A Study of Acts: Peter Addresses the Disciples
A Study of Acts: Peter Addresses the Disciples
Acts 1:15-20 - Peter assumes a leadership role and references Scripture being fulfilled in the actions of Judas and the need to replace him with the group of disciples.
“At this time Peter stood up in the midst of the brethren (a gathering of about one hundred and twenty persons was there together), and said, “Brethren, the Scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit foretold by the mouth of David concerning Judas, who became a guide to those who arrested Jesus. For he was counted among us and received his share in this ministry.” (Now this man acquired a field with the price of his wickedness, and falling headlong, he burst open in the middle and all his intestines gushed out. And it became known to all who were living in Jerusalem; so that in their own language that field was called Hakeldama, that is, Field of Blood.)
“For it is written in the book of Psalms,
‘Let his homestead be made desolate, And let no one dwell in it’; and, ‘Let another man take his office.’”
Acts 1:15-20 NASB1995
It appears that Peter is taking charge of the small group that is gathered in the Upper Room. This seems like a natural progression from the events in the Gospels and the fact that Jesus said that Peter was the rock on which the church would be built. Peter addresses the issue presented by the betrayal and death of Judas, noting that Scripture had to be fulfilled.
In reviewing commentary, I found it interesting that some Biblical experts felt that Peter was wrong to try and appoint a successor to Judas before the group has been visited by the Holy Spirit. The author of Precept Austin disagrees with those commentators and it appears that Enduring Word also disagrees and feels that Peter was correct in addressing the issue:
Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples: Here, Peter took a natural leadership role among the disciples. There is nothing wrong with seeing Peter as the leader of the first group of the apostles, even as he often was the spokesman among the disciples during the earthly ministry of Jesus.
However, the idea that the authority of Peter was supreme and that he handed it down in unbroken succession, is unbiblical and wrong.
Men and brethren, this Scripture had to be fulfilled: Peter’s words show wisdom we did not often see in him before. He began by noting that Judas didn’t spoil God’s plan, he fulfilled it (this Scripture had to be fulfilled). This is something that only wise and mature disciples can see in the aftermath of evil.
I also agree with Enduring Word that Peter was a leader among the apostles, but the idea that his authority led to an unbroken succession of supreme church leaders is nowhere to be found in the Bible.
What does it mean that scripture is “to be fulfilled”? Let’s do a word study! To Be Fulfilled comes from the Greek verb πληρόω or plēróō, with the following Biblical usages; Strong’s G4137 is used 86 times in the New Testament:
to make full, to fill up, i.e. to fill to the full
to cause to abound, to furnish or supply liberally
I abound, I am liberally supplied
to render full, i.e. to complete
to fill to the top: so that nothing shall be wanting to full measure, fill to the brim
to consummate: a number
to make complete in every particular, to render perfect
to carry through to the end, to accomplish, carry out, (some undertaking)
to carry into effect, bring to realisation, realise
of matters of duty: to perform, execute
of sayings, promises, prophecies, to bring to pass, ratify, accomplish
to fulfil, i.e. to cause God's will (as made known in the law) to be obeyed as it should be, and God's promises (given through the prophets) to receive fulfilment
Fulfillment means consummation or completion of a promise or prophecy. The betrayal by Judas had to happen or the series of events afterwards may not have occurred as planned and foretold.
Peter is noting that Scripture is inspired by the Holy Spirit and the prophecy about Judas came through David (Psalm 96). This is an important point for those who think that the Bible is just a collection of books written by flawed men in an ancient time. The men put pen to paper with their own unique styles, but the words they wrote were indeed God-breathed. I like this commentary in Precept Austin from Pastor Ray Pritchard:
Theologians sometimes speak of the “dual authorship” of Holy Scripture. They mean that when Moses sat down to write the first five books of the Bible, he wrote using his own words and vocabulary, and so did David when he wrote Psalms, and John when he wrote his gospel, and Paul when he wrote his epistles. Each man writes in his own way, reflecting his own personality. But how do we know that what they wrote was what God wanted written? Acts 1:16 tells us that the Holy Spirit spoke first. He spoke the words “through the mouth of” Moses, David, John and Paul—and all the rest of the biblical writers. It was their words but those words came first from the Holy Spirit. And because they come from the Holy Spirit, those words are true and accurate and trustworthy and inerrant and infallible.
