Acts 4:31

place was shaken--glorious token of the commotion which the Gospel was to make (Act 17:6; compare Act 16:26), and the overthrow of all opposing powers in which this was to issue.

they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and spake, &c.--The Spirit rested upon the entire community, first, in the very way they had asked, so that they "spake the word with boldness" (Act 4:29, Act 4:31); next, in melting down all selfishness, and absorbing even the feeling of individuality in an intense and glowing realization of Christian unity. The community of goods was but an outward expression of this, and natural in such circumstances.

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Act_4:31

And when they had prayed the place was shaken … and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost.

Prayer effects miracles

I. Internal.

1. Hearts are savingly affected.

2. Spirits are mightily strengthened.

II. External.

1. Houses are moved.

2. Churches awakened.

3. Enemies frightened.

4. Mountains displaced.

5. The world convulsed. (K. Gerok.)

The blessings of spiritual worship

I. The devotional supplication offered to God. They prayed. It was--

1. Earnest.

2. United.

3. Believing.

4. Sincere.

5. Specific.

II. The visible evidence of the Lords presence. The place was shaken where they were assembled together.

1. The unmistakable proof of Divine power.

2. The reliable sign of Divine nearness.

3. The full assurance of Divine protection.

III. The invisible descent of the spirit. They were all filled with the Holy Ghost.

1. The gift of the Holy Ghost was bestowed.

2. The supply of the Holy Ghost was abundant.

3. Every worshipper received the baptism of the Spirit.

IV. The Christian courage of the disciples. They spake the Word of God with boldness.

1. The subject of their speeches.

2. The fearlessness of their conduct.

3. The activity of their labours.

Lessons--

1. To plead with God should be our first thought when surrounded with difficulties.

2. God will grant to our request some token of His presence and help of the Spirit.

3. The prayers of true worshippers bring blessings if we wait patiently at the throne of grace.

4. May we seek by holy fellowship to speak Divine truths without the fear of the world. (Alfred Buckley.)

The gift of the Spirit dependent on prayer

How well I remember a sermon I preached at a great outdoor meeting in the upper part of this State! For several days in that place prayer had been offered for the success of the service, and I had myself been unusually prayerful, and we had a Pentecostal blessing while I was preaching it. That afternoon I took the train for a great outdoor meeting in Ohio. I said to myself: This sermon was blessed to-day, and it is fresh in my mind, and I will preach it to-morrow in Ohio. And I did preach it, but not in as prayerful a spirit, and I think no one else had been praying about it, and it turned into the most inane and profitless discourse that I ever delivered. It was practically the same sermon, but on Wednesday it had on it a power that comes from the secret place of thunder, and on Thursday it had on it no such power at all. Oh! pray for us! Poor sermons in the pulpit are the curse of God on a prayerless parish. We ministers and preachers want the power a man gets when he is alone, the door locked; on his knees at midnight; with such a burden of souls upon him that makes him cry out, first in lamentation and then in raptures. Let all the Sabbath-school teachers, and Bible-class instructors, and all reformers, and all evangelists, and all ministers know that diplomas, and dictionaries, and encyclopaedias, and treatises, and libraries are not the source of moral and spiritual achievement, but that the room of prayer, where no one but God is present and no one but God hears, is the secret place of thunder. Secret? Ah, yes! So secret that comparatively few ever find it. At Boscobel, England, we visited a house where a king was once hid. No one, unless it were pointed out to him, could find the door in the floor through which the king entered his hiding-place. When there hidden the armed pursuers looked in vain for him, and afterward through an underground passage, far out in the fields, he came out in the open air. So this imperial power of spiritual influence has a hiding-place, a secret place which few know, and it comes forth sometimes in strange and mysterious ways, and far off from the place where it was hidden. You can find it only by diligent searching. But you may find it, and some of you will find it, and I wish you might all find it, the secret place of thunder. (T. De Witt Talmage.)

The second Pentecost

Notice--

I. The praying.

1. The exuberance of joy, the yearnings of sympathy, the wailings of sorrow seek--very commonly--Loud vocal expression. So the disciples lifted up their voice (Act_4:24).

2. They prayed together. The soul loves sympathy in joy as well as sorrow.

II. The sharing. Praying and shaking have often been found together. The foundations of the prison at Philippi were shaken. The Lord of old promised to shake the heavens, and not the earth only. The bones were shaken when Ezekiel prophesied in the valley of vision. In mighty prayer the electric current shakes the clouds of blessing, so that heavy showers descend upon us. Hearts are shaken, knees shaken, sinners shaken.

III. The filling. Not half filled, not three parts, but completely. Not filled with doubts and fears, as too often people now are when they pray, but with the Holy Ghost. That is the sort of filling preachers or people, teachers or scholars, require nowadays. To be filled with the Holy Ghost is to be filled with faith, with power, with unction, with heaven.

