Acts 4:23-28

The Followers of Jesus Pray for Boldness

4:23 When they were released, Peter and John ¹  went to their fellow believers ²  and reported everything the high priests and the elders had said to them. 4:24 When they heard this, they raised their voices to God with one mind ³  and said, “Master of all, ⁴  you who made the heaven, the earth, ⁵  the sea, and everything that is in them, 4:25 who said by the Holy Spirit through ⁶  your servant David our forefather, ⁷ 

‘Why do the nations ⁸  rage, ⁹ 

and the peoples plot foolish ¹⁰  things?

4:26 The kings of the earth stood together, ¹¹ 

and the rulers assembled together,

against the Lord and against his ¹²  Christ.’ ¹³ 

4:27 “For indeed both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, assembled together in this city against ¹⁴  your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, ¹⁵  4:28 to do as much as your power ¹⁶  and your plan ¹⁷  had decided beforehand ¹⁸  would happen.

[4:23]  ¹ tn Grk “they”; the referents (Peter and John) have been specified in the translation for clarity, since a new topic begins in v. 23 and the last specific reference to Peter and John in the Greek text is in 4:19.

[4:23]  ² tn Grk “to their own [people].” In context this phrase is most likely a reference to other believers rather than simply their own families and/or homes, since the group appears to act with one accord in the prayer that follows in v. 24. At the literary level, this phrase suggests how Jews were now splitting into two camps, pro-Jesus and anti-Jesus.

[4:24]  ³ sn With one mind. Compare Acts 1:14.

[4:24]  ⁴ tn Or “Lord of all.”

[4:24]  ⁵ tn Grk “and the earth, and the sea,” but καί (kai) has not been translated before “the earth” and “the sea” since contemporary English normally uses a coordinating conjunction only between the last two elements in a series of three or more.

[4:25]  ⁶ tn Grk “by the mouth of” (an idiom).

[4:25]  ⁷ tn Or “ancestor”; Grk “father.”

[4:25]  ⁸ tn Or “Gentiles.”

[4:25]  ⁹ sn The Greek word translated rage includes not only anger but opposition, both verbal and nonverbal. See L&N 88.185.

[4:25]  ¹⁰ tn Or “futile”; traditionally, “vain.”

[4:26]  ¹¹ tn Traditionally, “The kings of the earth took their stand.”

[4:26]  ¹² tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”

[4:26]  ¹³ sn A quotation from Ps 2:1-2.

[4:27]  ¹⁴ sn The application of Ps 2:1-2 is that Jews and Gentiles are opposing Jesus. The surprise of the application is that Jews are now found among the enemies of God’s plan.

[4:27]  ¹⁵ sn A wordplay on “Christ,” v. 26, which means “one who has been anointed.”

[4:28]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “hand,” here a metaphor for God’s strength or power or authority.

[4:28]  ¹⁷ tn Or “purpose,” “will.”

[4:28]  ¹⁸ tn Or “had predestined.” Since the term “predestine” is something of a technical theological term, not in wide usage in contemporary English, the translation “decide beforehand” was used instead (see L&N 30.84). God’s direction remains as the major theme.