Acts 4:17, commentary and pictures

After the death of Jesus the rulers met in private and ordered the apostles to speak no more in his name, threatening them with punishment and even death to stop belief in him from spreading further among the people. They did this while admitting that a notable miracle could not be denied, for the cripple had been healed in the open by power in the name of the crucified Jesus and was already known to thousands. They acted because the growing faith threatened their power and influence, and because they feared disgrace and exposure as guilty of the death of the Son of God. They went no further than threats because the plain evidence of God's working and their fear of the people restrained them from violence, so they released the apostles. Their command was opposition to truth and to God's command to preach, but human threats could not silence the divinely given message, and God's people must obey God rather than men and persist in declaring the truth.

Context and Rulers' Motives

The saying belongs to the time after Jesus' death when the disciples, acting under the power of the Holy Spirit, boldly testified to his resurrection, and their words and works so reflected Jesus that hearers recognized they had learned from him.

In private counsel the priests, scribes, elders and rulers ordered the apostles away to hide their perplexity at the boldness of ignorant fishermen who spoke with Christ's convincing power that silenced adversaries. Having sent them out to confer together, they then threatened them not to speak, teach or work henceforth in the name of Jesus, even with punishment and death. The aim stated in the threat was that the report and influence of their work should spread no further among the people.

The rulers themselves agreed it was useless to deny what had been done, acknowledging that a notable miracle had occurred that could not be denied. The cripple had been healed through power given in the name of the crucified Jesus, done in full daylight before a crowd and already known to thousands, which they would gladly have covered with falsehood if they could. Unable to deny the public healing performed in Jesus' name, they sought to stop its report, influence and belief in him from spreading further among the people. They did so because the growing number of believers threatened their power, authority and influence, and they feared the healing and its influence would spread and weaken their power.

Their resolve that the work must be immediately stopped also came from fear that Jesus would gain many believers and that more people would believe in him. They feared their own disgrace would follow and that they would be exposed as responsible for his death and held guilty as the murderers of the Son of God. They resorted only to threats because they feared the people's response, and fear of the people restrained them from worse punishment and violence, so they released the apostles. They feared to act as they wished while the evidence that God was working was plain.

Opposition and Faithful Obedience

The threat was opposition to truth and to God's command to preach, aimed at hindering the advancement of God's word by stopping the apostles from spreading their testimony about Jesus in his name. Unable to deny the public miracle, the rulers still opposed the message because it displeased them and threatened their authority. They also opposed it because it drew people toward the gospel and they sought to prevent it from spreading among the people. Human authority could not silence the divinely given message, and their command and threats did not silence the apostles. Opposition does not make a true message wrong, so God's people must persist in declaring the truth and accept the light rather than resist conviction. When priests forbid preaching in Jesus' name, Peter obeyed God rather than human authority.

The threat is an example of persecution and oppression used against those who obey God. God does not oppress, and He intervened when the priests tried to silence the apostles by sending an angel to direct Peter to keep proclaiming his message. The same oppressive spirit appears in coercing a spurious sabbath by forbidding people to buy or sell unless they keep Sunday.