸ τῆς γενεᾶς τῆς σκολιᾶς ταύτης (“save yourselves from this crooked generation”) — reuse salvation [BASELINE — REUSE] उद्धार (Critical). Risk note: the imperative form here (“save yourselves”) must not be rendered as if salvation were self-achieved; standard Nepali Bible idiom renders this as a call to respond to the offered उद्धार, not as works-salvation — flag for theologian review to ensure the surrounding verbs (repent, be baptized) frame this correctly.

Acts 2:41

ἀποδεξάμενοι τὸν λόγον (“received his word”) — reuse gospel/word [BASELINE — REUSE conceptually]; Nepali: वचन ग्रहण गरे.

ἐβαπτίσθησαν (“were baptized”) — reuse Baptism entry.

προσετέθησαν… ψυχαὶ τρισχίλιαι (“about three thousand souls were added”) [NEW — ACTS] — προστίθημι (prostithēmi, “to add to”). Nepali: थपिए. Risk: Low. Establishes the recurring Acts formula (also 2:47, “the Lord added to their number”) for numerical church growth as a sign of God’s own action, not human recruitment success — relevant framing given Nepal’s legal sensitivities around active “recruitment” language (see Mission to the Nations / Evangelism doctrine notes below).

Acts 2:42-47 (remainder of the chapter, beyond the core passage’s verse range)

Though outside the designated core-passage boundary (2:1-41), these verses are covered here as part of full chapter-2 coverage per the full-book mandate:

τῇ διδαχῇ τῶν ἀποστόλων (“the apostles’ teaching”) [NEW — ACTS] — διδαχή (didachē, “teaching, instruction”). Nepali: शिक्षा. Risk: Low.

τῇ κοινωνίᾳ (“the fellowship”) — reuse fellowship [BASELINE — REUSE] सहभागिता (Low).

τῇ κλάσει τοῦ ἄρτου (“the breaking of bread”) [NEW — ACTS]

κλάσις τοῦ ἄρτου: literally “breaking of the loaf.”
Semantic range: an ordinary shared meal; by extension in Acts, a marker of covenant table-fellowship, precursor to what later tradition calls the Lord’s Supper.
Contextual meaning: a communal, remembrance-oriented meal defining the new community, not a ritual sacrifice.
Nepali: रोटी भाँच्ने कार्य. Risk: High. Nepal’s dominant religious culture practices prasad (प्रसाद) — food first offered to a deity/idol at a temple, then distributed to worshippers as blessed. The breaking of bread in Acts must be clearly distinguished from prasad distribution: this is a memorial meal of a once-for-all-accomplished salvation among a covenant community, not food consecrated through ongoing ritual offering to a deity. Flag for human theologian review whenever this term recurs (also Acts 20:7, 20:11; cf. Acts 27:35 informal meal-breaking on the ship).

ταῖς προσευχαῖς (“the prayers”) — reuse intercession [BASELINE — REUSE] मध्यस्थता conceptually; direct word for “prayers” is प्रार्थना (established, low risk).

ἅπαντα κοινά (“all things in common”) [NEW — ACTS]

κοινός/κοινά (koinos/koina): here “common, shared, held jointly.”
Semantic range note: this is the same Greek root that later (Acts 10:14-15, 11:8) means ceremonially “unclean/impure” — translators must NOT let the Nepali renderings of these two senses collide; they require two distinct Nepali words (see the separate entry under Chapter 10 below).
Contextual meaning: voluntary, Spirit-motivated sharing of property within the new covenant community, not a mandated communism or a merit-generating almsgiving practice.
Nepali: सबै थोक साझा (sabai thok sajha). Risk: Medium. Doctrine: The Church as Community.

τερατα καὶ σημεῖα and χάρις (“wonders and signs… favor”) — reuse Signs and Wonders entry; note χάρις here (“having favor with all the people,” v.47) is used in its general “goodwill/favor” sense, not the soteriological grace [BASELINE — REUSE] अनुग्रह sense — translators must select favor/kripa in a general social sense here rather than अनुग्रह, to avoid implying the crowd’s favor was salvific grace. Flag: Medium risk, context-sensitivity note only.

