So when they had come together, they were asking Him, saying, “Lord, is it at this time You are restoring the kingdom to Israel?” He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or epochs which the Father has fixed by His own authority; but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”
the kingdom of Israel - The messianic, Davidic, millennial kingdom on this earth. The time of its coming is unrevealed (Matt 24:36, 42).
"It is sometimes said that the apostles in asking this question, betrayed carnality and ignorance of the true nature of the kingdom which our Lord was to establish, but this charge is most unjust. The ignorance and carnality lie, not with the apostles but with their critics. Had not God in solemn covenant promised David: "And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: they throne shall be established for ever?? (2 Sam 7:16). Had He not written in the Psalms: "Once have I sworn by My holiness that I will not lie unto David. His seed shall endure for ever, and his throne as the sun before Me?" (Ps 89:35-36). Do we not read in Jer 23:5-6, "Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. In His days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely..."? Had not John the Baptist's father, filled with the Holy Spirit, said: "Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; for He hath visited and redeemed His people, and hath raised up an horn of salvation for us in the house of His servant David; as He spake by the mouth of His holy prophets, which have been since the world began: That we should be saved from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us; to perform the mercy promised to our fathers, and to remember His holy covenant; the oath which He sware to our father Abraham, that He would grant unto us, that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies might serve Him without fear, in holiness and righteousness before Him, all the days of our life"? (Lk 1:68-75). And had not our Lord Himself led them to expect the establishment of a physical kingdom on earth? Had he not said: "Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth"? (Matt 5:5). Had he not taught them to pray: "Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven"? (Matt 6:10). Had he not distinctly promised them: "Verily I say unto you, that ye which have followed Me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of His glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel"? (Matt 19:28). Had not our Lord just spent forty days with them, "speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God"? (Acts 1:3). And had He not already, at the beginning of this period, "opened their understanding that they might understand the Scriptures"? (Lk 24:45). Why should these men be charged with ignorance when we are told that they understood the Scriptures? (We do not insist that this means that they understood every detail of the Old Testament prophecy, but rather that they understood the prophetic plan.) Why should they be charged with carnality for taking God at His Word and believing the statements of their Lord and Master? Is faith carnality? It is rather the very essence of spirituality." (CR Stam)
v 7 - There is no rebuke in Christ's answer, for God is not through with Israel, and the kingdom will eventually come (Rom 11:26).
"In our Lord's reply that it was not for them to know when the kingdom would be restored there was the clear inference that in due time it would be restored. In this matter, then, His honor was at stake. If He did not intend to restore the kingdom to Israel, His answer was certainly misleading and dishonest, for that which will not come cannot have "times and seasons." The implication, therefore, is that the apostles' question was legitimate and intelligent." (CR Stam)
"This passage places those who do not recognize the truth of the mystery in an awkward dilemma. If, for example, our Amillenarian brethren were right in their interpretation of Scripture, our Lord would have answered "Yes," to the apostles' question (though perhaps correcting their 'carnal view of the kingdom) for according to the Amillenarian view the Church is Israel and Christ is now sitting on the throne of David. Amillennialism "spiritualizes" the kingdom promises. If, on the other hand, the average Premillenarian were right our Lord would have answered "No," for the vast majority of Premillenarians contend that Israel was set aside at the cross and that the Body of Christ began at Pentecost. But the interesting fact is that our Lord answered neither "Yes" nor "No," but "It is not for you to know the times and the seasons. The reason for this becomes unmistakably clear in the light of the mystery later revealed through Paul. Our Lord knew something which for the time being still had to be kept secret. He knew that Israel would reject Him even in His resurrection; that the "great commission" would become "bogged down," as it were, through Israel's unbelief and would give place to another, a greater commission to proclaim the gospel of the grace of God, that the ministry of the twelve would give place to that of Paul and that the kingdom would give place to "the Church which is His Body. Had our Lord told the apostles what the outcome of their message was to be they could not, of course, have made the same impassioned plea to Israel to accept Messiah. There would have been no heart in their offer of the kingdom. In turn Israel might then have complained that she had not had a fair chance; that there had been no earnest call to repentance nor any bona fide offer of the kingdom. Therefore the Lord Jesus did not tell the apostles that, humanly speaking, the restoration of the kingdom hung in the balance, but simply said: "It is not for you to know the times...but...ye shall be witnesses unto Me..." This course was taken so that Israel might receive a whole-hearted offer of the kingdom and be left with no excuse for rejecting that offer. Certainly our Lord's answer makes one fact crystal clear: that God's purpose to form "the Body of Christ" out of reconciled Jews and Gentiles, as the masterpiece of His grace, was still a mystery at that time." (CR Stam)
v 8 - "Instead of concerning themselves with the time of the coming kingdom, the disciples were instructed to witness to the remotest part of the earth, a reference to Rome, the center of civilization. Acts ends with the gospel reaching Rome (Acts 28:16)." (Ryrie)
"It is interesting to compare the apostles' question in this opening chapter of Acts with Paul's statement in the closing chapter, some thirty years later:
"Acts 1:6: "Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?"
