The Bible Book

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name the beggar has been healed.

Baffled at such eloquence in the

mouth of these two “unschooled,

ordinary men” (4:13)—and by the

undeniable fact that a great miracle

has taken place—the council

commands the Apostles to keep

silent from now on.

Peter and John’s reply is simple:

“Which is right in God’s eyes: to

listen to you, or to Him? You be the

judges! As for us, we cannot help

speaking about what we have seen

and heard” (4:19–20). The council

members threaten them further,

but with so much excitement at

the miracle, the Sanhedrin has no

option but to let the men go free.

The second Pentecost

Peter and John return to their

community. What follows is

sometimes called the “second

Pentecost.” Aware of the growing

opposition they face from the

authorities, the believers pray to

God for renewed boldness in telling

the world about Jesus. They ask,

“Lord, consider their threats and

enable your servants to speak your

word with great boldness” (4:29).

The Greek word that Luke uses for

this boldness is parrhesia, also

meaning “free speech,” “frankness,”

even “plain speaking.” As a sign of

divine approval, the building where

the believers are meeting shakes.

Thereafter, the community of

believers in Jerusalem prospers:

“all the believers were one in heart

and mind” and they shared their

possessions among each other

(4:32). Most but not all of the

believers are willing to take part

in this. Acts 5 tells the story of

Ananias and Sapphira, a couple

who suddenly fall down and die

after Peter reveals that they have

THE HEALING OF THE BEGGAR

lied—wanting to receive praise,

they pretend to hand over all

their property while keeping

some back for themselves.

The community thrives, as

many more signs and miracles

lead to an impressive growth in

numbers. Inevitably, however, such

success brings further jealousy and

Peter heals

a paralytic man

named Aeneas.

(Acts 9:33–35)

Peter raises Tabitha,

a disciple, from the dead.

(Acts 9:36–42)

Paul exorcises

a possessed girl.

(Acts 16:16–18)

Paul heals a

man who cannot

walk in Lystra.

(Acts 14:7–9)

Paul raises a young man,

Eutychus, from the dead.

(Acts 20:9–12)

The miracles performed

by the Apostles show that

Jesus was working through

them and granting them

spiritual authority.

Paul cures

Publius’s father

of dysentery.

(Acts 28:7–8)

After they prayed, the

place where they were

meeting was shaken.

Acts 4:31

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persecution from the authorities,

at which point Luke’s narrative

borders on comedy. Once more the

Apostles are arrested and thrown

into prison, but during the night an

angel comes and opens the prison

doors, allowing them to go free. The

angel tells them to go back to the

Temple and preach as they usually

do. When morning comes, the

Sanhedrin meets and sends for the

prisoners. Shocked officers return

empty-handed with this report:

“We found the jail securely locked,

with the guards standing at the

doors; but when we opened them,

we found no one inside” (5:23).

Outwitting the council

Baffled once more, the Sanhedrin

then receive a report from the

Temple: the men imprisoned last

night are there teaching the people.

Yet again the Apostles are arrested.

When upbraided for continuing to

teach about Jesus, they reply: “We

must obey God rather than human

beings!” (5:29). Infuriated, many of

the Sanhedrin want to put them

to death and are only dissuaded

by the more cautious counsels of

a Pharisee named Gamaliel. In the

end, the Apostles are flogged, once

more told not to speak in Jesus’s

name, and allowed to go free. Yet

again they ignore the Sanhedrin’s

orders. They continue, Luke writes,

joyfully “teaching and proclaiming

the good news that Jesus is the

Messiah” (Acts 5:42).

Inherited leadership

Throughout this narrative, Luke

makes important theological

points. With their bold Spirit-

empowered preaching, confirmed

by God in signs and wonders, the

Apostles have established that they

stand in a clear line of continuity

reaching back as far as Abraham,

Moses, and the prophets of the

Hebrew scriptures. God has been

faithful: the great covenants He

made with Abraham and the

Hebrew patriarchs have found

fulfillment in Jesus, the promised

Messiah, whom God affirmed with

miraculous works—notably, the

supreme miracle of His resurrection.

Now though, the traditional leaders

of the Jews, the Sanhedrin refuse

to accept Jesus as the Son of God,

and so the leadership of God’s

people passes out of their hands

and to the Apostles. The believers

are portrayed by Luke as the “new

Israel,” true heirs of the covenant

promises of the Old Testament.

In this context, the fact that

Peter and John heal the beggar in

the name of Jesus is important.

Peter’s speech acknowledges that

not only are the disciples following

in the tradition of Jesus’s ministry,

the power they are exercising is

not their own: Jesus now works

through them. Peter, John, and

their fellow disciples have been

empowered by the Holy Spirit to

continue Jesus’s work on Earth,

and have been given the authority

to carry out this task because of

their faith in Him. ■

ACTS, EPISTLES, AND REVELATION

Simon Peter

One of Jesus’s closest disciples

Simon Peter became a leading

member of the early Church.

His real name was Simon, but

Jesus called him “Rock”:

“Peter” in Greek, “Cephas”

in Aramaic. He and his brother

Andrew were both fishermen,

and worked with another pair

of brothers, James and John.

John’s Gospel says Peter met

Jesus through Andrew, who

was a disciple of John the

Baptist. However, the Gospels

of Mark and Luke report

that Peter and Andrew were

working as fishermen when

Jesus called them to be

His disciples.

During the ministry of

Jesus, Peter was one of the

inner circle of three disciples,

along with James and John,

but when Jesus was arrested,

Peter denied Him three times.

This failure marked a turning

point in Peter’s life; he was

forgiven by Jesus and soon

emerged as a dauntless leader

in the early Church. He was

also the first to share the

Christian message and baptism

with non-Jews. Peter was

famously crucified upside-

down during the persecution

unleashed by Emperor Nero

in 64–68 ce.

People brought the

sick into the streets and

laid them on beds and

mats so that at least

Peter’s shadow might

fall on some of them

as he passed by.

Acts 5:15

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