Bible Study Acts 4
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Acts 4 · WEB

Before the Sanhedrin and Bold Prayer

Listen — WEB narration 0:00 / 0:00 Narration: World English Bible (David Williams), public domain — AudioTreasure.

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As they spoke to the people, the priests and the captain of the temple and the Sadducees came to them,
2being upset because they taught the people and proclaimed in Jesus the resurrection from the dead.
3They laid hands on them, and put them in custody until the next day, for it was now evening.
4But many of those who heard the word believed, and the number of the men came to be about five thousand.
5It happened in the morning, that their rulers, elders, and scribes were gathered together in Jerusalem.
6Annas the high priest was there, with Caiaphas, John, Alexander, and as many as were relatives of the high priest.
7When they had stood Peter and John in the middle of them, they inquired, "By what power, or in what name, have you done this?"
8Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, "You rulers of the people, and elders of Israel,
9if we are examined today concerning a good deed done to a crippled man, by what means this man has been healed,
10may it be known to you all, and to all the people of Israel, that in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead, this man stands here before you whole in him.
11He is 'the stone which was regarded as worthless by you, the builders, which has become the head of the corner.'
12There is salvation in no one else, for neither is there any other name under heaven, that is given among men, by which we must be saved!"
13Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and had perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marveled. They recognized that they had been with Jesus.
14Seeing the man who was healed standing with them, they could say nothing against it.
15But when they had commanded them to go aside out of the council, they conferred among themselves,
16saying, "What shall we do to these men? Because indeed a notable miracle has been done through them, as can be plainly seen by all who dwell in Jerusalem, and we can't deny it.
17But so that this spreads no further among the people, let's threaten them, that from now on they don't speak to anyone in this name."
18They called them, and commanded them not to speak at all nor teach in the name of Jesus.
19But Peter and John answered them, "Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, judge for yourselves,
20for we can't help telling the things which we saw and heard."
21When they had further threatened them, they let them go, finding no way to punish them, because of the people; for everyone glorified God for that which was done.
22For the man on whom this miracle of healing was performed was more than forty years old.
23Being let go, they came to their own company, and reported all that the chief priests and the elders had said to them.
24When they heard it, they lifted up their voice to God with one accord, and said, "O Lord, you are God, who made the heaven, the earth, the sea, and all that is in them;
25who by the mouth of your servant, David, said, 'Why do the nations rage, and the peoples plot a vain thing?
26The kings of the earth take a stand, and the rulers take council together, against the Lord, and against his Christ.'
27For truly, in this city against your holy servant, Jesus, whom you anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel, were gathered together
28to do whatever your hand and your council foreordained to happen.
29Now, Lord, look at their threats, and grant to your servants to speak your word with all boldness,
30while you stretch out your hand to heal; and that signs and wonders may be done through the name of your holy Servant Jesus."
31When they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were gathered together. They were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.
32The multitude of those who believed were of one heart and soul. Not one of them claimed that anything of the things which he possessed was his own, but they had all things in common.
33With great power, the apostles gave their testimony of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. Great grace was on them all.
34For neither was there among them any who lacked, for as many as were owners of lands or houses sold them, and brought the proceeds of the things that were sold,
35and laid them at the apostles' feet, and distribution was made to each, according as anyone had need.
36Joses, who by the apostles was surnamed Barnabas (which is, being interpreted, Son of Encouragement), a Levite, a man of Cyprus by race,
37having a field, sold it, and brought the money and laid it at the apostles' feet.
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Summary

The Sadducees arrest Peter and John for preaching the resurrection, but five thousand more men come to faith from that day's preaching. Brought before the same Sanhedrin that condemned Jesus, Peter (filled with the Spirit) declares that the healing happened in Jesus' name and that "there is salvation in no one else." The council can't punish them because of the visible miracle and public favor, so they release them with threats — to which Peter and John reply that they cannot stop telling what they have seen and heard. The young church responds not by retreating but by gathering for one of Scripture's great prayers, after which the place is shaken, they are refilled with the Spirit, and the community of goods deepens, with Barnabas singled out as an early example.

Themes

  • The exclusive saving name of Jesus
  • Boldness rooted in time spent with Jesus
  • Obeying God rather than human authority
  • Prayer that asks for boldness, not protection
  • Spirit-filled generosity and shared life

Key verses

  • Acts 4:12 — “There is salvation in no one else, for neither is there any other name under heaven, that is given among men, by which we must be saved!”
  • Acts 4:13 — “They recognized that they had been with Jesus.”
  • Acts 4:20 — “We can't help telling the things which we saw and heard.”
  • Acts 4:31 — “When they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were gathered together. They were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke the word of God with boldness.”

Context & background

Still Jerusalem (modern Israel), days after the healing at the Beautiful Gate, c. AD 30-33. The Sadducees were the priestly aristocracy who controlled the temple and rejected belief in resurrection (Acts 23:8) — Peter's preaching directly attacked their power and their theology. The Sanhedrin was the 71-member ruling council of Israel under Roman oversight; here Annas (still called "the high priest" out of respect though deposed), Caiaphas (the sitting high priest who tried Jesus), and other priestly insiders are listed by name. "Unlearned and ignorant" (v. 13) means they had no formal rabbinic training — not stupid, but laymen. Psalm 118:22, quoted in v. 11, was a major messianic prophecy already applied to Jesus by Jesus himself (Matthew 21:42). The prayer in vv. 24-30 quotes Psalm 2, the great enthronement psalm, treating the unjust trial of Jesus and the persecution of his church as the predicted raging of the nations against the Lord's anointed. Barnabas (vv. 36-37), introduced here, will become a major figure as Paul's first mentor.

Cross-references

  • Acts 5:29 — Peter will soon repeat the principle of v. 19-20 even more sharply.
  • Daniel 3:16-18 — Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego refuse the king's order — the OT parallel to "we ought to obey God rather than men."
  • John 14:6 — "I am the way, the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father except through me" — the foundation of Acts 4:12.
  • Psalm 118:22 — "The stone which the builders rejected has become the head of the corner" — quoted in v. 11.
  • Psalm 2:1-2 — Quoted in vv. 25-26, applied to the alliance of Herod, Pilate, Gentiles, and Israel against Jesus.

Check your reading

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  1. Observe

    How many men had believed after Peter's sermon at Solomon's Portico by the time the authorities arrested Peter and John (Acts 4:4)?

  2. Observe

    What did the believers specifically ask for in their prayer after Peter and John were released (Acts 4:29-30)?

  3. Interpret

    When the Sanhedrin noted that Peter and John were "unlearned and ignorant men" yet marveled at their boldness, what did the council recognize (Acts 4:13)?

  4. Interpret

    Peter declares in Acts 4:12, "There is salvation in no one else, for neither is there any other name under heaven, that is given among men, by which we must be saved." What makes this claim significant in its context?

  5. Apply

    After reporting the council's threats, the church prayed and the place was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit (Acts 4:31). What does this pattern suggest about how believers should respond to intimidation?

  6. Apply

    Barnabas sold a field and laid the proceeds at the apostles' feet (Acts 4:36-37). The text singles him out by name immediately after describing the community of goods. Why might Luke highlight this individual act?

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