April 12, 2014: Acts Chapter 8

The Book of Acts Chapter 8

Originally posted Tuesday, May 13, 2008

General Comment: The first three verses of chapter eight belong to the previous chapter which has introduced Saul as a principle part in early Christian persecution. Later we will read Paul's own autobiographical comments on this time in his life. We are aware of sporadic violence against Jewish Christians from other sources and Acts gives a good summary of some of this. Luke mentions the scattering of many believers - except the Apostles, into other areas of Palestine including Samaria. Although this is not noted, many fled to Syria, particularly Damascus and Antioch where strong Christian communities developed. Damascus will play an important part in Saul's conversion.

Acts Chapter 8:4-26 Phillip in Samaria

In vss. 1:7-8 Jesus commissions the Apostles and establishes their evangelistic mission. The apostles are to be his witnesses in Jerusalem, all Judea and the province of Samaria (together, all of Israel) before moving among the Gentiles. The Apostles have witnessed in Jerusalem and believers have spread throughout Judea, going from "place to place" proclaiming (sharing) the word of their own Christian experience. It is primarily from this initial movement from village to village in the Judean countryside that the first collections of the sayings and deeds of Jesus will be forged into the oral tradition, later the foundations of all four Gospel versions.

Now the door is opened for a mission to the Samaritans, with one of the seven, Phillip (6:5-6), as the leader (the probable successor to Stephen). We have already read of this mission in Jn. 4:1-42. It is probable that John's account is an edited version of the same source as Luke's. In John, Jesus opens the mission and his disciples are encouraged to carry on his work among the villages of Samaria. That there was more than one mission among the Samaritans is to be expected as we will read later in this passage. Phillip, as a Spirit-filled leader, serves as an extension of the Apostolic mission. He follows the Apostles' preaching of Jesus as the Messiah, the earliest understanding of Jesus' identity. Being Spirit-filled, he also carries the power of that anointing in exorcisms and healing, both signs of God's Kingdom bringing salvation.

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(1) The story of Simon the Great (a.k.a. Simon Magus, Simon the Magician) provides an insight into the pitfalls of preaching in non-Jewish areas. Simon was based on an historical figure, mentioned by many of the early Christian writers, particularly in the second and third centuries. Stories about him appear in Josephus and a number of non-canonical Gospels. Much of what is written is legendary and filtered through the church's declaration of Simon as the first heretic. In various places he claimed to be the Son of God, Messiah, Holy Spirit and God. In one story it is written that when Simon died, Nero ordered his body be kept for three days before burial to see if he would rise from the dead. Luke's mention of Simon serves the purpose of warning against the misunderstanding and misuse of the power of the Holy Spirit. As such he is an opposite of Phillip. For those who are movie buffs, a convincing Simon was played by Jack Palance in the 1954 film "The Silver Chalice."

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In this passage, Simon is a well known figure in Samaria and his practice of magic made him more important in the minds of others than he should have been (such practices were forbidden in Judaism). Many listened to him on account of his supposed powers. During Phillip's preaching mission Simon became a believer (of a sort!) among many others, and was baptized in the name of Jesus. He is drawn to Phillip by his doing many "signs and great miracles," an ability that Simon thinks is a powerful magic.

When word of Phillip's success reaches the Apostles, Peter and John are sent to facilitate the baptism of the Holy Spirit through the laying on of hands (an adopted Jewish rite of passing on the authority of one teacher to another). When Simon saw what happened he tried to purchase the Apostles' ability of passing on this baptism. Simon saw this in commercial terms, a way to increase his prestige as well as his purse. Peter is quick to condemn Simon's wicked motives in the strongest of terms. He calls him to repentance (the sin of purchasing power and authority in the early church was called "simony"). Simon's response in asking Peter to pray for him "that nothing of what you have said may happen to me" is quite insincere. They are the same words Pharaoh used to entreat Moses' intervention before God on his behalf, only to continue his refusal to let God's people go.

The passage ends with a note on the importance of the Samaritan mission for the church. Peter and John travel back to Jerusalem to bring the "good news" of success. On their way they did not lose the opportunity to add to the spreading of the Gospel message. They stopped in villages and towns along the way adding to swelling ranks of believers.  

