The Pulpit Commentary — Acts — Volume 1 — Section 98

EXPOSITION, i. 10, " the hour of incense," that is, the hour CHAPTER m of the evening sacrifice, when the people Ver. 1.-Were goi,ng up for tDent up to- stood out~ide in prayer, while the priest gether, A.V. and T.R. Peter and J"ohn. within offered the sacrifice and burnt the The close friendship of these two apostles incense (see eh. ii. 46, note). Hence the is remarkable. The origin of it appears to comparison In Ps. cxli. 2, " Let my prayer ho.ve been their partnership in the fishing- be set before thee as incense, and the lift- boats in which they pnrsned their trade u ing up of my hands as the evening sacrifice." fishermen on the Sea of Galilee. For St. Ver. 2.-That was la1116 for lame, A.V.; Luke tells us that the sons ofZebedee were door for gate, A. V. Door. If any distinction '' partners with Simon," and helped him to is intended between the 86pa. here and the take the miraculous draught of fishes (Luke "6>..11 of ver. 10 (which is not certain, as 8op11 l". 10). We find the two sons of Zebedee is often need for a gate), we must understand associated with Peter in the inner circle Bopa. of the double doors of the gate described of the Lord's apostles, at the Transfiguration, by Josephus. Perhaps the Jame man leant at the raising of Jairus's daughter, and at against one of the open doors. Which is the agony in the Garden of Gethsemane called Beautiful. It is not certain what gate (see also Mark J:iii. 3). But the yet closer thie was. In the' Dictionary of the Bible' it friendship of Peter and John first appear& is deecribed as "the great eastern gate lend- in their going together to the palace of ing from the court of the women to the upper Caiuphas on the night of the betrayal (John court," following apparently Joeepbue, 'De niii. 15), and then in the memoroble visit to Bell. Jud.,' v. v. 3. But it is impossible to the holy sepulchre on the morning of the reconcile Josephus's two o.ccounts-that in Resurrection (John J:J:. 2-4), and yet again the • Bell. Jud.,' v. v. and that in' Ant. Jud.,' in John :uL 7, 20, 21. It is in strict and J:V. xi. In theformerhesaysdistinctly that natural sequence to these indications in the there were ten gates-four on the north, four Gospel that, on opening the fir-t chapters of on the south, and two on the caet. In the the Acts, we find Peter and John constantly latter he saye there were three gates on the acting together in the very van of the Chris- north, three on the south, and one 011 the cast. tian army (see eh. iii. I, 3, 11; iv.13, 19; viii. In the former he saye that fifteen steps led 14, 25). the hour ot pm7er ; called in Luke up /rum the women'• enclo1ure to the great <JH, llJ, 1-26,] THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES