Acts 4:31

31 And [when] they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the word of God with boldness.

Acts 4:31 Meaning and Commentary

Acts 4:31

And when they had prayed
Either while they were praying, or as soon as they had done; for sometimes, as here, prayer is immediately heard, and an answer is returned, whilst the saints are speaking, or as soon as prayer is ended: the place was shaken where they were assembled together;
which, whether it was a private house, or the temple, is not certain: the latter seems more probable, because their number was so great, that no private house could hold them; and since this was the place where they used to assemble; this was now shaken with a rushing mighty wind, as on the day of Pentecost, and was a symbol of the divine presence, and a token that their prayers were heard, and an emblem of the shaking of the world by the ministry of the apostles: and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost;
with the gifts of the Holy Ghost, even with extraordinary ones, such as speaking with divers tongues, as before on the day of Pentecost; see ( Acts 2:4 ) and this was the case not only of the apostles, but of the other ministers of the word, and it may be of the whole church: and they spoke the word of God with all boldness;
that is, the apostles, and preachers of the Gospel, spoke it with great freedom, and without fear, not only privately, in their community, but publicly, in the temple: this was what was particularly prayed for, and in which they had a remarkable answer.

Acts 4:31 In-Context

29 And now, Lord, concern yourself with their threats and grant your slaves to speak your message with all boldness,

30 [as] you extend your hand to heal and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus."

31 And [when] they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the word of God with boldness.

32 Now the group of those who believed were one heart and soul, and no one said anything of what belonged to him was his own, but all [things] were theirs in common.

33 And with great power the apostles were giving testimony [to] the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was on them all.

Footnotes

• [a]. *Here "[when]" is supplied as a component of the temporal genitive absolute participle ("had prayed")
• [b]. *The imperfect tense has been translated as ingressive here ("began to speak")
• [c]. Or "message"