This Jesus hath God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses.

ACTS 2:32KJV
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Acts 2:32 (KJV)

What does Acts 2:32 mean?

Acts 2:32 says that God raised Jesus from the dead, and the speaker and his companions personally witnessed this event. The verse highlights the claim that the resurrection of Jesus is not just a story, but something seen and testified to by real people.

Peter is speaking to a crowd in Jerusalem during the festival of Pentecost, explaining the meaning of recent events. He emphasizes that he and the other apostles are eyewitnesses to Jesus’s resurrection, making their message about Jesus’s identity and mission more credible to his listeners.

The Greek behind Acts 2:32

  • "Ἰησοῦς" (Iēsous): This is the Greek form of "Jesus," directly naming who was raised.
  • "ἀνέστησεν" (anestēsen): Translated as "hath raised up," this verb means to cause to rise or to raise from the dead, stressing that God is the one who acted.
  • "μάρτυρες" (martures): Translated as "witnesses," this word means people who give testimony based on what they have seen or experienced, underlining the personal experience of the apostles.

Why Acts 2:32 matters

  • Acts 2:32 clarifies that the resurrection of Jesus is presented as a witnessed historical event, not just a spiritual idea or legend.
  • The verse underscores the authority of the apostles’ message, since they claim firsthand knowledge rather than secondhand reports.
  • This statement connects the resurrection to God’s direct action, reinforcing the early Christian teaching that Jesus’s life and mission were part of God’s plan.

Where else these words appear

“witnesses” Greek G3144 · used in 34 verses

  • Matthew 18:16 But if he will not hear thee, then take with thee one or two more, that in the mouth of two or three witnesses every word may be established.
  • Acts 10:41 Not to all the people, but unto witnesses chosen before of God, even to us, who did eat and drink with him after he rose from the dead.
  • 1 Timothy 5:19 Against an elder receive not an accusation, but before two or three witnesses.

“are” Greek G2070 · used in 51 verses

  • Mark 5:9 And he asked him, What is thy name? And he answered, saying, My name is Legion: for we are many.
  • Romans 8:12 Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh.
  • Galatians 4:31 So then, brethren, we are not children of the bondwoman, but of the free.

“This” Greek G5126 · used in 63 verses

  • Matthew 19:11 But he said unto them, All men cannot receive this saying, save they to whom it is given.
  • John 6:34 Then said they unto him, Lord, evermore give us this bread.
  • Acts 16:3 Him would Paul have to go forth with him; and took and circumcised him because of the Jews which were in those quarters: for they knew all that his father was a Greek.

“hath” Greek G450 · used in 111 verses

  • Matthew 9:9 And as Jesus passed forth from thence, he saw a man, named Matthew, sitting at the receipt of custom: and he saith unto him, Follow me. And he arose, and followed him.
  • Luke 11:7 And he from within shall answer and say, Trouble me not: the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed; I cannot rise and give thee.
  • Acts 8:27 And he arose and went: and, behold, a man of Ethiopia, an eunuch of great authority under Candace queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her treasure, and had come to Jerusalem for to worship,