The passage
      v17-18. In chapter 4 we read of Peter and John's examination before the Sanhedrin following the healing of the cripple at Beautiful Gate. Peter and John refuse to stop preaching (disturbing the populous) and so, after further healings, the authorities act to arrest them.
      v19-25. The religious authorities, particularly the Sadducees, were obviously planning some serious retribution, but the apostles are mysteriously freed and are again preaching "in the temple courts." Their mysterious escape at least implies that they had support in high places, so the authorities will need to take care how they proceed. Luke tells us that the apostles were not freed because of a political conspiracy, but rather by the direct hand of God; a messenger (an "angel") from God had set them free and told them to continue to preach. Naturally, the guards are fearful, following the apostles' escape, since they are responsible for the security of their prisoners.
      v26-27. On hearing that the apostles are again preaching in the temple courts, the "captain of the temple guard" is sent to rearrest them, but this time with a softly-softly approach. There is an obvious need not to stir up the populous.
      v28. In the presence of the Sanhedrin the apostles are reminded that they were given strict instructions not to teach the people about "that man." In fact, they have done the opposite. The Sadducees interpret the apostles' actions as an attempt to hold them responsible for the death of Jesus in the eyes of the populous.
      v29. Peter, on behalf of the other apostles, answers the charge by resting on divine authority. The authority of the Sanhedrin is substantial, but the apostles must submit to God rather than the authority of man.
      v30-31. Peter goes on to repeat the substance of the apostolic proclamation of the gospel. cf. 2:22-36, 3:13-26, 4:10-12.
        i] "God raised Jesus up", in the sense of establishing him as messiah, in the same sense as God "raised up David", cf. 3:26, 13:33. So, God anointed Jesus as Israel's long-awaited prophet, priest and king.
        ii] "You killed by hanging him on a tree." As prophesied, God's people set upon his "suffering servant", cursing him with an ignominious death - "he that is hanged on a tree is cursed of God", Deut.21:23. They inflicted disgrace on Jesus, disgrace on the innocent one.
        iii] "God exalted him." Here the reference is probably to Jesus' resurrection and ascension. Jesus is now Lord and Saviour, possessing glory, authority and power.
        iv] "To grant repentance and forgiveness of sins." Therefore, Jesus is authorized to provide for his people a time to repent, along with the blessing of forgiveness (peace with God).
      v32. The apostles are witnesses of these truths - they "beheld his glory", they were witnesses to Christ's life, death, resurrection and ascension. This witness is confirmed by the Holy Spirit, whose power is active in the apostles' ministry.

Preaching Christ
      The apostles boldly preached the good news in the temple at Jerusalem, despite repeated threats of arrest and imprisonment from the authorities. For a second time they were brought before the rulers of the Sanhedrin, who had previously given strict orders that they not teach in the name of Jesus. Despite this, the apostles spread their teaching all over Jerusalem - joyously telling the people all about "this new life" in Jesus. The apostles' response to the accusations brought against them is simply "we must obey God, not any human authority." This gospel of Christ, which they believed with all their heart, is something they felt compelled to share in order that others might experience this new life. The Easter event changed their lives, empowering them to preach, teach and heal in Jesus' name.
      The focus of this passage is upon the irresistible communication of the gospel, yes, even to those who would muzzle it. The content of Peter's proclamation to the Sanhedrin is common to the book of Acts. In the book of Acts the punch-line of the gospel is the glorification of Jesus Christ (his resurrection and ascension and thus, by implication, his enthronement as Lord) and the impact of this event on us (a time for repentance and the gift of forgiveness - a new relationship with God, life eternal). The apostolic preaching did not develop a theology of the cross (redemptive theology). The atonement, as spelled out, for example, in Romans, concerns the Christian life, it assures us of our eternal right-standing in the sight of God, by grace through faith. The lost, on the other hand, need to hear that although God's man, Jesus (the Jewish messiah), was taken and crucified by wicked men, the grave could not hold him, such that he now reigns eternally at God's right hand with the power to save. For those who turn to God (repentance), forgiveness is now assured by God's man, Jesus.

v17
      In v17-18 Luke records the custodians of temple worship taking action against the apostles for flouting their instruction to cease preaching in the temple precincts.
      anastaV (anisthmi) aor. part. "then" - having stood up. Participle of attendant circumstances, identifying an action that accompanies the main verb "were filled." Usually regarded as redundant and only serving to link the Sadducees' action with the preceding verse, so NIV. Possible variant, "Annas stood up." "Thereupon", Bruce.
      ousa (eimi) "who were [members]" - being [the sect of the Sadducees]. The participle of the verb to-be is attributive, limiting the noun "the party", usually translated as a relative clause, as NIV. Possibly a technical use meaning "current", so "local" as of "the local party (school) of the Sadducees", Barrett.
      twn Saddoukaiwn gen. "the Sadducees" - The genitive is relational, identifying the members of the party.
      zhlou (oV) gen. "[full of] jealousy" - zeal, jealousy. The genitive is descriptive, particularly content, what they were full of; "envy", Bruce, although a positive sense is possible, "a holy sense of the truth as they believed it to be", cf. Barrett.

