Acts 3 · Verse 25

Acts 3:25

Ye are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying unto Abraham, And in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed.
Acts 3:25, King James Version

Acts 3:25 in other translations

BSBAnd you are sons of the prophets and of the covenant God made with your fathers when He said to Abraham, ‘Through your offspring all the families of the earth will be blessed.’
WEBYou are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying to Abraham, ‘All the families of the earth will be blessed through your offspring.’
ASVYe are the sons of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with your fathers, saying unto Abraham, And in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.
YLT‘Ye are sons of the prophets, and of the covenant that God made unto our fathers, saying unto Abraham: And in thy seed shall be blessed all the families of the earth;
DARBYYe are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant which God appointed to our fathers, saying to Abraham, And in thy seed shall all the families of the earth be blessed.
BBEYou are the sons of the prophets, and of the agreement which God made with your fathers, saying to Abraham, Through your seed a blessing will come on all the families of the earth.
WebsterYe are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying to Abraham, And in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed.

What does Acts 3:25 mean?

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown on Acts 3:22-26

22-26. a prophet ... like unto me--particularly in intimacy of communication with God (Nu 12:6-8), and as the mediatorial Head of a new order of things (He 3:2-6). Peter takes it for granted that, in the light of all he had just said, it would be seen at once that One only had any claim to be that Prophet. him shall ye hear in all things, &c.--This part of the prediction is emphatically added, in order to shut up…

Read the full comment on Acts 3:22-26 →

Barnes' Notes
Verse 25. Ye are the children of the prophets. Greek, "�e are the sons of the prophets." The meaning is, not that they were literally the descendants of the prophets, but that they were their disciples, pupils, followers. They professed to follow the prophets as their teachers and guides. Teachers among the Jews were often spoken of under the appellation of fathers, and disciples as sons, Mt 12:27. Mt 1:1. As they were the professed disciples of the prophets, they should listen to them. As they lived among the people to whom the prophets were sent, and to whom the promises were made, they should avail themselves of the offer of mercy, and embrace the Messiah.

And of the covenant. Ye are the sons of the covenant; that is, you are of the posterity of Abraham, with whom the covenant was made. The word "sons" was often thus used to denote those to whom any favour appertained, whether by inheritance, or in any other way. Thus, Mt 8:12, "the children (sons) of the kingdom." Jn 17:12: "The son of perdition." The word covenant denotes, properly, a compact or agreement between equals, or those who have a right to make such a compact, and to choose or refuse the terms. When applied to God and man, it denotes a firm promise on the part of God; a pledge to be regarded with all the sacredness of a compact, that he will do certain things on certain conditions. It is called a covenant only to designate its sacredness and the certainty of its fulfillment; not that man had any right to reject any of the terms or stipulations. As man has no such right--as he is bound to receive all that his Maker proposes--so, strictly and literally, there has been no compact or covenant between God and man. The promise to which Peter refers in the passage before us is in Gen 22:18, 12:3.

In thy seed. Thy posterity. See Rom 4:13,16. This promise, the apostle Paul affirms, had express reference to the Messiah, Gal 3:16. The word seed is used sometimes to denote an individual, Gen 4:25 and the apostle Gal 3:16 affirms that there was special reference to Christ in the promise made to Abraham.

All the kindreds. The word translated kindreds πατριαι denotes those who have a common father or ancestor, and is applied to families. It is also referred to those larger communities which descended from the same ancestor, and thus refers to nations, Eph 3:15. Here it evidently refers to all nations.

Be blessed. Be made happy.

(a) "are the children" Rom 9:4, 15:8 (*) "children" "sons" (b) "in thy seed" Gen 22:18

Albert Barnes, 1834 · public domain

Adam Clarke's Commentary
Verse 25 Ye are the children of the prophets - This is the argumentum ad hominem: as ye are the children or disciples of the prophets, ye are bound to believe their predictions, and obey their precepts; and not only so, but ye are entitled to their promises. Your duty and your interest go hand in hand; and there is not a blessing contained in the covenant which was made with your fathers but belongs to you. Now, as this covenant respected the blessings of the Gospel, you must believe in Jesus Christ, in order to be put in possession of all those blessings.

Adam Clarke, 1831 · public domain

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on Acts 3:22-26

Here is a powerful address to warn the Jews of the dreadful consequences of their unbelief, in the very words of Moses, their favourite prophet, out of pretended zeal for whom they were ready to reject Christianity, and to try to destroy it. Christ came into the world to bring a blessing with him. And he sent his Spirit to be the great blessing. Christ came to bless us, by turning us from our iniquities, and saving…

Read the full comment on Acts 3:22-26 →

Acts 3:25 in the original Greek

Word-by-word with transliteration, English gloss and Strong's number. Tap a number for the full definition and every place the word is used.

