Peter and John Before the Council

And as they were speaking to the people, the priests and (A)the captain of the temple and (B)the Sadducees came upon them, greatly annoyed because they were teaching the people and proclaiming (C)in Jesus the resurrection from the dead. And they arrested them and (D)put them in custody until the next day, for it was already evening. But many of those who had heard the word believed, and (E)the number of the men came to about five thousand.

On the next day their rulers and elders and scribes gathered together in Jerusalem, with (F)Annas the high priest and (G)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, (H)“By what power or (I)by what name did you do this?” Then Peter, (J)filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers of the people and elders, if we are being examined today (K)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 (L)by the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified, (M)whom God raised from the dead—by him this man is standing before you well. 11 (N)This Jesus[a] is the stone that was (O)rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone.[b] 12 And there is (P)salvation (Q)in no one else, for (R)there is no other (S)name under heaven given among men[c] by which we must be saved.”

13 (T)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 (U)standing beside them, (V)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, (W)“What shall we do with these men? For that (X)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 (Y)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, (Z)“Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge, 20 for (AA)we cannot but speak of what (AB)we have seen and heard.” 21 And when they had further threatened them, they let them go, finding no way to punish them, (AC)because of the people, for all were praising God (AD)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

Peter and John are Tried before the Jewish Council

While they were speaking to the people, the priests, the commander of the Temple guards, and the Sadducees came to them. They were greatly disturbed that Peter and John[a] were teaching the people and announcing that Jesus had been resurrected[b] from the dead. So they arrested them and placed them in custody until the next day, since it was already evening. But many of those who heard their message believed, and the men grew to number about 5,000.

The next day, their rulers, elders, and scribes met in Jerusalem with Annas the high priest, Caiaphas, John,[c] Alexander, and the rest of the high priest’s family. They made Peter and John[d] stand in front of them and began asking, “By what power or by what name did you do this?”

Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, told them, “Rulers and elders of the people! If we are being questioned today for a good deed done for someone who was sick or to learn how this man was healed, 10 you and all the people of Israel must understand that this man stands healthy before you because of the name of Jesus from Nazareth, whom you crucified, but whom God raised from the dead. 11 He is

‘the stone that was rejected by you builders,
    which has become the cornerstone.’[e]

12 There is no salvation by anyone else, for there is no other name under heaven given among people by which we must be saved.”

13 Now when the Jewish leaders[f] saw the boldness of Peter and John and found out that they were uneducated and ordinary men, they were amazed and realized that they had been with Jesus. 14 And seeing the man who was healed standing with them, they could not say anything against them. 15 So they ordered them to leave the Council[g] and began to discuss the matter among themselves. 16 They said, “What should we do with these men? For it’s obvious to everybody living in Jerusalem that an unmistakable sign has been done by them, and we cannot deny it. 17 But to keep it from spreading any further among the people, let us warn them never again to speak to anyone in this name.”

18 So they called Peter and John[h] back in and ordered them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. 19 But Peter and John answered them, “You must decide whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than God, 20 for we cannot stop talking about what we’ve seen and heard.”

21 So they threatened Peter and John[i] even more and then let them go. They couldn’t find any way to punish them, because all the people were praising God for what had happened, 22 since the man on whom this sign of healing had been performed was more than 40 years old.

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Footnotes

  1. Acts 4:2 Lit. they
  2. Acts 4:2 Lit. that in the case of Jesus there had been a resurrection
  3. Acts 4:6 Other mss. read Jonathan
  4. Acts 4:7 Lit. them
  5. Acts 4:11 Or capstone; cf. Ps 118:22
  6. Acts 4:13 Lit. when they
  7. Acts 4:15 Or Sanhedrin
  8. Acts 4:18 Lit. called them
  9. Acts 4:21 Lit. threatened them