Lange Commentary - Acts 3:11 - 3:26

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Lange Commentary - Acts 3:11 - 3:26


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This Chapter Verse Commentaries:

B.—Peter’s Testimony Concerning Jesus, Delivered In The Presence Of The People

Act_3:11-26

11And as the lame man which was healed held [But as the lame man held fast to] Peter and John, all the people ran together unto them in the porch that is called Solomon’s, greatly wondering [full of wonder]. 12And [But] when Peter saw it, he answered unto the people, Ye men of Israel [Ye Israelitish men], why marvel ye at this [this man]? or why look ye so earnestly on us, as though by our own power or holiness [godliness] we had made this man to walk? 13The God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob, the God of our fathers, hath glorified his Son [Servant] Jesus; whom ye delivered up, and denied him in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined [after he had decided] to let him go [release him]. 14But ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you; 15And killed the Prince [Author] of life, whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof We are witnesses. 16And his name, through faith in his name, hath made this man strong, whom ye see and know: yea, [and] the faith which is [which wrought] by him hath given him this perfect soundness [this health] in the presence of you all. 17And now, brethren, I wot [know] that through [in] ignorance ye did it, as did also your rulers. 18But those things, which God before had shewed by the mouth of all his [all the] prophets, that Christ [his Anointed] should suffer, he hath so fulfilled. 19Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when [in order that] the times of refreshing shall [may] come from the presence [face] of the Lord; 20And he shall [And that he may] send Jesus Christ, which before was preached [the Messiah Jesus who was appointed] unto you; 21Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things [times wherein all things will be restored], which God hath spoken by the mouth of all [om. all] his holy prophets since the world began [prophets from of old]. 22For Moses truly said Moses has said] unto the fathers [om. unto the fathers], A Prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of [out of] your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall [will] say unto you. 23And it shall come to pass, that every soul, which will not hear that Prophet, shall be destroyed from among the people. 24Yea, and [And] all the prophets from Samuel and those that follow after, as many as have spoken, have likewise foretold of [om. of] these days. 25Ye are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying unto Abraham, And in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed. 26Unto you first God, having raised up his Son Jesus, sent [his Servant, sent] him to bless you, in turning every one of you from his iniquities.

EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL

Act_3:11. And as the lame man held [fast] to Peter and John.—Large numbers of persons, full of wonder, gathered around the two apostles, to whom the man that had been lame, continued to cling; Peter was both required and enabled by this circumstance, to deliver an address to the people. It induced him to explain the occurrence itself, and, in general to speak of Jesus. Luke employs the word ἀðåêñßíáôï , as the address was virtually an answer to a question which the wondering glances and excited movements of the spectators seemed to direct to him. The precise locality of this assemblage of people and of the address, is indicated by Luke; it was Solomon’s porch in the court [called the great court, 2Ch_4:9; 2Ch_6:13; Winer, Realw. art.Temple]; this portico or colonnade was distinguished from the others by bearing Solomon’s name, inasmuch as it was a remnant of the original temple built by him; it had escaped the general destruction of the building which Nebuchadnezzar had ordered. The immediate cause, however, in consequence of which the people ran together unto the apostles, lay in the man himself; with a heart full of gratitude and devotion, he had attached himself to them, seized them by the hand, and held them fast; the latter is the clearly proved meaning of the phrase: êñáôåῖí ôéõá , while it can by no meansbe established on philological grounds that the phrase means: to hold to, to follow some one.