ὑμεῖςhumeisYou yourselvesG4771
ἐστεesteareG1510
υἱοὶhuioisonsG5207
τῶνtōnof theG3588
προφητῶνprophētōnprophetsG4396
καὶkaiandG2532
τῆςtēsof theG3588
διαθήκηςdiathēkēscovenantG1242
ἧςhēsthatG3739
διέθετοdiethetomadeG1303
ὁho<the>G3588
θεὸςtheosGodG2316
πρὸςproswithG4314
τοὺςtoustheG3588
πατέραςpaterasfathersG3962
ὑμῶνhumōnof youG4771
λέγωνlegōnsayingG3004
πρὸςprostoG4314
Ἀβραάμ·AbraamAbraham;G11
καὶkaiAndG2532
ἐνeninG1722
τῷtōtheG3588
σπέρματίspermatiseedG4690
σουsouof youG4771
ἐνευλογηθήσονταιeneulogēthēsontaiwill be blessedG1757
πᾶσαιpasaiallG3956
αἱhaitheG3588
πατριαὶpatriaifamiliesG3965
τῆςtēsof theG3588
γῆς.gēsearth.’G1093

Source: STEPBible TAHOT/TAGNT (Tyndale House, CC BY 4.0).

Cross references for Acts 3:25

  • Genesis 22:18

    And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice.

  • Galatians 3:8

    And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed.

  • 1 Chronicles 16:17

    And hath confirmed the same to Jacob for a law, and to Israel for an everlasting covenant,

  • Acts 2:39

    For the promise is unto you, and to your children, and to all that are afar off, even as many as the Lord our God shall call.

  • Romans 9:4-5

    Who are Israelites; to whom pertaineth the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law, and the service of God, and the promises; Whose are the fathers, and of whom as concerning the flesh Christ came, who is over all, God blessed for ever. Amen.

  • Genesis 12:3

    And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.

  • Romans 4:13

    For the promise, that he should be the heir of the world, was not to Abraham, or to his seed, through the law, but through the righteousness of faith.

  • Genesis 26:4

    And I will make thy seed to multiply as the stars of heaven, and will give unto thy seed all these countries; and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed;

  • Nehemiah 9:8

    And foundest his heart faithful before thee, and madest a covenant with him to give the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Jebusites, and the Girgashites, to give it, I say, to his seed, and hast performed thy words; for thou art righteous:

  • Psalms 105:8-15

    He hath remembered his covenant for ever, the word which he commanded to a thousand generations. Which covenant he made with Abraham, and his oath unto Isaac; And confirmed the same unto Jacob for a law, and to Israel for an everlasting covenant: Saying, Unto thee will I give the land of Canaan, the lot of your inheritance: …

  • Psalms 22:27

    All the ends of the world shall remember and turn unto the Lord: and all the kindreds of the nations shall worship before thee.

  • Galatians 3:16

    Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ.

Ranked by reader votes · OpenBible.info cross references (CC BY).

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
the children.
2:39; 13:26; Ge 20:7; 27:36-40; 48:14-20; 49:1-33; Ps 105:8-15
Mt 3:9,10
the covenant.
Ge 17:9,10,19; 1Ch 16:17; Ne 9:8; Lu 1:72; Ro 9:4,5; 15:8; Ga 3:29
And in.
Ge 12:3; 18:18; 22:18; 26:4; 28:14; Ro 4:13; Ga 3:8,16
all.
Ps 22:27; 96:7; Re 5:9; 7:9; 14:6

Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Samuel Bagster, c. 1836) · public domain

Context

  • Acts 3:24

    Yea, and all the prophets from Samuel and those that follow after, as many as have spoken, have likewise foretold of these days.

  • Acts 3:25

    Ye are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying unto Abraham, And in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed.

  • Acts 3:26

    Unto you first God, having raised up his Son Jesus, sent him to bless you, in turning away every one of you from his iniquities.

Read all of Acts 3

Acts 3:25 in other languages

Spanish
Reina-Valera 1909		Vosotros sois los hijos de los profetas, y del pacto que Dios concertó con nuestros padres, diciendo á Abraham: Y en tu simiente serán benditas todas las familias de la tierra.
French
Bible J.N. Darby 1885		Vous, vous êtes les fils des prophètes et de l’alliance que Dieu a établie avec nos pères, disant à Abraham: « Et en ta semence seront bénies toutes les familles de la terre ».
German
Elberfelder 1871		Ihr seid die Söhne der Propheten und des Bundes, den Gott unseren Vätern verordnet hat, indem er zu Abraham sprach: "Und in deinem Samen werden gesegnet werden alle Geschlechter der Erde".
Latin
Clementine Vulgate		Vos estis filii prophetarum, et testamenti quod disposuit Deus ad patres nostros, dicens ad Abraham: Et in semine tuo benedicentur omnes familiæ terræ.