Actschapter 3
26 verses · Luke · about AD 62 · Acts
For Moses said, ‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your brothers. You must listen to Him in everything He tells you.
Introduction
Luke, Acts, Acts Overview.
Luke wrote this chapter for Theophilus to show what the apostles did once the Spirit had come. It is one afternoon in the temple courts at the hour of prayer, and it begins with a single man who had never walked. The healing draws a crowd, and the crowd hears the second sermon in the book. Listen for the titles Peter gives Jesus, since several of them are found nowhere else. Notice also how gently he speaks of the people's guilt before he calls them to turn. Read the chapter as a sign followed by its meaning.
Context
- Who
- Theophilus and Gentile readers watching the apostles preach inside the temple itself.
- What
- The healing of a man lame from birth at the Beautiful Gate and Peter's sermon in Solomon's Colonnade.
- Where
- The temple in Jerusalem, at the gate called Beautiful and in the colonnade on the east side of the court.
- When
- Soon after Pentecost, in the first months of the Jerusalem church, about AD 30 or 33.
- Why
- To show that the healing came through the name of the risen Jesus and to call Israel to repent and receive the times of refreshing.
Historical context
Begging at a temple gate was a job, not a random misfortune. A man who could not work depended on alms, and worshipers on their way to pray were the most reliable givers of the day. Friends would carry a disabled beggar to his spot each morning and home each night.
Show the rest of the historical context, 2 more paragraphs
The "hour of prayer" at three in the afternoon lined up with the evening sacrifice. Twice a day the priests offered a lamb, and crowds gathered in the courts to pray while it burned. That is why there was an audience standing ready.
Solomon's Portico was a roofed row of columns running along the eastern edge of the temple platform, open on one side to the court. Teachers used it for exactly this, a shaded public space where a crowd could gather and listen. The apostles kept meeting there for months.
Significance
For the first hearers, the healing was an argument. A man crippled from birth, known by sight to everyone who used that gate for forty years, walked. Peter refuses the credit and points to the name of Jesus, then presses the crowd with the sharpest possible claim: the man you handed over is the one God raised.
Show the rest of the significance, 1 more paragraph
Peter also gives them a way back. He calls their part in it ignorance, holds out repentance, and frames Jesus as the prophet Moses foretold, not a break with Israel's story but its promised next chapter.
The heads below are this chapter's scenes. The numbered points under each are its verses.
Silver and Gold Have I None: The Lame Man Leaps
Acts 3:1-3
Peter and John were going up: The man lame from birth was carried every day to the gate called Beautiful, a face every regular worshipper knew. The miracle that follows lands on a man the whole crowd could name.
Acts 3:1
“Peter and John went up ... - In Luk 24:53, it is said that the apostles were continually in the temple, praising and blessing God. From Act 2:46, it is clear that all the disciples were accustomed daily to resort to the temple for devotion. Whether they joined in the sacrifices of the temple-service is not said; but the thing is not improbable. This was the place and the manner in which they and their fathers had worshipped.”
1 more voice on this verseWhat preachers and commentators have said about this verse, in their own words.
Acts 3:1
“The chief hours of prayer were the third and ninth; at which seasons the morning and evening sacrifices were offered, and incense (a kind of emblem representing prayer) burnt on the golden altar.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
the temple gate called Beautiful: Wesley describes the gate as Herod the Great's addition between the court of the Gentiles and the court of Israel. It stood thirty cubits high, made of Corinthian brass. Adam Clarke notes that long years of lameness in so public a place made the man well known, confirming the miracle.
Acts 3:2
“A - man lame from his mother’s womb - The case of this man must have been well known: 1. from the long standing of his infirmity: 2. from his being daily exposed in a place so public. It appears that he had no power to walk, and was what we term a cripple, for he was carried to the gate of the temple, and laid there in order to excite compassion. These circumstances are all marked by St. Luke, the more fully to show the greatness and incontestable nature of the miracle.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 3:2
“At the gate of the temple, called Beautiful - This gate was added by Herod the Great, between the court of the Gentiles and that of Israel. It was thirty cubits high, and fifteen broad, and made of Corinthian brass, more pompous in its workmanship and splendour than those that were covered with silver and gold.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
he asked them for money: Albert Barnes sees no sign that the man knew who Peter and John were, so he asked them as he asked every worshipper. Matthew Henry notes that the blind and lame had been healed by Christ in this same temple only weeks before.
