Acts · Chapter 2

V. 1. At the pentecost of Sinai, in the Old Testament, and the pentecost of Jerusalem, in the New, where the two grand manifestations of God, the legal and the evangelical; the one from the mountain, and the other from heaven; the terrible, and the merciful one.

They were all with one accord in one place-So here was a conjunction of company, minds, and place; the whole hundred and twenty being present.

Verse 1. When the day of pentecost was fully come] The feast of pentecost was celebrated fifty days after the passover, and has its name penthkosth from penthkonta, fifty, which is compounded of pente, five, and hkonta, the decimal termination. It commenced on the fiftieth day reckoned from the first day of unleavened bread, i.e. on the morrow after the paschal lamb was offered. The law relative to this feast is found in Leviticus 23:15, 16, in these words: And ye shall count unto you from the morrow after the Sabbath, from the day that ye brought the sheaf of the wave-offering; seven Sabbaths shall be complete: even unto the morrow after the seventh Sabbath shall ye number fifty days. This feast was instituted in commemoration of the giving the law on Mount Sinai; and is therefore sometimes called by the Jews, hrwt tjmv shimchath torah, the joy of the law, and frequently the feast of weeks. There is a correspondence between the giving of the law, which is celebrated by this feast of pentecost, together with the crucifixion of our Lord, which took place at the passover, and this descent of the Holy Spirit, which happened at this pentecost. 1. At the passover, the Israelites were delivered from Egyptian bondage: this was a type of the thraldom in which the human race were to Satan and sin. 2. At the passover Jesus Christ, who was typified by the paschal lamb, was sacrificed for the sin of the world, and by this sacrifice redemption from sin and Satan is now procured and proclaimed.

3. On the pentecost, God gave his law on Mount Sinai, accompanied with thunderings and lightnings. On the pentecost, God sent down his Holy Spirit, like a rushing mighty wind; and tongues of fire sat upon each disciple, in order that, by his influence, that new law of light and life might be promulgated and established. Thus, the analogy between the Egyptian bondage and the thraldom occasioned by sin-the deliverance from Egypt, and the redemption from sin-the giving of the law, with all its emblematic accompaniments, and the sending down the Holy Spirit, with its symbols of light, life, and power, has been exactly preserved. 4. At the Jewish passover, Christ was degraded, humbled, and ignominiously put to death: at the following festival, the pentecost, he was highly glorified; and the all conquering and ever during might of his kingdom then commenced. The Holy Spirit seems to have designed all these analogies, to show that, through all preceding ages, God had the dispensation of the Gospel continually in view; and that the old law and its ordinances were only designed as preparatives for the new.

They were all with one accord in one place.] It is probable that the ALL here mentioned means the one hundred and twenty spoken of Acts 1:15, who were all together at the election of Matthias. With one accord, omoqumadon; this word is very expressive: it signifies that all their minds, affections, desires, and wishes, were concentred in one object, every man having the same end in view; and, having but one desire, they had but one prayer to God, and every heart uttered it. There was no person uninterested-none unconcerned-none lukewarm; all were in earnest; and the Spirit of God came down to meet their united faith and prayer. When any assembly of God’s people meet in the same spirit they may expect every blessing they need.

In one place.-Where this place was we cannot tell: it was probably in the temple, as seems to be intimated in Acts 2:46, where it is said they were daily omoqumadon en tw ierw, with one accord in the temple; and as this was the third hour of the day, Acts 2:15, which was the Jewish hour of morning prayer, as the ninth hour was the hour of evening prayer, Acts 3:1, it is most probable that the temple was the place in which they were assembled.

Verse 1. When the day of pentecost was fully come — Of this feast, which had its name from penthkosth, pentecostee, (which signifies the fiftieth day,) because it was celebrated fifty days after the passover, see notes on Leviticus 23:15, 16. As our Lord was crucified at one of the great Jewish feasts, it was fit that he should be glorified at another. And this of pentecost was chosen with peculiar propriety, as next succeeding that of the passover, at which he suffered; and also as it was celebrated in commemoration of the giving of the law from mount Sinai, and as the first- fruits were then offered and anointed, Exodus 19:1, 11; Leviticus 23:17Leviticus

Verse 1. The day of Pentecost. The fiftieth day after our Lord’s resurrection, and the day when the sheaf of the firstfruits was offered. Though the feast of Pentecost was but one day, yet like the passover, it was continued through all the week by a course of after services. See on Exodus 19:1.

1. The Advent of the Spirit, 1-13.

1. Day of Pentecost—There were annually three great feasts at Jerusalem which every male Jew was required by the law to attend, namely, the Passover, the Pentecost, and the Feast of Tabernacles. Each of these had a twofold reference; one historical, and the other agricultural. Israel was both a theocratic and an agricultural nation; and he blended the events of his theocratic history with the events of his agricultural year. Thus is commemorated God’s mercy both in the past and present. The God of the theocracy is thereby recognized as the God of nature.

(1.) The PASSOVER (a) commemorated the deliverance from Egypt by the hand of Moses, and (b) marked the earlier or barley harvest. It was continued one week. On the first day the Passover lamb was slain, symbolizing the historical event, as detailed in our note on Matthew 26:2. On the morrow after the Passover Sabbath the priest was ceremonially, and with prescribed sacrifice, to wave a sheaf of the first-fruits of the harvest in token of acknowledgment of the divine bounty. And before this act neither bread, nor parched corn, nor green ears were to be eaten. (Exodus 23:10-14.) It was rendering to the God who first delivered Israel his thanks for the bounty of harvest.

(2.) The Feast of TABERNACLES (see our note on John 7:2) commemorated the wanderings in the wilderness, and marked the final harvest, namely, of the vintage and the fruits.

(3.) Between these two, seven weeks, or fifty days inclusive from the day of the wave-sheaf, was the Feast of PENTECOST, kept for a single day. From the seven weeks’ interval between it and the Passover it was originally called by the Hebrews The Feast of Weeks. But later it was called Pentecost, from the Greek words signifying Fiftieth, from the number of intervening days. It marked a second or wheat harvest. That it also commemorated the giving of the law on Mount Sinai is not, indeed, said expressly in the Scriptures, and so is doubted by many biblical scholars; but we join with those who hold it as true: (a) because it was historically a fact that seven weeks did occur from the leaving of Egypt to the giving of the Law on Sinai; (b) because some of the most eminent Jewish commentators so held; (c) because the analogy of the other two great feasts requires a historical reference; and (d) because of the striking correspondence, yet contrast, between the giving of the Old Law by Moses and this giving of the New Law by Christ. The last day of the seven weeks, says Grotius, was the day of the given law, as is inferred from Exodus 19:1, 2, and was called on this account hrwt thmv, The Feast of the Law.

St. Jerome thus finely contrasts the two: “Each law was made on the fiftieth day from the Passover; the one upon Sinai, the other upon Zion. At the one, the mountain trembled with a shaking of the earth; at the other, the house of the apostles. At the former, amid fiery flames and flashing lightnings there sounded a whirl of winds and a crash of thunders; at the latter, together with a sight of fiery tongues, there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing wind. In the former, the blast of a clarion uttered the words of the law; at the latter, the Gospel trumpet sounded forth from the mouth of the apostles.”

Wordsworth says: “From the end of Saturday, the sixteenth day of Nisan, forty-nine days are counted; and the fiftieth, or Feast of Pentecost, falls on SUNDAY. It was the ancient belief of the ancient Christian Church” that the Pentecostal day was Sunday.