IV. The speaking.

1. What did they speak? Not the praise of man: much less slander and reproach. Not the mere shibboleth of party, not idle or mischievous words, but the Word of God. How little do many professors speak of Gods Word. But as David said of Goliaths sword, there is none like it.

2. They spake it--how? Boldly. Of course, when they were full of the Holy Ghost they would little heed what men thought of them, said about them, or did at them. Many a fit of nervousness has been cured this way, (W. Antliff, D. D.)

Early Church life

Let us consider--

I. The prayer.

1. Its occasion. The persecution of the apostles.

2. Its substance. It was seasonable, suitable, short, as all the prayers recorded in the Scriptures are; and though they had been so evil entreated yet they beseech God to stretch forth His hand, not to strike and to punish, but to heal.

3. Its success. God never said to the seed of Jacob, Seek ye My face in vain. The sign of the acceptance of their prayer seemed much more likely to produce dread than to gender hope; but so God would teach us that He is greatly to be feared in the assembly of His saints; that He will be sanctified by all them that come nigh to Him; that there is something awful even in the dispensations of His grace; that He sometimes answers His people as the God of their salvation, by terrible things in righteousness.

4. Its effect. They were all filled with the Holy Ghost. They were now called to fresh duties, difficulties, dangers; and therefore they required fresh supplies of the Spirit of Jesus Christ. Their strength was made equal to their day, and they obtained accessions of illumination, of confidence, of courage, of peace, and of joy, and were prepared to stand complete in all the will of God.

II. The preaching. And they spake the Word of God with boldness. The very thing for which they had been praying. The very thing Paul beseeches of the Ephesians to implore on his behalf: that utterance may be given unto me, that I may open my mouth boldly. You see how little they were governed by the opinions of the people around them; that they did not walk in craftiness, nor handle the Word of God deceitfully, nor appeal to the fancies and wishes of the individuals before them; but by manifestation of the truth, they commended themselves to every mans conscience in the sight of God. Suppose a number of persons were to call on a minister on a Sabbath-day morning, and one of them should say, I hope, sir, you do not mean to-day to be severe against avarice, for my heart goes after my covetousness; and another, I trust you will not be severe against backbiting, for my tongue walketh with slanderers; and another, Do not represent implacability as being inconsistent with Divine forgiveness, for I never did forgive such an one, and I never will. What would this minister say to these men? Why, if he were in a proper state of mind, he would say, Oh, thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness! when wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord? Our people are not likely to address us in this way, but this is the wish and meaning of many. Three things equalise, says Bishop Hall, the grave, the judgment-bar, and the pulpit: the grave makes no difference, the judgment-bar makes none, and the pulpit should make none. Daniel addressed Belshazzar as if he had been a common man. John the Baptist was to Herod as rough as the garment he wore. James the First said of one of his chaplains, Why, this man always preaches before me as if death stood at his elbow. Why, dearth does always stand at the preachers elbow, and he ought to be able to say with Baxter: I preach as if I neer should preach again; and as a dying man to dying men.

III. The people (verse 32). Verily, if this be the golden age of Christianity, we may well exclaim, How is the gold become dim! Note--

1. Their number, a multitude. This accords with our Saviours represcutation of His kingdom as in the beginning--Like a little leaven in the meal, and like a mustard-seed in the ground. But then this little leaven was to leaven the whole lump, and this mustard-seed was to become a tree. Our Saviour first opened His mind to twelve, and then to seventy, and then we read of five hundred brethren in Galilee and a hundred and twenty in Jerusalem; then three thousand at Pentecost. Then as a result of daily additions to the Church, five thousand. We concede that success by itself is not proof of the divinity of a cause. If we did, what should we then do with Mohammedism and Popery? But here we contend that the case is unspeakably peculiar, and that the instrumentalities employed were so perfectly in themselves inadequate to the result, that the effect must induce us to exclaim, This is the finger of God.

2. Their character. The multitude believed. The subject reported by the apostles had been unknown, or held in contempt, before; but now the people received is, not as the word of man, but as it was in truth, the word of God; and the belief became productive of godliness in the soul, and the influence of it worked effectually in them that believed. Is this always the case with belief? You believe! so do the devils--and tremble, and remain devils still; and wicked men may hold the truth in unrighteousness. Take heed, therefore; he is a vain man, says James, who says he has faith and has not works.

3. Their unity. They were of one heart and of one soul--one object influenced them; one cause engaged them; one principle swayed them. It must be obvious that the views, and tempers, and inclinations of men are very various; and therefore they are only to be brought into a state of social connection by an object that is important and interesting to all: and you find such aa object as this in the gospel. Therefore, in the language of prophecy, it is said, All nations shall flow unto it, as so many streams flowing from different sources towards the same fulness--the sea. When the brazen serpent was erected in the midst of the camp, it became the centre of attraction and regard. Our Saviour, in allusion to this, says, I, if I be lifted up, will draw all men unto Me. If there were but one well for the inhabitants of a village or a town, why they must all repair to it or perish. Old Jacob, therefore, said when he was dying, Unto Him shall the gathering of the people be. Isaiah said, To Him shall men come. They were of one heart and of one soul; one in their need of the blessing, one in their desire after it, one in their valuation of it, one in their concern to diffuse it, and to extend it to all their fellow-creatures. They were as one family, as one body, where if one member suffer, all the members suffer with it, and if one member be honoured, all the members rejoice. You will note here, as they were now so numerous in Jerusalem, they must have worshipped in various rooms, and have been addressed by various preachers; but though they were divided into so many parts, there were no parties among them. They had not yet learned to be carnal, and to walk as men, saying, I am of Paul, and I of Apollos.

