Bold Testimony and a New Outpouring of the Spirit
Acts 4:5–31
The reaction to the lame man’s healing and Peter’s explanation (Acts 3:1–26) was swift. On the one hand, many new believers joined the apostles. On the other hand, resistance by the †Sanhedrin, or Jewish high court, was also immediate. In Acts 4 Luke shows the apostles and their followers answering these challenges.
Witness before the Sanhedrin (4:5–12)
5On the next day, their leaders, elders, and scribes were assembled in Jerusalem, 6with Annas the high priest, Caiaphas, John, Alexander, and all who were of the high-priestly class. 7They brought them into their presence and questioned them, “By what power or by what name have you done this?” 8Then Peter, filled with the holy Spirit, answered them, “Leaders of the people and elders: 9If we are being examined today about a good deed done to a cripple, namely, by what means he was saved, 10then all of you and all the people of Israel should know that it was in the name of Jesus Christ the Nazorean whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead; in his name this man stands before you healed. 11He is ‘the stone rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone.’ 12There is no salvation through anyone else, nor is there any other name under heaven given to the human race by which we are to be saved.”
OT: Ps 118:22
NT: Luke 12:8–12; 20:1–2; John 3:36; 14:6; 1 Tim 2:5
Catechism: salvation in Jesus alone, 161, 432; the Church’s mission, 849–56
Lectionary: Acts 4:8–12: Fourth Sunday of Easter (Year B); St. Bernardine of Siena; Acts 4:1–12: Friday of the Octave of Easter
[4:5–6]
Luke emphasizes that the entire Jewish leadership is present to judge Peter and John in this official gathering of the highest Jewish court, the Sanhedrin, the same court that had tried Jesus (Luke 22:66). The general term leaders probably refers to all the seventy-one members of the Sanhedrin, headed by the high priest: elders, scribes, and members of the high-priestly class (see Luke 9:22; 20:1). Among the high-priestly class, Luke first mentions Annas the high priest, actually a former high priest (AD 6–15) who was deposed by Rome but still esteemed by Jews. The actual high priest at that time was his son-in-law Caiaphas (see John 18:13). The Sanhedrin also included John, probably referring to Annas’s son who became high priest after Caiaphas (in AD 36), Alexander, and other less known high priests.
[4:7]
The Sanhedrin leaders demand that Peter and John explain themselves: “By what power or by what name have you done this?” This question was precisely what Peter had already answered before the Jewish crowd at the temple when he told them not to think that this healing was achieved “by our own power or piety” (Acts 3:12). Rather, the lame man was healed by faith in the name of Jesus (Acts 3:16).
[4:8–10]
Jesus instructed his disciples not to be afraid when they are brought to trial for their faith: “When they take you before synagogues and before rulers and authorities, do not worry about how or what your defense will be or about what you are to say. For the holy Spirit will teach you at that moment what you should say” (Luke 12:11–12). Here, in fulfillment of Jesus’ prophetic instructions, Peter is filled with the holy Spirit as he answered them. His response manifests Spirit-inspired wisdom and boldness. The same Peter who cowered before the challenge of a serving girl (Luke 22:56–57) now fearlessly confronts the Sanhedrin: Leaders of the people and elders. He implicitly reproaches them for interrogating him about a good deed done to a cripple, then solemnly proclaims to them and to all the people of Israel the cause of the healing: it was done in the name of Jesus Christ the Nazorean. Even though Jesus was the one whom you, the Sanhedrin, crucified by handing him over to Pilate with a capital charge (Luke 23:1–2), God reversed that action and raised him from the dead. Peter declares that in his name, Jesus’ name, the lame man stands before you healed.
[4:11]
In this testimony Peter states the facts and, in so doing, reproves the Sanhedrin for opposing God’s plan. Jesus is the stone rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. The Sanhedrin are the “builders” of Israel, yet they had rejected the Messiah, the cornerstone, or capstone, essential to the building’s structure. In the Gospel, Jesus quoted this same line from Ps 118:22 to show that his rejection by the Jewish leaders was part of God’s plan and to illustrate the divine reversal of human purposes (Luke 20:17–19). God raised up the crucified Jesus and made him the cornerstone of the new temple, the Church. The First Letter of Peter similarly refers to Jesus as “a living stone, rejected by human beings but chosen and precious in the sight of God” (1 Pet 2:4) and in 1 Pet 2:6 goes on to cite Isa 28:16:
Therefore, thus says the Lord GOD:
See, I am laying a stone in Zion,
a stone that has been tested,
A precious cornerstone as a sure foundation;
whoever puts faith in it will not waver.”
