Acts 5: Integrity, Power, and Opposition
The deceit of Ananias and Sapphira, growing signs, and renewed persecution test the church.
Acts 5 (WEB)
1 But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira, his wife, sold a possession,
2 and kept back part of the price, his wife also being aware of it, and brought a certain part, and laid it at the apostles’ feet.
3 But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit, and to keep back part of the price of the land?
4 While you kept it, didn’t it remain your own? After it was sold, wasn’t it in your power? How is it that you have conceived this thing in your heart? You haven’t lied to men, but to God.”
5 Ananias, hearing these words, fell down and died. Great fear came on all who heard these things.
6 The young men arose and wrapped him up, and they carried him out and buried him.
7 About three hours later, his wife, not knowing what had happened, came in.
8 Peter answered her, “Tell me whether you sold the land for so much.” She said, “Yes, for so much.”
9 But Peter asked her, “How is it that you have agreed together to tempt the Spirit of the Lord? Behold, the feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out.”
10 She fell down immediately at his feet, and died. The young men came in and found her dead, and they carried her out and buried her by her husband.
11 Great fear came on the whole assembly, and on all who heard these things.
12 By the hands of the apostles many signs and wonders were done among the people. They were all with one accord in Solomon’s porch.
13 None of the rest dared to join them, however the people honored them.
14 More believers were added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women.
15 They even carried out the sick into the streets, and laid them on cots and mattresses, so that as Peter came by, at the least his shadow might overshadow some of them.
16 The multitude also came together from the cities around Jerusalem, bringing sick people, and those who were tormented by unclean spirits: and they were all healed.
17 But the high priest rose up, and all those who were with him (which is the sect of the Sadducees), and they were filled with jealousy,
18 and laid hands on the apostles, and put them in public custody.
19 But an angel of the Lord opened the prison doors by night, and brought them out, and said,
20 “Go stand and speak in the temple to the people all the words of this life.”
21 When they heard this, they entered into the temple about daybreak, and taught. But the high priest came, and those who were with him, and called the council together, and all the senate of the children of Israel, and sent to the prison to have them brought.
22 But the officers who came didn’t find them in the prison. They returned and reported,
23 “We found the prison shut and locked, and the guards standing before the doors, but when we opened them, we found no one inside!”
24 Now when the high priest, the captain of the temple, and the chief priests heard these words, they were very perplexed about them and what might become of this.
25 One came and told them, “Behold, the men whom you put in prison are in the temple, standing and teaching the people.”
26 Then the captain went with the officers, and brought them without violence, for they were afraid that the people might stone them.
27 When they had brought them, they set them before the council. The high priest questioned them,
28 saying, “Didn’t we strictly command you not to teach in this name? Behold, you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and intend to bring this man’s blood on us.”
29 But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men.
30 The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom you killed, hanging him on a tree.
31 God exalted him with his right hand to be a Prince and a Savior, to give repentance to Israel, and remission of sins.
32 We are His witnesses of these things; and so also is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.”
33 But they, when they heard this, were cut to the heart, and were determined to kill them.
34 But one stood up in the council, a Pharisee named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law, honored by all the people, and commanded to put the apostles out for a little while.
35 He said to them, “You men of Israel, be careful concerning these men, what you are about to do.
36 For before these days Theudas rose up, making himself out to be somebody; to whom a number of men, about four hundred, joined themselves: who was slain; and all, as many as obeyed him, were dispersed, and came to nothing.
37 After this man, Judas of Galilee rose up in the days of the enrollment, and drew away some people after him. He also perished, and all, as many as obeyed him, were scattered abroad.
38 Now I tell you, withdraw from these men, and leave them alone. For if this counsel or this work is of men, it will be overthrown.
39 But if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow it, and you would be found even to be fighting against God!”
40 They agreed with him. Summoning the apostles, they beat them and commanded them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go.
41 They therefore departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for Jesus’ name.
42 Every day, in the temple and at home, they never stopped teaching and preaching Jesus, the Christ.
Acts 5 (KJV)
1 But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession,
2 And kept back part of the price, his wife also being privy to it, and brought a certain part, and laid it at the apostles’ feet.
