Semantic Analysis
Semantic Analysis — Acts 1–28 (English → Persian)
Scope and Method
This analysis covers the entire book of Acts, chapter by chapter, with verse-by-verse treatment of the core passage (Acts 2:1–41). Every load-bearing theological term is analyzed for: original Koine Greek word, transliteration, literal meaning, semantic range, English translation variants, contextual theological meaning in Acts, and destination-language (Persian) rendering risk.
Baseline reuse rule: Any term already fixed in the Romans translation_memory.json (e.g. ἀπόστολος/apostle → رسول, εὐαγγέλιον/gospel → انجیل, χάρις/grace → فیض, πίστις/faith → ایمان, δικαιοσύνη/righteousness → عدالت) is reused exactly here without renegotiation. Only new terms, or terms whose Acts usage introduces a genuinely new theological-risk dimension, receive full new-term treatment. Chapters that introduce no new theological vocabulary are marked as such explicitly.
Risk tiers follow the baseline doctrine_risk_registry.json definitions: Critical (human theologian review, every occurrence), High (human theologian review), Medium (native speaker review), Low (automated review).
PART 1 — CORE PASSAGE: Acts 2:1–41 (Verse-by-Verse)
Acts 2:1–4 — The Spirit Poured Out at Pentecost
| Term (Greek/translit.) | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| πεντηκοστή / pentēkostē | ”fiftieth [day]“ | The Jewish Feast of Weeks (Shavuot), 50 days after Passover, later become the Christian feast marking the Spirit’s outpouring | Pentecost | The historical, dateable moment the Spirit is poured out on the gathered believers, fulfilling Joel’s prophecy quoted in v.17 | پنطیکاست (Pantikost, transliteration) | Medium — no direct Islamic-tradition collision, but the Jewish Feast-of-Weeks background is unfamiliar to Muslim-background readers and must be taught, not assumed |
| ὁμοῦ / homou | ”together, in the same place” | Physical togetherness; also implies unity of purpose | together, in one place | The corporate, not merely individual, reception of the Spirit — foundational for “Church as Community” doctrine | با هم / در یکجا (ba ham / dar yek-ja) | Low |
| ἦχος / ēchos | ”sound, noise” | Audible sound, often of something dramatic/ominous | sound, noise | Sensory, publicly-verifiable divine intervention, not a private mystical experience | صدا (seda) | Low |
| πνοή βιαία / pnoē biaia | ”violent breath/wind” | Same root as πνεῦμα (Spirit); wind as a visible/audible sign of the Spirit’s arrival | rushing/mighty wind | Deliberate wordplay: the Spirit (πνεῦμα) arrives like wind (πνοή) — must be preserved if possible in Persian, since Persian روح (ruh, Spirit) and باد (bad, wind) do not share a root, the wordplay is lost and must be supplied by explanatory teaching, not literal rendering | بادی شدید (badi shadid) | Medium — wordplay loss requires a translator note |
| γλῶσσαι ὡσεὶ πυρός / glōssai hōsei pyros | ”tongues as of fire” | γλῶσσα = tongue (organ) or language; here visually “flame-shapes” resembling tongues | tongues of fire, flame-like tongues | Visible, Spirit-given empowerment for speech/proclamation — directly sets up the “other tongues” miracle in v.4 | زبانههای آتش (zabane-haye atash) | High — Persian culture carries deep pre-Islamic Zoroastrian reverence for sacred fire (fire temples, Nowruz/Chaharshanbe Suri fire-jumping); must be explicitly taught as the Spirit’s empowering presence, never as an echo of fire-veneration or a repeatable ritual flame |
| πίμπλημι (ἐπλήσθησαν) / eplēsthēsan | ”were filled” | To be filled completely, saturated | were filled | Full possession and empowering of believers by the Holy Spirit — foundational for the whole doctrine of “The Holy Spirit and Pentecost” | پر شدند (por shodand) | Medium — must be distinguished from a fleeting ecstatic trance state |
| Πνεῦμα Ἅγιον / Pneuma Hagion | ”Holy Spirit” | — | Holy Spirit | Third Person of the Trinity, personal and divine | روحالقدس (Ruh-ol-Qods) — baseline term, reuse exactly | Critical (per baseline: identical Quranic phrase, identified with the angel Jibril in mainstream tafsir — the created-being-vs-divine-Person distinction must be made explicit every time) |
| ἑτέραις γλώσσαις / heterais glōssais | ”other tongues” | γλῶσσα ranges from bodily “tongue” to “language/dialect” (disambiguated by v.6, 8, 11 as real known human languages) | other tongues, other languages | A miracle of communication — known human languages given supernaturally, not private ecstatic utterance; this distinguishes Acts 2 tongues from the sign-tongues debated in 1 Corinthians | به زبانهای دیگر (be zaban-haye digar) | High — must be rendered so as to clearly denote real human languages (cf. v.6 διάλεκτος), not a generically “spiritual”/ecstatic utterance; charismatic-cessationist confusion is a real Phase 2 risk if this distinction is lost |
| ἀποφθέγγομαι / apophthengomai | ”to speak out, declare” | Solemn, weighty utterance (used of oracles) | to declare, utter | The Spirit-given speech is authoritative proclamation, not casual speech | با صدای بلند اعلام کردن (ba seda-ye boland e’lam kardan) | Low |
Translator note [Acts 2:3-4]: [TRANSLATOR NOTE: “tongues of fire” rendered as زبانههای آتش rather than a term invoking Zoroastrian atash-veneration imagery; chosen because Persian religious memory of sacred fire is strong enough that unqualified fire-language risks being absorbed into that framework rather than read as a unique, one-time sign of the Spirit’s arrival.]
Acts 2:5–13 — The Crowd’s Bewilderment
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ἰουδαῖοι / Ioudaioi | ”Jews” | Ethnic-religious identity | Jews | The initial, exclusively Jewish audience of the gospel’s first proclamation — sets up “Gospel to Jews and Gentiles” doctrine arc | یهودیان (yahudian) | Low — established term |
| εὐλαβεῖς / eulabeis | ”devout, reverent” | Careful, pious observance | devout men | Sincere religious devotion prior to conversion — a starting point, not yet saving faith | خداترس / پرهیزگار (khoda-tars / parhizgar) | Medium — see full entry under “God-fearer” (ch. 10) |
| διάλεκτος / dialektos | ”dialect, language” | A specific spoken language/regional tongue | own language, own tongue | Confirms the “other tongues” of v.4 are real, known human languages — critical for translating v.4 correctly | زبان (به لهجه خودشان) (zaban / be lahje-ye khodeshan) | High — reinforces the v.4 disambiguation |
| μεγαλεῖα τοῦ θεοῦ / megaleia tou theou | ”great things/mighty works of God” | God’s wondrous acts | mighty works of God, wonderful works | The content of the Spirit-given speech: praise of God’s saving acts, not self-focused ecstatic display | کارهای عظیم خدا (karha-ye azim-e khoda) | Low |
| γλεῦκος / gleukos | ”sweet new wine” | Unfermented or freshly-fermented wine | new wine | The mocking (false) alternative explanation for the miracle — sets up Peter’s corrective sermon | شراب تازه (sharāb-e tāzeh) | Low — historical/cultural detail; note alcohol reference may require pastoral sensitivity given Islamic prohibition context, but the text itself rejects drunkenness as the explanation |
Acts 2:14–21 — Peter’s Sermon: Joel’s Prophecy Fulfilled
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ἰωήλ ὁ προφήτης / Iōēl ho prophētēs | ”Joel the prophet” | — | Joel the prophet | Fulfillment-of-prophecy framing — reuse baseline “prophet” (پیامبر) | یوئیل پیامبر (Yuel Payambar) | High (reuse baseline note: naskh/abrogation doctrine shared across Sunni/Shia Islam treats later revelation as superseding earlier; Acts frames Pentecost as fulfillment, not replacement, of Joel) |
| ἐν ταῖς ἐσχάταις ἡμέραις / en tais eschatais hēmerais | ”in the last days” | Inaugurated eschatology — the “last days” begin at Pentecost, not merely at a future end | in the last days, in the latter days | The Spirit’s outpouring inaugurates the age of fulfillment; distinct from the imminent-Mahdi-return eschatological framework of Shia popular piety (cf. baseline “resurrection” note) | در روزهای آخر (dar ruz-haye akhar) | High |
| ἐκχεῶ ἀπὸ τοῦ Πνεύματός μου / ekcheō apo tou Pneumatos mou | ”I will pour out from my Spirit” | Abundant, deliberate divine outpouring | pour out my Spirit | God’s own initiative in giving the Spirit to “all flesh,” not an achievement or emanation earned by human devotion (cf. baseline “grace” note on feyz as automatic emanation — same caution applies to any “pouring” language) | از روح خود فرومیریزم (az ruh-e khod foru-mi-rizam) | High — must not be read through the Illuminationist/Sadraean feyz-as-automatic-emanation lens; this is a specific, historical, personal gift |
| προφητεύσουσιν / prophēteusousin | ”they will prophesy” | Spirit-empowered declaration of God’s truth | prophesy | Direct fruit of the Spirit’s presence — reuse baseline “prophecy” (نبوت) | نبوت خواهند کرد | Low (baseline reuse) |
