Bible Gem 1422 – Why Jesus is the Only Name Under Heaven (Acts 4:12)

There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved.

Acts 4:12

I told you in the last Gem that this verse will be the focus of the following Gems (plural). It is a huge verse, the capstone of Christianity. I won’t be finishing our investigation with this one Gem alone. There is too much here which requires us to understand. This is the first step. I tell students in Deeper Bible that the various translations are their friend, not their enemy. That is the reason I have given you a variety of translations below. You can glean some important things about this verse by looking at the way the translations handle it.

The Translations

• (AMP) And there is salvation in and through no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by and in which we must be saved.
• (ASV) And in none other is there salvation: for neither is there any other name under heaven, that is given among men, wherein we must be saved.
• (BBE) And in no other is there salvation: for there is no other name under heaven, given among men, through which we may have salvation.
• (CEV) Only Jesus has the power to save! His name is the only one in all the world that can save anyone.
• (EMTV) Nor is there salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven which has been given among men by which we must be saved.”
• (ERV) Jesus is the only one who can save people. His name is the only power in the world that has been given to save anyone. We must be saved through him!”
• (ESV) And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
• (GNB) Salvation is to be found through him alone; in all the world there is no one else whom God has given who can save us.”
• (GW) No one else can save us. Indeed, we can be saved only by the power of the one named Jesus and not by any other person.”
• (ISV) There is no salvation by anyone else, for there is no other name under heaven given among people by which we must be saved.”
• (JUB) Neither is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men in which we can be saved.
• (KJV) Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.
• (LEB) And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven that is given among people by which we must be saved.”
• (LITV) and there is salvation in no other One, for neither is there any other name under Heaven having been given among men by which we must be saved.
• (MSG) Salvation comes no other way; no other name has been or will be given to us by which we can be saved, only this one.”
• (Murdock)Neither is there deliverance in any other; for there is not another name under heaven, which is given to men, whereby to live.
• (NASB) And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.
• (NLT) There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved.”
• (RV) And in none other is there salvation: for neither is there any other name under heaven, that is given among men, wherein we must be saved.
• (TLV) There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved!”
• (WEBA) There is salvation in none other, for neither is there any other name under heaven, that is given among men, by which we must be saved!”
• (Webster) Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is no other name under heaven given among men, by which we must be saved.

The Original

The questions that need to be asked are:

• What makes Jesus the unique and only Cornerstone for salvation?
• Why is there is salvation in no other name?
• Why does Christianity makes such a bold, exclusive claim?

I remember talking with a Jehovah’s Witness man years ago who in no way could accept that firstly Jesus was the Christ, the Messiah. Neither could he accept that salvation was impossible through any other way. He had some “fancy” tactics from the New World Translation (NWT) to attempt to dodge the “bullet” but I wouldn’t let him off the hook. [You will note the NWT is absent from the translations I have given you above. Simply because it is a retranslation of standard versions to subtlely change the text to suit Jehovah’s Witness doctrine. Stay away from it.]

For no one can lay any foundation other than the one we already have — Jesus Christ. (1 Cor 3:10-11) Jesus Christ is the One and Only. There neither was, is nor ever will be any other saviour for mankind other than Jesus Christ. But is that what Peter is claiming or as the JW man tried to do, or is it just a feature of this translation which doesn’t actually mean what it says?

• Act 2:14 Then Peter stepped forward with the eleven other apostles and shouted to the crowd, “Listen carefully, all of you, fellow Jews and residents of Jerusalem!Make no mistake about this.
• Act 2:15 These people are not drunk, as some of you are assuming. Nine o’clock in the morning is much too early for that.
• Act 2:16 No, what you see was predicted long ago by the prophet Joel:
• Act 2:17 ‘In the last days,’ God says,’I will pour out My Spirit upon all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy. Your young men will see visions, and your old men will dream dreams.
• Act 2:18 In those days I will pour out My Spirit even on My servants—men and women alike—and they will prophesy.
• Act 2:19 And I will cause wonders in the heavens above and signs on the earth below—blood and fire and clouds of smoke.
• Act 2:20 The sun will become dark, and the moon will turn blood red before that great and glorious day of the LORD arrives.
• Act 2:21 But everyone who calls on the name of the LORD will be saved.’
• Act 2:22″People of Israel, listen!God publicly endorsed Jesus the Nazarene by doing powerful miracles, wonders, and signs through Him, as you well know.
• Act 2:23 But God knew what would happen, and His prearranged plan was carried out when Jesus was betrayed. With the help of lawless Gentiles, you nailed Him to a cross and killed Him.
• Act 2:24 But God released Him from the horrors of death and raised Him back to life, for death could not keep Him in its grip.
• Act 2:25 King David said this about Him: ‘I see that the LORD is always with Me. I will not be shaken, for He is right beside Me.
• Act 2:26 No wonder My heart is glad, and My tongue shouts His praises! My body rests in hope.
• Act 2:27 ForYou will not leaveMy soul among the dead or allowYour Holy One to rot in the grave.
• Act 2:28 You have shown Me the way of life, and You will fill Me with the joy of Your presence.’
• Act 2:29 “Dear brothers, think about this! You can be sure that the patriarch David wasn’t referring to himself, for he died and was buried, and His tomb is still here among us.
• Act 2:30 But he was a prophet, and he knew God had promised with an oath that one of David’s own descendants would sit on His throne.
• Act 2:31 David was looking into the future and speaking of the Messiah’s resurrection. He was saying that God would not leave Him among the dead or allow His body to rot in the grave.
• Act 2:32 “God raised Jesus from the dead, and we are all witnesses of this.
• Act 2:33 Now He is exalted to the place of highest honor in heaven, at God’s right hand. And the Father, as He had promised, gave Him the Holy Spirit to pour out upon us, just as you see and hear today.
• Act 2:34 For David himself never ascended into heaven, yet he said, ‘The LORD said to my Lord, “Sit in the place of honor at My right hand
• Act 2:35 until I humble Your enemies, making them a footstool under Your feet.”‘
• Act 2:36 “So let everyone in Israel know for certain that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, to be both Lord and Messiah!”
• Act 2:37 Peter’s words pierced their hearts, and they said to him and to the other apostles, “Brothers, what should we do?”
• Act 2:38 Peter replied, “Each of you must repent of your sins and turn to God, and be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
• Act 2:39 This promise is to you, and to your children, and even to the Gentiles—all who have been called by the Lord our God.”
• Act 2:40 Then Peter continued preaching for a long time, strongly urging all his listeners, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation!”
• Act 2:41 Those who believed what Peter said were baptized and added to the church that day—about 3,000 in all.
• Act 2:42 All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord’s Supper), and to prayer.
• Act 2:43 A deep sense of awe came over them all, and the apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders.
• Act 2:44 And all the believers met together in one place and shared everything they had.
• Act 2:45 They sold their property and possessions and shared the money with those in need.
• Act 2:46 They worshiped together at the Temple each day, met in homes for the Lord’s Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity—
• Act 2:47 all the while praising God and enjoying the goodwill of all the people. And each day the Lord added to their fellowship those who were being saved.

