PUBLIC-DOMAIN CHRISTIAN BOOK
The Pulpit Commentary — Acts — Volume 1
Arthur Charles Hervey [1808-1894] · 411,060 words · 462 reading sections
The Pulpit Commentary — Acts — Volume 1 — Section 301
Vere. 10-19.-Saul and .Ananias. I. THE MINISTRY OP HAN TO llilr. After tho direct revelation through the terror of the lightning and the thunderbolt, comes the mediate revelation through the familiar voice and manner of one's fellow-man. Ananias is not an apostle; he is a disciple, a member of the Church simply, ent…
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imposed, the pain to bc endured, the inner ~eme or joy and triumph to be experienced, 'l'o follow Christ truly is no soft and sentimental thing-it is an enterp1 ise which t.uea manhood to its ntmost. To him may be applied the words of the poet,- • Stem Lawgiver I yet thou dost wear The God bead's most benignant graoe…
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gather about Saul's devot.ed head. But the ~crvants of God bear a charmed lifo until their work is done. .Already the promise of the Saviour, that Saul must suffer m:iny thinas is being fulfilled. In trouble and the deliverance out of it God is made known to o~'spirita as our God and our Saviour,-J. Vere, 26-30.-Baurs…
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version fakes place and is observed, the minds of the spectaton are turned towards that higher source of power. They "turn to the Lord" in reverent recognition, ln devout. thankfulness, in earnest expect.ation, IT. THE RAISING OF DoROAS. 1. The sketch of a meful life. Dorcas Is full of goo1 works and alms. The "eye fo…
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nature of the evidence and the deep spiritual work of those few days prepared such a mind as Paul's for grappling with the mysteries of faith. The eyes were shut that they might be opened the more clearly to spiritual realities. It was especially neoessary that Saul should begin his new life feeling that Jesus wsa able…
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he will be. Great mercy in the blinding stroke, shutting him up in hie own thoughts, His cry was, "What wilt thou have me to do?" Gracious answer to the prayer. Coutrast between the prayers which Saul of Tarsus had previously offered, and that "wlhy prayer of penitence and faith. _Every event the summing up of.the pa…
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Ver, 31.-EdificatiO'TI, "Then had the Churches rest," etc. ( cf. Revised Version). The events of the past had been exciting, stimulating activity, spreading the Word. But excitement checks growth in character. Wonderful appointment of l'rovidence- tbe leader of the persecution becoming the chief example of Christian a…
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of Peter's euprem11cy; but it is necessary to m11ints.in the apostolic guidance Rnd leader- ehip of the early Church, otherwise the New Testament itself loses its 11,uthority.-R, Vers. 86-43.-The raising of Doroo,s. The contrast between the nncient 11.nd modern world, ch11nging somewh11.t the relation of almsdeeds t…
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not 0110 to bo coiled his "Lc-rd" or "Lord" at all. 1. He had put his own idea and his own impression on Christ; but not the righe ones, and of the fr,ht he was irnorant and destitute. How many do this I No name, perhaps, better known to the~ than the Name of Jesus, no nature less known or more mistaken. It is the d…
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which be had oome, or WRS ready immediately " by the grace of God" to come. Men l!ometimcs ask a question indifferent to its answer; they sometimes ask B question for the ~ake of the merest information; they sometimes ask a question for aollle critical purpose or to block a question waiting on themselves; but this que…
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HI. IT IB IIARD TO KIOK AGAINST OONBCIENOB. If the conscience is alive and in full Ute, to sin against it in both disobeying it and also taking the offensive, makes its repr~ach tenfold. If it be already half dead, it hastens its destruction for the present lifo; and if it be "on the point of death," the death-,trok…
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his cross to .the sinner's he&rt, and if he is refused, then finally all is refused, Hence the awful trembliug emphasis which Scripture lays on the pleading exhortation that. we slight not, grieve not, quench not, the Spirit. And hard indeed it must be counted to" kick against him." (1) He is so silent a Friend. (2)…
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man and of the state of man and of the future for man. And aIJ other knowledge he feels to be necessarily subordinate to this. 2. Perfect Example. No sculptured model so perfect for example as the delineated character, the written life of Jesus, the impress that is made on the attentive observer of his work and word an…
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tbl\! lif~ or death is. the alte!'D.a~ive issue of attending upon 11uoh prescription or n11g- lecting 1t. And this 1s a pr1nc1ple observed in the marvels of the conversion of &ul. That which may be viewed as proof of intervention superhuman does its short, sharp work, to be followed by the immediate resumption of me…
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" There if thy Spirit touch the 10ul And grace her mean e.bode, Oh, with whe.t pee.ea and joy and love She communes with her God I" B. Ver. 11.-2:716 sig11t that Jesus notes, These words, spoken by Jesus himself from heaven to one disciple of hie and about another, the very youngest of all, single out a fact, and …
