Acts 3

Translator Notes

1. The ninth hour (approximately 3:00 PM) was one of the three daily prayer times in Jewish practice, coinciding with the afternoon tamid (daily sacrifice). Peter and John's continued participation in temple worship shows that the early believers remained within Judaism. The imperfect anebanion ('were going up') captures them in mid-journey, setting the scene for the encounter at the gate.

Translator Notes

1. The phrase 'lame from his mother's womb' (chōlos ek koilias mētros autou) establishes that this is a congenital condition — not an injury but a lifelong disability, making the healing all the more remarkable. The Beautiful Gate (tēn Horaian) is likely the Nicanor Gate, a massive bronze gate on the east side of the temple connecting the Court of the Gentiles to the Court of Women. Its identification is debated among archaeologists. The man's daily placement at this gate means he was a well-known figure, which matters for the public impact of the miracle (cf. v. 10).

Translator Notes

1. The man asks for eleēmosynēn ('alms, charitable gift') — the standard term for religiously motivated charity. He has no expectation of healing; his request is purely economic. The imperfect ērōta ('was asking, kept asking') suggests ongoing, repeated begging — this was his daily routine.

Translator Notes

1. The verb atenisas ('looked intently, fixed his gaze') is the same word used for the disciples staring at the sky during the ascension (1:10). Peter's fixed gaze signals that something more than a casual encounter is about to happen. The command 'Look at us' (blepson eis hēmas) is not merely a request for eye contact but a call to attention — something is about to be given that is far more than coins.

Translator Notes

1. The verb epeichen ('fixed attention, turned toward') shows the man's responsive engagement. His expectation (prosdokōn) is limited to financial assistance — the gap between what he expects and what he is about to receive creates the narrative tension.

Translator Notes

1. Peter's declaration has a poetic rhythm in Greek: argyrion kai chrysion ouch hyparchei moi ('silver and gold do not belong to me'). The phrase 'in the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene' (en tō onomati Iēsou Christou tou Nazōraiou) is not a magic formula but an invocation of Jesus's authority and power. The command peripatei ('walk!') is a present imperative — 'start walking and keep walking.' The name of Jesus becomes the central controversy in chapter 4.

Translator Notes

1. The physical act of grasping the right hand (piasas tēs dexias cheiros) is both practical assistance and symbolic — the right hand signifies strength and authority. Luke, traditionally identified as a physician, provides medical detail: the baseis ('feet, soles') and sphyra ('ankles, ankle bones') are specific anatomical terms. The verb estereōthēsan ('were made strong, were solidified') indicates instant structural transformation — bones and muscles that had never functioned properly were immediately restored.

Translator Notes

1. The sequence of verbs captures the man's escalating joy: exallomenos ('leaping up'), estē ('stood'), periepatei ('walked around'), hallomenos ('leaping'), ainōn ('praising'). The repetition of walking and leaping reflects someone testing and celebrating abilities he has never had. His entrance into the temple is theologically significant: lame persons were excluded from certain temple areas (cf. 2 Samuel 5:8). The healing restores not just physical function but full participation in worship. The scene echoes Isaiah 35:6: 'Then the lame will leap like a deer.'
2. [TCR Cross-Reference] References 2 Samuel 5:8 — the TCR OT rendering of that text provides the Hebrew source and explains the translation decisions involved.
3. [TCR Cross-Reference] References Isaiah 35:6: — the TCR OT rendering of that text provides the Hebrew source and explains the translation decisions involved.

Translator Notes

1. The public nature of the miracle is emphasized — 'all the people' (pas ho laos) in the temple courts witnessed it. This public setting in the temple provides both the audience for Peter's sermon and the provocation for the authorities' response in chapter 4.

Translator Notes

1. The verb epeginōskon ('recognized, identified') confirms the man's identity — this is not a stranger but the well-known beggar at the temple gate. The combination thambous kai ekstaseōs ('wonder and astonishment') describes an overwhelming emotional response. Ekstasis (the root of 'ecstasy') literally means 'standing outside oneself' — the crowd is beside themselves with amazement.

