Acts 14:11 When the crowds saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voices in the Lycaonian language: "The gods have come down to us in human form!"

◄ Acts 14:11 ►

New International Version
When the crowd saw what Paul had done, they shouted in the Lycaonian language, “The gods have come down to us in human form!”

New Living Translation
When the crowd saw what Paul had done, they shouted in their local dialect, “These men are gods in human form!”

English Standard Version
And when the crowds saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voices, saying in Lycaonian, “The gods have come down to us in the likeness of men!”

Berean Standard Bible
When the crowds saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voices in the Lycaonian language: “The gods have come down to us in human form!”

Berean Literal Bible
And the crowds having seen what Paul had done, lifted up their voice in Lycaonian saying, "The gods have come down to us, having become like men."

King James Bible
And when the people saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voices, saying in the speech of Lycaonia, The gods are come down to us in the likeness of men.

New King James Version
Now when the people saw what Paul had done, they raised their voices, saying in the Lycaonian language, “The gods have come down to us in the likeness of men!”

New American Standard Bible
When the crowds saw what Paul had done, they raised their voice, saying in the Lycaonian language, “The gods have become like men and have come down to us!”

NASB 1995
When the crowds saw what Paul had done, they raised their voice, saying in the Lycaonian language, “The gods have become like men and have come down to us.”

NASB 1977
And when the multitudes saw what Paul had done, they raised their voice, saying in the Lycaonian language, “The gods have become like men and have come down to us.”

Legacy Standard Bible
And when the crowds saw what Paul had done, they raised their voice, saying in the Lycaonian language, “The gods have become like men and have come down to us.”

Amplified Bible
And the crowds, when they saw what Paul had done, raised their voices, shouting in the Lycaonian language, “The gods have come down to us in human form!”

Christian Standard Bible
When the crowds saw what Paul had done, they shouted, saying in the Lycaonian language, “The gods have come down to us in human form! ”

Holman Christian Standard Bible
When the crowds saw what Paul had done, they raised their voices, saying in the Lycaonian language, “The gods have come down to us in the form of men!”

American Standard Version
And when the multitude saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voice, saying in the speech of Lycaonia, The gods are come down to us in the likeness of men.

Contemporary English Version
When the crowd saw what Paul had done, they yelled out in the language of Lycaonia, "The gods have turned into humans and have come down to us!"

English Revised Version
And when the multitudes saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voice, saying in the speech of Lycaonia, The gods are come down to us in the likeness of men.

GOD'S WORD® Translation
The crowds who saw what Paul had done shouted in the Lycaonian language, "The gods have come to us, and they look human."

Good News Translation
When the crowds saw what Paul had done, they started shouting in their own Lycaonian language, "The gods have become like men and have come down to us!"

International Standard Version
When the crowds saw what Paul had done, they shouted in the Lycaonian language, "The gods have become like men and have come down to us!"

Majority Standard Bible
When the crowds saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voices in the Lycaonian language: ?The gods have come down to us in human form!?

NET Bible
So when the crowds saw what Paul had done, they shouted in the Lycaonian language, "The gods have come down to us in human form!"

New Heart English Bible
When the crowd saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voice, saying in the language of Lycaonia, "The gods have come down to us in human form."

Webster's Bible Translation
And when the people saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voices, saying in the speech of Lycaonia, The gods have come down to us in the likeness of men.

Weymouth New Testament
So he sprang up and began to walk about. Then the crowds, seeing what Paul had done, rent the air with their shouts in the Lycaonian language, saying, "The gods have assumed human form and have come down to us."

World English Bible
When the multitude saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voice, saying in the language of Lycaonia, “The gods have come down to us in the likeness of men!”

Literal Translations

Literal Standard Version
and the multitudes having seen what Paul did, lifted up their voice in the speech of Lycaonia, saying, “The gods, having become like men, came down to us”;

Berean Literal Bible
And the crowds having seen what Paul had done, lifted up their voice in Lycaonian saying, "The gods have come down to us, having become like men."

Young's Literal Translation
and the multitudes having seen what Paul did, did lift up their voice, in the speech of Lycaonia, saying, 'The gods, having become like men, did come down unto us;'

Smith's Literal Translation
And the crowds having seen what Paul did, lifted up their voices, saying in Lycaonian, Gods likened to men came down to us.

Catholic Translations

Douay-Rheims Bible
And when the multitudes had seen what Paul had done, they lifted up their voice in the Lycaonian tongue, saying: The gods are come down to us in the likeness of men;

Catholic Public Domain Version
But when the crowds had seen what Paul had done, they lifted up their voice in the Lycaonian language, saying, “The gods, having taken the likenesses of men, have descended to us!”

