Acts 1
The chapter in full, then what it says, what the Greek or Hebrew decides, and where readers have disagreed.
Acts 1 WEB
- 1 The first book I wrote, Theophilus, concerned all that Jesus began both to do and to teach,
- 2 until the day in which he was received up, after he had given commandment through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen.
- 3 To these he also showed himself alive after he suffered, by many proofs, appearing to them over a period of forty days and speaking about God's Kingdom.
- 4 Being assembled together with them, he commanded them, "Don't depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which you heard from me.
- 5 For John indeed baptized in water, but you will be baptized in the Holy Spirit not many days from now."
- 6 Therefore, when they had come together, they asked him, "Lord, are you now restoring the kingdom to Israel?"
- 7 He said to them, "It isn't for you to know times or seasons which the Father has set within his own authority.
- 8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you. You will be witnesses to me in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the uttermost parts of the earth."
- 9 When he had said these things, as they were looking, he was taken up, and a cloud received him out of their sight.
- 10 While they were looking steadfastly into the sky as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white clothing,
- 11 who also said, "You men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into the sky? This Jesus, who was received up from you into the sky, will come back in the same way as you saw him going into the sky."
- 12 Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mountain called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day's journey away.
- 13 When they had come in, they went up into the upper room where they were staying, that is Peter, John, James, Andrew, Philip, Thomas, Bartholomew, Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, Simon the Zealot, and Judas the son of James.
- 14 All these with one accord continued steadfastly in prayer and supplication, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.
- 15 In these days, Peter stood up in the middle of the disciples (and the number of names was about one hundred twenty), and said,
- 16 "Brothers, it was necessary that this Scripture should be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spoke before by the mouth of David concerning Judas, who was guide to those who took Jesus.
- 17 For he was counted with us, and received his portion in this ministry.
- 18 Now this man obtained a field with the reward for his wickedness; and falling headlong, his body burst open and all his intestines gushed out.
- 19 It became known to everyone who lived in Jerusalem that in their language that field was called 'Akeldama,' that is, 'The field of blood.'
- 20 For it is written in the book of Psalms, 'Let his habitation be made desolate. Let no one dwell in it;' and, 'Let another take his office.'
- 21 "Of the men therefore who have accompanied us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us,
- 22 beginning from the baptism of John to the day that he was received up from us, of these one must become a witness with us of his resurrection."
- 23 They put forward two: Joseph called Barsabbas, who was also called Justus, and Matthias.
- 24 They prayed and said, "You, Lord, who know the hearts of all men, show which one of these two you have chosen
- 25 to take part in this ministry and apostleship from which Judas fell away, that he might go to his own place."
- 26 They drew lots for them, and the lot fell on Matthias; and he was counted with the eleven apostles.
What is happening
Acts opens as a sequel. Its author — traditionally Luke, the physician and companion of Paul, who also wrote the Gospel bearing his name — addresses "Theophilus" (1:1), the same dedicatee as Luke's Gospel, and picks up exactly where that book left off: the risen Jesus, forty days of appearances, and the promise of the Spirit. Acts will go on to narrate the spread of the church from Jerusalem to Rome, and this chapter is the hinge — the last conversation with the risen Jesus, his ascension, and the church's first act of self-organization while it waits.
The passage, walked through
Luke's preface recalls "the first book I wrote... concerned all that Jesus began both to do and to teach" (1:1) — a deliberate signal that the Gospel was not the whole story but the beginning of one that continues in the church. Jesus, after his suffering, "showed himself alive... by many proofs" (1:3): the Greek τεκμηρίοις is a strong evidentiary term, used of solid, checkable proof, not impression or vision. Over forty days he speaks "about God's Kingdom" (1:3) — the same subject as his teaching before the cross, now delivered by one who has been raised from among the dead he was teaching about.
The command is to wait: "Don't depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father" (1:4), distinguished from John's baptism — "you will be baptized in the Holy Spirit not many days from now" (1:5). The disciples' response reveals where their minds still are: "Lord, are you now restoring the kingdom to Israel?" (1:6) — a political and national question, asked of a man who has just spent forty days redefining what kingdom means. Jesus does not rebuke the question so much as redirect it: "It isn't for you to know times or seasons which the Father has set within his own authority" (1:7). What he gives instead is a vocation, not a timetable: "you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you. You will be witnesses to me in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the uttermost parts of the earth" (1:8) — the verse that maps the whole book's geography and supplies its structuring theme: not speculation about the end but witness in the meantime.
