³⁰“And so, because he [David] was a prophet and knew that God had sworn to him with an oath to seat one of his descendants on his throne, ³¹he looked ahead and spoke of the resurrection of the Christ, that He was neither abandoned to Hades, nor did His flesh suffer decay. ³²This Jesus God raised up again, to which we are all witnesses. ³³Therefore having been exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He has poured forth this which you both see and hear. ³⁴For it was not David who ascended into heaven, but he himself says: ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand, ³⁵Until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.”’ ³⁶Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ—this Jesus whom you crucified.”

In his Pentecostal speech, Peter continues referring to David, the warrior king who unified Israel and fully established the people in the promised land as a powerful nation. He represents the hope that one day Israel would again rise into world prominence under a leader like David, a Messiah, who would be a descendant of David.

The apostle now ties Psalm 16 (with David’s reference to a coming resurrected one) to God’s promise that one of his descendants would occupy his throne forever (see 2 Sam 7:12–16, Ps. 132:11-12, Ps 89:3-4). This is the very one about which Peter is now preaching, “the Christ.” Although some mistakenly think of the term “Christ” as a name, it is a transliteration of the Greek “Christos,” which is the Greek equivalent of the Hebrew word for Messiah, or “the anointed One.” Peter is referring to Jesus as the Messiah! He boldly proclaims what he had poignantly confessed sometime earlier to Jesus, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Matt. 16:16). At Jesus’ trial, the high priest demanded, “I adjure you by the living God, that You tell us whether You are the Christ, the Son of God” (Matt. 26:63). Now, Peter gives them an unequivocal response: “God has made Him both Lord and Christ” (vs. 36).

This statement would be bold-faced blasphemy if it were not true. Peter and company were absolutely convinced that it was true, or they would not have risked their lives to speak it so unambiguously. The Jews of Jerusalem had killed the promised descendant of David, the Messiah. But God superseded their actions by raising the Christ from the dead (of which all twelve of the apostles were standing there as witnesses). Again quoting Scripture (Ps. 110:1–2), Peter proclaims that Jesus as Christ has ascended to the most prominent place possible in the kingdom. There is no uncertainty to this, no place for theological or rabbinical debate. The one they crucified is “both Lord and Christ.”

Lord, help me be clear and unequivocal in my proclamation of Jesus Christ.