Act_3:12. a. Peter’s address consists of two parts:—1. Instructions concerning the Author and the purpose of the miracle, Act_3:12-18; ‘it was not wrought by us, who are men, but by God; He purposed thereby to glorify his Servant Jesus, whom Israel had denied and killed, but whom God raised up.’ 2. An exhortation to repentance and conversion, in order that the sins of the Israelites might be forgiven, and that the blessing which all the promises had taught them to expect, might be imparted to them through Christ, Act_3:19-26.

b. Why marvel ye at this?—Peter does not reprove the people simply for expressing great astonishment, but for assuming that the healing of the man had been an independent act of the apostles, performed solely by them. For the wondering and steady gaze ( ἀôåíßæåôå ) of the people, seemed to say: ‘What vast power resides in these men ( ἰäßá äýíáìéò )!’ Or—‘What holy men these must be, since God rewards them with such miraculous gifts!’ The latter thought would undoubtedly suggest that of “merit,” the word which Luther has employed in his version [for åὐóÝâåéá ]. Peter, therefore, denies that he and John possessed either such a physical power as the people imagined, or such a meritorious ability of the soul.—The expression ὡò ðåðïéçêüóé ôïῦ ðåñéðáôåῖí áὐôüí involves an inexact use of the genitive of the purpose [Winer: Gr. N. T., § 44, 4]; literally: “as if we had done aught so that he might walk.” [ ἐðὶ ôïýôῳ rendered by L. in the version above, not as a neuter (this event), but as a masc. pron. (this man), with de Wette, Meyer, Alford, Hackett, etc.—Tr.]

Act_3:13-14. a. The God of Abraham … hath glorified his Son [Servant] Jesus.—After the error has been exposed, the truth is set forth (as in Act_2:15 ff.): ‘Not we have wrought the miracle; its author is God, the covenantal God of our fathers, and, indeed, of the original founders of our nation.’—The apostle refers, at the same time, to the author of the miracle, and to its design and significance. It was the design of this miracle to glorify Jesus, to exhibit him in his äüîá , and to teach men to see and confess his dignity and the power of his higher life, attained through the resurrection and ascension, as well as to demonstrate that in him dwelt the fulness of vital and saving power, the gracious exercise of which was designed for the benefit of mankind.—But what is the meaning of ðáῖò èåïῦ when applied to Jesus? The earlier interpreters, without specially dwelling on the point, assumed that the term was equivalent to õἱüò èåïῦ , with the single exception of Piscator, in the seventeenth century. Bengel explains the sense to be: Servant of God, as in Mat_12:18. And since Nitzsch has published the results of his investigations (in Stud. u. Kr. 1828, p. 331 ff.), all the recent interpreters agree that ðáῖò è .. means, not the Son, but the Servant of God. [So Olsh., Stier (in Red. d. Ap. ad loc. 2d ed.), Alford, Hackett, Robinson (in Lex. art., ðáῖò , 2. c.), etc.; Alexander ascribes to the word a “dubious or double sense.”—Tr.]. Indeed, the term ðáῖò is a standing predicate with Luke, being applied to Israel (Gosp. Luk_1:54), and to David (Act_4:25, and Gosp. Luk_1:69). In the present passage, as well as in Act_3:26, below, and in Act_4:27; Act_4:30, as also in Mat_12:18, it corresponds to òֶáֶã éְäåָֹä in Isaiah [ch. 40–ch. 66].

b. But ye denied.—Peter speaks unreservedly and emphatically of the sin which his hearers had committed against Jesus, so that he might lead them to repentance. Ye have—he says—delivered up Jesus, denied him before Pilate, and even preferred, and interceded for a murderer, while ye killed Him. He shows that they advanced, step by step, in crime and guilt. He exhibits the sin of the people in a still stronger light, by means of antithetic propositions. He, first, contrasts Israel with Pilate, the pagan: the latter pronounced the sentence that Jesus should be released [Luk_23:16; Joh_19:4]; the people, on the contrary, denied Him—their Messiah. He then contrasts Jesus with Barabbas: the latter was a murderer; Jesus was not only innocent and holy, but even the Author and Giver of life; ‘yet you released the former, and killed Jesus.’

Act_3:15-16. Peter here explains the manner in which God had glorified (Act_3:13) his Servant Jesus: Whom God hath raised from the dead.—And, (he continues,) it is solely in the power of the name of Jesus, received in faith, that this man, once lame, has been made strong, and restored to health. We, the apostles, bear witness to that event—the raising up of Jesus; of the restoration of this man to health and strength, ye have yourselves all been eye-witnesses ( ἀðÝíáíôé ðÜíôùí ὑìῶí ).