v18
      epebalon (epiballw) aor. "they arrested" - they laid, threw [the hands upon the apostles]. The use of "apostles" here may indicate a more extensive roundup and arrest than just Peter and John.
      dhmosia/ adj. or adv. "public [jail]" - Bruce thinks the word is used as an adjective, as NIV, describing something about the prison, possibly just "city jail", CEV, or "public" in the sense of a jail for the riffraff; "the common jail", Williams. As an adverb it means "put them in prison publically", Barrett, that is, in such a way as to shame them.

v19
      Note the limited description of the breakout. Luke does not focus on the miracle, but on the apostles continued proclamation of the gospel and the Sadducees distress.
      dia + gen. "during" - through in time or place.
      nuktoV "night" - A variant has the article, thus "the night in question."
      aggeloV "an angel" - A messenger of the Lord, one who attends to God's divine will.
      kuriou (oV) gen. "of the Lord" - The genitive may be ablative of source, "an angel from the Lord", although the lack of the article with both "angel" and "Lord" is typical of the LXX and usually indicates a possessive genitive, as of "belonging to the Lord." The actual identity of "the Lord" is not spelled out, either Jesus, or God.
      exagagwn (exagw) aor. part. "brought [them] out" - having led out, brought out. Participle of attendant circumstance, identifying an action accompanying the main verb "he said."

v20
      Continued proclamation is the order of the day.
      staqenteV (iJsthmi) aor. pas. part. "stand" - [go and] having stood. A participle of attendant circumstance, identifying an action accompanying the main verb "go". As usual, best translated by a finite verb joined by "and", here taking its imperatival force from the imperative "go"; "go and stand in the temple", Moffatt.
      panta "[the] full [message]" - all [the words]. They must proclaim "all" the words, hold nothing back.
      thV zwhV gen. "of [this] new life" - [all the words] of [this] life. Probably a genitive of reference, "the full message with respect to / with reference to this life." Bruce notes that the words "life" and "salvation" are interchangeable when used of the Christian message (gospel), cf. 13:26. So, probably a shorthand way of saying "this way of life" = the gospel, although most translators opt for "new life", as NIV.

v21
      The story is told with a definite touch of irony. The Sanhedrin was doing its thing, but the Lord was doing his thing. This possibility is later acknowledged by the Pharisees, particularly Gamaliel with his comment, "if it is from God, you will not be able to destroy them." For Luke, the focus is on "the impotence of human authorities to control the course of events", Tannehill, or more particularly, the impotence of human authorities to hinder the communication of the gospel; the message of God's grace in Christ cannot be hindered by any powers or authorities.
      akousanteV (akouw) aor.part. "-" - having heard. Temporal participle; "after receiving these instructions", Phillips.
      uJpo + acc. of time "at [daybreak] - under [the early morning]. The preposition hupo followed by an accusative would normally be translated "under", but it is rather awkward to describe the apostles entering the temple "under the dawning sun", although the construction is classical for "at daybreak", as NIV. Culy suggests the construction may imply stealth.
      paragenomenoV (paraginomai) aor. part. "when .... arrived" - having come. Temporal participle, as NIV. Obviously they didn't arrive where the apostles were preaching, but "arrived at the place where the Sanhedrin was to meet", Barrett.
      kai "[the Sanhedrin ] - [the full assembly of the elders]" - and. Bruce suggests the conjunction here is epexegetic, introducing an explanation of the makeup of the "Sanhedrin"; "the Sanhedrin, that is, the whole Jewish senate", Barclay.
      acqhnai (agw) aor. pas. inf. "for" - [sent to the jail] to be brought, led, driven [to them]. The infinitive expresses purpose, "the authorities sent word to the jail in order to have the apostles brought to them."

v22
      paragenomenoi (paraginomai) aor. part. "on arriving" - having come, appeared. The participle is attributive, "the arriving servants" = "the servants who arrived", although a temporal sense makes better sense, "when the officers arrived at the prison", NJB.
      oiJ uJphretai (hV ou) "the officers" - the assistants. "Probably Levities of the temple watch", Bruce.
      anastreyanteV (anastrefw) aor. part. "so they went back" - having returned. The participle is possibly attendant circumstance, expressing action accompanying the verb "reported", so translated as a finite verb, "they returned and told their story", Barclay, possibly temporal, "afterward they went back and reported", also possibly consecutive expressing result, "with the result that they went back and reported", as NIV, NAB, REB, NJB .....