4. Their liberality. You have heard often of the communion of saints, and here you have it literally. Their property, by a conventual giving and receiving, being intermingled, became a kind of joint stock, from which every man drew according to his need. (W. Jay.)

Waiting for the Spirit

When tidal rivers meet the sea, a sight may often be witnessed very strange to the uninformed spectator. The day is fine, the breeze is steady and favourable, the rippling waters dance in the sunlight; and as the anxious watcher waits for the long-absent friend who is expected from a distant land, he rejoices in the favourable conditions which will hasten the happy hour of meeting. Eagerly he scans the horizon for the expected ship. Presently it appears, rapidly draws nearer, and the bounding heart shows its restless eagerness by a hundred sighs. But lo! the great vessel slackens speed, and presently drops anchor. Then from the horizon comes another, a stately ship, her snowy sails filled by the breeze. She, too, draws near, and turns away, or furls her sails and waits. And then another and another come, and are stopped on their course by some unseen barrier. Perplexed and impatient, the watcher appeals to a seaman, and gets for answer, Oh, its the tide; they are waiting for the tide. And behold, even while they speak there is a change in the aspect of the shore. The hurrying waters, which have been flowing so rapidly down to the sea, are stopped; they creep up again over the strand. From far away in the southern ocean a mighty wave is flowing on unseen. It rises and flows and fills the channels, and washes against the sea-wall, and reaches almost to the dock sills, and the gates are opened, and the waiting fleet wakes up to new life; anchors are raised; sails are spread; steam is once more at work; and the stately procession comes up the stream and into the harbour--the ocean steamer with its living freight of a thousand souls, the merchantman from the East with precious cargo of silks and spices, and lesser craft from their various voyages, and with their various stores of goods. (London Missionary Societys Report.)

Conditions of the baptism of the Spirit

Some of the older States in the great Republic across the Atlantic complain sadly of excessive drought. In bygone years the rain was wont to descend in copious fertilising showers; but now the clouds hover high in the air and float away to other regions. And why? Because the old-established States have been completely shorn of their ancient forests, and as a penalty they now fail to attract the clouds; or, if they attract them, they fail to draw from them the water of life. What then do the inhabitants do under these blighting circumstances? They plant cannons in the high places of the land, and when they see a cloud sailing high in mid-air they fire their artillery; the air shakes, and in the shock the cloud rends and pours its precious contents on the thirsty soil--rain often descends the day after battle. That is the modern way of obtaining rain; but the grey-haired settlers declare the old way was better, and they are now busily planting trees in the denuded regions--trees will draw water from the clouds easier than artillery. In like manner the Israel of God is lamenting the excessive drought in the present day--some of you are longing for a season of refreshing from the presence of the Lord, you are fervently praying for the day of visitation. We see the clouds of the Divine promises heavy-laden with water; but they sail high in the empyrean--no showers descend. What do the Churches do? They fetch the American revivalists, they send here and there for the big guns of the Christian ministry. The guns shoot, the air trembles, the clouds burst, the torrent falls. But it is a torrent, and like all torrents it drenches the surface and soon passes, and the earth is as parched as ever. I say nothing against your resorting to extraordinary means to force on a revival--forcing is now a complicated art, not only in horticulture, but in all departments of activity, temporal and spiritual. But I show you a more excellent way--cultivate more assiduously the trees of righteousness, grow more vigorously in grace and knowledge, fulfil more faithfully your duties to men, and discharge more promptly your obligations to God and your Redeemer, and the clouds of the Divine promises, big with mercy, shall break in showers on your heads. Get you up, gird your loins, live lives of holiness and consecration, and soon you will hear the sound of abundance of rain. (J. Cynddylan Jones, D. D.)

