Acts 26:5

 Acts 26:5 

Which knew me from the beginning, if they would testify, that after the most straitest sect of our religion I lived a Pharisee.

a. NLT: If they would admit it, they know that I have been a member of the Pharisees, the strictest sect of our religion.  [Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.]

b. ASV: Having knowledge of me from the first, if they be willing to testify, that after the straitest sect of our religion I lived a Pharisee.  [Thomas Nelson & Sons first published the American Standard Version in 1901. This translation of the Bible is in the public domain.]

c. YLT: Knowing me before from the first, (if they may be willing to testify,) that after the most exact sect of our worship, I lived a Pharisee;  [The Young's Literal Translation was translated by Robert Young, who believed in a strictly literal translation of God's word. This version of the Bible is in the public domain.]  

d. Classic Amplified: They have had knowledge of me for a long time, if they are willing to testify to it, that in accordance with the strictest sect of our religion I have lived as a Pharisee.   [Amplified Bible, Classic Edition (AMPC) Copyright © 1954, 1958, 1962, 1964, 1965, 1987 by The Lockman Foundation]

e. Peshitta Eastern Text: For they have been acquainted with me a long time, and know that i was brought up with the excellent doctrine of the Pharisees. [HOLY BIBLE FROM THE ANCIENT EASTERN TEXT. Copyright  Ⓒ renewed 1968 by A.J. Holmon Co.; Copyright  Ⓒ 1957 by A.J. Holmon Co. All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. HarperCollins Publishers, 195 Broadway, New York, NY 10007.]

f. NIV: They have known me for a long time and can testify, if they are willing, that I conformed to the strictest sect of our religion, living as a Pharisee.  [THE HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®, NIV® Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by Permission of Biblica, Inc.® All rights reserved worldwide.]

1. “Which knew me from the beginning, if they would testify…”

a. Which knew [Strong: 4267. proginosko prog-in-oce'-ko from 4253 and 1097; to know beforehand, i.e. foresee:--foreknow (ordain), know (before).]

b. me [Strong: 3165. me meh a shorter (and probably originally) from of 1691; me:--I, me, my.]

c. [from the] beginning [Strong: 509. anothen an'-o-then from 507; from above; by analogy, from the first; by implication, anew:--from above, again, from the beginning (very first), the top.]

d. if [Strong: 1437. ean eh-an' from 1487 and 302; a conditional particle; in case that, provided, etc.; often used in connection with other particles to denote indefiniteness or uncertainty:--before, but, except, (and) if, (if) so, (what-, whither-)soever, though, when (-soever), whether (or), to whom, (who-)so(-ever).]

e. [they] would [Strong: 2309. thelo thel'-o or ethelo eth-el'-o, in certain tenses theleo thel-eh'-o, and etheleo eth-el-eh'-o, which are otherwise obsolete apparently strengthened from the alternate form of 138; to determine (as an active option from subjective impulse; whereas 1014 properly denotes rather a passive acquiescence in objective considerations), i.e. choose or prefer (literally or figuratively); by implication, to wish, i.e. be inclined to (sometimes adverbially, gladly); impersonally for the future tense, to be about to; by Hebraism, to delight in:--desire, be disposed (forward), intend, list, love, mean, please, have rather, (be) will (have, -ling, - ling(-ly)).]

f. testify [Strong: 3140. martureo mar-too-reh'-o from 3144; to be a witness, i.e. testify (literally or figuratively):--charge, give (evidence), bear record, have (obtain, of) good (honest) report, be well reported of, testify, give (have) testimony, (be, bear, give, obtain) witness.]