| ὁράσεις / ὁράματα — horaseis / horamata | ”visions” | Divinely-given sight of realities beyond ordinary perception | visions | A recurring category throughout Acts (9:10; 10:3; 16:9; 18:9); shares vocabulary with Islamic/Shia dream-vision piety (istikhara, visions of the Imams) — see full entry under “vision” (ch. 9-10) | رؤیاها (ro’ya-ha) | Medium |
| ἐνύπνια / enypnia | ”dreams” | Sleep-dreams as a vehicle of divine communication | dreams | Same category as “visions” — divine initiative, not human-sought | خوابها (khab-ha) | Medium |
| δοῦλοι, δοῦλαι / douloi, doulai | ”male slaves, female slaves” | Social status of servitude | servants, bondservants | The Spirit is poured out across every social boundary — sets up the doctrine of “Church as Community” transcending status | غلامان، کنیزان (gholaman, kanizan) | Low-Medium — note historical social category; must not obscure the radical social leveling the text intends |
| τέρατα καὶ σημεῖα / terata kai sēmeia | ”wonders and signs” | Visible acts confirming a divine message | wonders and signs | See full entry under “signs and wonders” (ch. 2 core passage v.22, and ch. 4-5) | عجایب و نشانهها (ajayeb va neshaneha) | High |
| ἡμέρα Κυρίου / hēmera Kyriou | ”day of the Lord” | OT eschatological day of divine judgment/deliverance | day of the Lord | Reuse baseline “lord” (خداوند); ties final judgment to the same Kyrios confessed in v.36 | روز خداوند (ruz-e Khodavand) | Critical (baseline reuse) |
| ἐπικαλέσηται τὸ ὄνομα Κυρίου σωθήσεται / epikalesētai to onoma Kyriou sōthēsetai | ”calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” | Personal invocation/appeal for deliverance | calls on the name of the Lord… will be saved | The salvation-confession formula anchoring the entire sermon; reuse “lord” and “salvation” baseline terms exactly | هر که نام خداوند را بخواند، نجات خواهد یافت | Critical (baseline reuse: خداوند + نجات) |
Acts 2:22–24 — Jesus of Nazareth: Attested, Delivered, Raised
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ἰησοῦν τὸν Ναζωραῖον / Iēsoun ton Nazōraion | ”Jesus the Nazarene” | Geographic-origin epithet | Jesus of Nazareth | Establishes the historical, human particularity of the one being proclaimed as Lord — reuse baseline “jesus” (عیسی) | عیسای ناصری (Isa-ye Naseri) | Critical (baseline reuse) |
| ἀποδεδειγμένον / apodedeigmenon | ”attested, demonstrated, appointed” | Publicly proven/certified | attested, accredited | God’s own public validation of Jesus through δυνάμεσι/τέρασι/σημείοις — direct link to “Apostolic Authority and Miracles” doctrine | ثابتشده / تصدیقشده از سوی خدا | Medium |
| δυνάμεσι καὶ τέρασι καὶ σημείοις / dynamesi kai terasi kai sēmeiois | ”by mighty works, wonders, and signs” | Threefold vocabulary for miraculous confirmation | miracles, wonders, and signs | God’s own attestation of Jesus’s identity/mission through Jesus’s Judea ministry — reuse baseline “power_of_god” (قدرت خدا) for δύναμις | با قدرتها، عجایب و نشانهها | High |
| ἔκδοτον / ekdoton | ”handed over, delivered up” | Judicial/betrayal handing-over | delivered up, handed over | Emphasizes God’s sovereign plan operating even through betrayal — links to providence doctrine | تسلیمشده (taslim-shode) | Medium |
| προγνώσει τοῦ θεοῦ / prognōsei tou theou | ”by the foreknowledge of God” | God’s prior, purposive knowledge/determination | by the definite plan and foreknowledge of God | Sovereign providence over the crucifixion itself — reuse baseline “providence” (تدبیر الهی) | به تدبیر و علم پیشین خدا | High (baseline reuse: تدبیر الهی) |
| προσπήξαντες ἀνείλατε / prospēxantes aneilate | ”having nailed [him] up, you killed [him]“ | Crucifixion vocabulary; direct historical/physical crucifixion | you crucified and killed him | This directly and unavoidably confronts the Quranic crucifixion-denial (Q 4:157, “they did not kill him… it was made to appear so to them”) — must be rendered with full historical concreteness, not softened | با میخ بر صلیب کوبیده، او را کشتید | Critical — this is the single most direct textual collision with Q 4:157 in the entire book; must never be softened, hedged, or rendered ambiguously |
| ἀνέστησεν ὁ θεός / anestēsen ho theos | ”God raised him up” | Bodily resurrection from death, divine act | God raised him up | The historical resurrection, reuse baseline “resurrection” (قیامت) — CRITICAL per baseline (crucifixion-denial + Mahdi-subordination risk) | خدا او را برخیزانید / زنده کرد | Critical (baseline reuse) |
| λύσας τὰς ὠδῖνας τοῦ θανάτου / lysas tas ōdinas tou thanatou | ”having loosed the birth-pangs/agonies of death” | Death pictured as labor-pains that cannot ultimately hold; a vivid, non-literal metaphor | freed from the agony of death, loosing the pains of death | Death’s grip decisively and permanently broken — must not be rendered so literally (“birth pains”) that the metaphor obscures the resurrection claim | رنجهای مرگ را شکست / زنجیرهای مرگ را گسست | Medium — metaphor requires natural Persian equivalent, not literal calque |
Acts 2:25–28 — Psalm 16 Quoted: David’s Prophecy
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Δαυίδ / David | proper name | — | David | Reuse baseline “david” (داوود) | داوود | Low (baseline reuse) |
| Ἅιδης / Hadēs | ”Hades” | Realm of the dead (OT sheol equivalent) | Hades, the grave, hell | The resurrection’s victory over the realm of the dead — must not be confused with Islamic barzakh (intermediate state) or with a place of final torment (that is a distinct NT category, γέεννα) | عالم مرگان / هادس (aleme-morgan / Hades transliteration) | Medium — clarify this is the temporary realm of the dead, not final judgment-hell |
| οὐκ ἐγκαταλείψεις τὴν ψυχήν μου / ouk enkataleipseis tēn psychēn mou | ”you will not abandon my soul” | Personal, relational preservation | you will not abandon my soul | God’s faithfulness to the Righteous One even through death — foreshadows resurrection assurance | جان مرا ترک نخواهی کرد | Low |
| διαφθοράν / diaphthoran | ”decay, corruption” | Bodily decomposition | corruption, decay | Christ’s body did not decay — a concrete, falsifiable historical claim underlying bodily resurrection doctrine | فساد / تباهی (fasad / tabahi) | Medium |
Acts 2:29–36 — Peter’s Argument: David Foresaw the Messiah’s Resurrection and Enthronement
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| πατριάρχης / patriarchēs | ”patriarch” | Revered ancestral founder-figure | patriarch | David honored as ancestor, not worshipped — sets up Davidic Covenant doctrine (reuse baseline) | پاتریارک / جدّ بزرگ (jadd-e bozorg) | Low |
| τάφος / taphos | ”tomb, grave” | Physical burial site | tomb | David’s tomb (known, occupied) contrasted with Christ’s tomb (empty) — the argument’s evidential core | مقبره / قبر (maqbare / qabr) | Medium — note: this argument from an occupied vs. empty tomb has strong apologetic value against the Quranic crucifixion-denial and should be preserved with full force |
| προφήτης … προϊδὼν / prophētēs … proidōn | ”being a prophet… having foreseen” | Predictive foresight granted to a prophet | prophet, foreseeing | David functioning as prophet of the Messiah’s resurrection — reuse baseline “prophet”/“prophecy” and ties to “fulfillment_of_prophecy” doctrine | پیامبر… از پیش دیده (payambar… az pish dide) | High (baseline reuse) |
| τῆς ἀναστάσεως τοῦ Χριστοῦ / tēs anastaseōs tou Christou | ”of the resurrection of the Christ/Messiah” | — | resurrection of the Christ / Messiah | Direct fusion of “resurrection” + “messiah” — double-Critical convergence (baseline reuse of both قیامت and مسیح) | قیامت مسیح | Critical (baseline reuse) |
| μάρτυρες / martyres | ”witnesses” | Eyewitness testifiers; later (esp. in martyrdom accounts) those who die for their testimony | witnesses | The apostles’ eyewitness authority as the basis for gospel proclamation — foundational to “Persecution and Bold Witness” doctrine | شاهدان (shahedan) | Critical — see full glossary entry below; شهادت/شاهد collides directly with the Islamic creedal shahada and the Shia martyrdom (shahid) category |
| τῇ δεξιᾷ τοῦ θεοῦ ὑψωθείς / tē dexia tou theou hypsōtheis | ”having been exalted to the right hand of God” | Enthronement, position of supreme honor and authority | exalted to the right hand of God | Christ’s ascension and enthronement — directly asserts deity/lordship, not a subordinate prophetic role | به دست راست خدا سرافراز شده | Critical — direct assertion of Christ’s exaltation to divine authority; must not be softened |
| τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν τοῦ Πνεύματος τοῦ Ἁγίου / tēn epangelian tou Pneumatos tou Hagiou | ”the promise of the Holy Spirit” | Covenantal promise now fulfilled | the promise of the Holy Spirit | Ties Pentecost to the fulfillment of OT/Joel promise — reuse baseline “covenant” (عهد) + روحالقدس | وعده روحالقدس | Critical (baseline reuse: روحالقدس) |
| ἐξέχεεν / execheen | ”he poured out” | Deliberate, abundant outpouring | he has poured out | Christ himself (not merely the Father) as the one who pours out the Spirit — a further deity-of-Christ claim | او فرو ریخت (u foru rikht) | High |
| κύριος καὶ χριστός / kyrios kai christos | ”Lord and Christ/Messiah” | Combined titles of supreme authority and messianic office | Lord and Christ | The climax of Peter’s sermon and of the entire core passage — reuse baseline “lord” (خداوند) and “messiah” (مسیح) exactly, verbatim consistency required per the AI Translation Requirements’ “Same rendering of Romans 10:9-10” rule extended to this equally load-bearing confession | خداوند و مسیح | Critical (baseline reuse; verbatim-consistency mandate) |
| ἀσφαλῶς / asphalōs | ”assuredly, certainly” | Firm epistemic certainty | assuredly, for certain | Peter’s confident, non-hedged assertion — tone must not be softened into mere possibility | بهیقین / مسلماً (be-yaqin / mosallaman) | Low |
| οἶκος Ἰσραήλ / oikos Israēl | ”house of Israel” | The covenant people as a whole | house of Israel | Direct address to Peter’s Jewish audience — reuse baseline “israel” (اسرائیل), note political-sensitivity caution | خانه اسرائیل | High (baseline reuse) |
Acts 2:37–41 — Repentance, Baptism, and the Church’s First Converts
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| κατενύγησαν τὴν καρδίαν / katenygēsan tēn kardian | ”were pierced/stabbed in the heart” | Sudden, deep emotional-spiritual conviction | were cut to the heart, were pricked in their hearts | Conviction of sin produced by the Spirit through the Word — not self-generated guilt or ritual remorse | دلشان بهشدت متأثر شد / قلبشان سوراخسوراخ شد (figurative rendering preferred) | Medium — literal “pierced heart” calque may read oddly in Persian; prefer natural idiom for deep conviction |
| τί ποιήσωμεν; / ti poiēsōmen | ”what shall we do?” | Urgent request for a course of action | what shall we do? | Sets up the two-part answer (repent + be baptized) that anchors the doctrine of “Repentance and Baptism” | چه باید بکنیم؟ | Low |
| μετανοήσατε / metanoēsate | ”repent!” (imperative) | Complete reorientation of mind and life, turning from sin toward God | repent | CRITICAL COLLISION: توبه (towbeh) is the exact Quranic/Islamic term (root ت-و-ب) for repentance, embedded in a deeds-and-mercy framework, and in Shia piety associated with recurring devotional turning (including via Karbala mourning) rather than a once-for-all, faith-uniting turn secured through Christ’s atonement. Must be explicitly anchored to faith in Jesus’s name (v.38b), not treated as a self-standing act of penitence that itself secures divine mercy. | توبه کنید | Critical |
| βαπτισθήτω ἕκαστος ὑμῶν ἐπὶ τῷ ὀνόματι Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ / baptisthētō hekastos hymōn epi tō onomati Iēsou Christou | ”let each of you be baptized in/on the name of Jesus Christ” | Water rite of initiation performed in Christ’s authority/identity | be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ | The Christian rite marking union with Christ and entrance into the believing community — foundational for “Repentance and Baptism” doctrine | هر یک از شما به نام عیسی مسیح تعمید بگیرد | Critical — تعمید (established Christian term) must be distinguished from Islamic ritual purification (ghusl/wudu) and taught as a once-for-all identification with Christ’s death/resurrection, not repeated ritual washing |
| εἰς ἄφεσιν τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν ὑμῶν / eis aphesin tōn hamartiōn hymōn | ”for/unto the forgiveness of your sins” | Purpose/result clause — forgiveness secured, not merely hoped for | for the forgiveness of your sins | Forgiveness tied concretely to repentance-plus-baptism-in-Christ’s-name, not a general divine mercy or a deeds-ledger outcome | برای بخشش گناهانتان | High — shared Islamic vocabulary of divine forgiveness (Allah al-Ghafur) must not eclipse the specifically Christ-secured, atonement-grounded forgiveness in view here |
| δωρεὰν τοῦ Ἁγίου Πνεύματος / dōrean tou Hagiou Pneumatos | ”the gift of the Holy Spirit” | A freely-given, unearned bestowal | the gift of the Holy Spirit | The Spirit himself given as gift — reuse baseline “grace” caution (not automatic emanation) applied here to the Spirit’s gift specifically | عطای روحالقدس (atā-ye Ruh-ol-Qods) | Critical (baseline reuse: روحالقدس; پregnant with the same feyz-as-emanation caution as “grace”) |
| ἡ ἐπαγγελία / hē epangelia | ”the promise” | Covenantal pledge from God | the promise | Reuse baseline “covenant” — the promise is for “you, your children, and all who are far off” (v.39), grounding the universal scope of the gospel | وعده | Medium (baseline reuse pattern) |
| τοῖς εἰς μακράν / tois eis makran | ”to those far off” | Geographically/covenantally distant — anticipates Gentile inclusion | to all who are far off | First scriptural hint within the core passage of the Jew-Gentile unity doctrine developed fully in chs. 10-15 | به همه کسانی که دورند | High — sets up “Gospel to Jews and Gentiles” and “Unity of Jews and Gentiles” doctrine threads |
| διεμαρτύρετο καὶ παρεκάλει / diemartyreto kai parekalei | ”he testified/solemnly witnessed and exhorted/urged” | Formal testimony + earnest appeal | testified and exhorted / urged and pleaded | Peter’s continued preaching beyond the recorded sermon — reuse baseline “exhort” (تشویق کردن / نصیحت کردن per context) | شهادت داد و ترغیب/نصیحت کرد | High — same شهادت caution as “witness” above |
| σώθητε ἀπὸ τῆς γενεᾶς τῆς σκολιᾶς ταύτης / sōthēte apo tēs geneas tēs skolias tautēs | ”be saved from this crooked generation” | Deliverance from a morally corrupt/twisted contemporary culture | save yourselves from this corrupt generation | Reuse baseline “salvation” (نجات); calls for decisive break from surrounding unbelief, not merely improved piety within it | خود را از این نسل کجرو نجات دهید | Critical (baseline reuse: نجات) |
| ἀποδεξάμενοι τὸν λόγον αὐτοῦ / apodexamenoi ton logon autou | ”having received/welcomed his word” | Genuine acceptance, not mere hearing | those who received his word | Faith-response to gospel proclamation | کسانی که کلام او را با میل پذیرفتند | Medium |
| προσετέθησαν / prosetethēsan | ”were added” | Incorporation into an existing body | were added [to their number] | The church as a real, numerically-growing community — foundational to “Church as Community” doctrine | اضافه شدند / پیوستند (ezafe shodand / peivastand) | Medium |
| ψυχαὶ τρισχίλιαι / psychai trischiliai | ”three thousand souls” | Literal headcount, emphasizing scale | about three thousand souls | Historically concrete, verifiable claim about the size of the first Christian community | حدود سه هزار نفر (نفوس) | Low |
PART 2 — CHAPTER-BY-CHAPTER STUDY OF THE WHOLE BOOK
Chapter 1 — The Ascension, the Promise of the Spirit, and the Reconstituted Twelve
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ἀνελήμφθη / anelēmphthē (ascension) | “was taken up” | Bodily, visible upward departure into heaven | he was taken up, ascended | The historical Ascension — a bodily, one-time, visible departure that presupposes bodily resurrection; theological name “Ascension” not a single Lukan noun | به آسمان بالا برده شد (be aseman bala borde shod) | Critical — presupposes and reinforces bodily resurrection against the Quranic denial framework; must be historically concrete |
| μάρτυρες / martyres (witnesses) | “witnesses” | See core passage entry | witnesses | Acts 1:8 — “you will be my witnesses… to the end of the earth” is the programmatic thesis-statement of the entire book | شاهدان من خواهید بود | Critical — see glossary entry; this verse is Acts’ equivalent of Romans 1:16-17 in load-bearing weight and should receive the same “verbatim consistency across documents” treatment |
| δύναμις / dynamis | ”power” | Capability, might | power | ”You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you” — reuse baseline “power_of_god” (قدرت خدا) | قدرت | High (baseline reuse) |
| ἡ βασιλεία τοῦ θεοῦ / hē basileia tou theou | ”the kingdom of God” | God’s reign | kingdom of God | Disciples’ mistaken political-restoration question (“will you restore the kingdom to Israel?”) corrected toward a spiritual/missional reframing — reuse baseline (ملکوت خدا) | ملکوت خدا | Medium (baseline reuse) |
| κλῆρος / klēros | ”lot, portion, inheritance-share” | Casting lots (a die/pebble method) to discern God’s choice; also “share/portion” | lot, share, portion | Choosing Judas’s replacement (Matthias) by casting lots — a distinct decision-method from later Spirit-guided appointments (ch. 6, 13); relevant background for “Apostolic Authority” doctrine | قرعه (qor’e) | Medium — note: قرعه (lot-casting) is also practiced in some Islamic contexts (istikhara alternatives); clarify this is a one-time, pre-Pentecost method superseded by explicit Spirit-guidance later in Acts |
| οἱ ἕνδεκα / hoi hendeka, οἱ δώδεκα / hoi dōdeka | ”the eleven / the twelve” | The apostolic core group | the Eleven, the Twelve | Foundational, unrepeatable apostolic office — reuse baseline “apostle” (رسول) | یازده نفر / دوازده نفر (رسول) | High (baseline reuse) |
Chapter 2 (remainder, 2:42–47) — The Church’s Common Life
(Verses 1–41 receive full core-passage treatment above.)
