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Acts 3:22–23
“Moses said, ‘The Lord God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your brothers. You shall listen to him in whatever he tells you. And it shall be that every soul who does not listen to that prophet shall be destroyed from the people.’”
Peter proclaimed the truth about Jesus to the crowds of Jews at the temple in Jerusalem, calling attention to their sinful involvement in the death of God’s Son and extending to them the promise of forgiveness if they would repent and believe that Jesus died and rose again to atone for their sins. Their repentance was part of the complex of events that, according to the old covenant prophets, must precede the return of Jesus to bring the new heaven and earth (Acts 3:1–21).
The Apostle was striving to convince his hearers that Jesus was indeed their promised Messiah. So in today’s passage, we read of how he cited one of those prophets who foresaw the coming of Jesus to restore all things. Since Moses was the first true prophet of Israel and mediator of the old covenant, there was perhaps no better prophet for Peter to quote to argue his case. We see in Acts 3:22–23 Peter’s citation of Moses’ words from Deuteronomy 18:15–22. Peter did not directly quote the entire passage but quoted only verses 15 and 19. He had the whole text in view and was summarizing it for his hearers.
Deuteronomy 18:15–22 consists of a prediction that Moses would not be the last prophet given to Israel but that God would raise up another prophet in the future. In reality, Moses’ words have reference first to all the true prophets of Israel whom God would send, so the text represents the institution of an ongoing prophetic office for the old covenant community. Over time, however, the Jews came to see that while Moses foresaw a succession of prophets, his words also had a secondary reference to a single Prophet par excellence who would be like Moses in a special way and yet be even greater than he was. Thus, Deuteronomy 18:15–22 was commonly received as a messianic prophecy by most Jews, including Peter.
John Calvin comments that Peter “saw that which all men ought to grant, that this testimony doth so appertain unto the other prophets, that yet notwithstanding it doth chiefly commend Christ, not only because that he is the prince and chief of all the prophets, but because all other former prophecies were directed toward him, and because God did at length speak absolutely by his mouth.” Jesus embodies Deuteronomy 18:15–22 in a special way because unlike other prophets, He is the Prophet who is also the Mediator of the new covenant that accomplishes salvation (Heb. 9:15).
Coram Deo Living before the face of God
As the full realization of the prophetic office, Jesus is God’s final word to us before the consummation (Heb. 1:1–4). We must pay heed to His words and trust in Him for reconciliation with God. If the consequences for not paying heed to the other prophets were grave (Deut. 18:15–22), then it will be much worse for us if we reject Jesus and do not follow His way.
For further study
- Proverbs 29:18
- Amos 3:7
- John 1:1–18
- Hebrews 3:1–6a
The bible in a year
- Leviticus 4–6
- Matthew 25:1–30