New American Bible
When the crowds saw what Paul had done, they cried out in Lycaonian, “The gods have come down to us in human form.”

New Revised Standard Version
When the crowds saw what Paul had done, they shouted in the Lycaonian language, “The gods have come down to us in human form!”

Translations from Aramaic

Lamsa Bible
And when the people saw what Paul had done, they lifted their voices and said in the language of the country, The gods have come down to us in the likeness of men.

Aramaic Bible in Plain English
When the crowds of people had seen this thing that Paulus had done, they raised their voices in the language of the country, and they were saying, “The gods have become like men and have come down to us.”

NT Translations

Anderson New Testament
"When the multitude saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voice, and said, in the Lycaonian language: The Gods have come down to us in the likeness of men.

Godbey New Testament
And the multitudes seeing what Paul did, lifted up their voice, in Lycaonic, saying, The gods having assumed the likeness of men have come down to us:

Haweis New Testament
But when the multitudes beheld what Paul had done, they lifted up their voice, in the dialect of Lycaonia, saying, The gods in the form of mortals are come down to us.

Mace New Testament
When the people saw what Paul had done, they cry'd out in the Lycaonian tongue, the Gods have assum'd a human form, and are descended among us.

Weymouth New Testament
So he sprang up and began to walk about. Then the crowds, seeing what Paul had done, rent the air with their shouts in the Lycaonian language, saying, "The gods have assumed human form and have come down to us."

Worrell New Testament
And the multitudes, seeing what Paul did, lifted up their voice in the language of Lycaonia, saying, "The gods, made like to men, came down to us!"

Worsley New Testament
And the people, seeing what Paul had done, lifted up their voice, saying in the Lycaonian tongue, The gods are come down to us in the likeness of men.

Additional Translations ...

Audio Bible

Context

The Visit to Lystra and Derbe
…10In a loud voice Paul called out, “Stand up on your feet!” And the man jumped up and began to walk. 11When the crowds saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voices in the Lycaonian language: “The gods have come down to us in human form!” 12Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul they called Hermes, because he was the chief speaker.…

Berean Standard Bible · Download

Cross References

Acts 28:6
The islanders were expecting him to swell up or suddenly drop dead. But after waiting a long time and seeing nothing unusual happen to him, they changed their minds and said he was a god.

Acts 8:10
and all the people, from the least to the greatest, heeded his words and said, “This man is the divine power called the Great Power.”

John 10:33
“We are not stoning You for any good work,” said the Jews, “but for blasphemy, because You, who are a man, make Yourself out to be God.”

John 5:18
Because of this, the Jews tried all the harder to kill Him. Not only was He breaking the Sabbath, but He was even calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God.

John 1:14
The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.

John 1:1-3
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. / He was with God in the beginning. / Through Him all things were made, and without Him nothing was made that has been made.

Philippians 2:6-7
Who, existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, / but emptied Himself, taking the form of a servant, being made in human likeness.

1 Corinthians 8:5-6
For even if there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth (as there are many so-called gods and lords), / yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom all things came and for whom we exist. And there is but one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom all things came and through whom we exist.

2 Thessalonians 2:4
He will oppose and exalt himself above every so-called god or object of worship. So he will seat himself in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God.

Revelation 19:10
So I fell at his feet to worship him. But he told me, “Do not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers who rely on the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”

Revelation 22:8-9
And I, John, am the one who heard and saw these things. And when I had heard and seen them, I fell down to worship at the feet of the angel who had shown me these things. / But he said to me, “Do not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers the prophets, and with those who keep the words of this book. Worship God!”

Exodus 20:3
You shall have no other gods before Me.

Exodus 32:1
Now when the people saw that Moses was delayed in coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said, “Come, make us gods who will go before us. As for this Moses who brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has happened to him!”

Deuteronomy 4:28
And there you will serve man-made gods of wood and stone, which cannot see or hear or eat or smell.

Deuteronomy 5:7
You shall have no other gods before Me.

Treasury of Scripture

And when the people saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voices, saying in the speech of Lycaonia, The gods are come down to us in the likeness of men.

The gods.

Acts 8:10
To whom they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, This man is the great power of God.

Acts 12:22
And the people gave a shout, saying, It is the voice of a god, and not of a man.

Acts 28:6
Howbeit they looked when he should have swollen, or fallen down dead suddenly: but after they had looked a great while, and saw no harm come to him, they changed their minds, and said that he was a god.

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Acts 14

1. Paul and Barnabas are persecuted from Iconium.
8. At Lystra Paul heals a cripple, whereupon they are reputed as gods.
19. Paul is stoned.
21. They pass through various churches, confirming the disciples in faith and patience.
26. Returning to Antioch, they report what God had done with them.

