Acts 8:1 - Adam Clarke

Acts 8:1

Saul Persecutes the Church

1 Now Saul was consenting to his death. At that time a great persecution arose against the church which was at Jerusalem; and ^athey were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles.

2 And devout men carried Stephen to his burial, and ^amade great lamentation over him.

3 As for Saul, ^ahe made havoc of the church, entering every house, and dragging off men and women, committing them to prison.

Christ Is Preached in Samaria

4 Therefore ^athose who were scattered went everywhere preaching the word.

5 Then ^aPhilip went down to the city of Samaria and preached Christ to them.

6 And the multitudes with one accord heeded the things spoken by Philip, hearing and seeing the miracles which he did.

7 For ^aunclean spirits, crying with a loud voice, came out of many who were possessed; and many who were paralyzed and lame were healed.

8 And there was great joy in that city.

The Sorcerer’s Profession of Faith

9 But there was a certain man called Simon, who previously ^apracticed sorcery in the city and ^bastonished the people of Samaria, claiming that he was someone great,

10 to whom they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, “This man is the great power of God.”

11 And they heeded him because he had astonished them with his¹ sorceries for a long time.

12 But when they believed Philip as he preached the things ^aconcerning the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, both men and women were baptized.

13 Then Simon himself also believed; and when he was baptized he continued with Philip, and was amazed, seeing the miracles and signs which were done.

The Sorcerer’s Sin

14 Now when the ^aapostles who were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them,

15 who, when they had come down, prayed for them ^athat they might receive the Holy Spirit.

16 For ^aas yet He had fallen upon none of them. ^bThey had only been baptized in ^cthe name of the Lord Jesus.

17 Then ^athey laid hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.

18 And when Simon saw that through the laying on of the apostles’ hands the Holy Spirit was given, he offered them money,

19 saying, “Give me this power also, that anyone on whom I lay hands may receive the Holy Spirit.”

20 But Peter said to him, “Your money perish with you, because ^ayou thought that ^bthe gift of God could be purchased with money!

21 You have neither part nor portion in this matter, for your ^aheart is not right in the sight of God.

22 Repent therefore of this your wickedness, and pray God ^aif perhaps the thought of your heart may be forgiven you.

23 For I see that you are ^apoisoned by bitterness and bound by iniquity.”

24 Then Simon answered and said, ^a“Pray to the Lord for me, that none of the things which you have spoken may come upon me.”

25 So when they had testified and preached the word of the Lord, they returned to Jerusalem, preaching the gospel in many villages of the Samaritans.

Christ Is Preached to an Ethiopian

26 Now an angel of the Lord spoke to ^aPhilip, saying, “Arise and go toward the south along the road which goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” This is desert.

27 So he arose and went. And behold, ^aa man of Ethiopia, a eunuch of great authority under Candace the queen of the Ethiopians, who had charge of all her treasury, and ^bhad come to Jerusalem to worship,

28 was returning. And sitting in his chariot, he was reading Isaiah the prophet.

29 Then the Spirit said to Philip, “Go near and overtake this chariot.”

30 So Philip ran to him, and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah, and said, “Do you understand what you are reading?”

31 And he said, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” And he asked Philip to come up and sit with him.

32 The place in the Scripture which he read was this:
^a“He was led as a sheep to the slaughter;
And as a lamb before its shearer is silent,
^bSo He opened not His mouth.

33 In His humiliation His ^ajustice was taken away,
And who will declare His generation?
For His life is ^btaken from the earth.”

34 So the eunuch answered Philip and said, “I ask you, of whom does the prophet say this, of himself or of some other man?”

35 Then Philip opened his mouth, ^aand beginning at this Scripture, preached Jesus to him.

36 Now as they went down the road, they came to some water. And the eunuch said, “See, here is water. ^aWhat hinders me from being baptized?”

37 Then Philip said, ^a“If you believe with all your heart, you may.” And he answered and said, ^b“I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.”

38 So he commanded the chariot to stand still. And both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and he baptized him.

39 Now when they came up out of the water, ^athe Spirit of the Lord caught Philip away, so that the eunuch saw him no more; and he went on his way rejoicing.

40 But Philip was found at¹ Azotus. And passing through, he preached in all the cities till he came to ^aCaesarea.

Commentaries:

Adam Clarke

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Acts 8:1

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 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: Acts 8:1, Acts 8:14, Acts 8:25; Acts 9:26, Acts 9:27; Acts 11:1, Acts 11:2; Acts 12:1-4; Acts 15:2, Acts 15:4, Acts 15:6, Acts 15:22, Acts 15:23; Acts 21:17, Acts 21:18; Galatians 1:17-19; Galatians 2:1, Galatians 2:9. 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 era of the Church arose. Hitherto the apostles and disciples confined their labors 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."

Other Adam Clarke entries containing Acts 8:1:

Genesis 49:6
Acts 7:1
Acts 8:1
Acts 9:21
Acts 11:19
Acts 22:20
Galatians 1:17
Hebrews 10:32
James 1:1

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Acts 8:2 >>

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