Act_3:17-18.—And now, brethren.—After showing the necessity of a change of mind and feeling on the part of his hearers, the apostle testifies, that both repentance and forgiveness are possible, in reference, first, to the sinner, Act_3:17, and, secondly, to God, Act_3:18. However great the sin is, it may, nevertheless, be forgiven, since it was committed in ignorance, both by the people, and by their rulers. And the apostle makes this declaration in the most sincere love—a love already revealed in the appellation brethren, which he here employs; compare with it the more formal ἄíäñåò Ἰóñ ., in Act_3:12.—In reference to God, the sin of Israel, consisting in the rejection and execution of the Messiah, may be forgiven in so far as it, at the same time, involved the fulfilment of the decree that the Messiah should suffer, which God had made from of old, and foretold through all the prophets.

Act_3:19-21. Repent ye therefore.—The apostle states the conclusion which is to be drawn from the words which he had pronounced, and, in a direct appeal to his hearers, calls on them to turn back and change their minds; at the same time, he not only represents the blotting out of their sins as the result of such repentance ( ἐîáëåéöèῆíáé , applied [as in Col_2:14] to a document that is obliterated), but he also opens a still wider view before them, and exhibits a time of refreshment and blessedness, for which, too, they may hope. Of that time God is the author and source ( ἀðὸ ðñïòþðïõ ôïῦ êõñßïõ ); it commences with the return of Christ, whom heaven receives during the interval, but whom God will send personally ( ἀðïóôåßëç , etc.); it consists ofall that which God had hitherto promised through the prophets ( ἀðïêáôáóôÜóåùò , etc.). In ὃí äåῖ ïὐñáíὸí äÝîáóèáé the subject [or acc. before the inf.] is not äí , but ïὐñáíὸí , i.e. heaven must receive him [as in the Engl. version], not, he must take possession of heaven (Luther), the latter not agreeing with the usus loquendi of äÝ÷åóèáé . [On the contrary, Bengel (Gnomon) holds that ὃí is the subject, and translates: Who must, etc.; he terms the construction here preferred by Lechler, and by many others, a “violenta interpretatio,” since it implies that heaven is greater than Christ, and since it is hostile to the grandeur of Christ, who is “above all heavens,” Eph_4:10, etc. So, also, Olsh. and Lange. Stier [Red. d. Ap. ad loc. 2d ed.) unequivocally adopts Bengel’s views, and rejects those which Lechler (whom he specially means) here prefers. Tyndale and Cranmer translated: who must receive heaven. (Alexander, ad loc.)—Tr.]. According to the established usus loquendi of ἀðïêáôÜóôáóéò , it regularly denotes a restoration, or return of an earlier condition; see below, Doctr. and Ethical. 6.) [“The before heaven—is supplied by the translators—without reason, etc.” (J. A. Alex.).—Tr.]

Act_3:22-24. Moses said.—[Deu_18:15; Deu_18:18-19, combined with Gen_17:14]. The language in these verses is intended to develop more fully and to confirm all that Peter had intimated in Act_3:21 concerning the word of prophecy. Moses—he says—has promised that a prophet shall come forth out of Israel, and has declared that they who do not unconditionally obey him, shall be cut off and destroyed; and the succeeding prophets, beginning with Samuel, have all uttered predictions respecting these times.

Act_3:25-26. Ye are the children, etc.—Peter applies the whole to his own age and to the people before him, and presents two aspects of the case: first, the promise of the blessing [made to Abraham, Gen_12:3; Gen_18:18; Gen_22:18; to Isaac, Gen_26:4; to Jacob,. Gen_28:14] belongs, as he declares, to his hearers; but, secondly, on the condition that they fulfil the duty imposed upon them, of repenting and turning to God.

DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL

1. Those powers by which miracles were wrought, never resided inherently in any one of the children of God; here the apostles expressly guard their hearers against such a delusive thought; the exercise of such powers always depends on the might and free grace of God. The error which the apostles expose, is the assumption that the miracle proceeded originally either from a magic power ( ἰäßá äýíáìéò ) or from moral merit ( åὐóÝâåéá ). If even the Redeemer ascribed to the Father the works which he did [“which the Father hath given me to finish,” Joh_5:36], the apostles, still more emphatically, ascribe their miracles to God the Father. But even as the miracles wrought by Jesus were designed to bear witness of him and glorify him (Joh_5:20; Joh_5:36; Mat_11:5), so all the deeds which his disciples performed by the grace and power of God, are designed to contribute to the honor of Christ, and to praise and magnify his name. ( ὃ èåüò ἐäüîáóå Ἰçóïῦí ).

2. It is not simply an accommodation to the habits of thought and the mode of expression of Israel, when Peter says: “The God of our fathers, of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Jacob, hath glorified Jesus”; those words, much rather, express the truth, that the God of Abraham, etc., is likewise the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. Or, in other words, it is the same God who revealed himself to the fathers, and who now reveals himself to us through the Son; the new covenant is founded on the old covenant, and the latter already points to Jesus Christ.

3. The phraseology, according to which Jesus appears as ὁ ðáῖò èåïῦ , (that is, not a Servant of God, but “the Servant of God,” Act_3:13; Act_3:26, in a preëminent and special sense), alludes to the prophecies of the Old Testament, particularly to Isaiah 41. ff., and expresses a conception which refers, directly, to the Work of Jesus Christ alone, and not to his Person. Jesus, namely, is He through whom God executes or accomplishes all that he has determined to do, and promised in his word; comp. Act_3:21; Act_3:24; Act_3:26; the blessing which God had promised to Abraham, and, through him, to the human race, is realized and bestowed through Christ; all that God has ever promised through the prophets, is fulfilled in Christ. This is truly a lofty conception. It also undoubtedly assigns a high rank to the Person of Christ, although less directly, implying at least his intimate and peculiar union with God, even if not his deity.

4. With respect to the Person of Jesus, Peter describes Him as the Holy and Just One (Act_3:14), that is, not merely guiltless, as contradistinguished from Barabbas, the criminal, but in a positive sense, perfectly holy and just, as well in relation to God ( ἅãéïò ), as in relation to men ( äßêáéïò ). And, doubtless, here, too, the definite article [ ôὸí ἅãéïí , etc.] is of weight, and has even a doctrinal significance; for it indicates a certain peculiarity not elsewhere found, and exalts Jesus, in a moral and religious respect, above the whole human race. To this view the title admirably corresponds, which he receives in Act_3:15, ὁ ἀñ÷çãὸò [“from ἀñ÷Þ and ἡãïῦìáé or ἄãù ,” Wahl: Clavis.—Tr.] ôῆò æùῆò ; it contrasts him with the murderer, the man who deprived others of life; Jesus, on the contrary, is the Author of life, opens the way to life, and is the Leader of those who seek life (primarily, in consequence of his resurrection). We are, therefore, enabled to follow in the way in which he leads, inasmuch as he imparts eternal life and blessedness to those who believe in him; at the same time, he imparts, through faith in his name, a vital power to the body also, Act_3:16.

5. Repentance, and conversion or turning from the evil way, are the indispensable conditions of salvation, that is, the conditions on which, first, (Act_3:19), the sins committed, and the guilt contracted by us, are forgiven and blotted out, and, secondly, (Act_3:20; Act_3:26) participation in the promised blessing and in the gracious gifts of God, is granted. The apostles by no means encourage the delusion that any one can acquire a claim to salvation by reason of his descent from the people of God, without being personally prepared for it, and without rendering to God the obedience of faith. Here, Peter demands, immediatelyafter having acknowledged his hearers to be children of the covenant or parties in it (Act_3:25), that they should turn away from sin and be changed in mind and spirit, if they desire to receive the promised Abrahamic blessing which is now offered in Christ (Act_3:26).—The application of these truths to Christendom is obvious.