v23
      legonteV (legw) pres. part. "-" - saying. Pleonastic (redundant) participle.
      oJti "-" Introducing direct speech.
      en pash/ asfaleia/ "securely" - with/in all safety/security. Expressing the manner in which the door was locked. "locked tight", CEV.
      kekleismenon (kleiw) perf. pas. part. acc. "locked" - having been closed, locked, shut. The perfect tense expressing an action completed with ongoing consequences, so "incarcerated". The substantive participle, along with the noun "jail", forms a double accusative object-complement construction, cf. Wallace p182. "We found (verb) the prison (accusative object) securely locked (accusative complement)."
      eJstwtaV (iJsthmi) perf. part. acc. "standing" - [and (we found) the gards] having stood [at the door]. As above, another double accusative object-complement; "we found (verb) the guards (accusative object) standing (accusative complement)."
      anoixanteV (anoigw) aor. part. "when we opened them" - having opened. Temporal participle as NIV. "When we unlocked the door we found no one inside", NJB.

v24
      dihporoun (diaporew) imperf. "were puzzled" - were thoroughly perplexed, baffled. Note again how the focus of this episode is not so much on the miraculous escape, but rather the confused response of the authorities to the apostles preaching and their incapacity to muzzle the gospel. If the escape were all about escaping arrest then they wouldn't have been sent back to the temple to commence their preaching and so be arrested again. The story highlights the impotence of those who would muzzle the gospel. "Were quite at a loss", Moffatt.
      ti (tiV) "what" - certain. Here the particle is most likely interrogative, as NIV. Possibly best translated as a direct quote of what they thought; "they wondered `what will happen because of this?'", NCV.
      an + opt. "-" - Probably an example of an oblique optative, a construction used only by Luke in the NT., expressing what is merely thought in indirect discourse, much the same as a deliberative subjunctive, but stronger, BDF. 386. Wallace, on the other hand, does not regard it as oblique since it is with the particle an and is thus a potential optative functioning in an incomplete (always so in NT.) conditional sentence 4th class where the stated condition, which must be supplied, has a vague possibility of occurring in the future. So, the authorities "were puzzled" in the terms of something like: "if these men have somehow vanished from a jail cell which was locked and properly guarded (unstated protasis), "what could be happening?", NJB. (apodosis)." The "wondering", not in the Gk. but deduced from the use of the optative, is possibly akin to "being amazed", that is, troubled by a divine mystery; something unnatural had occurred. "They were completely mystified at the apostles' disappearance and wondered what further developments there would be", Phillips.

v25
      paragenomenoV (paraginomai) aor. part. "then [someone] came" - having come, arrived, appeared. Usually treated as a temporal participle, as NIV., but properly attendant circumstances and so translated as a finite verb joined to the verb it attends with "and"; "however, someone came and reported to them", Moffatt. (James is the expert when it comes to participles!).
      eisin (eimi) + pres. part. "[are] ..... teaching [the people]" - Forming a present periphrastic construction where the durative nature of the action is probably being emphasized, "they are teaching again."

v26
      tote "at that" - then, at that moment.
      oJ strathgoV "the captain" - a commander of a military unit. Here referring to the captain of the temple guard.
      apelqwn (apercomai) aor. part. "went" - The participle forms a temporal clause with tote.
      meta + gen. "they did [not] use [force]" - not with force. The sense here is that the officers led the apostles as if escorting them rather than as if they had arrested them; "they dared not use any violence", Phillips.
      efobounto (fobew) imperf. "they feared" - they feared. The imperfect tense expressing durative action, ongoing fear.
      mh liqasqwsin (liqazw) aor. pas. subj. "that [the people] would stone them" - lest they should be stoned. A particular usage of the subjunctive with this negation used after the verb "fear" expressing "warning, caution or anxiety", Wallace. The officers are probably anxious about their own safety, rather than the safety of the apostles.