Translator Notes

1. The healed man 'clung to' (kratountos) Peter and John — a detail of physical attachment that is both grateful and dramatic. Solomon's Portico (stoa Solomōntos) was a covered colonnade along the eastern side of the temple's outer court. It was a traditional gathering place for teaching (cf. John 10:23) and would become the regular meeting place of the early church (5:12). The adjective ekthambol ('utterly astonished') intensifies the amazement already described in verse 10.

Translator Notes

1. Peter immediately redirects the crowd's attention from the apostles to God. The two potential misunderstandings he addresses — 'our own power' (idia dynamei) and 'our own godliness' (eusebeia) — represent the temptation to attribute the miracle to human ability or human merit. This deflection establishes a pattern repeated throughout Acts: miracles are not the apostles' achievement but God's work through them.

Key Terms

Translator Notes

1. Peter begins with the covenant formula 'The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob' (cf. Exodus 3:6, 15), anchoring his christology in Israel's covenant history. The word paida ('servant/child') echoes Isaiah 52:13 LXX ('my servant shall be exalted and glorified'), identifying Jesus with Isaiah's Suffering Servant. We render 'servant' rather than 'Son' because the Isaianic servant background is primary here, though the filial resonance is present.
2. The accusation is sharp: 'you handed over and denied' (paredōkate kai ērnēsasthe) before Pilate, who wanted to release Jesus. The contrast heightens the guilt: even the pagan governor judged more rightly than the covenant people.
3. [TCR Cross-Reference] References Exodus 3:6 — the TCR OT rendering of that text provides the Hebrew source and explains the translation decisions involved.
4. [TCR Cross-Reference] References Isaiah 52:13 — the TCR OT rendering of that text provides the Hebrew source and explains the translation decisions involved.

Translator Notes

1. The titles 'the Holy One' (ton hagion) and 'the Righteous One' (ton dikaion) are messianic designations drawn from the Old Testament (cf. Isaiah 53:11, 'my righteous servant'). The contrast is devastating: they rejected the Holy and Righteous One and chose a murderer (andrea phonea) — Barabbas (Luke 23:18-25). The irony is sharp: they asked for the life of a killer while demanding the death of the life-giver (v. 15).
2. [TCR Cross-Reference] Echoes Isaiah 53:11. See the TCR's OT rendering for the Hebrew behind this passage and the translation rationale.

Key Terms

Translator Notes

1. The title archēgon tēs zōēs ('author/originator/prince of life') is strikingly paradoxical: the source of life was put to death. The Greek archēgos can mean 'founder, pioneer, author, prince, leader' — it appears again in 5:31 and Hebrews 2:10, 12:2. 'Author of life' captures the creative agency implied. The contrast 'you killed... God raised' is the core kerygma (proclamation) of early Christianity, repeated throughout Acts.

Translator Notes

1. This verse is grammatically complex, with 'name' and 'faith' mentioned twice each. The 'name' (onoma) of Jesus represents his person, authority, and power — it is not a magical incantation but a relationship of trust. The word holoklērian ('complete health, perfect wholeness') appears only here in the New Testament — it means total, nothing-missing wholeness, covering both physical healing and restoration to full community membership.

Translator Notes

1. After the sharp accusations of verses 13-15, Peter softens with a recognition of mitigating circumstance: ignorance (agnoian). This echoes Jesus's prayer on the cross, 'Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing' (Luke 23:34). The inclusion of 'your rulers' (hoi archontes hymōn) extends the ignorance defense to the Sanhedrin and priestly leadership. Ignorance does not remove guilt but makes repentance possible — the door is not shut.

Translator Notes

1. Peter claims that the prophets collectively ('all the prophets,' pantōn tōn prophētōn) spoke of the Messiah's suffering. This is a bold hermeneutical claim — the concept of a suffering Messiah was not the dominant expectation in Second Temple Judaism. Peter reads the entirety of prophetic literature as converging on the cross. The verb prokatēngeilen ('foretold, announced beforehand') emphasizes that the suffering was not an accident but a plan.

Translator Notes

1. Peter uses two verbs: metanoēsate ('repent,' change your mind) and epistrepsate ('turn back, return'). Together they capture the full biblical concept of repentance: a cognitive change (meta-noeo) and a directional change (epi-strephō). The verb exaleiphthēnai ('be wiped away, blotted out') pictures sins being erased from a record — the same word used for wiping tears from eyes in Revelation 21:4.