6. The words of the apostle present a grand and comprehensive view of the counsels and acts of God, and of the course of divine revelation, from the beginning to the end. All the promises that God made to Abraham, all the words that he spoke by the mouth of Moses concerning a Prophet who was yet to come, and all the predictions of Samuel and the prophets who succeeded him, essentially refer to Christ as their central point—to his sufferings (Act_3:18)—to the blessing, given through him, and embracing the world (Act_3:25)—and to a future restoration of all things (Act_3:21). Jesus Christ, the Servant of God, whom he sent (Act_3:26), has come, has suffered (Act_3:18), but is now invisible, since heaven received him, until God shall send him again, namely, until he comes the second time from heaven (Act_3:20 ff.). This future is described (1) as êáéñïὶ ἀíáøýîåùò , seasons of refreshing (Act_3:19), that is, as a time in which rest, peace and recreation will succeed the heat, the violence and the pressure of conflicts and sorrows. The same time is described (2) as îñüíïé ἀðïêáôáóôÜóåùò (Act_3:21)—this latter, objectively; the former, subjectively [the latter, descriptive of the object; the former, referring to the subjects or persons affected by the object.—Tr.]. The usus loquendi shows that these terms refer to a restoration. But what is it that shall be restored? Baumgarten [Die Apostelgeschichte] I. p. 80 replies: ‘Nothing else than the kingdom of Israel, the whole power and glory of the Israelitic kingdom.’ Such a mode of interpretation, however, does not deduce the main point from the text, but at once inserts it in the text. The words themselves do not suggest such a meaning, but convey one that is far more comprehensive, namely, the following: ‘All that God has spoken by the mouth of his holy prophets, shall be restored, and be placed in its original order, and in that condition which God designed and promised.’ It may be added that this restoration is not to be understood as being exclusively a return of a condition which had existed at a previous time, but rather as a renewal of all things, that will partly be restorative in its operation, but also, in part, far transcend all that had ever existed. And we are the more fully authorized to adopt this interpretation, as the view presented by the apostle does not embrace Israel alone, but comprehends all mankind, and is uncircumscribed; the blessing that was promised to Abraham, is to be imparted to all the nations of the earth, Act_3:25. Even if he terms the Israelites the “children of the covenant”, he does not refer to any exclusive privileges, or to a monopoly or particularism, but only to priority in time. For Christ was sent, not to Israel only, but to Israel first, Act_3:26. And this expression presupposes, and indirectly testifies that Christ and the blessing which is given in him, are appointed for the Gentiles also, although they occupy only the second place.

HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL

Act_3:11. And as the lame man … held Peter and John.—The holy ties which unite awakened children of God and their spiritual fathers: by such ties, I. The awakened are strengthened; II. Their spiritual fathers are encouraged; III. The Church is edified; IV. The Lord is glorified.

Act_3:12. Why marvel ye at this? or why look ye so earnestly on us?—A solemn question addressed to us by all the faithful servants of God, when we survey the wonderful works of God, for the purpose, 1. Of guarding us (a) against a mere carnal wonder at the external form of the events, and (b) against the error of estimating too highly the human agents, and their power and merit; 2. Of directing our attention to (a) the Lord, who alone doeth wonders (Act_3:13; Act_3:15). (Admire Him, and do not idly wonder!); (b) ourselves, our guilt (Act_3:13-14), our duty (Act_3:19), our salvation (Act_3:20).—Not unto us, O Lord, not unto us, but unto thy name give glory! [Psa_115:1]. Such is the confession of all true servants of God. (Starke).—Men seek after new wonders, and are amazed; they forget those that are old, and do not rightly apply them. See Psa_106:21-22. (Quesn.).—The works of God can be distinctly seen only in the light of his word.