PART 2 — CHAPTER-BY-CHAPTER STUDY OF THE WHOLE BOOK

Chapter 1

ἀνελήμφθη / ἀνάληψις (“was taken up / ascension”) [NEW — ACTS] — literal “taken up, received up.” Nepali: स्वर्गारोहण (established Nepali Christian compound). Risk: Medium. Distinct from Hindu/Buddhist stories of sages or deities ascending to a heavenly abode by their own spiritual attainment; Christ’s ascension is a unique vindication and enthronement following his unique resurrection, not an attainable yogic/meditative feat.

δύναμιν (“power,” 1:8) — reuse power_of_god [BASELINE — REUSE] परमेश्वरको सामर्थ्य (High; never शक्ति).

μάρτυρες (“witnesses,” 1:8) — first Acts occurrence; see full Witness entry below. Doctrine: Great Commission Fulfilled — “to the end of the earth” (ἕως ἐσχάτου τῆς γῆς) reuses mission [BASELINE — REUSE] सुसमाचार प्रचार (Medium) conceptually; Nepali for the geographic phrase: पृथ्वीको अन्त्यसम्म.

βαπτισθήσεσθε ἐν Πνεύματι Ἁγίῳ (“baptized with the Holy Spirit,” 1:5) — links baptism [NEW — ACTS, full entry below] with holy_spirit [BASELINE — REUSE]. Risk: Critical. This Spirit-baptism must be clearly distinguished in any accompanying teaching note from water baptism (2:38, 41), though the same Nepali root word बप्तिस्मा is used for both, following established Nepali Bible practice; disambiguating context (जल/पानीको बप्तिस्मा vs. पवित्र आत्माको बप्तिस्मा) should be supplied where needed.

κλῆρος / ἐπισκοπή (“lot” / “office,” 1:17, 20, 26) [NEW — ACTS] — κλῆρος (klēros): literally “a lot” (for casting/deciding), by extension “portion, inheritance” (this same root recurs at 20:32, 26:18 as “inheritance”). ἐπισκοπή (episkopē): “oversight, office” (this same root recurs at 20:28 as ἐπίσκοπος, “overseer”). Nepali: चिट्ठा हाल्नु (to cast lots) / पद (office). Risk: Low-Medium. Note for translators: the κλῆρος word-family threads through the whole book (lot-casting here, “inheritance” later) — track consistently.

Chapter 2 — see Part 1 (core passage) above; full chapter treatment complete, including 2:42-47.

Chapter 3

Ὅσιος καὶ Δίκαιος (“the Holy and Righteous One,” 3:14) [NEW — ACTS]

Combines holy [BASELINE — REUSE] पवित्र (High) with δίκαιος (dikaios, “righteous,” same root as righteousness [BASELINE — REUSE] धार्मिकता, Critical).
Contextual meaning: a Christological title asserting Jesus’ sinless, perfect standing — the one true innocent one, put to death unjustly.
Nepali: पवित्र र धर्मी जन. Risk: High. Must never drift toward धार्मिक (a term for one who performs religious duties) — this title asserts Christ’s inherent moral perfection, not ritual observance.

ἀρχηγὸς τῆς ζωῆς (“Author/Prince of life,” 3:15, cf. 5:31) [NEW — ACTS]

ἀρχηγός: “leader, founder, pioneer, originator.”
Nepali: जीवनका प्रवर्तक (originator/founder of life). Risk: Medium-High. Christological title; must not be softened to a merely honorary “great teacher of life” sense — it asserts Christ as the source and originator of life itself, tying to son_of_god and incarnation doctrines.

ἀνάψυξις (“times of refreshing,” 3:20) and ἀποκατάστασις (“restoration of all things,” 3:21) [NEW — ACTS] — Nepali: स्फूर्तिका समय / सबै कुराको पुनर्स्थापना. Risk: Medium. Eschatological hope terms; distinguish from cyclical cosmic renewal (Hindu pralaya/re-creation cycles) — this is a singular, final restoration tied to Christ’s return, not a repeating cosmic cycle.

μετανοήσατε (repent, 3:19) — reuse Repentance entry (Chapter-2 first occurrence); reinforced here.

Chapter 4

παρρησία (“boldness,” 4:13, 29, 31) [NEW — ACTS] — see full entry below. First major occurrence; doctrine: Persecution and Bold Witness.