[4:12]
Then Peter states something truly extraordinary when he solemnly declares, “There is no salvation through anyone else,” for God has not given human beings “any other name under heaven . . . by which we are to be saved.” In fact, the meaning of the name Jesus (Hebrew Yeshua, a shortened form of Yehoshua) is “Yahweh saves.” Peter’s pronouncement is the most absolute and universal statement in Scripture of salvation in Jesus Christ alone. The prophetic leader of the restored people of God proclaims to the Sanhedrin that God has made his Son the one provision for the salvation of the human race. Peter sets an example for Christians throughout the ages not to be afraid to present the Christian claim to those who do not yet believe.
Reflection and Application (4:5–12)
The time since Vatican II has seen much confusion about our obligations as Catholics regarding evangelization and interreligious dialogue. On the one hand, the New Testament is absolutely clear that Christians have an obligation to bear witness to Jesus Christ, the Savior of all peoples. While addressing the leaders of Judaism in Acts 4, Peter refuses to downplay the truth that “there is no salvation through anyone else” besides Jesus. He does not avoid proclaiming this message by hiding behind the notion that all religions have their own views. He directly challenges his listeners’ unbelief and leaves it to them to accept or reject his message.
Unfortunately, in the centuries since then, anti-Semitic prejudice and false ideas about Jewish guilt for Jesus’ crucifixion have often led to hostility between Christians and Jews. In efforts to avoid such interreligious hostility, many contemporary Christians refrain from witnessing about Jesus to Jews or members of other religions. To clarify the Church’s teaching on this matter, in 2000 the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith published the document Dominus Iesus, which states that “The Catholic Church rejects nothing of what is true and holy in [other] religions. She has a high regard for the manner of life and conduct, the precepts and teachings, which, although differing in many ways from her own teaching, nonetheless often reflect a ray of that truth which enlightens all men.” The document then affirms:
This statement, like Peter’s in Acts 4:12, might be viewed as arrogant or unacceptable by people who disagree or who deny the existence of absolute truth. But it is not arrogant to share good news revealed by God that is critically important to people’s eternal salvation.
On the other hand, it does indeed seem condescending and is ultimately both unfaithful to the truth and uncharitable for Christians to say, “I don’t tell Muslims about Jesus. I help them to be better Muslims.” What do we as Christians know about helping Muslims (or others of different religions) be better Muslims? Rather, we must say with Peter’s offer: “What I do have I give you” (Acts 3:6). What we have is the good news that God became man in Jesus to save all people: “With your blood you purchased for God / those from every tribe and tongue, people and nation” (Rev 5:9). Authentic missionary witness lovingly and noncoercively shares with others what we most value, regardless of whether some listeners will be annoyed by our message or even try to suppress it.
“Are We to Obey You Rather Than God?” (4:13–22)
13Observing the boldness of Peter and John and perceiving them to be uneducated, ordinary men, they were amazed, and they recognized them as the companions of Jesus. 14Then when they saw the man who had been cured standing there with them, they could say nothing in reply. 15So they ordered them to leave the Sanhedrin, and conferred with one another, saying, 16“What are we to do with these men? Everyone living in Jerusalem knows that a remarkable sign was done through them, and we cannot deny it. 17But so that it may not be spread any further among the people, let us give them a stern warning never again to speak to anyone in this name.”
18So they called them back and ordered them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. 19Peter and John, however, said to them in reply, “Whether it is right in the sight of God for us to obey you rather than God, you be the judges. 20It is impossible for us not to speak about what we have seen and heard.” 21After threatening them further, they released them, finding no way to punish them, on account of the people who were all praising God for what had happened. 22For the man on whom this sign of healing had been done was over forty years old.
NT: Luke 21:12–15; Acts 5:29; 1 Cor 1:26–27; 1 John 1:1–3
Catechism: “what we have seen and heard,” 425; praising God, 2639–43
Lectionary: Saturday of the Octave of Easter
[4:13–14]
The Sanhedrin members are amazed by the boldness in speech of these uneducated fishermen. “Boldness” here refers to freedom and fearlessness in speaking. The Sanhedrin is surprised that common men who lack formal training in the law of Moses or in †rhetoric speak with such confidence and authority. Making the situation even more galling for the leaders is their recognition that Peter and John were companions of Jesus, literally, “they had been with Jesus.” Jesus taught in the Gospel that the task of a disciple is first to “be with him” (Mark 3:14). Peter and John exhibit a Spirit-inspired courage, confidence, and authority that came from having spent time with Jesus. Even today, the boldness of Christians’ testimony depends on their spending time with Jesus. The Sanhedrin thought that Jesus’ death would free them from having to deal with his influence. Because of the irrefutable evidence of the man who had been cured standing there with them, they could say nothing in reply to Peter’s bold proclamation.
