THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES - Chapter 3 - Verse 16

Verse 16. And his name. The name of Jesus is here put for Jesus himself; and it is the same as saying, "and he," etc. In this way the word name is often used by the Hebrews, especially when speaking of God, Ac 1:15; 4:12; Eph 1:21; Re 3:4.

It does not mean that there was any efficacy in the mere name of Jesus that should heal the man, but that it was done by his authority and power.

Through faith in his name. By means of faith in him; that is, by the faith which Peter and John had in Jesus. It does not refer to any faith that the man had himself, for there is no evidence that he believed in him; but it was by means of the faith which the apostles exercised in him that the miracle was wrought, and was thus a fulfillment of the declaration in Mt 17:20, "If ye have faith—ye shall say unto this mountain, Remove hence," etc. This truth Peter repeats two or three times in the verse, to impress it more distinctly on the minds of his hearers.

Whom ye see and know. There could, therefore, be no mistake. He was well known to them. There was no doubt about the truth of the miracle, Ac 4:16, and the only inquiry was in what way it had been done. This Peter affirms to have been accomplished only by the power of the Lord Jesus.

Perfect soundness. oloklhrian. This word is not used elsewhere in the New Testament. It denotes integrity of parts, freedom from any defect; and it here means that the cure was perfect and entire, or that he was completely restored to the use of his limbs.

In the presence of you all. You are all witnesses of it, and can judge for yourselves. This shows how confident the apostles were that a real miracle had been performed. They were willing that it should be examined; and this is conclusive proof that there was no attempt at imposture. A deceiver, or one who pretended to work miracles, would have been cautious of exposing the subject to the danger of detection.