v27
      agagonteV (agw) aor. part. "having brought" - having brought [them they stood in the council]. The participle is probably attendant circumstance; "they brought them in and placed them before", Barclay, but possibly temporal; "when they brought them in to face the Sanhedrin", NJB.
      oJ arciereuV - iJreuV "the High Priest" - Note the possible alternate reading "priest", or even "temple manager"

v28
      ou "-" - no. Variant negation used in a question where the answer is positive; "did we not strictly order you ..?", Barclay.
      paraggelia/ (a) dat. "strict [orders]" - [didn't we command you] with a command. Emphasizing the command. Possibly an imitation of a Hebrew infinitive absolute, Barrett. Having previously commanded the apostles to be silent, they are, in a sense, now in contempt of court.
      mh didaskein (didaskw) pres. inf. "not to teach" - The infinitive is probably expressing indirect speech, what the authorities originally told the apostles not to do, but also possibly expressing means (epexegetic) explaining what the apostles were commanded not to do, namely, "teach".
      epi tw/ onomati toutw/ "in this name" - upon/on the name this/that. Presumably "in the name of Jesus", cf. 4:18, but the authorities don't want to mention Jesus' name. "We gave you strict orders not to go on teaching in that name", NCV.
      peplhrwkate (plhrow) perf. "you have filled" - The perfect tense (an aorist variant exists) is probably extensive (consummative), emphasizing the completed past action of filling Jerusalem with their teaching which has now produced ongoing disturbing consequences.
      tou anqrwpou toutou "of this man's [blood]" - [the blood] of this man. "The expression is disparaging", Barrett.
      to aiJma (a atoV) "blood" - Referring to Jesus' execution. The authorities feel they are being accused of playing a part in a sham trial and execution. The apostles certainly hold the Jewish authorities responsible, rather than the Roman authorities; "whom you crucified", is fairly pointed, and Peter goes on to restate the charge in 5:30. It is unlikely that the authorities feel any shame for their actions, but they certainly would be concerned if the populous begin to hold them responsible for a miscarriage of justice. "You are determined to fasten the guilt of that man's death upon us", Phillips.

v29
      PetroV kai oiJ apostoloi "Peter and the other apostles" - The order in the Gk. suggests that it was Peter who actually spoke and did so with the agreement of and on behalf of the other apostles.
      peiqarcein (peiqarcew) pres. inf. "We [must] obey" - to obey [is necessary]. The infinitive is complementary, completing the meaning of the verb "is necessary". The sense is that where there is a conflict between the authority of God and the authority of man (secular or religious powers), "we must obey the orders of God rather than the orders of men", Phillips.

v30
      twn paterwn hJmwn "of our fathers" - Genitive of relationship where Peter ties the apostles and the authorities together under the same God, Yahweh. "The Christian faith is the fulfillment, not the contradiction of Judaism", Barrett.
      hgeiren (egairw) aor. "raised [Jesus] from the dead" - raised, lifted up. The NIV, as do most commentators, assumes that Luke is referring to the resurrection of Jesus, but it is possible that Luke has in mind the establishing of Jesus as messiah, in the same sense as God "raised up (exalted) David", cf. 3:26, 13:33. God anointed Jesus as Israel's long-awaited prophet, priest and king. NRSV has "raised up", but gives the game away with a tense change to the perfect, "had killed" for "killed", similarly aorist. "It was the God of our fathers who raised Jesus, who you murdered by hanging him on a cross of wood. God has raised this man to his own right hand as prince and saviour", Phillips.
      dieceirisasqe (dieceirizw) aor. "you had killed" - you sized and killed. "Murdered".
      kremasanteV (krennanumi) aor. part. "by hanging him [on a tree]" - having hung [upon a tree/wood/post + gallows, cross]. The participle is instrumental, Jesus was murdered "by means of" crucifixion. The reference is to Deut.21:22-23.

v31
      uJywsen (uJyow) aor. "[God] exalted" - lifted up, exalted. It does seem logical that if "exalted" is intended here, in terms of Christ's ascension and glorification, then the previous "raised/lifted up" in v30 refers to the resurrection, but none-the-less it probably refers to Christ's resurrection and ascension.
      th/ dexia/ dat. "to [his] right hand" - The dative is possibly local, as NIV, but instrumental seems better, "by/with his right hand."
      archgon kai swthra "Prince and Savior" - Best treated as a double accusative, "exalted him as Prince and Savior", Culy, so NIV., but possibly as compound accusatives that are predicative, "exalted him to be Prince and Savior", Barrett. The term "Prince" probably equates with "Lord" = the glorified messiah, Bruce. "Savior", a not-so-common title for Jesus, but an obvious one in that he is the one who rescues us from sin and death.
      dounai (didwmi) aor. inf. "that he might give" - to give, grant. Variant of a genitive article exists producing an articular infinitive. The infinitive is adverbial, probably expressing purpose, "in order to give", Williams.
      metanoian (a) "repentance" - The gift of a time of repentance, an opportunity to repent, rather than repentance itself.
      Israhl "Israel" - The gift is to Israel first, and then to all flesh.