Acts 4 - New Catholic Bible (NCB)

Chapter 4

First Phase of the Trial: A Warning.^{[a] 1} While they were still speaking to the people, the priests, the captain of the temple guard,^[b] and the Sadducees came over to them, ² greatly annoyed that they were teaching and proclaiming to the people the resurrection of the dead through Jesus. ³ Therefore, they arrested them and placed them in custody until the next day, for it was already evening. ⁴ However, many of those who had listened to their message became believers, their total approaching five thousand.

⁵ On the next day, their rulers, elders, and scribes assembled in Jerusalem, ⁶ with Annas the high priest, Caiaphas, John,^[c] Alexander, and all who belonged to the high priestly family. ⁷ They then brought the apostles before them and asked, “By what power or by what name have you done this?”

⁸ Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers of the people and elders, ⁹ if you are interrogating us today in regard to a good deed done to someone who was crippled and how he was healed, ¹⁰ let it be known to you and to all the people of Israel that it was in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth whom you crucified, and whom God raised from the dead, that this man standing before you was cured. ¹¹ This is

‘the stone rejected by you, the builders,
that has become the cornerstone.’

¹² There is no salvation in anyone else, nor is there any other name under heaven given to men by which we can be saved.”

¹³ They were amazed to see the fearlessness shown by Peter and John and to discover that they were uneducated ordinary men. They recognized them as companions of Jesus, ¹⁴ but, when they saw the man who had been cured standing beside them, they could not say anything in reply. ¹⁵ They ordered them to stand outside while the Sanhedrin discussed the matter.

¹⁶ Then they said, “What are we going to do with these men? Everyone living in Jerusalem is aware that a notable sign has been worked through them, and we clearly cannot deny it. ¹⁷ But to stop the news from spreading any further among the people, let us issue them a warning never again to speak to anyone in his name.”

¹⁸ Therefore, they summoned them back and ordered them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. ¹⁹ However, Peter and John answered them, “You be the judges about whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God. ²⁰ We cannot possibly refrain from speaking about what we have seen and heard.”

²¹ After threatening them once again, they released them, for they could find no way to punish them inasmuch as the people were praising God for what had happened. ²² For the man who had been miraculously healed was over forty years old.

²³ The Community’s Prayer for the Apostles.^[d] As soon as they were released, they went back^[e] to the community and reported everything that the chief priests and the elders had said to them. ²⁴ When they heard it, they raised their voices to God with one accord and said, “Lord, maker of heaven and earth and the sea and of everything that is in them, ²⁵ you said by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of our ancestor David, your servant,

‘Why do the Gentiles rage
and the peoples devise futile plots?
²⁶ The kings of the earth take their stand,
and the rulers gather together
against the Lord and against his Anointed.’

²⁷ “Indeed, in this very city both Herod and Pontius Pilate along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel plotted against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, ²⁸ to do whatever your hand and your decree had predestined to take place. ²⁹ And now, O Lord, be aware of their threats, and grant that your servants may proclaim your word with all boldness, ³⁰ as you stretch out your hand to heal and as signs and wonders are accomplished through the name of your holy servant Jesus.”

³¹ When they had finished their prayer, the place where they were gathered together shook, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and proclaimed the word of God fearlessly.

³² Life of the First Community—II.^[f] The entire community of believers was united in heart and soul. No one claimed any of his possessions as his own, for everything was held in common. ³³ With great power, the apostles bore witness to the resurrection^[g] of the Lord Jesus, and they were all greatly respected. ³⁴ There was never anyone among them in need, because those who were the owners of lands or houses would sell them, bring the proceeds of the sale, ³⁵ and lay them at the feet of the apostles, to be distributed to any who were in need.

³⁶ Barnabas.^[h] One such instance involved Joseph, a Levite and a native of Cyprus, to whom the apostles gave the name Barnabas, meaning “son of encouragement.” ³⁷ He sold a field that belonged to him and then brought the money to the apostles and laid it at their feet.

Footnotes

1. Acts 4:1 The religious authorities understand very well the main points of Peter’s discourse: Jesus has been raised; therefore, he has entered the sphere of God. Christians are not healers possessed of some secret or magical art; they act and teach with an authority that does not belong to a group of people. They do it in the name of Jesus Christ. When the Jewish authorities ask Peter and John why they are still preaching in the name of Jesus even though they have been told not to do so anymore, Peter and John answer, “You be the judges about whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God. We cannot possibly refrain from speaking about what we have seen and heard.”
   Concerning the name of Jesus, Peter says, “There is no salvation in anyone else, nor is there any other name under heaven given to men by which we can be saved.” This is a call to salvation. To act in the name of Jesus, or to invoke him, means that every action of God is done through Jesus. God’s role in the last times announced by Joel (3:5) is fulfilled through Jesus alone. If the Jewish authorities accept the fact that the movement of the History of Salvation lies in this new initiative of Jesus, they would signal the failure of their mandate and their institutions. As it is, they seek to escape embarrassment by cutting short the interrogation. But they cannot withstand the assurance of the apostles.
2. Acts 4:1 Captain of the temple guard: a priest who oversaw the activities of the police within the temple. Sadducees: a religious sect of the Jews that insisted upon human free will but denied immortality, the resurrection, and the existence of angels.
3. Acts 4:6 John and Alexander: not otherwise known.
4. Acts 4:23 The prayer begins with an invocation of the Creator, embracing the horizon of the world: heaven, earth, and sea. It follows the traditional practice of calling for God’s protection of his people. This community is the new people compelled to make a new Exodus; and this people needs strength from God for this departure and this journey. It is rejected by the Jews who act like the pagan nations as these are characterized by the Old Testament. The future of the people is going to be bleak if its authorities refuse to recognize the name of God’s holy Servant.
   The invocation of the prayer for the apostles is made in the name of Jesus, and all the new people receive the gift of the word as at the first Pentecost, but in a situation of defense and interrogation. Such a prayer is the type of Christian prayer for times of crisis, for a community that must face an uncertain future and an unexpected road.
5. Acts 4:23 Went back: probably to the same Upper Room where the apostles had met (Acts 1:13) and where the community may have continued to meet (Acts 12:12).
6. Acts 4:32 These verses present a view of the early Church. Luke stresses the internal bonds of the community at the moment of persecution. The picture he paints shows the voluntary sharing of material possessions, an activity connected with Jesus’ teaching on detachment and fraternal love (see Lk 8:3; 12:33; 16:9-13). The text does not say that all sold their property—only that they were prepared to do so if a member of the community was in need. The comportment of Barnabas and then that of Ananias and Sapphira demonstrate the right use of property in the Church.
7. Acts 4:33 Bore witness to the resurrection: although the death of Christ was a significant event, his Resurrection was the most compelling event of his life, and the apostles could not but proclaim it.
8. Acts 4:36 Barnabas is given as an example of the new understanding of property. He will soon play a chief role in the life of the Church (Acts 9:27; 11:22-30; 12:25; 13:1-15, 46; see 1 Cor 9:6; Gal 2; Col 4:10).