Acts 1

Some early manuscripts containing the text of this chapter are:

• Codex Vaticanus (AD 325–350)
• Codex Sinaiticus (330–360)
• Codex Bezae (~400)
• Codex Alexandrinus (400–440)
• Codex Ephraemi Rescriptus (~450; extant verses 3–26)
• Papyrus 56 (5th/6th century)
• Codex Laudianus (~550)

• Acts 1:20: Psalm 69:25; Psalm 109:8[3]

• Acts 1:1-3: Luke 1:1-4

¹The former account I made, O Theophilus, of all that Jesus began both to do and teach, ²until the day in which He was taken up, after He through the Holy Spirit had given commandments to the apostles whom He had chosen, ³to whom He also presented Himself alive after His suffering by many infallible proofs, being seen by them during forty days and speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God.[4]

• "Former account" (from Greek: πρῶτον λόγον, próton logon, lit. "first book"[5]): refers to Gospel of Luke.
• "Theophilus" (written in Greek in vocative word form): the intended reader of this book, as well as the previous one (Luke 1:3), might be a "patron" who is already informed about "things which have been fulfilled among us", but still needs "assurance" to "know the certainty of those things" (Luke 1:1-4).[5]

A map of first century Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and neighboring areas.

[Jesus says:] "But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth."[7]

Before Jesus left, he charged the disciples with the task of acting as 'witnesses' to him, in the locations that can be read as a 'geographical program' for the whole book of Acts:

• The first 7 chapters set in Jerusalem
• Chapter 8—11 record the spread of the gospel to the surrounding areas within Syria-Palestine ('Judea and Samaria')
• Chapter 13 onwards following Paul's mission ever farther places.[8]

Luke chapter 24[lower-alpha 1] tells how Jesus leads the eleven disciples "as far as" Bethany, a village on the Mount of Olives, where he instructs them to remain in Jerusalem until the coming of the Holy Spirit: "And it came to pass, while he blessed them, he parted from them, and was carried up into heaven. And they worshiped him, and returned to Jerusalem with great joy" (Luke 24:51–52).[10]

The Gospel of John has three references to ascension in Jesus' own words: "No one has ascended into heaven but he who descended from heaven, the son of man" (John 3:13); "What if you (the disciples) were to see the son of man ascending where he was before?" (John 6:62); and to Mary Magdalene after his resurrection, "Do not hold me, for I not yet ascended to my father..." (John 20:17).[10] Various epistles (Romans 8:34, Ephesians 1:19–20, Colossians 3:1, Philippians 2:9–11, 1 Timothy 3:16, and 1 Peter 3:21–22) also refer to an ascension in relation to the post-resurrection "exaltation" of Jesus to the right hand of God.[11] Gospel of Mark (Mark 16:19) contains the brief ascension account, but it is considered by a broad consensus among scholars to be a later addition to the original version of that gospel.[12]

Mount of Olives, seen from Jerusalem (1934)

Then the apostles returned to Jerusalem from the hill called the Mount of Olives, a Sabbath day’s walk from the city.[13]

• "The hill called the Mount of Olives" (ESV: "the mount called Olivet"): This geographical site is mentioned by Luke alone in the narrative of Jesus' last entry into Jerusalem (Luke 19:29) and as a place to rest during Jesus' final ministry of teaching (Luke 21:37).[14] Luke 24:50 names Bethany as the site of ascension, which is identified in Luke 19:29 as a location at the Mount of Olives.[14]
• "A Sabbath day's walk" (Greek: Σαββάτου ὁδὸν): 2000 cubits (= 5 furlongs),[15] about 5/8 mile or about 1 kilometer,[16] showing a proximity to Jerusalem (fulfilling Jesus' command in Luke 24:49), as well as portraying the disciples as faithful Jews (cf. Luke 23:54–56).[14] The distance seems differ significantly with the Bethany in John 11:18,[14] but the ascension site, according to Lightfoot,[17] "was from the place where that tract of the Mount of Olives ceased to be called Bethphage and began to be called Bethany", not inside the village (15 furlongs far in Gospel of John).[18]

These all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers.[21]

• "Mary the mother of Jesus": was mentioned by name for the first time in Luke-Acts since the infancy narrative in Luke 2.[19]
• "Brothers": or "brothers and sisters", translated from the plural Greek word adelphoi, which, depending on the context in New Testament usage, may refer either to "brothers" or to "brothers and sisters" (also verse 1:15 in some versions).[22]

In those days Peter stood up among the disciples (the number of people together was about a hundred and twenty), and said,[23]

• "Stood up": from Greek: ἀναστὰς: adding a participle to a finite verb ("to stand") to indicate the posture or position of a speaker is a characteristic of Luke as this word is found in the Gospel of Luke 17 times, and in Acts 19 times, only twice in Matthew, six or seven times in Mark.[lower-alpha 3][18]

[Peter says:] "²¹Therefore, of these men who have accompanied us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us, ²²beginning ('arxamenos') from the baptism of John to that day when He was taken up from us, one of these must become a witness ('martyra') with us of His resurrection."[24]

• "Went in and out": is a "Semitism or Septuagintalism" expression (cf. Psalm 121:8), comparable to the English phrase "comings and goings".[20]
• "Beginning" (Greek: ἀρξάμενος, arxamenos): The "baptism" of John" to "that day when He was taken up from us" (ascension) mark the scope for the story of Jesus, with an emphasis on "His resurrection".[20] In Acts 10, Luke notes Peter preaching the gospel using "precisely the same parameters"  – also using arxamenos ("began")  – with the claim of being a witness (accusative Greek: μάρτυρα, martyra; plural: martyres) specifically to the resurrection (Acts 10:36-42).[25]

[Peter preaches to Cornelius and his household:] "³⁶The word which God sent to the children of Israel, preaching peace through Jesus Christ—He is Lord of all— ³⁷that word you know, which was proclaimed throughout all Judea, and began ('arxamenos') from Galilee after the baptism which John preached: ³⁸how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him. ³⁹And we are witnesses ('martyres') of all things which He did both in the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem, whom they killed by hanging on a tree. ⁴⁰Him God raised up on the third day, and showed Him openly, ⁴¹not to all the people, but to witnesses chosen before by God, even to us who ate and drank with Him after He arose from the dead. ⁴²And He commanded us to preach to the people, and to testify that it is He who was ordained by God to be Judge of the living and the dead. ⁴³To Him all the prophets witness that, through His name, whoever believes in Him will receive remission of sins."[26]

The apostles proceed by asking God as the only resource to 'indicate' his choice through the casting of lots (verse 26), which is a familiar mean to ascertain divine purpose in both the Graeco-Roman world and the Bible,[8] to get Matthias "numbered with the eleven apostles" (verse 26).

And they cast their lots, and the lot fell on Matthias. And he was numbered with the eleven apostles.[27]

• "Matthias": only mentioned in this chapter in the whole Bible, he was chosen by casting lots to be included as "the Twelve" (replacing Judas Iscariot) from then on.[28]