The passage
      v32. Luke now records Peter's itinerant ministry in Judea. Lydda is the Old Testament town of Lod, and obviously there is a community of believers in the village, possibly converts of Philip's evangelistic preaching.
      v33-35. Aeneas, paralyzed for eight years (or possibly paralyzed since he was eight years old), is healed with a word of authority and told to "take care of" his "mat" - in plain English, "get up and make your bed" (or possibly, "get up, set your table and get yourself something to eat." Luke often notes the need for nourishment of the sick). News of the healing spreads, opening the gospel to other scattered Jewish communities.
      v36-38. The Christian community at Joppa (modern Jaffa), north west of Lydda on the Mediterranean cost, hears of the healing and sends a delegation of two men (delegations tend to be made up of two men) to see whether Peter can come and heal one of their number. Dorcas (Tabitha in Aramaic, meaning Gazelle) had fallen sick and died. She was a person greatly loved for her charitable works.
      v39-43. Following the custom of the time, Dorcas was laid out in an upper room and ministered to by mourning friends and relatives. When Peter arrives, she is surrounded by many of the widows she had helped over the years. They proudly show off the clothing Dorcas had made for them, in fact, they are probably wearing the clothing. Peter asks them to leave and raises Dorcas from the dead using much the same words as Jesus used in raising Jairus's daughter - "Talitha qumi" for Peter's "Tabitha qumi." Her eyes open and she sits up. Peter then presents her to the widows, along with the other Jewish believers ("saints", rather than "believers"). The miraculous sign prompts many citizens of Joppa to put their trust in Jesus. Peter stays on in the town living with Simon the tanner. His religious scruples are obviously fading, given that tanning is by no means a ritually clean profession. It has been suggested that tanning was actually Peter's profession; fishing was a sideline.

Living and loving
      The raising of Dorcas parallels the raising of the widow's son by Elijah, 1Ki.17:17-24, and the raising of the Shunemmite woman's son by Elisha, 2Ki.4:8-37. It is a significant sign which authenticates the ministry of Peter and the early church, in the same way as the raising of Jairus's daughter by Jesus authenticated his messianic ministry. The sign serves as a gospel revelation. It proclaims the realization of Israel's messianic hope of a coming kingdom where the dead find new life, and the poor and widowed can rejoice in plenty. Of course, the significance of the sign is only for Jewish eyes. The miracle "becomes known all over Joppa, and many people (most probably Jews) believed in the Lord." When the dead are raised and the widows rejoice, then is the kingdom in our midst.
      The reality of the kingdom for the people of Israel was evidenced in God's healing power acting on behalf of the poor. When the dead are raised and the widows rejoice, then is the kingdom come. God's miraculous power, evident in the ministry of Peter, authenticates this ministry, and thus authenticates his move toward the Gentiles, encapsulated in the conversion of Cornelius. The kingdom is come, and is come for all humanity.
      Our heritage in the Western church derives more from the Gentile mission of Paul than the Jewish mission of Peter, none-the-less, the evidence of the kingdom should still be found in the life of the dead and the joy of the widow. God's people should be an enlivened people and a joyously caring people, a people set free. Of course, such transforming power is not ours to create, just as Peter's healing of Dorcas was not of his doing. Only the living God can empower us with new life. It is the indwelling compelling Spirit of Christ that can transform death into life, sadness into joy, carelessness into compassion.
      When the church is made up of transformed people, then can the world witness something of the coming day of glory, then is the gospel proclaimed in sign rather than word. Such a transformation is only possible through the Spirit of Christ who inevitably transforms upon request. So, again we are reminded of the need to pray the prayer of faith, believing for Christ's renewal (enlivening) of his people before the dawning of the great and terrible day.

v32
      diercomenon (diercomai) pres. part. "as [Peter] traveled" - passing. The participle is possible temporal, "during his travels amongst them all", Barclay; or attributive, "Peter moved (moving) here and there", Moffatt. Barrett suggests the word is used of a missionary journey.
      egeneto Petron (oV) acc. "Peter" - it happened Peter [to come down]. "Peter" is the subject of the infinitive "to come down" in an accusative infinitive construction forming a infinitival clause, the subject of "happened", untranslated in the NIV. "It happened that Peter visited one place after another and eventually came to God's holy people living in Lydda", NJB.
      dia + gen. "about" - through (in time or place).
      pantwn adj. "the country" - all. The sense is obscure, but probably "through the whole region" rather than "amongst them all (ie. Peter passed through all the local Christian communities)", Barclay.
      katelqein (katercomai) aor. inf. "he went to visit" - to come down. "Visited the believers in Lydda."
      kai proV - [to come down] also to. The sense is a little confusing.
      touV aJgiouV "the saints" - "Christians", but probably "Jewish Christians" in particular.
      katoikountaV (katoikew) pres. part. "-" - dwelling [in Lydda]. The participle is attributive, "who were dwelling."

v33
      euJren (euJriskw) "he found" - "Found" in the sense of "there he met", CEV.
      onomati (a atoV) dat. "named" - [a certain man] by name [Aeneas]. Dative of reference / respect, "with regard to his name, Aeneas."
      hn paralelumenoV (paraluw) perf. pas. part. "a paralytic" - [who] had been paralyzed. A periphrastic pluperfect.
      katakeimenon (katakeimai) pres. part. "who had been bedridden" - laying. The participle is attributive, modifying man/Aeneas.
      ex etwn oktw "for eight years" - of years eight. Possibly "from the age of eight", but more likely as NIV.

