The next day the rulers,(A) the elders and the teachers of the law met in Jerusalem. Annas the high priest was there, and so were Caiaphas,(B) John, Alexander and others of the high priest’s family. They had Peter and John brought before them and began to question them: “By what power or what name did you do this?”

Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit,(C) said to them: “Rulers and elders of the people!(D) If we are being called to account today for an act of kindness shown to a man who was lame(E) and are being asked how he was healed, 10 then know this, you and all the people of Israel: It is by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth,(F) whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead,(G) that this man stands before you healed. 11 Jesus is

“‘the stone you builders rejected,
    which has become the cornerstone.’[a](H)

12 Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.”(I)

13 When they saw the courage of Peter and John(J) and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men,(K) they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.(L) 14 But since they could see the man who had been healed standing there with them, there was nothing they could say. 15 So they ordered them to withdraw from the Sanhedrin(M) and then conferred together. 16 “What are we going to do with these men?”(N) they asked. “Everyone living in Jerusalem knows they have performed a notable sign,(O) and we cannot deny it. 17 But to stop this thing from spreading any further among the people, we must warn them to speak no longer to anyone in this name.”

18 Then they called them in again and commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus.(P) 19 But Peter and John replied, “Which is right in God’s eyes: to listen to you, or to him?(Q) You be the judges! 20 As for us, we cannot help speaking(R) about what we have seen and heard.”(S)

21 After further threats they let them go. They could not decide how to punish them, because all the people(T) were praising God(U) for what had happened. 22 For the man who was miraculously healed was over forty years old.

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Footnotes

  1. Acts 4:11 Psalm 118:22

On the next day their rulers and elders and scribes gathered together in Jerusalem, with (A)Annas the high priest and (B)Caiaphas and John and Alexander, and all who were of the high-priestly family. And when they had set them in the midst, they inquired, (C)“By what power or (D)by what name did you do this?” Then Peter, (E)filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers of the people and elders, if we are being examined today (F)concerning a good deed done to a crippled man, by what means this man has been healed, 10 let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that (G)by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, (H)whom God raised from the dead—by him this man is standing before you well. 11 (I)This Jesus[a] is the stone that was (J)rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone.[b] 12 And there is (K)salvation (L)in no one else, for (M)there is no other (N)name under heaven given among men[c] by which we must be saved.”

13 (O)Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus. 14 But seeing the man who was healed (P)standing beside them, (Q)they had nothing to say in opposition. 15 But when they had commanded them to leave the council, they conferred with one another, 16 saying, (R)“What shall we do with these men? For that (S)a notable sign has been performed through them is evident to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it. 17 But in order that it may spread no further among the people, let us warn them (T)to speak no more to anyone in this name.” 18 So they called them and charged them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. 19 But Peter and John answered them, (U)“Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge, 20 for (V)we cannot but speak of what (W)we have seen and heard.” 21 And when they had further threatened them, they let them go, finding no way to punish them, (X)because of the people, for all were praising God (Y)for what had happened. 22 For the man on whom this sign of healing was performed was more than forty years old.

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Footnotes

  1. Acts 4:11 Greek This one
  2. Acts 4:11 Greek the head of the corner
  3. Acts 4:12 The Greek word anthropoi refers here to both men and women

5-7 The next day a meeting was called in Jerusalem. The rulers, religious leaders, religion scholars, Annas the Chief Priest, Caiaphas, John, Alexander—everybody who was anybody was there. They stood Peter and John in the middle of the room and grilled them: “Who put you in charge here? What business do you have doing this?”

8-12 With that, Peter, full of the Holy Spirit, let loose: “Rulers and leaders of the people, if we have been brought to trial today for helping a sick man, put under investigation regarding this healing, I’ll be completely frank with you—we have nothing to hide. By the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, the One you killed on a cross, the One God raised from the dead, by means of his name this man stands before you healthy and whole. Jesus is ‘the stone you masons threw out, which is now the cornerstone.’ Salvation comes no other way; no other name has been or will be given to us by which we can be saved, only this one.”

13-14 They couldn’t take their eyes off them—Peter and John standing there so confident, so sure of themselves! Their fascination deepened when they realized these two were laymen with no training in Scripture or formal education. They recognized them as companions of Jesus, but with the man right before them, seeing him standing there so upright—so healed!—what could they say against that?

15-17 They sent them out of the room so they could work out a plan. They talked it over: “What can we do with these men? By now it’s known all over town that a miracle has occurred, and that they are behind it. There is no way we can refute that. But so that it doesn’t go any further, let’s silence them with threats so they won’t dare to use Jesus’ name ever again with anyone.”

18-20 They called them back and warned them that they were on no account ever again to speak or teach in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John spoke right back, “Whether it’s right in God’s eyes to listen to you rather than to God, you decide. As for us, there’s no question—we can’t keep quiet about what we’ve seen and heard.”

21-22 The religious leaders renewed their threats, but then released them. They couldn’t come up with a charge that would stick, that would keep them in jail. The people wouldn’t have stood for it—they were all praising God over what had happened. The man who had been miraculously healed was over forty years old.

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The next day the council of all the rulers and elders and teachers of religious law met in Jerusalem. Annas the high priest was there, along with Caiaphas, John, Alexander, and other relatives of the high priest. They brought in the two disciples and demanded, “By what power, or in whose name, have you done this?”

Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers and elders of our people, are we being questioned today because we’ve done a good deed for a crippled man? Do you want to know how he was healed? 10 Let me clearly state to all of you and to all the people of Israel that he was healed by the powerful name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene,[a] the man you crucified but whom God raised from the dead. 11 For Jesus is the one referred to in the Scriptures, where it says,

‘The stone that you builders rejected
    has now become the cornerstone.’[b]

12 There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved.”

13 The members of the council were amazed when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, for they could see that they were ordinary men with no special training in the Scriptures. They also recognized them as men who had been with Jesus. 14 But since they could see the man who had been healed standing right there among them, there was nothing the council could say. 15 So they ordered Peter and John out of the council chamber[c] and conferred among themselves.

16 “What should we do with these men?” they asked each other. “We can’t deny that they have performed a miraculous sign, and everybody in Jerusalem knows about it. 17 But to keep them from spreading their propaganda any further, we must warn them not to speak to anyone in Jesus’ name again.” 18 So they called the apostles back in and commanded them never again to speak or teach in the name of Jesus.

19 But Peter and John replied, “Do you think God wants us to obey you rather than him? 20 We cannot stop telling about everything we have seen and heard.”

21 The council then threatened them further, but they finally let them go because they didn’t know how to punish them without starting a riot. For everyone was praising God 22 for this miraculous sign—the healing of a man who had been lame for more than forty years.

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Footnotes

  1. 4:10 Or Jesus Christ of Nazareth.
  2. 4:11 Ps 118:22.
  3. 4:15 Greek the Sanhedrin.