By prof. A.P. Lopukhin
Acts of the Apostles, chapter 3. 1 – 11. Saint Peter heals a crippled man from birth. 12 – 26. Speech on this occasion to the people.
Acts. 3:1. Peter and John ascended together into the temple at the ninth hour of prayer.
“At the ninth hour of prayer” – ἐπὶ τὴν ὥραν τῆς προσευχῆς τὴν ἐνάτην; the Slavic translation is not exact: “at prayer at nine o’clock”. The Greek text and the Russian translation suggest, by the form of their expression, other hours for prayer besides the ninth: these other hours are the third and the sixth (according to our reckoning at 9 o’clock and at 12 o’clock). At the same time, the Slavic translation is such that the coincidence of the time of the apostles’ prayer with the ninth hour (according to ours at 3 o’clock in the afternoon) can be allowed. Traces of the three times daily prayer are found in Jewish history very early: even David in one of the psalms speaks of prayer in the evening, in the morning and at noon (Ps. 54:18). Prophet Daniel during the Babylonian captivity knelt three times daily for prayer (Dan. 6:10). In the temple, the morning and evening hours (3rd and 9th) were sanctified by the specially appointed morning and evening sacrifices, and it was at one of these prayer times that the apostles went to offer their prayers to God in the temple hours established by Him religious services, which have not lost their meaning for them until this moment.
Acts. 3:2. There was a man lame from his mother’s womb, whom they brought and placed every day at the temple gates, called Red, to beg alms from those entering the temple;
” crippled from mother’s womb” – Acts.4:22 – he was already more than forty years old.
For the “Red Doors” of the temple (θύραν τοῦ ἱεροῦ τὴν λεγομένην ὡραίαν), lit. – “at the temple gate called beautiful”. Probably this door was so called because of its beauty. She is not mentioned elsewhere. These were probably the main eastern doors (in Solomon’s portico) leading to the court of the Gentiles, which Josephus describes as the most beautiful, surpassing in beauty all the other doors of the temple (Jewish War 5:5,3).
Acts. 3:4. And Peter looked at him together with Joanna and said: look at us!
Acts. 3:5. And he stared at them, hoping to get something from them.
The performance of the miracle over the crippled was preceded by a careful looking at each other of the apostles and the sick man. It was like a mutual preparation for the miracle. In the case of crippled, it was a means of attracting his attention and spiritual receptivity to the miraculous healing.
Acts. 3:6. But Peter said: silver and gold I have not, but what I have, this I give you: in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, get up and walk!
“what I have I give you.” Even before the miracle was performed, the apostle had complete confidence in its performance. This assurance rests, no doubt, on the Lord’s promises to the apostles (Mark 16:18; Luke 9:1, John 14:12, etc.), as well as on the sensation of the unusual power of the Holy Spirit in him, which the Apostle describes with the words: “what I have, that’s what I give”.
“In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, get up and walk.” Not by his own power, but by the udder of the Lord Jesus Christ, Peter performs this miracle.
Acts. 3:7. And taking him by the right hand, he raised him up; and immediately his feet and ankles became stiff,
“taking him by the right hand, raised him up.” To the word, the apostle adds external action, as the Lord Himself once did.
Acts. 3:8. and leaping up, he stood up and passed, and entered with them into the temple, walking and leaping and praising God.
“as he walked, he leapt” is an expression of the ecstatic and joyful mood of the soul of the healed person.
Acts. 3:9. And all the people saw him walking and praising God;
“And a whole people,” i.e. the people gathered and gathering in the temple court see him no longer as a cripple, but as healthy and cheerful.
Acts. 3:11 a.m. And because the cured chrome did not separate from Peter and John, the whole people flocked to them in terror in the porch called Solomon’s.
“the portico called Solomon’s” is a vast, covered gallery through which the beautiful gates led into the temple. Here a people gathered, after the news of the miracle had spread with lightning speed, the best proof of which was the well-known former crippled man, who now ecstatically glorified God without separating from the apostles.
