Bible Strands
Acts 20:29
I know that after my departure, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — Paul addresses the Ephesian elders during his Miletus farewell, issuing a warning at the moment he prepares to leave their assembly.
The words — οἶδα (oida) translates literally as "I know," and εἰσελεύσονται (eiseleusontai) means "will come in," framing the warning as a certain future event rather than a hypothetical risk.
The thread — The motif of destructive intruders targeting a gathered community appears in Matthew 7:15, 2 Peter 2:1, and Luke 10:3, where the same predatory language marks false teachers and hostile forces.
Why it lands — The text states that harmful individuals will enter the group after the leader departs and explicitly notes they will not spare the flock; interpreters infer this requires proactive oversight and doctrinal vigilance from those entrusted with leadership.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
For I know this, that after my departing shall grievous wolves enter in among you, not sparing the flock.
Cross-references
- Matthew 7:15 Beware of false prophets. They come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.
- 2 Peter 2:1 Now there were also false prophets among the people, just as there will be false teachers among you. They will secretly introduce destructive heresies, even denying the Master who bought them—bringing swift destruction on themselves.
- Luke 10:3 Go! I am sending you out like lambs among wolves.
- John 10:12 The hired hand is not the shepherd, and the sheep are not his own. When he sees the wolf coming, he abandons the sheep and runs away. Then the wolf pounces on them and scatters the flock.
- Acts 20:28 Keep watch over yourselves and the entire flock of which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers. Be shepherds of the church of God, which He purchased with His own blood.
- Matthew 10:16 Behold, I am sending you out like sheep among wolves; therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves.
- Jeremiah 23:1 “Woe to the shepherds who destroy and scatter the sheep of My pasture!” declares the LORD.
- Ezekiel 34:2 “Son of man, prophesy against the shepherds of Israel. Prophesy and tell them that this is what the Lord GOD says: ‘Woe to the shepherds of Israel, who only feed themselves! Should not the shepherds feed their flock?
- Zechariah 11:17 Woe to the worthless shepherd, who deserts the flock! May a sword strike his arm and his right eye! May his arm be completely withered and his right eye utterly blinded!”
- Jeremiah 13:20 Lift up your eyes and see those coming from the north. Where is the flock entrusted to you, the sheep that were your pride?