Acts 3:2-11

3:2 And a man lame ¹  from birth ²  was being carried up, who was placed at the temple gate called “the Beautiful Gate” every day ³  so he could beg for money ⁴  from those going into the temple courts. ⁵  3:3 When he saw Peter and John about to go into the temple courts, ⁶  he asked them for money. ⁷  3:4 Peter looked directly ⁸  at him (as did John) and said, “Look at us!” 3:5 So the lame man ⁹  paid attention to them, expecting to receive something from them. 3:6 But Peter said, “I have no silver or gold, ¹⁰  but what I do have I give you. In the name ¹¹  of Jesus Christ ¹²  the Nazarene, stand up and ¹³  walk!” 3:7 Then ¹⁴  Peter ¹⁵  took hold ¹⁶  of him by the right hand and raised him up, and at once the man’s ¹⁷  feet and ankles were made strong. ¹⁸  3:8 He ¹⁹  jumped up, ²⁰  stood and began walking around, and he entered the temple courts ²¹  with them, walking and leaping and praising God. 3:9 All ²²  the people saw him walking and praising God, 3:10 and they recognized him as the man who used to sit and ask for donations ²³  at the Beautiful Gate of the temple, and they were filled with astonishment and amazement ²⁴  at what had happened to him.

Peter Addresses the Crowd

3:11 While the man ²⁵  was hanging on to Peter and John, all the people, completely astounded, ran together to them in the covered walkway ²⁶  called Solomon’s Portico. ²⁷ 

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¹ tn Or “crippled.”

² tn Grk “from his mother’s womb.”

³ tn BDAG 437 s.v. ἡμέρα 2.c has “every day” for this phrase.

⁴ tn Grk “alms.” The term “alms” is not in common use today, so what the man expected, “money,” is used in the translation instead. The idea is that of money given as a gift to someone who was poor. Giving alms was viewed as honorable in Judaism (Tob 1:3, 16; 12:8-9; m. Pe’ah 1:1). See also Luke 11:41; 12:33; Acts 9:36; 10:2, 4, 31; 24:17.

⁵ tn Grk “the temple.” This is actually a reference to the courts surrounding the temple proper, and has been translated accordingly.

sn Into the temple courts. The exact location of this incident is debated. The ‘Beautiful Gate’ referred either to the Nicanor Gate (which led from the Court of the Gentiles into the Court of Women) or the Shushan Gate at the eastern wall.

⁶ tn Grk “the temple.” This is actually a reference to the courts surrounding the temple proper, and has been translated accordingly.

sn See the note on the phrase the temple courts in the previous verse.

⁷ tn Grk “alms.” See the note on the word “money” in the previous verse.

⁸ tn Grk “Peter, looking directly at him, as did John, said.” The participle ἀτενίσας (atenisas) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

⁹ tn Grk “So he”; the referent (the lame man) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹⁰ tn Or “I have no money.” L&N 6.69 classifies the expression ἀργύριον καὶ χρυσίον (argurion kai crusion) as an idiom that is a generic expression for currency, thus “money.”

¹¹ sn In the name. Note the authority in the name of Jesus the Messiah. His presence and power are at work for the man. The reference to “the name” is not like a magical incantation, but is designed to indicate the agent who performs the healing. The theme is quite frequent in Acts (2:38 plus 21 other times).

¹² tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”

¹³ tc The words “stand up and” (ἔγειρε καί, egeire kai) are not in a few mss (א B D sa), but are included in A C E Ψ 095 33 1739 Ï lat sy mae bo. The external testimony is thus fairly evenly divided, with few but important representatives of the Alexandrian and Western texttypes supporting the shorter reading. Internally, the words look like a standard scribal emendation, and may have been motivated by other healing passages where Jesus gave a similar double command (cf. Matt 9:5; Mark 2:9, [11]; Luke 5:23; [6:8]; John 5:8). On the other hand, there is some motivation for deleting ἔγειρε καί here, namely, unlike Jesus’ healing miracles, Peter raises (ἤγειρεν, hgeiren) the man to his feet (v. 7) rather than the man rising on his own. In light of the scribal tendency to harmonize, especially in immediate context, the longer reading is slightly preferred.

¹⁴ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “Then” to reflect the sequence of events.

¹⁵ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Peter) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹⁶ tn Grk “Peter taking hold of him…raised him up.” The participle πιάσας (piasas) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

¹⁷ tn Grk “his”; the referent (the man) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹⁸ sn At once the man’s feet and ankles were made strong. Note that despite the past lameness, the man is immediately able to walk. The restoration of his ability to walk pictures the presence of a renewed walk, a fresh start at life; this was far more than money would have given him.

¹⁹ tn Grk “And he.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, the conjunction καί (kai) has not been translated here. Instead a new English sentence is begun.

²⁰ tn Grk “Jumping up, he stood.” The participle ἐξαλλόμενος (exallomeno") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style. It is possible that the paralyzed man actually jumped off the ground, but more probably this term simply refers to the speed with which he stood up. See L&N 15.240.

²¹ tn Grk “the temple.” This is actually a reference to the courts surrounding the temple proper, and has been translated accordingly.

²² tn Grk “And all.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

²³ tn Grk “alms,” but this term is not in common use today, so the closest modern equivalent, “donations,” is used instead. The idea is that of a donation to charity.

²⁴ sn Amazement is a frequent response to miracles of Jesus or the apostles. These took the ancients by as much surprise as they would people today. But in terms of response to what God is doing, amazement does not equal faith (Luke 4:36; 5:9, 26; 7:16).

²⁵ tn Grk “he”; the referent (the man) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

²⁶ tn Or “portico,” “colonnade”; Grk “stoa.” The translation “covered walkway” (a descriptive translation) was used here because the architectural term “portico” or “colonnade” is less familiar. However, the more technical term “portico” was retained in the actual name that follows.

²⁷ sn Solomon’s Portico was a covered walkway formed by rows of columns supporting a roof and open on the inner side facing the center of the temple complex. It was located on the east side of the temple (Josephus, Ant. 15.11.3-5 [15.391-420], 20.9.7 [20.221]) and was a place of commerce and conversation.