Acts 4:7 (GNV)

Passage

And whe they had set them before them, they asked, By what power, or in what Name haue ye done this?

Nearby Context

Acts 4:5 And it came to passe on the morow, that their rulers, and Elders, and Scribes, were gathered together at Hierusalem,

Acts 4:6 And Annas the chiefe Priest, and Caiaphas, and Iohn, and Alexander, and as many as were of the kindred of the hie Priestes.

Acts 4:7 And whe they had set them before them, they asked, By what power, or in what Name haue ye done this?

Acts 4:8 Then Peter ful of the holy Ghost, said vnto them, Ye rulers of the people, and Elders of Israel,

Acts 4:9 For as much as we this day are examined of the good deede done to the impotent man, to wit, by what meanes he is made whole,

Study Lenses

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

The nearby context moves from verse 6's "And Annas the chiefe Priest and Caiaphas..." into verse 8's "Then Peter ful of the holy Ghost...", so "before" and "asked" 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 "before" and "asked" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.