Act 4:1 | NETfull | STEP | While Peter and John were speaking to the people, the priests and the commander of the temple guard and the Sadducees came up to them,

Acts 4:1

1 While Peter and John ^{▼▼ Grk “While they”; the referents (Peter and John) have been specified in the translation for clarity.} were speaking to the people, the priests and the commander ^{▼▼ Or “captain.”} of the temple guard ^{▼▼ Grk “the official of the temple,” a title for the commander of the Jewish soldiers guarding the temple (thus the translation, “the commander of the temple guard”). See L&N 37.91.} ^{▼▼ The commander of the temple guard was the title of the officer commanding the Jewish soldiers responsible for guarding and keeping order in the temple courts in Jerusalem.} and the Sadducees ^{▼▼ The Sadducees controlled the official political structures of Judaism at this time, being the majority members of the Sanhedrin. They were known as extremely strict on law and order issues (Josephus, J. W. 2.8.2 [2.119], 2.8.14 [2.164–166]; Ant. 13.5.9 [13.171–173], 13.10.6 [13.293–298], 18.1.2 [18.11], 18.1.4 [18.16–17], 20.9.1 [20.199]; Life 2 [10-11]). See also Matt 3:7; 16:1–12; 22:23–34; Mark 12:18–27; Luke 20:27–38; Acts 5:17; 23:6–8.} came up ^{▼▼ Or “approached.” This verb often denotes a sudden appearing (BDAG 418 s.v. ἐφίστημι 1).} to them,