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| κοινωνία / koinōnia | ”fellowship, partnership, shared participation” | Reuse baseline “fellowship” (مشارکت) | fellowship | Corporate life of the newly-formed church — reuse baseline exactly | مشارکت | Medium (baseline reuse) |
| κλάσις τοῦ ἄρτου / klasis tou artou | ”the breaking of bread” | Shared communal meal, with likely reference to what becomes the Lord’s Supper | breaking of bread | The church’s regular communal, sacramental-adjacent practice — a NEW term not in the Romans baseline | پاره کردن نان / شکستن نان (pare kardan-e nan) | Medium — clarify as a regular shared-meal-with-remembrance practice, not (yet) a fixed liturgical rite; distinct from Islamic communal iftar meals though a structurally similar bridge concept |
| ἅπαντα κοινά / hapanta koina | ”all things in common” | Voluntary economic sharing among believers | had all things in common, shared everything | Radical, voluntary, Spirit-motivated economic mutuality — models “Church as Community” doctrine; must not be read as enforced communism nor as an eternally mandated economic system | همهچیز را با هم شریک بودند | Medium — clarify voluntary and situational (Jerusalem-specific), not a universal economic mandate |
| προσκαρτερέω / proskartereō | ”to devote oneself continually to” | Persistent, disciplined commitment | devoted themselves to | Devotion to apostles’ teaching, fellowship, breaking of bread, prayers — the fourfold rhythm of church life | خود را وقف کردند (khod ra vaqf kardand) | Low |
Chapter 3 — Healing at the Temple and Peter’s Second Sermon
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ἀρχηγὸς τῆς ζωῆς / archēgos tēs zōēs | ”the originator/author/prince of life” | Founder, pioneer, source | Prince of life, Author of life, source of life | A Christological title asserting Christ as the very source of life itself — near-deity claim | سرچشمهٔ حیات / سرور حیات (sarcheshme-ye hayat) | Critical — deity/lordship-adjacent title requiring the same care as “Lord” |
| ὁ ἅγιος καὶ δίκαιος / ho hagios kai dikaios | ”the Holy One and the Righteous One” | Christological titles | the Holy and Righteous One | δίκαιος shares the exact root as δικαιοσύνη (righteousness) — reuse baseline عدالت-root: “the Righteous One” = عادل (the very forensic-righteousness word from Romans) applied here as a title for Christ himself | قدوس و عادل | Critical — direct, deliberate reuse of baseline “righteousness” root as a Christological title; must not drift to پارسایی (Zoroastrian-virtue term, explicitly forbidden in baseline) |
| ὁ παῖς αὐτοῦ / ho pais autou | ”his servant/child” | Servant of the Lord (Isaianic Servant echo) | his servant | Christological title echoing Isaiah’s Suffering Servant — ties resurrection/atonement themes together | خادم او (khadem-e u) | High |
| καιροὶ ἀναψύξεως / kairoi anapsyxeōs | ”times/seasons of refreshing” | Relief, respite | times of refreshing | Eschatological renewal tied to repentance — links repentance doctrine to future hope | زمانهای آسودگی (zaman-haye asudegi) | Medium |
| μετάνοια / metanoia | Reuse — see core passage | repentance | repentance | Same critical caution as v.38 applies | توبه | Critical (see core passage) |
Chapter 4 — Boldness Before the Council
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| παρρησία / parrēsia | ”freedom of speech, boldness, openness” | Fearless, unrestrained public speech | boldness, confidence | Spirit-given confidence to proclaim the gospel before hostile authority — foundational to “Persecution and Bold Witness” doctrine | دلیری / جسارت (ruhani) | High — must be taught as Spirit-given confidence in proclamation, not reckless political defiance; acute pastoral sensitivity required given real underground house-church safety risk |
| συνέδριον / synedrion | ”council” | The Jewish ruling council (Sanhedrin) | council, Sanhedrin | The institutional religious-legal authority opposing the apostles — do not conflate with Iran’s own clerical governing bodies despite the structurally similar dynamic | مجمع (شورای روحانیون یهود) / سنهدرین | Medium |
| σωτηρία ἐν ἄλλῳ οὐδενί / sōtēria en allō oudeni | ”salvation in no one else” | Exclusive salvific sufficiency | there is salvation in no one else | Exclusivity claim — reuse baseline “salvation” (نجات); directly confronts any syncretistic reading alongside other intercessory/salvific figures (cf. baseline Karbala caution) | نجات در هیچکس دیگر نیست | Critical (baseline reuse) |
| ὁ λίθος… κεφαλὴν γωνίας / ho lithos… kephalēn gōnias | ”the stone… the head of the corner” | OT (Psalm 118) building-imagery applied to Christ | the stone… the cornerstone | Christological application of an OT rejection-then-vindication motif | سنگ سرِ زاویه (sang-e sar-e zaviye) | Medium |
| ὁμοθυμαδὸν / homothymadon | ”with one mind/accord” | United, harmonious action | with one accord | Corporate unity in prayer and mission — “Church as Community” doctrine | به یکدل (be yek-del) | Low |
Chapter 5 — Ananias and Sapphira; Gamaliel’s Counsel
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ψεύσασθαι… τῷ Πνεύματι τῷ Ἁγίῳ / pseusasthai… tō Pneumati tō Hagiō | ”to lie to the Holy Spirit” | Deception directed at a personal divine agent | you have lied to the Holy Spirit | Direct evidence the Holy Spirit is a personal divine agent who can be sinned against — reinforces baseline’s “Holy Spirit” deity-not-mere-force caution | به روحالقدس دروغ گفتی | Critical (baseline reuse: روحالقدس) |
| φόβος μέγας / phobos megas | ”great fear” | Reverential dread, awe at divine holiness | great fear [came upon the church] | Fear as a right response to God’s holiness, not the terror of arbitrary power | ترس عظیم (tars-e azim) | Low-Medium |
| ἐὰν ᾗ ἐκ θεοῦ / ean ē ek theou | ”if it is from/of God” | Providential test — let God’s sovereignty determine outcome | if this plan is of God | Gamaliel’s counsel models a providence-trusting posture — reuse baseline “providence” (تدبیر الهی) | اگر از خداست | High (baseline reuse) |
Chapter 6 — The Appointment of the Seven
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| διακονία / diakonia | ”service, ministry” | Practical service, later formal “deacon” office | ministry, service, distribution | The origin of the diaconal office — practical care as integral to church life, not secondary to “spiritual” ministry | خدمت (khedmat) | Low-Medium |
| διάκονος / diakonos | ”servant, deacon” | Formal office of service | deacon | Established church office alongside apostle/elder — reuse pattern for later “elders/overseers” (ch. 14, 20) | خادم (khadem) | Low-Medium |
| ἐπίθεσις τῶν χειρῶν / epithesis tōn cheirōn | ”laying on of hands” | Physical gesture accompanying commissioning/blessing | laying on of hands | Public commissioning rite — must be distinguished from folk-Islamic/Sufi baraka-transfer through a pir’s touch/breath, and from mullah’s ritual dua-writing gestures | گذاردن دستها (بر سر) | Medium |
| πλήρης Πνεύματος καὶ σοφίας / plērēs Pneumatos kai sophias | ”full of the Spirit and wisdom” | Spirit-empowered practical wisdom | full of the Spirit and of wisdom | Stephen’s qualification — ties Spirit-fullness to character and competence, not ecstatic display alone | پر از روح و حکمت | High (baseline reuse: روحالقدس-adjacent) |
Chapter 7 — Stephen’s Speech and Martyrdom
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ἀπερίτμητοι καρδίαις / aperitmētoi kardiais | ”uncircumcised in heart” | Inward, not merely outward, covenant unfaithfulness | stiff-necked, uncircumcised in heart | Applies covenant-marker language (circumcision) inwardly — anticipates the ch. 15 circumcision-and-law debate; the true covenant marker is a responsive heart, not the physical rite | دلهای ختنهنشده (del-haye khatne-nashode) | High — directly relevant to “Justification apart from the Law” doctrine; see ch. 15 |