Then, "as they were looking, he was taken up, and a cloud received him out of their sight" (1:9). Two men in white — angelic messengers, echoing the two at the empty tomb in Luke 24 — rebuke the disciples' upward stare with a promise: "This Jesus, who was received up from you into the sky, will come back in the same way as you saw him going into the sky" (1:11). The ascension is not Jesus's disappearance but his enthronement, and it comes with a guarantee of return in the same visible, bodily manner.
The disciples return to the upper room (1:12–13) — Luke names the Eleven — and join "with one accord... in prayer and supplication" alongside "the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers" (1:14). The waiting is not passive; it is a community at prayer.
Peter then addresses the roughly hundred and twenty gathered (1:15) about Judas — not to condemn but to fill a vacancy. He reads Judas's betrayal and death (1:16–19, including the grim detail of the field and its name, "Akeldama... The field of blood," 1:19) as itself the fulfillment of Scripture, citing Psalms: "Let his habitation be made desolate... Let another take his office" (1:20). The qualification for the replacement is set precisely: one who "accompanied us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, beginning from the baptism of John to the day that he was received up" (1:21–22) — an eyewitness of the whole span, able to be "a witness with us of his resurrection" (1:22). Two candidates are proposed, Joseph called Barsabbas and Matthias (1:23); the church prays, addressing God as one who "knows the hearts of all men" (1:24, καρδιογνῶστα — "heart-knower," a striking compound found nowhere else in this form in the New Testament outside this prayer), and casts lots. The lot falls on Matthias, "and he was counted with the eleven apostles" (1:26).
Where readers have disagreed
Two questions recur. First, the casting of lots (1:26): does this establish a method for church decision-making, or is it a transitional practice specific to a community still operating under an Old Testament sensibility, before Pentecost supplies the Spirit's ordinary guidance? The text never repeats the practice after chapter 1 — once the Spirit comes in chapter 2, decisions in Acts are made by deliberation, prophecy, and consensus, not lot. Most readers across traditions treat this as a one-time, pre-Pentecost measure rather than a standing model.
Second, was the appointment of Matthias necessary, or presumptuous — should the Eleven have waited for the Spirit and for Paul, whom God would later call apostolographically outside this process? Some commentators (a minority) read Peter's initiative as premature, noting Matthias disappears from the narrative entirely. The stronger and more traditional reading takes Peter at his word: the qualification he states — accompanying Jesus "from the baptism of John," an eyewitness of the resurrection — is a real criterion Scripture itself calls for (1:16, 20–22), and the church, not yet Spirit-filled but already Scripture-reading and prayerful, acts rightly within the terms given it.
What it asks of a reader
The chapter refuses two temptations at once. It refuses speculation about timing — "It isn't for you to know times or seasons" (1:7) stands permanently against every scheme to calculate the end. And it refuses passivity — the alternative to speculation is not idleness but witness, prayer, and the ordinary work of keeping the community intact while it waits. The disciples do not know when; they are told what to do until then. Watchman Nee's observation, from The Normal Christian Life, that "our old history ends with the cross; our new history begins with the resurrection," names the ground this chapter stands on: the eleven men in the upper room are living entirely inside that new history, commissioned to a task — "to the uttermost parts of the earth" (1:8) — whose scope none of them could yet have imagined.
The verses this turns on
The first book I wrote, Theophilus, concerned all that Jesus began both to do and to teach,discussed above
Greek Nestle 1904
Τὸν μὲν πρῶτον λόγον ἐποιησάμην περὶ πάντων, ὦ Θεόφιλε, ὧν ἤρξατο ὁ Ἰησοῦς ποιεῖν τε καὶ διδάσκειν,
- Τὸν ὁ article · accusative singular masculine G3588
- μὲν μέν particle G3303
- πρῶτον πρῶτος adjective · accusative singular masculine G4413
- λόγον λόγος noun · accusative singular masculine G3056
- ἐποιησάμην ποιέω verb · aorist middle indicative, 1st person singular G4160
- περὶ περί preposition G4012
- πάντων, πᾶς adjective · genitive plural neuter G3956
- ὦ ὦ interjection G5599
- Θεόφιλε, Θεόφιλος noun · vocative singular masculine G2321
- ὧν ὅς relative pronoun · genitive plural neuter G3739
- ἤρξατο ἄρχω verb · aorist middle indicative, 3rd person singular G756
- ὁ ὁ article · nominative singular masculine G3588
Punctuation is editorial — the manuscripts carry none.
