Oriental Reading
Prof. I. H. Hall. Acts 8:28 Was returning, and sitting in his chariot read Esaias the prophet. If the eunuch followed the general custom of the East, he was not only reading to himself aloud, but so as to be heard easily and distinctly by any one in the immediate neighbourhood. The prayer, or praying, of the Orientals is not usually very noisy, but their reading is a continual sound. They study aloud, read their sacred books aloud, and rehearse their lessons aloud, to an extent that is not seen among the Occidentals, nor enjoyed by an Occidental listener. When there are many together, the babel is astonishing. The idea that it might disturb any one never enters their heads. But the Orientals do many things with noise which we of the west prefer to do with quietness. Our talking seems painfully low and still to them, as theirs seems painfully loud and noisy to us. Yet the Orientals are not very much beyond the ordinary Italians in that respect. (Prof. I. H. Hall.) Parallel Verses KJV: Was returning, and sitting in his chariot read Esaias the prophet. WEB: He was returning and sitting in his chariot, and was reading the prophet Isaiah.