This is the first time in the book of Acts where the word church appears. Although the word is used in a variety of ways throughout the book of the Acts, it is used in the present passage as a technical term for the description of the Christian community in Jerusalem.

In many languages there are serious problems in finding an adequate term for church. Too often the term simply identifies a building, and certainly in the New Testament its primary reference should be to the group of believers. It is for this reason that in a number of languages church in this context is translated as “gathering of believers” or “the group of believers,” or even as in some instances “all those believing in Christ.”

It is not known who all the others are. It is possible that they are all the others in the Christian community as contrasted with the apostles. It is also possible that all the others could refer to anyone who heard this account. In any event, a translation should be so constructed as to include others but not necessarily exclude any particular group.

The expression were filled with great fear poses certain problems in many languages since one cannot be filled with … fear. One can, however, “fear very much,” “have great fear,” or “great fear can possess one.”

Quoted with permission from Newman, Barclay M. and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on The Acts of the Apostles. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1972. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .