Discovery BoxActs 3:19-26 
Context3:19 Therefore repent and turn back so that your sins may be wiped out, 3:20 so that times of refreshing 1 may come from the presence of the Lord, 2 and so that he may send the Messiah 3 appointed 4 for you – that is, Jesus. 3:21 This one 5 heaven must 6 receive until the time all things are restored, 7 which God declared 8 from times long ago 9 through his holy prophets. 3:22 Moses said, ‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your brothers. You must obey 10 him in everything he tells you. 11 3:23 Every person 12 who does not obey that prophet will be destroyed and thus removed 13 from the people.’ 14 3:24 And all the prophets, from Samuel and those who followed him, have spoken about and announced 15 these days. 3:25 You are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant that God made with your ancestors, 16 saying to Abraham, ‘And in your descendants 17 all the nations 18 of the earth will be blessed.’ 19 3:26 God raised up 20 his servant and sent him first to you, to bless you by turning 21 each one of you from your iniquities.” 22
1 tn Or “relief.”
sn Times of refreshing. The phrase implies relief from difficult, distressful or burdensome circumstances. It is generally regarded as a reference to the messianic age being ushered in.
2 tn The words “so that…Lord” are traditionally placed in v. 19 by most English translations, but in the present translation the verse division follows the standard critical editions of the Greek text (NA27, UBS4).
3 tn Or “the Christ”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”
sn He may send the Messiah appointed for you – that is, Jesus. The language points to the expectation of Jesus’ return to gather his people. It is a development of the question raised in Acts 1:6.
4 tn Or “designated in advance.”
5 tn Grk “whom,” continuing the sentence from v. 20.
6 sn The term must used here (δεῖ, dei, “it is necessary”) is a key Lukan term to point to the plan of God and what must occur.
7 tn Grk “until the times of the restoration of all things.” Because of the awkward English style of the extended genitive construction, and because the following relative clause has as its referent the “time of restoration” rather than “all things,” the phrase was translated “until the time all things are restored.”
sn The time all things are restored. What that restoration involves is already recorded in the scriptures of the nation of Israel.
8 tn Or “spoke.”
9 tn Or “from all ages past.”
sn From times long ago. Once again, God’s plan is emphasized.
10 tn Grk “hear,” but the idea of “hear and obey” or simply “obey” is frequently contained in the Greek verb ἀκούω (akouw; see L&N 36.14) and the following context (v. 23) makes it clear that failure to “obey” the words of this “prophet like Moses” will result in complete destruction.
11 sn A quotation from Deut 18:15. By quoting Deut 18:15 Peter declared that Jesus was the eschatological “prophet like [Moses]” mentioned in that passage, who reveals the plan of God and the way of God.
12 tn Grk “every soul” (here “soul” is an idiom for the whole person).
13 tn Or “will be completely destroyed.” In Acts 3:23 the verb ἐξολεθρεύω (exoleqreuw) is translated “destroy and remove” by L&N 20.35.
14 sn A quotation from Deut 18:19, also Lev 23:29. The OT context of Lev 23:29 discusses what happened when one failed to honor atonement. One ignored the required sacrifice of God at one’s peril.
15 tn Or “proclaimed.”
sn All the prophets…have spoken about and announced. What Peter preaches is rooted in basic biblical and Jewish hope as expressed in the OT scriptures.
16 tn Or “forefathers”; Grk “fathers.”
17 tn Or “in your offspring”; Grk “in your seed.”
sn In your descendants (Grk “in your seed”). Seed has an important ambiguity in this verse. The blessing comes from the servant (v. 26), who in turn blesses the responsive children of the covenant as the scripture promised. Jesus is the seed who blesses the seed.
18 tn Or “families.” The Greek word πατριά (patria) can indicate persons of succeeding generations who are related by birth (“lineage,” “family”) but it can also indicate a relatively large unit of people who make up a sociopolitical group and who share a presumed biological descent. In many contexts πατριά is very similar to ἔθνος (eqnos) and λαός (laos). In light of the context of the OT quotation, it is better to translate πατριά as “nations” here.
19 sn A quotation from Gen 22:18.
20 tn Grk “God raising up his servant, sent him.” The participle ἀναστήσας (anasthsa") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style. Some translations (e.g., NIV, NRSV) render this participle as temporal (“when God raised up his servant”).
21 sn The picture of turning is again seen as the appropriate response to the message. See v. 19 above. In v. 19 it was “turning to,” here it is “turning away from.” The direction of the two metaphors is important.
22 tn For the translation of plural πονηρία (ponhria) as “iniquities,” see G. Harder, TDNT 6:565. The plural is important, since for Luke turning to Jesus means turning away from sins, not just the sin of rejecting Jesus.