"Acts 28:28: "Be it known therefore unto you, that the salvation of God is sent unto the Gentiles, and that they will hear it."
"These two are key verses in the Book of Acts. In the interval between them Messiah and His kingdom were offered to Israel amid the wonder of Pentecost, but Israel contemptuously rejected the offer and the privilege of bringing salvation and blessing to the nations...There was, however, a deeper reason why the kingdom was not yet to be established. The prophecy could not be fulfilled until the mystery had been revealed. God would allow men, even His chosen people, to show the utter perverseness of their hearts so that He might show that salvation is, and must be, by grace and grace alone. This is the lesson He began to teach as He reached down to save the chief of sinners (1 Tim 1:12-16), sending him forth to proclaim "the gospel of the grace of God." This is the lesson He is teaching today. And this is the lesson that even the favored nation must learn and will learn when finally "all Israel shall be saved." (CR Stam)
to the remotest part of the earth - "The simple solution to the problem is that while the so-called "great commission," as recorded both in the Gospels and in the Book of Acts, was indeed given to the eleven, it is not our commission at all. The reason they did not complete it was not because they would not, but because they could not. It was due to Israel's stubborn rejection of Messiah. The eleven (increased to twelve after the ascension, Acts 1:26) would gladly have made disciples of all nations but they had received explicit directions to begin with the nation Israel. The reason for this will be clear to those who remember that according to the great Abrahamic and Davidic covenants and according to prophecy the nations were to be blessed through that nation. This is why the apostles labored so earnestly to bring Israel to Messiah's feet...But Israel spurned the plea and God cast aside the rebellious nation until a future day. However, we learn from Rom 11:15 that "the casting away of them" opened the way for "the reconciling of the world." (CR Stam)
"The legalism of Matthew 28:20, the baptismal salvation and miraculous signs of Mark 16:16-18, the authority to remit sins (instrumentally, by water baptism, Acts 2:38) of John 20:23 and the "Jerusalem first" of Luke and the Acts all harmonize perfectly with the program which the twelve apostles actually followed during the Pentecostal period, but they do not harmonize with our great commission (2 Cor 5:18-21) and whenever men try to practice them today frustration and confusion follow. For the most part Fundamentalists merely talk about "obeying the great commission" but do not — indeed, cannot — obey any record of it. But our glorious commission is perfectly appropriate to the day in which we live. In our offer of salvation there is nothing for the sight, neither baptism with water nor miraculous signs. Works for salvation are not required or even permitted, for "Now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested." Neither is our message related to the earth, that we should begin at the capital of one nation and go from there to make disciples of other nations. It is simply a message to poor lost sinners everywhere, offering them reconciliation to God by grace, through faith in His rejected Son. This is our commission. May be faithfully carry it out!" (CR Stam)
the kingdom of Israel - The messianic, Davidic, millennial kingdom on this earth. The time of its coming is unrevealed (Matt 24:36, 42).