Acts 3:3
“Who seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple,.... Just as they were entering through the gate at which he lay, he looked at them; and though they were strangers to him, he concluded they were Israelites by their going into the temple at that time: asked an alms; of them; prayed them to give him something for his relief and support.”
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 3:3
“It was not many weeks ago that the blind and the lame came to Christ in the temple, and were healed there, Matt. xxi. And why might not he have asked more than an alms, if he knew that Peter and John were Christ's messengers, and preached and wrought miracles in his name?”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Acts 3:4-5
Peter looked directly at him: , as did John, and told the beggar to look at them, asking his full attention before anything is given. The man looks up expecting to receive something from them, still reading the moment as a matter of money.
Acts 3:4
“Look on us - He wished to excite and engage his attention that he might see what was done to produce his miraculous cure, and, it is likely, took this occasion to direct his faith to Jesus Christ. See note on Act 3:16 (note). Peter and John probably felt themselves suddenly drawn by the Holy Spirit to pronounce the healing name in behalf of this poor man.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 3:4
“John did so too, for they were both guided by one and the same Spirit, and concurred in this miracle; they said, Look on us. Our eye must be ever towards the Lord (the eye of our mind), and, in token of this, the eye of the body may properly be fixed on those whom he employs as the ministers of his grace.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
expecting to receive something: Adam Clarke explains that worshippers carried money into the temple for the treasury and the poor, so the man was laid at the gate. Erasmus notes that he did not dare to ask for healing, having no hope of it. Yet Erasmus thinks he sensed something good coming.
Acts 3:5
“And he gave heed unto them,.... Or "he looked at them", as the Syriac version renders it, as they bid him: he was not only attentive to them in his mind, but he directed his eyes towards them, and looked wistly at them. This clause is left out in the Ethiopic version. Expecting to receive something of them; not a cure for his lameness, which he little thought of, but some money, as an alms.”
2 more voices on this verse
Acts 3:5
“Expecting to receive something of them - Because it was a constant custom for all who entered the temple to carry money with them to give to the treasury, or to the poor, or to both. It was on this ground that the friends of the lame man laid him at the gate of the temple, as this was the most likely place to receive alms.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Acts 3:5
“As every one hath received the gift, so let him minister it. Let us now see how the cure was wrought. [1.] Christ sent his word, and healed him ( Ps. cvii. 20 ); for healing grace is given by the word of Christ; this is the vehicle of the healing virtue derived from Christ.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Acts 3:6-8
Peter gives what he has, the command In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth to get up and walk. The name is spoken before the power acts, and at once the man’s feet and ankles were made strong.
Acts 3:6
Again, when Peter, accompanied by John, had looked upon the man lame from his birth, before that gate of the temple which is called Beautiful, sitting and seeking alms, he said to him, "Silver and gold I have none; but such as I have give I thee: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk. And immediately his legs and his feet received strength; and he walked, and entered with them into the temple, walking, and leaping, and praising God."
Irenaeus · written before 202 · Against Heresies Book IIIpatristic
2 more voices on this verse
Acts 3:6
“Silver and gold have I none, but such as I have give I thee--What a lofty superiority breathes in these words! In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk--These words, uttered with supernatural power, doubtless begat in this poor man the faith that sent healing virtue through his diseased members.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Acts 3:6
“Silver and gold have I none - Though it was customary for all those who entered the temple to carry some money with them, for the purposes mentioned above, yet so poor were the apostles that their had nothing to give, either to the sacred treasury, or to the distressed. The popish writers are very dexterous at forming analogies between St. Peter and the pope; but it is worthy of note that they have not attempted any here.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Taking him by the right hand: Albert Barnes reads the outstretched hand as an offer of help that urged the man to make an effort. He sees in it a picture of how God aids those He commands. Oecumenius and Theophylact see in the lifting up a figure of the resurrection.
