Acts — Chapter 1

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1The former treatise have I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach,

2Until the day in which he was taken up, after that he through the Holy Ghost had given commandments unto the apostles whom he had chosen:

3To whom also he shewed himself alive after his passion by many infallible proofs, being seen of them forty days, and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God:

4And, being assembled together with them, commanded them that they should not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which, saith he, ye have heard of me.

5For John truly baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized with the Holy Ghost not many days hence.

6When they therefore were come together, they asked of him, saying, Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?

7And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power.

8But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

9And when he had spoken these things, while they beheld, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight.

10And while they looked stedfastly toward heaven as he went up, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel;

11Which also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye gazing up into heaven? this same Jesus, which is taken up from you into heaven, shall so come in like manner as ye have seen him go into heaven.

12Then returned they unto Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is from Jerusalem a sabbath day’s journey.

13And when they were come in, they went up into an upper room, where abode both Peter, and James, and John, and Andrew, Philip, and Thomas, Bartholomew, and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon Zelotes, and Judas the brother of James.

14These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren.

15And in those days Peter stood up in the midst of the disciples, and said, (the number of names together were about an hundred and twenty,)

16Men and brethren, this scripture must needs have been fulfilled, which the Holy Ghost by the mouth of David spake before concerning Judas, which was guide to them that took Jesus.

17For he was numbered with us, and had obtained part of this ministry.

18Now this man purchased a field with the reward of iniquity; and falling headlong, he burst asunder in the midst, and all his bowels gushed out.

19And it was known unto all the dwellers at Jerusalem; insomuch as that field is called in their proper tongue, Aceldama, that is to say, The field of blood.

20For it is written in the book of Psalms, Let his habitation be desolate, and let no man dwell therein: and his bishoprick let another take.

21Wherefore of these men which have companied with us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us,

22Beginning from the baptism of John, unto that same day that he was taken up from us, must one be ordained to be a witness with us of his resurrection.

23And they appointed two, Joseph called Barsabas, who was surnamed Justus, and Matthias.

24And they prayed, and said, Thou, Lord, which knowest the hearts of all men, shew whether of these two thou hast chosen,

25That he may take part of this ministry and apostleship, from which Judas by transgression fell, that he might go to his own place.

26And they gave forth their lots; and the lot fell upon Matthias; and he was numbered with the eleven apostles.

1The former treatise I made, O Theophilus, concerning all that Jesus began both to do and to teach,

2until the day in which he was received up, after that he had given commandment through the Holy Spirit unto the apostles whom he had chosen:

3To whom he also showed himself alive after his passion by many proofs, appearing unto them by the space of forty days, and speaking the things concerning the kingdom of God:

4and, being assembled together with them, he charged them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father, which, [said he], ye heard from me:

5For John indeed baptized with water; but ye shall be baptized in the Holy Spirit not many days hence.

6They therefore, when they were come together, asked him, saying, Lord, dost thou at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?

7And he said unto them, It is not for you to know times or seasons, which the Father hath set within His own authority.

8But ye shall receive power, when the Holy Spirit is come upon you: and ye shall be my witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea and Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

9And when he had said these things, as they were looking, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight.

10And while they were looking stedfastly into heaven as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white apparel;

11who also said, Ye men of Galilee, why stand ye looking into heaven? this Jesus, who was received up from you into heaven shall so come in like manner as ye beheld him going into heaven.

12Then returned they unto Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is nigh unto Jerusalem, a Sabbath day`s journey off.

13And when they were come in, they went up into the upper chamber, where they were abiding; both Peter and John and James and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James [the son] of Alphaeus, and Simon the Zealot, and Judas [the son] of James.

14These all with one accord continued stedfastly in prayer, with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brethren.

15And in these days Peter stood up in the midst of the brethren, and said (and there was a multitude of persons [gathered] together, about a hundred and twenty),

16Brethren, it was needful that the Scripture should be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spake before by the mouth of David concerning Judas, who was guide to them that took Jesus.

17For he was numbered among us, and received his portion in this ministry.

18(Now this man obtained a field with the reward of his iniquity; and falling headlong, he burst asunder in the midst, and all his bowels gushed out.

19And it became known to all the dwellers at Jerusalem; insomuch that in their language that field was called Akeldama, that is, The field of blood.)

20For it is written in the book of Psalms, Let his habitation be made desolate, And let no man dwell therein: and, His office let another take.

21Of the men therefore that have companied with us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and went out among us,

22beginning from the baptism of John, unto the day that he was received up from us, of these must one become a witness with us of his resurrection.