οὐκ ἔστιν ἐν ἄλλῳ οὐδενὶ ἡ σωτηρία… οὐδὲ γὰρ ὄνομα ἐστιν ἕτερον (“there is salvation in no one else… no other name,” 4:12) — reuse salvation [BASELINE — REUSE] उद्धार (Critical) with strong exclusivity emphasis. Risk: Critical. Must render without softening; this directly parallels and reinforces baseline’s “Lordship of Christ” exclusivity concerns, now stated even more starkly as a name-exclusivity claim. Flag for mandatory theologian review.

χάρις (“great grace/favor,” 4:33) — reuse grace [BASELINE — REUSE] अनुग्रह (High), here describing the church’s corporate experience of God’s favor evidenced in unity and provision.

ἅπαντα κοινά (4:32) — reuse Chapter-2 “common possessions” entry; same Nepali rendering सबै थोक साझा.

Chapter 5

σημεῖα καὶ τέρατα (5:12) — reuse Signs and Wonders entry.

ψεύσασθαι τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ Ἅγιον (“to lie to the Holy Spirit,” 5:3) — reuse holy_spirit [BASELINE — REUSE] पवित्र आत्मा (Critical); contextual note: Ananias’s sin is treated as a direct offense against the personal Holy Spirit, not against an impersonal community rule — reinforcing the Spirit’s personhood (a point of doctrinal contrast with impersonal-spirit/life-force concepts in Nepali folk religion).

φόβος μέγας (“great fear,” 5:5, 11) [NEW — ACTS, minor] — Nepali: ठूलो डर/भय. Risk: Low; reverent awe before God’s holiness, not superstitious dread of an appeasable spirit.

καταξιωθῆναι… ἀτιμασθῆναι (“counted worthy… to suffer dishonor,” 5:41) [NEW — ACTS, minor] — Nepali: लाजमर्दो व्यवहार सहन योग्य ठहरिनु. Risk: Medium. Doctrine: Persecution and Bold Witness; joy in suffering shame for Christ’s name inverts ordinary honor/shame social expectations significant in Nepali culture.

Chapter 6

διακονία / διάκονος (“service/ministry” / “deacon,” 6:1-6) — see full entry below. First occurrence; doctrine: The Church as Community.

ἐπίθεσις τῶν χειρῶν (“laying on of hands,” 6:6) — see full entry below. First occurrence.

πλήρης πίστεως καὶ Πνεύματος Ἁγίου (“full of faith and the Holy Spirit,” re: Stephen, 6:5) — reuse faith [BASELINE — REUSE] विश्वास (High) + holy_spirit.

Chapter 7

υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου (“Son of Man,” 7:56) [NEW — ACTS]

Semitic idiom; in Daniel 7:13 a exalted, divine-authority figure; Jesus’ own self-designation in the Gospels.
Nepali: मानिसका पुत्र. Risk: Critical. Christological title asserting both genuine humanity and heavenly authority/vindication (Stephen sees him “standing at the right hand of God” — reuse Acts 2:33 imagery). Must not be flattened to mean merely “a human being.”

λιθοβολέω (“to stone,” 7:58-59) [NEW — ACTS] — Nepali: ढुङ्गाले हिर्काउनु/मार्नु. Risk: Low; literal historical description, but theologically significant as the first Christian death for the faith, anchoring the doctrine of Persecution and Bold Witness.

ἐκοιμήθη (“he fell asleep,” 7:60, euphemism for death) [NEW — ACTS, minor] — Nepali: निदाए (used euphemistically). Risk: Low-Medium; reinforces resurrection hope (death as temporary “sleep”), should not be confused with any reincarnation-adjacent “the soul rests before its next existence” framing.

Chapter 7 also recounts Israel’s idol-worship in the wilderness (the golden calf, εἴδωλα, v.41-43) — see Idol(s) entry below, first occurrence.

Chapter 8

μαγεία / γοητεία (implied by Simon’s practice, “sorcery/magic,” 8:9-24) [NEW — ACTS] — see full entry below.

ἡ δωρεὰ τοῦ Θεοῦ (“the gift of God,” 8:20) — reuse δωρεά (gift) entry from 2:38; here Peter rebukes Simon for attempting to purchase this gift with money — directly reinforcing grace [BASELINE — REUSE] अनुग्रह’s “apart from merit” requirement, extended here to “apart from purchase.”

ἐπέθηκαν τὰς χεῖρας (“laid hands,” 8:17) — reuse Laying on of Hands entry.

βάπτισμα (the Ethiopian eunuch, 8:36-38) — reuse Baptism entry.