Acts 3:7
“And he took him by the right hand,.... In imitation of Christ, whom he had often seen using the same action on such occasions: and lift him up; believing he was cured, and that it might be manifest. The word him is expressed in the Alexandrian copy, and in some others, and in the Oriental versions, which is a supplement in our translation: and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength; where, it seems, his lameness lay.”
3 more voices on this verse
Acts 3:7
“And he took him - He took hold of his hand. To take hold of the hand in such a ease was an offer of aid, an indication that Peter was sincere, and was an inducement to him to make an effort. This may be employed as a beautiful illustration of the manner of God when he commands people to repent and believe. He does not leave them alone; he extends help, and aids their efforts.”
Acts 3:7
“The one whom he encouraged by word he strengthed by his right hand, because the discourse of a teacher is less efficacious in the hearts of his hearers if it is not also recommended by the example of his own action.”
Leo the Great · written before 461 · Commentary (church-history corpus)patristic
Acts 3:7
“He stood without either leaning or trembling, stood straight up, and walked without a staff. He trod strongly, and moved steadily; and this was to manifest the cure, and that it was a thorough cure. Note, Those who have had experience of the working of divine grace upon them should evidence what they have experienced.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
walking and leaping and praising God: Adam Clarke and Theophylact think the man leaped to test his limbs and assure himself that the cure was real. Clarke sees Isaiah 35:6 fulfilled here. Chrysostom notes that the man followed the apostles of his own accord and gave his praise to God, who worked through them.
Acts 3:8
“Walking and leaping, and praising God - These actions are very naturally described. He walked, in obedience to the command of the apostle, rise up and walk: he leaped, to try the strength of his limbs and to be convinced of the reality of the cure: he praised God, as a testimony of the gratitude he felt for the cure he had received. Now was fulfilled, in the most literal manner, the words of the Prophet Isaiah, Isa 35:6: The lame man shall leap as a hart.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Acts 3:9-10
all the people saw him walking: The crowd recognized him as the man who used to sit begging at the Beautiful Gate of the temple. The miracle is confirmed by the people's own knowledge.
Acts 3:9
“And all the people,.... That were in the temple, saw him walking; who before lay on a couch, or on the ground, and was so lame, that he was obliged to be carried; and praising God; for this miraculous cure. The Arabic version renders it, "saw him walking to praise God": that is, entering into the temple with the apostles, in order to offer up the sacrifice of praise to God there.”
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 3:9
“And all the people ... - The people who had been accustomed to see him sit in a public place. And they knew ... - In this they could not be deceived; they had seen him a long time, and now they saw the same man expressing his praise to God for complete recovery. The particulars in this miracle are the following, and they are as far as possible from any appearance of imposture: 1. The man had been afficated from a child. This was known to all the people.”
filled with wonder and amazement: Matthew Henry reasons that the man had begged there so long that everyone knew him, and for that reason he was chosen for this mercy. John Gill adds that the crowd had passed him in his old condition just before. Bede takes the amazement here as a kind of fear.
Acts 3:10
“He had sat there so long that they all knew him; and for this reason he was chosen to be the vessel of this mercy. Now they were not so perverse as to make any doubt whether he was the same man, as the Pharisees had questioned concerning the blind man that Christ cured, John ix.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
At Solomon's Porch: Faith in His Name Made Him Whole
the walkway called Solomon’s Colonnade: The crowd ran to them in Solomon’s Colonnade, the covered colonnade on the temple's eastern side. Jesus had walked and taught there (John 10:23), and the whole church later met there daily (5:12).
Acts 3:11
“Held Peter and John - The word “held” means that he “adhered” to them; he “joined himself” to them; he was desirous of “remaining” with them and “participating” with them. “He clung to his benefactors, and would not be separated from them” (Prof. Hackett). All the people ... - Excited by curiosity, they came together. The fact of the cure and the conduct of the man would soon draw together a crowd, and thus furnish a favorable opportunity for preaching to them the gospel.”
Acts 3:12-13
why are you surprised by this?: The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God his hearers worship, has glorified His servant Jesus. The crowd had handed Him over and rejected Him before Pilate, even though he had decided to release Him.
