Acts 18:28 (KJV)

What does Acts 18:28 mean?

Acts 18:28 describes how Apollos powerfully persuaded the Jewish people in public debates, using the Jewish scriptures to show that Jesus is the Messiah. The verse highlights Apollos’s skill in arguing from the scriptures and his boldness in presenting Jesus as the Christ.

In the setting of Acts 18, Apollos is a Jewish believer who has come to Achaia (in Greece) and is speaking in synagogues, where Jews gather for worship and teaching. He is not just sharing opinions but is publicly and convincingly using the Hebrew scriptures to make his case that Jesus fulfills the role of the promised Christ, which was a central question for Jews of that time.

The Greek behind Acts 18:28

• "mightily" (ἰσχυρῶς, ischyrōs): This word means with great strength or power, emphasizing that Apollos’s arguments were forceful and effective, not just casual or mild.
• "convinced" (διακατηλέγχετο, diakatelēncheto): The Greek here carries the sense of thoroughly refuting or proving wrong, suggesting that Apollos was not just persuading but actually demonstrating the truth of his claims in a way that left little room for doubt.
• "shewing" (ἐπιδεικνύς, epideiknys): This word means to demonstrate or prove, indicating that Apollos was not just stating but actively showing, from the scriptures themselves, that Jesus is the Christ.

Why Acts 18:28 matters

• Acts 18:28 clears up the idea that early Christian teaching was based only on new revelations; it shows that believers like Apollos rooted their message about Jesus in the existing Jewish scriptures.
• The verse emphasizes the importance of reasoned, public discussion in the early church, showing that faith in Jesus was presented as something that could be logically and scripturally defended.
• This moment connects to the wider story of Acts, where the message about Jesus spreads beyond Jerusalem and is debated in Jewish communities throughout the Roman world, often leading to both strong opposition and new belief.