Acts 4:28 (DRB)

Passage

To do what thy hand and thy counsel decreed to be done.

Nearby Context

Acts 4:26 The kings of the earth stood up: and the princes assembled together against the Lord and his Christ.

Acts 4:27 For of a truth there assembled together in this city against thy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles and the people of Israel,

Acts 4:28 To do what thy hand and thy counsel decreed to be done.

Acts 4:29 And now, Lord, behold their threatenings: and grant unto thy servants that with all confidence they may speak thy word,

Acts 4:30 By stretching forth thy hand to cures and signs and wonders, to be done by the name of thy holy Son, Jesus.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "hand", "counsel", "decreed", and "done". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "hand" and "counsel", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 27's "For of a truth there assembled together..." into verse 29's "And now Lord behold their threatenings and...", so "hand" and "counsel" belong inside that flow. In Acts context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "hand" and "counsel" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.