Yes - Scripture deliberately records the healed man's age because it points to Israel's 40-year pattern of testing and to God's sovereign timing in Acts.
Acts 4:22 says the man on whom the miracle of healing was shown was above forty years old. Les Feldick teaches that this detail is not merely background information; he connects it to the repeated 40-year testing pattern in Israel's history. He also points out that Jesus had walked past this man many times without healing him, because God sovereignly reserved the miracle for Peter and John to trigger the next group of events in Acts.
Acts 4:22 — This is the verse that explicitly records the healed man's age and is the direct biblical basis for the question.
John 5:5 — This verse shows another man with a 38-year infirmity, which Les uses to connect the same time pattern to Israel's testing.
Acts 4:22 explicitly records that the man on whom the miracle of healing was shown was above forty years old. Acts 4:14 also shows the healed man standing with Peter and John in complete health and strength, and the council could say nothing against it. Other Scripture passages in the evidence show the same kind of time markers: a certain man in John 5 had an infirmity for thirty and eight years (John 5:5), and Moses had a full forty years at the time he went to visit the children of Israel (Acts 7:23), followed by another forty-year period when the angel appeared to him in the wilderness (Acts 7:30).
Les begins by asking why he is bringing up that the man was 40 years old. He says Christ walked by that man time and time again and never healed him, and that Jesus was leaving all that for this moment. Les explains that a sovereign God knew everything beforehand, so the healing was reserved for Peter and John to pass by the Gate Beautiful, and it would precipitate another whole group of events.
Les sees the healed man's age as part of a broader time pattern. He says Israel's wilderness wandering was really 38 years, close to the 40, and that 40 in God's dealing with Israel always indicates a time of testing. He also applies the same pattern to the impotent man in John 5, who had been in his condition for 38 years, and says this correlates with the testing of the nation of Israel. In Acts, the man is above forty years old when Peter and John encounter him, and Les connects the surrounding events to the same 40-year testing period.
Les asks why he is bringing up the fact that the man was 40 years old. He points out that Christ must have walked by that gentleman time and time again, and yet did not heal him. Les says Jesus was leaving all that for this moment - that Peter and John would pass by and the healing would precipitate another whole group of events. He calls this the beauty of a sovereign God.
Les points to Moses, who had three 40-year segments: his first 40 years, then 40 years in the wilderness, then the final 40 years when he led Israel. He also mentions Israel's 40 years in the wilderness, Saul's 40-year rule, David's 40-year rule, Solomon's 40-year rule, and the 40 years from the crucifixion to the destruction of the temple. In each case, he says, forty years functions as a period of testing.
The Miracle Was Undeniable
Les shows that the healed man stood with Peter and John in complete health and strength, which made the miracle so obvious that the council could say nothing against it.
40 Years Means Testing for Israel
Les teaches that 40, in God's dealing with Israel, always indicates a time of testing, and he connects the wilderness period and the man's 38 years to that pattern.
Sovereign Timing of the Healing
Les explains that Jesus deliberately passed by this lame man many times because God sovereignly reserved the healing for Peter and John in Acts.
Forty-Year Pattern in Israel's History
Les lists repeated 40-year periods in Israel's history, showing that God operates on a distinct timetable with Israel.
The 8 Signs in John's Gospel — What They Mean for Israel
Sin is mentioned, as well as up here with the impotent man who was also next to the pool, which indicated a need for cleansing. But now we come to Lazarus. He's dead. Down to chapter 11, verse 17. Again, you know all these verses. Verse 17. Now when Jesus came, He found that He, Lazarus, had lain in the grave how long? Four days.
Moses' Three 40-Year Segments
Les uses Moses' three 40-year segments as another example of the 40-year time span that recurs throughout Israel's dealings with God.
The Impotent Man and Israel's Unbelief
Les connects the impotent man's 38 years to the testing of the nation of Israel, and notes that the nation was not ready for the King or the Kingdom.
Acts as Israel's Final 40-Year Testing Period
Les teaches that the book of Acts covers a 40-year period from the crucifixion to the destruction of the temple, during which Israel remained in unbelief.
Acts 4:22: For the man was above forty years old, on whom this miracle of healing was shewed.
This is the key verse that names the healed man's age and is the focus of the question.
Acts 4:14: And beholding the man which was healed standing with them, they could say nothing against it.
This verse shows the healed man standing with Peter and John, making the miracle undeniable to the council.
John 5:5: And a certain man was there, which had an infirmity thirty and eight years.
Les compares this 38-year infirmity to Israel's testing period, showing the same time pattern.
Acts 7:23: And when he was full forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren the children of Israel.
Les cites this verse as the first of Moses' three 40-year segments, part of Israel's repeated time pattern.
Acts 7:30: And when forty years were expired, there appeared to him in the wilderness of mount Sina an angel of the Lord in a flame of fire in a bush.
This second verse about Moses' 40 years is another example of the 40-year testing pattern.
Acts 4:22 says he was above forty years old. Les emphasizes that this is not just a biographical detail; he uses it to point to Israel's 40-year testing pattern and to God's sovereign timing in Acts.
Les teaches that 40 in God's dealing with Israel always indicates a time of testing. He sees the healed man's age as fitting into that repeated pattern, along with the wilderness years and the 40-year period of Acts.
According to Les, Jesus passed by this man many times without healing him. Les says this was because God sovereignly reserved the healing for Peter and John, so that the miracle would precipitate another whole group of events in Acts.
Watch the Teaching: Acts 4 Explained: No Other Name — Only Jesus Saves