2. “...that after the most straitest sect of our religion I lived a Pharisee.”

a. that [Strong: 3754. hoti hot'-ee neuter of 3748 as conjunction; demonstrative, that (sometimes redundant); causative, because:--as concerning that, as though, because (that), for (that), how (that), (in) that, though, why.]

b. after [Strong: 2596. kata kat-ah' a primary particle; (prepositionally) down (in place or time), in varied relations (according to the case (genitive, dative or accusative) with which it is joined):--about, according as (to), after, against, (when they were) X alone, among, and, X apart, (even, like) as (concerning, pertaining to touching), X aside, at, before, beyond, by, to the charge of, (charita-)bly, concerning, + covered, (dai-)ly, down, every, (+ far more) exceeding, X more excellent, for, from ... to, godly, in(-asmuch, divers, every, -to, respect of), ... by, after the manner of, + by any means, beyond (out of) measure, X mightily, more, X natural, of (up-)on (X part), out (of every), over against, (+ your) X own, + particularly, so, through(-oughout, -oughout every), thus, (un-)to(-gether, -ward), X uttermost, where(-by), with. In composition it retains many of these applications, and frequently denotes opposition, distribution, or intensity.]

c. the [Strong: 3588. [tēn] ὁ ho ho, including the feminine he hay, and the neuter to to in all their inflections; the definite article; the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom):--the, this, that, one, he, she, it, etc.] [Thayer: [tēn] ὁ, ἡ, τό, originally τος, τῇ, τό (as is evident from the forms τοι, ται for οἱ, αἱ in Homer and the Ionic writings), corresponds to our definite article the (German der, die, das), which is properly a demonstrative pronoun, which we see in its full force in Homer, and of which we find certain indubitable traces also in all kinds of Greek prose, and hence also in the N. T.] [Additional variants: tē, hoi, oi, tēn, ta, tēs, tois, tais, tō, tōn, tou, hé  hē, hai, tas.]

d. most straitest [Strong: 196. akribestatos ak-ree-bes'-ta-tos superlative of akribes (a derivative of the same as 206); most exact:--most straitest.]

e. sect [Strong: 139. hairesis hah'-ee-res-is from 138; properly, a choice, i.e. (specially) a party or (abstractly) disunion:--heresy (which is the Greek word itself), sect.]

f. [Strong: 3588. [tēs] ὁ ho ho, including the feminine he hay, and the neuter to to in all their inflections; the definite article; the (sometimes to be supplied, at others omitted, in English idiom):--the, this, that, one, he, she, it, etc.] [Thayer: [tēs] ὁ, ἡ, τό, originally τος, τῇ, τό (as is evident from the forms τοι, ται for οἱ, αἱ in Homer and the Ionic writings), corresponds to our definite article the (German der, die, das), which is properly a demonstrative pronoun, which we see in its full force in Homer, and of which we find certain indubitable traces also in all kinds of Greek prose, and hence also in the N. T.] [Additional variants: tē, hoi, oi, tēn, ta, tēs, tois, tais, tō, tōn, tou, hé  hē, hai, tas.]

g. [of] our [Strong: 2251. hemeteros hay-met'-er-os from 2349; our:--our, your (by a different reading).]

h. religion [Strong: 2356. threskeia thrace-ki'-ah from a derivative of 2357; ceremonial observance:--religion, worshipping.]

i. [I] lived [Strong: 2198. zao dzah'-o a primary verb; to live (literally or figuratively):--life(-time), (a-)live(-ly), quick.]

j. [a] Pharisee [Strong: 5330. Pharisaios far-is-ah'-yos of Hebrew origin (compare 6567); a separatist, i.e. exclusively religious; a Pharisean, i.e. Jewish sectary:--Pharisee.]

1). The Pharisees: The most important of the three were the Pharisees because they are the spiritual fathers of modern Judaism. Their main distinguishing characteristic was a belief in an Oral Law that God gave to Moses at Sinai along with the Torah. The Torah, or Written Law, was akin to the U.S. Constitution in the sense that it set down a series of laws that were open to interpretation. The Pharisees believed that God also gave Moses the knowledge of what these laws meant and how they should be applied. This oral tradition was codified and written down roughly three centuries later in what is known as the Talmud. The Pharisees also maintained that an after-life existed, and that God punished the wicked and rewarded the righteous in the world to come. They also believed in a messiah who would herald an era of world peace. Pharisees were in a sense blue-collar Jews who adhered to the tenets developed after the destruction of the Temple; that is, such things as individual prayer and assembly in synagogues. www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/pharisees-sadducees-and-essenes