Acts 3:12
“Then, when a multitude had gathered around them from all quarters because of this unexpected deed, Peter addressed them: "Ye men of Israel, why marvel ye at this; or why look ye so earnestly on us, as though by our own power we had made this man to walk? The God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, the God of our fathers, hath glorified His Son, whom ye delivered up for judgment, and denied in the presence of Pilate, when he wished to let Him go.”
Irenaeus · written before 202 · Against Heresies Book IIIpatristic
2 more voices on this verse
Acts 3:12
“As though by our own power - Δυναμει, Miraculous energy. Or holiness - Η ευσεβειᾳ, Meaning religious attachment to the worship of God. Do not think that we have wrought this miracle by any power of our own; or that any supereminent piety in us should have induced God thus to honor us, by enabling us to work it. Instead of ευσεβειᾳ, holiness, the Syriac of Erpen, Armenian, Vulgate, and some copies of the Itala, have εξουσιᾳ, power or authority; but the first appears to be the legitimate reading.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Acts 3:12
“Nor was it done by any merit of their own; the power which Christ gave them to do it they had not deserved: it was not by their own holiness; for, as they were weak things, so they were foolish things, that Christ chose to employ; Yet he wrought miracles in Christ's name. What holiness any of them had it was wrought in them, and they could not pretend to merit by it.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
glorified His servant Jesus: Wesley notes that Peter names the God of the fathers so that no one could think the apostles taught a new religion. Jamieson, Fausset and Brown note that the word means servant, since a different word is used for Son. Oecumenius finds two crimes: handing Him over and denying Him.
Acts 3:13
“The God of Abraham - He is called the God of Abraham because Abraham acknowledged him as his God, and because God showed himself to be his friend. Compare Mat 22:32; Exo 3:6, Exo 3:15; Gen 28:13; Gen 26:24. It was important to show that it was the same God who had done this that had been acknowledged by their fathers, and that they were not about to introduce the worship of any other God.”
2 more voices on this verse
Acts 3:13
“The God of our fathers - This was wisely introduced in the beginning of his discourse, that it might appear they taught no new religion, inconsistent with that of Moses, and were far from having the least design to divert their regards from the God of Israel.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
Acts 3:13
“When "Son" is intended a different word is used. whom ye delivered up, &c.--With what heroic courage does Peter here charge his auditors with the heaviest of all conceivable crimes, and with what terrific strength of language are these charges clothed!”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Acts 3:14-15
the Holy and Righteous One: They killed the Author of life, where the Greek archegos is the word 5:31 uses of Jesus as Prince and Savior. The one who gives life is the one put to death.
Acts 3:14
“Ye denied the Holy One - Τον ἁγιον. A manifest reference to Psa 16:10: Thou wilt not suffer thy Holy One to see corruption; where the original word חסידיך Chasideyca, thy Holy One, is translated by the Septuagint, τον Ὁσιον σου, a word of the same import with that used by Peter. And desired a murderer - Barabbas: the case must have been fresh in their own remembrance. Like cleaves to like, and begets its like: they were murderers themselves, and so Christ calls them, Mat 22:7, and they preferred a murderer to the holy and righteous One of God.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 3:14
“But ye denied the Holy One, and the just,.... Who is "holy" both in his divine and human nature, and the fountain of holiness to his people; see Psa 16:10 and who is "just" or "righteous", both in his person, and in the discharge of his office, and has wrought a righteousness for his people, which is imputed to them.”
You killed the Author of life: Albert Barnes explains that the Greek word first meant a military leader. It came to mean the cause or author of a thing, as in Hebrews 12:2. Oecumenius takes the title to show that Christ raised Himself.
Acts 3:15
“And killed the Prince of life,.... Or author of life, natural, spiritual, and eternal; who not only is the living God, and has life in himself; and as man, had such a power over his own life, as no man ever had; but he is the author of a spiritual resurrection from the death of sin, to a life of grace, and has procured eternal life for his people, and gives it to them. Now this Lord of life and glory they crucified.”