| υἱὸν τοῦ ἀνθρώπου / huion tou anthrōpou | ”Son of Man” | Danielic apocalyptic title of exalted divine-human authority (Daniel 7:13-14) | Son of Man | Stephen’s vision of the exalted, standing (not seated) Christ at the moment of martyrdom — a specific, weighty Christological title, not a mere synonym for “a human being” | پسر انسان (pesar-e ensan) | Critical — must be taught as a specific divine-authority title (Daniel 7), not simply “a man”; no ready Islamic equivalent category exists, so full explanation is required rather than assumed background |
| λιθοβολέω / lithoboleō | ”to stone” | Execution by stoning | they stoned him | Historical martyrdom account — first Christian martyr; foundational for “Persecution and Bold Witness” doctrine, and (carefully) must be distinguished from Shia martyrdom (Karbala) merit-theology while affirming the real historical suffering | سنگسار کردند (sangsar kardand) | High — سنگسار also carries contemporary Iranian legal/penal resonance (stoning as a shari’a-prescribed punishment); teach with pastoral awareness of this double resonance |
| Κύριε, μὴ στήσῃς αὐτοῖς ταύτην τὴν ἁμαρτίαν / Kyrie, mē stēsēs autois tautēn tēn hamartian | ”Lord, do not hold this sin against them” | Prayer of forgiveness for persecutors | Lord, do not hold this sin against them | Christlike intercession for one’s persecutors — reuse baseline “intercession” (شفاعت) applied to a human believer’s prayer, modeling (not replacing) Christ’s unique intercession | خداوندا، این گناه را بر آنان مگیر | Critical (baseline reuse: خداوند, شفاعت) |
Chapter 8 — Philip, Simon the Sorcerer, and the Ethiopian Eunuch
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| μαγεία / mageia | ”sorcery, magic” | Occult power-manipulation | sorcery, magic | Simon’s prior occupation, contrasted with the Spirit’s freely-given power — a bridge-and-contrast concept given Iran’s living folk-magic/talisman practices (do’a-nevisi) | جادو (jado) | Medium |
| ἡ δωρεὰ τοῦ θεοῦ / hē dōrea tou theou | ”the gift of God” | Freely given, not purchasable | the gift of God | Simon’s attempt to buy spiritual power directly illustrates and warns against the grace-as-transaction misunderstanding — reuse baseline “grace” caution | عطای خدا (atā-ye khoda) | High (baseline reuse pattern) |
| τί κωλύει με βαπτισθῆναι; / ti kōlyei me baptisthēnai | ”what prevents/hinders me from being baptized?” | Removal of any obstacle to full inclusion | what prevents me from being baptized? | The Ethiopian eunuch’s inclusion — anticipates full Gentile inclusion (chs. 10-11) and answers ritual-exclusion categories (eunuchs were excluded from full temple participation, Deut. 23:1) with gospel inclusion | چه چیز مانع تعمید من میشود؟ | High — reuse تعمید; ties “Gospel to Jews and Gentiles” doctrine to social/bodily categories of exclusion, not ethnicity alone |
Chapter 9 — The Conversion of Saul; Peter’s Miracles
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| φῶς ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ / phōs ek tou ouranou | ”a light from heaven” | Divine, theophanic light | a light from heaven | The historical, objective, externally-verifiable (by companions) nature of Saul’s encounter with the risen Christ — central to “Conversion of Paul” doctrine | نوری از آسمان (nur-i az aseman) | High |
| Σαοὺλ, Σαούλ, τί με διώκεις; / Saoul, Saoul, ti me diōkeis | ”Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” | The risen Christ’s direct, personal address | Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? | Christ personally identifies with his persecuted church (“me”) — a strong ecclesiology + Christology statement in one line | شائول، شائول، چرا مرا جفا میکنی؟ | Critical — this is the theological hinge of the conversion account; the risen, speaking Christ is asserted as a living, present divine person |
| σκεῦος ἐκλογῆς / skeuos eklogēs | ”a chosen instrument/vessel” | An object selected and set apart for a purpose | a chosen instrument | Divine election of Saul for a specific apostolic mission — reuse baseline “election” (برگزیدگی خدا) caution regarding Imamate-succession import | ظرف برگزیده (zarf-e bargozide) | High (baseline reuse pattern) |
| ἡ ὁδός / hē hodos | ”the Way” | A path/road; here a title/designation for the early Christian movement | the Way | Recurring designation for the Christian movement in Acts (9:2; 19:9,23; 22:4; 24:14,22) — must be taught as a proper-noun-like title, not confused with the Sufi tariqat (“the [mystic] Way,” an actual technical term for a Sufi order/spiritual path) or with generic shari’a/shar’ (“the way/law”) | راه (rah) — as a proper designation, ideally capitalized/glossed as «راه» (پیروان راه خداوند) | High — direct terminological neighbor to Sufi طریقت; must be clearly marked as this specific movement’s name, not a generic spiritual path among others |
| λέπις / lepis (ἀπέπεσαν αἱ λεπίδες) | “scale(s)“ | Physical scale-like film | scales fell from his eyes | Physical healing accompanying spiritual restoration — concrete, historical detail | پوستهها از چشمانش افتاد | Low |
| Ταβιθά … ἀνέστη / Tabitha … anestē | proper name; “she rose/stood up” | Same ἀνίστημι root as “resurrection” | Tabitha… arose | A resuscitation miracle performed through apostolic authority in Jesus’s name — links “Apostolic Authority and Miracles” doctrine to resurrection-power themes without confusing this with the unique, permanent resurrection of Christ | طابیتا… برخاست | High — note: this is resuscitation (a return to mortal life, later to die again), categorically distinct from Christ’s resurrection (baseline قیامت, permanent/glorified); a translator note distinguishing the two is advisable |
Chapter 10 — Cornelius and Peter’s Vision
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| κοινός / koinos | ”common, shared” — by extension “impure, unclean” (ritually) | Ritual-impurity category | common, unclean | CRITICAL COLLISION: the underlying concept maps precisely onto the elaborate Shia fiqh najasat (ritual impurity) system, where نجس (najes) is the exact technical term. God’s declaration “what God has made clean, do not call common” (10:15,28) directly overturns purity-code thinking — this is a moment of direct doctrinal confrontation with purity-law categories, not a side note | ناپاک (napak) — preferred over the fiqh-technical نجس | Critical |
| καθαρίζω / katharizō | ”to cleanse, make clean” | Ritual or moral purification | cleanse, make clean | God’s own declarative cleansing — precedes and grounds table-fellowship and gospel inclusion of Gentiles | پاک کردن (pak kardan) | High |
| φοβούμενος τὸν θεόν / phoboumenos ton theon | ”one who fears God” | A Gentile sympathetic to/worshiping the God of Israel without full conversion (uncircumcised) | God-fearer, devout man | A recognized in-between category (Cornelius) — a useful bridge to the shared Persian/Islamic خداترس (khoda-tars) piety category, but must be taught as a starting point, not yet equivalent to saving faith | خداترس (khoda-tars) | Medium |
| οὐκ ἔστιν προσωπολήμπτης ὁ θεός / ouk estin prosōpolēmptēs ho theos | ”God is not one who receives/favors faces [persons]“ | Impartiality | God shows no partiality | Direct doctrinal foundation for “Gospel to Jews and Gentiles” doctrine — universal accessibility of the gospel on the same terms | خدا کسی را بر دیگری ترجیح نمیدهد | High |
| ἡ δωρεὰ τοῦ Ἁγίου Πνεύματος ἐκκέχυται / hē dōrea tou Hagiou Pneumatos ekkechytai | ”the gift of the Holy Spirit has been poured out” | Same outpouring vocabulary as Acts 2, now upon Gentiles | the gift of the Holy Spirit was poured out | The Gentile “Pentecost” — deliberate narrative parallel to ch. 2, establishing full Gentile inclusion in the same Spirit-gift on the same terms as Jewish believers | عطای روحالقدس فرو ریخته شد | Critical (baseline reuse: روحالقدس) |
