What Does Acts 10:18 Mean in the King James?
And called, and asked whether Simon, which was surnamed Peter, were lodged there.
The analysis reads the King James wording.
King James Version The King James Version, first published in 1611. Selah Verse shows the standard text.
THE KEY
The verse gives two different kinds of calling: a voice at the door and the name by which Simon is known.
THE MEANING
The one being sought is present through a name others know and a place that receives him as a guest. Seeking becomes concrete here: someone calls, asks whether you are there, and waits for an answer.
THE ROOT
ἐπικαλούμενος
epikaloumenos
GROWS FROM
καλέω
kaleō
To call, summon, or name.
“surnamed” in this verse is epikaloumenos. The phrase is literally about Simon being called by the name Peter. English makes this sound like a fixed surname, while the Greek keeps the act of naming audible: this is the name by which others know and seek him.
ALSO GROWS
kaleō: To call, name, or invite.
καλέω
This is the verb underneath the name by which Simon is identified.
klēsis: A calling or invitation.
κλῆσις
It shows how the same word family can hold both being summoned and being invited.
ξενίζεται
xenizetai
GROWS FROM
ξεν-
xen-
Stranger, foreigner, or guest.
The verb translated “lodged” can mean to be received as a guest. Its root holds stranger and guest together, so Simon’s location is described through the welcome of another person’s house.
ALSO GROWS
xenos: A stranger or guest.
ξένος
The word links being away from home with being received by a host.
philoxenia: Hospitality, welcoming a stranger.
φιλοξενία
It makes the guest-root visible in the act of receiving someone into a home.
φωνήσαντες
phōnēsantes
GROWS FROM
φων-
phon-
Voice or sound.
The first “called” comes from φωνέω, a verb built on φωνή, “voice” or “sound.” This is a call made audible toward a dwelling, distinct from the name by which Simon is known.
ALSO GROWS
phōnē: Voice or sound.
φωνή
This noun is the sound carried by the call at the house.
epiphōneō: To call out or cry aloud.
ἐπιφωνέω
It shows the same voice-root being used for a projected call.
THE PATTERN
Seeking someone takes the concrete form of calling their name and locating the place that receives them.
And they said unto him, Where is Sarah thy wife? And he said, Behold, in the tent.That the LORD called Samuel: and he answered, Here am I.And when Jesus came to the place, he looked up, and saw him, and said unto him, Zacchæus, make haste, and come down; for to day I must abide at thy house.THE THREAD
Send therefore to Joppa, and call hither Simon, whose surname is Peter; he is lodged in the house of one Simon a tanner by the sea side: who, when he cometh, shall speak unto thee.This verse repeats the same name and guest words: Simon is called Peter and is lodged in a house. The question at the door becomes a direct summons with Simon’s location named.
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