So when they were dismissed, they came to Antioch: and when they had gathered the multitude together, they delivered the epistle:

ACTS 15:30KJV
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Acts 15:30 (KJV)

What does Acts 15:30 mean?

Acts 15:30 describes how, after being dismissed, the messengers traveled to Antioch, gathered the local believers together, and delivered the letter (epistle) sent from the church leaders in Jerusalem. This verse shows the careful communication and unity between different early Christian communities.

The setting is the aftermath of the Jerusalem Council, where church leaders discussed important questions about Gentile believers. The messengers—Judas and Silas, along with Paul and Barnabas—brought the council’s decision to the church in Antioch. The verse highlights their effort to include the whole community by gathering everyone before reading the letter aloud.

The Greek behind Acts 15:30

  • ἐπιστολή (epistolē, "epistle" or "letter"): This word refers specifically to a written message, often formal or official. Here, it emphasizes that the instructions and encouragement from Jerusalem were put in writing, adding authority and clarity.
  • παρέδωκαν (paredōkan, "delivered"): This Greek verb carries the sense of handing over or passing along something important. The messengers did not just read the letter; they formally presented it to the gathered group, underlining the seriousness and official nature of the message.
  • ἐπισυναγαγόντες (episynagagontes, "having gathered together"): This word means to assemble or bring together a group, often for a significant purpose. The use of this term shows that the message was intended for the entire community, not just a few leaders.

Why Acts 15:30 matters

  • Acts 15:30 makes clear that the decision from Jerusalem was not kept private or limited to leaders; it was shared openly with the whole church in Antioch, showing transparency and inclusiveness.
  • The verse connects directly to the wider story of Acts 15, where the early church navigated disagreements and found a way to communicate decisions respectfully and clearly across different groups.
  • By emphasizing the formal delivery and public reading of the letter, Acts 15:30 highlights the importance of unity and clear communication in early Christian communities.

Where else these words appear

“delivered” Greek G1929 · used in 10 verses

  • Matthew 7:9 Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone?
  • Luke 11:11 If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent?
  • Luke 24:42 And they gave him a piece of a broiled fish, and of an honeycomb.

“Antioch” Greek G490 · used in 17 verses

  • Acts 11:19 Now they which were scattered abroad upon the persecution that arose about Stephen travelled as far as Phenice, and Cyprus, and Antioch, preaching the word to none but unto the Jews only.
  • Acts 13:1 Now there were in the church that was at Antioch certain prophets and teachers; as Barnabas, and Simeon that was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen, which had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul.
  • Acts 15:22 Then pleased it the apostles and elders, with the whole church, to send chosen men of their own company to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas; namely, Judas surnamed Barsabas, and Silas, chief men among the brethren:

“epistle” Greek G1992 · used in 23 verses

  • Acts 9:2 And desired of him letters to Damascus to the synagogues, that if he found any of this way, whether they were men or women, he might bring them bound unto Jerusalem.
  • 2 Corinthians 3:1 Do we begin again to commend ourselves? or need we, as some others, epistles of commendation to you, or letters of commendation from you?
  • Colossians 4:16 And when this epistle is read among you, cause that it be read also in the church of the Laodiceans; and that ye likewise read the epistle from Laodicea.

“multitude” Greek G4128 · used in 32 verses

  • Mark 3:7 But Jesus withdrew himself with his disciples to the sea: and a great multitude from Galilee followed him, and from Judaea,
  • John 5:3 In these lay a great multitude of impotent folk, of blind, halt, withered, waiting for the moving of the water.
  • Acts 15:12 Then all the multitude kept silence, and gave audience to Barnabas and Paul, declaring what miracles and wonders God had wrought among the Gentiles by them.