All with one accord—The same one accord as in Acts 1:14, of the same body enumerated in Acts 1:15; namely, the about one hundred and twenty names representative of the New Testament Church. This one accord beautifully and repeatedly emphasises the unanimity of heart and movement of this wonderful little condensation of Christianity. The they of this verse grammatically referring to this company clearly negatives the addition of some imaginary Christians from the country at the feast, supposed by Alford and others. In one place—Not, as some suppose, in the Temple. (See note on Acts 1:13.) Had Israel, indeed, accepted Jesus, (see note on 1:7,) the Spirit, the life, and the Shekinah (note on Acts 7:2) would no doubt have made their centre, as of old, in the ancient house of God. The miraculous tongues would have belonged not to twelve, or a hundred and twenty only, but to more than a hundred and twenty thousand. All Israel, the chosen seed, would have been Christ’s holy apostles. But Israel’s unbelief shut them out of the holy sanctuary, and so shut the sanctuary out to be sanctuary no more, but to be food for fire and ashes, and left these, the new chosen seed, the holy remnant, to inaugurate the Dispensation of the Spirit in an unrecognised “upper room.”

V. 2. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven-So will the Son of man come to judgment.

And it filled all the house-That is, all that part of the temple where they were sitting.

Verse 2. A sound from heaven] Probably thunder is meant, which is the harbinger of the Divine presence.

Rushing mighty wind] The passage of a large portion of electrical fluid over that place would not only occasion the sound, or thunder, but also the rushing mighty wind; as the air would rush suddenly and strongly into the vacuum occasioned by the rarefaction of the atmosphere in that place, through the sudden passage of the electrical fluid; and the wind would follow the direction of the fire. There is a good deal of similarity between this account and that of the appearance of God to Elijah, 1 Kings 19:11, 12, where the strong wind, the earthquake, and the fire, were harbingers of the Almighty’s presence, and prepared the heart of Elijah to hear the small still voice; so, this sound, and the mighty rushing wind, prepared the apostles to receive the influences and gifts of the Holy Spirit. In both cases, the sound, strong wind, and fire, although natural agents, were supernaturally employed. See Clarke’s note on “Acts 9:7”.

23:17. To these answered the fuller discovery of the gospel on this occasion, and the anointing of the first-fruits of the Christian Church by the effusion of the Spirit. At the pentecost of Sinai, in the Old Testament, and the pentecost of Jerusalem, in the New, were the two grand manifestations of God, the legal and the evangelical; the one from the mountain, and the other from heaven; the terrible, and the merciful one. And as the Jewish Church was constituted at the former of these periods, it was fit that the incorporation of the Christian Church should be dated from the latter. As further reasons why it was peculiarly proper that this time should be chosen for effecting this wonderful miracle, it may be observed, 1st, That as great multitudes of people were wont to assemble at Jerusalem at all the Jewish feasts, so it is probable that the peculiar solemnity of this feast, the general expectation of the Messiah that now prevailed among them, and the length of the days, as it was about the middle of summer, would bring greater numbers thither on this occasion than usually attended at the festivals. This would make the miracle the more public, and cause the fame of it to be spread the sooner and farther, which would contribute much to the propagation of the gospel among all nations, and make way for greater regard to the apostles, when they came to the countries where the people lived who had been spectators of this great event, and upon returning home, reported it to their friends and neighbours. 2d, As this feast of pentecost happened on the first day of the week, by the effusion of the Holy Spirit on this day, added to the resurrection of Christ taking place on it, still greater honour was put on the day, and it was more manifestly confirmed to be the Christian sabbath, the day which the Lord had appointed to be a standing memorial in his church of those two wonderful events. This not only justifies us in observing that day, under the title of the Lord’s day, but directs us, in observing it, to give God praise, particularly for those two great blessings. They were all with one accord in one place — In what place we are not told, whether in the temple, where they attended at public times, (Luke 24:53,) or whether in their own upper room, where they met at other times; but it was at Jerusalem, because it had been the place which God had chosen to put his name there, and the prophets had foretold that from thence the word of the Lord should go forth to all nations; (Isaiah 2:3; Micah 4:2;) and it was now the place of the general rendezvous of all devout people, where God had promised to meet and bless them; and here, therefore, he meets them with this blessing of blessings. It is probable that the ALL here mentioned, included the whole one hundred and twenty who were together when Matthias was chosen. The word omoqumadon, rendered with one accord, implies that they were united in their views, intentions, and affections, and that there was no discord or strife among them, as there sometimes had been while their Master was with them. Doubtless, they were also united in their desire and expectation of the baptism of the Holy Ghost, the power from on high, which Christ had promised them; and in praying earnestly and importunately for it whenever they met together, which it appears they were in the habit of doing daily.

Verses 2, 3. And suddenly — That is, unexpectedly and in a moment, not gradually, as winds generally rise; there came a sound from heaven — Not, as some have supposed, like a clap of thunder; but as of a rushing mighty wind — A wind strong and violent, coming not only with a loud noise, but with great force, as if it would bear down all before it; this was to signify the powerful influences and operations of the Spirit of God upon the minds of men; and it filled all the house where they were sitting — As their doctrine was afterward to fill the whole earth. “When Moses had finished all things respecting the tabernacle, a cloud covered the tent of the congregation, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle, Exodus 40:34, 35; and when Solomon had finished building the temple, the cloud, &c., filled the house of the Lord, 1 Kings 8:10, 11. In like manner, when Isaiah saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, it is said, his train filled the temple, Isaiah 6:1. But now the divine presence had left the temple, and the glory of the Lord rested upon mount Zion, the gospel church, and filled the house where the apostles were assembled.” And there appeared unto them cloven — Or, as some render

diamerizomenai, distinct, tongues of fire — That is, small flames, which is all that the phrase, tongues of fire, means in the language of the Seventy. Probably, however, those small flames were cloven, or divided, either in that part of them which was next the heads of those on whom they rested, as Dr. Hammond supposes; or, as most commentators think, and as seems much more probable, at the tip of them. They were “bright flames,” says Dr. Doddridge, “in a pyramidical form, which were so parted as to terminate in several points, and thereby to afford a proper emblem of the marvellous effects attending the appearance, by which they were endowed with a miraculous diversity of languages.” And it sat (ekaqise, not they sat,) upon each of them — That is, the fire, or one of these tongues, or flames, sat upon each: for it appears there were as many flames as there were persons, and they sat upon them for some time, to show the constant residence of the Holy Ghost with them. The extraordinary gifts of the Spirit were conferred sparingly of old, and but at some times; but the disciples of Christ had these gifts always with them; though the sign, we may suppose, presently disappeared. By these appearances resembling flaming fire, was probably signified, also, God’s touching their tongues, as it were (together with their hearts) with divine fire; his enabling them to speak with irresistible force and energy; his giving them such words as were active and penetrating, even as flaming fire.

2. Suddenly—Even after the ten days’ prayer (note on Acts 1:3) the mighty gift came unexpectedly to them, yet at the moment, doubtless wisely chosen by the Spirit, when their one accord with each other and with Himself was most perfect. From heaven—Not horizontally sweeping over the earth, but perpendicularly descending from heaven to the earth. Wind—not literally a wind, but AS such. Rushing—Literally, borne, that is, borne down by its own powerful impulse. It—This it refers to the sound—the whole house was filled by the divine reverberation.

