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Acts 8:4
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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:
Barnes' Notes
<< Acts 8:3   Acts 8:5 >>


Acts 8:4

Went everywhere - That is, they traveled through the various regions where they were scattered. In all places to which they came, they preached the Word.

Preaching the word - Greek: "evangelizing," or announcing the good news of the message of mercy, or the Word of God. This is not the usual word which is rendered "preach," but it means simply announcing the good news of salvation. There is no evidence, nor is there any probability, that all these persons were "ordained" to preach. They were manifestly common Christians who were scattered by the persecution; and the meaning is, that they communicated to their fellow-men in conversation wherever they met them, and probably in the synagogues, where all Jews had a right to speak, the glad tidings that the Messiah had come. It is not said that they set themselves up for public teachers, or that they administered baptism, or that they founded churches, but they proclaimed everywhere the news that a Saviour had come. Their hearts were full of it. Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks; and they made the truth known to "all" whom they met. We may learn from this:

(1)That persecution tends to promote the very thing which it would destroy.

(2)That one of the best means to make Christians active and zealous is to persecute them.

(3)That it is right for all Christians to make known the truths of the gospel. When the heart is full the lips will speak, and there is no more impropriety in their speaking of redemption than of anything else.

(4)It should be the great object of all Christians to make the Saviour known "everywhere." By their lives, their conversation, and their pious exhortations and entreaties, they should beseech dying sinners to be reconciled to God. And especially should this be done when they "are traveling." Christians when away from home seem almost to imagine that they lay aside the obligations of religion. But the example of Christ and his early disciples has taught us that this is the very time to attempt to do good.




Other Barnes' Notes entries containing Acts 8:4:

Amos 2:12
Acts 1:8

 

<< Acts 8:3   Acts 8:5 >>

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