Verses 1-11: Mercy at the Temple Gate and a Sign that Points Beyond Itself

¹ Peter and John were going up into the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour. ² A certain man who was lame from his mother’s womb was being carried, whom they laid daily at the door of the temple which is called Beautiful, to ask gifts for the needy of those who entered into the temple. ³ Seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, he asked to receive gifts for the needy. ⁴ Peter, fastening his eyes on him, with John, said, “Look at us.” ⁵ He listened to them, expecting to receive something from them. ⁶ But Peter said, “I have no silver or gold, but what I have, that I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, get up and walk!” ⁷ He took him by the right hand and raised him up. Immediately his feet and his ankle bones received strength. ⁸ Leaping up, he stood and began to walk. He entered with them into the temple, walking, leaping, and praising God. ⁹ All the people saw him walking and praising God. ¹⁰ They recognized him, that it was he who used to sit begging for gifts for the needy at the Beautiful Gate of the temple. They were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him. ¹¹ As the lame man who was healed held on to Peter and John, all the people ran together to them in the porch that is called Solomon’s, greatly wondering.

• God meets human need in the context of worship and prayer:

  The narrative begins “at the hour of prayer,” showing mercy and ministry occurring within Israel’s life of worship, reminding the church that love of God and love of neighbor belong together, and that public worship should not dull attentiveness to suffering but sharpen it.

• The name of Jesus is not a slogan but the living authority of the risen Lord:

  Peter does not offer money, but commands healing “In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth,” indicating that the decisive power is not human resources but the authority and presence of Jesus himself at work through his apostles.

• Grace lifts the helpless and produces doxology:

  The man is described as lame “from his mother’s womb,” emphasizing inability and long-standing need; yet he is raised up, strengthened, and responds by entering the temple “walking, leaping, and praising God,” showing that God’s restoring mercy aims at worship, not merely improved circumstances.

• Signs invite wonder as a doorway to witness:

  The public recognition and “wonder and amazement” of the crowd sets the stage for proclamation; the miracle is not an endpoint but a summons for the people to consider what God is revealing about Jesus.

Verses 12-16: Christ Exalted, Human Sin Exposed, and Faith’s Instrumental Role

¹² When Peter saw it, he responded to the people, “You men of Israel, why do you marvel at this man? Why do you fasten your eyes on us, as though by our own power or godliness we had made him walk? ¹³ The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his Servant Jesus, whom you delivered up, and denied in the presence of Pilate, when he had determined to release him. ¹⁴ But you denied the Holy and Righteous One and asked for a murderer to be granted to you, ¹⁵ and killed the Prince of life, whom God raised from the dead, to which we are witnesses. ¹⁶ By faith in his name, his name has made this man strong, whom you see and know. Yes, the faith which is through him has given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all.

• True ministry refuses self-glory and redirects attention to God:

  Peter explicitly rejects any interpretation that treats the apostles as the source—“as though by our own power or godliness we had made him walk”—teaching that authentic Christian witness diverts admiration away from human agents and toward God’s action.

• The gospel is anchored in Israel’s God and Israel’s story:

  Peter proclaims continuity: “The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his Servant Jesus,” presenting Jesus not as a rival to Israel’s faith but as God’s climactic act within it, honoring the shared scriptural and covenantal framework.

• Human responsibility and divine vindication stand side by side:

  The sermon holds together a sober indictment—“whom you delivered up,” “denied,” “killed”—with God’s decisive reversal—“whom God raised from the dead.” This preserves both the seriousness of human sin and the sovereignty of God who overcomes it by raising Jesus.

• Faith is the appointed means, and its effectiveness comes “through him”:

  Peter attributes the healing “By faith in his name,” yet immediately clarifies that this faith is not self-generated triumphalism: “the faith which is through him.” Theologically, the text supports both the real necessity of believing response and the deeper truth that God is the giver and sustainer of what he requires, so that all glory returns to Christ.

