Acts 3:1

Went up (ἀνέβαινον) The imperfect: were going up. So Rev., ascending the terraces, on the highest of which the temple stood. Ninth hour The time of the evening sacrifice; or, as the words of prayer indicate, half an hour later, for the prayer which accompanied the offering of incense.

Acts 3:1 . Now Peter and John, &c. — We are not informed when the fact here recorded took place; but it is probable it was during the days of the feast of pentecost, and while the city was still full of people; went up to the temple — Probably to seek an opportunity of preaching to the people, as well as to offer up their prayers and supplications there before God; at the ninth hour — One of the solemn hours of prayer. The Jews divided the time, from sunrise to sunset, into twelve hours; which were consequently of unequal length at different times of the year, as the days were longer or shorter. The third hour, therefore, was nine in the morning; the ninth three in the afternoon, but not exactly. For the third was the middle space between sunrise and noon; which, if the sun rose at five, (the earliest hour of its rising in that climate,) was half an hour after eight; if at seven, (the latest hour of its rising there,) was half an hour after nine. The chief hours of prayer were the third and ninth; at which seasons the morning and evening sacrifices were offered, and incense (a kind of emblem representing prayer) burnt on the golden altar.

Acts 3:1 . Ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτὸ , together ) This being put in the beginning, emphatically signifies the union (joining) together of Peter and John.[25] Hesychius remarks, ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτὸ , i.e. ὁμοῦ , εἰς τὸν αὐτὸν τόπον .— Πέτρος ) Others have written Πετρος δὲ , supposing that ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτὸ should be joined with the preceding words [ch. Acts 2:47 ]. More conveniently, others, though of a later date, have inserted δὲ after ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτό . The short reading without the δὲ , is the mean between the extremes [the starting-point from which the others have departed, one on the one side, the other on the other], and the ancient reading.—[ τὴν ὥραν τῆς προσευχῆς , the hour of prayer ) It is right that public prayers should be frequented even by men who are adult, and in higher positions of honour than most men.—V. g.]— τὴν ἐννάτην , the ninth ) the wonted hour, suited for prayer, on account of soberness [the mind not being heavy, as it is apt to be after meals], before supper: ch. Acts 10:3 . [This is our three o’clock in the afternoon. He who would accustom himself to collect his thoughts at that time, and to apply himself to (to find time for) prayer, would derive no common profit from the practice. There is no difference as to time, regarded in itself. But it is a proof of choice obedience to cut short or interrupt labour, when we are in the height of business, for such a purpose. It was about mid-day that Peter prayed in private: ch. Acts 10:9 .—V. g.] [25] Lachm., after the oldest MSS.

Now {1} Peter and John went up together into the temple at the hour of prayer, being the ninth hour. (1) Christ, in healing a man that was born lame and well known to all men, both in a famous place and at a popular time, by the hands of his apostles partly strengthens and encourages those who believed, and partly also calls others to believe.

CHAPTER 3 Ac 3:1-26. Peter Heals a Lame Man at the Temple Gate—Hs Address to the Wondering Multitude. 1-11. Peter and John—already associated by their Master, first with James (Mr 1:29; 5:37; 9:2), then by themselves (Lu 22:8; and see Joh 13:23, 24). Now we find them constantly together, but John (yet young) only as a silent actor. went up—were going up, were on their way.Acts 3:1-11 The lame man healed by Peter and John.Acts 3:12-26 Peter declares to the people that this cure was notwrought by any power or holiness in himself or John,but by the power of God through faith in the name ofJesus, whom they had ignorantly crucified, but whomGod had raised from the dead according to theScripture; exhorts them by faith to seek remission ofsins and salvation in Jesus, whose coming had beenspoken of by Moses and all the prophets.Went up together into the temple; not to communicate with the Jews in their worship, which was now antiquated, but that they might have a larger field to sow the seed of the gospel into; and therefore it was most probably upon some sabbath or festival day, and not unlikely in the evening of that great day of Pentecost (of which in the former chapter). At the hour of prayer: that God must be worshipped, and daily prayed unto, the law of nature and positive law of God requires; but, says Maimonides, there is no obligation by virtue of any command of God, unto any number of prayers, nor to any certain prayers, nor to any definite time of prayer.