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Il. Wemay11sk,"Wrrors THE PRAYING lllAN? ANDWBATllIB STATE?" The man who prays is the man who has come into a certain new state towards God--a state that mnkes him desire also to come in a very new attitude into hie presence. 1. It is the state of one who has discovered a ,ieed of a kind, a depth, an amount, and an …
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not Christ and the Spirit be able to do? Eighteen centuries have justified that "Behold I" in both these aspects-as pointing out a model conversion in Saul's conver- sion and as vindicating it as but the first of an amazing and alorions series. 4. Jesus, in sayi~g,. Behold I" teaches us where to look, and so also whe~e…
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will almost inevitably colour all his future wny of viewing things. nut to these three things tbe answer for Jesne is that he, ay 1 he alone, can rever,e bent cau undo habit, and can give to eee light in God's light (Ps. xxxvi. 9), ' III. NoNE OF THAT RESENTMENT THAT BORROWS BO HUCH VITALITY FROM LIVELY MEMOBY OF P…
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much significance le intended to lie ln the statement as here introduced. Let us consider this announcement of J eBUs- L IN ITS APPLIOATION TO ANANIAS. It is intended to remove the objection of Ananias, by suggesting to him : 1. 'l'hat Christ did not overlook had not overlooked the specialty of the case. 2. That Chris…
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and the self-<:onfidence th11t "lords it over the faith" or others are just two of the most pronounced pestilences of human nature. From the fright and the fire and the faintness of the "three days" which Saul had now known, it wero well that he should not be brought out at once to the light and "the chearful sun" and…
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not al ways quite so clear that their Vllice, their wisdom, their persuasion, their mental Influence on a fellow-being's mental state, are correspondingly impotent in and of themselves. Yet it is so, 'l'he love of Jesus and the command of the Spirit, and these alone, "make dead sinners live," Of one thing we may be co…
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sort of number there. So far as they were strictly disciples, their nmazemont marks no doubt, on the one he.ad, grateful and adoring impression; but, on the other, it is not altogether free from the impnta.tion of betraying that the glories of the Spirit's power in oonversion, and the force of the truth and call of …
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and sufferings, VBrfod and sharp the discipline of them; but when the rehearsal of them comes (2 Cor, xi. 16-33), it speaks a. perseverance unbroken a coumrre unquenched, a heart, fidelity, love, stronger o.nd more determined than ev,ir.' That r;hearsal somewhat remarkably closes with the mention of the first peril …
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when it is voluntarily encountered, patiently borne, and embraced even to the cross, to stoning, to torture, and the stake, the world has no help for it but to notice what is transpiring. An unwilling world is put into the dilemma that it is either convinced or connct.ed. The confession is wrested from all beholders th…
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him. Grateful is it at one and the same time to see how the trust reposed in Bar- nabas quito sufficed to counteract the distrust that had been so naturally felt towards Saul. Brood os is the line, therefore, that separates the repentant man from the sinner; uncompromising as our conduct must be in having no fellowship…
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III. THE rncm,AsE oF THE CJIURCH. Intervals of rest give the opportunity of growth, and intervals of peace within are deep, solid, firm, growing itself. Ilut neither the Church nor the individual Christian cnn be right in considering exclnsively or enjoyin!! exclu~ively without consideration, its own possibilities o…
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"found" (Luke xi. 9, 10). Much as Jesus loves and teaches that we should ask, seek, and knock for his blessings, it must be II sight acceptable to him to eee the patience of bodily suffering that asks nothing. 6. The great attention called hereby to the Lord. The little villages were "born" again in a day (Isa. !xvi…
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mother of a family-that disthroned queen of the domestic heaven, whose vacant throne dashes dismay into so many true hearts, and fills all the house with darkness and a sense of desertion. It was no such pensive, pathetic, importunate, natural sadness that begged the mercy of miracle. 4. The object of the miracle wa…
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instructions o.nd his force alone. If dying should be a qniet scene, nor harsh soun,l of earthly life disturb its solemn experiences, who knows what the coming to life may be1 and what it may require, and what may best suit it? Ah I perhaps in reality, n0t ln merely the recovered life of this present, but in the real, …
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of thinking" characteristic of Christ's disciples. With a large liborty thore are woll- dcfincd lines beyond which the thinking, being unloyal to Christ, is unworthy of the Christian name. ll. A WAY OF FEELING. Every trne disciple is distinguished by his admiration for, his trnst in, and his love to, the Lord Jesus…
