Acts 3:21

Acts 3:21. Whom the heaven must receive. Some commentators (e g. Bengel, Olshausen, Stier) have adopted another rendering of the Greek words (which makes ὅν the subject) ‘who must receive heaven.' considering that the usually-received translation involves a statement injurious to the nil-pervading majesty of Christ; but it is doubtful whether δίϰομαι is ever used in the sense of ‘to possess.' The statement that heaven must receive Christ until the period of His Second Advent, is anything but derogatory to the majesty of the Redeemer who will reign from heaven; it is only inconsistent with the doctrine of the ubiquity of Christ's body which Lutheran divines invented to strengthen their view of the corporeal presence in the Eucharist.

Until the times of restitution of all things. The word α ̓ ποκαταστα ́ σεως (restitution) occurs here only in the New Testament, but we often find the verb from which it is derived. ‘Elias truly shall first come and restore (α ̓ ποκαταστη ́ σει) all things' (Matthew 17:11; see, too, Acts 1:6). The lull signification of the word is renewal or restoration of primeval purity, order, happiness; setting right the present wild disorder and confusion: good will then finally triumph over evil, truth over falsehood. The ‘times of restitution' signify the same epoch as the ‘times of refreshing' (here all the best modern commentators agree). Gloag well sums up St. Peter's thoughts here: ‘Accordingly, the idea of the apostle seems to be that so long as the unbelief of Israel continues, Christ will remain in heaven, but that their repentance and conversion will bring about the “times of refreshing” and of the “restoration of all things,” which will either immediately precede or coincide with the Second Advent.'

Which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began. These ‘times of restitution' this glorious restoration to holiness and happiness, is the theme of all prophecy in every age in the Old Testament. It was the expectation of this ‘restitution,' so deeply rooted in the hearts of all Jews, which was the principal cause of their summary rejection of a suffering Messiah. They read their glorious sacred books in the strong false light of their own jealous hopes and burning desires; and so they passed over the plain intimations of some of their noblest prophecies, which told them how the glory they longed after could only be reached through a long weary training of pain and sorrow, and the triumph of Messiah only through His suffering and death.