And they persevered in the teaching and fellowship of the apostles, in breaking of bread and prayers.
Commentary for this verse has not been generated yet.
And fear was upon every soul, and many wonders and signs took place through the apostles' means.
Luke pauses here to describe the mood in Jerusalem in the church's first days: awe fell on everyone, and God worked through the apostles in full view. Two questions follow — what was this fear, and why did God tie miracles to the preaching?
The awe here did not come from a disaster or a threat. One writer traces it to God's presence in grace, and says this makes the impression stronger, not weaker.
The moral impression was great and immediate (v. 43): "fear came upon every soul." It was not less, but more, because it came from God's presence in grace, not from judgments that alarm for a moment and then give way to a deadly reaction. "And many wonders and signs were done through the apostles." These displays of power were not only amazing, but meaningful. They revealed the One Who worked through His servants, showing His own character and ways.
The writers quoted here use an older translation, which says "fear" where the ESV says "awe."
Another writer notes how far that fear reached, and why it belongs with real blessing.
A powerful, though painful, witness to His presence! Fear fills every heart, both inside and outside. In fact, the presence of God is a serious thing, however great its blessing.
The awe did not fade after Pentecost. The miracles kept it alive, in believers and outsiders alike. Yet the record never tells us what those miracles were.
Nor were outsiders unconcerned. Fear came on all of them, and the apostles did many wonders and signs. These no doubt kept up the awe that the miraculous powers of speech at Pentecost had first stirred. But the historian has not told us what those wonders and signs were. Clearly the displays of the Spirit were many and striking.
Scripture uses three related words for miracles, and each carries its own force. A miracle is never only a spectacle; it points beyond itself.
These three words, chosen by God, explain what miracles are. They were "wonders," because they caught the attention of the people. They were "signs," because they showed that God had visited His people, and that what the Lord Jesus did marked Him out as the promised Messiah. And they were "powers," because they were beyond human ability.
The apostles carried a new message: salvation through a Christ who was crucified and then went up to heaven. Open, public proof left hearers no fair excuse for refusing it.
The gospel of salvation through a crucified and ascended Christ was a new thing on the earth. So God was pleased to confirm this announcement of His great salvation by outward, public signs. Then those who heard the apostles' message would have no fair excuse for refusing to believe it, or for turning down what it offered.
Another writer sees the miracles as God's own witness to a new beginning, and says that witness had its time.
The apostles also did many wonders and signs, as the Lord had foretold. In this way God bore public witness to the truth of what the apostles said (Heb. 2:4). It was clear proof that God Himself was bringing in this new era. Once Christianity was established, such signs and wonders were no longer necessary.
Luke says the wonders came through the apostles, not through every believer. One writer explains the limit, and notes that later preachers such as Philip saw signs too.
The signs that went with Philip's preaching were never given to everyone. They were meant to bear witness to the risen Lord, so they went naturally with the preaching of the word. At first, for the same reason, they seem to have been limited to the apostles, who were trusted with a special testimony to the resurrection.
- Presence. God had come to be among His people in grace. The writers trace the awe to that presence, not to any threat.
- Fear. The awe was serious because the blessing was real. It fell on believers and onlookers alike.
- Witness. The miracles were God's public backing for the apostles' message, so hearers had no fair excuse to refuse it.
- Words. "Wonders" caught attention. "Signs" showed that God had visited His people. "Powers" showed a work beyond human ability.
- Focus. The apostles carried this testimony first, and the record never lists the miracles. The risen Christ, not the marvels, stays in view.