Acts 3:11-26
The miracle at the temple is not about apostolic power but about the risen Servant-Messiah; through Him alone come forgiveness, refreshment, and fulfillment of the promises made to the fathers.
11 As the lame man who was healed held on to Peter and John, all the people ran together to them in the porch that is called Solomon’s, greatly wondering.
12 When Peter saw it, he responded to the people, “You men of Israel, why do you marvel at this man? Why do you fasten your eyes on us, as though by our own power or godliness we had made him walk?
13 The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his Servant Jesus, whom you delivered up, and denied in the presence of Pilate, when he had determined to release him.
14 But you denied the Holy and Righteous One and asked for a murderer to be granted to you,
15 and killed the Prince of life, whom God raised from the dead, to which we are witnesses.
16 By faith in his name, his name has made this man strong, whom you see and know. Yes, the faith which is through him has given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all.
17 “Now, brothers, I know that you did this in ignorance, as did also your rulers.
18 But the things which God announced by the mouth of all his prophets, that Christ should suffer, he thus fulfilled.
19 “Repent therefore, and turn again, that your sins may be blotted out, so that there may come times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord,
20 and that he may send Christ Jesus, who was ordained for you before,
21 whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God spoke long ago by the mouth of his holy prophets.
22 For Moses indeed said to the fathers, ‘The Lord God will raise up a prophet for you from among your brothers, like me. You shall listen to him in all things whatever he says to you.
23 It will be that every soul that will not listen to that prophet will be utterly destroyed from among the people.’
24 Yes, and all the prophets from Samuel and those who followed after, as many as have spoken, they also told of these days.
25 You are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying to Abraham, ‘All the families of the earth will be blessed through your offspring.’
26 God, having raised up his servant Jesus, sent him to you first to bless you, in turning away every one of you from your wickedness.”
The miracle at the temple is not about apostolic power but about the risen Servant-Messiah; through Him alone come forgiveness, refreshment, and fulfillment of the promises made to the fathers.
To record Peter’s temple sermon interpreting the healing as evidence of Jesus’ exaltation and calling Israel to repent so that promised restoration may come.
Acts 3:11-26 immediately follows the public healing of the man lame from birth. As the healed man clings to Peter and John in Solomon's Colonnade, the crowd gathers in amazement. Peter seizes the moment to interpret the miracle as a sign of Jesus' authority rather than apostolic power. The speech parallels Peter's Pentecost sermon but intensifies the covenantal appeal by rooting Jesus explicitly in Israel's patriarchal promises and prophetic hope. The sermon moves from indictment to invitation, from confrontation to covenant fulfillment.
The sermon occurs in Solomon's Colonnade within the temple complex, a place of public gathering and teaching. The healed man's visible presence amplifies the credibility of Peter's message. The audience consists primarily of Jews in Jerusalem, many of whom may have been present during Jesus' trial and crucifixion. Peter's boldness contrasts with his earlier denial of Christ, highlighting the Spirit's transformative work.
The Risen Christ Heals and Calls Israel to Repentance
Acts 3 shows that the risen Christ continues to restore broken people and confront guilty sinners through apostolic witness, calling them to repentance and covenant blessing.