Acts 3:20 speaks of a future time when Jesus Christ will be sent back to earth, a time the apostle Peter ties to God’s plan for restoring all things. The verse is part of a sermon Peter preached in Jerusalem after healing a lame man at the temple gate. Peter addresses the crowd that gathered, speaking to his fellow Jews about the Messiah they had recently rejected.
And that he may send Christ Jesus, who was ordained for you before…
Acts 3:20 (WEB)
What Acts 3:20 Means
The phrase “that he may send” points forward to an event still ahead. Peter is saying that the times of refreshing he has just described will come when God sends Jesus, not through human effort. The timing belongs to God, and the verse places Jesus at the center of the hope being offered.
The words “who was ordained for you before” affirm that Jesus was not a sudden addition to God’s plan. He was appointed in advance, chosen for the purpose of bringing salvation and renewal to the people Peter was speaking to. The verse emphasizes that God’s arrangement for Jesus predates the crowd’s experience of him.
The verse does not give a calendar or a date, and it does not describe the details of what the return will look like. What it promises is that God has a set plan, that Jesus is central to that plan, and that the restoration Peter describes will happen according to God’s timing.
The Context of Acts 3:20
The book of Acts was written by Luke, who also wrote the Gospel bearing his name, and it records the early growth of the church after Jesus’s ascension. Luke wrote to show how the message about Jesus spread from Jerusalem outward, and the audience would have included both Jewish and Gentile believers learning how their faith took shape.
Just before verse 20, Peter tells the crowd that they acted in ignorance when they helped put Jesus to death, and he calls them to repent so their sins may be wiped away. Verse 20 follows that call, which means the promise of Jesus’s future coming is tied to repentance. Verses 22 and 23 then connect Jesus to the prophet Moses foretold, showing that the hope Peter describes was rooted in the Scriptures his listeners already knew.
Key Phrases in Acts 3:20
Acts 3:19
“Repent therefore, and turn again, that your sins may be blotted out, so that there may come times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord…
(WEB)
This verse comes just before Acts 3:20 and contains Peter’s call to repent and turn back, which sets up the promise of refreshing from the Lord. Reading it alongside verse 20 shows that the coming times of refreshing are connected to the change of heart Peter asks for.
Acts 3:21
Whom heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, which God spoke long ago by the mouth of his holy prophets.
(WEB)
This verse continues Peter’s thought by explaining that heaven must receive Jesus until the times of restoration of all things. Reading it with verse 20 helps clarify that the sending of Christ leads to the full renewal God has spoken about through His prophets long ago.
A Short Prayer From Acts 3:20
Father, thank You that You have a plan for restoring all things and that Your timing is always good. Help me to trust that Jesus is the center of Your purpose, the one You appointed long before I was born. When I am tempted to rush ahead or give up hope, remind me that You are faithful to send what You have promised. Give me a repentant heart that turns back to You, and let me rest in the refreshing that comes from Your presence. Amen.