3 But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back part of the price of the land?
4 Whiles it remained, was it not thine own? and after it was sold, was it not in thine own power? why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God.
5 And Ananias hearing these words fell down, and gave up the ghost: and great fear came on all them that heard these things.
6 And the young men arose, wound him up, and carried him out, and buried him.
7 And it was about the space of three hours after, when his wife, not knowing what was done, came in.
8 And Peter answered unto her, Tell me whether ye sold the land for so much? And she said, Yea, for so much.
9 Then Peter said unto her, How is it that ye have agreed together to tempt the Spirit of the Lord? behold, the feet of them which have buried thy husband are at the door, and shall carry thee out.
10 Then fell she down straightway at his feet, and yielded up the ghost: and the young men came in, and found her dead, and, carrying her forth, buried her by her husband.
11 And great fear came upon all the church, and upon as many as heard these things.
12 And by the hands of the apostles were many signs and wonders wrought among the people; (and they were all with one accord in Solomon’s porch.
13 And of the rest durst no man join himself to them: but the people magnified them.
14 And believers were the more added to the Lord, multitudes both of men and women.)
15 Insomuch that they brought forth the sick into the streets, and laid them on beds and couches, that at the least the shadow of Peter passing by might overshadow some of them.
16 There came also a multitude out of the cities round about unto Jerusalem, bringing sick folks, and them which were vexed with unclean spirits: and they were healed every one.
17 Then the high priest rose up, and all they that were with him, (which is the sect of the Sadducees,) and were filled with indignation,
18 And laid their hands on the apostles, and put them in the common prison.
19 But the angel of the Lord by night opened the prison doors, and brought them forth, and said,
20 Go, stand and speak in the temple to the people all the words of this life.
21 And when they heard that, they entered into the temple early in the morning, and taught. But the high priest came, and they that were with him, and called the council together, and all the senate of the children of Israel and sent to the prison to have them brought.
22 But when the officers came, and found them not in the prison, they returned, and told,
23 Saying, The prison truly found we shut with all safety, and the keepers standing without before the doors: but when we had opened, we found no man within.
24 Now when the high priest and the captain of the temple and the chief priests heard these things, they doubted of them whereunto this would grow.
25 Then came one and told them, saying, Behold, the men whom ye put in prison are standing in the temple, and teaching the people.
26 Then went the captain with the officers, and brought them without violence: for they feared the people, lest they should have been stoned.
27 And when they had brought them, they set them before the council: and the high priest asked them,
28 Saying, Did not we straitly command you that ye should not teach in this name? and, behold, ye have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine, and intend to bring this man’s blood upon us.
29 Then Peter and the other apostles answered and said, We ought to obey God rather than men.
30 The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a tree.
31 Him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give repentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.
32 And we are his witnesses of these things; and so is also the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to them that obey him.
33 When they heard that, they were cut to the heart, and took counsel to slay them.
34 Then stood there up one in the council, a Pharisee, named Gamaliel, a doctor of the law, had in reputation among all the people, and commanded to put the apostles forth a little space;
35 And said unto them, Ye men of Israel, take heed to yourselves what ye intend to do as touching these men.
36 For before these days rose up Theudas, boasting himself to be somebody; to whom a number of men, about four hundred, joined themselves: who was slain; and all, as many as obeyed him, were scattered, and brought to nought.
37 After this man rose up Judas of Galilee in the days of the taxing, and drew away much people after him: he also perished; and all, even as many as obeyed him, were dispersed.
38 And now I say unto you, Refrain from these men, and let them alone: for if this counsel or this work be of men, it will come to nought:
39 But if it be of God, ye cannot overthrow it; lest haply ye be found even to fight against God.
40 And to him they agreed: and when they had called the apostles, and beaten them, they commanded that they should not speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go.
41 And they departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for his name.
42 And daily in the temple, and in every house, they ceased not to teach and preach Jesus Christ.
Acts 5 (ASV)
1 But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession,
2 and kept back [part] of the price, his wife also being privy to it, and brought a certain part, and laid it at the apostles’ feet.
3 But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thy heart to lie to the Holy Spirit, and to keep back [part] of the price of the land?