Chapter 11 — The Jerusalem Church’s Response; the Church at Antioch
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| τίς ἦν ἐγὼ δυνατὸς κωλύσαι τὸν θεόν; / tis ēn egō dynatos kōlysai ton theon | ”who was I to be able to hinder God?” | Submission to God’s evident sovereign action | who was I to stand in God’s way? | Peter’s own theological reasoning validating Gentile inclusion — models doctrinal humility before God’s demonstrated will | من که بودم که بتوانم خدا را باز دارم؟ | Medium |
| Χριστιανός / Christianos | ”Christian” (a coinage, likely outsider-given) | Follower of Christ, as a distinct social/religious identity | Christian(s) | First use of the name “Christian” (11:26) — the movement’s own emerging distinct identity, no longer simply a Jewish sect | مسیحی (masihi) | Medium-High — in contemporary Iran, مسیحی functions primarily as a legally-recognized ethnic-minority religious category (Armenian, Assyrian communities); Muslim-background converts adopting this label face distinct, often severe, social/legal consequences not shared by those born into recognized Christian communities. Teach with this present-day asymmetry explicitly in view. |
Chapter 12 — Herod’s Persecution; Peter’s Deliverance
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ἄγγελος Κυρίου / angelos Kyriou | ”angel of the Lord” | A divine messenger acting with the Lord’s authority | angel of the Lord | Sovereign, personal divine intervention to rescue Peter — reuse baseline “lord” (خداوند) and note baseline’s angelology caution (per “incarnation” entry: keep angel as created messenger, not an emanationist intermediary) | فرشتهٔ خداوند (fereshte-ye Khodavand) | High (baseline reuse: خداوند) |
| ὁ λόγος τοῦ θεοῦ ηὔξανεν / ho logos tou theou ēuxanen | ”the word of God grew/increased” | The gospel’s advance despite persecution | the word of God continued to increase | Thematic refrain throughout Acts: persecution does not halt gospel advance — anticipates the book’s closing “unhindered” theme (ch. 28) | کلام خدا رشد میکرد | Medium |
Chapter 13 — Paul and Barnabas Sent Out; Justification Preached at Antioch
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ἀφορίσατε / aphorisate | ”set apart!” | Deliberate separation for a specific divine purpose | set apart, separate | Echoes exactly the vocabulary of Romans 1:1 (“Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God”) — reuse baseline’s “separation unto God’s service” doctrine explicitly | جدا کنید / وقف کنید | High (baseline doctrine reuse) |
| νηστεία / nēsteia | ”fasting” | Voluntary abstinence from food, accompanying prayer | fasting | CRITICAL COLLISION: روزه (rowze) is the precise term for the obligatory Ramadan fast, one of Islam’s Five Pillars. Acts’ fasting (13:2-3; 14:23) is voluntary, occasional, accompanies prayer for guidance/commissioning — must be taught as this church’s free practice, not a religious-duty quota that earns merit | روزه (rowze) | High |
| δικαιοῦται / dikaioutai | ”is justified” | Same verb-family as Romans’ δικαιοῦσθαι | is justified | Acts 13:39 — “by him everyone who believes is justified from everything from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses” — a direct, explicit statement of the “Justification apart from the Law” doctrine, using the identical verb-family as Romans; reuse baseline “justification” (عادل شمرده شدن) EXACTLY | عادل شمرده میشود | Critical (baseline reuse — mandatory verbatim consistency with Romans usage) |
| τεταγμένοι εἰς ζωὴν αἰώνιον / tetagmenoi eis zōēn aiōnion | ”having been appointed/ordained to eternal life” | Divine appointment unto salvation | ordained/appointed to eternal life | Acts 13:48 — an election-to-salvation statement; reuse baseline “election” (برگزیدگی خدا) caution regarding Imamate-succession import | مقرر شده برای حیات جاودان | High (baseline reuse) |
| φῶς ἐθνῶν / phōs ethnōn | ”a light for/of the nations/Gentiles” | Isaianic mission-fulfillment language | a light for the Gentiles | Direct Isaiah-fulfillment citation (Isa 49:6) applied to the apostolic mission — reuse baseline “gentiles” (غیریهودیان) and “mission” (ماموریت) | نوری برای غیریهودیان | High (baseline reuse) |
Chapter 14 — Iconium and Lystra; the Living God vs. Idols
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| θεὸς ζῶν / theos zōn | ”living God” | Contrasted with lifeless idols | the living God | Paul’s Lystra sermon (14:15) — contrasts the living, active Creator with the crowd’s instinct to deify him and Barnabas as Zeus/Hermes; reuse baseline “god” (خدا) | خدای زنده | Critical (baseline reuse) |
| πρεσβύτεροι / presbyteroi | ”elders” | Church office of oversight | elders | First appointment of local church elders (14:23) — reuse pattern developed fully in chs. 15, 20 | مشایخ (کلیسا) | Medium |
| θύρα πίστεως / thyra pisteōs | ”door of faith” | Opportunity/access for faith-response | door of faith | God “opening a door of faith to the Gentiles” — reuse baseline “faith” (ایمان) | در ایمان | High (baseline reuse) |
Chapter 15 — The Jerusalem Council: Circumcision and the Law
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| περιτέμνω / peritemnō | ”to circumcise” | The Mosaic covenant-marking rite | to circumcise | The council’s central question: must Gentile believers be circumcised (and so keep the whole law) to be saved? Answered negatively — the doctrinal center of “Justification apart from the Law.” Directly relevant to Muslim-background converts, for whom circumcision is a near-universal cultural-religious practice (though not itself the point of controversy for them); the underlying question — “is an external identity-marker/rite required for full membership in God’s people?” — closely parallels live pastoral questions about departing visible Islamic markers | ختنه کردن (khatne kardan) | High |
| τῇ χάριτι τοῦ Κυρίου Ἰησοῦ σωθῆναι / tē chariti tou Kyriou Iēsou sōthēnai | ”to be saved by the grace of the Lord Jesus” | Salvation grounded in grace, not law-keeping | we believe that we are saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus | Peter’s climactic council statement — reuse baseline “grace” (فیض), “lord” (خداوند), “salvation” (نجات) all together; the sharpest Acts statement of grace-versus-law | به فیض خداوند عیسی نجات مییابیم | Critical (baseline reuse of all three terms together) |
| ζυγός / zygos | ”yoke” | Burden of obligation, here the full law including circumcision | yoke | ”Why put a yoke on the neck of the disciples that neither we nor our fathers could bear?” — reuse baseline “law” (ناموس) framing | یوغ | Medium (baseline reuse pattern) |
| ἔδοξεν τῷ Πνεύματι τῷ Ἁγίῳ καὶ ἡμῖν / edoxen tō Pneumati tō Hagiō kai hēmin | ”it seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us” | Formula asserting joint divine-and-apostolic authority behind a decision | it seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us | The apostolic decree’s authority formula — a key statement for “Apostolic Authority” doctrine, asserting the Spirit’s ongoing personal guidance of the church’s decisions | بر روحالقدس و بر ما نیکو آمد | Critical (baseline reuse: روحالقدس) |
Chapter 16 — Lydia, the Philippian Jailer, and Roman Citizenship
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| πνεῦμα πύθωνα / pneuma pythōna | ”a python spirit” (spirit of divination) | A specific demonic spirit associated with oracular/fortune-telling power | a spirit of divination | Contemporary Iranian culture retains living fortune-telling/fal-giri and rammal folk practices — this passage’s exorcism directly confronts that category with Christ’s superior authority | روح غیبگویی (ruh-e gheybgu’i) | High |