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 3:15
“And killed the Prince of life - The word rendered “prince” denotes properly “a military leader or commander.” Hence, in Heb 2:10, it is translated “captain:” “It became him ...to make the “Captain of their salvation” perfect through sufferings.” As a captain or commander leads on to victory and is said to obtain it, so the word comes to denote one who is the “cause,” the “author,” the “procurer,” etc. In this sense it is used, Act 5:31, “Him hath God exalted to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel,” etc.”
By faith in the name: Peter names the cause of the healing twice: faith in the name of Jesus, and Jesus’ name and the faith that comes through Him. The verse leaves open whose faith is meant, the apostles' faith in the name, the healed man's faith to rise, or both together.
Acts 3:16
“It explains likewise the great gospel mystery of our salvation by Christ; it is his name that justifies us, that glorious name of his, The Lord our righteousness; but we, in particular, are justified by that name, through faith in it, applying it to ourselves.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 3:16
“His name - Himself: his power and love. The faith which is by him - Of which he is the giver, as well as the object.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
Repent and Turn: Seasons of Refreshing
Acts 3:17-18
you acted in ignorance: Peter's tone turns from charge to mercy: I know that you acted in ignorance, as did your leaders. He names ignorance as their plea without excusing the act.
Acts 3:17
“That which bears him out in it is that he has the example of his Master's praying for his crucifiers, and pleading in their behalf that they knew not what they did. And it is said of the rulers that if they had known they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
2 more voices on this verse
Acts 3:17
“And now, brethren - Though they had been guilty of a crime so enormous, yet Peter shows the tenderness of his heart in addressing them still as his brethren. He regarded them as of the same nation with himself; as having the same hopes, and as being entitled to the same privileges. The expression also shows that he was not disposed to exalt himself as being by nature more holy than they. This verse is a remarkable instance of tenderness in appealing to sinners.”
Acts 3:17
“And now, brethren--Our preacher, like his Master, "will not break the bruised reed." His heaviest charges are prompted by love, which now hastens to assuage the wounds it was necessary to inflict.”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
His Christ would suffer: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown note that a suffering Messiah ran against the Jewish views of the day. Even the Twelve found it hard until the resurrection. Chrysostom observes that God's wisdom used the wickedness of others to bring about what had to be.
Acts 3:18
“But those things - he hath so fulfilled - Your ignorance and malice have been overruled by the sovereign wisdom and power of God, and have become the instruments of fulfilling the Divine purpose, that Christ must suffer, in order to make an atonement for the sin of the world. All the prophets had declared this; some of them in express terms, others indirectly and by symbols; but, as the whole Mosaic dispensation referred to Christ, all that prophesied or ministered under it must have referred to him also.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 3:18
“In this discourse the Lord shows that the law was necessary to make ready the way, and the ministry of the prophets to prepare men for faith in this marvellous act, that so when the resurrection really took place, those who were troubled at its greatness might remember what was said of old, and be induced to believe. He brings forward therefore Moses and the prophets, interpreting their hidden meaning, and making plain to the worthy what to the unworthy was obscure, so settling in them that ancient and hereditary faith taught them by the sacred books which they possessed.”
Cyril of Alexandria · written before 444 · Commentary on the Gospel of Luke, Sermon 152patristic
Acts 3:19-21
Repent, then, and turn back: The call to turn back, so that your sins may be wiped away, answers 2:38. It adds a wider promise, times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord.
Acts 3:19
“Repent ye - See the notes on Mat 3:2. Therefore - Because of your sin in putting Jesus to death, and “because” he is the Messiah, and God through him is willing to show mercy to the chief of sinners. And be converted - This expression conveys an idea not at all to be found in the original. It conveys the idea of “passivity,” be “converted,” as if they were to yield to some foreign influence I that they were now resisting. But the idea of being “passive” in this is not conveyed by the original word.”
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 3:19
“Be converted - Be turned from sin and Satan unto God. But this term, so common in modern writings, very rarely occurs in Scripture: perhaps not once in the sense we now use it, for an entire change from vice to holiness. That the times of refreshing - Wherein God largely bestows his refreshing grace, may come - To you also.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
He may send Jesus: Adam Clarke and Jamieson, Fausset and Brown accept the manuscript reading appointed, which older English copies gave as preached. John Wesley notes that the apostles generally speak of the second coming as near at hand. Matthew Henry reads the sending first as His spiritual presence.
