Acts 4:24 - Exposition

They, when they heard it, lifted for when they heard that they lifted, A.V. ; O Lord, thou that didst make, or as in margin, thou art he that did make, for Lord, thou art God, which hast made, T.R. and A.V. ; the heaven and the earth for heaven and earth, A.V. With one accord ( ὁμοθυμαδόν ) occurs eleven times in the Acts (ten times in the R.T.) and only once elsewhere in the New Testament, viz. in Romans 15:6 . O Lord, etc. Either the margin or the A.V. is preferable to the R.V., which gives an unmeaning vocative pendent. The word here used for "Lord" is δεσπότης , from which our English word "despot" comes. It means "master, owner," in respect of slaves, and "a lord" or "king," whose power over his subjects is similar to that of a master over slaves. Here, with reference to creation and God's unlimited power overall that he has made, the Church in danger finds support and solace in the thought of God's absolute sovereignty. The term is applied to God in the New Testament elsewhere only in Luke 2:29 (where observe its relation to δοῦλον ); 2 Peter 2:1 ; Jud 2 Peter 1:4 , R.T. (of our Savior); and Revelation 6:10 , where σύνδουλοι αὐτῶν immediately follows, as here in verse 29 does "thy servants." In the LXX . it sometimes answers to Elohim, and sometimes to Adonai. As regards the question how the whole assembly joined in this prayer, whether by a common inspiration, or by repeating the words after him that prayed them aloud (Alford), or by merely singing the second psalm (Baumgarten), or by all using what was already a formulary prepared for the needs of the Church (Meyer), it is difficult to speak positively, nor is it of any moment. Another possible explanation is that several members of the congregation, under the influence of the Holy Ghost, uttered brief prayers and praises, the consenting matter of which Luke thus puts together.