Acts 3:22 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Moses said, ‘The Lord God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your brothers. You shall listen to him in whatever he tells you.

NIV: For Moses said, 'The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your own people; you must listen to everything he tells you.

NASB: Moses said, ‘THE Lord God WILL RAISE UP FOR YOU A PROPHET LIKE ME FROM YOUR COUNTRYMEN; TO HIM YOU SHALL LISTEN regarding everything He says to you.

CSB: Moses said: The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your brothers. You must listen to everything he tells you.

NLT: Moses said, ‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from among your own people. Listen carefully to everything he tells you.’

KJV: For Moses truly said unto the fathers, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you.

NKJV: For Moses truly said to the fathers, ‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from your brethren. Him you shall hear in all things, whatever He says to you.

Peter is relaying a quote from Moses recorded in Deuteronomy 18:15. We don't typically think of Moses in the same category as other "prophets" because he was so much more: the rescuer and leader of Israel, a military commander, and the friend of God (Exodus 33:11). A prophet is someone whom God called to tell others His words. Considering God gave Moses the Law, he may rightly be considered Israel's greatest prophet.

Jesus claimed this direct responsibility as well: "For I have not spoken on my own authority, but the Father who sent me has himself given me a commandment—what to say and what to speak" (John 12:49). When He is rejected in Nazareth, He identifies Himself with the prophets (Luke 4:24).

Biblical prophets have two main tasks. First, they are to relay what God wants the people to know (2 Samuel 7:4–5; Jeremiah 1:5, 7, 9; Ezekiel 3:4). Second, they tell the future. There are too many examples of this in the Old Testament to list! As for Jesus, not only did He prophesy His own death (Mark 8:31; 9:30–32; 10:32–34), He prophesied the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple in AD 70 (Mark 13:2), and the end times (Mark 13:3–27).

Jesus not only said what God wanted Him to say, He explained how His audience could judge if a prophet was from God or not. If someone spoke with the purpose of giving God the glory, that was a sign they were a true prophet; if they sought glory for themselves, they weren't (John 7:16–18). In addition, God identified His prophets by empowering them to perform miracles (Exodus 7:8–10). Although Jesus willingly performed miracles, the purpose of His ministry was never to heal; the signs were to validate His words (Mark 1:32–39). And He always sought Father-God's glory, not His own (John 8:50).

Different denominations have different views as to if there are still prophets in the world today. Since the ratification of the biblical canon, when the books of the New Testament were decided upon, we can say that there are no more prophets like those found in the Bible. God's Word comes to us through Scripture; nothing new is given directly to people.

Acts 3:11–26 transcribes the sermon Peter gives at the temple. While Peter and John enter the temple to pray, Peter heals a lame beggar who has asked for alms. The man is healed and leaps up, praising God (Acts 3:1–10). When this catches the crowd's attention, Peter explains that the healing power did not come from them but from Jesus of Nazareth whom the Jews killed. The results are mixed; the Jesus-followers gain unwanted attention from the Jewish officials (Acts 4:1–3), but five thousand men plus women find faith in Jesus (Acts 4:4).

Acts 3 is comprised of two sections: the healing of a lame man and the explanation of that healing. First, a man who has been lame his whole life approaches Peter and John to beg from them at the temple. When Peter heals him in Jesus' name, a crowd gathers around. Peter gives witness to Jesus (Acts 1:8) and tells the crowd that Jesus' authority and power healed this man. Looking back as modern readers, we see how, as the man's body symbolically ''repented,'' or turned away, from its broken form into freedom of movement, so the people can repent from their broken thoughts, actions, and beliefs, and find freedom from sin.

Acts 3 contains the second major speech of Jesus' followers. In Acts 1, Jesus ascended into heaven. In Acts 2, His followers received the Holy Spirit and gave such witness to Him that three thousand people believed in Him. Here, Peter explains that Jesus' power and authority have healed a lame man, and Jesus can heal sinful hearts, as well. This moment will bring the fledgling church to the attention of the Sanhedrin: the Jewish ruling court. There, Peter and John will set the example for all Jesus-followers. Jesus told them to be His witness (Acts 1:8); nothing a human authority can say will stop them.

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.