Acts 26:16

‘But get up and stand on your feet. For I have appeared to you to appoint you as a servant and as a witness of what you have seen from Me and what I will show you.

Berean Standard Bible

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Study note

Setting — Jesus speaks to Paul on the Damascus road immediately after identifying Himself as the persecuted Messiah. This command occurs between Paul’s identity question and the subsequent commission to rescue Paul from his own people and the Gentiles.

The words — The imperatives ἀνέστηθι (anastēthi) and στῆθι (stēthi) literally command “do rise up” and “do stand,” both directed ἐπὶ τοὺς πόδας σου (on your feet). These verbs establish physical readiness for the divine appointment that follows.

The thread — The standing posture mirrors Ezekiel 2:1, where God commands the prophet to rise before speaking, and parallels Daniel 10:11’s address to a recipient of revelation. It also connects to Acts 22:14, where the God of the fathers appoints a witness to see the Righteous One and hear His voice.

Why it lands — The text demands immediate physical and vocational obedience to a direct divine appointment. It requires the reader to recognize that witnessing what Christ shows is a mandated task, not an optional experience.

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

But rise, and stand upon thy feet: for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee;

Cross-references

Acts 22:14 Then he said, ‘The God of our fathers has appointed you to know His will and to see the Righteous One and to hear His voice.
Ezekiel 2:1 “Son of man,” He said to me, “stand up on your feet and I will speak to you.”
Daniel 10:11 He said to me, “Daniel, you are a man who is highly precious. Consider carefully the words that I am about to say to you. Stand up, for I have now been sent to you.” And when he had said this to me, I stood up trembling.
Romans 15:16 to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the Gentiles in the priestly service of the gospel of God, so that the Gentiles might become an offering acceptable to God, sanctified by the Holy Spirit.
Galatians 1:12 I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it; rather, I received it by revelation from Jesus Christ.
1 Timothy 1:12 I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, that He considered me faithful and appointed me to service.
Acts 23:11 The following night the Lord stood near Paul and said, “Take courage! As you have testified about Me in Jerusalem, so also you must testify in Rome.”
Romans 1:5 Through Him and on behalf of His name, we received grace and apostleship to call all those among the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith.
2 Corinthians 4:1 Therefore, since God in His mercy has given us this ministry, we do not lose heart.
2 Corinthians 12:1 I must go on boasting. Although there is nothing to gain, I will go on to visions and revelations from the Lord.