Then times of refreshment will come from the presence of the Lord, and he will again send you Jesus, your appointed Messiah.
Parallel translations
- WEB and that he may send Christ Jesus, who was ordained for you before,
- KJV And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you:
- BSB that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that He may send Jesus, the Christ, who has been appointed for you.
- NKJV and that He may send Jesus Christ, who was preached to you before,
- NASB and that He may send Jesus, the Christ appointed for you,
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
God will send the appointed Christ, Jesus, in fulfillment of his purpose for them. Repentance looks forward to Christ's promised coming.
Overview
Peter points to Jesus as the Messiah ordained for Israel, whose future sending is tied to the people's repentance and God's plan. The verse anticipates Christ's return and the consummation of salvation. It assures hearers that the Jesus they rejected is the one God has appointed, and that turning to him connects them to the hope of his coming kingdom.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 13
- Luke 19:11As they heard these things, he went on and told a parable, because he was near Jerusalem, and they supposed that God’s Kingdom would be revealed immediately.
- 2 Th 2:8Then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord will kill with the breath of his mouth, and destroy by the manifestation of his coming;
- Rev 1:7Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, including those who pierced him. All the tribes of the earth will mourn over him. Even so, Amen.
- 2 Th 2:2not to be quickly shaken in your mind, nor yet be troubled, either by spirit, or by word, or by letter as from us, saying that the day of Christ had come.
- Matt 24:30–36and then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky. Then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky with power and great glory.
- Rev 19:11–16I saw the heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and he who sat on it is called Faithful and True. In righteousness he judges and makes war.
- Mark 13:30–37Most certainly I say to you, this generation will not pass away until all these things happen.
- Matt 16:27For the Son of Man will come in the glory of his Father with his angels, and then he will render to everyone according to his deeds.
- Luke 21:27Then they will see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory.
- Heb 9:28so Christ also, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, without sin, to those who are eagerly waiting for him for salvation.
- Mark 13:26Then they will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory.
- Acts 17:31because he has appointed a day in which he will judge the world in righteousness by the man whom he has ordained; of which he has given assurance to all men, in that he has raised him from the dead.”
- Matt 24:3As he sat on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately, saying, “Tell us, when will these things be? What is the sign of your coming, and of the end of the age?”
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
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 3:20 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.