Acts 4:28Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

The meaning of their words is this: they, the Jews, did not prevail by themselves. Rather, You accomplished everything by permitting it and bringing it to completion, as One supremely skilled and wise. You ordered even the enemies themselves according to Your will. Here they point to His supreme skill and wisdom. Though those men gathered with a murderous intention, as enemies and adversaries, they nevertheless did what You willed, "what Your hand and Your counsel predetermined to take place." What does "Your hand" mean? Here, it seems to me, he calls both power and counsel the hand. It is enough for You, he says, simply to will. For no one predetermines by compulsion. Thus the expression "Your hand" means what You commanded. Either he says this, or that the Lord accomplished it by His own hand. Therefore, as they then devised vain things, so now also, they say, make them devise vain things.

"To do whatever Your hand and Your counsel had predetermined to be done." That is, they did not have such power in themselves. Rather, You, Lord, who grant Your consent to all things and bring all things to completion, You, the good and wise Craftsman, turn the work of enemies toward the fulfillment of Your will. For the priests and the other Jews gathered together as enemies, yet they did what was pleasing to You. What does the expression "Your hand had predetermined" mean? In my opinion, this expression here signifies power and will. It has the same meaning as the phrase, "It is enough for You alone to will, because no one predetermines what You establish."

It goes without saying that this prohibition and threat had no effect on the apostles. They returned home after experiencing the first persecution for the name of Christ. They had also seen the first instance of the Holy Spirit's help. Jesus Christ had foretold that it would not be they who spoke at trial, but the Holy Spirit. Therefore they first resolved to pray to God that He would continue His help to them, through signs and wonders, for the conversion of unbelievers. Then, having received a new sign confirming God's good pleasure, for the place where they prayed was shaken, they preached the Gospel with still greater boldness.

Peter and John related to their own people what the chief priests and elders had said to them. Here, as before, the writer of Acts does not define more closely the content of the threats with which Peter and John were released from the council chamber. But the content of the prayer shows this to us. Through it the souls of the believers responded to the news of these threats. This first public Christian prayer known to us is a prayer of supplication. The believers entreat almighty God, the Creator of heaven and earth, to defend them against their persecutors. They ask Him to grant them strength to remain firm and fearless confessors of Christ's name while suffering for Christ.

"To do" and so forth: by this uprising they supposed that they would attain their own aims, to kill Jesus as the unrecognized Messiah. Yet, without knowing it, they did what God had predetermined from eternity. By the Messiah's death He would redeem all mankind from the consequences of man's fall, and restore it to its former state with abundance. Compare Chrysostom and Theophylact. "Your hand": the hand is a symbol of the power that brings the determinations of will or counsel into effect. Compare verse 30; Acts 7:50; Acts 13:11; 1 Pet 5:6.

In explaining the relation of the psalm to Herod and Pilate, who rose up against Jesus Christ together with Gentiles and Jews, the apostles show the futility of the rebels' efforts. In doing evil, they accomplished the good which God had predetermined to do in His eternal counsel concerning the salvation of men. This predetermination, or counsel of God's will, is spoken of elsewhere in this book (see Acts 7:60; 13:36), and by other apostles (see Heb 6:17). The same must be said of the mighty hand of God, which orders all things (see Acts 4:30; 1 Pet 5:6). The enemies who rose up against Jesus Christ reached their evil aims and triumphed. But through them the Lord was attaining His own purposes in ordering salvation, by sending His Son to redeeming sufferings for mankind.