Chapter 9

ἡ ὁδός (“the Way,” 9:2) [NEW — ACTS] — see full entry below. First occurrence; central self-designation for the early Christian movement in Acts.

φῶς ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ (“a light from heaven,” 9:3) [NEW — ACTS, minor] — Nepali: आकाशबाट ज्योति. Risk: Medium; theophanic light, distinct from generic enlightenment-attainment imagery in Hindu/Buddhist meditative traditions — this light is an external, objective divine self-disclosure to an unwilling recipient, not an inwardly cultivated insight.

ἀπέπεσαν… αἱ λεπίδες (“the scales fell from his eyes,” 9:18) [NEW — ACTS, minor] — Nepali: आँखाबाट लाहा जस्तो कुरा खस्यो. Risk: Low; vivid literal-then-figurative image of restored sight/spiritual understanding.

σκεῦος ἐκλογῆς (“a chosen instrument,” 9:15) [NEW — ACTS] — σκεῦος (skeuos, “vessel, instrument, tool”) + reuse election [BASELINE — REUSE] परमेश्वरको छनोट (High). Nepali: छानिएको पात्र. Risk: Medium-High. Doctrine: Conversion of Paul, Divine Calling. Emphasizes God’s sovereign initiative in Paul’s conversion, not Paul’s own spiritual merit or seeking — an important parallel to Romans 9’s election language already flagged High risk in the baseline.

Chapter 10

ὅραμα (“vision,” 10:3, 10:17, 10:19) [NEW — ACTS] — see full entry below. Central to the Cornelius narrative.

κοινός (“common/unclean,” 10:14-15, 28; also 11:8) [NEW — ACTS, distinct from the “shared possessions” sense of 2:44/4:32] — see full entry below. Critical risk term.

οὐκ ἔστιν προσωπολήπτης ὁ Θεός (“God is not one to show partiality,” 10:34) [NEW — ACTS] — Nepali: परमेश्वर पक्षपात नगर्नुहुने हुनुहुन्छ. Risk: Medium-High. Doctrine: The Gospel to Jews and Gentiles; Unity of Jews and Gentiles (baseline High-risk doctrine, now directly extended into Acts’ central Gentile-inclusion episode). Directly confronts caste-based and ethnic-based spiritual hierarchy — a live theological concern in the Nepali context per the baseline’s repeated Muluki Ain references.

ἄφεσιν ἁμαρτιῶν (“forgiveness of sins,” 10:43) — see full entry below.

Chapter 11

Χριστιανοί (“Christians,” 11:26) [NEW — ACTS] — see full entry below.

διακονία (famine relief funds, 11:29) — reuse Chapter-6 deacon/service entry, extended sense of practical relief ministry.

πρεσβύτεροι (“elders,” 11:30) — see full entry below (Chapter 20 has the fuller treatment; this is the first occurrence).

ἡ χεὶρ Κυρίου (“the hand of the Lord,” 11:21) — reuse lord [BASELINE — REUSE] प्रभु (Critical); idiom for God’s effective power at work in mission.

Chapter 12

ἄγγελος Κυρίου (“an angel of the Lord,” 12:7, 23) [NEW — ACTS] — see full entry below. Doctrine touchpoint: Persecution and Bold Witness (God’s deliverance of Peter) and divine judgment (Herod’s death, v.23).

Chapter 12 introduces no other new theological vocabulary beyond the Angel entry; it reuses church [BASELINE — REUSE] मण्डली, intercession [BASELINE — REUSE] मध्यस्थता (the church’s prayer for Peter), and glory [BASELINE — REUSE] महिमा (Herod’s failure to give God glory, v.23) from prior chapters.

Chapter 13

δικαιωθῆναι (“to be justified/freed,” 13:38-39) — reuses justification [BASELINE — REUSE] धर्मी ठहराइने कार्य (Critical) and law [BASELINE — REUSE] व्यवस्था (High). This is the single clearest Acts statement of the doctrine Justification apart from the Law: “through him forgiveness of sins is proclaimed… and by him everyone who believes is freed from everything from which the law of Moses could not free you.” Risk: Critical. Flag for mandatory theologian review; ensure both forgiveness of sins (ἄφεσις ἁμαρτιῶν, see entry below) and justification (a distinct, forensic declaration, per baseline note “never abbreviate to माफी alone”) are both present and not collapsed into one term.