The secret of power

I. The outpouring of prayer. When they heard, they lifted up their voice to God. It would seem that not a word was said to one another. We know it was earnest and fervent prayer, because of the men by whom it was offered, because of the special source that gave the inspiration from which it sprang, and because of the result that followed. Prayer is the only preparation by which we can be meetened for the work, and the only power by which the work can be blessed. Not mere repetition of forms, either from printed page or stereotyped memory, but the uprising and outpouring of prayer like a living power out of a living soul, in which God the Spirit shall plead with God the Father the merits of God the Son, and then shall Gods work be sustained by His grace, and be prospered by His Divine power indeed. Prayer without work is mockery; work without prayer is vanity, and must lead to despair, vexation, and grief. If Israel is to rally her broken ranks to the conflict, bearing her glorious standard, to march in undaunted power and all-conquering might against the Amalekites and all that assail her, it must be preceded by the uplifting of the arms upon the mountain above the plain. It must be special prayer, prayer with point, with a purpose, for your ministers, for all your instrumentalities. Gather them all like a golden sheaf into your arms, and bring them all into the presence of the God of all grace, and the Spirit of all power. Prayer that shall spring from a sense of our own responsibility to God for everything, the utter inability for anything of ourselves; prayer that shall bring down the Divine power to make us say, I can do all things.

II. They were all filled with the Holy Ghost.

1. All filled with it, not merely Peter, and John, and James. And so must it be with every servant of God. It shall be sought not merely for the minister, or the church officer, or the Sundayschool teacher, but for all, that it may give the tenderness of the still small voice; that it may be heard in the thunder of every Boanerges; that it may give Divine vitality and power to the sweet, soft music of every Barnabas; that it may be as a living two-edged sword out of the mouth of every Apollos; that it may be as the Divine fire that shall glow in all the reasoning of all Pauls; that the Church may become an embodiment of Divine life and power.

2. They were all filled--not merely drops and rivulets. It came like a river that proceeded from the throne of God; or rather the broad, deep tide from the fathomless ocean of the fulness of the Divine grace and glory above. It came and filled them, and overflowed, and poured its living tide throughout the world around them. And so it must be. Prove Me now herewith, and see if I will not pour out the blessing till there shall not be room to receive it. We want more depth, and breadth, and power of religious emotion, and life, and faith, and service. Our life too often is so restricted in its dimensions, so feeble in its spirit, so low-toned in its vitality, and so circumscribed in the mode of its operation. We want as men of God to be filled with the fulness of God.

3. They were filled with the Holy Ghost--not merely with excitement, mental vigour and determination, indignation, compassion, grief, despair, but with the Holy Ghost. There is the power we must have.

III. What followed. They all sprang to the work in which the two brethren had been previously engaged. They spake the Word of God with boldness is spoken of all the brethren. There are none who have a voice that cannot speak and sing of other things; and there must be none that do not speak of Jesus. It must be spoken at all becoming times and with all becoming promptitude, for soon our voices will be hushed in the silence of the grave. (J. P. Chown.)

Power to be witnesses

1. These feeble Christians moved the Hand that moves the world. The place was shaken, but not the people. The ground trembled, but they had found a refuge in God. It is after and in answer to prayer that the Lord arises to shake the earth. Quick and strong vibrations are felt in the political sphere. Gods saints groan. God hears and answers in His own good time, and then the most firmly-rooted national, social, religious tyrannies totter and fall. The shaking was a sign that prayer was heard. They had acknowledged God as the Maker of heaven and earth. In answer He gives a token that Almightiness is at hand for their protection. The commotions of our day are encouraging to the Christian. Hollow hypocrisies are shaken in order that the things that cannot be shaken may remain (Heb_12:27).

2. But besides this symbol of power, a more specific answer was given. They were filled with the Holy Ghost and spoke the Word with boldness. They did not fear their enemies, they distrusted themselves lest danger should shake them from their steadfastness. Now they have obtained what they asked, they are at ease, as is the magnet on the surging sea, fixed to its pole because loosed from holds, The steadiest thing in a shaking world is a disciple whose life, loosed from the dust, is hid with Christ in God.

3. Thus endued with power, all that was required of them was to bear witness to a fact: The resurrection of the Lord Jesus. Christ had promised them power for this purpose, and now the promise was fulfilled.

(1) The main characteristic of their witnessing was not great eloquence or learning, but power. When you travel by night through a mining district, you see mighty volumes of flame issuing from the furnaces. This is the ordinary accompaniment of the power, but it is not the power. The heat in the heart of the furnace is melting the metal. Do not despise dazzling accompaniments of preaching, but do not trust in them, for they may be the pithless flash from blazing straw.

(2) This power seems to have been a special gift bestowed on the apostles, but a suitable portion was imparted to the whole company--great grace was upon them all--a specific example of which was liberality and brotherly love. And thus the world had two things to say about them--Behold how they defy us; behold how they love one another. Alas for the Church in our day--for we are weak where they were strong; viz., in courage to bear witness for Christ, and fervent charity among ourselves. (W. Arnot, D. D.)

