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But ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you;
Acts 3:14 · King James Version
Parallel translations
  • WEB But you denied the Holy and Righteous One, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you,
  • BSB You rejected the Holy and Righteous One and asked that a murderer be released to you.
  • NKJV But you denied the Holy One and the Just, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you,
  • NASB But you disowned the Holy and Righteous One, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you,
  • NLT You rejected this holy, righteous one and instead demanded the release of a murderer.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Quick answer

Peter charges the people with disowning the Holy and Righteous One and demanding a murderer in his place. Their choice of Barabbas over Jesus exposed a tragic exchange.

Overview

The titles 'Holy and Righteous One' affirm Jesus' sinless character and messianic identity. The contrast between releasing a murderer (Barabbas) and condemning the innocent Jesus sharpens the people's guilt. Yet this very injustice fulfilled God's plan of redemption, as the Righteous One bore the penalty for the unrighteous, that he might bring us to God (1 Pet. 3:18).

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 17

  • Mark 1:24Saying, Let us alone; what have we to do with thee, thou Jesus of Nazareth? art thou come to destroy us? I know thee who thou art, the Holy One of God.
  • Acts 7:52Which of the prophets have not your fathers persecuted? and they have slain them which shewed before of the coming of the Just One; of whom ye have been now the betrayers and murderers:
  • 1 Pet 3:18For Christ also hath once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, that he might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh, but quickened by the Spirit:
  • Acts 4:27For of a truth against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered together,
  • Jas 5:6Ye have condemned and killed the just; and he doth not resist you.
  • Zech 9:9Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.
  • Acts 22:14And he said, The God of our fathers hath chosen thee, that thou shouldest know his will, and see that Just One, and shouldest hear the voice of his mouth.
  • Luke 23:18–19And they cried out all at once, saying, Away with this man, and release unto us Barabbas:
  • 2 Cor 5:21For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
  • Rev 3:7And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write; These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth;
  • Luke 23:25And he released unto them him that for sedition and murder was cast into prison, whom they had desired; but he delivered Jesus to their will.
  • 1 Jn 2:1My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:
  • Acts 2:27Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.
  • Luke 1:35And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God.
  • Ps 16:10For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.
  • Mark 15:7And there was one named Barabbas, which lay bound with them that had made insurrection with him, who had committed murder in the insurrection.
  • Mark 15:11But the chief priests moved the people, that he should rather release Barabbas unto them.

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (4)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Acts videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Acts 3:14YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on ActsMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

Acts is the risen Christ continuing his work by the Spirit through the church, as the apostles preach that there is salvation in no other name under heaven.

How Acts 3:14 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Original language

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.