V. 3. And there appeared distinct tongues, as of fire-That is, small flames of fire. This is all which the phrase, tongues of fire, means in the language of the seventy. Yet it might intimate God's touching their tongues as it were (together with their hearts) with Divine fire: his giving them such words as were active and penetrating, even as flaming fire.

Verse 3. Cloven tongues like as of fire] The tongues were the emblem of the languages they were to speak. The cloven tongues pointed out the diversity of those languages; and the fire seemed to intimate that the whole would be a spiritual gift, and be the means of bringing light and life to the souls who should hear them preach the everlasting Gospel in those languages.

Sat upon each of them.] Scintillations, coruscations, or flashes of fire, were probably at first frequent through every part of the room where they were sitting; at last these flashes became defined, and a lambent flame, in the form of a cloven tongue, became stationary on the head of each disciple; a proof that the Spirit of God had made each his temple or residence. That unusual appearances of fire were considered emblems of the presence and influence of God, both the Scriptures and the Jewish writings amply prove. Thus God manifested himself to Moses, when he appointed him to deliver Israel, Exodus 3:2, 3; and thus he manifested himself when he delivered the law on Mount Sinai, Exodus 19:16-20. The Jews, in order to support the pretensions of their rabbins, as delivering their instructions by Divine authority and influence, represent them as being surrounded with fire while they were delivering their lectures; and that their words, in consequence, penetrated and exhilarated the souls of their disciples. Some of the Mohammedans represent Divine inspiration in the same way. In a fine copy of a Persian work, entitled Ajaceb al Makhlookat, or Wonders of Creation, now before me, where a marred account of Abraham’s sacrifice, mentioned Genesis 15:9-17, is given, instead of the burning lamp passing between the divided pieces of the victim, Genesis 15:17, Abraham is represented standing between four fowls, the cock, the peacock, the duck, and the crow, with his head almost wrapped in a flame of lambent fire, as the emblem of the Divine communication made to him of the future prosperity of his descendants. The painting in which this is represented is most exquisitely finished. This notion of the manner in which Divine intimations were given was not peculiar to the Jews and Arabians; it exists in all countries; and the glories which appear round the heads of Chinese, Hindoo, and Christian saints, real or supposed, were simply intended to signify that they had especial intercourse with God, and that his Spirit, under the emblem of fire, sat upon them and became resident in them. There are numerous proofs of this in several Chinese and Hindoo paintings in my possession; and how frequently this is to be met with in legends, missals, and in the ancient ecclesiastical books of the different Christian nations of Europe, every reader acquainted with ecclesiastical antiquity knows well. See the dedication of Solomon’s temple, 2 Chronicles 7:1-3. The Greek and Roman heathens had similar notions of the manner in which Divine communications were given: strong wind, loud and repeated peals of thunder, coruscations of lightning, and lambent flames resting on those who were objects of the Deities regard, are all employed by them to point out the mode in which their gods were reported to make their will known to their votaries. Every thing of this kind was probably borrowed from the account given by Moses of the appearance on Mount Sinai; for traditions of this event were carried through almost every part of the habitable world, partly by the expelled Canaanites, partly by the Greek sages travelling through Asiatic countries in quest of philosophic truth: and partly by means of the Greek version of the Septuagint, made nearly three hundred years before the Christian æra.

“A flame of fire seen upon the head of any person was, among the heathens, considered as an omen from their gods that the person was under the peculiar care of a supernatural power, and destined to some extraordinary employment. Many proofs of this occur in the Roman poets and historians. Wetstein, in his note on this place, has made an extensive collection of them. I shall quote but one, which almost every reader of the Æneid of Virgil will recollect:-

Talia vociferans gemitu tectum omne replebat:

Cum subitum, dictuque oritur mirabile monstrum.

Namque manus inter, mæstorumque ora parentum.

Ecce levis summo de vertice visus Iuli

Fundere lumen apex, tactuque innoxia molli

Lambere flamma comas, et circum tempora pasci.

Nos pavidi trepidare metu, crinemque flagrantem

Excutere, et sanctos restinguere fontibus ignes.

At pater Anchises oculos ad sidera lætus

Extulit, et cœlo palamas cum voce tetendit:

Jupiter omnipotens___

Daniel auxilium, pater, atque hæc omina firma.

VIRG. ÆN. ii. v. 679.

While thus she fills the house with clamorous cries,

Our hearing is diverted by our eyes;

For while I held my son, in the short space

Betwixt our kisses and our last embrace,

Strange to relate! from young Iulus’ head,

A lambent flame arose, which gently spread

Around his brows, and on his temples fed.

Amazed, with running water, we prepare

To quench the sacred fire, and slake his hair;

But old Anchises, versed in omens, rear’d

His hands to heaven, and this request preferr’d:

If any vows almighty Jove can bend,

Confirm the glad presage which thou art pleased to send. DRYDEN.

There is nothing in this poetic fiction which could be borrowed from our sacred volume; as Virgil died about twenty years before the birth of Christ. It may be just necessary to observe, that tongue of fire may be a Hebraism: for in Isaiah 5:24, va לשונ leshon esh, which we render simply fire, is literally a tongue of fire, as the margin very properly has it. The Hebrews give the name of tongue to most things which terminate in a blunt point: so a bay is termed in Joshua 15:2, לשנ lashon, a tongue. And in Joshua 15:5, what appears to have been a promontory is called הים לשונ leshon hayam, a tongue of the sea.

It sat upon each] That is, one of those tongues, like flames, sat upon the head of each disciple; and the continuance of the appearance, which is indicated by the word sat, shows that there could be no illusion in the case. I still think that in all this case the agent was natural, but supernaturally employed.

23:17. To these answered the fuller discovery of the gospel on this occasion, and the anointing of the first-fruits of the Christian Church by the effusion of the Spirit. At the pentecost of Sinai, in the Old Testament, and the pentecost of Jerusalem, in the New, were the two grand manifestations of God, the legal and the evangelical; the one from the mountain, and the other from heaven; the terrible, and the merciful one. And as the Jewish Church was constituted at the former of these periods, it was fit that the incorporation of the Christian Church should be dated from the latter. As further reasons why it was peculiarly proper that this time should be chosen for effecting this wonderful miracle, it may be observed, 1st, That as great multitudes of people were wont to assemble at Jerusalem at all the Jewish feasts, so it is probable that the peculiar solemnity of this feast, the general expectation of the Messiah that now prevailed among them, and the length of the days, as it was about the middle of summer, would bring greater numbers thither on this occasion than usually attended at the festivals. This would make the miracle the more public, and cause the fame of it to be spread the sooner and farther, which would contribute much to the propagation of the gospel among all nations, and make way for greater regard to the apostles, when they came to the countries where the people lived who had been spectators of this great event, and upon returning home, reported it to their friends and neighbours. 2d, As this feast of pentecost happened on the first day of the week, by the effusion of the Holy Spirit on this day, added to the resurrection of Christ taking place on it, still greater honour was put on the day, and it was more manifestly confirmed to be the Christian sabbath, the day which the Lord had appointed to be a standing memorial in his church of those two wonderful events. This not only justifies us in observing that day, under the title of the Lord’s day, but directs us, in observing it, to give God praise, particularly for those two great blessings. They were all with one accord in one place — In what place we are not told, whether in the temple, where they attended at public times, (Luke 24:53,) or whether in their own upper room, where they met at other times; but it was at Jerusalem, because it had been the place which God had chosen to put his name there, and the prophets had foretold that from thence the word of the Lord should go forth to all nations; (Isaiah 2:3; Micah 4:2;) and it was now the place of the general rendezvous of all devout people, where God had promised to meet and bless them; and here, therefore, he meets them with this blessing of blessings. It is probable that the ALL here mentioned, included the whole one hundred and twenty who were together when Matthias was chosen. The word omoqumadon, rendered with one accord, implies that they were united in their views, intentions, and affections, and that there was no discord or strife among them, as there sometimes had been while their Master was with them. Doubtless, they were also united in their desire and expectation of the baptism of the Holy Ghost, the power from on high, which Christ had promised them; and in praying earnestly and importunately for it whenever they met together, which it appears they were in the habit of doing daily.