Acts 3:20
“And he may send - The apostles generally speak of our Lord's second coming, as being just at hand. Who was before appointed - Before the foundation of the world.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
3 more voices on this verse
Acts 3:20
“If the blessed Peter speak of the Divine Word also, as sent to the children of Israel by Jesus Christ, it is not necessary to understand that the Word is one and Christ another, but that they were one and the same by reason of the uniting which took place in His divine and loving condescension and becoming man.”
Athanasius of Alexandria · written before 373 · Four Discourses Against the Arians, Discourse 4, Sections 31 & 33patristic
Acts 3:20
“Which before was preached unto you - Instead of προκεκηρυγμενον, before preached, ABCDE, fifty-three others, both the Syriac, all the Arabic, the Armenian, Chrysostom, and others, have προκεχειρισμενον, who was before designed, or appointed; and this is without doubt the true reading. Christ crucified was the person whom God had from the beginning appointed or designed for the Jewish people. It was not a triumphant Messiah which they were to expect; but one who was to suffer and die.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Acts 3:20
“It is agreeable to a state of trial and probation that the glorified Redeemer should be out of sight, because we must live by that faith in him which is the evidence of things not seen; because he must be believed on in the world, he must be received up into glory.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
the restoration of all things: Albert Barnes explains that Jews commonly believed the Messiah would reign on earth forever. The apostles therefore had to show that He had gone up to heaven. Jamieson, Fausset and Brown suggest the restoration probably means the setting right of every disorder of the fall.
Acts 3:21
“There is a future state, another life after this; those times will come from the presence of the Lord, from his glorious appearance at that day, his coming at the end of time. The absence of the Lord occasions many of the securities of sinners and the distrusts of saints; but his presence is hastening on, which will for ever silence both.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
2 more voices on this verse
Acts 3:21
“Whom the heavens must receive - The common belief of the Jews was, that the Messiah would reign on the earth forever, Joh 12:34. On this account they would object that Jesus could not be the Messiah, and hence, it became so important for the apostles to establish the fact that he had ascended to heaven. The evidence which they adduced was the fact that they saw him ascend, Act 1:9. The meaning of the expression “whom the heavens must receive,” is that it was “fit” or “proper” δεῖ dei that he should ascend.”
Acts 3:21
“The most eminent of these are the apostolic age, and that of the spotless Church, which will consist of all the Jews and Gentiles united, after all persecutions and apostacies are at an end.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
Acts 3:22-23
For Moses said: In Deuteronomy 18:15 Moses says God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your brothers, and Peter applies it to Jesus. The command to hear covers everything He tells you, so Christ's words carry the authority of Moses.
Acts 3:22
“The Lord shall raise you up a prophet like unto me - And that in many particulars. Moses instituted the Jewish Church: Christ instituted the Christian. With the prophesying of Moses was soon joined the effect, the deliverance of Israel from Egypt: with the prophesying of Christ that grand effect, the deliverance of his people from sin and death.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
4 more voices on this verse
Acts 3:22
“Moses truly said unto the fathers - On this subject the reader is requested to refer to the note at Deu 18:22. From this appeal to Moses it is evident that Peter wished them to understand that Jesus Christ was come, not as an ordinary prophet, to exhort to repentance and amendment, But as a legislator, who was to give them a new law, and whose commands and precepts they were to obey, on pain of endless destruction. Therefore they were to understand that the Gospel of Jesus Christ was that new law which should supersede the old.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
Acts 3:22
“For Moses truly said unto the fathers,.... The Jewish fathers, the Israelites in the times of Moses. The Ethiopic version reads, "our fathers".”
Acts 3:22
“Peter takes it for granted that, in the light of all he had just said, it would be seen at once that One only had any claim to be that Prophet. him shall ye hear in all things, &c.--This part of the prediction is emphatically added, in order to shut up the audience to the obedience of faith, on pain of being finally "cut off" from the congregation of the righteous (Ps 1:1).”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Acts 3:22
“Moses was faithful as a servant, Christ as a Son. Moses was murmured against by Israel, defied by Pharaoh, yet God owned him, and ratified his commission. Moses was a pattern of meekness and patience, so is Christ.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
Cross references
Acts 3:22
- QuotingDeuteronomy 18:15“The LORD your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your brothers. You must listen to him.”