See also 5
- Luke 1:3 it seemed good to me also, having traced the course of all things accurately from the first, to write to you in order, most excellent Theophilus;
- Luke 24:19 He said to them, "What things?" They said to him, "The things concerning Jesus the Nazarene, who was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people;
- Matthew 4:23 Jesus went about in all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the Good News of the Kingdom, and healing every disease and every sickness among the people.
- Luke 3:23 Jesus himself, when he began to teach, was about thirty years old, being the son (as was supposed) of Joseph, the son of Heli,
- 1 Peter 2:21 For you were called to this, because Christ also suffered for us, leaving you an example, that you should follow his steps,
To these he also showed himself alive after he suffered, by many proofs, appearing to them over a period of forty days and speaking about God's Kingdom.discussed above
Greek Nestle 1904
οἷς καὶ παρέστησεν ἑαυτὸν ζῶντα μετὰ τὸ παθεῖν αὐτὸν ἐν πολλοῖς τεκμηρίοις, δι’ ἡμερῶν τεσσεράκοντα ὀπτανόμενος αὐτοῖς καὶ λέγων τὰ περὶ τῆς βασιλείας τοῦ Θεοῦ·
- οἷς ὅς relative pronoun · dative plural masculine G3739
- καὶ καί conjunction G2532
- παρέστησεν παρίστημι verb · aorist active indicative, 3rd person singular G3936
- ἑαυτὸν ἑαυτοῦ reflexive pronoun G1438
- ζῶντα ζάω verb · present active participle, accusative singular masculine G2198
- μετὰ μετά preposition G3326
- τὸ ὁ article · accusative singular neuter G3588
- παθεῖν πάσχω verb · aorist active infinitive G3958
- αὐτὸν αὐτός personal pronoun · accusative singular masculine G846
- ἐν ἐν preposition G1722
- πολλοῖς πολύς adjective · dative plural neuter G4183
- τεκμηρίοις, τεκμήριον noun · dative plural neuter G5039
Punctuation is editorial — the manuscripts carry none.
See also 5
- 1 Corinthians 15:5 and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve.
- Acts 13:31 and he was seen for many days by those who came up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are his witnesses to the people.
- John 20:26 After eight days, again his disciples were inside and Thomas was with them. Jesus came, the doors being locked, and stood in the middle, and said, "Peace be to you."
- 1 John 1:1 That which was from the beginning, that which we have heard, that which we have seen with our eyes, that which we saw, and our hands touched, concerning the Word of life
- John 21:14 This is now the third time that Jesus was revealed to his disciples after he had risen from the dead.
Being assembled together with them, he commanded them, "Don't depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which you heard from me.discussed above
Greek Nestle 1904
καὶ συναλιζόμενος παρήγγειλεν αὐτοῖς ἀπὸ Ἱεροσολύμων μὴ χωρίζεσθαι, ἀλλὰ περιμένειν τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν τοῦ Πατρὸς ἣν ἠκούσατέ μου·
- καὶ καί conjunction G2532
- συναλιζόμενος συναλίζομαι verb · present middle or passive deponent participle, nominative singular masculine G4871
- παρήγγειλεν παραγγέλλω verb · aorist active indicative, 3rd person singular G3853
- αὐτοῖς αὐτός personal pronoun · dative plural masculine G846
- ἀπὸ ἀπό preposition G575
- Ἱεροσολύμων Ἱεροσόλυμα noun · genitive plural neuter G2414
- μὴ μή particle · nominative G3361
- χωρίζεσθαι, χωρίζω verb · present middle or passive infinitive G5563
- ἀλλὰ ἀλλά conjunction G235
- περιμένειν περιμένω verb · present active infinitive G4037
- τὴν ὁ article · accusative singular feminine G3588
- ἐπαγγελίαν ἐπαγγελία noun · accusative singular feminine G1860
Punctuation is editorial — the manuscripts carry none.
See also 5
- Luke 24:49 Behold, I send out the promise of my Father on you. But wait in the city of Jerusalem until you are clothed with power from on high."
- John 14:16 I will pray to the Father, and he will give you another Counselor, that he may be with you forever:
- John 15:26 "When the Counselor has come, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will testify about me.
- John 14:26 But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things, and will remind you of all that I said to you.
- Acts 2:33 Being therefore exalted by the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this which you now see and hear.
For John indeed baptized in water, but you will be baptized in the Holy Spirit not many days from now."discussed above
Greek Nestle 1904
ὅτι Ἰωάνης μὲν ἐβάπτισεν ὕδατι, ὑμεῖς δὲ ἐν Πνεύματι βαπτισθήσεσθε Ἁγίῳ οὐ μετὰ πολλὰς ταύτας ἡμέρας.
