Acts 5:41 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Then they left the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name.

NIV: The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name.

NASB: So they went on their way from the presence of the Council, rejoicing that they had been considered worthy to suffer shame for His name.

CSB: Then they went out from the presence of the Sanhedrin, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to be treated shamefully on behalf of the Name.

NLT: The apostles left the high council rejoicing that God had counted them worthy to suffer disgrace for the name of Jesus.

KJV: And they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name.

NKJV: So they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for His name.

The Sanhedrin has beaten the apostles for teaching that Jesus rose from the dead, that He is the Messiah, and that He sits at God's right hand (Acts 5:30–31, 40). This backlash from unbelievers is what Jesus promised, starting with His Sermon on the Mount: "Blessed are you when others revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely on my account. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven, for so they persecuted the prophets who were before you" (Matthew 5:11–12).

Later, Jesus will be even more specific, saying, "Beware of men, for they will deliver you over to courts and flog you in their synagogues" (Matthew 10:17).

It's possible that a young man named Saul is present at this trial. Later, after he converts and changes his name to the Greek version, Paul, he will tell the Colossians, "Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking in Christ's afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the church" (Colossians 1:24). This isn't to say that anyone, even the apostles or Paul, needed to be beaten in order to be saved, or to save someone else. But the circumstances of their beatings served to spread the gospel farther. More directly, Stephen's death (Acts 7:54–60) and Saul's persecution of the church (Acts 8:1–3) scattered the Christians out of Jerusalem and into Judea and Samaria, as Jesus promised (Acts 1:8).

For the present, the apostles are just grateful. Throughout Jesus' ministry, they responded with obliviousness (Mark 8:14–21), faithlessness (Mark 9:17–19), self-centeredness (Mark 9:33–37), and fear (Mark 14:50). With the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:1–4), they are free to boldly reach others with Jesus' message of reconciliation to God. If the God-defying Sanhedrin beats them for their faith, they must be doing something right.

Acts 5:27–42 occurs in the aftermath of a miraculous jailbreak. The chief priests arrested the apostles for teaching and healing in Jesus' name (Acts 5:17–18). On the morning of the inquiry, the guards find the prison cells empty and the apostles, again, preaching in the temple courtyard (Acts 5:22, 25). The guards bring the apostles back, and the Sanhedrin questions them. When the apostles insist Jesus is alive, the priests want them killed. But a Pharisee, Gamaliel, calms the situation. The Sanhedrin do flog the apostles before releasing them, starting the long history of physical persecution against Christ-followers. Verse 29 is a cornerstone of Christian ethics: that God's will is worth suffering for.

The apostles continue to make hard decisions in the name of Jesus, both inside and outside the church. When Ananias and Sapphira lie to God, the Holy Spirit inspires Peter to pronounce God's judgment on them, protecting the church from the love of the world. Despite the Sanhedrin's watchful eye—and direct orders (Acts 4:17–18)—the apostles continue to preach and heal openly. The guards arrest the apostles, but the Sanhedrin settles for beating them instead of capital punishment. The apostles consider it an honor to suffer on behalf of their Savior.

In Acts 5, persecution from unbelievers begins to accelerate. The Sanhedrin has become aware the apostles teach that Jesus rose from the dead (Acts 4). Now, they start to push back in earnest, arresting and beating the apostles. Soon, a mob will kill Stephen, a deacon (Acts 7:54–60), and the Sanhedrin will empower Saul to run down and arrest any Jesus-follower he can find (Acts 8:1–3). The apostles will stay in Jerusalem. Other Jesus-followers will carry His offer of forgiveness and reconciliation with God into the Roman Empire and beyond. The apostles' faithfulness and submission to the Holy Spirit is why we have the gospel message today.

The summary of the book of Acts is provided in Jesus' words in Acts 1:8: ''But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.'' In Acts 2:1–13, the Christ-followers receive the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:14—7:60 describes the rapid growth of the church in Jerusalem. Chapters 8—12 find Jewish persecution inadvertently spreading the gospel throughout Judea and Samaria. And in chapters 13—28, Paul and his companions spread the good news throughout the Roman Empire.