'A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up', Peter (Moses' prophet-like-me)
Albert Barnes and Bede note that Peter keeps the sense of Deuteronomy while changing its words. Theophylact explains that the soul, being immortal, survives, and being cut off means falling from the good it held, as Judas fell from the Twelve.
Acts 3:23
“Peter teaches briefly but clearly by the testimony of the prophets and the law that the Lord is to be listened to by the nations, and that he will surely condemn the unbelieving, but he will grant an eternal blessing to the faithful.”
Leo the Great · written before 461 · Commentary (church-history corpus)patristic
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 3:23
“And it shall come to pass - It shall be, or shall occur. This is not the usual word rendered “it shall come to pass.” It is a word commonly expressing “futurity,” but here it conveys the notion of “obligation.” In this verse Peter has not quoted the passage in Deuteronomy literally, but he has given the sense. Every soul - Every “person” or “individual.” Soul is often put for the whole man by the Hebrews, Act 7:14; Jos 10:28. Hear that Prophet - That is, obey his instructions.”
Acts 3:24-26
all the prophets from Samuel: Peter gives the promise to Abraham in Genesis 22:18 to an Israelite crowd as their own inheritance. God sent His Servant first to you, and the word first leaves room for the nations later in the book.
Acts 3:24
“Although the patriarchs and saints of earlier times prophesied many things about Christ by their words and deeds, who wrote properly speaking the time of the prophets had its beginning from Samuel, under whom the period of the kings began in Israel, and i lasted up to the deliverance from the Babylonian captivity.”
Leo the Great · written before 461 · Commentary (church-history corpus)patristic
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 3:24
“All the prophets from Samuel - Dr. Lightfoot observes: “We have Moses and Samuel mentioned together in this place, as also Psa 99:6, because there were few or no prophets between these two, 1Sa 3:1, and the apparition of angels having been more frequent; but, after the decease of Phineas, it is a question whether there was any oracle by Urim and Thummim, through the defect of prophecy in the high priests, till the times of Samuel. But then it revived in Abimelec, Abiather, etc.” The Jews have a saying, Hieros. Chagigah, fol.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
sons of the prophets: Albert Barnes explains that sons of the prophets means their disciples, since Jewish teachers were called fathers and their pupils sons. John Wesley reads it as heirs of the prophecies, to whom the covenant first belongs. Bede identifies Abraham's offspring as Christ, blessing Jews and Gentiles alike.
Acts 3:25
“This refers to that promise made to Abraham ( Gen. xii. 3 ), which promise was long ere it was fulfilled, but now at length had its accomplishment in this Jesus, who was of the seed of Abraham, according to the flesh, and in him all the families of the earth are blessed, and not the families of Israel only; all have some benefits by him, and some have all benefits.”
Matthew Henry · Commentary on the Whole Bible (1707-1721)puritan
3 more voices on this verse
Acts 3:25
“Ye are the children of the prophets - Greek: “Ye are the sons of the prophets.” The meaning is, not that they were literally the “descendants” of the prophets, but that they were their “disciples,” “pupils,” “followers.” They professed to follow the prophets as their teachers and guides. Teachers among the Jews were often spoken of under the appellation of fathers, and disciples as sons, Mat 12:27. See notes on Mat 1:1. As they were the professed disciples of the prophets, they should listen to them.”
Acts 3:25
“Ye are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant - That in, heirs of the prophecies. To you properly, as the first heirs, belong the prophecies and the covenant.”
John Wesley · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)evangelical
Acts 3:25
“Ye are the children . . . of the covenant--and so the natural heirs of its promises. in thy seed, &c.--(See on Ga 3:8, &c.).”
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)reformed
Cross references
Acts 3:25
- QuotingGenesis 22:18And through your offspring all nations of the earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.”
