Acts 4:12

New Testament Historical ASV (1901)

What does Acts 4:12 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “And in none other is there salvation: for neither is there any other name under heaven, that is given among men, wherein we must be saved.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

And in none other is there salvation: for neither is there any other name under heaven, that is given among men, wherein we must be saved.
Acts 4:12 — American Standard Version

Context — Acts 4

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
12And in none other is there salvation: for neither is there any other name under heaven, that is given among men, wherein we must be saved.

What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“Neither is there salvation in any other, etc.] Meaning not corporeal healing, but spiritual and eternal salvation; the Syriac version renders it, neither is there anqrwp, “redemption in any other”: Christ is the only Saviour and Redeemer, who was promised and prophesied of as such; who has saved and redeemed his people from the law, sin, and Satan; nor is salvation to be sought and hoped for from any other; not in a man’s self, nor in any other creature, angels or men; not in and by his own works, and legal righteousness; not by obedience to the law of Moses, moral or ceremonial; nor by the light of nature, much less by an observance of the traditions of the elders: for there is none other…”
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Jamieson, Fausset & Brown
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown · Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“Neither is there salvation in any other; for there is none other name under heaven given among men whereby we must be saved--How sublimely does the apostle, in these closing words, shut up these rulers of Israel to Jesus for salvation, and in what universal and emphatic terms does he hold up his Lord as the one Hope of men!”
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Barnes' Notes
Albert Barnes (1798–1870) · Notes on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“Neither is there salvation - The word “salvation” properly denotes any “preservation,” or keeping anything in a “safe” state; a preserving from harm. It I signifies, also, deliverance from any evil of body or mind; from pain, sickness, danger, etc., Acts 7:25. But it is in the New Testament applied particularly to the work which the Messiah came to do, “to seek and to save that which was lost,” Luke 19:10. This work refers primarily to a deliverance of the soul from sin Matthew 1:21; Acts 5:31; Luke 4:18; Romans 8:21; Galatians 5:1. It then denotes, as a consequence of freedom from sin, freedom from all the ills to which sin exposes man, and the attainment of that perfect peace and joy which…”
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Wesley's Explanatory Notes
John Wesley (1703–1791) · Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament and Old Testament notes · 18th-century historical commentary
“There is no other name whereby we must he saved - The apostle uses a beautiful gradation, from the temporal deliverance which had been wrought for the poor cripple, by the power of Christ, to that of a much nobler and more important kind, which is wrought by Christ for impotent and sinful souls. He therein follows the admirable custom of his great Lord and Master, who continually took occasion from earthly to speak of spiritual things. Acts 4:13”
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Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · Cross-reference reference work
“is there: Act 10:42, Act 10:43; Mat 1:21; Mar 16:15, Mar 16:16; Joh 3:36, Joh 14:6; Co1 3:11; Ti1 2:5, Ti1 2:6; Heb 2:3, Heb 12:25; Jo1 5:11, Jo1 5:12; Rev 7:9, Rev 7:10, Rev 20:15 under: Act 2:5; Gen 7:19; Job 41:11; Psa 45:17; Col 1:23 Acts 4:13”
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Related study paths

Sources and verification