Verses 2, 3. And suddenly — That is, unexpectedly and in a moment, not gradually, as winds generally rise; there came a sound from heaven — Not, as some have supposed, like a clap of thunder; but as of a rushing mighty wind — A wind strong and violent, coming not only with a loud noise, but with great force, as if it would bear down all before it; this was to signify the powerful influences and operations of the Spirit of God upon the minds of men; and it filled all the house where they were sitting — As their doctrine was afterward to fill the whole earth. “When Moses had finished all things respecting the tabernacle, a cloud covered the tent of the congregation, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle, Exodus 40:34, 35; and when Solomon had finished building the temple, the cloud, &c., filled the house of the Lord, 1 Kings 8:10, 11. In like manner, when Isaiah saw the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, it is said, his train filled the temple, Isaiah 6:1. But now the divine presence had left the temple, and the glory of the Lord rested upon mount Zion, the gospel church, and filled the house where the apostles were assembled.” And there appeared unto them cloven — Or, as some render

diamerizomenai, distinct, tongues of fire — That is, small flames, which is all that the phrase, tongues of fire, means in the language of the Seventy. Probably, however, those small flames were cloven, or divided, either in that part of them which was next the heads of those on whom they rested, as Dr. Hammond supposes; or, as most commentators think, and as seems much more probable, at the tip of them. They were “bright flames,” says Dr. Doddridge, “in a pyramidical form, which were so parted as to terminate in several points, and thereby to afford a proper emblem of the marvellous effects attending the appearance, by which they were endowed with a miraculous diversity of languages.” And it sat (ekaqise, not they sat,) upon each of them — That is, the fire, or one of these tongues, or flames, sat upon each: for it appears there were as many flames as there were persons, and they sat upon them for some time, to show the constant residence of the Holy Ghost with them. The extraordinary gifts of the Spirit were conferred sparingly of old, and but at some times; but the disciples of Christ had these gifts always with them; though the sign, we may suppose, presently disappeared. By these appearances resembling flaming fire, was probably signified, also, God’s touching their tongues, as it were (together with their hearts) with divine fire; his enabling them to speak with irresistible force and energy; his giving them such words as were active and penetrating, even as flaming fire.

Ver. 3. There appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire. The prophet Ezekiel, in his vision of the chariot of Jehovah, twice names the fire or glory of the colour of amber: chap. 1. 10. This glory descended with a sound of Jehovah’s presence. St. Luke does not say fire, but “like as of fire.” The glory was not transient; it sat upon each of them, as coronation flames on the elder sons of Zion. The glory however was not confined to the apostles; “it sat on each” of the assembly, in such manifestations as heaven was pleased to confer. Nay, the Lord, on his ascension, received gifts for the rebellious gentiles also; for while Peter spake in the house of Cornelius the gentiles received the Spirit as well as the believing jews. — And how can men do the Lord’s work, unless, as in chap. 1:8, they receive power from on high? God left not himself without witnesses in any age. When the palace of Priam was stormed by the Greeks, and while Iüli, a boy, was held in his mother’s arms, Virgil reports that a luminous phenomenon crowned the head of the boy, followed by a meteor from heaven, which, by its course, pointed out their way of escape. God sets his mark on those he loves.

Ecce levis summo de vertice visus Iüli

Fundere lumen apex, tractuque innoxia molli

Lambere flamma comas, et circum tempora pasci.

ÆNEID. 2:682.

Strange to relate, from young Iüli’s head

A lambent flame arose, which gently spread

Around his brow, and on his temples fed.

DRYDEN.

3. Unto them—To the “about one hundred and twenty” present. Cloven tongues—The tongues appeared, then settled one upon the head of each person; each tongue being cloven, that is, undivided at the root, but flaring into several points at the extremity. By this terminal division was beautifully symbolized the variety of dialect spoken by each tongue. Most commentators at the present day construe the Greek word rendered cloven to signify distributed; that is, distributed a single tongue to each individual. But the word usually signifies, not the distribution of several wholes, but the distribution of one whole into several parts; as, for instance, a pile of garments into the several articles. But here there is no one common whole or single mass of tongues to be distributed; nor is there any common mass of fire back of the tongues to be divided or distributed off into single tongues; but each tongue being a whole is distributed into terminal parts. The other rendering destroys the symbol by which the divided or terminally distributed tongues indicate the miraculous variety of languages.

Like as of fire—Not literal fire, but like as fire. It was the phenomenal emblem of the invisible Spirit; its divine essence, as it were, made visible. As Alford says, the sound was the Spirit’s symbol to the ear, as the fire (and we may add the “shape like a dove,” Luke 3:22) to the eye. It sat—What sat? Not the tongues, for that is plural; but plainly the quasi-fire just mentioned, in the tongue shape. What Luke means to say is that the Spirit itself sat upon each head and gave them utterance. The fire sat upon their heads; and, as if it burned down into the depths of their souls, they were filled with the Holy Ghost.

V. 4. And they began to speak with other tongues-The miracle was not in the ears of the hearers, (as some have unaccountably supposed,) but in the mouth of the speakers. And this family praising God together, with the tongues of all the world, was an earnest that the whole world should in due time praise God in their various tongues.

As the Spirit gave them utterance-Moses, the type of the law, was of a slow tongue; but the Gospel speaks with a fiery and flaming one.

Verse 4. To speak with other tongues] At the building of Babel the language of the people was confounded; and, in consequence of this, they became scattered over the face of the earth: at this foundation of the Christian Church, the gift of various languages was given to the apostles, that the scattered nations might be gathered; and united under one shepherd and superintendent (episkopov) of all souls. As the Spirit gave them utterance.] The word apofqeggesqai seems to imply such utterance as proceeded from immediate inspiration, and included oracular communications.

