ST. PAUL AS A MISSIONARY 1. Prophets] see on Acts 11:27. SIMEON THAT WAS CALLED NIGER] Niger was a Roman cognomen. LUCIUS OF CYRENE] doubtless one of those Cyrenians who first preached at Antioch (Acts 11:20). MANAEN] the OT. form is 'Menahem.' WHICH HAD BEEN BROUGHT UP WITH HEROD THE TETRARCH] Two... [ Continue Reading ]
THE CHURCH IN ANTIOCH, 35-47 A.D. (ACTS 11:19 TO ACTS 13:3) 19-26. Extension of the Church to Antioch. Admission of Gentile members. Antioch in N. Syria ranked next to Alexandria, as the third city in the Roman empire. It was beautifully situated on the Orontes, about 15 m. from the sea. Its port wa... [ Continue Reading ]
AS THEY MINISTERED TO THE LORD] i.e. celebrated divine worship. From the Gk. word used is derived our word 'liturgy.' AND FASTED] see on Matthew 6:16; The Holy Ghost said] an expression vividly suggesting the personality of the Holy Ghost, and His office as the Guide of the Church. Acts is so full o... [ Continue Reading ]
This was the apostolic custom to fast at ordinations: see Acts 14:23. ACTS 13:4 TO ACTS 15:35; FIRST MISSIONARY JOURNEY AND COUNCIL OF JERUSALEM. During this journey St. Paul conclusively established his right to the title of Apostle, (1) by the success of his labours, Acts 13:49; Acts 14:1; Acts 14... [ Continue Reading ]
_Their_ MINISTER] Possibly for the administration of baptism, which St. Paul usually performed by deputy (1 Corinthians 1:14).... [ Continue Reading ]
A.. SORCERER] lit. 'a magus.' Here in a bad sense: see on Matthew 2:1.... [ Continue Reading ]
DEPUTY] Gk. _anthupatos_, i.e. 'proconsul,' the correct title of the governor of a senatorial province. SERGIUS PAULUS] a member of the ancient patrician gens of the Sergii. An inscription has been discovered in Cyprus, which speaks of the proconsulship of this Paulus.... [ Continue Reading ]
ELYMAS] The name is Arabic, meaning 'the wise,' an equivalent of the Gk. _magus_.... [ Continue Reading ]
PAUL] Saul, as a Roman citizen, had the well-known Roman name Paul. It is here introduced, because the apostle, for the first time, comes into intimate contact with the Roman world. The name Saul in Gk. has the ridiculous sense of 'waddling.' Observe that from this point Paul becomes a more prominen... [ Continue Reading ]
JOHN DEPARTING FROM THEM] Mark may have objected to the conversion of so many Gentiles. Others suggest personal resentment against St. Paul, whose reputation was now eclipsing that of St. Barnabas, Mark's cousin. Failure of courage or of perseverance is also possible.... [ Continue Reading ]
PERGA] An important city, the capital of Pamphylia. Antioch in Pisidia] rather, 'Pisidian Antioch.' This Antioch was really in Phrygia, but from its position was called 'Antiochia ad Pisidiam,' 'Antioch bordering on Pisidia.' It was the centre of military and civil administration for S. Galatia, and... [ Continue Reading ]
ANTIOCH OF PISIDIA. ST. PAUL'S SERMON IN THE SYNAGOGUE. The cities which the apostles now proceeded to evangelise (Pisidian Antioch, Iconium, Lystra, and Derbe) were situated in the southern part of the Roman province of Galatia, and it is now very generally supposed that the Epistle to the Galatia... [ Continue Reading ]
SUFFERED HE THEIR MANNERS] Both here and in Deuteronomy 1:31 the true reading probably is 'bare he them as a nursing father.'... [ Continue Reading ]
BY LOT] RV 'for an inheritance.' The narrative goes back to Acts 8:1, to trace the chain of causation which led to the foundation of the first great Gentile Church. Christianity, it will be seen, spread along the great trade routes both by land and sea. PHENICE] i.e. Phœnicia.... [ Continue Reading ]
JUDGES ABOUT THE SPACE OF FOUR HUNDRED AND FIFTY YEARS] This period for the judges (more precisely 443 years) is also adopted by Josephus, but is inconsistent with 1 Kings 6:1. Another reading, adopted by the RV, makes the period of 450 years extend from the death of Joshua to the reign of David. M... [ Continue Reading ]
See Psalms 89:20; 1 Samuel 13:14; The Church of Jerusalem on hearing the news acted with commendable self-restraint. They did not hastily condemn the new departure, little as they liked it, but sent a trustworthy person, Barnabas, to examine into the circumstances upon the spot, and to report.... [ Continue Reading ]