- ὅτι ὅτι conjunction G3754
- Ἰωάνης Ἰωάννης noun · nominative singular masculine G2491
- μὲν μέν particle G3303
- ἐβάπτισεν βαπτίζω verb · aorist active indicative, 3rd person singular G907
- ὕδατι, ὕδωρ noun · dative singular neuter G5204
- ὑμεῖς σύ personal pronoun G4771
- δὲ δέ conjunction G1161
- ἐν ἐν preposition G1722
- Πνεύματι πνεῦμα noun · dative singular neuter G4151
- βαπτισθήσεσθε βαπτίζω verb · future passive indicative, 2nd person plural G907
- Ἁγίῳ ἅγιος adjective · dative singular neuter G40
- οὐ οὐ particle · nominative G3756
Punctuation is editorial — the manuscripts carry none.
See also 5
- Matthew 3:11 "I indeed baptize you in water for repentance, but he who comes after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you in the Holy Spirit.
- Acts 11:15 As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell on them, even as on us at the beginning.
- Luke 3:16 John answered them all, "I indeed baptize you with water, but he comes who is mightier than I, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to loosen. He will baptize you in the Holy Spirit and fire.
- 1 Corinthians 12:13 For in one Spirit we were all baptized into one body, whether Jews or Greeks, whether bond or free; and were all given to drink into one Spirit.
- Titus 3:5 not by works of righteousness which we did ourselves, but according to his mercy, he saved us through the washing of regeneration and renewing by the Holy Spirit,
Therefore, when they had come together, they asked him, "Lord, are you now restoring the kingdom to Israel?"discussed above
Greek Nestle 1904
Οἱ μὲν οὖν συνελθόντες ἠρώτων αὐτὸν λέγοντες Κύριε, εἰ ἐν τῷ χρόνῳ τούτῳ ἀποκαθιστάνεις τὴν βασιλείαν τῷ Ἰσραήλ;
- Οἱ ὁ article · nominative plural masculine G3588
- μὲν μέν particle G3303
- οὖν οὖν conjunction G3767
- συνελθόντες συνέρχομαι verb · aorist active participle, nominative plural masculine G4905
- ἠρώτων ἐρωτάω verb · imperfect active indicative, 3rd person plural G2065
- αὐτὸν αὐτός personal pronoun · accusative singular masculine G846
- λέγοντες λέγω verb · present active participle, nominative plural masculine G3004
- Κύριε, κύριος noun · vocative singular masculine G2962
- εἰ εἰ conditional G1487
- ἐν ἐν preposition G1722
- τῷ ὁ article · dative singular masculine G3588
- χρόνῳ χρόνος noun · dative singular masculine G5550
Punctuation is editorial — the manuscripts carry none.
See also 5
- Luke 19:11 As they heard these things, he went on and told a parable, because he was near Jerusalem, and they supposed that God's Kingdom would be revealed immediately.
- Luke 17:20 Being asked by the Pharisees when God's Kingdom would come, he answered them, "God's Kingdom doesn't come with observation;
- Daniel 7:27 The kingdom and the dominion, and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole sky, will be given to the people of the saints of the Most High. His kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions will serve and obey him.'
- Matthew 24:3 As he sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately, saying, "Tell us, when will these things be? What is the sign of your coming, and of the end of the age?"
- Ezekiel 37:24 "'"My servant David will be king over them. They all will have one shepherd. They will also walk in my ordinances and observe my statutes, and do them.
He said to them, "It isn't for you to know times or seasons which the Father has set within his own authority.discussed above
Greek Nestle 1904
εἶπεν πρὸς αὐτούς Οὐχ ὑμῶν ἐστιν γνῶναι χρόνους ἢ καιροὺς οὓς ὁ Πατὴρ ἔθετο ἐν τῇ ἰδίᾳ ἐξουσίᾳ,
- εἶπεν λέγω verb · aorist active indicative, 3rd person singular G3004
- πρὸς πρός preposition G4314
- αὐτούς αὐτός personal pronoun · accusative plural masculine G846
- Οὐχ οὐ particle · nominative G3756
- ὑμῶν σύ personal pronoun G4771
- ἐστιν εἰμί verb · present active indicative, 3rd person singular G1510
- γνῶναι γινώσκω verb · aorist active infinitive G1097
- χρόνους χρόνος noun · accusative plural masculine G5550
- ἢ ἤ particle G2228
- καιροὺς καιρός noun · accusative plural masculine G2540
- οὓς ὅς relative pronoun · accusative plural masculine G3739
- ὁ ὁ article · nominative singular masculine G3588
Punctuation is editorial — the manuscripts carry none.
