Acts 7:58
Verse 58. Cast him out of the city, and stoned him] They did not however wait for any sentence to be pronounced upon him; it seems they were determined to stone him first, and then prove, after it had been done, that it was done justly. For the manner of stoning among the Jews, See Clarke on Le 24:23. The witnesses laid down their clothes] To illustrate this whole transaction, see the observations at the end of this chapter. See Clarke on Ac 7:60 Acts 8:1
CHAPTER VIII. A general persecution is raised against the Church, 1. Stephen's burial, 2. Saul greatly oppresses the followers of Christ, 3, 4. Philip the deacon goes to Samaria, preaches, works many miracles, converts many persons, and baptizes Simon the sorcerer, 5-13. Peter and John are sent by the apostles to Samaria; they confirm the disciples, and by prayer and imposition of hands they confer the Holy Spirit, 14-17. Simon the sorcerer, seeing this, offers them money, to enable him to confer the Holy Spirit, 18, 19. He is sharply reproved by Peter, and exhorted to repent, 20-23. He appears to be convinced of his sin, and implores an interest in the apostle's prayers, 24. Peter and John, having preached the Gospel in the villages of Samaria, return to Jerusalem, 25. An angel of the Lord commands Philip to go towards Gaza, to meet an Ethiopian eunuch, 26. He goes, meets, and converses with the eunuch, preaches the Gospel to him, and baptizes him, 27-38. The Spirit of God carries Philip to Azotus, passing through which, he preaches in all the cities till he comes to Caesarea, 39, 40. NOTES ON CHAP. VIII. Verse 1. Saul was consenting unto his death.] So inveterate was the hatred that this man bore to Christ and his followers that he delighted in their destruction. So blind was his heart with superstitious zeal that he thought he did God service by offering him the blood of a fellow creature, whose creed he supposed to be erroneous. The word συνευδοκων signifies gladly consenting, being pleased with his murderous work! How dangerous is a party spirit; and how destructive may zeal even for the true worship of God prove, if not inspired and regulated by the spirit of Christ! It has already been remarked that this clause belongs to the conclusion of the preceding chapter; so it stands in the Vulgate, and so it should stand in every version. There was a great persecution] The Jews could not bear the doctrine of Christ's resurrection; for this point being proved demonstrated his innocence and their enormous guilt in his crucifixion; as therefore the apostles continued to insist strongly on the resurrection of Christ, the persecution against them became hot and general. They were all scattered abroad-except the apostles.] Their Lord had commanded them, when persecuted in one city, to flee to another: this they did, but, wherever they went, they proclaimed the same doctrines, though at the risk and hazard of their lives. It is evident, therefore, that they did not flee from persecution, or the death it threatened; but merely in obedience to their Lord's command. Had they fled through the fear of death, they would have taken care not to provoke persecution to follow them, by continuing to proclaim the same truths that provoked it in the first instance. That the apostles were not also exiled is a very remarkable fact: they continued in Jerusalem, to found and organize the infant Church; and it is marvellous that the hand of persecution was not permitted to touch them. Why this should be we cannot tell; but so it pleased the great Head of the Church. Bp. Pearce justly suspects those accounts, in Eusebius and others, that state that the apostles went very shortly after Christ's ascension into different countries, preaching and founding Churches. He thinks this is inconsistent with the various intimations we have of the continuance of the apostles in Jerusalem; and refers particularly to the following texts: Ac 8:1, 14, 25; Ac 9:26, 27; 11:1, 2; Ac 12:1-4; 15:2, 4, 6, 22, 23; Ac 21:17, 18; Ga 1:17-19; 2:1, 9. The Church at Jerusalem was the first CHRISTIAN Church; and consequently, the boast of the Church of Rome is vain and unfounded. From this time a new aera of the Church arose. Hitherto the apostles and disciples confined their labours among their countrymen in Jerusalem. Now persecution drove the latter into different parts of Judea, and through Samaria; and those who had received the doctrine of Christ at the pentecost, who had come up to Jerusalem from different countries to be present at the feast, would naturally return, especially at the commencement of the persecution, to their respective countries, and proclaim to their countrymen the Gospel of the grace of God. To effect this grand purpose, the Spirit was poured out at the day of pentecost; that the multitudes from different quarters, partaking of the word of life, might carry it back to the different nations among whom they had their residence. One of the fathers has well observed, that "these holy fugitives were like so many lamps, lighted by the fire of the Holy Spirit, spreading every where the sacred flame by which they themselves had been illuminated." Acts 9:1