Acts. 3:12. When Peter saw this, he said to the people: Men of Israel, why do you wonder at this, or why have you looked at us, as if by our power or piety we made him walk?
In response to the bewilderment and astonishment of the people, Peter again delivered a speech similar to the first (on the day of Pentecost), proving to the assembled people, based on the testimonies of the Old Testament, that the Lord Jesus is the awaited Messiah, and persuading them to repent and to believe in Him. But before that, he dispels people’s misunderstanding of the reasons for the miracle. The amazed eyes of the people, fixed on the apostles, seemed to ask: What power do these people have in themselves who perform such great miracles? Or: How great must be the piety of these people that God glorifies them with such wonderful signs…? The apostle immediately refutes both explanations: “this, he says, does not belong to us, because we have not attracted God’s grace according to our own merits…” (Saint John Chrysostom).
Acts. 3:13. The God of Abraham, of Isaac and of Jacob, the God of our fathers, glorified His Son Jesus, whom you betrayed and denied before Pilate, when he had decided to let Him go.
“God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob” emphasizes the great guilt of the Jews towards His beloved Son – the Messiah Jesus. At the same time, it indicates the real culprit for the performed miracle, and also the purpose of the miracle – to glorify Jesus (cf. John 17:1, 4 – 5, 13:31 – 32).
“His Son”, τόν παῖδα αυτοῦ; letters Child, Child. This name of the Messiah taken from the prophecies of Isaiah (Is. 42:1), where it is said: “Behold, My Son, Whom I hold by the hand, My Chosen One, in whom My soul delights.” I will put my Spirit on him, and he will pronounce judgment on the nations.”
“Whom ye betrayed and Whom ye denied,” cf. the interpretation of John 19:14 – 15; Luke 23:2. The abbreviated exposition of the circumstances of the Savior’s sufferings is in full accordance with the Gospel account and constitutes, so to speak, precious extracts from the “fifth” Gospel “from Peter.”
St. John Chrysostom says on this occasion: “Two accusations [are against you] – and that Pilate asked to let Him go, and that when he asked, you did not want… It is as if [Peter] said: instead of Him you asked for the robber . He presented their act in the most terrible way… You, says the apostle, asked for the release of the one who killed others, but the One who revives the slain, you did not ask.
Acts. 3:15. and the Prince of life you killed. God raised him from the dead, of which we are witnesses.
“You killed the chief of life” is an unusually strong expression, contrasting two such sharp contrasts. The term “life” here takes on a full and most perfect meaning, signifying not only the higher spiritual life and eternal salvation obtained through faith in Christ, but also all life in general, of which Christ is the main source, head, and restorer.
“God raised from the dead, of which we are witnesses.” See the interpretation to Deyan. 2:24-32.
Acts. 3:16 a.m. And because of faith in His name, His name strengthened him whom you see and know, and the faith that is through Him gave him this healing before all of you.
“because of faith in His name.” Whose faith is the apostle referring to? It’s not clear. The faith of the apostles or the faith of the sick? In any case, however, the reason for the miracle is the power of faith – the faith, we must say, of both the apostles and the healed man – namely, faith in the resurrected Lord Jesus Christ.
“the faith that is from Him” – faith as a gift of Christ through the Holy Spirit (1 Cor. 12:9).
“before all of you.” Although the healing itself took place in the presence of perhaps a few, yet this miracle might be said to have been performed “before all,” for all these people now saw the healed man walking and leaping—instead of seeing him, as usual, to lie helpless at the temple gate.
Acts. 3:17. But I know, brethren, that you, as well as your superiors, did this in ignorance;
Having laid before the eyes of the Jews the gravity of their guilt against God the Father and the Lord Jesus, and with the intention of predisposing their hearts to repentance and conversion to Christ, the apostle softens his speech by addressing his hearers with the friendly address of “brethren” and explains the killing of Jesus by their ignorance (cf. Luke 23:34; 1 Cor. 2:8), while at the same time presenting this killing as a deed which was predetermined in the eternal counsel of God and foretold by all the prophets.
