And now, behold, I go bound in the spirit unto Jerusalem, not knowing the things that shall befall me there:

And now, behold, being bound in the spirit, I go to Jerusalem: not knowing the things which shall befall me there:

And now, behold, bound in my spirit I go to Jerusalem, not knowing what things shall happen to me in it;

And now, lo, I, bound in the Spirit, go on to Jerusalem, the things that shall befall me in it not knowing,

"And now, impelled by a sense of duty, I am on my way to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there,

And now, as you see, I am going to Jerusalem, a prisoner in spirit, having no knowledge of what will come to me there:

And now, behold, being obliged in spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there,

And now, under spiritual constraint, I am here on my way to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there,

And, behold. He declareth now more fully to what end he intreated of his upright dealing; to wit, because they should never see him any more. And it was very expedient that the pattern which was set before them by God of them to be followed should be always before their eyes, and that they should remember him when he was dead. For we know how readily men degenerate from pure institution. But though he deny that he doth know what shall befall him at Jerusalem, yet because he was taught by many prophecies that bonds were prepared for him there, as if he were now ready to die, he cutteth off shortly after the hope of his return. And yet for all this he is not contrary to himself. He speaketh doubtfully at the first of set purpose, that he may soften that which was about to be more (hard and) bitter; and yet he doth truly affirm, that he knew not as yet the ends and events of things, because he had no certain and special revelation touching the whole process. Bound in the spirit. Some expound this that he was bound to the churches, who had committed to him this function to carry alms. Notwithstanding, I do rather think that hereby is meant the inward force and motion of the Spirit, not as though he were so inspired, [1] that he was out of his wit, but because being certified of the will of God, he did meekly [2] follow the direction and instinct of the Spirit, even of his own accord. Therefore, this speech importeth as much as if he should have said, I cannot otherwise do, unless I would be stubborn and rebellious against God, who doth as it were draw me thither, being bound by his Spirit. For to the end he may excuse himself of rashness, he saith that the Spirit is the author and guide of his journey. But would to God those brain-sick men, who boast that the Spirit doth incite to them those things which proceed from their own fantasy, did know the Spirit as familiarly as did Paul, who doth, notwithstanding, not say that all his motions and instigations [3] are of the Spirit, but declareth that that fell out in one thing as a singular thing. For men do oftentimes foolishly and unadvisedly take in hand those things which they put in practice afterward stoutly, because they be ashamed of lightness and instability. And he doth not only mean that he took in hand his journey for a good cause, which the Spirit of God showeth him, but that it is altogether necessary for him, because it is wickedness to resist. Furthermore, let us learn, by the example of the holy man, not to kick against the Spirit of the Lord, but obediently to give over ourselves by him to be governed, that he may rule us at his pleasure after we be as it were bound to him. [4] For if the reprobate, who are the bond-slaves of Satan, be carried not only willingly, but also greedily, through his motion, [5] how much more ought this voluntary bondage or service to be in the children of God?

Footnotes

1 - "Non quod enthousiasmo correptus fuerit," not that he was so enraptured.

2 - "Spoute vel plaeide," calmly or spontaneously.

3 - "Impulsus," impulses.

4 - "Nec tamen violenter trahamur," and yet be not violently dragged, omitted.

5 - "Ad ejus impulsum," as he impels them.

Bound in the spirit - Strongly urged or constrained by the influences of the Holy Spirit on my mind. Not by any desire to see the place where my fathers worshipped, and not urged merely by reason, but by the convictions and mighty promptings of the Holy Spirit to do my duty in this case. The expression "bound in the spirit" δεδεμένος τῷ πνεύματι dedemenos tō pneumati is one of great strength and emphasis. The word δέω deō, "to bind," is usually applied to "confinement by cords, fetters, or bands" Matthew 13:30; Matthew 14:3; Matthew 21:2; and then it denotes "any strong obligation" Romans 7:2, or "anything that strongly urges or impels," Matthew 21:2. When we are strongly urged by the convictions of duty, by the influences of the Holy Spirit, we should not shrink from danger or from death. Duty is to be done at all hazards. It is ours to follow the directions of God; results we may safely and confidently leave with him.
Not knowing the things that shall befall me there - He knew that calamities and trials of some kind awaited him Acts 20:23, but he did not know:
(1) Of what particular kind they would be; nor,
(2) Their issue, whether it would be life or death.
We should commit our way unto God, not knowing what trials may be before us in life; but knowing that, if we are found faithful at the post of duty, we have nothing to fear in the result.