This doesn’t mean that the biblical writers wrote Scripture by taking dictation from God. If that were the case, then they would all sound exactly the same. But it does mean that God superintended the entire process so that when Moses, David, John and Paul sat down to write, they weren’t just writing their words, they were also writing God’s words.That’s why you can read anywhere in the Bible and have complete confidence in what it says—even though in one place it’s law, in another it’s history, in another it’s poetry, and in another place it’s prophecy. The books of the Bible don’t sound alike because they were written by 40 authors over a period of 1600 years. But each part of the Bible is the true Word of God because each part was spoken by the Holy Spirit.
I found this photo (above) on Unsplash of a statue of Jesus being kissed (and betrayed) by Judas Iscariot. Luke does an aside in this speech by Peter describing the awful fate of the body of Judas that likely occurred after he hung himself (reconciling to some degree the accounts in Matthew and in Acts); he was counted among the disciples and shared in the ministry. Judas did this act of treachery for twenty pieces of silver. He wasted the most incredible opportunity, as noted in this commentary from Precept Austin from John MacArthur:
Judas represents the greatest example of wasted opportunity in all of history. He had the rare privilege, given to only twelve men, of living and ministering with Jesus Christ, God incarnate, for more than three years. He had the same convincing, overwhelming opportunity to come to faith in Him as the eleven did. Yet his motives for following Jesus were never anything but selfish. He no doubt shared the common Jewish hope that Messiah would deliver the nation from the yoke of the hated Romans. When it became obvious that was not Jesus' plan, and he would not get the wealth and power he wanted, Judas decided to cut his losses and get out with whatever he could salvage. Betraying the incarnate Son of God to the authorities for a paltry sum seemed a way to gain some compensation.
The greed he evidenced by that act was another indicator of his wicked heart. There had been a preview of this avarice when, after Jesus' anointing with costly perfume by Mary, Judas indignantly exclaimed, "Why was this perfume not sold for three hundred denarii, and given to poor people?" (John 12:5). His real concern was evident from John's cutting editorial comment in verse 6: "Now he said this, not because he was concerned about the poor, but because he was a thief, and as he had the money box, he used to pilfer what was put into it." Driven by disappointment and greed, this most tragic of all men squandered inestimable privilege, betrayed the Lord for thirty pieces of silver, and damned his soul to hell. Judas's tragic life reached a damning climax in his suicide.
Although scripture had to be fulfilled, Judas always had a choice in the matter. His greed, lust for power and disappointment in what Jesus really was overcame his initial obedience and recognition of Jesus’ divinity. Judas took it personally when Jesus did not fulfill his definition of the Messiah’s deliverance of the nation of Israel. I admit to being a fan of the series “The Chosen” and the actor they have picked to play Judas is doing a wonderful job setting up the character’s personality for his ultimate betrayal of Jesus. In fact, season 4 had the scene with Mary anointing Jesus with the costly perfume (John 12:5); this act drives Judas out of the house, conveniently setting up a conversation with a member of the Sanhedrin who was also repelled by Mary’s actions.
Luke goes back to the word of Peter after his description of what happened to Judas, Peter quotes from Psalm 109 that says that another man should take the place of Judas and the ground (homestead) where he died so violently should be left alone. My next devotional examines Acts 1:21-23 on the qualifications of the two men who are under consideration to replace Judas.
Heaven on Wheels Daily Prayer:
Dear Lord - I am grateful that scripture is placed in the hands of men by the Holy Spirit. I thank You for the prophecies that were fulfilled in the ministry, death and resurrection of Your Son Jesus. Amen.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Enduring Word commentary by David Guzik is used with written permission.
Precept Austin was accessed on 7/15/2024 to review commentary on Acts 1:15-20
The Blue Letter Bible was accessed on 7/15/2024 to review the lexicon for “to be fulfilled”.