Verse 4. They were all filled with the Holy Ghost — That is, all the one hundred and twenty, as appears from verse 1. At the time of this wonderful appearance, this whole company were abundantly replenished with both the gifts and graces of the Holy Spirit, not only in order to their own salvation, but also and especially to qualify them to be Christ’s witnesses to mankind, both Jews and Gentiles, according to his promise, Acts 1:1, 8. They were filled with the graces of the Spirit, and were more than ever under its sanctifying influences; were now holy, and heavenly, and spiritual; more weaned from this world, and better acquainted with the other. They were more filled with the comforts of the Spirit, rejoiced more than ever in the love of Christ, and the hope of heaven, and in it all their griefs and fears were swallowed up. They were also, 2d, In proof of this, filled with the gifts of the Holy Ghost, which is especially meant here: they were endued with miraculous powers for the furtherance of the gospel. It seems evident that not the twelve apostles only, but all the one hundred and twenty disciples were endowed with the extraordinary gifts of the Holy Ghost at this time; all the seventy disciples, who were apostolical men, and employed in the same work, and all the rest that were to preach the gospel; for it is said expressly, (Ephesians 4:8, 11,) that when Christ ascended on high, (which refers to this here, verse 33,) he gave gifts unto men, not only some apostles, such were the twelve; but some prophets, and some evangelists, many of the seventy disciples, itinerant preachers; and some pastors and teachers, settled in particular churches, as we may suppose some of these afterward were. And began to speak with other tongues — To speak languages of which they had before been entirely ignorant. For this miracle was not in the ears of the hearers, as some have unaccountably supposed, but in the mouths of the speakers. The meaning is not, that one was enabled to speak one language, and another another, as it was with the several families that were dispersed from Babel; but every one was enabled to speak divers languages as he should have occasion to use them. And we may suppose that they not only understood what they themselves said, but understood one another too, which the builders at Babel did not, Genesis 11:7. They did not speak now and then a word of another tongue, or stammer out some broken sentences, but spoke each language which they spoke as readily, properly, and elegantly, as if it had been their mother tongue: for whatever was produced by miracle was the best of the kind. They spake not from any previous thought, but as the Spirit gave them utterance — He furnished them with the matter, as well as the language. And this family, praising God together with the tongues of all the world, was an earnest that the whole world should, in due time, praise God in their various tongues. Now observe here, reader, 1st, This was a very great and stupendous miracle, a miracle upon men’s minds: for in the mind ideas are conceived, and words are framed: a miracle, with regard to every individual, and every language, thus communicated to that individual, equal to that of giving speech to persons born deaf and dumb, concerning which, see the note on Matthew 15:30. These disciples had not only never learned any of these languages, but had never learned any foreign tongue, which if they had done, the acquisition of these might have been thereby facilitated. Nay, for aught that appears to the contrary, most of them had never so much as heard any of these languages spoken, or had any idea of them. 2d, It was a peculiarly proper, needful, and useful miracle. The language these disciples spoke was Syriac, or rather Chaldaio-Syriac, a dialect of the Hebrew; so that their being endued with this gift was necessary, even for their understanding both the Hebrew, in which the Old Testament was originally written, and the Greek, in which the New Testament was to be written. But that was not all: they were commissioned to preach the gospel to every creature, to disciple all nations. But here an insuperable difficulty meets them at the very threshold: how shall they be made acquainted with the several languages of the nations to which they are sent, so as to speak intelligibly to them all. It would be the work of the life of any of them to learn their languages. Hence, to prove that Christ would give authority to preach to the nations, he gives ability to his servants to preach to them in their own languages. And it should seem that this was, at least in part, the accomplishment of the promise which Christ made to his disciples, John 14:12. Greater works than these shall ye do, because I go unto the Father; for this gift of tongues may well be reckoned, all things considered, a greater work than any of the miraculous cures which Christ wrought. It is observed by Dr. Lightfoot, that as the division of tongues at Babel once introduced confusion, and was the means of casting off the Gentiles from the knowledge of the true God; so now, there was a remedy provided by the gift of tongues at Zion, to bring the Gentiles out of darkness into light, and to destroy the veil which had been spread over all nations. And Archbishop Tillotson thought it probable, if the conversion of infidels to Christianity were sincerely and vigorously attempted by men of honest and disinterested minds, God would, in an extraordinary way, countenance such attempts by giving all proper assistance, as he did to the first preachers of the gospel.

Ver. 4. They began to speak with other tongues. The Holy Spirit highly illuminated their thoughts, and gave them words unknown before. Yet their elocution and utterance, like all things human, had their defects. We gather this from St. Jerome, who affirms that when St. Paul first began to preach in Greek, “He made many solecisms, and knew not how to construe a hyperbatic phrase, nor how to conclude a sentence elegantly.” He affirms farther, that at first “he did not know how to express his profound conceptions in Greek, and that his elocution was so defective that he laboured under difficulties in the communication of his ideas.” — Iste qui solæcismos in verbis facit, qui non potest hyperbaton reddere, sententiamque concludere, audacter sibi vindicat sapientiam, &c. — Hieron. Comm. in episad Ephesians tom. 6. p. 384: and ep. 15, ad Algas. qu. 10. The apostles then had need to read and study as other men: grace does not supersede diligence.

4. Filled with the Holy Ghost—This was the great fact of the Pentecost; the great fact of the New Testament dispensation—the ADVENT OF THE SPIRIT. Of this pentecostal sanctification we may remark: 1. It was a higher and purer endowment than the working of supernaturalisms, inasmuch as the latter does not necessarily imply even a regenerate character, and was mainly a transient and special provision for the establishment of the Church; while the former presumes a proximate conformity to the heavenly image, and is the normal privilege of the truly faithful for all ages. Even in the divine nature, though every attribute be perfect, yet holiness is pre-eminent over mere physical omnipotence. 2. Though the apostles before the Pentecost were holy after the less perfect dispensation of Moses, and so heirs of heaven, it was by this outpouring that they were wrought to the higher, and doubtless highest, sanctity of the new dispensation of the Spirit. 3. This sanctification was not merely sovereign or arbitrary from God, but consequent upon the entire self-consecration intimated in our note on verse 14. The freedom of man and of God co-operated in the same blessed work. Man’s self-consecration is the condition, God’s sanctifying gift is the consummation. This sanctification is a source of spiritual power higher, because holier, than even miraculous power. (See our notes on Matthew 5:8, 48.) A fuller discussion would belong to note on 1 Thessalonians 5:23.

Speak with other tongues—In other languages than their native. Spirit gave them utterance—The miraculous Spirit shaped their articulations. In regard to the nature of this miraculous gift, we dismiss at once the rationalistic solutions that deny the miracle. Such are the hypotheses that it was simply a more fluent and ecstatic style of utterance; or, with Baumgarten, that it merely implied that their tongues, formerly instruments of the flesh, were now organs of the Holy Ghost. Still worse is the assumption of others, that the Christians who spoke were really Persian and other foreign Jews, and that a storm just then happening brought strangers to the place, who took the speakers to be mere Galileans miraculously speaking in foreign languages! On the other hand, we may dismiss the ultra-miraculous view that the apostles were at this time endowed with the permanent power of speaking in a variety of languages to enable them to preach the Gospel to the different nations of the earth. Of such a permanent gift there is no valid proof either in the New Testament or in early Church history. And for most of the nations of the Roman world the Latin, the Greek, and the Hebraic were a sufficient supply of dialects.

The ordinary supernaturalistic interpretation among commentators is, that each one of the disciples in turn spoke a single foreign language; so that the various foreigners were successively addressed, each in his own language. Our readers may still prefer that view, as it is maintained with great unanimity by all modern scholars; but to our own mind, we are obliged to confess, it is beset with difficulty. By most audiences such a miracle would be considered very equivocal, if not complete counterfeit. How could foreigners and strangers be absolutely sure that the speakers were genuine Galileans? How be convinced that each man had not learned his part and so was a deceiver? We can scarce consent that this great primordial event should receive so inadequate an explanation.