"It is sometimes said that the apostles in asking this question, betrayed carnality and ignorance of the true nature of the kingdom which our Lord was to establish, but this charge is most unjust. The ignorance and carnality lie, not with the apostles but with their critics. Had not God in solemn covenant promised David: "And thine house and thy kingdom shall be established for ever before thee: they throne shall be established for ever?? (2 Sam 7:16). Had He not written in the Psalms: "Once have I sworn by My holiness that I will not lie unto David. His seed shall endure for ever, and his throne as the sun before Me?" (Ps 89:35-36). Do we not read in Jer 23:5-6, "Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth. In His days Judah shall be saved, and Israel shall dwell safely..."? Had not John the Baptist's father, filled with the Holy Spirit, said: "Blessed be the Lord God of Israel; for He hath visited and redeemed His people, and hath raised up an horn of salvation for us in the house of His servant David; as He spake by the mouth of His holy prophets, which have been since the world began: That we should be saved from our enemies, and from the hand of all that hate us; to perform the mercy promised to our fathers, and to remember His holy covenant; the oath which He sware to our father Abraham, that He would grant unto us, that we being delivered out of the hand of our enemies might serve Him without fear, in holiness and righteousness before Him, all the days of our life"? (Lk 1:68-75). And had not our Lord Himself led them to expect the establishment of a physical kingdom on earth? Had he not said: "Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth"? (Matt 5:5). Had he not taught them to pray: "Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven"? (Matt 6:10). Had he not distinctly promised them: "Verily I say unto you, that ye which have followed Me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of His glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel"? (Matt 19:28). Had not our Lord just spent forty days with them, "speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God"? (Acts 1:3). And had He not already, at the beginning of this period, "opened their understanding that they might understand the Scriptures"? (Lk 24:45). Why should these men be charged with ignorance when we are told that they understood the Scriptures? (We do not insist that this means that they understood every detail of the Old Testament prophecy, but rather that they understood the prophetic plan.) Why should they be charged with carnality for taking God at His Word and believing the statements of their Lord and Master? Is faith carnality? It is rather the very essence of spirituality." (CR Stam)
v 7 - There is no rebuke in Christ's answer, for God is not through with Israel, and the kingdom will eventually come (Rom 11:26).
"In our Lord's reply that it was not for them to know when the kingdom would be restored there was the clear inference that in due time it would be restored. In this matter, then, His honor was at stake. If He did not intend to restore the kingdom to Israel, His answer was certainly misleading and dishonest, for that which will not come cannot have "times and seasons." The implication, therefore, is that the apostles' question was legitimate and intelligent." (CR Stam)
"This passage places those who do not recognize the truth of the mystery in an awkward dilemma. If, for example, our Amillenarian brethren were right in their interpretation of Scripture, our Lord would have answered "Yes," to the apostles' question (though perhaps correcting their 'carnal view of the kingdom) for according to the Amillenarian view the Church is Israel and Christ is now sitting on the throne of David. Amillennialism "spiritualizes" the kingdom promises. If, on the other hand, the average Premillenarian were right our Lord would have answered "No," for the vast majority of Premillenarians contend that Israel was set aside at the cross and that the Body of Christ began at Pentecost. But the interesting fact is that our Lord answered neither "Yes" nor "No," but "It is not for you to know the times and the seasons. The reason for this becomes unmistakably clear in the light of the mystery later revealed through Paul. Our Lord knew something which for the time being still had to be kept secret. He knew that Israel would reject Him even in His resurrection; that the "great commission" would become "bogged down," as it were, through Israel's unbelief and would give place to another, a greater commission to proclaim the gospel of the grace of God, that the ministry of the twelve would give place to that of Paul and that the kingdom would give place to "the Church which is His Body. Had our Lord told the apostles what the outcome of their message was to be they could not, of course, have made the same impassioned plea to Israel to accept Messiah. There would have been no heart in their offer of the kingdom. In turn Israel might then have complained that she had not had a fair chance; that there had been no earnest call to repentance nor any bona fide offer of the kingdom. Therefore the Lord Jesus did not tell the apostles that, humanly speaking, the restoration of the kingdom hung in the balance, but simply said: "It is not for you to know the times...but...ye shall be witnesses unto Me..." This course was taken so that Israel might receive a whole-hearted offer of the kingdom and be left with no excuse for rejecting that offer. Certainly our Lord's answer makes one fact crystal clear: that God's purpose to form "the Body of Christ" out of reconciled Jews and Gentiles, as the masterpiece of His grace, was still a mystery at that time." (CR Stam)
v 8 - "Instead of concerning themselves with the time of the coming kingdom, the disciples were instructed to witness to the remotest part of the earth, a reference to Rome, the center of civilization. Acts ends with the gospel reaching Rome (Acts 28:16)." (Ryrie)
"It is interesting to compare the apostles' question in this opening chapter of Acts with Paul's statement in the closing chapter, some thirty years later:
"Acts 1:6: "Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?"
