Bible Strands
Acts 4:37
sold a field he owned, brought the money, and laid it at the apostles’ feet.
Berean Standard Bible
Follow its threads on the canvas →
Study note
Setting — The narrator describes Barnabas, a Levite from Cyprus, within the early Jerusalem church following the apostles' prayer and blessing. He records Barnabas's action as the concluding detail of the community's property sales.
The words — πωλήσας (pōlēsas) means having sold, and ἤνεγκεν (ēnegken) means he brought. These verbs track the physical transfer of a field's proceeds to the apostles' feet.
The thread — The narrative connects to Matthew 19:29 regarding leaving fields for Christ's sake, mirrors the communal pattern in Acts 4:34 where believers sold lands or houses, and sets up the parallel account in Acts 5:1 where Ananias and Sapphira also sell property.
Why it lands — The text states that Barnabas voluntarily surrendered personal assets to apostolic leadership for communal need. It asks a reader to recognize this historical act of generosity without treating it as a binding financial mandate for later believers.
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
Having land, sold it, and brought the money, and laid it at the apostles’ feet.
Cross-references
- Matthew 19:29 And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or wife or children or fields for the sake of My name will receive a hundredfold and will inherit eternal life.
- Acts 4:34 There were no needy ones among them, because those who owned lands or houses would sell their property, bring the proceeds from the sales,
- Acts 5:1 Now a man named Ananias, together with his wife Sapphira, also sold a piece of property.