Act_3:13. The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, is also the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ: the light which this truth casts, 1. On the Old Covenant, as the type and foundation of the New; 2. On the New Covenant, as the development and fulfilment of the Old.

Act_3:13-14. Ye denied Him! This sin is, since the resurrection of Jesus, the most heinous of all. (Apost. Past.).—Peter had himself previously denied the Lord Jesus; but when his Saviour had forgiven him this sin, he had great boldness in rebuking those who also committed it. Let faithful pastors bear this in mind. (ib.).

Act_3:15. Jesus, the Prince of life: as such, 1. Denied and slain by the world; 2. Raised up and glorified by God; 3. Declared and manifested in the Church.—“Ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good.” Gen_1:20. These words, in their deepest sense, were fulfilled in Jesus, the Crucified and Risen One. (Starke).—Men deal with the gifts and mercies which God bestows, as the Jews dealt with Christ; man can only destroy them; God alone can preserve or restore. (Quesn.).—Christ, the Holy One and the Just, in an absolute sense, not only, 1. As compared with Barabbas, the murderer, the representative of sinful men, but also, 2. In the presence of his God and Father.—Christ the Holy One, also the Prince of life.—Why do the apostles of the Lord so emphatically declare themselves to be the witnesses of his resurrection? (Schleiermacher: Easter sermon): 1. In reference to themselves; they are conscious of their human infirmity, and gratefully praise the goodness of their heavenly Father, who aids them in their weakness; 2. In reference to the Redeemer; his resurrection expresses the judgment of God respecting the death which he had suffered, and is the evidence of his eternal spiritual presence in the Church.

Act_3:16. Through faith, etc.—The faith that worketh miracles. The poet says: “A miracle—the fav’rite child of faith.” I. Faith performs the miracle (Peter and John); II. Faith experiences the miracle (the lame man, who is a believer, at least after the miracle is wrought, if not previously); III. Faith comprehends the miracle (the believing hearers).

Act_3:17. Through ignorance ye did it.—(Christ on the cross; “They know not what they do,” [Luk_23:34]. Paul to Timothy: “I did it ignorantly” [1Ti_1:13]). I. To whom may such words be applied? Not t all! II. What is their purpose? Not to furnish grounds for justifying sinful acts.—Ignorance may lessen, but does not cancel guilt, since it may itself be the result of a guilty course of conduct. (Gerlach).

Act_3:19. Repent ye therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out.—These words, in which grace and pardon are offered to such great sinners, illustrate the importance of repentance in the most striking manner. History does not present a case in which pardon was offered under such circumstances; there can be no escape from ruin for those who do not now accept it. (Starke).—The apostle furnishes a noble model to those who desire to preach repentance in a truly apostolical manner. We may do injustice to the subject by saying either too little or too much. We are always inclined to proceed to extremes; hence, we either prematurely encourage men to hope for the forgiveness of their sins, or else, we demand, in too high a degree, the grace of holiness, before we give them an assurance of the pardon of their sins. The apostles teach us to observe a just medium. (Apost. Past.).—To repent or change the mind, and to be converted or turn to the way of peace, belong together, (ib.).—Behold how the Holy Spirit executes his fourfold office, in the discourse of Peter! The office, I. Of convincing of sin (Act_3:13-15); II. Of instructing (Act_3:13; Act_3:15-16; Act_3:18; Act_3:21-25); III. Of exhorting (Act_3:19); IV. Of consoling (Act_3:20; Act_3:26).—How well the apostles understood the method of exercising, in the most emphatic manner, their power to forgive sins! How successfully they exercised it, when they called on men to repent! (K. H. Rieger).