Work for those who are filled with the Spirit

Is there nothing for men who are filled with the Spirit of God to do now? Are there no vile iniquities still going on buttressed up with immoral wealth and political chicaneries which may coexist very well indeed with all the pomposities of a fashionable religiousness; but to-day if there were but one stirring of the Spirit in our dead hearts would be spurned back to the hell from which they came? Look at the streets of London, shameless with prostitution; look at glaring and multiplied incentives to drunkenness which roll into the coffers of some one, a stream of wealth, tainted with the tears of women and the blood of men; look at the nefarious sweaters dens, where greedy Jews and Christians make their vile money out of human misery. Look at the universal worldliness around us, look at the passionate mammon worship, at the reckless competition, at the desecration of Sundays in the mere voluptuous wantonness of pleasure. Lock at the dangerous increase of the guilty madness of betting and gambling in every school, office, street among rich and poor. Look at the rapid degradation of our journalism by the paltry flunkeyism of gossip and the evil malice of slander; look at the bad and false spirit of our so-called religious newspapers. O God, give us saints; O God, pour out the Spirit of Thy might. Were it but in the hearts of one or two to slay these dragons and not fear their poisonous breath! O Christ, send us but two or three heroes for this new Thermopylae. O Holy Ghost, fill one or two hearts with Thy rushing mighty wind, and mitre one or two brows with Thy Pentecostal flame! Priests we have in plenty, and Churchmen, but oh, send us men filled with the Holy Ghost! (Archdeacon Farrar.)

The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Act 4:31. Ἐσαλεύθη, was shaken) A proof afforded that all things are about to be shaken (put in commotion) by the Gospel: ch. Act 16:26 (the earthquake at Philippi preceding the conversion of the gaoler).—ἐπλήσθησαν, they were filled) afresh.—μετὰ παῤῥησίας, with boldness of speech) Boldness of speech was immediately conferred on them, as in Act 4:29 they had prayed; and this they put forth into exercise on the very earliest opportunity among themselves, and in addressing others.

Bengel's Gnomon of the New Testament — English translation (T&T Clark, Edinburgh, 1860) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Act_4:31. Ἐσαλεύθη ὁ τόπος] This is not to be conceived of as an accidental earthquake, but as an extraordinary shaking of the place directly effected by God, a σημεῖον[161]analogous to what happened at Pentecostof the filling with the ΠΝΕῦΜΑ, which immediately ensued. This filling once more with the Spirit (comp. Act_4:8) was the actual granting of the prayer ΔΌς … ΛΌΓΟΝ ΣΟΥ, Act_4:29; for the immediate consequence was: ἘΛΆΛΟΥΝ Τ. ΛΌΓ. Τ. ΘΕΟῦ ΜΕΤᾺ ΠΑῤῬΣΊΑς, namely in Jerusalem, before the Jews, so that the threatenings against Peter and John (Act_4:19; Act_4:21) thus came to nothing. Luke, however, has not meant nor designated the free-spoken preaching as a glossolalia (van Hengel).

As extra-Biblical analogies to the extraordinary ἐσαλ. ὁ τόπος, comp. Virg. Aen. iii. 90 ff.; Ovid. Met. xv. 672. Other examples may be found in Doughtaeus, Anal. II. p. 71, and from the Rabbins in Schoettgen, p. 421.

[161] Viewed by Zeller, no doubt, as an invention of pious legend, although nothing similar occurs in the gospel history, to afford a connecting link for such a legend.

