By stretching forth thy hand to cures and signs and wonders, to be done by the name of thy holy Son, Jesus.
εν τω την χειρα σου εκτεινειν σε εις ιασιν και σημεια και τερατα γινεσθαι δια του ονοματος του αγιου παιδος σου ιησου
5 Church Fathers comment on this verse
If miracles are done in His name, their boldness will be great, they say. As for themselves, they promise that they will not be afraid. They also ask for signs. "While," they say, "You stretch out Your hand for healing, and for signs and wonders to be done." And this is excellent, because without it, however great a zeal they showed, they would have done everything in vain.
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.
Because of the threats uttered by the council, their thought turns in remembrance to the prediction of the Spirit of God through the Psalmist. It foretold the rising of the earthly authorities against Jesus Christ. They see the saying of the second psalm, verses 1-2, exactly fulfilled in the history of the sufferings and death of Jesus Christ. In their thought, the Psalmist's "Gentiles" are the Romans. The "peoples" are the people of Israel. Herod represents the "kings of the earth" (Lk 23:8 and following). Pontius Pilate represents the "princes" (vv. 26-27). This prophecy came to the believers' mind at that moment for two reasons. First, the designs against Christians expressed in the council's threats were like those which Christ's enemies had already carried out against Jesus Christ, in accordance with God's predetermination. Second, in the believers' thought, the persecutions of Christians continue the history of the persecutions of Christ. Further on, in verse 28, they express the view that Christ's enemies attained the fulfillment of their murderous intentions. Yet they did only what God's hand and God's counsel had predetermined to take place. Therefore they also contemplate their own sufferings for Christ's name as marked out beforehand in the plan of God's divine economy for human salvation. This, however, does not remove their need to entreat almighty God for defense against God's enemies and for the restraint of their malice. Yet this is not the only thing for which the believers pray here. In their own awareness, persecutions of Christ's confessors still must and will take place. Therefore they pray that the Lord will strengthen them by His power. They ask Him to grant them to speak His word with all boldness, and so to serve His glorification. At the same time the Lord Himself glorifies Himself by healings, signs, and wonders, accompanying the apostles' preaching with them.
"While You stretch out," and so forth: this points to the recent signs and wonders performed by the Apostles in the name of the Lord Jesus, including the healing of the lame man. In this indication there is also a prayer that God continue to work signs and wonders in support of the apostolic word. Give us boldness to preach Your word, confirming it on Your part by signs and wonders (cf. Mk 16:20).
The apostles ask the Lord to preserve them from the fulfillment of the enemies' threats. They ask Him, as it were, to bless them for preaching Christ, despite the prohibition of the authorities. Pointing to the wonders God performs through them upon others, they ask Him not to deprive them of the wondrous help He promised them (see Mt 10:18-19). As for their enemies, the apostles entrust them to the guidance or correction of God Himself, saying, "Look upon..." "Observe," says blessed Theophylact, "they did not say, strike them and cast them down. What then did they say? Look upon their threats." Saint John Chrysostom says: "See, they did not say, crush them, cast them down. What then? Grant to Your servants to speak Your word with all boldness. So let us also learn to pray.
Precisely such prayers succeed, prayers filled with wisdom, made about such matters and in such circumstances. They spoke thus not because they feared suffering anything grievous, but because they were concerned for the preaching. They also pray for signs. And rightly so, for without this, however great their zeal might be, everything would be in vain. If miracles are performed in His name, then our boldness will be great, they say." "By nothing other than signs could they prove that Christ had risen. And they asked not for their own safety, but that they might not be put to shame, and might speak with boldness."
Passages read together with this verse.
Greek text, 22 words with lemma, transliteration and Strong’s number. Tap to expand.
THEOSIS