In this way, according to St. John Chrysostom, the apostle “gives them an opportunity to deny and repent of what they have done, and even presents them with a good justification, saying: that you killed an Innocent, you knew that; but that you killed the Prince of life—that you did not know. And in this way, it justifies not only them, but also the main culprits of the crime. And if he would turn his speech into an accusation, he would make them more obstinate.”
Acts. 3:18. and God, as He had foretold by the mouth of all His prophets that Christ would suffer, so He fulfilled.
“God… foretold by the mouth of all His prophets.” Although not all the prophets had prophesied of the sufferings of Christ, yet the apostle spoke of them in this way, evidently because the chief center of Jewish prophecy was Christ, that is, the Messiah, and therefore all His work, for which He was to came to earth.
“so he fulfilled”. The Jews handed Christ over to suffering and death, but in this case, although they remained responsible for what was done, they were instruments for the fulfillment of God’s will and the will of the Messiah Himself, as He said more than once (John 10:18, 2:19, 14 :31, 19:10-11).
Acts. 3:19. Therefore repent and turn, that your sins may be blotted out,
“turn around”, i.e. to Christ, believe in Him that He is the Messiah.
Acts. 3:20. that there may be times of cooling from the face of the Lord, and that He may send you the prophecies of Jesus Christ,
“cooling off times”, i.e. that favorable time, about which the Lord announced the good news in the synagogue in Nazareth – the kingdom of the Messiah, the kingdom of grace with his justice, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. As the time of the Old Testament is here supposed to be a life alienated from God, a life filled with all kinds of troubles, sufferings, struggles; so also the time of the New Testament is here regarded as a true rest and repose of the soul in peace with God and in close communion with Him, capable of erasing and healing all bitterness of suffering.
“from the face of the Lord” – judging from what was said further, here God the Father is understood.
“He shall send” – this refers to the Second glorious coming of the Lord Jesus at the end of the world, the meaning of the expression being the same as above “God raised Him up” etc.
Acts. 3:21. Whom heaven was to receive until that time, until all that God had spoken by the mouth of all His holy prophets of old was restored.
“Whom heaven had to receive” – an indication of the residence of the Lord Jesus with glorified flesh in heaven from the day of the Ascension.
“Until that time until all things are restored” – ἄχρι χρόνον ἀποκαταστάσεως πάντων. Probably the same thing is meant here, which the Apostle Paul foretells, speaking of the conversion of all Jews to Christ (Rom. 11:26).
“Through the mouth of all His holy prophets” – cf. above the interpretation of verse 18. The general meaning of this text, according to the interpretation of the blessed Theophylact, is the same. Namely, that “many of the things foretold by the prophets have not yet been fulfilled, but are being fulfilled [now] and will be fulfilled until the end of the world, because Christ, who ascended into heaven, will remain there until the end of the world and will come with power when all that the prophets have foretold will be finally fulfilled”.
Acts. 3:22. Moses had said to the fathers: The Lord your God will raise up for you from among your brothers a Prophet like me: listen to him in everything he tells you;
After mentioning the predictions of the prophets about Christ, the apostle quotes as one of the clearest and most authoritative predictions – the words of Moses (Deut. 18:15ff.). In these words, Moses, warning God’s people about the lying soothsayers and soothsayers of the Canaanites, promises in the name of God that they will always have true prophets to whom they must listen without question after Moses. Therefore, it is a matter of referring to the entire multitude of Jewish prophets under the general collective name “prophet” who were raised up by God. But since the end and fulfillment of every Old Testament prophecy is Christ, all antiquity – both Jewish and Christian – rightly refers this prophecy to Christ – especially since among all the Old Testament prophets there was no one like Moses (Deut. 34: 10 – 12). Only Christ excels Moses (Heb. 3:3-6).