[4:15–17]
The members of the Sanhedrin are befuddled, frustrated, and struggling to limit the damage. Their consultation about Peter and John illustrates the powerlessness of Israel’s old leadership to effectively counter the apostolic leaders of renewed Israel. Because the man’s healing is public knowledge, they are forced to admit that it was a remarkable sign that was done through the apostles. Calling the healing a “sign,” rather than a healing or marvel, invites reflection on what the sign signifies: in this case it means that Jesus is alive and acting through the disciples. Yet ironically the Sanhedrin members refuse to accept the evidence before them, just as during Jesus’ public ministry (see John 12:37). They are determined that the apostles’ witness not be spread any further among the people and that what they regard as a harmful message be suppressed. Yet their warning and attempt to silence the apostles is doomed to failure.
[4:18]
The Sanhedrin try to forbid Peter and John to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus, the name Peter has just said is the only one given by God for the salvation of the human race (4:12). This prohibition recalls the purpose of Acts as stated in the prologue: to continue the Gospel’s account of “all that Jesus began to do and teach” (Acts 1:1, literal translation). What Jesus’ disciples do, such as the healing of the lame man, and teach, such as the meaning of this sign “in the name of Jesus,” is the risen Jesus’ continuing to act and teach through them. For the Sanhedrin to forbid preaching in the name of Jesus is the absurd equivalent to forbidding the risen Lord to continue to act and teach through his apostles.
[4:19]
In reply, Peter and John challenge their judges with the rhetorical question whether it is right in the sight of God for us to obey you rather than God. Because Jesus had asserted the necessity of God’s biblical plan (Luke 24:46–49) and directly commanded his disciples to be his witnesses (Acts 1:8), the apostles are under divine mandate to proclaim the gospel from Jerusalem to the ends of the earth. The Sanhedrin’s attempt to silence them contradicts the solemn commission they have received from the Father through the Son, for which they have been empowered by the Holy Spirit.
[4:20]
It is obvious, therefore, that for the disciples not to speak about what we have seen and heard is simply not an option. Testimony to what one has seen and heard is the mark of an eyewitness, in contrast to mere hearsay testimony, which lacks probative value. Testimony based on both seeing and hearing corresponds closely to the description of Luke’s Gospel as recounting “all that Jesus did and taught” (Acts 1:1), for which Luke relied on “eyewitnesses from the beginning and ministers of the word” (Luke 1:2). The apostles as eyewitnesses have seen what Jesus did and have heard his teachings. Christian belief is grounded in this apostolic eyewitness testimony. Analogously, contemporary Christian witness is more persuasive when it flows from one’s personal encounter with the risen Jesus.
[4:21–22]
The powerlessness of Israel’s old leadership remains vividly on display as they are reduced merely to threatening the apostles and have no choice but to release them. They cannot punish them because the people are all praising God for what had happened. Clearly the people are better able to recognize signs of God’s action than the leaders, which suggests that the leaders have lost effective authority over God’s people. Instead, the people are now heeding the apostles. The people’s praising God for what they saw and heard functions as an implicit acknowledgment of the apostles as their new leaders. The healing of a man crippled from birth is an incontrovertible public event, a sign that wins the people’s praise of God and respect for the apostles. The mention that the man was over forty years old, while underscoring the significance of the healing, may also be intended to recall Israel’s forty years in the desert before their entrance into the promised land.
Prayer of the Community (4:23–31)
23After their release they went back to their own people and reported what the chief priests and elders had told them. 24And when they heard it, they raised their voices to God with one accord and said, “Sovereign Lord, maker of heaven and earth and the sea and all that is in them, 25you said by the holy Spirit through the mouth of our father David, your servant:
‘Why did the Gentiles rage
and the peoples entertain folly?
26The kings of the earth took their stand
and the princes gathered together
against the Lord and against his anointed.’
27Indeed they gathered in this city against your holy servant Jesus whom you anointed, Herod and Pontius Pilate, together with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, 28to do what your hand and [your] will had long ago planned to take place. 29And now, Lord, take note of their threats, and enable your servants to speak your word with all boldness, 30as you stretch forth [your] hand to heal, and signs and wonders are done through the name of your holy servant Jesus.” 31As they prayed, the place where they were gathered shook, and they were all filled with the holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.
OT: Ps 2:1–2
NT: Luke 23:12; John 20:19–23; Acts 2:29–31
Catechism: the Lord’s anointed, 436–40; Jesus’ death according to Scripture, 599–601
Lectionary: Saturday of the Octave of Easter; Mass for Persecuted Christians
[4:23–24]
The Christian community was in no way intimidated by the warnings of the chief priests and elders that Peter and John reported. On the contrary, they broke into spontaneous and united prayer as they raised their voices to God and asked the all-powerful God to defeat the threats not only of Jewish leaders but also of world-ruling Romans. As before and after Pentecost (Acts 1:14; 2:46), they pray with one accord.
