Acts 1:14 (DBY)

Passage

These gave themselves all with one accord to continual prayer, with [several] women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren.

Nearby Context

Acts 1:12 Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called [the mount] of Olives, which is near Jerusalem, a sabbath-day's journey off.

Acts 1:13 And when they were come into [the city], they went up to the upper chamber, where were staying both Peter, and John, and James, and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James [son] of Alphaeus, and Simon the zealot, and Jude [the brother] of James.

Acts 1:14 These gave themselves all with one accord to continual prayer, with [several] women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren.

Acts 1:15 And in those days Peter, standing up in the midst of the brethren, said, (the crowd of names [who were] together [was] about a hundred and twenty,)

Acts 1:16 Brethren, it was necessary that the scripture should have been fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spoke before, by the mouth of David, concerning Judas, who became guide to those who took Jesus;

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "gave", "themselves", "accord", "continual", "prayer", "several", "women", and "mary". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "gave" and "themselves", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 13's "And when they were come into the..." into verse 15's "And in those days Peter standing up...", so "gave" and "themselves" belong inside that flow. In Acts context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "gave" and "themselves" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.