23And they put forward two, Joseph called Barsabbas, who was surnamed Justus, and Matthias.

24And they prayed, and said, Thou, Lord, who knowest the hearts of all men, show of these two the one whom thou hast chosen,

25to take the place in this ministry and apostleship from which Judas fell away, that he might go to his own place.

26And they gave lots for them; and the lot fell upon Matthias; and he was numbered with the eleven apostles.

1I wrote the former account, Theophilus, about all that Jesus began to do and teach

2until the day he was taken up to heaven, after he had given orders by the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen.

3To the same apostles also, after his suffering, he presented himself alive with many convincing proofs. He was seen by them over a forty-day period and spoke about matters concerning the kingdom of God.

4While he was with them, he declared, “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait there for what my Father promised, which you heard about from me.

5For John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”

6So when they had gathered together, they began to ask him, “Lord, is this the time when you are restoring the kingdom to Israel?”

7He told them, “You are not permitted to know the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority.

8But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the farthest parts of the earth.”

9After he had said this, while they were watching, he was lifted up and a cloud hid him from their sight.

10As they were still staring into the sky while he was going, suddenly two men in white clothing stood near them

11and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand here looking up into the sky? This same Jesus who has been taken up from you into heaven will come back in the same way you saw him go into heaven.”

12Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mountain called the Mount of Olives (which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’s journey away).

13When they had entered Jerusalem, they went to the upstairs room where they were staying. Peter and John, and James, and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot, and Judas son of James were there.

14All these continued together in prayer with one mind, together with the women, along with Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers.

15In those days Peter stood up among the believers (a gathering of about 120 people) and said,

16“Brothers, the scripture had to be fulfilled that the Holy Spirit foretold through David concerning Judas—who became the guide for those who arrested Jesus—

17for he was counted as one of us and received a share in this ministry.”

18(Now this man Judas acquired a field with the reward of his unjust deed, and falling headfirst he burst open in the middle and all his intestines gushed out.

19This became known to all who lived in Jerusalem, so that in their own language they called that field Hakeldama, that is, “Field of Blood.”)

20“For it is written in the book of Psalms, ‘Let his house become deserted, and let there be no one to live in it,’ and ‘Let another take his position of responsibility.’

21Thus one of the men who have accompanied us during all the time the Lord Jesus associated with us,

22beginning from his baptism by John until the day he was taken up from us—one of these must become a witness of his resurrection together with us.”

23So they proposed two candidates: Joseph called Barsabbas (also called Justus) and Matthias.

24Then they prayed, “Lord, you know the hearts of all. Show us which one of these two you have chosen

25to assume the task of this service and apostleship from which Judas turned aside to go to his own place.”

26Then they cast lots for them, and the one chosen was Matthias; so he was counted with the eleven apostles.

1The first book I wrote, Theophilus, concerned all that Jesus began both to do and to teach,

2until the day in which he was received up, after he had given commandment through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen.

3To 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.

4Being 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.

5For John indeed baptized in water, but you will be baptized in the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”

6Therefore when they had come together, they asked him, “Lord, are you now restoring the kingdom to Israel?”

7He said to them, “It isn’t for you to know times or seasons which the Father has set within his own authority.

8But 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.”

9When he had said these things, as they were looking, he was taken up, and a cloud received him out of their sight.

10While they were looking steadfastly into the sky as he went, behold, two men stood by them in white clothing,

11who 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.”

12Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mountain called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’s journey away.

13When 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.

14All these with one accord continued steadfastly in prayer and supplication, along with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with his brothers.

15In 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.

17For he was counted with us, and received his portion in this ministry.

18Now this man obtained a field with the reward for his wickedness, and falling headlong, his body burst open, and all his intestines gushed out.

19It became known to everyone who lived in Jerusalem that in their language that field was called ‘Akeldama,’ that is, ‘The field of blood.’

20For it is written in the book of Psalms, ‘Let his habitation be made desolate. Let no one dwell therein;’ 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,

22beginning 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.”

23They put forward two, Joseph called Barsabbas, who was also called Justus, and Matthias.

24They prayed, and said, “You, Lord, who know the hearts of all men, show which one of these two you have chosen

25to take part in this ministry and apostleship from which Judas fell away, that he might go to his own place.”

26They drew lots for them, and the lot fell on Matthias, and he was counted with the eleven apostles.