ἀφορίσατε (“set apart,” 13:2) — reuse doctrine separation_unto_gods_service (baseline High-risk doctrine) — Barnabas and Saul set apart by the Holy Spirit for mission work; Nepali: अलग गरियो, paired with holy_spirit.

τεταγμένοι εἰς ζωὴν αἰώνιον (“as many as were appointed/ordained to eternal life,” 13:48) [NEW — ACTS] — Nepali: अनन्त जीवनको निम्ति नियुक्त गरिएका. Risk: High. Predestination-adjacent language; ties directly to baseline’s election (परमेश्वरको छनोट) and effectual_calling doctrines; flag per baseline escalation rule (“election/predestination language… Romans 9:11-13”).

φῶς ἐθνῶν (“a light for the Gentiles,” 13:47, citing Isaiah) — reuse gentiles [BASELINE — REUSE] अन्यजाति (Medium) + glory/light imagery; ties to Universal Scope of the Gospel doctrine.

Chapter 14

θεὸς ζῶν (“the living God,” 14:15) — see full entry below.

Paul and Barnabas mistaken for Zeus and Hermes (14:11-13) — no new glossary term, but a significant cultural-collision note: the episode directly parallels the risk of Nepali audiences reading biblical divine figures as one more set of deities within an existing pantheon; reinforces the Unknown God and Idol(s) entries treated fully at Chapter 17 below.

“Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God” (14:22) — reuse kingdom_of_god [BASELINE — REUSE] परमेश्वरको राज्य (Medium).

Chapter 15

περιτομή (“circumcision,” 15:1, 5) — see full entry below. Central to the Jerusalem Council; doctrine: Justification apart from the Law.

ζυγός (“yoke,” 15:10) [NEW — ACTS] — Nepali: जुवा. Risk: Medium. The “yoke of the law” image; must not be rendered in a way suggesting the Mosaic Law itself was evil — Peter’s point is that it could not be borne as a means of justification, not that the Law was without divine origin (cf. Romans’ own high view of the Law, baseline law entry).

σωθῆναι διὰ τῆς χάριτος τοῦ Κυρίου Ἰησοῦ (“saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus,” 15:11) — reuse grace [BASELINE — REUSE] अनुग्रह (High) + salvation [BASELINE — REUSE] उद्धार (Critical). Central council conclusion; flag for theologian review per baseline’s grace-vs-works escalation rule.

συνέδοξεν τῷ Πνεύματι τῷ Ἁγίῳ καὶ ἡμῖν (“it seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us,” 15:28) [NEW — ACTS] — Nepali: पवित्र आत्मा र हामीलाई उचित लाग्यो. Risk: Medium-High. Establishes a model of Spirit-guided, corporate church decision-making — significant for the doctrine of The Church as Community and for guarding against both individualistic “private revelation” claims and rigid institutional authority claims in Nepali church-planting contexts.

Chapter 16

διήνοιξεν τὴν καρδίαν (“the Lord opened her heart,” re: Lydia, 16:14) [NEW — ACTS] — see full entry below.

Τί με δεῖ ποιεῖν ἵνα σωθῶ; (“What must I do to be saved?” 16:30) — reuse salvation [BASELINE — REUSE] उद्धार (Critical). Central evangelistic confession-question; must be rendered exactly and consistently wherever it recurs in teaching materials, per baseline’s “same rendering of key salvation passages across all documents” rule.

τὸ Πνεῦμα Ἰησοῦ οὐκ εἴασεν (“the Spirit of Jesus did not allow,” 16:7) [NEW — ACTS, minor] — Nepali: पवित्र आत्माले अनुमति दिनुभएन. Risk: Medium. Reinforces the Spirit’s personal, sovereign direction of the mission’s geography — ties to providence [BASELINE — REUSE] परमेश्वरको व्यवस्थापन (High).

Household baptism (16:15, 33) — reuse Baptism entry.

Chapter 17

ἄγνωστος θεός (“an unknown god,” 17:23) — see full entry below. Doctrine: The Gospel to Jews and Gentiles; syncretism risk.

κατείδωλος / εἴδωλα (“full of idols” / “idols,” 17:16, 29) — see full Idol(s) entry below.

χρόνοι τῆς ἀγνοίας (“the times of ignorance,” 17:30) [NEW — ACTS, minor] — Nepali: अज्ञानताको समय. Risk: Medium; God’s past patience toward Gentile ignorance now superseded by a universal call to repentance — must retain “all people everywhere” (πάντας πανταχοῦ) as fully universal, not qualified.