Berean Study Bible

When the crowds saw
This phrase sets the scene for a significant moment of misunderstanding and misinterpretation by the people of Lystra. The Greek word for "saw" is "εἶδον" (eidon), which implies not just a physical seeing but a perception or understanding. The crowd's perception is crucial here, as it leads to a dramatic and erroneous conclusion about Paul and Barnabas. Historically, this reflects the common human tendency to misinterpret divine actions through a limited, human lens.

what Paul had done
The actions of Paul, empowered by the Holy Spirit, were miraculous and beyond ordinary human capability. The Greek word "ποιήσας" (poiesas) indicates an action that is completed, emphasizing the miraculous nature of the healing that had just occurred. This reflects the power of God working through His apostles, a theme consistent throughout the Acts of the Apostles.

they lifted up their voices
The phrase "lifted up their voices" suggests a loud, public proclamation. The Greek "ἐπῆραν τὴν φωνὴν" (eperan tēn phōnēn) indicates a collective and enthusiastic response. This reaction is not just individual but communal, showing how quickly a crowd can be swayed by extraordinary events. It also highlights the importance of discernment in spiritual matters.

saying in Lycaonian
The use of the Lycaonian language is significant. It indicates that the people were speaking in their native tongue, which Paul and Barnabas might not have understood immediately. This language barrier contributed to the misunderstanding. The historical context here is important, as it shows the cultural and linguistic diversity of the region, and how the Gospel was reaching different peoples and tongues.

The gods have come down to us
This declaration reveals the pagan beliefs of the Lystrans, who interpreted the miracle through their own religious framework. The Greek "θεοὶ ὁμοιωθέντες ἀνθρώποις" (theoi homoiothentes anthrōpois) suggests a belief in gods taking human form, a common theme in Greco-Roman mythology. This reflects the spiritual blindness and idolatry prevalent in the ancient world, which the Gospel sought to transform.

in human form!
The phrase "in human form" underscores the mistaken belief that divine beings would manifest as humans. The Greek "ἐν ὁμοιώματι ἀνθρώπων" (en homoiōmati anthrōpōn) emphasizes the physical likeness, which is a stark contrast to the Christian understanding of God’s incarnation in Jesus Christ. This highlights the need for clear teaching about the nature of God and His work through Christ, as opposed to the myths and legends of the time.

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(11) Saying in the speech of Lycaonia.--The fact is clearly recorded with a definite purpose, and no explanation seems so natural as that which assumes it to be given as accounting for the passive attitude of the Apostles till what was then said had borne its fruit in acts. It will be admitted by all who are not under the influence of a theory that this serves almost as a crucial instance, showing that the "gift of tongues," which St. Paul possessed so largely (1Corinthians 14:18), did not consist in a supernatural knowledge of every provincial patois with which he came in contact. (See Note on Acts 2:4.) It is clear that he might easily have learnt afterwards, from those who knew both languages, the meaning of what at the time was unintelligible. To suppose, as some have done, that the Apostles, understanding what was said, acquiesced in the preparations for sacrifice in order that they might afterwards make their protest as with a greater dramatic effect, is at variance with the natural impression made by the narrative, and, it need scarcely be said, with any worthy conception of St. Paul's character. The diglottic character of the people, here and in other Asiatic provinces of the empire, would make it perfectly natural that they should speak to one another in their own dialect, while Greek served for their intercourse with strangers. The "speech of Lycaonia" is said to have had affinities with Assyrian.

The gods are come down to us in the likeness of men.--Literally, the gods, made like unto men, are come down to us. The belief which the words expressed was characteristic of the rude simplicity of the Lycaonians. No such cry would have been possible in the great cities where the confluence of a debased polytheism and philosophical speculation had ended in utter scepticism. And the form which the belief took was in accordance with the old legends of the district. There, according to the Myth which Ovid had recently revived and adorned (Metam. viii. 625-724), Zeus and Hermes (Jupiter and Mercury) had come in human guise, and been received by Baucis and Philemon (St. Paul's Epistle to Philemon shows that the name lingered in that region), and left tokens of their favour. We find from the poem just referred to that the place where they had dwelt was looked on as a shrine to which devout worshippers made their pilgrimages, and where they left their votive offerings.