Summary
Authorship & Background
Map & Geography
Commentary
Videos
Reflection

Summary

Jesus gives final instructions, promises the Holy Spirit's power, ascends to heaven from the Mount of Olives, and the apostles choose Matthias to replace Judas — waiting in Jerusalem for the promised baptism of the Spirit.

Authorship & Background

Author: Luke, the physician and companion of Paul. Acts is the second volume of Luke's two-part work (Luke-Acts), addressed to the same Theophilus (v.1). Luke was an eyewitness to many events in Acts (the "we" passages beginning in Acts 16:10).
Date Written: Approximately AD 62-63, likely while Paul was imprisoned in Rome.
Purpose: To record the spread of the Gospel from Jerusalem to Rome — from Jews to Gentiles — through the power of the Holy Spirit. Acts 1:8 provides the outline: Jerusalem (chs.1-7), Judea and Samaria (chs.8-12), and the uttermost part of the earth (chs.13-28).
Chapter 1 Content: The ascension of Jesus (vv.1-11), the disciples' prayer and unity (vv.12-14), and the replacement of Judas with Matthias (vv.15-26). This chapter bridges the Gospels and the church age — Jesus departs physically but promises the Spirit's power.
"Began both to do and teach" (v.1): Luke's Gospel recorded what Jesus BEGAN to do. Acts records what He CONTINUES to do — through His Spirit in His church. Jesus' ministry didn't end at the ascension; it expanded.

Map & Geography

  • Jerusalem (v.4): Jesus commanded the disciples to wait in Jerusalem for the promise of the Father (the Holy Spirit).
  • The Mount of Olives (v.12): Jesus ascended from the Mount of Olives, about a "Sabbath day's journey" (~3/4 mile) from Jerusalem.
  • Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the uttermost parts of the earth (v.8): The geographic outline of the entire book of Acts — the Gospel expanding in concentric circles from Jerusalem outward.

Commentary

  • Enduring Word (David Guzik): enduringword.com Guzik examines the transition from the Gospels to Acts, the ascension, the disciples' question about the kingdom, Acts 1:8 as the book's outline, and the selection of Matthias.
  • Charles Spurgeon: Sermon: "Power from on High" on v.8 (MTP Vol. 10, No. 600) "Ye shall receive power — not 'ye shall receive a program,' not 'ye shall receive a strategy' — power. The Holy Ghost is not a method; He is a Person. And when He comes upon you, you receive power — power to witness, power to endure, power to transform." Sermon: "The Ascension" on v.9 (MTP Vol. 22, No. 1335) "A cloud received Him — the Shekinah glory cloud that led Israel through the wilderness. He ascended into the glory of God. And He will return the same way — visibly, physically, gloriously."

Reflection

  • 1. "Ye shall receive power... and ye shall be witnesses" (v.8). Power and witness go together. You cannot be an effective witness without the Spirit's power. Are you relying on the Spirit's power or your own ability? What would Spirit-empowered witness look like in your daily life?
  • 2. The disciples asked about the kingdom's timing (v.6). Jesus redirected them to mission (v.8). We often want to know God's timeline; God wants us focused on our assignment. Are you more focused on when Christ will return or on what He's called you to do until He does?
  • 3. "These all continued with one accord in prayer" (v.14). Before Pentecost, the church prayed — together, in unity, persistently. What preceded the Spirit's power was united prayer. How is your prayer life — both personal and corporate?
  • 4. The angels said "Why stand ye gazing up into heaven?" (v.11). There's a time to worship and a time to work. The ascension was not an invitation to passivity but a commission to action. Are you gazing or going?
  • 5. Luke says his Gospel recorded what Jesus "began" to do (v.1). Acts records what He continues to do through His Spirit. How does knowing that Jesus is still actively working — through you — change how you view your daily life?
  • 6. Jesus said "It is not for you to know the times or the seasons" (v.7). Why do you think God keeps the future hidden? How does not knowing the timeline affect how you live today?
  • 7. Acts 1:8 gives the geographic expansion of the Gospel: Jerusalem → Judea → Samaria → ends of the earth. What is your "Jerusalem" (immediate context)? Your "Judea" (broader community)? Your "Samaria" (people different from you)? Your "uttermost part" (global reach)?
  • 8. The 120 disciples prayed for 10 days before Pentecost (vv.14-15). They didn't strategize, organize, or plan — they prayed. What would happen if your church (or your men's group) committed to sustained, united prayer before attempting anything else?
  • 9. Matthias was chosen by lot (v.26) — trusting God's sovereignty over the outcome. How do you make major decisions? Do you trust God's sovereignty over the process, or do you need to control every variable?