| τί με δεῖ ποιεῖν ἵνα σωθῶ; / ti me dei poiein hina sōthō | ”what must I do that I may be saved?” | Urgent salvation-inquiry | what must I do to be saved? | The Philippian jailer’s question — parallel to Acts 2:37’s “what shall we do?”; reuse baseline “salvation” (نجات) | چه باید بکنم تا نجات یابم؟ | Critical (baseline reuse) |
| Ῥωμαῖος / Rōmaios | ”Roman [citizen]“ | Legal citizenship status | Roman citizen | Paul’s citizenship secures legal protection — a civic-identity theme with resonance for Iranian believers navigating their own legal/religious minority status | شهروند رومی (shahrvand-e Rumi) | Low-Medium |
Chapter 17 — Thessalonica, Berea, and the Areopagus
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ἄγνωστος θεός / agnōstos theos | ”unknown god” | An altar inscription Paul uses as a rhetorical bridge | the unknown god | Paul’s culturally-adapted missionary method — proclaiming the true God as the fulfillment of even pagan religious instinct, without affirming the validity of that worship itself | خدای ناشناخته (khoda-ye nashenakhte) | Medium |
| εἰδωλολατρία / eidōlolatria | ”idolatry” | Worship of images/false gods | idolatry | Athens saturated with idols — reuse baseline pattern (بتپرستی); note Muslim polemics sometimes accuse Christian veneration of icons/cross/Mary of exactly this charge, so teach with that apologetic pressure in view | بتپرستی | Medium-High |
| μετανοεῖν / metanoein | Reuse — see core passage | to repent | repent | Paul’s Athens call to repentance in light of coming judgment | توبه کردن | Critical (see core passage) |
| ἀνάστασις νεκρῶν / anastasis nekrōn | ”resurrection of the dead” | Reuse baseline “resurrection” (قیامت) | resurrection of the dead | The specific claim (bodily resurrection) that provokes mockery from Greek philosophers — foreshadows the Sadducee/Pharisee controversy in ch. 23 | قیامت مردگان | Critical (baseline reuse) |
| ἡμέραν ὥρισεν ἐν ᾗ κρίνειν / hēmeran hōrisen en hē krinein | ”he has fixed a day on which he will judge” | Future, certain, appointed judgment | he has appointed a day on which he will judge the world | Universal, certain future judgment through the risen Christ — ties resurrection to eschatological accountability | روزی را برای داوری تعیین کرده است | High |
Chapter 18 — Corinth; Apollos
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| εὐχή / euchē (vow, 18:18) | “vow” | A voluntary religious pledge (here, a Nazirite-type vow) | vow | CRITICAL COLLISION: نذر (nazr) is a currently-practiced, major Shia devotional category (votive vows to Imams/Imamzadeh shrines — promising an offering or act if a prayer is answered). Paul’s vow-keeping must be taught as a culturally-Jewish practice appropriate to that transitional era, not an endorsement of shrine-vow piety, while not disparaging the OT institution (Numbers 6) itself | نذر (nazr) | Critical |
| κατηχηθεὶς τὴν ὁδὸν τοῦ Κυρίου / katēchētheis tēn hodon tou Kyriou | ”having been instructed in the way of the Lord” | Formal instruction in Christian teaching | instructed in the way of the Lord | Apollos’s partial, growing understanding (knowing only John’s baptism) — models ongoing discipleship/correction within the church; reuse “the Way” caution (see ch. 9) and baseline “lord” | در راه خداوند تعلیم دیده | High (baseline reuse: خداوند; ties to “the Way” caution) |
Chapter 19 — Ephesus: The Spirit, Magic, and the Riot
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| βαπτισμός Ἰωάννου / baptismos Iōannou vs. βάπτισμα εἰς τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ Κυρίου Ἰησοῦ | ”John’s baptism” vs. “baptism into the name of the Lord Jesus” | Two distinct baptisms: preparatory repentance-baptism vs. Christ-uniting baptism | John’s baptism / baptism in the name of the Lord Jesus | The Ephesian disciples’ re-baptism (19:1-7) clarifies that Christian baptism is distinctly and necessarily connected to explicit faith in Jesus and reception of the Spirit — reuse تعمید | تعمید یحیی / تعمید به نام خداوند عیسی | Critical (baseline reuse: تعمید, خداوند) |
| βιβλία (τῆς μαγείας) / biblia (tēs mageias) | “books/scrolls (of magic)“ | Occult texts | scrolls of magic | Public, costly burning of magic scrolls upon conversion — dramatic renunciation of prior occult practice; a strong contrast-illustration given living Iranian folk-magic/talisman practices | کتابهای جادو (ketab-haye jado) | Medium |
| μεγάλη ἡ Ἄρτεμις Ἐφεσίων / megalē hē Artemis Ephesiōn | ”Great is Artemis of the Ephesians” | Idolatrous civic-religious slogan | Great is Artemis of the Ephesians | Economic-religious backlash against the gospel’s exposure of idol-trade profits — a socio-economic dimension of “Persecution and Bold Witness” doctrine | آرتمیس بزرگ است | Low-Medium |
Chapter 20 — Farewell at Miletus: Elders, Overseers, and the Church “Purchased with His Own Blood”
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ἐπίσκοπος / episkopos | ”overseer” | Church office of oversight/supervision | overseer, bishop | Used interchangeably with πρεσβύτερος (elder) for the same office in this passage (20:17, 28) — reuse “elders” (مشایخ) alongside ناظر | ناظر / مشایخ | Medium |
| ποιμαίνειν… τὸ ποίμνιον / poimainein… to poimnion | ”to shepherd… the flock” | Pastoral care metaphor | shepherd the flock | Elders as under-shepherds of Christ’s flock — safe, resonant pastoral metaphor in Persian poetic tradition | گله را شبانی کنید | Low-Medium |
| τὴν ἐκκλησίαν τοῦ θεοῦ ἣν περιεποιήσατο διὰ τοῦ αἵματος τοῦ ἰδίου / tēn ekklēsian tou theou hēn periepoiēsato dia tou haimatos tou idiou | ”the church of God, which he obtained/purchased through his own blood” | Purchase/acquisition through a costly, personal payment | the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood | A direct, startling assertion that God’s own blood purchased the church — a major deity-of-Christ and atonement statement; textual tradition varies between “God” and “Lord” here, requiring a translator note, but either reading asserts a divine Person’s own blood as the purchase price | کلیسای خدا را که با خون خود خرید | Critical — must not be softened; [TRANSLATOR NOTE: manuscript tradition varies between “church of God” and “church of the Lord” at this point; both readings affirm that the blood shed for the church’s purchase is the blood of a divine Person, reinforcing rather than undermining the deity of Christ] |
| λύκοι βαρεῖς / lykoi bareis | ”fierce/savage wolves” | Predatory false teachers | fierce wolves | Warning against false teaching arising from within the church — relevant to “Apostolic Authority” doctrine’s protective dimension | گرگان درنده (gorgan-e darande) | Low |
| κληρονομία / klēronomia | ”inheritance” | Reuse — see full glossary entry | inheritance | ”The word of his grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance” — ties grace and inheritance together; reuse baseline “grace” (فیض) | میراث | High (baseline reuse pattern) |
Chapter 21 — Paul’s Arrest in the Temple
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ἁγνίζω / hagnizō (purification, 21:24-26) | “to purify” | Ritual purification accompanying a vow | to purify oneself | Paul’s participation in a Nazirite-type purification rite to reassure Jewish believers — reuse “vow” (نذر) caution from ch. 18; also touches baseline “holy” (مقدس) root | تطهیر کردن (tathir kardan) | High (see ch. 18 نذر caution) |
| στάσις / stasis | ”uproar, riot” | Civil disturbance | riot, uproar | Recurring pattern of civic unrest triggered by gospel proclamation — “Persecution and Bold Witness” doctrine | شورش / آشوب (shuresh / ashub) | Low-Medium |
No new theological vocabulary beyond items already covered in ch. 9, 16, 18, 20; chapter reuses “the Way,” Roman citizenship, and vow/purification categories.