Pulpit Commentary

Verse 11. - Multitudes for people, A.V.; voice for voices, A.V. In the speech of Lycaonia. It is not known what the language of Lycaonia was, whether Cappadocian, or Celtic, or Lycian; but we learn incidentally from Stephanus Byzantinus, that there was a Lycaonian language, for he tells us that Delbia (as some write the name Derbe) was the Lycaonian for ἄρκευθος, a juniper tree or berry. No other Lycaonian word is known (see "Jablouskii Disquis. de Ling. Lycaon," in Stephan., 'Thesaur.'). The Lycaoniaus doubtless understood Greek as the language of intercommunication all over Roman Asia, but among themselves would speak their native dialect. The belief that the gods were come down in the likeness of men, and that these gods were Jupiter and Hermes, or Mercury, was most natural to Lycaonians, who were conversant with, and doubtless believed, the Phrygian legend of Philemon and Baucis, who entertained hospitably Jupiter and Hermes, when no one else would take them in, and whose cottage was by the gods turned into a temple (when all the neighborhood was drowned by a flood), of which they were made priest and priestess during life, and simultaneously metamorphosed into an oak and lime tree when their life ended (Ovid, 'Metamorph.,'8:611, etc.). Ovid places the scene of the legend at Tyana, the site of which has been ascertained by Hamilton to be near Erekli, in Cappadocia, close to the borders of Lycaonia. The moral drawn in the legend itself seems to have been that which influenced the people of Lycaonia in their conduct towards the two strangers: "Cura pii dis sunt, et qui coluere coluntur," which may be Englished, "Them that honor me I will honor" (1 Samuel 2:30).

Parallel Commentaries ...

Greek

[When]
τε (te)
Conjunction
Strong's 5037: And, both. A primary particle of connection or addition; both or also.

the
Οἵ (Hoi)
Article - Nominative Masculine Plural
Strong's 3588: The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.

crowds
ὄχλοι (ochloi)
Noun - Nominative Masculine Plural
Strong's 3793: From a derivative of echo; a throng; by implication, the rabble; by extension, a class of people; figuratively, a riot.

saw
ἰδόντες (idontes)
Verb - Aorist Participle Active - Nominative Masculine Plural
Strong's 3708: Properly, to stare at, i.e. to discern clearly; by extension, to attend to; by Hebraism, to experience; passively, to appear.

what
ὃ (ho)
Personal / Relative Pronoun - Accusative Neuter Singular
Strong's 3739: Who, which, what, that.

Paul
Παῦλος (Paulos)
Noun - Nominative Masculine Singular
Strong's 3972: Paul, Paulus. Of Latin origin; Paulus, the name of a Roman and of an apostle.

had done,
ἐποίησεν (epoiēsen)
Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Singular
Strong's 4160: (a) I make, manufacture, construct, (b) I do, act, cause. Apparently a prolonged form of an obsolete primary; to make or do.

they lifted up
ἐπῆραν (epēran)
Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural
Strong's 1869: To raise, lift up. From epi and airo; to raise up.

their
αὐτῶν (autōn)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Genitive Masculine 3rd Person Plural
Strong's 846: He, she, it, they, them, same. From the particle au; the reflexive pronoun self, used of the third person, and of the other persons.

voices
φωνὴν (phōnēn)
Noun - Accusative Feminine Singular
Strong's 5456: Probably akin to phaino through the idea of disclosure; a tone; by implication, an address, saying or language.

in the Lycaonian language:
Λυκαονιστὶ (Lykaonisti)
Adverb
Strong's 3072: In the Lycaonian language. Adverb from a derivative of Lukaonia; Lycaonistically, i.e. In the language of the Lycaonians.

“The
Οἱ (Hoi)
Article - Nominative Masculine Plural
Strong's 3588: The, the definite article. Including the feminine he, and the neuter to in all their inflections; the definite article; the.

gods
θεοὶ (theoi)
Noun - Nominative Masculine Plural
Strong's 2316: A deity, especially the supreme Divinity; figuratively, a magistrate; by Hebraism, very.

have come down
κατέβησαν (katebēsan)
Verb - Aorist Indicative Active - 3rd Person Plural
Strong's 2597: To go down, come down, either from the sky or from higher land, descend. From kata and the base of basis; to descend.

to
πρὸς (pros)
Preposition
Strong's 4314: To, towards, with. A strengthened form of pro; a preposition of direction; forward to, i.e. Toward.

us
ἡμᾶς (hēmas)
Personal / Possessive Pronoun - Accusative 1st Person Plural
Strong's 1473: I, the first-person pronoun. A primary pronoun of the first person I.

in human form!”
ὁμοιωθέντες (homoiōthentes)
Verb - Aorist Participle Passive - Nominative Masculine Plural
Strong's 3666: To make like, liken; I compare. From homoios; to assimilate, i.e. Compare; passively, to become similar.

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NT Apostles: Acts 14:11 When the multitude saw what Paul had (Acts of the Apostles Ac)