The Pulpit Commentary — Acts — Volume 1 — Section 8

ACTS OF THE APOSTLES. EXPOSITION. Jesus did and taught from first to last." To CHAPTER L do and to teach. So the disciples on the Ver. 1.-I made for ha'IJe I made, A.V.: way to Emma.us speak of J csus as "a. Prophet wncerninlJ for of, A.V.; to teach for teach, mighty in deed ::md word" (Luke xxiv. 18). A.V. The former treatise; literally, the first Compare the stress laid upon the works of history, uo.rrative, or discourse. 'fhe form Christ in eh. L 38, 30. of the Greek, .-bv p.liv ..-pw.-ov, shows that the Ver. 2.-ReceitJed for taken, A. V.; com- writer ho.d in his mind at the time to con- mandment for commandment&, A.V.; after trast the secand history, which he was just that he had given commandment through the beginning, o.nd that naturally .-bv 61, 6d,.-epov, Holy Ghost for after that he throuah the or .-ou.-ov oli .-bv ll.o-yov, ought, both gramma- Holy Ghost had giDen cammandments, A.V. tically and logically, to have followed. But The commandment or directions given by the mention of "the o.postles whom he had our Lord to the apostles between the Resur- chosen" drew him, e.s it were, into the rection and the Ascension are recorded part! y streo.m of his history before he was able to in Luke lliv. 44--:19; Matt. :nviiL 19, 20 : describe it. 0 Theophilus. The omission of Mnrk xvi. 15--18; John x:s:L; and yet more the title "most excellent," given to Theo- fully in vers. 3-8 of this chapter. Through philus in the Gospel (Luke i. 3), is one o.mong tlie Holy Ghost. The sense is certain. Jesus other indications that ihe publication of the gave his charge to his apostles through the Acts followed very closely upon that of the Holy Ghost. It was by the Holy Ghost Gospel. Began both to do and to tea.oh. abiding in him that he spake to the Some take the phrase e.s equivalent to did apostles. This is the repeated declaration and taught; others supply the sense and of Holy Scriptnre. "The Spirit of the Lord wntinued until the day, eto.: or, whioh is the is upon me" (Isn. hi. 1; Luke iv. 1S; eh. x. Be.me thing, supply the terminus a quo, 38. See also Luke iv. 1: Matt. xiL 28; me.king the whole sense equivnlent to "all Heb. ix. 14 ; and for the construction, eh. thntJesus did and taught from the beginning xi. 28; xx.i. 4). Received up (a.ve,\{iq,011); until the day," eto.; others ngain, ns Bishop the same word as is used in the Septuagint Wordsworth, gather St. Luke's meaning to of Elijah (2 Kings ii.10, 11). In Luke :uiv. be thnt in the Acts he is about to narrate 5 it is carried up (a.v,cp,pe.-o). the continuance by our Lord in heaven of Vrr. 3.-Proofs for infallible proof.,, the work which ho only began on earth. A.V.; appearing unto them for seea of, Meyer thinks thnt, by the insertion of the A.V.; concerning for pertainin'} to, A.V. word "began," the thing so.id or done " is in o. The addition of the wortls by many proofs vivid and gre.phio manner denoted according makes it necessary to uuderstancl tho to its moment of oommencement;" so that words showed him.sell (,rapl<1.-77<1ev ,auT~v) our Lord is represented e.s at one time in the sense which it bears both in cl:i.ssiu actively beginning to heal, then to tench, nn,l Scriptural Greek, of proved or demo1t• then to walk on the een, o.nd so on. llut strated: "To whom he gave distinct proofs the words "began" and "until the day" of his being alive after his passion;" the certainly suggest the beginning and the proofs follow-being "seen of them" for ending of our Lord's ministry, or rnthcr the forty days at intervals, talking with them, whole ministry from its beginning to its end, and (ver. 9) "being to.ken np whil~ they IO that the meaning would be "of all thnt were looking.'' Doubtless, too, he had io AC1'~. II I THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES. [on. 1. 1-26. -------. ------------------------·------ his mind thoeo other proofs which he reoorda Luko iii. IG; John i. 39.) St. Peter refeni in eh. i . 41, aml tho~e referred to by St. to this snying of the Lord'e in hie addresa Paul (1 Cor. xv. 5-8). For this sc-nse of to the Church of Jerusalem (eh. xl. 16), ,rapf.,-.,.17µ1, soe eh. xxiv. 13, "to prove;" and and the recol'd of it here mny be nn indica- LysiRB's 'Ornt.ion agninst F.ralosthenc~ • (p. tion that St. Luke derived his informa- 125), where the nlmost identical phro.se tion of these early events from Peler. A OCCllll! which we have here, 'Aµ<t>dnpa TavTa curious quc-stion arises aa to the bnptism 1rohhoir -rrn!