Meyer — Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament — English translation by Peter Christie, edited by Frederick Crombie (T&T Clark, 1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Act 4:31 . δεηθέντων , cf. Act 16:26 , where a similar answer is given to the prayer of Paul and Silas: the verb is characteristic of St. Luke and St. Paul, and is only used by these two writers with the exception of one passage, Mat 9:38 ; in St. Luke’s Gospel it is found eight times, and in Acts seven times, and often of requests addressed to God as here, cf. Act 10:2 , Act 8:24 , Luk 10:2 ; Luk 21:36 ; Luk 22:32 , 1Th 3:10 . See on αἰτέω , Grimm-Thayer (Synonyms). This frequent reference to prayer is characteristic of St. Luke both in his Gospel and the Acts, cf. Act 1:14 ; Act 2:42 ; Act 4:31 ; Act 6:4 ; Act 10:2 ; Act 13:3 ; Act 14:23 ; Act 16:13 ; Act 16:25 ; Act 28:8 ; Friedrich, Das Lucasevangelium , pp. 59, 60. ἐσαλεύθη , Act 16:26 ; Luke (Luk 6:38 ; Luk 6:48 , Act 7:24 ) Act 21:26 ; Heb 12:26-27 ; in the O.T. we have similar manifestations of the divine Presence, cf. Psa 114:7 , Amo 9:5 , where the same word is used; cf. also Isa 6:4 , Hag 2:6 , Joe 3:16 , Eze 38:19 . For instance of an earthquake regarded as a token of the presence of a deity, see Wetstein, in loco ; Virgil, Æneid , iii., 90; Ovid, Met. , xv., 672, and so amongst the Rabbis, Schöttgen, Hor. Heb., in loco . In the Acts it is plainly regarded as no chance occurrence, and with regard to the rationalistic hypothesis that it was merely a natural event, accidentally coinciding with the conclusion of the prayer, Zeller admits that there is every probability against the truth of any such hypothesis; rather may we see in it with St. Chrysostom a direct answer to the appeal to the God in whose hands were the heaven and the earth ( cf. Iren., Adv. Haer. , iii., 12, 5). “The place was shaken, and that made them all the more unshaken” (Chrysostom, Theophylact, Oecumenius). συνηγμένοι , “were gathered,” so in Act 4:27 ; the aorist in the former verse referring to an act, but here the perfect to a state, but impossible to distinguish in translation, Burton, N. T. Moods and Tenses , p. 45. That the shaking is regarded as miraculous is admitted by Weiss, who sees in it the reviser’s hand introducing a miraculous result of the prayer of the Church, in place of the natural result of strengthened faith and popular favour. καὶ ἐπλήσθησαν , Act 4:8 . So here the Holy Ghost inspired them all with courage: He came comfortari , to strengthen; they had prayed that they might speak the word μετὰ παρρ . and their prayer was heard and fulfilled to the letter (Act 4:31 ) as Luke describes “with simple skill”. ἐλάλουν : mark the force of the imperfect. ἐπλησθ . (aorist), the prayer was immediately answered by their being filled with the Holy Ghost, and they proceeded to speak, the imperfect also implying that they continued to speak (Rendall); there is no need to see any reference to the speaking with tongues. Feine sees in the narrative a divine answer to the Apostles’ prayer, so that filled with the Holy Ghost they spoke with boldness. And he adds, that such divine power must have been actually working in the Apostles, otherwise the growth of the Church in spite of its opposition is inexplicable a remark which might well be considered by the deniers of a miraculous Christianity. It is in reality the same argument so forcibly put by St. Chrysostom: “If you deny miracles, you make it all the more marvellous that they should obtain such moral victories these illiterate men!” Jüngst refers the whole verse to a redactor, recording that there was no one present with reference to whom the παρρησία could be employed. But the distinction between the aorist ἐπλήσ . and the imperfect ἐλάλουν shows that not only the immediate but the continuous action of the disciples is denoted.

The Expositor's Greek Testament, edited by W. Robertson Nicoll (1897–1910) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

God witnesseth to his Church by a visible sign, that it is he that will establish it by shaking the powers both of heaven and earth.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

Verse 31. The place was shaken] This earthquake was an evidence of the presence of God, and a most direct answer to their prayer, as far as that prayer concerned themselves. The earthquake proclaimed the stretched-out arm of God, and showed them that resistance against his counsels and determinations must come to nought.

And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost] And, in consequence of this, they spake the word of God with boldness; a pointed answer to a second part of their request, Ac 4:29. A right prayer will always have a right and ready answer. Though these disciples had received the Holy Spirit on the day of pentecost, yet they were capable of larger communications; and what they had then received did not preclude the necessity of frequent supplies, on emergent occasions. Indeed, one communication of this Spirit always makes way and disposes for another. Neither apostle nor private Christian can subsist in the Divine life without frequent influences from on high. Had these disciples depended on their pentecostal grace, they might have sunk now under the terror and menaces of their combined and powerful foes. God gives grace for the time being, but no stock for futurity, because he will keep all his followers continually dependent on himself.

With boldness.] παντι τω θελοντι πιστευειν, To all who were willing to believe, is added by DE, two others, Augustin, Irenaeus, and Bede.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

31. And when they had prayed. Luke declareth now that God did not only hear this prayer, but did also testify the same by a visible sign from heaven. For the shaking of the place should, of itself, have done them small good; but it tendeth to another end, that the faithful may know that God is present with them. Finally, it is nothing else but a token of the presence of God. But the fruit followeth, for they are all filled with the Holy Ghost, and endowed with greater boldness. We ought rather to stand upon this second member. For whereas God did declare his power then by shaking the place it was a rare and extraordinary thing; and whereas it appeared by the effect, that the apostles did obtain that which they desired, this is a perpetual profit of prayer, which is also set before us for an example.

John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.

(31) The place was shaken. . . .—The impression on the senses was so far a renewal of the wonder of the Day of Pentecost, but in this instance without the sign of the tongues of fire, which were the symbols of a gift imparted once for all, and, perhaps also, without the special marvel of the utterance of the tongues. The disciples felt the power of the Spirit, the evidence of sense confirming that of inward, spiritual consciousness, and it came in the form for which they had made a special supplication, the power to speak with boldness the word which they were commissioned to speak.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

31. the place was shaken] That they might feel at once that the God of all nature, to whom they had appealed (Act_4:24), was among them. In their immediate need an immediate answer is vouchsafed, and a token with it that their prayer was heard. Cp. Act_16:26 of the shaking of the prison at Philippi after the prayers of Paul and Silas.

