15:5a

But: There is contrast between the believers accepting Paul and Barnabas (15:4b) and the believing Pharisees challenging their belief and practice about circumcision (15:5). The Berean Standard Bible indicates this contrast by translating the Greek conjunction here as But.

However, this would not be considered contrast in some languages. For example:

And then

some believers from the party of the Pharisees: This refers to men who were Pharisees or had been Pharisees. More recently they had believed in Jesus. But they still believed many of the things that the Pharisees believed. Other ways to translate this phrase are:

some people from/of the group of the Pharisees who had believed
-or-
certain members of the Pharisees’ party who had become believers (New Jerusalem Bible)

the party of the Pharisees: The word party refers to a group within a larger group. The Pharisees were a group of Jews who believed certain things that were different from other Jews. The word here does not imply that Luke thinks such a party is wrong. Do not use a word that will be understood primarily as a political party. Another way to translate this word is:

a/the group called the Pharisees

See how you translated the word party in 5:17.

Pharisees: The Pharisees were one group within the Jewish religion. They were very careful to follow all the Jewish traditions, as well as obeying the laws that God had given to Moses. See how you translated this word in 5:34.

15:5b–c

The Gentiles must be circumcised and required to obey the law of Moses: In Greek, this clause is literally: “It is necessary to circumcise them and to command (them) to obey the law of Moses.” Here the phrase “It is necessary” refers to something that is required to be done. These Pharisee believers in Jesus thought that God still required anyone who followed him to follow all the Old Testament laws. Other ways to translate this clause are:

It is necessary for them to be circumcised and ordered to keep the law of Moses. (New Revised Standard Version)
-or-

⌊God⌋ requires that the non-Jewish believers be circumcised and be commanded to obey Moses’ laws.

15:5b

The Gentiles must be circumcised: The Greek verb that the Berean Standard Bible translates as be circumcised is active. It is literally “It is necessary to circumcise them,” as in the Revised Standard Version. Other ways to translate this clause are:

It is necessary for them to be circumcised (New Revised Standard Version)
-or-

⌊someone⌋ must circumcise them

The Gentiles: In this context, this refers to non-Jews who believe in Jesus. In some languages it will be helpful to make this clear. For example:

The Gentile converts (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
non-Jewish believers (New Century Version)

15:5c

the law of Moses: This phrase refers to the laws that God told Moses. They are in first five books of the Old Testament. But here the phrase probably includes the rest of the Old Testament as well. Some other ways to translate this are:

the law that God gave to Moses
-or-
the law that Moses wrote

See how you translated this phrase in 13:39.

law: The singular word law refers to all the laws that God told Moses as a group. In some languages it is more natural to use the plural here. For example:

laws

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