Howsoever, they did usually pray thrice a day, and thought each of those three times recommended unto them by one of the patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Howsoever, the time of offering up the morning and evening sacrifice was recommended or commanded by God, as a time of prayer; a sacrifice being an actual prayer, as the other is real or verbal. The ninth hour; about three o’clock in the afternoon, the time of the evening sacrifice.

Verse 1. - Were going up for went up together , A.V. and T.R. Peter and John. The close friendship of these two apostles is remarkable. The origin of it appears to have been their partnership in the fishing-boats in which they pursued their trade as fishermen on the Sea of Galilee. For St. Luke tells us that the sons of Zebedee were "partners with Simon," and helped him to take the miraculous draught of fishes ( Luke 5:10 ). We find the two sons of Zebedee associated with Peter in the inner circle of the Lord's apostles, at the Transfiguration, at the raising of Jairus's daughter, and at the agony in the Garden of Gethsemane (see also Mark 13:3 ). But the yet closer friendship of Peter and John first appears in their going together to the palace of Caiaphas on the night of the betrayal ( John 18:15 ), and then in the memorable visit to the holy sepulcher on the morning of the Resurrection ( John 20:2-4 ), and yet again in John 21:7, 20, 21 . It is in strict and natural sequence to these indications in the Gospel that, on opening the first chapters of the Acts, we find Peter and John constantly acting together in the very van of the Christian army (see Acts 3:1, 3, 11 ; Acts 4:13, 19 ; Acts 8:14, 25 ). The hour of prayer ; called in Luke 1:10 , "the hour of incense," that is, the hour of the evening sacrifice, when the people stood outside in prayer, while the priest within offered the sacrifice and burnt the incense (see Acts 2:46 , note).

Acts 3:1 . After the description of the first peaceful and prosperous life of the church, Luke now, glancing back to Acts 2:43 , singles out from the multitude of apostolic τέρατα κ . σημεῖα that one with which the first persecution was associated. ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτό ] here also in a local reference (see on Acts 1:15 ; comp. LXX: 2 Samuel 2:13 ; Joseph. Antt. xvi. 8. 6); not merely at the same time and for the same object, but also in the same way , i.e. together , יַחְדָּיו , 2 Sam. l.c. Prominence is here given to the united going to the temple and the united working, directing special attention to the keeping together of the two chief apostles. ἀνέβαινον ] they were in the act of going up. ἐπὶ τὴν ὥραν τῆς προσευχῆς ] ἐπί , used of the definition of time, in so far as a thing extends to a space of time; see on Mark 15:1 ; Nägelsb. on the Iliad, p. 284, ed. 3. Hence: during the hour, not equivalent to περὶ τὴν ὥραν (Alberti, Obss., Valckenaer, Winer, and many others). Concerning the three hours of prayer among the Jews: the third (see on Acts 2:15 ), the sixth (noon), and the ninth (that of the evening sacrifice in the temple), see Lightfoot, Schoettgen, and Wetstein, in loc. Comp. Acts 10:3 ; Acts 10:9 . The Attic mode of writing ἐνάτην is decidedly attested in the Book of Acts.

Acts 3:1-10 . Healing of the lame man at the Beautiful Gate of the Temple 1 . Now Peter and John went up together ] The word together has been transferred to the previous verse. See the last note. The verb is in the imperfect tense, and would be more correctly rendered were going up . The Temple stood above the city on Mount Moriah. into the temple ] While earnestly labouring for the spread of Christ’s teaching, they did not cast off regard for that schoolmaster which had been appointed to bring men to Christ. at the hour of prayer ] The preposition indicates the period of time towards which their movement tended, and may be well rendered for the hour , &c. They were on their way, and would get there at the time appointed for prayer. We read in Scripture of three specified hours of prayer, in accordance with which the Psalmist speaks of his own custom ( Psalm 55:17 ), “Evening, and morning, and at noon, will I pray.” And in like manner Daniel prayed “three times a day” ( Daniel 6:10 ).

The hour of morning prayer was the third hour, and Peter went up to the housetop to pray ( Acts 10:9 ) about the sixth hour, which was noon, and the evening prayer was this to which Peter and John were going up. being the ninth hour ] At the Equinox this would be three o’clock in the afternoon, but when the daylight was longer it would be later, so that if there were 18 hours day and 6 hours of darkness, each hour of the day would be an hour and a half long, and the hours of the night only half an hour each. At such time the ninth hour would be at half-past four.