The times of refreshing … from the presence of the Lord.—The times of refreshing experienced by the repentant and believing: I. In the external relations of life, after sore afflictions; II. In the inner life, after the godly sorrow of the soul; III. In eternity, after the toils of this life.—We suffer from a painful feeling of oppression, when we repent and behold the amount both of the evil which we have done, and of the good which we have left undone; but we revive when God reveals his mercy to us; Isa_57:15-18.—When inward and outward temptations, like a scorching flame, threaten to consume us, the Lord appears, bringing relief to the soul; Gen_18:1; Isa_38:17.—At length an eternal time of refreshing will come, when we shall have intered that world, in which the heat can no longer consume us. Rev_7:16-17. (Starke).—All true refreshing, whether in this life, or in the eternal world, must come from the presence of the Lord. (ib.).

Act_3:21. The threefold restoration: I. It did occur, when the way of salvation, under the new covenant, was opened; II. It does occur, when we are converted; III. It will occur, in the consummation of the world. (A. F. Schmidt: Predigtstud.).

Act_3:22. Christ and Moses: the relation in which the latter stands to Christ, is like, I. That of prophecy to the fulfilment; II. That of the law to the Gospel; III. That of a servant to the son, [Heb_3:5-6]. (Leonh. and Sp.).

Act_3:22-24. Christ, a prophet; nevertheless, more than a prophet:I. He teaches the way of God in truth; yet he is himself the way to the Father; II. He prophesies: yet he is the great object and the end of all prophecy; III. He is anointed with the Holy Spirit; yet he himself sends the Spirit. (ib.)—The prophet of the new covenant: I. Who is he? II. What call did he receive? III. What duties do we owe to him? (Langb.).—Christ, the heart and life, I. Of the Scriptures; II. Of believers; III. Of the history of the world.—“All the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen.” [2Co_1:20].

Act_3:25-26. Ye are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant! These are words that, I. Are full of promise; II. Impose a solemn responsibility.—In Act_3:26, which recapitulates the prominent thoughts of the preceding discourse, Jesus appears as the true Isaac (the son of joy), the son of Abraham (the father of a multitude), who was himself the progenitor of the true Jacob = Israel (the struggling and conquering people of the Spirit). (Stier: Reden d. Ap.).

ON THE WHOLE SECTION.

The threefold witness which Peter bears of Christ: I. In him all the miracles of God are combined, Act_3:12-17; II. In him all men can find salvation, Act_3:18-21; III. In him all prophecy is fulfilled. (Lisco).

To the Lord alone be all the glory given! Peter unfolds and applies this thought, by directing attention, I. To his own and John’s powerlessness, Act_3:11-12; II. To the sin of his hearers and the whole people, Act_3:13-17; III. To the glorious testimony which God bore to Christ, Act_3:18-24; IV. To that great salvation which was offered in Christ to all the people, Act_3:25-26. [The fulfilment of the prophecies of the Old Testament (Act_3:18; Act_3:21-24]: I. The mode; (a) sometimes delayed (2Pe_3:4, reasons); (b) often in an unexpected form (Jesus of Nazareth, the Messiah, Joh_1:45-46); (c) always certain (divine attributes); II. The purpose; (a) to demonstrate the truth of revealed religion; (b) to confirm the faith and the hopes of the people of God; (c) to glorify God in Christ; III. Lessons; (a) teaching us—to adore God devoutly; (b) to study the prophetic word diligently; (c) to demonstrate the sincerity of our faith in God by our zeal in his service. —Tr.]

Footnotes:

Act_3:11. The words ôïῦ ἰáèἐíôïò ÷ùëïῦ [of text. rec.; the authority not stated], were substituted in the text for áὐôïῦ , as an ecclesiastical lection [select portion of the Scripture] began at Act_3:11. [So Meyer.—The words are omitted by A. B. C. E. and Cod. Sin., all of which read simply áὐôïῦ ; Syr., Vulg., etc.—Tr.]

Act_3:12. a. In place of åὐóåâåßá , several ancient versions read ἐîïõóßá , which seemed to derive support from äõíÜìåë . [ åὐóåâ ., translated holiness in the Engl. Bible, is uniformly rendered godliness in the 14 other places in which it occurs in the N. T.—Tr.]

