Acts 4:13

King James Version (KJV)

Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marvelled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.

Translations

Acts 4:13 - Amplified Bible

Now when they saw the boldness {and} unfettered eloquence of Peter and John and perceived that they were unlearned {and} untrained in the schools [common men with no educational advantages], they marveled; and they recognized that they had been with Jesus.

Acts 4:13 - American Standard Version

Now when they beheld the boldness of Peter and John, and had perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marvelled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.

Acts 4:13 - Bible in Basic English

Now when they saw that Peter and John were without fear, though they were men of no education or learning, they were greatly surprised; and they took note of them that they had been with Jesus.

Acts 4:13 - Darby Bible

But seeing the boldness of Peter and John, and perceiving that they were unlettered and uninstructed men, they wondered; and they recognised them that they were with Jesus.

Acts 4:13 - English Standard Version

Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished. And they recognized that they had been with Jesus.

Acts 4:13 - King James Version

Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marvelled; and they took knowledge of them, that they had been with Jesus.

Acts 4:13 - La Biblia de las Americas

Al ver la confianza de Pedro y de Juan, y dándose cuenta de que eran hombres sin letras y sin preparaciòn, se maravillaban, y reconocìan que ellos habìan estado con Jesùs.

Acts 4:13 - The Message

They couldn’t take their eyes off them—Peter and John standing there so confident, so sure of themselves! Their fascination deepened when they realized these two were laymen with no training in Scripture or formal education. They recognized them as companions of Jesus, but with the man right before them, seeing him standing there so upright—so healed!—what could they say against that?

Acts 4:13 - New American Standard Bible

Now as they observed the confidence of Peter and John and understood that they were uneducated and untrained men, they were amazed, and {began} to recognize them as having been with Jesus.

Acts 4:13 - Nueva Biblia Latinoamericana de Hoy

Al ver la confianza de Pedro y de Juan, y dándose cuenta de que eran hombres sin letras y sin preparaciòn, se maravillaban, y reconocìan que ellos habìan estado con Jesùs.

Acts 4:13 - World English Bible

Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and had perceived that they were unlearned and ignorant men, they marveled. They recognized that they had been with Jesus.

Acts 4:13 - Young's Living Translation

And beholding the openness of Peter and John, and having perceived that they are men unlettered and plebeian, they were wondering -- they were taking knowledge also of them that with Jesus they had been --

Acts 4:13 - Additional Comments

You may be tempted to excuse their boldness because they had a miracle to back them up. Explain then the boldness of Martin Luther, when he stood before the rulers of the Catholic Church, and refused to renounce belief in Scripture above the Catholic law.
"You are not only responsible for what you say, but also for what you do not say" - Martin Luther
"I cannot and will not recant anything, for to go against conscience is neither right nor safe. Here I stand, I can do no other, so help me God. Amen." - Martin Luther
In the time of Luther, the Catholic Church did not allow the common people to read the Bible, because they said they must be the ones who interpret it. That is why it was revolutionary when Luther translated the Bible into common German language so the average person could read it. How sad, to have had truth so close, and not be allowed to grasp it. We think, how sad it would have been to be there with no Bible available. Or is it even sadder that today, we have the truth so close, in our own language, and we ARE allowed to grasp it, and yet we make practically no effort to do so. (How many people read the lesson this week?)
Peter and John were uneducated and untrained. What was their secret for their boldness, skill, and words? Jesus. They realized He was their source. Not only could they not refute the healing of the lame man (vs 14), but they could not refute the skill and knowledge in speech seen in these 2 men.
This is similar to Walt Zembriski, a steel worker by trade, when he started playing golf later in life on the Senior Golf Tour. He was very blue collar, not one who was handed the perfect swing through lessons as he grew up. Once, when in a locker room with Lee Trevino, Lee asked Walt to get his clubs. Walt excused himself, noting that he also was playing in the tournament, and happened to be 2 strokes ahead of Trevino. It seems to be the same mentality with those who are "in" in a profession, when they are seriously challenged by one who does not seem like they belong. The same with Peter and John. May we never have any arrogance with a fellow employee or anyone of lesser skills, for we are all to do God's work as our primary focus, and our work as a conduit to that.

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