• Act 3:12 Peter saw his opportunity and addressed the crowd. “People of Israel,” he said, “what is so surprising about this? And why stare at us as though we had made this man walk by our own power or godliness?
• Act 3:13 For it is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—the God of all our ancestors—who has brought glory to His servant Jesus by doing this.This is the same Jesus whom you handed over and rejected before Pilate, despite Pilate’s decision to release Him.
• Act 3:14 You rejected this holy, righteous One and instead demanded the release of a murderer.
• Act 3:15 You killed the Author of life, but God raised Him from the dead. And we are witnesses of this fact!
• Act 3:16 “Through faith in the name of Jesus, this man was healed—and you know how crippled he was before.Faith in Jesus’ name has healed him before your very eyes.
• Act 3:17 “Friends, I realize that what you and your leaders did to Jesus was done in ignorance.
• Act 3:18 ButGod was fulfilling what all the prophets had foretold about the Messiah—that He must suffer these things.
• Act 3:19 Now repent of your sins and turn to God, so that your sins may be wiped away.
• Act 3:20 Then times of refreshment will come from the presence of the Lord, andHe will again send you Jesus, your appointed Messiah.
• Act 3:21 ForHe must remain in heaven until the time for the final restoration of all things, as God promised long ago through His holy prophets.
• Act 3:22 Moses said, ‘The LORD your God will raise up for you a Prophet like me from among your own people. Listen carefully to everything He tells you.’
• Act 3:23 Then Moses said, ‘Anyone who will not listen to that Prophet will be completely cut off from God’s people.’
• Act 3:24 “Starting with Samuel, every prophet spoke about what is happening today.
• Act 3:25 You are the children of those prophets, and you are included in the covenant God promised to your ancestors. For God said to Abraham, ‘Through your descendants all the families on earth will be blessed.’
• Act 3:26 When God raised up His servant, Jesus, He sent Him first to you people of Israel, to bless you by turning each of you back from your sinful ways.”

• Act 4:10 Let me clearly state to all of you and to all the people of Israel that he was healed by the powerful name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, the man you crucified but whom God raised from the dead.
• Act 4:11 For Jesus is the one referred to in the Scriptures, where it says, ‘The stone that you builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.’
• Act 4:12There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved.”

Is it clear to you now? This statement by Peter in Acts 4:12 is not a stand alone comment. Peter’s statement is the culmination of his argument. He has been leading us to this concluding statement for a number of days. Everything Peter has been saying has been leading up to the Acts 4:12 statement. Are you understanding what I am saying? The reason this statement is so categoric and exclusive by nature is because there is only One who can match the requirements for fulfilling the statements made. This statement is made on the basis of a prearranged plan foretold by all the prophets long ago, (including Moses, Samuel, David and all the prophets referred to in the Scriptures) who claimed the coming Messiah would be the Prophet from God who is the Christ, the Messiah. This is why there is no other name under heaven. Only one in all of history has fulfilled these requirements for being recognised as the Messiah. That is Jesus Christ, the Messiah, the one who fulfilled all 300 prophecies related to His First Coming. In my ‘God’s Awesome Book‘ seminar I showed how the chances of Christ fulfilling 16 out of 300 prophecies can be estimated as being 1¹⁰⁵⁴ or 1,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000,000. And that is the chance factor for only 16 out of 300 prophecies being fulfilled. Scientists say there are only 10 to the power of 50 atoms in the universe. Imagine if we calculated the chances on all 300 prophecies. The chances are incomprehensible. That is why there is only one name under heaven by which you must be saved.

But it doesn’t end there. In the next Gems we will investigate the depth of the statement “no other name”.

There is no reality more breathtaking than Jesus Christ.

John Piper

Prophecy is history written in advance. Only God can write history before it happens.

Ian Vail

If the chances of Jesus coming the first time were astronomical, the chances of there being another like Christ are a sheer impossibility.

Ian Vail

The fulfilment of 300 prophecies related to His 1st Coming make the 2,400 prophecies relating to His 2nd Coming history before it happens.

Ian Vail