Acts 15:8 Meaning and Explanation
“And God, which knoweth the hearts, bare them witness, giving them the Holy Ghost, even as he did unto us;”
King James Version (KJV)
Read this verse in context with translation switching:
Read Full Chapter →Peter testifies that God, who knows every heart, bore witness to the Gentiles by giving them the Holy Ghost just as he had given it at the first.
What Does Acts 15:8 Mean?
Peter recalls the decisive moment in the house of Cornelius: as he was still preaching, the Holy Ghost fell on all who heard, exactly as on the disciples at the beginning (Acts 10:44-47; 11:15). God, who reads what no man can see, publicly owned these Gentiles as his.
The argument cuts deep. Men were inspecting outward marks — circumcision, customs, ancestry — but God looks on the heart (1 Samuel 16:7), and he had already given uncircumcised believers his own Spirit. The gift of the Holy Ghost is the witness of God that a person belongs to him. Where God has so plainly set his seal, no one may treat a fellow believer as second-class.
Acts 15:8 in the Original Language
kardiognostes (καρδιογνώστης), 'which knoweth the hearts' -- heart-knower, the One who sees what is hidden.
Frequently Asked Questions About Acts 15:8
What does Acts 15:8 mean?
Peter testifies that God, who knows every heart, bore witness to the Gentiles by giving them the Holy Ghost just as he had given it at the first.