Now it is remarkable that a form of expression is thrice used which emphasises the marvel upon the hearing rather than the speaking. Verse 3. They “were confounded because every man heard them speak in his own language.” As if the hearing by every man in his own language was simultaneous, and produced by the same speaking and speaker. Verse 8. “How hear we every man in our own tongue?’ The we and the every man simultaneously hear their native language uttered. Verse 11. “We do hear them speak in our tongues.” The marvel plainly is that each Galilean speaker is simultaneously heard by each auditor in his own native-born dialect. The speaker’s organs furnished the vocality, which the Spirit shaped, and, as it were, translated into each hearer’s native tongue. And this conception was by no means unknown to the Jewish Church. Tradition held that by such a polyglottal miracle the self-same vocality at Sinai was so divided and articulated as to be audible and intelligible to every man of all the seventy dialects of the world. (See our note, vol. ii, p. 105.) So Wetstein quotes Rabbi Jochanan as saying, “Whatever word goes forth from the mouth of God is divided into seventy languages.” And Mechilta, commenting on the word “voices” in Exodus 20:18, says, “How many were the voices? They heard each according to his own capacity.” Jochanan also says, “There went forth an utterance, and it was divided into seventy words in seventy languages; since all the nations heard, each hearing the word in the language of his own nation;” words singularly identical with Luke’s! Rabbi Tanchuma says upon Deuteronomy 5:23, “Said Moses, Thou hast heard how the utterance went forth to all Israel, to each one according to his own ability, old men, youths, boys, sucklings, women.”

That this polyglottal miracle actually took place at Sinai we have no Scripture proof; nor, perhaps, as a literal historical fact, did the Jewish doctors affirm it. They simply clothed in physical form the sublime conception that God’s law speaks, irrespective of national or racial boundary lines, to every human intelligence. Yet, as Christian baptism recognises and perpetuates in the new dispensation a later institute of the Jewish Church, being a physical form of the conception of sanctification, so the Pentecostal miracle was an appropriation of one of the divine thoughts of that same Jewish Church. The Divine Spirit here, as in many other cases, appropriates existing conceptions to valid and permanent uses. This, it may be said, not wisely, would be, not a miracle of tongues, but a miracle of ears. But the miracle, as we understand it, and as the Jewish Church conceived and described it, interposed at the initial point, namely, at the tongue; it truly articulated the vocality, and its result only reached the ear with its marvellous effect. Just as the fiery tongue, a unit at the root, is divided off into a variety of terminal points, so does the vocality, which is one and simple at the start, divide off into a variety of articulations. It is as if the Spirit tongue impregnated the fleshly tongue, like a soul, and flung off the various dialects from its flaring points. And that surely was not a miracle of ears, but a miracle of tongues. The miracle did not certainly consist in putting into the brain of each speaker a complete miraculous knowledge of a new language, so that he could select from its entire vocabulary the term fitted to the thought. That, Alford says, not much too strongly, would be an inconceivable and monstrous violation of man’s cerebral and mental nature. When God made the dumb brute reprove the prophet Balaam, he did not bestow upon the animal the soul of a man to understand human language. He simply shaped the words in the mouth of the brute, so that, phenomenally, “the dumb ass spake.” And this the divine power could as easily do as shape the name of “Samuel” in the air for the hearing of the boy prophet. Nor in either case does it follow that the miracle was solely upon the ears, but a miracle in the utterance, reaching the ears in its realization. Nor in either case was there a “mistake.” (as Lechler in Dr. Schaff’s Lange says,) nor a “mere thinking that they heard,” but a reality, and a true hearing of a true utterance. By this view of the case, 1. We have no equivocal miracle which a combination of impostors might simulate. 2. We have a miracle pregnant with a divine idea, symbolizing the power with which God’s voice finds an auditory in every human conscience. 3. We have confirmed the parallelism of the inauguration of the Pentecostal Gospel and the Sinaitic Law. 4. We have a clear symbol of the universal diffusion of the one true religion. 5. We have a type not only of the reparation of the confusion of Babel by the bringing the intelligence of all nations into the reception of one utterance, but a type of Edenic unity in the bringing all back to the one primitive God-formed language of created Adam, in whom all the race was embodied.

What is here said refers, of course, to the Pentecostal miracle alone. The power of that primordial miracle was never fully repeated. Secondary Pentecosts occurred at Samaria, (Acts 8:14-17,) at Cesarea, (Acts 10:44-48,) and at Ephesus, (Acts 19:2-7;) but the first power grew fainter and fainter, and the gift of tongues became less and less marked, as at Corinth, by its original attributes.

Since our writing of the above the following paragraph has appeared in the (London) Quarterly Review, commencing an article on Islam, by Immanuel Deutsch:

“The Sinaitic Manifestation, as recorded in the Pentateuch, has become the theme of a thousand reflections in the Talmud, and the Haggadah generally. Yet, however varied their nature, one supreme thought runs through them all, the catholicity of Monotheism in its mission to all mankind. Addressed, apparently, to a small horde of runaway slaves, the ‘Law’ was intended, the Doctors say, for all the children of men. ‘Why,’ they ask, ‘was it given in the desert and not in any king’s land?’ To show, it is answered, that even as the desert, God’s own highway, is free, wide open to all, so are his words a free gift to all. The ‘Law’ was not given in the stillness and darkness of night, but in plain day, amid thunders and lightnings. Indeed, the Law itself had been offered to all nations of the world before it came to [Israel] the ‘chosen’ one. But the other nations, one and all, had turned to some one special national bent, or mission, with which one or the other of these commandments would have interfered, and so they declined them all. As for trembling Israel, had they not accepted the ‘Law’ that self-same mountain would have covered them up, and that desert would have become their grave. But, the legend continues, when this Law came to be revealed to them in the fulness of time, it was not revealed in their tongue alone, but in seventy: as many as there were nations counted on earth, even as many fiery tongues leap forth from the iron upon the anvil. And as the voice of the ‘Law’ went and came, echoing from Orient to Occident, from heaven to earth, ‘all men heard and saw.’ They heard the voice, and to each it bore a different sound: to the men and the women, the young and the old, the strong and the weak. In that self-same hour God’s majesty revealed itself in its manifold words and aspects: as Mercy and as Severity, as Justice and as Forgiveness, as Grace and Peace and Redemption. And through the midst of all these ever-varying sounds and visions there rolled forth the Divine word, ‘I am the everlasting Jehovah, thy God, one God!’”

V. 5. And there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews-Gathered from all parts by the peculiar providence of God.

Verse 5. Devout men, out of every nation] Either by these we are simply to understand Jews who were born in different countries, and had now come up to Jerusalem to be present at the passover, and for purposes of traffic, or proselytes to Judaism, who had come up for the same purpose: for I cannot suppose that the term andrev eulabeiv, devout men, can be applied to any other. At this time there was scarcely a commercial nation under heaven where the Jews had not been scattered for the purpose of trade, merchandize, &c., and from all these nations, it is said, there were persons now present at Jerusalem.