“A prophet like me,” προφήτην ὑμῖν, i.e. the same – a special, extraordinary mediator between God and the people, as Moses was. This especially points to the legislative activity of Jesus Christ, in which He, unlike all other prophets, resembled and surpassed Moses.
Acts. 3:23. and every soul that will not obey that Prophet shall be cut off from among the people.
“will be cut off from among the people” – ἐξολοθρευθήσεται ἐκ τοῦ λαοῦ. In the Old Testament original: “from him I will demand tribute”. The apostle replaces this expression with another stronger and often used in other places by Moses, meaning condemnation of extermination or capital punishment: in the given case is meant eternal death and deprivation of participation in the kingdom of the Promised Messiah (cf. John 3:18 ).
Acts. 3:24. And all the prophets from Samuel and after him, as many as have spoken, likewise foretold these days.
“all the prophets . . . foretold these days,” i.e. the days of the appearance of the Great Prophet – Messiah (cf. verses 18 and 21).
“from Samuel,” who is here taken to be the greatest prophet after Moses, with whom begins the continuous line of Old Testament Hebrew prophets, ending with the end of the Babylonian captivity.
Acts. 3:25. Ye are the sons of the prophets, and of the covenant, which God bequeathed to your fathers, speaking to Abraham: and in your seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed.
Blessed Theophylact’s interpretation is as follows: “The apostle says, ‘sons of the prophets,’ instead of saying: you must not despair, nor think that you have lost the promises.” “Ye are the sons of the prophets,” for to you they have spoken, and because of you all these things have come to pass. And what does “sons of the Covenant” mean? This is instead of “heirs”, but heirs not only imputed, but such as the sons are. And so, if you yourselves will, then you are heirs.’
“God had bequeathed to your fathers, speaking to Abraham.” The covenant with Abraham is a covenant with all the fathers of the Jewish people, having Abraham as their forefather, and therefore with the entire Jewish people. But this is not exclusive: God’s blessing is not only promised to them, but to all the tribes of the earth – first only to the Jews, according to the special covenant with them concluded through Moses.
“In your seed they shall be blessed” – a promise given to Abraham, which God repeatedly repeats (Gen. 12:3, 18:18, 22:18). By the “seed” of Abraham here is meant not the seed of Abraham at all, but only one particular Person of that seed, namely the Messiah. This is how not only Peter, but also the apostle Paul interprets this promise (Gal. 3:16).
Acts. 3:26. God, having resurrected His Son Jesus, first of all sent Him to you to bless you, so that each of you may turn from your evils.
By the fact that God sent the blessed descendant of Abraham “first” to the Jews, the apostle tries to show not only their superiority over all other nations, but also the strongest incentive and, as it were, the obligation to receive the promised blessing before all others – by turning to Christ and believing in Him.
“by raising up His Son”, – cf. above the interpretations to Acts. 2:24, 3:13.
“send to bless you,” i. to fulfill upon you the promise given to Abraham, to make you blessed partakers of all the benefits of the Messiah’s kingdom, to grant you salvation and eternal life. “Therefore, do not consider yourselves cast off and cast off.” – concludes Saint John Chrysostom.
“to turn from one’s evils” is an important condition for receiving God’s promised blessing in the Kingdom of the Messiah, in which nothing impure and unrighteous will enter.
In the judgment about the primacy of Israel in receiving the benefits of the Kingdom of the Messiah, the apostle again repeats the thought of the general, universal character of this Kingdom, which will spread over all the peoples of the earth.
Source in Russian: Explanatory Bible, or Commentaries on all the books of the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments: In 7 volumes / Ed. prof. A.P. Lopukhin. – Ed. 4th. – Moscow: Dar, 2009, 1232 pp.
Illustrative photo: Orthodox Icon of St. Peter