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(2) The Samaritan mission was successful. A question might be raised as to why Samaria is counted as being part of the Jesus' instructions to the Apostles' as part of the mission to all Israel. Samaritans were not considered as Israelites by Judaism. They rejected the Temple and the authority of the priesthood. Yet, their heritage was in the ancient Northern Kingdom of Israel, conquered by the Assyrians in 721 BCE. They suffered mass deportation of the nobility, upper classes and skilled artisans. There was a remnant of the people of the land left behind into which was placed a number of others who were from pagan nations, also conquered by Assyria. The resulting religion of the Samaritans became a poorly attempted merging of a number of pagan religions with that of Israel. It is understandable that Samaritans would have been drawn to Christianity for at least two reasons. First, Jewish Christians had been rejected and persecuted by the Temple authorities. The early Christians condemned the leadership for its refusal to heed the prophets with regard to their foretelling Jesus as the Messiah. They also raised the issue of God's presence in the Temple, declaring that no earthly building could be the dwelling place of God. Second, because of the Samaritans' Israelite heritage they could be considered as the [so called]  ten lost tribes of Israel. Part of their religion was the expectation of a Messiah, the Teheb, who was like Jesus in that he would be a great teacher and was nonviolent. Both John and Luke attest to the Christian mission's success among the Samaritans.

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Acts Chapter 8:26-40 Phillip and the Ethiopian Eunuch

Phillip's work is not done. The Spirit/Messenger directs him to [go at noon] on the road south from Jerusalem to Gaza. On the road he will meet an Ethiopian Eunuch, an official of the Candace. The Eunuch was the steward of the entire Ethiopian treasury (Candace is the Ethiopian title for a female ruler, generally called the "daughter of Candace).

There are several details we can derive from this official:

He was returning home from a pilgrimage to worship in the Temple, perhaps during Pentecost.

 As an Ethiopian he was probably a Jew, given the ancient association between Ethiopia and Israel and modern Israel's acceptance of nearly one hundred thousand Ethiopians in the 1950 "Right of Return."

Beyond that he was reading the Greek Old Testament (the LXX). At the very least he was a proselyte, converted to Judaism.

He was a Eunuch which meant he would not be allowed to enter the Temple proper, probably not beyond the Court of the Gentiles (Lev. 21:17-20). In effect he was considered, by virtue of being a Eunuch, an outsider to the community worship experience.

He was reading from Isa. 53:7-8a, part of the Suffering Servant section from which the early Christians drew their understanding of Jesus' humiliation and unjust suffering at the hands of the authorities. The Eunuch, in relationship to his own Judaism, was an outsider, cut off, his future uncertain, humiliated, justice denied. He could identify with this suffering servant of God. Of particular interest is the last part of vs. 8a, "for his life was lifted up from the earth because of the lawless deeds of my people."

Into this scene Phillip is directed by the Spirit to run alongside the carriage. Phillip catches up with the man, hears him reading the Isaiah text and asks if he understands its meaning, which he cannot, he says, without a proper guide. The Eunuch invites Phillip to join him in the carriage and asks him who the suffering lamb is. Is it the Prophet Isaiah or someone else? In a verse reminiscent of Luke's Emmaus Road conversation between Jesus and the two disciples returning home (LK 24:27), Phillip, using the same Old Testament passages as did Jesus, proclaims to the Eunuch "the good news about Jesus."

We are not told what was said, only the results. Phillip would have told him that Isaiah was referring to Jesus, humiliated, suffered unjustly and was lifted up from the earth by the deeds of his own people. The Eunuch understood the meaning and was able to appropriate within himself the concept of Jesus' suffering in a way akin to his own and Jesus' exaltation to God. He believed and he was ready to be baptized, a request Phillip was pleased to grant.

Phillip does not linger to share in the Eunuch's rejoicing or instruct him in the finer points of being a Christian. The Spirit had other work for him and he found himself at Azotus (Ashdod - 20 miles southwest of Jerusalem). We might wonder why the Spirit dropped Phillip off so far south on the coastal road to Caesarea. But Luke is ready to remind us that a servant of the Lord does not sit still. The servant/disciple takes every offered opportunity to bear witness to his/her faith experience. Phillip seems to have known what to do and he saw opportunity in each small town and village.  He did not wait to be asked to do something. He looked for opportunities and he found them. We know people like that, too. But it is not who we know, it is what we do. We do not practice our Christianity through the good works of others.