"Acts 28:28: "Be it known therefore unto you, that the salvation of God is sent unto the Gentiles, and that they will hear it."
"These two are key verses in the Book of Acts. In the interval between them Messiah and His kingdom were offered to Israel amid the wonder of Pentecost, but Israel contemptuously rejected the offer and the privilege of bringing salvation and blessing to the nations...There was, however, a deeper reason why the kingdom was not yet to be established. The prophecy could not be fulfilled until the mystery had been revealed. God would allow men, even His chosen people, to show the utter perverseness of their hearts so that He might show that salvation is, and must be, by grace and grace alone. This is the lesson He began to teach as He reached down to save the chief of sinners (1 Tim 1:12-16), sending him forth to proclaim "the gospel of the grace of God." This is the lesson He is teaching today. And this is the lesson that even the favored nation must learn and will learn when finally "all Israel shall be saved." (CR Stam)
to the remotest part of the earth - "The simple solution to the problem is that while the so-called "great commission," as recorded both in the Gospels and in the Book of Acts, was indeed given to the eleven, it is not our commission at all. The reason they did not complete it was not because they would not, but because they could not. It was due to Israel's stubborn rejection of Messiah. The eleven (increased to twelve after the ascension, Acts 1:26) would gladly have made disciples of all nations but they had received explicit directions to begin with the nation Israel. The reason for this will be clear to those who remember that according to the great Abrahamic and Davidic covenants and according to prophecy the nations were to be blessed through that nation. This is why the apostles labored so earnestly to bring Israel to Messiah's feet...But Israel spurned the plea and God cast aside the rebellious nation until a future day. However, we learn from Rom 11:15 that "the casting away of them" opened the way for "the reconciling of the world." (CR Stam)
"The legalism of Matthew 28:20, the baptismal salvation and miraculous signs of Mark 16:16-18, the authority to remit sins (instrumentally, by water baptism, Acts 2:38) of John 20:23 and the "Jerusalem first" of Luke and the Acts all harmonize perfectly with the program which the twelve apostles actually followed during the Pentecostal period, but they do not harmonize with our great commission (2 Cor 5:18-21) and whenever men try to practice them today frustration and confusion follow. For the most part Fundamentalists merely talk about "obeying the great commission" but do not — indeed, cannot — obey any record of it. But our glorious commission is perfectly appropriate to the day in which we live. In our offer of salvation there is nothing for the sight, neither baptism with water nor miraculous signs. Works for salvation are not required or even permitted, for "Now the righteousness of God without the law is manifested." Neither is our message related to the earth, that we should begin at the capital of one nation and go from there to make disciples of other nations. It is simply a message to poor lost sinners everywhere, offering them reconciliation to God by grace, through faith in His rejected Son. This is our commission. May be faithfully carry it out!" (CR Stam)
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