What Does Acts 17:34 Mean in the King James?
Howbeit certain men clave unto him, and believed: among the which was Dionysius the Areopagite, and a woman named Damaris, and others with them.
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 Greek pairs trust with sticking close, showing belief taking shape as attachment.
THE MEANING
When something reaches conviction, trust draws a person toward what they recognize as true. The verse gives that response distinct faces, Dionysius, Damaris, and others, showing conviction gathering real, varied people.
WHAT THIS UNDOES
The belief that trust is only private agreement loosens here: the verse places believing beside attachment.
THE ROOT
κολληθέντες
kollēthentes
GROWS FROM
κολλάω
kollaō
To glue, join, or adhere.
“clave” in this verse is kollēthentes. The word comes from the verb for joining or sticking fast. Set beside “believed,” it presents trust as an attachment that takes hold, while keeping the two actions distinct.
ALSO GROWS
ekollēthē: “Clave” or “was joined.”
ἐκολλήθη
Ruth uses this same Greek verb family for her attachment to Naomi, giving “clave” the image of a bond that holds.
kollōmenos: “The one joining” or “the one joined.”
κολλώμενος
In 1 Corinthians 6:17, this form describes one who is joined to the Lord, carrying the same joining image into a bond of union.
ἐπίστευσαν
episteusan
GROWS FROM
πιστ-
pist-
Trust, reliance, confidence.
“believed” in this verse is episteusan. This form of πιστεύω (pisteuō) belongs to the same word family as πίστις (pistis), trust. In the established sense, this trust leans its full weight; beside “clave,” it appears as a response that fastens itself to what it receives.
ALSO GROWS
pistis: Trust, reliance.
πίστις
This related noun names the trust that the verb “believed” expresses in the verse.
pistos: Firm, reliable, steady.
πιστός
The related word shows the family’s movement from trusting to being someone or something that can be relied on.
THE PATTERN
Trust becomes visible as attachment: what a person leans on also becomes what they cling to.
My soul followeth hard after thee: thy right hand upholdeth me.And they lifted up their voice, and wept again: and Orpah kissed her mother in law; but Ruth clave unto her.But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit.THE THREAD
But he that is joined unto the Lord is one spirit.“Is joined” shares the Greek verb family κολλάω (kollaō), “to join or adhere,” with Acts’ “clave.” The same joining image carries trust toward union, showing how attachment takes hold of the whole person.
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