Chapter 22 — Paul’s Defense Before the Crowd
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| βάπτισαι καὶ ἀπόλουσαι τὰς ἁμαρτίας σου, ἐπικαλεσάμενος τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ / baptisai kai apolousai tas hamartias sou, epikalesamenos to onoma autou | ”be baptized and wash away your sins, calling on his name” | Baptism as the moment of sins washed away through invocation of Christ’s name | be baptized and wash away your sins, calling on his name | Ananias’s words to Saul, echoing Acts 2:21’s “calling on the name of the Lord” formula and 2:38’s baptism-forgiveness link — reuse تعمید and the core-passage “calling on the name” phrase for verbatim consistency | تعمید بگیر و گناهانت را با خواندن نام او بشوی | Critical (baseline reuse: تعمید; verbatim-consistency with 2:21, 2:38) |
No further new theological vocabulary; chapter is Paul’s third-person retelling of his conversion (ch. 9) plus the Roman-citizenship legal theme (ch. 16, 22:25-29).
Chapter 23 — Paul Before the Sanhedrin; the Plot Against His Life
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ἀνάστασις… μήτε ἄγγελον μήτε πνεῦμα / anastasis… mēte angelon mēte pneuma | ”resurrection… neither angel nor spirit” | The Sadducee-Pharisee doctrinal dispute over resurrection, angels, and spirits | resurrection… neither angel nor spirit | Paul strategically exploits an existing Jewish theological controversy over bodily resurrection — reuse baseline “resurrection” (قیامت); shows resurrection was already a live, contested doctrine even within Judaism, useful apologetic background | قیامت… نه فرشته و نه روح | Critical (baseline reuse) |
No other new theological vocabulary; chapter reuses council/Sanhedrin (ch. 4) and citizenship (ch. 16, 22) terms.
Chapter 24 — Paul Before Felix
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| τῆς αἱρέσεως / tēs haireseōs (τῶν Ναζωραίων) | “of the sect (of the Nazarenes)“ | Outsider label for the Christian movement, echoing “the Way” | the sect of the Nazarenes | Tertullus’s accusatory label vs. Paul’s own preferred self-designation “the Way” (24:14) — a live naming-contest over the movement’s identity | فرقهٔ ناصریان (ferqe-ye Naserian) | Medium — note contrast with Paul’s own preferred “راه” (the Way) self-designation |
| περὶ δικαιοσύνης καὶ ἐγκρατείας καὶ τοῦ κρίματος τοῦ μέλλοντος / peri dikaiosynēs kai enkrateias kai tou krimatos tou mellontos | ”concerning righteousness and self-control and the coming judgment” | Paul’s message content before Felix | righteousness, self-control, and the coming judgment | Reuse baseline “righteousness” (عدالت) exactly; ἐγκράτεια (self-control) is a NEW term — care must be taken it is not rendered with a virtue-term (e.g. پرهیزگاری) carrying the same Zoroastrian-inflected achievement-piety resonance the baseline explicitly rejected for “righteousness” (پارسایی) | عدالت، خودداری، و داوری آینده | Critical (baseline reuse: عدالت; ἐγκράτεια rendered خودداری, not پرهیزگاری, to avoid reintroducing the rejected virtue-piety register) |
Chapter 25 — Paul Before Festus; Appeal to Caesar
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Καίσαρα ἐπικαλοῦμαι / Kaisara epikaloumai | ”I appeal to Caesar” | Formal legal appeal to the highest Roman court | I appeal to Caesar | Paul’s use of his legal rights to advance the gospel to Rome — no direct doctrinal risk, but thematically important for “Great Commission Fulfilled” (Rome as the narrative’s geographic goal, cf. 1:8) | به قیصر استیناف میکنم (be qeysar estinaf mikonam) | Low |
No further new theological vocabulary.
Chapter 26 — Paul Before Agrippa
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ἀνοίξαι τοὺς ὀφθαλμοὺς αὐτῶν… ἐπιστρέψαι ἀπὸ σκότους εἰς φῶς καὶ τῆς ἐξουσίας τοῦ Σατανᾶ ἐπὶ τὸν θεόν / anoixai tous ophthalmous autōn… epistrepsai apo skotous eis phōs kai tēs exousias tou Satana epi ton theon | ”to open their eyes… to turn from darkness to light and from the authority of Satan to God” | Commissioning language describing conversion itself | to open their eyes, to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God | Paul’s own commissioning-summary of the gospel’s saving effect — dualistic light/darkness and God/Satan-power language broadly compatible with, and a genuine bridge to, shared Islamic light/darkness and shaytan-vocabulary, but must remain explicitly Christ-centered (v.18b: “that they may receive forgiveness of sins… by faith in me”) | چشمانشان را باز کنی… از تاریکی به روشنایی و از قدرت شیطان به سوی خدا برگردانی | High |
| ἄφεσιν ἁμαρτιῶν καὶ κλῆρον / aphesin hamartiōn kai klēron | ”forgiveness of sins and an inheritance/portion” | Forgiveness + inheritance combined, echoing 2:38 and 20:32 | forgiveness of sins and a place/inheritance | Ties the whole book’s forgiveness and inheritance threads to Paul’s own summary of his commission — reuse pattern | بخشش گناهان و میراث | High (reuse pattern) |
| οὐ μαίνομαι / ou mainomai | ”I am not mad/insane” | Rational defense against a charge of madness | I am not out of my mind | Paul’s insistence on the historical sobriety and rationality of his testimony — apologetic value against dismissal of resurrection testimony as mere religious enthusiasm | دیوانه نیستم | Low |
Chapter 27 — The Voyage and Shipwreck
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ἄγγελος… οὐδεμία ψυχὴ ἀπολεῖται / angelos… oudemia psychē apoleitai | ”an angel… not a single soul will be lost” | Divine promise of preservation delivered through an angel | an angel… not one of you will be lost | Providence in extremity — reuse baseline “providence” (تدبیر الهی) and “angel” (فرشته) | فرشته… هیچکس هلاک نخواهد شد | High (baseline reuse pattern) |
| λαβὼν ἄρτον εὐχαρίστησεν τῷ θεῷ / labōn arton eucharistēsen tō theō | ”having taken bread, he gave thanks to God” | Thanksgiving over shared bread mid-storm | he took bread and gave thanks to God | Echoes the “breaking of bread” pattern of 2:42-46 even in crisis — reuse baseline “thanksgiving” (شکرگزاری) | نان گرفت و خدا را شکر کرد | Low (baseline reuse) |
Chapter 28 — Malta, Rome, and the Unhindered Gospel
| Term | Literal meaning | Semantic range | English variants | Contextual theological meaning | Persian rendering | Risk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ἔλεγον αὐτὸν εἶναι θεόν / elegon auton einai theon | ”they said he was a god” | Pagan deification of a miracle-worker | they said he was a god | The Malta islanders’ mistaken deification of Paul after the viper-bite survival — a cautionary contrast to the correct, exclusive worship due to God alone; relevant background for teaching against any veneration of apostolic/saintly figures approaching worship | میگفتند او خداست | Medium |
| κηρύσσων τὴν βασιλείαν τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ διδάσκων τὰ περὶ τοῦ Κυρίου Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ… ἀκωλύτως / kēryssōn tēn basileian tou theou kai didaskōn ta peri tou Kyriou Iēsou Christou… akōlytōs | ”proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ… unhindered” | The book’s final word: ἀκωλύτως, “without hindrance/obstruction” | proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hindrance | Acts’ deliberate closing thesis-statement, mirroring 1:8’s programmatic “witnesses to the end of the earth” — the gospel’s advance to Rome (the empire’s center) fulfills the Great Commission trajectory even under house-arrest; reuse ملکوت خدا, خداوند, and مسیح together. The Persian rendering of ἀκωλύτως carries acute pastoral weight for underground house-church readers, for whom proclamation is anything but unhindered in the present — teach this eschatologically/missiologically (the word of God itself cannot ultimately be bound, cf. 2 Timothy 2:9), while remaining pastorally honest about present restriction, not implying a false expectation of immediate earthly freedom | ملکوت خدا را اعلام میکرد و دربارهٔ خداوند عیسی مسیح… بدون مانع تعلیم میداد | High — thematically central to “The Great Commission Fulfilled” doctrine; requires careful pastoral framing given the real, unhindered-vs-hindered tension of the contemporary Iranian house-church context |
Summary Note on Full-Book Coverage
Every chapter of Acts (1–28) has been reviewed. Chapters 21, 23, and 25 introduce no major new theological vocabulary beyond terms already fully treated in earlier chapters (the Way, citizenship, vow/purification, council/Sanhedrin, resurrection controversy, legal-appeal vocabulary); this is noted explicitly above rather than silently omitted. All remaining chapters (1, 2, 3–20, 22, 24, 26–28) introduce at least one load-bearing new term requiring dedicated treatment, and every occurrence of a term already fixed in the Romans baseline translation_memory.json reuses that exact established Persian rendering throughout.