Translator Notes

1. The phrase kairoi anapsyxeōs ('times of refreshing') is unique to this passage. Anapsyxis means 'cooling, relief, refreshment' — it suggests respite from hardship, a divine breath of fresh air. These times come 'from the presence of the Lord' (apo prosōpou tou kyriou, literally 'from the face of the Lord'). The verb prokecheirismenon ('appointed beforehand, designated in advance') indicates that Jesus's messianic role was established before the events of his earthly life.

Translator Notes

1. The phrase apokatastaseōs pantōn ('restoration of all things') is theologically rich and debated. Apokatastasis means 'restoration to a former state' and was later adopted by Origen and others to argue for universal salvation. In Peter's context, it likely refers to the prophetic hope of cosmic renewal — the restoration of all that sin and evil have damaged (cf. Isaiah 65:17, Romans 8:19-22). Jesus remains in heaven 'until' (achri) these times arrive, implying his return will coincide with or inaugurate the restoration.
2. [TCR Cross-Reference] Quotes Isaiah 65:17. The TCR rendering of that OT passage preserves the Hebrew source text and documents the translation decisions behind it.

Translator Notes

1. Peter quotes Deuteronomy 18:15, 18-19 — Moses' promise of a future prophet who would be 'like me' (hōs eme). In Jewish tradition, this promise was understood to refer to a specific future prophet (cf. John 1:21, 6:14). Peter identifies Jesus as this prophet. The verb anastēsei ('will raise up') carries a double meaning in context: God 'raised up' Jesus both in the sense of appointing him as prophet and in the sense of raising him from the dead.
2. [TCR Cross-Reference] Draws on Deuteronomy 18:15. Consult the TCR rendering of that passage for the underlying Hebrew and the rationale for key translation choices.

Translator Notes

1. Peter intensifies the Deuteronomy passage by adding exolethreuthēsetai ('will be utterly destroyed'), which echoes the language of covenant curse (cf. Leviticus 23:29, 'cut off from the people'). The warning is severe: failure to heed the prophet-like-Moses is not mere ignorance but covenant violation. This sharpens the call to repentance — rejecting Jesus is not a neutral choice but an act with eschatological consequences.
2. [TCR Cross-Reference] References Deuteronomy 18:19 — the TCR OT rendering of that text provides the Hebrew source and explains the translation decisions involved.
3. [TCR Cross-Reference] References Leviticus 23:29 — the TCR OT rendering of that text provides the Hebrew source and explains the translation decisions involved.

Translator Notes

1. Peter extends the prophetic witness beyond Moses to include the entire prophetic tradition beginning with Samuel, traditionally considered the first of the classical prophets (after Moses). The phrase 'these days' (tas hēmeras tautas) is deliberately ambiguous — it includes the present time of fulfillment as well as the future consummation. Peter's point is that the entire prophetic corpus converges on the events now unfolding.

Translator Notes

1. Peter quotes Genesis 22:18 (cf. 12:3), connecting the present moment to the Abrahamic covenant. The word diathēkē ('covenant') is the Septuagint translation of the Hebrew berit. The phrase 'sons of the prophets and of the covenant' (huioi tōn prophētōn kai tēs diathēkēs) means heirs and beneficiaries — the audience stands in the direct line of covenant promise. The word sperma ('seed, offspring') is singular, which later Christian interpretation (cf. Galatians 3:16) applied to Christ individually, though the original context includes collective meaning.
2. [TCR Cross-Reference] This verse quotes Genesis 22:18 — see the TCR rendering of that passage for the Hebrew source text and translation decisions.

Translator Notes

1. The sermon ends where it began — with God's servant (paida, the same word as v. 13). The word prōton ('first') is crucial: the gospel goes to Israel first, before extending to the Gentiles — a priority that Luke will trace through the entire book of Acts (cf. 13:46). The blessing is defined not as material prosperity but as moral transformation: 'turning each of you from your wicked ways' (apostrephein hekaston apo tōn ponēriōn hymōn). The verb anastēsas ('having raised up') again carries the double sense of 'appointing' and 'resurrecting.'