<17ploir Trapa<T'f'11<T0>1 "I will prove of the npostles themselves. When were \oth thPse things by many oertnin proofs." they baptized, nnd by whom? Chryeoatom Th<> A.Y. ren,lormg, "infallible prools," we.e 110.fS, "They ,vere bnptized by John." But quite justificcl. Stephanus snys, "De ccrto it 1e evident, from John iii. 22; iv. l, 2, that et indubitato signo dicitur apud Rhetorioos" converts were b:iptizcd with Chrietio.n, as (' Theenurus,' 9216); and the technical mean- distinct from John's, b1tptism in our Lord's ing of .,.,,,,utipmv in Arietotle is a" demonstra- lifetime, and hence it may seem prob~ble, tive proof," ns opposed to a <T17µ,iov, which espccinlly considering thnt St. l'aul was lenves room for doubt; and in medical writers, bapt.ize<l, that the apostles m11y ho.ve been which is importnnt as reg-ards St. Luke, the bo.ptize,1 by Christ (Bishop Wordsworth on .,..,,;,-/ip,ov is the "infallible symptom." St. John iv. 2). If so, the bnptism with the Luke, by the useofthewordhcre, undoubtedly Holy Ghost at Peuteooat was the oomple- mennt to exprc~s the ttrtainty of the conclu- mont of that bnptism, not the sub8titute for sion bnsed on those proofs. Appearing unto it. "In our cnse," snys Chrysostom, "both them. The Greek l,....,.avtlµ•vos, corresponding (the bnptism of wo.ter and of the Spirit) ta.ke to the <1>av•pw9,lr of the Epistle of Barunbl\8, plo.ce under one act, but then they were cap. xv., only occurs in the New Testnment divided." in this pince. In the Septuagint of l Kin:ss Ver. 6.-They therefore, when for when they \'iii. 8 it is used of the staves uf the ark with- tAerefore, A.V.; him for o/ him, A.V.; dost in the veil, which "were not seen without." thou for taiU thou, A. V. ; restore for restnre The idc.u intended to be conveyed, both by again, A.V. Doat thou at this time, eto.? the use of this verb o.nd by the use of 6,a It appears from Luke x.ix. 11 and xxiv. (by U.1e space of), is that our Lord was not 21, as well as from other paesnges, tho.t the witli tho apostles al ways, RB he was before apostles expected the kingdom of Christ the Rcsun-ection, but thnt he came and to come immedintely. It wo.s most no.tural, o.gnin disappeared (St. Chrysostom). They therefore, that, after the temporary extinction were fl.ecting appearances spread over forty of this hope by the Crucilixioa, it should days. The nearly related sub,tantive, revive with new force when they saw the o,r-raula., means" a vision," and is frequently Lord nlivo after his passion, They had used by St. Luke i. 22; :ui.v. 23; nvL 19. doubtless too been thinking o,·er the promise It is also found in 2 Cor. xii 1. Conoeming of tlio baptism of the Holy Spirit "not many the kingdom of God; a subject which had days hence." Restore. (Comp. restitution, deeply engaged their thouglits (Luke xill. eh. iii. 21; and see Matt. xvii. II.) 11), and on which it was most needful that Ver. 7.-Times or ,easons for the times or tliey sLould now be fully instructed, that the 1ea10flB, A. V.; set within his own authority tliey might !each others (eh. xx. 25). for put in hi, own power, A.V. It is not for Ver. 4.-He eharged them not w depart you to know, etc. The time of the end is for commanded them tJ,at OieiJ ,hould not de- always spoken of as J,iddcn (so Matt. xxiv. part, A. V.; Ul wait for wait, A. V.; BO.id he 86; Mark xiii 32 ; l Thess. v, 1, 2; 2 Pet. for saitl, he, A.V.; from me for o/ me, .A..V. iii. 10, eto.). Times or see.sons. Time, with :Being uaembled, etc. (B.T. omita µn' reference to duration, sea,on, with reference airr&v); more exactly, IU he IDIU auemhling to fitness or opportunity. Which the :rather. tmtA t1a"'1I (Field, in •Otium Norvicense'). The distinctive use of the word "Father" Not to depart from 1eJ'118&lem. (See Luke here agrees with our Lord's saying in Mark niv. 49.) It was necessary, according to xiii 32, "Ndther the Son, but the Father." the prophecy, Micah iv. 2; Isa. ii 8, that Ro.th set within bis own authority (J(ou<Tltf), the gospel should go forth from Jenua'lem. "Bath reserved under his own authority" Wll.lt for the promise. (See Luke xxiv. 49.) (' Speaker's Commentary'); "Ho.a established The promise of the Fo.ther formed the snb- by mcana of his own plenitude of power" jecl; of our Lord's discourse to the apostles (Meyer); "Bath put or kept in liis own on tbe last nii;ht of bis earthly life, as power" (A.V., and 10 Alfoid). This last recorded. in John xiv. 16, 17, 26; xv. 26; seems the best. xvi. 7-14. He doubtless here refers to that Ver. 8.- When for after that, A.V.; my con rnrsation, though not, of course, to ihe wilnes,es for witnesses unto - , A.V. anJ record ofit in the Gospel of St. John. T.B.; Samaria for in Samaria, A.V. Ye Ver. 5.-Indeed for truly, A.V. Ye lhall &hall reoeive power (S6vaµw); a word speci- be baptiNa, etr,. (Comp. llfott. iii. 11 ; ally used of the power of the Holy Splrii OH, I, 1-26.] THE AOTB OF THE APOSTLES. 3