The Areopagus speech’s resurrection-mockery (17:32) reuses resurrection [BASELINE — REUSE] पुनरुत्थान (Critical).

Chapter 18

συναγωγή (“synagogue”) — see full entry below. First formally treated occurrence, though the word has appeared since Chapter 6.

δυνατὸς ὢν ἐν ταῖς γραφαῖς (“mighty in the Scriptures,” re: Apollos, 18:24) — γραφαί (graphai, “writings/Scriptures”) [NEW — ACTS] — see full entry below.

Chapter 18 also narrates Paul’s tentmaking trade and Gallio’s ruling on Jewish “law” (νόμος, reuse law [BASELINE — REUSE] व्यवस्था) — a civil-legal use of the same term as the Mosaic Law, requiring care that Nepali readers not conflate Roman provincial legal categories with the theological व्यवस्था doctrine.

Chapter 19

Baptism contrast — John’s “baptism of repentance” versus baptism “in the name of the Lord Jesus” (19:1-5) — reuse Baptism and Repentance entries, now explicitly distinguished from one another within the text itself; important nuance for translators to preserve (two stages, not a redundancy).

τὰ περίεργα / μαγικά (“magic books/scrolls,” 19:19) — reuse Sorcery/Magic entry (Chapter 8), extended: public burning of occult texts upon conversion. Highly relevant cultural note: Nepal’s living Tantric, shamanic, and astrological practices make this narrative point directly applicable; teaching material should handle with pastoral sensitivity, not triumphalist mockery of indigenous practice, while retaining the text’s clear call to renounce occult power sources.

εἴδωλα (Artemis/Diana temple riot, 19:23-41) — reuse Idol(s) entry.

ἡ ὁδός (19:9, 23) — reuse The Way entry.

Chapter 20

πρεσβύτεροι / ἐπίσκοποι (“elders” / “overseers,” 20:17, 28) — see full entries below.

ποιμαίνειν τὴν ἐκκλησίαν… τὸ ποίμνιον (“shepherd the church… the flock,” 20:28) — see full Shepherd/Flock entry below.

κληρονομία (“inheritance,” 20:32) — reuse κλῆρος word-family from Chapter 1; see full entry below.

τῷ λόγῳ τῆς χάριτος αὐτοῦ (“the word of his grace,” 20:32) — reuse grace [BASELINE — REUSE] अनुग्रह (High).

Eutychus raised after falling (20:9-12) — reuse resurrection-adjacent life-restoration imagery; not the technical resurrection term (ἀνάστασις) itself in the text, but functions as a lesser sign of the same power over death; no separate glossary entry required beyond noting the connection.

Chapter 21

εὐχή (“vow,” re: the Nazirite vow, 21:23-26) — see full entry below.

ἁγνίζω (“to purify,” 21:24, 26) — reuse holy [BASELINE — REUSE] पवित्र (High) word-family; Nepali: शुद्धीकरण गर्नु, distinguished from sanctification [BASELINE — REUSE] पवित्रीकरण — this is a ceremonial, temple-purification act under the (still-standing, culturally observed) Mosaic Law, not the Spirit’s ongoing moral sanctification.

προφητεύω (Agabus’s prophecy, 21:10-11) — reuse prophecy [BASELINE — REUSE] अगमवाणी (Low).

περιτομή — reuse Circumcision entry (the controversy recurs here regarding Paul personally).

Chapter 22

Retelling of Damascus road (22:6-16) — reuse The Way, Vision-adjacent light imagery, and Chosen Instrument entries from Chapter 9.

ἐπικαλεσάμενος τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ (“calling on his name,” 22:16) — reuse Call Upon the Name of the Lord entry from 2:21; paired here directly with baptism.

Τί ποιήσω, Κύριε; (“Lord, what shall I do?” 22:10) — reuse the salvation-confession-question pattern from 16:30; consistency required.

Chapter 23

συνέδριον — reuse Sanhedrin entry.

ἀνάστασις (resurrection debated between Pharisees and Sadducees, 23:6-8) — reuse resurrection [BASELINE — REUSE] पुनरुत्थान (Critical); note this is a live first-century Jewish theological controversy over bodily resurrection, distinct in kind from (though a useful bridge point for discussing) Hindu/Buddhist rebirth debates — Paul’s own future-bodily-resurrection hope must not be conflated with either side of the rebirth question.