v34
      iatai (iaomai) pres. "[Jesus Christ] heals [you]" - An aorist (punctiliar) present tense, although a variant pointing is perfect, "has healed you."
      anasthqi kai strwson seautw/ "get up and take care of your mat" - get up and spread/arrange/furnish for yourself. The object of the imperative verb "spread" is not supplied and so we have to guess. The NIV sentence is virtually meaningless. The words could mean either "get up and make your bed", REB., in the sense that he will no longer need it, or "lay a table for yourself (for something to eat)", Beggs.
      euqewV adv. "immediately" - A typical feature of miracle stories; the healing was immediate.

v35
      oiJ katoikounteV (katoikew) pres. part. "[all] those who lived in" - the ones dwelling. The participle is substantival.
      epestreyan (epistrefw) aor. "turned" - turned [toward]. A conversion word. Again, it is typical of miracle stories to note the response of the crowd.

v36
      Joppa is on the Judean coast, a Hellenistic town. Tabitha, Aramaic with the Greek translation, Dorcas, means "an animal of the deer family", eg. a Gazelle.
      diermhneuomenh (diermhneuw) pres. part. "when translated" - [which] being translated [means]. Treated as a temporal participle by the NIV.
      plhrhV adj. "always [doing]" - full. "Abounding in kindness."
      ergwn agaqwn gen. "[always doing] good" - [full] of good works .... [which she was doing]. Genitive of content. "Voluntary acts of love", Calvin.

v37
      Note 1 Kings 17:19.
      egeneto "-" - it happened. Maintaining the movement of the story.
      en taiV hJmeraiV ekeinaiV "about that time" - in those days. "During the time Peter was in the area", Peterson.
      asqenhsasan (asqenew) aor. part. "[she] became sick" - having become sick. A participle of attendant circumstance, expressing action accompanying the action of the aorist infinitive "to die" which, with the accusative "her", forms an accusative infinitive construction, the "her (this one)" being the subject of a clause which itself functions as the subject of the verb "happened ("about that time")." "She became ill and died", CEV.
      lousanteV (luw) aor. part. "her body was washed" - having washed. The participle probably forms a temporal clause, "after they washed here body", Moffatt. Anointing was usually also practiced, although this is not mentioned.
      uJperw/w/ (on) "[in] an upstairs room" - an upper room. Possibly a Christian meeting place, or an appropriate place to store a dead body.

v38
      oushV (eimi) "was .... so" - Genitive absolute of the verb to-be, probably forming a causal clause, "since Lydda was near Joppa", Barclay.
      egguV "near" - This is one of a small number of improper prepositions found in the New Testament. Usually followed by a genitive, here by a dative and functioning as an adverb, "near Joppa."
      akousanteV (akouw) aor. part. "when [the disciples] heard" - having heard. The participle is probably temporal, as NIV.
      oJti "that" - Introducing indirect discourse, what they heard, "Peter is in it (Lydda)."
      parakalounteV (parakalew) pres. part. "urged" - calling, summoning, asking, requesting, exhorting. The participle is adverbial, probably expressing purpose, "in order to ask him." Possibly "urged", but this is reading a bit into it. Also, the "please come at once!" is a bit strong. The Greek reads "do not delay to come to us", but this is just a polite way of saying "please come to us."
      mh oknhshV (oknew) aor. subj. "please [come] at once!" - do not hesitate [to come]. The negated subjunctive forming a negative command.
      dielqein (diercomai) aor. inf. "come" - to come. The infinitive is complementary (supplementary), completing the sense of the main verb "hesitate".

v39
      anastaV (anisthmi) aor. part. "-" - having arisen. The participle is adverbial, probably superfluous, so NIV, or possibly expressing haste, "straight away, Peter went with them", CEV.
      oJn paragenomenon (paraginomai) aor. part. "when he arrived" - whom having arrived. The participle probably forms a temporal clause, as NIV, although possibly attributive, identifying who is taken to the upper room, "they brought to the upper room, him (namely Peter) who had arrived."
      epideiknumenai (epideiknumi) mid. part. "showing" - The participle is modal, identifying the manner in which the action of the verb is accomplished. The middle voice possibly indicates that the widows are showing off the gifts by actually wearing them, or possibly the middle voice is expressing something like "showing with pride."
      ousa (eimi) "while she was still [with them]" - being. The participle is probably temporal, as NIV.

v40
      Parallels continue with Jesus' healing of the daughter of Jairus, Mark 5:40, 41, (interesting that the parallels are closer to Mark's account than Luke's account!) and Elisha's healing of the dead boy.
      ekbalwn (ekballw) aor. part. "sent them [all] out" - having cast out. The participle is probably temporal, "then Peter put them out of the room", Williams.
      pantaV adj. "all" - Barrett suggests that the use of the masculine indicates that there were men in the room along with the women.
      qeiV (tiqhmi) aor. part. "then he got down on" - having placed. The participle is probably temporal as NIV. "Then he knelt down in prayer", Moffatt.
      epistreyaV (epistrefw) aor. part. "turning" - turning [to the body]. The participle is attendant circumstance accompanying the action of the verb "said", "turning ..... he said / he turned ...... and he said"
      idousa (eidon) aor. part. "seeing" - seeing. The participle is probably temporal, "when she saw Peter she sat up", Williams.

v41
      douV (didwmi) aor. part. "he took [her by the hand]" - having given [to her a hand]. The participle is probably attendant circumstance expressing action accompanying the verb "raised up (helped her to her feet)", as NIV.
      fwnhsaV (fwnew) aor. part. "then he called" - having called. The participle is probably temporal, as NIV.
      zwsan (zaw) pres. part. "alive" - [he presented her] living. The participle is the complement of a double accusative object complement construction, in which construction, both the object of the verb, and its complement is in the accusative case, "he presented (verb) her (object) living (complement)." See Wallace 182.

v42
      epi "[believed] in [the Lord]" - upon. This preposition, followed by the accusative, takes the sense of movement onto something. "Believe in" is certainly commonly used in English, but the sense is "came to rely on."