spake the word of God] i.e. wherever they found occasion and opportunity, neglecting the threats of the council, and endowed with the boldness for which they had prayed.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And when they had prayed,.... Either while they were praying, or as soon as they had done; for sometimes, as here, prayer is immediately heard, and an answer is returned, whilst the saints are speaking, or as soon as prayer is ended:

the place was shaken where they were assembled together; which, whether it was a private house, or the temple, is not certain: the latter seems more probable, because their number was so great, that no private house could hold them; and since this was the place where they used to assemble; this was now shaken with a rushing mighty wind, as on the day of Pentecost, and was a symbol of the divine presence, and a token that their prayers were heard, and an emblem of the shaking of the world by the ministry of the apostles:

and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost; with the gifts of the Holy Ghost, even with extraordinary ones, such as speaking with divers tongues, as before on the day of Pentecost; see Act 2:4 and this was the case not only of the apostles, but of the other ministers of the word, and it may be of the whole church:

and they spoke the word of God with all boldness; that is, the apostles, and preachers of the Gospel, spoke it with great freedom, and without fear, not only privately, in their community, but publicly, in the temple: this was what was particularly prayed for, and in which they had a remarkable answer.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

31 And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness.

Ver. 31. The place was shaken] So God testifieth to his Church that he shook them, as men do young trees, to settle them, Hag 2:7. God shaketh all nations, not to ruin, but to refine them; as by rotting he refineth our dead bodies, Php 3:21.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And when they had prayed - The event which followed was regarded by them as an evidence that God heard their prayer.

The place was shaken - The word which is translated “was shaken” commonly denotes “violent agitation,” as the raging of the sea, the convulsion of an earthquake, or trees shaken by the wind, Mat 11:7; Act 16:26; Heb 12:26. The language here is suited to express the idea of an earthquake. Whether the motion was confined to the house where they were is not said. They probably regarded this as an answer to their prayer, or as an evidence that God would be with them:

Because it was sudden and violent, and was not produced by any natural causes; Because it occurred immediately, while they were seeking divine direction; Because it was an exhibition of great power, and was an evidence that God could protect them; and, Because a convulsion so great, sudden, and mighty was suited at that time to awe them with a proof of the presence and power of God. A similar instance of an answer to prayer by an earthquake is recorded in Act 16:25-26. Compare Act 2:1-2. It may be added, that among the Jews an earthquake was very properly regarded as a striking and impressive proof of the presence of Yahweh, Isa 29:6; Psa 68:8, “The earth shook, the heavens also dropped at the presence of God; even Sinai itself was moved at the presence of God, the God of Israel.” See also the sublime description in Hab. 3, particularly Act 4:6-11. Compare Mat 27:54. Among the pagan, an earthquake was regarded as proof of the presence and favor of the Deity. (See Virgil, Aeneid, 3:89.)

They were all filled ... - See the notes on Act 2:4. Their being filled with the Holy Spirit here rather denotes their being inspired with confidence or boldness than being endowed with new powers, as in Act 2:4.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

The place was shaken. Much in the same manner, as at the first coming of the Holy Ghost. --- They were all filled with the Holy Ghost. Their hearts were inflamed and excited by a new motion of grace. (Witham)

George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

The place was shaken; miraculously moved up and down, as on the waves of the sea, to evidence God’s presence with them, and acceptance of them and their prayers in an extraordinary manner.

They were all filled with the Holy Ghost; according to their conditions, whether apostles (for whom these prayers were especially made) or private believers.

They spake the word of God with boldness: this was the grace they asked, Act 4:29. God gave it them, and with it all other graces necessary for them. In their difficulties and wants, the greatest and holiest in the church of God must go to God to be supplied, and prayer is the most successful means.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

31. Place was shaken—In token of answering assurance to their prayer a measure of the Pentecostal miracle was repeated; the house was shaken, the Spirit bestowed, and a power of utterance was exercised.

Word of God with boldness—Prayer-strengthened and Spirit-inspired, these men now speak words of faith and firmness which no human power can disturb.

They are soon to feel the full trial of their dauntless spirit.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Wherein they were gathered for when they were assembled, A.V. When they had prayed. When they had finished the preceding prayer. The place was shaken, perhaps by a mighty wind, as in Act_2:2. The word saleuesqai is properly used of ships or of the sea agitated and tossed by the wind; so Mat_11:7, "A reed shaken by the wind." But it is also applied to the rocking caused by an earthquake, (Act_16:26) which maybe the kind of shaking here meant. In this fresh outpouring or the Spirit, whereby they were enabled to speak the word of God with boldness, they had a direct and immediate answer to their prayer. (see Isa_65:24)

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

They were all filled - Afresh; and spake the word with boldness - So their petition was granted.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

Observe here, 1. The special and speedy answer which the Lord gave to the apostles’ prayer: As a testimony thereof, the place where they prayed is miraculously shaken, and many eminent graces and special gifts of the holy Spirit were poured out upon the apostles, particularly a greater measure of boldness to preach the gospel; and, as some think, the wonderful gift of conferring the Holy Ghost was now conferred upon the twelve; so Dr. Lightfoot. The Holy Spirit, which caused them thus to pray, gave them that holy boldness which they prayed for; with signal shaking of the place which they prayed in.