Barnabas, after carefully observing the results of the policy, approved it (WAS GLAD), and EXHORTED THEM all (i.e. both Jews and Gentiles) to persevere in their profession of faith, and to form one united Church. Barnabas thus anticipated Paul in sanctioning the principle of Gentile equality, which... [ Continue Reading ]
HIS COMING] i.e. His entry upon the Messianic office (to be dated from His Baptism).... [ Continue Reading ]
CHRISTIANS] The giving of this name marked the recognition of the fact that 'the Way' was something more than a new Jewish sect. The inclusion of numerous Gentiles within the Church, and that without their becoming Jews, and the preaching of Jesus as one whose authority was superior to that of Moses... [ Continue Reading ]
The Church of Antioch succours the Church of Jerusalem in time of famine. 27. Friendly-relations clearly prevailed between Jerusalem and Antioch, the former Church sending accredited prophets and teachers to Antioch to assist in the work of evangelisation. Prophets] The gift of prophecy specially di... [ Continue Reading ]
AGABUS] see Acts 21:10. GREAT DEARTH THROUGHOUT ALL THE WORLD] There was a severe famine in the fourth year of Claudius, 45 a.d., which affected both Judæa and Greece. To this St. Luke probably refers. CLAUDIUS] reigned from 41-54 a.d. The prophecy of Agabus was perhaps delivered in 44 a.d.... [ Continue Reading ]
THE ELDERS] lit. 'presbyters.' These officers are here mentioned for the first time. All the Apostolic Churches were governed by presbyters (Acts 14:23), or, as they were sometimes called at first, bishops (Acts 20:28 : cp. Philippians 1:1). The presbyters ranked next to the apostles and above the d... [ Continue Reading ]
IN THE SECOND PSALM] There is another reading 'in the first psalm,' which may be correct, as there is evidence that the first two psalms were sometimes counted as one. In the passage referred to (Psalms 2:7) the Messiah is declared to be begotten as the Son of God on the day when Jehovah scatters Hi... [ Continue Reading ]
I WILL GIVE YOU THE SURE MERCIES OF DAVID] RV 'I will give you the holy and sure blessings of David.' See Isaiah 55:3. But how does this text prove the Resurrection of Jesus, and His unending life? Because unless Jesus had risen to unending life and power, the Messianic promises made to David could... [ Continue Reading ]
See Psalms 16:10, and cp. St. Peter's use of the passage, Acts 2:31.... [ Continue Reading ]
IN THE PROPHETS] The particular prophecy quoted is Habakkuk 1:5. Habakkuk had threatened the Jews with destruction by the Chaldaeans (Babylonians). The passage, as applied by St. Paul, looks forward to the destruction of Jerusalem by the Romans.... [ Continue Reading ]
RV 'And as they went out, they besought,' etc. The request for another sermon (according to the RV) was general and not confined to the Gentiles.... [ Continue Reading ]
What irritated the Jews was not the substance of the gospel message, but the fact that it was proclaimed to the heathen as well as to themselves.... [ Continue Reading ]
LO, WE TURN TO THE GENTILES] This momentous decision to appeal to the Gentiles directly, and not through the instrumentality of the Synagogue, required courage in the face of current prejudice. See further Acts 18:6; Acts 28:28.... [ Continue Reading ]
See Isaiah 42:6; Isaiah 49:6; Luke 2:32.... [ Continue Reading ]
AS MANY AS WERE ORDAINED TO ETERNAL LIFE BELIEVED] This expresses the Pauline and Apostolic doctrine of predestination, according to which God desires the salvation of all men (1 Timothy 2:4; 1 Timothy 4:10, etc.), but inasmuch as He foresees that some (in the exercise of their free will) will actua... [ Continue Reading ]
DEVOUT AND HONOURABLE WOMEN] i.e. proselytes to Judaism, and (probably) wives to the chief men of the city. COASTS] i.e. borders.... [ Continue Reading ]
SHOOK OFF THE DUST] see Matthew 10:14; Mark 6:11; Luke 9:5, and cp. Acts 18:8. ICONIUM] a Phrygian city of considerable importance situated in a most beautiful and fertile plain 80 m. SE. of Antioch. It is now called Konia.... [ Continue Reading ]
In spite of the (apparently) successful persecution, and the departure of the apostles, the new converts stood firm, and were filled with joy and with the Holy Ghost: cp. Acts 2:46; Acts 4:31.... [ Continue Reading ]