See also 5
- Matthew 24:36 "But no one knows of that day and hour, not even the angels of heaven, but my Father only.
- 1 Thessalonians 5:1 But concerning the times and the seasons, brothers, you have no need that anything be written to you.
- Mark 13:32 "But of that day or that hour no one knows—not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.
- Deuteronomy 29:29 The secret things belong to Yahweh our God; but the things that are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.
- Mark 10:40 but to sit at my right hand and at my left hand is not mine to give, but for whom it has been prepared."
But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you. You will be witnesses to me in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the uttermost parts of the earth."discussed above
Greek Nestle 1904
ἀλλὰ λήμψεσθε δύναμιν ἐπελθόντος τοῦ Ἁγίου Πνεύματος ἐφ’ ὑμᾶς, καὶ ἔσεσθέ μου μάρτυρες ἔν τε Ἱερουσαλὴμ καὶ ἐν πάσῃ τῇ Ἰουδαίᾳ καὶ Σαμαρίᾳ καὶ ἕως ἐσχάτου τῆς γῆς.
- ἀλλὰ ἀλλά conjunction G235
- λήμψεσθε λαμβάνω verb · future middle deponent indicative, 2nd person plural G2983
- δύναμιν δύναμις noun · accusative singular feminine G1411
- ἐπελθόντος ἐπέρχομαι verb · aorist active participle, genitive singular neuter G1904
- τοῦ ὁ article · genitive singular neuter G3588
- Ἁγίου ἅγιος adjective · genitive singular neuter G40
- Πνεύματος πνεῦμα noun · genitive singular neuter G4151
- ἐφ’ ἐπί preposition G1909
- ὑμᾶς, σύ personal pronoun G4771
- καὶ καί conjunction G2532
- ἔσεσθέ εἰμί verb · future middle deponent indicative, 2nd person plural G1510
- μου ἐγώ personal pronoun G1473
Punctuation is editorial — the manuscripts carry none.
See also 5
- Matthew 28:19 Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
- Mark 16:15 He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the Good News to the whole creation.
- Romans 15:19 in the power of signs and wonders, in the power of God's Spirit; so that from Jerusalem and around as far as to Illyricum, I have fully preached the Good News of Christ;
- Acts 4:33 With great power, the apostles gave their testimony of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. Great grace was on them all.
- Acts 5:32 We are his witnesses of these things; and so also is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him."
When he had said these things, as they were looking, he was taken up, and a cloud received him out of their sight.discussed above
Greek Nestle 1904
καὶ ταῦτα εἰπὼν βλεπόντων αὐτῶν ἐπήρθη, καὶ νεφέλη ὑπέλαβεν αὐτὸν ἀπὸ τῶν ὀφθαλμῶν αὐτῶν.
- καὶ καί conjunction G2532
- ταῦτα οὗτος demonstrative pronoun · accusative plural neuter G3778
- εἰπὼν λέγω verb · aorist active participle, nominative singular masculine G3004
- βλεπόντων βλέπω verb · present active participle, genitive plural masculine G991
- αὐτῶν αὐτός personal pronoun · genitive plural masculine G846
- ἐπήρθη, ἐπαίρω verb · aorist passive indicative, 3rd person singular G1869
- καὶ καί conjunction G2532
- νεφέλη νεφέλη noun · nominative singular feminine G3507
- ὑπέλαβεν ὑπολαμβάνω verb · aorist active indicative, 3rd person singular G5274
- αὐτὸν αὐτός personal pronoun · accusative singular masculine G846
- ἀπὸ ἀπό preposition G575
- τῶν ὁ article · genitive plural masculine G3588
Punctuation is editorial — the manuscripts carry none.
See also 5
- Daniel 7:13 "I saw in the night visions, and behold, there came with the clouds of the sky one like a son of man, and he came even to the Ancient of Days, and they brought him near before him.
- Luke 24:50 He led them out as far as Bethany, and he lifted up his hands and blessed them.
- Mark 16:19 So then the Lord, after he had spoken to them, was received up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God.
- Acts 1:2 until the day in which he was received up, after he had given commandment through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen.
- Exodus 19:9 Yahweh said to Moses, "Behold, I come to you in a thick cloud, that the people may hear when I speak with you, and may also believe you forever." Moses told the words of the people to Yahweh.
From the interpretive tradition
The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church.
Our old history ends with the cross; our new history begins with the resurrection.