O! how ready is God to hear and answer the prayers and pleading of his righteous servants, especially when suffering for righteousness sake!

Observe, 2. The great unity, and happy unanimity which was found amongst the ministers and members of this infant church, this purest and most primitive Christian church; They were of one heart and of one soul: That is, they were one in doctrine and opinion, and they were one in heart and affection; A singular pattern for succeeding Christians to the end of the world, so to carry it one towards another, as members of the same body, and influenced by the same head.

Observe, 3. At their unanimity, so their liberality, in contributing to the necessities of each other. They called nothing their own, when their brethrens’ wants required it; the rich readily sold their possesions and goods, to help and relieve the poor. Notwithstanding, this example cannot be a copy for after-times, to follow as a command, or to imitate as a perfection: Seeing that such was the state of the church at that time, as was never since, nor like to be; it was but newly born: It was all in one city; all in a possibility to be soon scattered by persecution. Res qua erat temporaria necessitatis et lieri arbitrii, non debet in exemplum trahi, multo minus ut necessaria obtrudi.

The lesson to be gathered from this instance for our instruction, is this, That those who are of ability, ought to abound always in ordinary, and sometimes in extraordinary acts of charity. We must always relieve the saints’ wants as we are able, and sometimes upon an extraordinary occasion, above what we are well able.

Observe, 4. How the apostles with great authority and assurance gave testimony to the resurrection of Christ, and their doctrine found great favour and acceptation with the people, With great power gave the apostles witness of the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all Act 4:33. The resurrection of Christ from the dead, was the great point now in controversy, therefore with evident miracles and wonderful gifts of the holy Spirit, did the apostles perform their testimony of his resurrection. So that as Christ was declared to the apostles to be the Son of God with power, by the resurrection from the dead; in like manner, the apostles by miracles and wonderful gifts did bear witness to the certainty of our Saviour’s resurrection, and their doctrine found acceptance with the people.

Learn hence, 1. That our Lord Jesus Christ by the almighty power of his Godhead revived and rose again from the dead, to the consternation of his enemies, and the consolation of all believers.

2. That the doctrine of Christ’s resurrection being not only attested by the preaching, but confirmed by the miracles of the apostles, found deservedly belief in the world, and is a point of infallible certainty amongst all those whom willful obstinacy has not blinded.

William Burkitt's Expository Notes on the New Testament (1700–1703) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

31. The prayer for boldness was answered at once, and in the way they had requested. (31) " And when they had prayed, the place in which they were assembled together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and spoke the word of God with boldness. " The shaking of the house, attended by a conscious renewal of the miraculous power of the Holy Spirit, gave them the boldness for which they prayed, because it assured them that God was still with them.

J. W. McGarvey (with Philip Y. Pendleton), Commentaries on the New Testament (The Fourfold Gospel, 1914; Acts; and the epistles) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

31. The place was shaken. As a sensible evidence that their prayer was granted, and then they were filled with the Holy Spirit, as on Pentecost, so inspired that all fear was shaken off.

B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.

31. ἐσαλεύθη ὁ τόπος. That they might feel at once that the God of all nature, to whom they had appealed (Act 4:24), was among them. In their immediate need an immediate answer is vouchsafed, and a token with it that their prayer was heard. Cp. Act 16:26 of the shaking of the prison at Philippi after the prayers of Paul and Silas.

ἐλάλουν. The imperfect tense indicates that they went on preaching, speaking the word which God gave unto them, without regard to the threats of the council.

Cambridge Greek Testament for Schools and Colleges (Cambridge University Press, 1896; 21 vols, various authors incl. Carr, Maclear, Plummer, Farrar, Lumby, Moule, M. R. James, Simcox) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

31.] As the first outpouring of the Spirit, so this special one in answer to prayer, was testified by an outward and visible sign: but not by the same sign,—for that first baptism by the Holy Ghost, the great fulfilment of the promise, was not to be repeated. The rationalist Commentators have done good service by pointing out parallel cases, in profane writers, of supposed tokens of the divine presence. Virg. Æn. iii. 89. Ovid, Met. xv. 672. Schöttgen, Hor. Hebr. in loc., produces similar notices from the Rabbinical writings.

It was on every ground probable that the token of the especial presence of God would be some phænomenon which would be recognized by those present as such. Besides which, the idea was not derived from profane sources, but from the Scriptures: see Psa 29:8; Isa 2:19, Isa 2:21; Isa 13:13; Eze 38:19 (especially); Joe 3:16; Hag 2:6, Hag 2:7.

ἐπλήσθησαν, with a fresh and renewed outpouring.

τοῦ ἁγ. πν. is personal: they were all filled with the Holy Spirit: the meaning being the same with πν. ἁγ., the influence of the Holy Spirit,—but the form of expression varied. See ch. 1:8; 2:33, 38; 9:31; 10:45.

Henry Alford, The Greek Testament (1849–1861) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.