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doctrine concerning him held by Phnrisee and Snclducee fell down nbout them, as n house built on the snnd in 11, do.y of stormg. And so God overrule,; men's lives now t,, prep11re them for his rovelntions. Illustrate by the ways in which (1) the satiety 0[ pleasure, (2) the pollutions of vice, (3) prolonged scepticism …
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Ver. 15.-God's chosen tJessel,s. Take the single sentence, "He is a chosen vessel unto me;" literally," a vessel of election." Illustrate by the apostle's own figure of tho "potter having power over the clay,'" and refer to prophetic illustrations taken from the potter's wheel and art. Here, however, the meaning of "v…
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11s Moses, Jeremiah, and Jonah were wrong, if we shrink back or flee from the Lord's work. IV. ACKNOWLEDGED DY GoD'B oWN PEOPLE, Sooner or later, God's chosen vessels are found out by the Divine signs which accompany their labour. There may be temporary prejudice on account of their fonner life, as in the case of Sa.u…
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the party of the persecutors, in which he had been the most active member• none seemed rea(ly to take up the work which had so completely dropped from bis i1ands, nnd by his secession the whole party was depressed nnd disorganized. But it followed chiefly on the fact that the attention of the Jewish rulers was turne…
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and Nain, and Capernaum, and Bethany w11s not there. Some mio-ht have said," Je~u~ is deo.d," nod mig?t tell how ther saw hi_m die. Aud if others u~ged that nevertheleg~ ho Jived, they might say, "Ah yes; hves far away in heaven, among the angels." '!'hey hnd seen him go up, and a white cloud sailed ncruss and hid h…
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EXPOSITION. CHAPTER X. passage above quoted, speaks of nve St''lh allliliary cohorts coming from Cmsarea to Ver. 1.-NO'I.O ther-e IDtu (two last words in join Vespasian's army, and he tells us in italics) for there IDIUI (in roman), A. V. nnd another place (' Bell. Jud.,' ii. 18, 7) tho.t T .R. ; Corneliiu by name…
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adds that there were in the whole empire also be made II place of special publicity, not fower than thirty-two cohorts bearing f~~m its height and open space (aee Luke the name of Italian. XII. 3). About the sixth hour. Noon, tho Ver. 2.-Who for which, A.V. A devout second of the three hours of prayer among man (,v…
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Chriet, whirh also agrees with tho doecent Ver. 22.-.A centurion for the oent11rioo, of the vessel from heo.ven. The answer is A.V.; righteous for just., A.V.; toell reported very eimilnr to the refusals in Matt. xvi. 22; of for o.f good report among, A.V.; of God John xiii. S. (in itl\lics) for.f,·011, God (in ronmu),…
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The oommcntators nil notice tho ungram• Ver. 31.-Saitl, for Raid, A.V. matioal phrase, i"(<V<To ToiJ •l"•AO<w, of the Ver. 32.-Unw thee for hither, A.V.; who R.T. It seems to be o. mixture of two con- ls B>Jrnamed for whose aurname i8, A.V.; etruclione--i1l11,To ToiJ .;,,,M,,11 Tb11 nfrpov lo1(1eth for_ 18 lodged, A…
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senBe, 18 to make ~1..is o~u.-• govern .-bv special apoatolio office or being witneasoa 11.d-,,ov directly: "Yon, Gentiles, well know of Chriet's resurrection (see oh. i. 8, 21, the word whioh God sent to the Israelites, 22; ii. 32; iii. 15; iv. 88; v. 82; xiii. 81; when he oansed the gospel of peace to be xxvi. 16,…
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Vore. 1-33.-Tlie indenture. The meeting of Peter and Cornelius is one or those binges upon which, small as they seem at the moment, vast interests turn. It was one of those moments when revolutions in the whole state of human society are at the birth; when that is being unconsciously enacted by the doers which will pow…
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Vers. 34-48.-.Tlie g1·eat surprise. How seldom do things tum out as we expect I What frequent proofs we have that God's thoughts are not as our thoughts, nor his ways as our ways ! And yet we are always making iron cages in which we think to c011fine the operations of God's Spirit, as well as the thoughts of men, and a…
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HOMILIES BY VARIOUS AUTHORS. Vers. 1-8.-Piety, its pl,a,ce, its associations, and its reward. We gather- L TH.AT GoD RAS ms SERVANTS IN UllEXl'ECTED PLACES. We look for piety in certain quarters where it may be supposed to flourish; in others we do not look to see it; yet in these latter it may be found. Who would ha…
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'lhould be copkd by us Rnd, particularly, m&de applica.ble to tho standing we gin to nen in the visible Church (vors. 47, 48). 111. OUR OOM:MON RELATION TO Gon THE SOURCE OF RUMAN SACREDNESS. "What God bath clean~ed, call not thou common" (ver. 15). Probably or possibly it rnny have been intended by this vision to …
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illustrations when subdued by the power of the truth, 2. Moral preparation /or tM gospel. He was pious, recognizing the rea.li~y of religion, reverenciag God in trui lifa of the household, and practising known d~t!ee with diligence and ,:ea!. .Alms:siving, it is well known, was commended and enJomed by the rabbis as…