Verses 17-21: Ignorance Acknowledged, Prophecy Fulfilled, Repentance Commanded, Hope Announced

¹⁷ “Now, brothers, I know that you did this in ignorance, as did also your rulers. ¹⁸ But the things which God announced by the mouth of all his prophets, that Christ should suffer, he thus fulfilled. ¹⁹ “Repent therefore, and turn again, that your sins may be blotted out, so that there may come times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord, ²⁰ and that he may send Christ Jesus, who was ordained for you before, ²¹ whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God spoke long ago by the mouth of his holy prophets.

• The gospel names sin truthfully while extending pastoral address:

  Peter does not minimize guilt, yet he addresses them as “brothers” and recognizes “ignorance,” modeling how proclamation can be both piercing and compassionate—calling people to account without closing the door to mercy.

• Christ’s suffering was not an accident but God’s foretold fulfillment:

  The suffering of the Christ is presented as what “God announced by the mouth of all his prophets” and then “fulfilled,” grounding the passion of Jesus in divine purpose and scriptural promise rather than mere political tragedy.

• Repentance is commanded, and forgiveness is promised:

  “Repent therefore, and turn again” presents a real summons to the will and heart, while “that your sins may be blotted out” proclaims the reality of divine pardon. The text thereby holds together God’s gracious initiative and the necessity of a genuine human turning.

• Salvation includes present renewal and future hope centered on Christ:

  Peter links forgiveness to “times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord” and also to the future horizon: Christ Jesus will be sent, and heaven receives him “until the times of restoration of all things.” Christian hope is thus both experienced now (refreshing) and awaited (restoration), always focused on the person and mission of Christ.

• God’s saving plan is ancient, public, and prophetic:

  The “restoration of all things” is not presented as novelty but as what “God spoke long ago by the mouth of his holy prophets,” underscoring the trustworthiness of God’s promises and the coherence of redemption across the whole scriptural witness.

Verses 22-26: The Promised Prophet, Covenant Blessing, and the Urgency of Listening

²² For Moses indeed said to the fathers, ‘The Lord God will raise up a prophet for you from among your brothers, like me. You shall listen to him in all things whatever he says to you. ²³ It will be that every soul that will not listen to that prophet will be utterly destroyed from among the people.’ ²⁴ Yes, and all the prophets from Samuel and those who followed after, as many as have spoken, they also told of these days. ²⁵ You are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying to Abraham, ‘All the families of the earth will be blessed through your offspring.’ ²⁶ God, having raised up his servant Jesus, sent him to you first to bless you, in turning away every one of you from your wickedness.”

• Jesus demands a response because he is God’s appointed voice:

  Moses’ words—“You shall listen to him in all things whatever he says to you”—frame Jesus as the climactic messenger to whom obedience is due. The gospel is therefore not merely information about Jesus but a divine summons to heed him.

• Grace carries real covenant warnings as well as real covenant privileges:

  The warning that the one who “will not listen” will be “utterly destroyed” highlights that rejecting God’s provided prophet has grave consequences; covenant belonging cannot be treated as entitlement divorced from faithful hearing.

• God’s promise to Abraham is worldwide in scope:

  By citing, “All the families of the earth will be blessed through your offspring,” Peter shows that the covenant always aimed beyond one nation to the nations, establishing a theological basis for the church’s universal mission while honoring Israel’s foundational role.

• God’s blessing comes as moral rescue, not mere relief:

  Jesus is sent “to bless you, in turning away every one of you from your wickedness,” teaching that God’s blessing is not only external help but inward conversion—deliverance from sin’s power and a reorientation of life toward holiness.

• The offer is genuinely extended, and the blessing is personally applied:

  “Sent him to you first” emphasizes the historical order of God’s mercy, while “turning away every one of you” highlights the personal nature of salvation: God addresses a community, yet he turns individuals from wickedness, joining corporate promise with personal transformation.

Conclusion: Acts 3 presents a merciful sign that opens into a Christ-centered proclamation: God glorifies his Servant Jesus, exposes human guilt, vindicates Jesus by resurrection, and offers forgiveness through repentance and turning again. The chapter ties the present call of the gospel to the ancient prophetic witness, warns that refusing to listen to God’s appointed prophet has serious consequences, and expands covenant hope outward to “all the families of the earth,” while insisting that God’s blessing reaches its goal in turning people away from wickedness and into renewed life before the Lord.