I go bound in the spirit - Δεδεμενος τῳ πνευματι - Either meaning the strong influence of the Divine Spirit upon his mind, or the strong propensity in his own will, wish, and desire, to visit Jerusalem; and in this sense δεειν, to bind, is sometimes used. But it appears more consistent with the mind of the apostle, and with that influence under which we find that he constantly acted, to refer it to the influence of the Holy Ghost; ὑπο του πνευματος, being under the power of that Spirit; as if he had said: "I have now no choice - God has not left me either to the advices of friends, or to my own prudence: the Spirit of God obliges me to go to Jerusalem, and yet does not intimate to me what peculiar trials shall befall me there: I have only the general intimation that, in every city where I proclaim the Gospel, bonds and afflictions await me." This sense of the word Kypke has largely defended in his note here.

(7) And now, behold, I go (e) bound in the spirit unto Jerusalem, not knowing the things that shall befall me there:
(7) He testifies that he goes to his imprisonment by the commandment of God.
(e) He calls the guiding direction of the Holy Spirit, who forced him to take his journey to Jerusalem, the bond of the Sprit, whom he followed with all his heart.

And now behold, I go bound in the spirit unto Jerusalem,.... Not in his own spirit, though the Ethiopic version reads, "in my spirit"; as if he was pressed and straitened, and troubled within himself, at what afflictions and bonds he was to endure at Jerusalem; for this is not consistent with what he says in Acts 20:24 nor is the sense, that he was bound in conscience and duty to go to Jerusalem, to carry the collections of the churches made for the poor saints there, which the Gentile churches importuned him to take upon him, and which he undertook, and promised to perform, and so was under obligation to do it; but rather that he was resolved and determined in his own mind, within himself, or he purposed in his spirit, as in Acts 19:21 to go to Jerusalem: but it is best to understand it of the Spirit of God; as that either the apostle, by the revelation of the Spirit of God, knew that when he came to Jerusalem he should be laid in bonds, and under a deep impression of that upon his mind, he went thither, as though he was bound already; or rather that he was under such a strong impulse of the Spirit of God, by which he was moved to such a vehement desire to go thither, that the bonds and afflictions he saw waited for him there, could not deter him, and all the entreaties of his friends could not dissuade him from it:
not knowing the things that shall befall me there; that is, the particular things he should suffer there, nor how they would issue with respect to life or death; and if the latter, whether he should suffer death, there or elsewhere; these things were not as yet revealed to him; he only in general knew, that bonds and afflictions would be his lot and portion, and which therefore he excepts in the next verse: after this it was revealed to him by Agabus a prophet, in the name, and under the influence of the Holy Ghost, that he should be apprehended at Jerusalem, and should be bound and delivered to the Gentiles; which was signified by the prophet's taking his girdle and binding his hands and feet with it, but still he knew not whether he should die there or not, though he was ready for it, Acts 21:10 afterwards when he was come to Jerusalem, and had been bound, and was in prison, the Lord himself appeared to him, and told him that he must bear witness at Rome, as he had testified of him at Jerusalem, Acts 23:11 so that he was not to suffer death there, only bonds and imprisonment.

And now, behold, I--"I" is emphatic here.
bound in the spirit--compare Acts 19:21. This internal pressure, unattended with any knowledge of "what was to befall him there," was the result of that higher guidance which shaped all his movements.

Bound by the Spirit - Strongly impelled by him.