Verses 5-13. And there were dwelling — Or sojourning; in Jerusalem, Jews — Now gathered from all parts, by the peculiar providence of God; devout — Greek, eulabeiv, pious men, from every nation under heaven — Should this be taken for an hyperbole, we have other instances in Scripture of the like way of speaking; as where we read of cities walled up to heaven, Deuteronomy 1:28; and of the dread of the Jews falling upon every nation under the whole heaven, Deuteronomy 2:25. But, not to insist upon it, that the Jews were then so numerous as to have spread through all countries, so that, as we read in Josephus, (Bell., 2:16,) “there was not a people upon earth who had not Jews inhabiting among them;” the expression here can signify no more than that there were some at Jerusalem, at that time, from all the several nations among whom the Jews were dispersed. Now when this was noised abroad — When this strange report came to be circulated, as it presently was; the multitude came together — From all parts of Jerusalem; and were confounded — Were utterly astonished; because that every man — Of this large and various assembly; heard one or other of them — As they addressed themselves by turns to people of a different language; speak in his own language — The language he had known from a child. And they marvelled — At this wonderful event; saying one to another — As they conversed upon it; Behold — How unaccountable is this! are not all these which speak, Galileans? — By birth and country? and how hear we every man — While they direct their speech to so many different people, who are here come together out of so many nations, speaking to each of us in our own tongue? Parthians, &c. — The reader, who is acquainted with ancient history, needs little or no information respecting the nations here mentioned. We may observe, however, that by the Elamites, the Persians are meant, and, by the dwellers in Mesopotamia, Bishop Cumberland thinks the remainder of the Jews are intended, who had been carried captive into Assyria, first by Tiglath-Pileser, (2 Kings 15:29,) and afterward by Shalmaneser, and placed in the cities of the Medes, 2 Kings 17:6. And in Judea — The dialect of which greatly differed from that of Galilee: Asia — The country strictly so called, Asia Minor: strangers of Rome — Greek, oiephmountev Rwmaioi, Roman

sojourners, persons born at Rome, but now living at Jerusalem. These seem to have come to Jerusalem after those who are above mentioned. All of them were partly Jews by birth, and partly proselytes. Cretes — The inhabitants of one island seem to be mentioned for those of all. We do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God — Meaning, probably, those which related to the incarnation, life, doctrine, and especially to the miracles, death, resurrection, and ascension of Christ; together with the effusion of his Spirit, as a fulfilment of his promises, and the glorious dispensations of gospel grace: or, the surprising testimonies God had given to the divine mission of Jesus, and to his being the true Messiah, the Son of God. It seems, while the apostles and other disciples were discoursing on these marvellous events, they spoke to different classes of people there assembled in such a great variety of languages, and with so much readiness and propriety, as were perfectly astonishing and unexampled, even among the most learned of mankind. And they were all amazed and in doubt — That is, the pious, or well disposed were; saying one to another, What meaneth this? — What can possibly be intended by this unaccountable appearance; but others mocking — The unbelievers begin with mocking, thence proceed to cavilling, Acts 4:7; to threats, verse 17; to imprisoning, Acts 5:18; to blows, verse 40; to slaughter, Acts 7:58. These mockers appear to have been some of the natives of Judea, and inhabitants of Jerusalem, (who understood only the dialect of the country,) by the apostles immediately directing their discourse to them in the next verse. These men are full of new wine — Greek, gleukouv, sweet wine, as the word properly signifies. There was no new wine, or must, so early in the year as pentecost; as Beza and many others have observed. Thus natural men are wont to ascribe supernatural things to mere natural causes; and many times as impudently and unskilfully as in the present case. We are informed by Plutarch, that the ancients had ways of preserving their wine sweet a great while, and such wines are known to be very intoxicating.

5. Dwelling at Jerusalem—Some, perhaps, only during the interval from Passover to Pentecost to enjoy both feasts. But the Greek word for dwelling implies permanent residence.

“The (present) Jewish population has been variously estimated from three to five thousand. The number varies, no doubt, from time to time, since many of them are pilgrims, who come and go in a very uncertain manner. Few of them, comparatively, are natives of the country. The majority of them are aged persons, who repair to the holy city to spend the remainder of their days, and secure the privileges of being buried in the valley of the Kedron, which, as their traditions assert, is to be the scene of the last judgment. Others of them are those who come hither to fulfil a vow, or acquire the merit of a pilgrimage, and then return to the countries where they reside. Among them may be found representatives of every land, though the Spanish, Polish, and German Jews compose the greater number. Like their brethren in other parts of Palestine, except a few in some commercial places, they are wretchedly poor, and live chiefly on alms contributed by their countrymen in Europe and America.”—Hackett’s Bib. Ill., p. 229.

This poverty of pilgrim residents goes far to illustrate the so-called “community of goods” of the first Jerusalem Church. Every nation under heaven—”I would like to ask those,” says Erasmus, “who deny there is any hyperbole in Scripture, if they think there were any English or Scotch at the Pentecost.” But Grotius ingeniously identifies all the races named as being branches from the “sixteen grandsons of Noah, from whom all nations were descended.” Luke clearly uses these phrases of wide universality with a feeling that all the world was here represented.

V. 6. The multitude came together, and were confounded-The motions of their minds were swift and various.

Verse 6. When this was noised abroad] If we suppose that there was a considerable peal of thunder, which followed the escape of a vast quantity of electric fluid, and produced the mighty rushing wind already noticed on Acts 2:2, then the whole city must have been alarmed; and, as various circumstances might direct their attention to the temple, having flocked thither they were farther astonished and confounded to hear the disciples of Christ addressing the mixed multitude in the languages of the different countries from which these people had come.

Every man heard them speak in his own language.] Use may naturally suppose that, as soon as any person presented himself to one of these disciples, he, the disciple, was immediately enabled to address him in his own language, however various this had been from the Jewish or Galilean dialects. If a Roman presented himself, the disciple was immediately enabled to address him in Latin-if a Grecian, in Greek-an Arab, in Arabic, and so of the rest.

Verses 5-13. And there were dwelling — Or sojourning; in Jerusalem, Jews — Now gathered from all parts, by the peculiar providence of God; devout — Greek, eulabeiv, pious men, from every nation under heaven — Should this be taken for an hyperbole, we have other instances in Scripture of the like way of speaking; as where we read of cities walled up to heaven, Deuteronomy 1:28; and of the dread of the Jews falling upon every nation under the whole heaven, Deuteronomy 2:25. But, not to insist upon it, that the Jews were then so numerous as to have spread through all countries, so that, as we read in Josephus, (Bell., 2:16,) “there was not a people upon earth who had not Jews inhabiting among them;” the expression here can signify no more than that there were some at Jerusalem, at that time, from all the several nations among whom the Jews were dispersed. Now when this was noised abroad — When this strange report came to be circulated, as it presently was; the multitude came together — From all parts of Jerusalem; and were confounded — Were utterly astonished; because that every man — Of this large and various assembly; heard one or other of them — As they addressed themselves by turns to people of a different language; speak in his own language — The language he had known from a child. And they marvelled — At this wonderful event; saying one to another — As they conversed upon it; Behold — How unaccountable is this! are not all these which speak, Galileans? — By birth and country? and how hear we every man — While they direct their speech to so many different people, who are here come together out of so many nations, speaking to each of us in our own tongue? Parthians, &c. — The reader, who is acquainted with ancient history, needs little or no information respecting the nations here mentioned. We may observe, however, that by the Elamites, the Persians are meant, and, by the dwellers in Mesopotamia, Bishop Cumberland thinks the remainder of the Jews are intended, who had been carried captive into Assyria, first by Tiglath-Pileser, (2 Kings 15:29,) and afterward by Shalmaneser, and placed in the cities of the Medes, 2 Kings 17:6. And in Judea — The dialect of which greatly differed from that of Galilee: Asia — The country strictly so called, Asia Minor: strangers of Rome — Greek, oiephmountev Rwmaioi, Roman