CHAPTER IX. Saul, bent on the destruction of the Christians, obtains letters from the high priest, authorizing him to seize those whom he should find at Damascus, and bring them bound to Jerusalem, 1, 2. On his way to Damascus, he has a Divine vision, is convinced of his sin and folly, is struck blind, and remains three days without sight, and neither eats nor drinks, 3-9. Ananias, a disciple, is commanded in a vision to go and speak to Saul, and restore his sight, 10-16. Ananias goes and lays his hands on him, and he receives his sight, and is baptized, 17-19. Saul, having spent a few days with the Christians at Damascus, goes to the synagogues, proclaims Christ, and confounds the Jews, 20-22. The Jews lay wait to kill him, but the disciples let him down over the walls of the city in a basket, by night, and he escapes to Jerusalem, 23-25. Having wished to associate with the disciples there, they avoid him; but Barnabas takes and brings him to the apostles, and declares his conversion, 26, 27. He continues in Jerusalem preaching Christ, and arguing with the Hellenistic Jews, who endeavour to slay him; but the disciples take him to Caesarea, and send him thence to his own city Tarsus, 28-30. About this time, the Churches, being freed from persecution, are edified and multiplied, 31. Peter heals Eneas at Lydda, who had been afflicted with the palsy eight years: in consequence of which miracle, all the people of Lydda and Saron are converted, 32-35. Account of the sickness and death of a Christian woman named Tabitha, who dwelt at Joppa; and her miraculous restoration to life by the ministry of Peter, 36-41. Gracious effects produced among the inhabitants of Lydda by this miracle, 42, 43. NOTES ON CHAP. IX. Verse 1. Saul, yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter] The original text is very emphatic, ετιεμπνεωναπειληςκαιφονου, and points out how determinate Saul was to pursue and accomplish his fell purpose of totally destroying the infant Church of Christ. The mode of speech introduced above is very frequent in the Greek writers, who often express any vehement and hostile affection of the mind by the verb πνεειν, to breathe, to pant; so Theocritus, Idyll. xxii. ver. 82: εςμεσσονσυναγονφονοναλλαλοισιπνεοντες. They came into the assembly, breathing mutual slaughter. Euripides has the same form, πυρπνεουσακαιφονον, breathing out fire, and slaughter, Iphig. in Taur. And Aristophanes more fully, referring to all the preparations for war:- αλλαπνεονταςδορυκαιλογχαςκαιλευκολοφουςτρυφαλειας, καιπηληκαςκαικνημιδαςκαιθυμουςεπταβοειους. They breathed spears, and pikes, and helmets, and crests, and greaves, and the fury of redoubted heroes. The figure is a favourite one with Homer: hence μενεαπνειοντες αβαντες, the Abantes breathing strength.-Il. ii. 536. And how frequently he speaks of his fierce countrymen as, μενεαπνειοντες αχαιοι, the Greeks breathing strength, see Il. iii. 8; xi. 508; xxiv. 364, which phrase an old Scholiast interprets, being filled with strength and fury. St. Luke, who was master of the Greek tongue, chose such terms as best expressed a heart desperately and incessantly bent on accomplishing the destruction of the objects of its resentment. Such at this time was the heart of Saul of Tarsus; and it had already given full proof of its malignity, not only in the martyrdom of Stephen, but also in making havoc of the Church, and in forcibly entering every house, and dragging men and women, whom he suspected of Christianity, and committing them to prison. See Ac 8:3. Went unto the high priest] As the high priest was chief in all matters of an ecclesiastical nature, and the present business was pretendedly religious, he was the proper person to apply to for letters by which this virulent persecutor might be accredited. The letters must necessarily be granted in the name of the whole Sanhedrin, of which Gamaliel, Saul's master, was at that time the head; but the high priest was the proper organ through whom this business might be negotiated. Acts 26:10-11
Verse 10. Many of the saints] From what is said in this verse, it seems that Paul, before his conversion, was invested with much power: he imprisoned the Christians; punished many in various synagogues; compelled them to blaspheme-to renounce, and, perhaps, to execrate Christ, in order to save their lives; and gave his voice, exerted all his influence and authority, against them, in order that they might be put to death; and from this it would seem that there were other persons put to death besides St. Stephen, though their names are not mentioned. Verse 11. Being exceedingly mad against them] Only a madman will persecute another because of his differing from him in religious opinion; and the fiercest persecutor is he who should be deemed the most furious madman. Unto strange cities.] Places out of the jurisdiction of the Jews, such as Damascus, which he immediately mentions.
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