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:

Forerunner Commentary
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What Does Acts 8:1 Mean?

Acts 8:1-3

Paul's pre-conversion zeal against “The Way,” though born of a clear conscience, was in opposition to God's will and a genuine threat to His early disciples. We should be aware of the continued existence of this unrighteous threat to our emotional and even our physical well-being. In John 16:2-3, Jesus warns those who follow Him that persecutors will believe—in good conscience—that they are doing God a good service (see also Acts 5:32-33; 23:12-14).

On the other hand, a good, Christian conscience, when pricked, should reflect a righteous willingness to repent (Acts 2:36-38). Even though there is no guarantee that it will, a good conscience should also motivate us to forgive those who offend, threaten, or abuse us (Acts 7:59-60).

Martin G. Collins
Is Your Conscience a Good Guide?

Acts 8:1

The church is under attack. A powerful persecution is under way, and many sheep have been scattered. But what is often heard among "independent Christians" are cries such as, "I'll never follow another man!" or "No man is going to tell me what to do!" or "Beware of any group that has a hierarchical governmental structure."

While a limited amount of wisdom may be in such thinking, these independents may be failing to see a very real problem because they are looking in only one direction. While they critically examine others, problems of equal or greater magnitude in the areas of ignorance of God's Word, of respect for government, or gross intolerance for another's weaknesses may be in them.

They have reacted by divorcing themselves from any group and "floating" among many groups. Their attitude is such that, even when they do attend, they are in reality just passing through. It is very much like the modern practice of a man and woman living together without commitment. Each "takes" what they can get from the relationship, but one is always free to leave if things do not go quite as planned.

Daniel writes:

Then I heard the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, when he held up his right hand and his left hand to heaven, and swore by Him who lives forever, that it shall be for a time, times, and half a time; and when the power of the holy people has been completely shattered [scattered, KJV], all these things shall be finished. (Daniel 12:7)

Surely the enemy has attacked, and the sheep are scattered! Jesus says,

And when he [the true shepherd] brings out his own sheep, he goes before them; and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice. Yet they will by no means follow a stranger, but will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers. (John 10:4-5)

We had good reason to flee our former association: The voice of a stranger was heard within it, and we could not follow him. But is it possible that the "independents" still do not hear the True Shepherd's voice? Could they have fled for different reasons? This is why these people may be in very real danger. They cannot come to any shepherd because their confusion and governmental problems are preventing it.

John W. Ritenbaugh
In the Grip of Distrust

Other Forerunner Commentary entries containing Acts 8:1:

Mark 14:12
Mark 14:12
Hebrews 1:1-2

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Acts 8:2 >>

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