Cselekedetek 4:19

Biblia Karoli Gaspar

Péter és János pedig felelvén, mondának nékik: Vajjon igaz dolog-é Isten elõtt, rátok hallgatnunk inkább, hogynem Istenre, ítéljétek meg!

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

Whether: 2 Corinthians 4:2, Ephesians 6:1, 1 Timothy 2:3

to hearken: Acts 5:29, Exodus 1:17, 1 Kings 12:30, 1 Kings 14:16, 1 Kings 21:11, 1 Kings 22:14, 2 Kings 16:15, 2 Chronicles 26:16-20, Daniel 3:18, Daniel 6:10, Hosea 5:11, Amos 7:16, Micah 6:16, Matthew 22:21, Hebrews 11:23, Revelation 13:3-10, Revelation 14:9-12

judge: Psalms 58:1, John 7:24, 1 Corinthians 10:15, James 2:4

Reciprocal: Genesis 27:8 - General Numbers 23:26 - General Joshua 1:9 - Have Judges 6:25 - thy father 1 Samuel 22:17 - would not 1 Kings 13:19 - General 2 Kings 16:16 - General 2 Chronicles 22:3 - his counsellor 2 Chronicles 30:12 - by the word Ecclesiastes 8:5 - keepeth Jeremiah 13:15 - for Jeremiah 26:12 - The Lord Ezekiel 2:6 - be not Ezekiel 37:7 - I prophesied as Daniel 3:15 - we are Daniel 3:28 - and have Micah 3:8 - I am Matthew 2:12 - they departed Matthew 10:26 - Fear Matthew 15:5 - ye say Mark 12:17 - and to Luke 6:11 - communed Luke 9:49 - we saw Luke 20:25 - unto God John 19:13 - heard Acts 1:13 - Peter Acts 6:2 - It Acts 10:42 - he commanded 1 Corinthians 14:32 - General 2 Corinthians 5:14 - constraineth Galatians 1:10 - do I now Philippians 1:28 - in Hebrews 11:35 - not accepting 1 Peter 3:6 - and

Gill's Notes on the Bible

But Peter and John answered and said unto them,.... With great boldness and courage, and without any fear of man, but in the true fear of God

whether it be right in the sight of God; who is omniscient, and sees, and knows all things, all the actions of men, and the springs of them; who is holy, just, and true, and sits and judges among the gods, that which is right:

to hearken unto you more than unto God, judge ye: it is not denied that magistrates are to be hearkened to, and obeyed: but not more than God, or in things that are contrary to his nature, will, law, honour, and glory: whatever is agreeable to the law and will of God, commanded by magistrates, should be attended to, and cheerfully obeyed; but what is not should be disregarded, whatever follows upon it: and this was so just and reasonable, that the apostles appeal to the sanhedrim, or council itself, to determine.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

Whether it be right ... - The apostles abated nothing of their boldness when threatened. They openly appealed to their judges whether their command could be right. And in doing this, they expressed their full conviction of the truth of what they had said, and their deliberate purpose not to regard their command, but still to proclaim to the people the truth that Jesus was the Messiah.

In the sight of God - That is, whether God will judge this to be right. The grand question was how God would regard it. If he disapproved it, it was wrong. It was not merely a question pertaining to their reputation, safety, or life; it was a question of conscience before God. We have here a striking instance of the principle on which Christians act. It is, to lay their safety, reputation, and life out of view, and bring everything to the test whether it will please God. If it will, it is right; if it will not, it is wrong.

To hearken - To “hear” and to “hearken” are often used to denote to “obey,” John 5:24; John 8:47, etc.

Judge ye - This was an appeal to them directly as judges and as men. And it may be presumed that it was an appeal which they could not resist. The Sanhedrin acknowledged itself to have been appointed by God, and to have no authority which was not derived from his appointment. Of course, God could modify, supersede, or repeal their authority; and the abstract principle that it was better to obey God than man they could not call in question. The only inquiry was whether they had evidence that God had issued any command in the case. Of that the apostles were satisfied, and that the rulers could not deny. It may be remarked that this is one of the first and most bold appeals on record in favor of the right of private judgment and the liberty of conscience. That liberty was supposed in all the Jewish religion. It was admitted that the authority of God in all matters was superior to that of man. And the same spirit manifested itself thus early in the Christian church against all dominion over the conscience, and in favor of the right to follow the dictates of the conscience and the will of God. As a mere historical fact, therefore, it is interesting to contemplate this, and still more interesting in its important bearings on human liberty and human happiness. The doctrine is still more explicitly stated in Acts 5:29, “We ought to obey God rather than man.”

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Acts 4:19. Whether it be right in the sight of God — As if they had said: Worldly prudence and a consideration of our secular interests would undoubtedly induce us to obey you; but acting as before God, and following the dictates of eternal truth and justice, we dare not be silent. Can it be right to obey men contrary to the command and will of God? When he commands us to speak, dare we hold our tongue? We have received our authority from God through Christ, and feel fully persuaded of the truth by the Holy Spirit which now dwells in us; and we should be guilty of treason against God, were we on any consideration to suppress his testimony. Your own consciences testify that we should be sinners against our heavenly King, were we to act according to your orders; and the conclusion is, that we cannot but speak what we have seen and heard.