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NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Act_4:1-4
1As they were speaking to the people, the priests and the captain of the temple guard and the Sadducees came up to them, 2being greatly disturbed because they were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead. 3And they laid hands on them and put them in jail until the next day, for it was already evening. 4But many of those who had heard the message believed; and the number of the men came to be about five thousand.
Act_4:1 "the priests" This is the word used in the ancient uncial Greek manuscripts à , A, D, and E, but MS C has "high priests" (archiereis). The UBS4 gives the word "priests" a B rating (almost certain). The context of Acts 4 shows that opposition did not come from the High Priests (cf. Act_4:6).
In the OT the tribe of Levi (i.e., Moses and Aaron's tribe) was selected to serve YHWH in the stead of the "first born" (cf. Exodus 13). Within this tribe were certain families who served as
1. local teachers of the Law
2. temple servants
3. priests who officiated at the Temple, especially involved in the sacrificial procedures (cf. Leviticus 1-7)
The special family from which the High Priest must come was the family of Moses and Aaron. This whole tribe did not receive a land allotment like the other tribes of Jacob/Israel. They had certain cities partially given to them (i.e., 48 Levitical cities, cf. Joshua 20). These Levitical families depended on the other tribes to support them through the Temple tithe and the third-year local tithe.
All of this changed when Rome took over Palestine. The office of High Priest was purchased from Rome. No longer was it an OT spiritual office, but a commercial, political power office.
The current High Priest was Caiaphas (cf. Mat_26:3; Luk_3:2; John 18), but the real power behind the office was the former High Priest Annas (cf. Luk_3:2; Joh_18:13; Joh_18:24; Act_4:6). This family was of the Sadducean sect of Judaism.
▣ "the captain of the temple guard" This was a special Levitical office which was next in power to the High Priest (cf. Josephus, Wars 6.5.3). He would have controlled the temple police (cf. 1Ch_9:11; Neh_11:11; Luk_22:4; Luk_22:52; Act_5:24; Act_5:26). In Hebrew he was called "the man of the mountain of the house."
▣ "Sadducees" These were the rich, political leaders of the Sanhedrin.
hyperlink
Act_4:2
NASB, NKJV "being greatly disturbed"
NRSV "much annoyed"
TEV "were annoyed"
NJB "extremely annoyed"
This rare Greek term (here a present middle [deponent] participle) means "to work hard at something." It is found only one other place in Acts (Act_16:18). It is not found in the Septuagint, nor the Koine papyri from Egypt.
The Sadducean leadership was upset because the Christian leaders were teaching the crowds at the Temple in Jesus' name and proclaiming His resurrection (which Sadducees denied, as well as the theological concept of resurrections in general). It is also possible from the wording of Act_4:2 that the Apostles were not only asserting Jesus' resurrection, but the full implications of all believers' resurrection (cf. 1 Corinthians 15).
Act_4:3 "they" In Act_4:2 the antecedent was Peter, John, and even possibly the healed lame man. In Act_4:3 the antecedent is the priests and temple police.
▣ "laid hands on them" This Greek verb has a wide semantic field, but Luke often uses it in this sense of arrest (cf. Luk_20:19; Luk_21:12; Act_5:18; Act_12:1; Act_21:27).
▣ "until the next day" Jewish law forbade a trial to be held after twilight. These leaders wanted this preaching/teaching stopped and stopped immediately. So they jailed them overnight somewhere on the Temple grounds, as opposed to a public jail (cf. Act_5:18).
Act_4:4 "those who had heard. . .believed" Both of these verbals are aorist tense. Faith begins with hearing (cf. Rom_10:17). Hearing the gospel results (with the Spirit's aid, cf. Joh_6:44; Joh_6:65; Joh_16:8-11) in believing the gospel. See hyperlink at Act_2:40.
▣ "the number of men came to be about five thousand" Notice that this number does not include women and children. Often in the NT it is implied that the belief of the father extended to and included the whole family (cf Act_11:14; Act_16:15; Act_16:31; Act_16:33). The group in the upper room numbered about 120. At Pentecost 3,000 were added (cf. Act_2:41); now the number of believers was up to 5,000! The church in Jerusalem is growing rapidly!