Act_3:12. b. The reading ὡò ἡìῶí ðåðïéçêüôùí instead of ὡò ðåðïéçêüóé [of text. rec. with the other uncial MSS. and Cod Sin.] is but feebly supported by MSS., [by D.] and is apparently a correction intended to add strength to the original.

Act_3:13. a. Some MSS. have ὁ èåὸò Ἀâñ . ê . èåὸò Ἰó . êáß èåὸò Ἰáê . [So Lachm. and Born, read, in accordance with A. C. D. Cod. Sin. Vulg., etc.; Alford adheres to the text. rec. with B. (e sil) E., and rejects the other reading as a later “correction to suit LXX. Exo_3:6, and Mat_22:32.”—Tr.]

Act_3:13. b. ìÝí [omitted, after ὑìåῖò in text. rec.] without a corresponding äὲ [Winer, § 63. 2. e], is sustained by important MSS. [by A. B. C. E. Cod. Sin.; Syr. Vulg. (quidem) etc.—Tr.]

Act_3:15. [For Prince, the margin (Engl. B.) offers Author, from (Rheims, 1580, and) the Vulg. (auctorem); the latter is preferred by Alexander, Hackett, Owen, etc.—Tr.]

Act_3:18. áὐôïῦ , (not áὑôïῦ ), after ×ñéóôüí , and not after ô . ðñïöçôῶí [as in text. rec.] is the reading which Bengel had already adopted, and which, more recently, Lachm. and Tisch. recognize, in accordance with important authorities. [B. C. D. E. Cod. Sin.; Vulg. etc. So also Alf.—Tr.]

Act_3:20. The reading ðñïêå÷åéñéóìÝíïí is to be preferred to ðñïêåêçñõãìÝíïí [of the text. rec. with many minuscules]; the latter, the far more easy reading of the two, is not sustained by good authorities; ðñïêå÷åéñéó . is adopted by Bengel, Griesb. and recent editors. [In accordance with A. B. C. D. E. Cod. Sin.—Tr.]

Act_3:21. a. ôῶí , instead of ðÜíôùí of the t. rec. is adopted by Griesb., Lachm., [Alf.] etc., in accordance with weighty authorities [namely, A. B. C. D. and Cod. Sin. Vulg.—“ ðÜíôùí , borrowed from Act_3:24, was intended to add strength to the original.” (Meyer).—Tr.]

Act_3:21. b. The reading ἀð ʼ áἰῶíïò [of text. rec.] should be retained as genuine; it is wanting only in a few authorities. [Omitted in D., but found in A. B. C. E. Cod. Sin. Vulg., etc.—Tr.]

Act_3:22. a. ìÝí without ãÜñ is far better sustained than ìὲí ãÜñ , although the latter undoubtedly corresponds to the logical connection. [ ìÝí , alone, in A. B. C. D. E. Cod. Sin.—Alf reads: Ìù . ìὲí åἶðåí ὅôé .—Tr.]

Act_3:22. b. ðñὸò ôïὺò ðáôÝñáò , in some MSS. before, in others, after åἶðåí , is a later addition, and, in accordance with high authorities, is cancelled by Lachm. and Tisch. [and by Alf.; found in few MSS.; omitted by A. B. C. Cod. Sin. Vulg., etc.—Tr.]

Act_3:24. ðñïêáôÞããåéëáí [of text. rec.] is an attempted correction of the simple form êáôÞããåéëáí ; the latter is well sustained [by A. B. D. E. Cod. Sin., etc.—Tr.]

Act_3:25. The article is omitted before õἱïὶ in the text. rec. [with D.] but is sufficiently sustained. [By A. B. C. E. Cod. Sin.—Tr.]

Act_3:26. Ἰçóïῦí after áὑôïῦ [of text. rec. with A. B.], is an addition, which is not sufficiently sustained in order to be admitted. [Omitted by C. D. E. Cod. Sin. Syr. Vulg., etc. Alf. says: “All such additions, if at all the subject of variations, are spurious.”—Tr.]