4 While it remained, did it not remain thine own? and after it was sold, was it not in thy power? How is it that thou hast conceived this thing in thy heart? thou has not lied unto men, but unto God.
5 And Ananias hearing these words fell down and gave up the ghost: and great fear came upon all that heard it.
6 And the young men arose and wrapped him round, and they carried him out and buried him.
7 And it was about the space of three hours after, when his wife, not knowing what was done, came in.
8 And Peter answered unto her, Tell me whether ye sold the land for so much. And she said, Yea, for so much.
9 But Peter [said] unto her, How is it that ye have agreed together to try the Spirit of the Lord? behold, the feet of them that have buried thy husband are at the door, and they shall carry thee out.
10 And she fell down immediately at his feet, and gave up the ghost: and the young men came in and found her dead, and they carried her out and buried her by her husband.
11 And great fear came upon the whole church, and upon all that heard these things.
12 And by the hands of the apostles were many signs and wonders wrought among the people; and they were all with one accord in Solomon’s porch.
13 But of the rest durst no man join himself to them: howbeit the people magnified them;
14 and believers were the more added to the Lord, multitudes both of them and women;
15 insomuch that they even carried out the sick into the streets, and laid them on beds and couches, that, as Peter came by, at the least his shadow might overshadow some one of them.
16 And there also came together the multitudes from the cities round about Jerusalem, bring sick folk, and them that were vexed with unclean spirits: and they were healed every one.
17 But the high priest rose up, and all they that were with him (which is the sect of the Sadducees), and they were filled with jealousy,
18 and laid hands on the apostles, and put them in public ward.
19 But an angel of the Lord by night opened the prison doors, and brought them out, and said,
20 Go ye, and stand and speak in the temple to the people all the words of this Life.
21 And when they heard [this], they entered into the temple about daybreak, and taught. But the high priest came, and they that were with him, and called the council together, and all the senate of the children of Israel, and sent to the prison-house to have them brought.
22 But the officers that came found them not in the prison; and they returned, and told,
23 saying, The prison-house we found shut in all safety, and the keepers standing at the doors: but when we had opened, we found no man within.
24 Now when the captain of the temple and the chief priests heard these words, they were much perplexed concerning them whereunto this would grow.
25 And there came one and told them, Behold, the men whom ye put in the prison are in the temple standing and teaching the people.
26 Then went the captain with the officers, and brought them, [but] without violence; for they feared the people, lest they should be stoned.
27 And when they had brought them, they set them before the council. And the high priest asked them,
28 saying, We strictly charged you not to teach in this name: and behold, ye have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and intend to bring this man’s blood upon us.
29 But Peter and the apostles answered and said, We must obey God rather than men.
30 The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew, hanging him on a tree.
31 Him did God exalt with his right hand [to be] a Prince and a Saviour, to give repentance to Israel, and remission of sins.
32 And we are witnesses of these things; and [so is] the Holy Spirit, whom God hath given to them that obey him.
33 But they, when they heard this, were cut to the heart, and minded to slay them.
34 But there stood up one in the council, a Pharisee, named Gamaliel, a doctor of the law, had in honor of all the people, and commanded to put the men forth a little while.
35 And he said unto them, Ye men of Israel, take heed to yourselves as touching these men, what ye are about to do.
36 For before these days rose up Theudas, giving himself out to be somebody; to whom a number of men, about four hundred, joined themselves: who was slain; and all, as many as obeyed him, were dispersed, and came to nought.
37 After this man rose up Judas of Galilee in the days of the enrolment, and drew away [some of the] people after him: he also perished; and all, as many as obeyed him, were scattered abroad.
38 And now I say unto you, Refrain from these men, and let them alone: for if this counsel or this work be of men, it will be overthrown:
39 but if it is of God, ye will not be able to overthrow them; lest haply ye be found even to be fighting against God.
40 And to him they agreed: and when they had called the apostles unto them, they beat them and charged them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go.
