285
See also: The Raising of Lazarus 226–27 ■ Peter’s Denial 256–57 ■ The Great Commission 274–77 ■
The Day of Pentecost 282–83 ■ The Word Spreads 288–89the Beautiful Gate—possibly the
bronze-clad Nicanor Gate, between
the court of the Gentiles and the
court of the women.
The beggar asks the disciples
for money, and both of them look
him directly in the eyes. “Look at
us!” Peter says, and so the beggar
looks. “Silver or gold I do not have,
but what I do have I give you. In the
name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth,
walk” (Acts 3:4–6). Peter then takes
the beggar by the hand and thebeggar’s feet and ankles heal in
an instant. He jumps up and walks
for the first time in his life. Peter
has just performed an astonishing,
awe-inspiring miracle—the very
kind, in fact, that Jesus used to
perform before He was killed.Powerful proof
Following Pentecost, Jesus’s
disciples continue to preach and
perform great works. Luke, the
author of Acts, gives many
examples of signs and wonders that
the disciples perform. As Jesus had
promised them, His believers start
to do even greater things in His
name than He himself did during
His three-year ministry.
The healing of the beggar is,
as it were, the inaugural miracle of
the post-Pentecost order. According
to Luke, the beggar goes with Peter
and John into the Temple, “walkingACTS, EPISTLES, AND REVELATION
Peter (right) heals the lame man
in this detail from Renaissance master
Raphael’s depiction of the miracle. It is
one of a set of tapestries by the artist
depicting the works of Peter and Paul.Almsgiving
For people with disabilities—
such as Bartimaeus, the blind
man whom Jesus healed outside
Jericho (Mark 10:46–52), and
the man at the Beautiful Gate—
begging was not demeaning,
but simply one of the few ways
they could make a living. Giving
to the poor was encouraged by
Jewish scripture—“I command
you to be open-handed toward
... the poor and needy in your
land” (Deuteronomy 15:11)—and
by Jesus. In the Sermon on the
Mount, He names almsgiving(giving to the poor) as one of
the three prime works of piety,
along with prayer and fasting
(Matthew 6:1–4). From the point
of view of beggars hoping to
receive alms, location was key.
Bartimaeus positioned himself
by one of the gates into Jericho,
to benefit from the constant flow
of people into and out of the city;
the man at the Beautiful Gate
relied on the visiting pilgrims
who were especially aware, as
they entered or left the Temple,
of their religious duty to give.and jumping, and praising God”
(3:8)—a triumphant sight that
draws a large crowd. This gives
Peter an opportunity to make
a speech similar to the one he
made at Pentecost: he reminds his
listeners of their guilt in handing
Jesus over to be killed, telling them
to “repent ... and turn to God” (3:19).Disciples on trial
Some 5,000 people are converted
that day, although some scholars
suggest that this figure given by
Luke is not meant to be taken
literally—it simply suggests a large
number. However, while ordinary
people react with jubilation and
awe to the healing of the beggar,
it also attracts negative attention
from the authorities, who are
greatly disturbed by the events.
That same evening, the Temple
guards arrest the two Apostles and
throw them into prison overnight,
before bringing them before the
high priest and Sanhedrin the next
morning. Standing before them, a
Spirit-emboldened Peter speaks out
yet again about Jesus, in whose ❯❯It is by the name of
Jesus Christ of Nazareth,
whom you crucified but
whom God raised from
the dead, that this man
stands before you healed.
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