'in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed' (Abrahamic covenant)
ConnectionsGenesis 22:18
He sent Him first to you: Chrysostom and Theophylact stress that God sent Him first to the very people who had crucified Him. Hilary of Poitiers adds that the other nations were saved afterward through the preaching of the apostles. Clarke says the blessing itself is this turning from sin.
Acts 3:26
“Unto you first, God, having raised up - As you are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant, the first offers of salvation belong to you, and God thus makes them to you. The great mission of Jesus Christ is directed first to you, that you may be saved from your sins. God designs to bless you, but it is by turning each of you away from his iniquities.”
Adam Clarke · Commentary on the Bible (1810-1826)evangelical
1 more voice on this verse
Acts 3:26
“God raised up his Son and sent him first to you: The Lord had come to his own and among his own, awaiting the first fruits of faith from those people he took his roots from. The others subsequently had to be saved by the preaching of the apostles.”
Hilary of Poitiers · written before 367 · Commentary (church-history corpus)patristic
How this psalm is built
The form: A man lame from birth healed at the temple gate, and then the word of faith preached to the crowd that gathered, as Bede classes it.
The patterns in this chapter
| Device | What it does | Where to see it |
|---|---|---|
| The deed and then the word | Verses 1 to 10 tell the healing, verse 11 gathers the crowd in Solomon's Colonnade, and verses 12 to 26 give Peter's sermon. The sermon opens by turning the crowd's eyes away from Peter and John, and verse 16 answers from the healing itself. Charles Spurgeon notices that the name of Jesus is mentioned twice in that one verse, and he turns back to verse 6, where Peter first spoke the name over the lame man.Charles Spurgeon, The Metropolitan Tabernacle Pulpit, Sermon No. 2592: “The Power of Christ's Name” (lightly modernized text, CCEL edition). | Acts 3:6, Acts 3:11, Acts 3:12, Acts 3:16 |
| What the people did and what God did | Verses 13 to 15 set the people's acts against God's acts. God has glorified His servant Jesus, and the people handed Him over, rejected Him and killed Him. Verse 15 then turns on the words but God raised Him from the dead. Jamieson, Fausset and Brown remark on the courage with which Peter charges his hearers with the heaviest of crimes. Verse 17 softens the charge, since Peter says they acted in ignorance.Counted from the Berean Standard Bible text of Acts 3, The chapter's own text, verses 13 to 17. | Acts 3:13, Acts 3:14, Acts 3:15, Acts 3:17 |
| From Moses to Abraham | The close of the sermon calls on the Scriptures in order. Moses speaks in verses 22 and 23, all the prophets from Samuel on in verse 24, and the promise to Abraham in verse 25. Leo the Great says Peter teaches briefly and clearly, from the prophets and the law, that the Lord is to be heard, that He will condemn the unbelieving and that He will bless the faithful. Verse 26 ends the sermon on the words first to you.Leo the Great, Commentary (church-history corpus). | Acts 3:22, Acts 3:24, Acts 3:25, Acts 3:26 |
How this chapter is built
1 more paragraph on the patterns
Acts 3 is built as a sign followed by its sermon. Verses 1 to 10 tell the healing at the gate called Beautiful slowly, from the hour of prayer to the man walking and leaping and praising God. Verse 11 moves the crowd to Solomon's Colonnade, and verses 12 to 26 give Peter's explanation. The sermon sets what the people did against what God did, and then calls them to repent and turn back. It closes by appealing to Moses, the prophets and Abraham.
Keep studying
Studies10
Places1
Words12
Subjects1
Sources for this chapter
The summary
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory; John Calvin, Commentaries; John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the New Testament and Matthew Henry, Complete Commentary.
The context
Albert Barnes, Notes on the Bible and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.
The form and classifications
Bede, Commentary on Acts.
The exposition
Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes; Bede; Erasmus of Rotterdam, Commentary (church-history corpus); Hilary of Poitiers, Commentary (church-history corpus); J. A. Alexander, The Acts of the Apostles Explained; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Calvin, Commentary upon the Acts of the Apostles; John Chrysostom; John Gill; John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible; Oecumenius, Commentary on Acts; Theophylact of Ohrid, Commentary on Acts and William Ramsay, St. Paul the Traveller and the Roman Citizen.