41 They therefore departed from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the Name.
42 And every day, in the temple and at home, they ceased not to teach and to preach Jesus [as] the Christ.
Summary
A couple named Ananias and Sapphira sell property but lie about how much they give, and their deception before God leads to their sudden deaths, bringing a deep sense of awe over the church. The apostles continue to perform signs and wonders, and the community keeps growing. Arrested again, the apostles are freed by an angel and return to teaching in the temple. Brought before the council, they are spared by the cautious counsel of the respected teacher Gamaliel, and after being flogged they leave rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer for Jesus.
Main Characters
- Ananias and Sapphira — A couple whose lie about their gift exposes the danger of hypocrisy.
- Peter — Confronts the deception and continues leading the apostles.
- The apostles — Perform signs, are imprisoned, and rejoice in suffering for Jesus.
- Gamaliel — A respected teacher who urges the council to leave the apostles alone.
Key Verse
Acts 5:29 (WEB)
But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must obey God rather than men.
Lessons Learned
- Integrity before God matters as much as outward generosity.
- God takes the honesty and holiness of his community seriously.
- Obedience to God comes before the approval of human authorities.
- Suffering for faith can be met with joy rather than despair.
- Hidden motives are visible to God. Ananias and Sapphira's scheme appeared generous outwardly, but God saw the deception, reminding us that true integrity requires alignment between heart and action (Acts 5:3–4, WEB).
- No human authority outranks God's command. When the council ordered the apostles to stop teaching, they answered, "We must obey God rather than men," establishing a lasting principle for navigating conflicting loyalties (Acts 5:29, WEB).
- Suffering for righteousness can become a source of joy. The apostles departed "rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for Jesus' name," showing that persecution endured faithfully is a mark of honor, not shame (Acts 5:41, WEB).
- What is truly of God cannot be destroyed by human opposition. Gamaliel's logic cuts to the heart of the matter: movements built on God's authority will stand, while those rooted only in human effort will collapse (Acts 5:38–39, WEB).
- The health of a community depends on its members' honesty. The death of Ananias and Sapphira brought a deep awe on the whole church, illustrating that inner truthfulness is the foundation of corporate trust and spiritual vitality (Acts 5:11, WEB).
- What was the real problem with Ananias and Sapphira's actions?
- How does honesty within a community protect it?
- Why might the apostles “rejoice” after being flogged?
- What do you make of Gamaliel's advice to the council?
- How do you discern when to obey God over human expectations?
- The real problem was not the amount given but the deception itself. Peter says, "You haven't lied to men, but to God" (Acts 5:4, WEB). Ananias and Sapphira were free to keep any portion of the proceeds; the sin was pretending to give the full amount in order to gain the community's esteem. Their act placed the appearance of generosity above honesty before God.
- Honesty protects a community by ensuring that trust is real rather than performed. When Ananias and Sapphira's deception was exposed, "great fear came on the whole assembly" (Acts 5:11, WEB), and the community's integrity was reinforced. A group built on transparent relationships can rely on one another's word; hypocrisy, by contrast, hollows out the foundation of shared life. Look for responses that connect truthfulness with the ability to trust and support each other (Ephesians 4:25).
- The apostles rejoiced because they understood their suffering as sharing in Christ's own experience and as confirmation that they were truly his witnesses. Peter had already taught that suffering for righteousness is a blessing (1 Peter 3:14). Being "counted worthy to suffer dishonor for Jesus' name" (Acts 5:41, WEB) meant they were recognized as genuinely belonging to him. Look for responses that distinguish suffering as shame from suffering as honor in a kingdom context.
- Gamaliel's counsel was pragmatic and historically grounded: he cited two failed movements (Theudas and Judas of Galilee) to argue that if the apostles' work is merely human, it will collapse on its own, but if it is of God, no human effort can stop it (Acts 5:38–39, WEB). His advice reflects a kind of reverent caution, though it stops short of personal faith. Leaders may note that Gamaliel's restraint was wise without being the same as discipleship — discernment and commitment are different things.
- This is a personal and application question. Look for responses that wrestle honestly with real tension rather than offering easy answers. Key biblical anchors: Acts 5:29 ("We must obey God rather than men"), Romans 13:1–7 (on submitting to governing authorities), and Acts 4:19–20. Healthy responses will likely acknowledge that most of life calls for willing cooperation with human authority, while recognizing that a clear, direct conflict with God's known command creates a threshold where obedience to God must take precedence.