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mysterious elements in auch struggles is that we seem to be placed in strife with the h~lie_st tretlitions and best associations of our earlier life. But it is when the fight begins w1thm the man that he becomes worth nothing. And never do idel\S become ch•ar ne'°er is the higher generalization grnsped, except as th…
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this? The greBt lesson roilected both from the conduct of Poter and that of Cornelius is that we should bo prompt to obey Divine calls, whether to do good or to seek goo,\, Willingness to receive aml to give is the great condition of being rightly led. To Rpeak good words to othors may be, for_ some, t!ie noble_st. …
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Goo. He is no respectcr of persons. The conditions of acceptanco in his eigl. t are everywhere and for all men the same, viz. reverence and rightness of moral conduct. Does this imply, it matters not what a man believes, so long as he fears God and does what is right? Certainly, belief is not immediately under the c…
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of a holy cause are often, it ma.y be always, to be found a.mongst those who have bcrn its sincere opponents. Thus do extremes meet i thus out of weakness comes strength, from bitterness sweetness; thus does the gracious a.nd gentle will of God select foes to turn them into friends. But we shall see in the next section…
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~ back.~oun<l _of the ~:1J?Crnnt11r11l to which we are able to refer for authority-the Spirit 1n the Word, m the hvmir Churches, in the world. II. BELIEVING ODEDIENOE EXEMPLIFIED. 1. Natural feeling overcome in the presence of undoubted Divine commandment. 2. A new enterprise faced, in dependence on Divine support.…
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Ver. 38.-The great PliilanthropiBt. "Who went about doing good." The true criterion by which Christianity must be tried is its adaptation to the world's necessities. 'l'he text of Pater's sermon was Jesus Christ. "We are witnesses" of what he was what he did, how God testified his authority. ' I. 'l'rm WORLD'S GllE…
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most assured belie\'ers. The triumphs of practical Christianity will be lta best e\'idence. What are we doing, both as individuals and as Churches, to preo.ch to the people?-R. Ver. 4-3.-Faith directed t.o its highest o1'fecl, "To him give all the prophets witness," etc. Peter's climax. He led his hearers up the asce…
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gospel of Christ are mndo in tho personal hiHtory of Cornelius. 1. Ho is a Roman. No lu.rgor, !Jotter typo of the world could be cho8en. 2. He is a Roman of the profcssi011 of o.rms. No pr?fession could ho cho?en fitter to yield in fullest surrender to the messrigo of the Pnnce of peace. 3. He JM a _ma~ of large and…
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prepared to speak to hearts '(lreparcd to receive. The text Is thAt God accepts every m:m who is rendy "t-0 wnlk humbly with him, to do justice a.nd to love mercy" (Micah '\'i. 8). And the rea.l sermon consists of this, that Jesus Christ is the only way hereto. His Kame, bis a.nointing, his unwearied goodness, bis o…
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and h1111 guided, In measuree that eeemed wiRe, their gropings and seEkings after him. One of the rem11rk11ble ce.ses is that of Cornelius the Roman centurion, a man declared to be of pious che.ractcr, 11nd to have won the Divine acceptance. As illustrating the above statements, mention may ba made of Melchizedek, Bala…
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It is true for all the world that "if any man will do his will, he ehall know or the doctrine." While this subject needs to be treated with great prudence, and stroncrly dogmatic statements should be avoided, we may gain from it some relief from the pressure of our questioning as to the salvability of the heathen, and…
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Pctcr's vi~ion, ob~erving. how it affected t~e :mind of one who was so thoroughly imbuod with Jewish not10ns. In our Lords time the laws of the clean &nd unclean wcro scrupulously observed, and the apostles had not yet realized how the new spirit of Christ's kingdom wa.s to set them free from the bonda"es and the limit…
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thinking by it. He realized Divine tellching in it, but wa.s not sure about the 1cop11 of it. He ~w clearly enough that it obliterat.ed, for him at least, the old dietlnotion of meats; but be was set questioning whether there was not some deeper, some under- lying meaning, for the sake of which it had been grant.ed.…
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woll ae Jew; and he delivered this testimony: "Now I perceive that God is no rospecter of persons; but in every nation he that feareth him, and worketh ri"hteousness is e.ccepted with him." In ways quite as clear, in fact, though it may be not so sensibly plain to us, God's providences still unfold God's Word and wi…
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modern times has been so eager to deny, but which the Scriptures are always ready to acknowkdgc, and, by acknowledging, admit within the 1inle of the universal Church the higher spirits of every age and of every nation." III. ,Ton AT THE TIME OF TIIE NATIONAL CLIMAX. There is little room for doubtinc, that, whenc,e…
766 wordsSource & rights
Public domain historical Pulpit Commentary. Source page identifies the volume as Public Domain; text extracted from its historical PDF.
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Historical Christian writing; not Scripture.