What does the word 'counsel' (spelled with se) mean in Acts 2:23?
In Acts 2:23, “counsel” spelled with “se” denotes a meeting of minds, a deliberate mutual decision. It refers to God’s determinate counsel and foreknowledge: His pre-planned purpose, not a divine surprise, by which Christ was delivered according to God’s predetermined plan.
Les explains that the word “counsel” in Acts 2:23 is spelled with an SE, so it denotes a meeting of minds, because that is what that kind of counsel does. The verse speaks of “the determinate counsel and the foreknowledge of God.” Peter had just accused Israel of killing their Messiah, but God was not taken by surprise. Long before anything was created, the Godhead determined, in a split-second decision, to create and bring the human race on the scene. Knowing the human race would sin and need a Redeemer, it was all pre-planned. Likewise, in God’s foreknowledge, He knew Israel would reject the King and Kingdom when Christ came the first time.
Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain:
More Questions
Is the 'determinate counsel' in Acts 2:23 the same word as the 'counsel' in Ephesians 1:11?
Acts 2:23's phrase 'determinate counsel' is the same word and language as Ephesians 1:11's 'counsel of His own will.'
What is the determining council in Acts 2:23?
The 'determining council' is exactly what the triune God did in eternity past: they came together before creation to plan the ages.