Peter and John at the Council

4 While Peter and John were speaking to the people, they were approached by priests, the captain of the soldiers that guarded the Temple, and Sadducees [^CJewish religious party with most influence in the Jewish high court (Sanhedrin) and among the Temple leadership]. ² They were ·upset [annoyed; disturbed] because the two apostles were teaching the people and were ·preaching [proclaiming] ·that people will rise from the dead through the power of Jesus [^Lthe resurrection of the dead in Jesus; ^CSadducees did not believe in the afterlife]. ³ They ·grabbed [seized; arrested] Peter and John and put them in ·jail [custody]. Since it was already ·night [evening], they kept them in jail until the next day. ⁴ But many of those who had heard Peter and John preach believed the ·things they said [message; ^Lword]. ·There were now about five thousand in the group of believers [or The number of men grew to about five thousand; ^Cprobably referring to adult males and so household units].

⁵ The next day the rulers, the elders, and the ·teachers of the law [scribes] ·met [assembled] in Jerusalem. ⁶ Annas the high priest, Caiaphas [^CAnnas was the former high priest and father-in-law of Caiaphas, the official high priest; Luke 3:2], John, and Alexander [^Cperhaps sons of Annas] were there, as well as ·everyone [or others] from the high priest’s family. ⁷ They made Peter and John stand before them and then ·asked [questioned; interrogated] them, “By what power or ·authority [^Lin/by what name] did you do this?”

⁸ Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers of the people and you elders, ⁹ are you ·questioning [examining] us [^Ltoday] about a ·good thing [good deed; act of kindness] that was done to a ·crippled [lame; sick] man? Are you asking us ·who made him well [or how he was made well/healed]? ¹⁰ We want all of you and all the people [of Israel] to know that this man was made well ·by the power [^Lin/by the name] of Jesus Christ ·from Nazareth [or the Nazarene]. You crucified him, but God raised him from the dead. This man was ·crippled [lame; sick], but he is now ·well [healthy] and able to stand here before you because of the ·power [^Lname] of Jesus. ¹¹ Jesus is

¹² ·Jesus is the only One who can save people [^LSalvation is found/present in no one else]. ·No one else [^LNo other name given to people] ·in the world [^Lunder heaven] is able to save us.”

¹³ The leaders saw that Peter and John were ·not afraid to speak [bold; confident], and they ·understood [discovered; found out] that these men ·had no special training or education [or were common/ordinary and uneducated; ^Cno formal training from a rabbi in teaching Scripture]. So they were amazed. Then they realized that Peter and John had been with Jesus. ¹⁴ Because they saw the healed man standing there beside the two apostles, they could say nothing against them. ¹⁵ After the leaders ordered them to leave the ·meeting [or Sanhedrin; ^Ca council of the chief leaders of the Jewish people], they began to ·talk to [confer with] each other. ¹⁶ They said, “What shall we do with these men? Everyone [^Lwho lives] in Jerusalem knows they have done a great ·miracle [^Lsign], and we cannot say it is not true. ¹⁷ But to keep it from spreading among the people, we must warn them not to talk to people anymore ·using that name [or about that name/person].”

¹⁸ So they called Peter and John in again and ·told [commanded; ordered] them not to ·speak [preach] or to teach at all in the name of Jesus. ¹⁹ But Peter and John answered them, “You ·decide [judge] what ·God would want [^Lis right before God]. Should we ·obey [listen to] you or God? ²⁰ [^LFor] We cannot ·keep quiet [stop speaking] about what we have seen and heard.” ²¹ The leaders ·warned [threatened] the apostles again and let them go free. They could not find a way to punish them, because all the people were praising God for what had ·been done [happened]. ²² The man who received the ·miracle [^Lsign] of healing was more than forty years old.

The Believers Pray

²³ After Peter and John ·left the meeting of leaders [^Lwere released], they went to their own group and ·told them [reported] everything the ·leading [^Tchief] priests and the elders had said to them. ²⁴ When the believers heard this, they ·prayed [^Lraised their voices] to God together, “·Lord [or Sovereign; Master], you are the One who made the sky, the earth, the sea, and everything in them [Gen. 1; Ps. 8; 19; 104]. ²⁵ By the Holy Spirit, through our father David your ·servant [or child], you said:

²⁷ ·These things really happened when [For truly; Indeed] Herod, Pontius Pilate, and ·some Jews [the people of Israel] and Gentiles all came together here in ·Jerusalem [^Lthis city] against your holy ·servant [child] Jesus, the One you ·made to be the Christ [^Lanointed; Luke 4:18; ^CChrist in Greek and Messiah in Hebrew mean “anointed one”]. ²⁸ These people made your plan happen because of your ·power [^Lhand] and your ·will [purpose]. [or ^LThey did whatever your hand and your purpose predestined/determined beforehand to be done.] ²⁹ And now, Lord, ·listen to [consider] their threats. Lord, help us, your ·servants [slaves], to speak your ·word [message] ·without fear [^Lwith all boldness/confidence]. ³⁰ ·Show us your power [^LStretch out your hand] to heal. Give ·proofs [signs] and ·make miracles happen [wonders] by the ·power [^Lname] of Jesus, your holy ·servant [or child].”

³¹ After they had prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. They were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke God’s ·word [message] ·without fear [^Lwith boldness/confidence/courage].

The Believers Share

³² The group of believers were ·united in their hearts and spirit [^Lone heart and mind/soul; Jer. 32:39]. ·All those in the group acted as though their private property belonged to everyone in the group [^LNo one said any of their possessions was their own]. In fact, ·they shared everything [or everything was held in common]. ³³ With great power the apostles ·were telling people [gave testimony; witnessed] that the Lord Jesus was truly raised from the dead. And ·God blessed all the believers very much [^Lgreat grace was on all of them]. ³⁴ [^LFor] There were no needy people among them [Deut. 15:4]. [^LBecause] From time to time those who owned fields or houses sold them, brought the money from the sale, ³⁵ and ·gave it to [^Llaid it at the feet of] the apostles. Then the money was ·given [distributed] to anyone who needed it.

³⁶ One of the believers was named Joseph, a Levite [^Cthe Israelite tribe set apart for priestly service] born in Cyprus [^Can island to the west of the coast of Syria]. The apostles called him Barnabas (which means ·“one who encourages” [^L“son of encouragement”]). ³⁷ Joseph owned a field, sold it, brought the money, and ·gave it to [^Llaid it at the feet of] the apostles.