The community addresses God as Sovereign Lord, a term for God used elsewhere only by the prophet Simeon (Luke 2:29). Although this form of address may sound similar to the way pagan Greeks addressed their gods, when combined with maker of heaven and earth and the sea and all that is in them it expresses the biblical worldview. God has created the universe (Gen 1) and consequently has authority over it. The focus on God as creator and ruler of the universe is particularly appropriate here because God is ruler of both Jewish and Gentile authorities.
[4:25–26]
The core of the community’s prayer is a quotation from Ps 2, which they apply to their present situation. This way of applying Scripture to a contemporary situation has been commonly used by both Jewish and Christian interpreters from that time to today. The disciples acknowledge that this psalm was spoken by the holy Spirit through the mouth of our father David. That is, the psalm is a prophecy uttered by David, the presumed author of many of the psalms, speaking for God because he was inspired by the Spirit (see Acts 2:30–31). The reference to David as God’s servant applies to him the same designation that is used for all Israel’s prophets, from Moses to Malachi: “all my servants the prophets” (Jer 7:25; see Isa 49:5).
The prayer quotes Ps 2:1–2: “Why did the Gentiles rage / and the peoples entertain folly? / The kings of the earth took their stand / and the princes gathered together / against the Lord and against his anointed.” The disciples understand the psalm as foretelling the combined opposition to the Lord (God) and his anointed (Christ) by Jewish and Roman authorities. “The Gentiles” refers here to the Roman authorities and the “peoples” refers to the Jewish authorities. Further, “kings” is applied to Herod Antipas, ruler of Galilee, and “princes,” or “rulers,” to Pilate. Luke’s is the only Gospel to mention that Pilate sent Jesus to be tried by Herod and that “Herod and Pilate became friends that very day” (Luke 23:12). At the same time, the reference to a hostile gathering of rulers alludes to the recent gathering of the Sanhedrin against Jesus’ followers (Acts 4:5).
[4:27–28]
The prayer applies this united enmity of kings and rulers to those who gathered in this city against your holy servant Jesus, meaning Herod and Pontius Pilate, together with the crowd that agitated for Jesus’ death. The prayer proclaims that this persecution of Jesus by Jews in alliance with Romans was foreseen by God and used for his saving plan. In fact, their combined attack on God’s anointed one achieved what God’s hand and will had long ago planned to take place.
[4:29]
With this assurance that God’s providence continues to be in control of all events, the Christians pray to God to enable your servants to act as prophets and speak your word with all boldness, as prophets do. Not only are the disciples not intimidated by the warnings of the Sanhedrin: they also pray to have even more boldness in proclaiming the gospel.
[4:30]
In addition they ask that their bold prophetic witness be confirmed by God’s direct action to heal and by signs and wonders worked through the name of your holy servant Jesus. The reference to “signs and wonders” recalls the miracles of God’s servant Moses in the exodus from Egypt (Deut 34:11). The believers ask God to empower their prophetic witness to be like that of Moses and like that of the †prophet even greater than Moses, Jesus (Acts 3:22; 7:37). Their speaking God’s word in Jesus’ name with healings, signs, and wonders would in fact be the risen Jesus’ continuing his prophetic ministry through them by the power of the Holy Spirit.
[4:31]
In a scene reminiscent of Pentecost, the prayer of the disciples is answered immediately and sensationally. The shaking of their gathering place brings to mind the shaking of Mount Sinai (Exod 19:18) and the earthquakes expected before God’s definitive action in the end times (see Isa 29:6; Luke 21:11; Rev 16:17–18). Like the first 120 disciples in the upper room at Pentecost, they are all filled with the holy Spirit. The immediate result is that they continued to speak (NIV, NRSV, RSV “spoke”; NJB, JB “began to proclaim”) the word of God with boldness. Threatened by the old leadership of Israel, Jesus’ disciples pray to the God who rules the universe for empowerment to witness even more boldly and powerfully than before. Filled with the Spirit in a new and deeper way, they do so testify.
Reflection and Application (4:13–31)
Living as Christians today and witnessing to our faith and moral convictions is no easier for us than it was for the first disciples, who needed the Spirit’s empowerment at Pentecost to come out from behind locked doors (John 20:19) to preach to the crowds. For example, it is sometimes difficult for pro-life medical students to be accepted into specializations like obstetrics and gynecology. Some medical schools may reject candidates who demonstrate a firm Catholic faith because of their resistance to unethical practices related to abortion, in vitro fertilization, embryonic stem cell research, euthanasia, and the like. It takes a clear commitment to Jesus and strength from the Holy Spirit to “obey God rather than any human authority” (see Acts 4:19; 5:29 NRSV) even at the cost of one’s desired career. Nevertheless, empowered by the Holy Spirit and much prayer, many health-care aspirants are giving a bold and courageous witness to their faith and ethical convictions, regardless of their personal sacrifice.