συνείδησις καθαρά (“a clear conscience,” 23:1) [NEW — ACTS] — see full entry below.

Chapter 24

ἡ ὁδός (24:14, “the sect they call the Way”) — reuse The Way entry.

πίστις εἰς Χριστόν (“faith in Christ,” 24:24) — reuse faith [BASELINE — REUSE] विश्वास (High).

δικαιοσύνη καὶ ἐγκράτεια καὶ κρίμα (“righteousness and self-control and the coming judgment,” 24:25) — reuse righteousness [BASELINE — REUSE] धार्मिकता (Critical; never धर्म) + [NEW — ACTS] ἐγκράτεια (enkrateia, “self-control, mastery of one’s desires”). Nepali for self-control: आत्म-संयम. Risk: Low-Medium; note distinct from Hindu/Buddhist ascetic self-discipline practiced as a path toward liberation or merit — here it is a fruit of repentant faith preached to a Roman governor, not a merit-earning discipline.

Resurrection of “the just and the unjust” (24:15) — reuse resurrection entry, extended to final judgment scope.

Chapter 25

Chapter 25 introduces no new theological vocabulary. It narrates Paul’s appeal to Caesar and the transfer of his case to Festus and Agrippa using ordinary legal-administrative language (ἔκκλητος, “appeal,” a Roman legal term with no theological freight). It reuses witness/testify (Paul continuing to bear testimony before Roman officials) and anticipates Chapter 26’s fuller doctrinal content. Doctrine reused: Persecution and Bold Witness.

Chapter 26

φῶς / σκότος and ἐξουσία τοῦ Σατανᾶ (“light/darkness”; “the power/authority of Satan,” 26:18) — see full entry below (Power of Satan / Darkness to Light).

ἡγιασμένοις (“those who are sanctified,” 26:18) — reuse sanctification [BASELINE — REUSE] पवित्रीकरण (High) + inheritance [NEW — ACTS] entry (κληρονομία, reuse from Chapter 20).

πίστει τῇ εἰς ἐμέ (“by faith in me,” 26:18) — reuse faith विश्वास.

οὐ μακρὰν… πείθεις με γενέσθαι Χριστιανόν (“you almost persuade me to become a Christian,” 26:28) — reuse Christian(s) entry from Chapter 11.

Chapter 27

Chapter 27 introduces no new theological vocabulary. The shipwreck narrative reuses providence [BASELINE — REUSE] परमेश्वरको व्यवस्थापन (High; Paul’s assurance in 27:22-25, “not one of you will perish… for an angel of God stood before me”) and the angel of the Lord [NEW — ACTS] entry from Chapter 12. An informal meal-breaking on board (27:35, κλάσας ἄρτον) echoes but is doctrinally distinct from the covenant “breaking of bread” of 2:42/20:7 — translators should note this is ordinary sustenance, not a churchly ordinance, and render without the theological weight of the Chapter 2 term.

Chapter 28

ἀκωλύτως (“unhindered,” 28:31 — the final word of the book in Greek word order) — see full entry below. Thematically decisive capstone term.

παρρησία (“with all boldness,” 28:31) — reuse Boldness entry, closing the book on the same note it built toward across the persecution narratives.

The Malta viper-bite healing (28:1-6) and continued healings (28:8-9) reuse the Signs and Wonders entry; the islanders’ assumption Paul is “a god” (θεόν, 28:6) reuses the same idol/pantheon-collision caution flagged at Chapter 14.

κηρύσσων τὴν βασιλείαν τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ διδάσκων τὰ περὶ τοῦ Κυρίου Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ (“proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ,” 28:31) — reuse kingdom_of_god [BASELINE — REUSE] परमेश्वरको राज्य (Medium), lord प्रभु (Critical), jesus येशू (Critical), messiah/christ मसीह (Critical). This closing summary functions as Acts’ own thesis-statement echo (paralleling the Romans 1:16-17 thesis-statement consistency rule in the baseline) and should be treated with the same cross-document consistency discipline. Doctrine: The Great Commission Fulfilled.

End of semantic analysis. See 08_core_glossary.md for the consolidated per-term glossary table covering both reused baseline terms and newly introduced Acts terms, with full risk annotations and chapter citations.

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