---

II. The Kingdom Restored

A. The Structure of the Book

We can see the pattern first of all in the outline of the book.

Acts begins in Jerusalem (see Acts 1-7).

With the death of Stephen and the ensuing persecution, the Gospel spreads throughout Judea and Samaria (see Acts 8).

With the conversion of Paul (see Acts 9), the scene moves for a time to Damascus - part of David’s conquered territory outside Israel (see 2 Samuel 8:6).

Then, with Peter’s visit to Cornelius and Peter’s vision of the clean and unclean foods (seeActs 10:1-33), the mission to the Gentiles begins in earnest (see Acts 10:34-48).

From there, the Gospel spreads to the great city of Antioch (see Acts 11:19-30), then to Cyprus (see Acts 13:4-13), to Asia Minor (see Acts 13:14-14:28), to Greece (see Acts 16-20), and finally to Rome itself (see Acts 27-28).

Rome was the capital of the Empire that covered most of the known world. In that way, Rome could truly be called the ends of the earth.

Thus the outline of the book itself shows the Apostles restoring the ideal Davidic kingdom in Jerusalem, in Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth, following the mandate of Christ himself at the beginning of the book (see Acts 1:8).

In fact, the book itself on a large scale, like Jesus’ commission, is a map of the ideal Davidic kingdom, now coming to life in the spread of the Church.

B. Enthroned in Heaven

As soon as Jesus gives his last orders to the disciples, He is "lifted up" into heaven (seeActs 1:9). As Mark tells us, He is enthroned "at the right hand of God" (see Mark 16:19, and compare Acts 7:55-56).

Luke shows us the divine enthronement of Jesus with an instantly recognizable image: "a cloud took him from their sight" (see Acts 1:9). Throughout the Bible, a cloud is the visible sign of God’s presence, hiding the blinding glory of divinity (see, for example, Exodus 13:21, Exodus 16:10, Exodus 40:34, Leviticus 16:2, Numbers 11:25, Isaiah 19:1, Matthew 17:5).

The vision reminds us in particular of the "Son of Man" in Daniel, who is carried to the Ancient One on a cloud (see Daniel 7:13).

Like God the Father, Jesus - God the Son - is now hidden from sight by a cloud. But the heavenly Kingdom has not disappeared from the earth. On the contrary, it is only beginning.

C. Twelve Thrones

If the true Davidic kingdom was to be restored, that would have to mean all twelve tribes, the descendants of the sons of Jacob (see Genesis 49), united under the King of Israel.

That was what the prophets had foretold: Judah (the tribe that had been loyal to the sons of David) and Ephraim (the prophets’ name for Israel, the kingdom of the northern tribes) would be united again under the Son of David (see, for example, Ezekiel 37:15-28).

We remember from the previous lesson how Jesus had given His Apostles "thrones" from which they would judge the twelve tribes of Israel (see Luke 22:30), echoing the description of Jerusalem at peace in Psalm 122: the tribes all gathered together to give thanks to the Lord, and above them "the thrones of the house of David" (see Psalm 122:4-5).

The problem was that there were only eleven Apostles now. Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Jesus (see Luke 22:47-48), had killed himself in despair (see Matthew 27:3-5, Acts 1:16-19).

Peter told the rest that it was necessary for them to have another "witness" to carry on in Judas’s place (see Acts 1:21-22), quoting two psalms that curse the enemies of God (seeActs 1:20; the quotations are from Psalm 69:26 and Psalm 109:8).

Matthias was chosen, and from that point on he was numbered among the Twelve (seeActs 1:23-26).

Twelve tribes, twelve thrones: it was necessary to establish the Kingdom properly from the beginning.

D. The Prime Minister

The Twelve thus took their positions as the King’s ministers. Just as David and his successors had had ministers to sit on thrones and judge the people (see, for example, 1 Kings 4:1-19, and compare Psalm 122:4-5), so Jesus, the ideal Davidic King, would have His ministers.

And just as in the original Davidic kingdom, one of those ministers would be the leader of the rest.

David had Joab (see 1 Chronicles 11:6), and every one of his successors had what we today would call a prime minister.

Following that pattern, we see that Jesus, too, had a prime minister.

As soon as He told His disciples that they would sit on thrones to judge the twelve tribes of Israel (see Luke 22:28-30), Jesus turned to Simon Peter and told him that he must strengthen the others (see Luke 22:31-32).

Peter was the "Rock" (which is what the name Peter means) on which Jesus had promised to build His Church (see Matthew 16:18).

All the Apostles were Jesus’ ministers, but Simon Peter was the prime minister.

Now we see Peter exercising that authority. It is Peter who announces to the Twelve and the rest of the church in Jerusalem that Judas must be replaced (see Acts 1:15-22), and his decision is accepted without debate (see Acts 1:23-28).

We see him acting as the unquestioned leader at Pentecost, too, when he speaks for all the Apostles in front of the astonished crowds (see Acts 2:14).

Peter speaks for them again before the leaders of the people and the priests (see Acts 4:8). He exercises a healing power like Christ’s (see Acts 3:1-12), pronounces God’s judgment on Anananias and Sapphira (see Acts 5:1-11), and gains such a reputation that people line up just to be touched by his shadow (see Acts 5:15).

Finally, it is Peter whose word determines the whole future course of the Kingdom on earth. When some converted Pharisees have argued that Christians are bound by the whole law (see Acts 15:5), Peter is the one who interprets the will of God for the rest of the Apostles (see Acts 15:7-11).

James, summarizing the decision of the Apostles, refers to Amos’s prophecy about the fallen hut, in which the restoration of the Davidic kingdom comes about so that the rest of the world may also come to God (see Acts 15:14-18).

A kingdom that includes "the rest of humanity" is what God had promised through the Prophets, and the mission of the Church is to be the fulfillment of that promise.

Luke leaves us in no doubt whatsoever: Peter has taken over as leader of the Twelve, just as Jesus had ordained. He interprets the will of God, and he decides the course of the whole Church.

But Peter is only the first among the ministers of the Kingdom. Jesus, as Peter himself will tell us, is still the King.

Continue to Section 3