sojourners, persons born at Rome, but now living at Jerusalem. These seem to have come to Jerusalem after those who are above mentioned. All of them were partly Jews by birth, and partly proselytes. Cretes — The inhabitants of one island seem to be mentioned for those of all. We do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God — Meaning, probably, those which related to the incarnation, life, doctrine, and especially to the miracles, death, resurrection, and ascension of Christ; together with the effusion of his Spirit, as a fulfilment of his promises, and the glorious dispensations of gospel grace: or, the surprising testimonies God had given to the divine mission of Jesus, and to his being the true Messiah, the Son of God. It seems, while the apostles and other disciples were discoursing on these marvellous events, they spoke to different classes of people there assembled in such a great variety of languages, and with so much readiness and propriety, as were perfectly astonishing and unexampled, even among the most learned of mankind. And they were all amazed and in doubt — That is, the pious, or well disposed were; saying one to another, What meaneth this? — What can possibly be intended by this unaccountable appearance; but others mocking — The unbelievers begin with mocking, thence proceed to cavilling, Acts 4:7; to threats, verse 17; to imprisoning, Acts 5:18; to blows, verse 40; to slaughter, Acts 7:58. These mockers appear to have been some of the natives of Judea, and inhabitants of Jerusalem, (who understood only the dialect of the country,) by the apostles immediately directing their discourse to them in the next verse. These men are full of new wine — Greek, gleukouv, sweet wine, as the word properly signifies. There was no new wine, or must, so early in the year as pentecost; as Beza and many others have observed. Thus natural men are wont to ascribe supernatural things to mere natural causes; and many times as impudently and unskilfully as in the present case. We are informed by Plutarch, that the ancients had ways of preserving their wine sweet a great while, and such wines are known to be very intoxicating.

6. Noised abroad—Literally, when this sound occurred; not the rumour of the event, or the loud voices of the speakers, but the sound from heaven, in verse 2.

Verse 7. Are not all these-Galileans?] Persons who know no other dialect, save that of their own country. Persons wholly uneducated, and, consequently, naturally ignorant of those languages which they now speak so fluently.

Verses 5-13. And there were dwelling — Or sojourning; in Jerusalem, Jews — Now gathered from all parts, by the peculiar providence of God; devout — Greek, eulabeiv, pious men, from every nation under heaven — Should this be taken for an hyperbole, we have other instances in Scripture of the like way of speaking; as where we read of cities walled up to heaven, Deuteronomy 1:28; and of the dread of the Jews falling upon every nation under the whole heaven, Deuteronomy 2:25. But, not to insist upon it, that the Jews were then so numerous as to have spread through all countries, so that, as we read in Josephus, (Bell., 2:16,) “there was not a people upon earth who had not Jews inhabiting among them;” the expression here can signify no more than that there were some at Jerusalem, at that time, from all the several nations among whom the Jews were dispersed. Now when this was noised abroad — When this strange report came to be circulated, as it presently was; the multitude came together — From all parts of Jerusalem; and were confounded — Were utterly astonished; because that every man — Of this large and various assembly; heard one or other of them — As they addressed themselves by turns to people of a different language; speak in his own language — The language he had known from a child. And they marvelled — At this wonderful event; saying one to another — As they conversed upon it; Behold — How unaccountable is this! are not all these which speak, Galileans? — By birth and country? and how hear we every man — While they direct their speech to so many different people, who are here come together out of so many nations, speaking to each of us in our own tongue? Parthians, &c. — The reader, who is acquainted with ancient history, needs little or no information respecting the nations here mentioned. We may observe, however, that by the Elamites, the Persians are meant, and, by the dwellers in Mesopotamia, Bishop Cumberland thinks the remainder of the Jews are intended, who had been carried captive into Assyria, first by Tiglath-Pileser, (2 Kings 15:29,) and afterward by Shalmaneser, and placed in the cities of the Medes, 2 Kings 17:6. And in Judea — The dialect of which greatly differed from that of Galilee: Asia — The country strictly so called, Asia Minor: strangers of Rome — Greek, oiephmountev Rwmaioi, Roman

sojourners, persons born at Rome, but now living at Jerusalem. These seem to have come to Jerusalem after those who are above mentioned. All of them were partly Jews by birth, and partly proselytes. Cretes — The inhabitants of one island seem to be mentioned for those of all. We do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God — Meaning, probably, those which related to the incarnation, life, doctrine, and especially to the miracles, death, resurrection, and ascension of Christ; together with the effusion of his Spirit, as a fulfilment of his promises, and the glorious dispensations of gospel grace: or, the surprising testimonies God had given to the divine mission of Jesus, and to his being the true Messiah, the Son of God. It seems, while the apostles and other disciples were discoursing on these marvellous events, they spoke to different classes of people there assembled in such a great variety of languages, and with so much readiness and propriety, as were perfectly astonishing and unexampled, even among the most learned of mankind. And they were all amazed and in doubt — That is, the pious, or well disposed were; saying one to another, What meaneth this? — What can possibly be intended by this unaccountable appearance; but others mocking — The unbelievers begin with mocking, thence proceed to cavilling, Acts 4:7; to threats, verse 17; to imprisoning, Acts 5:18; to blows, verse 40; to slaughter, Acts 7:58. These mockers appear to have been some of the natives of Judea, and inhabitants of Jerusalem, (who understood only the dialect of the country,) by the apostles immediately directing their discourse to them in the next verse. These men are full of new wine — Greek, gleukouv, sweet wine, as the word properly signifies. There was no new wine, or must, so early in the year as pentecost; as Beza and many others have observed. Thus natural men are wont to ascribe supernatural things to mere natural causes; and many times as impudently and unskilfully as in the present case. We are informed by Plutarch, that the ancients had ways of preserving their wine sweet a great while, and such wines are known to be very intoxicating.

Ver. 7. Are not all these which speak Galileans? Thus, the gift of tongues was a sign to them that believed not. Those jews, devout men out of the eighteen nations, were competent judges, and their conclusions were correct, that the preachers must have been divinely inspired. The seventy weeks of Daniel being accomplished, and the sceptre in the hands of Herod, those holy men had preferred a residence in the city to be ready to meet their Lord.

7. Marvelled—The expressions of emotion on the part of these spectators are reiterated very emphatically. Confounded, expresses their first mental perplexity at the apparent confusion of the scene; amazed, their emotion at the miracle; marvelled, their wonder at the wonderful thoughts expressed from a source so extraordinary.

Verse 8. How hear we every man in our own tongue] Some have supposed from this that the miracle was not so much wrought on the disciples as on their hearers: imagining that, although the disciples spoke their own tongue, yet every man so understood what was spoken as if it had been spoken in the language in which he was born. Though this is by no means so likely as the opinion which states that the disciples themselves spoke all these different languages, yet the miracle is the same, howsoever it be taken; for it must require as much of the miraculous power of God to enable an Arab to understand a Galilean, as to enable a Galilean to speak Arabic. But that the gift of tongues was actually given to the apostles, we have the fullest proof; as we find particular ordinances laid down by those very apostles for the regulation of the exercise of this gift; see 1 Corinthians 14:1, &c.

Verses 5-13. And there were dwelling — Or sojourning; in Jerusalem, Jews — Now gathered from all parts, by the peculiar providence of God; devout — Greek, eulabeiv, pious men, from every nation under heaven — Should this be taken for an hyperbole, we have other instances in Scripture of the like way of speaking; as where we read of cities walled up to heaven, Deuteronomy 1:28; and of the dread of the Jews falling upon every nation under the whole heaven, Deuteronomy 2:25. But, not to insist upon it, that the Jews were then so numerous as to have spread through all countries, so that, as we read in Josephus, (Bell., 2:16,) “there was not a people upon earth who had not Jews inhabiting among them;” the expression here can signify no more than that there were some at Jerusalem, at that time, from all the several nations among whom the Jews were dispersed. Now when this was noised abroad — When this strange report came to be circulated, as it presently was; the multitude came together — From all parts of Jerusalem; and were confounded — Were utterly astonished; because that every man — Of this large and various assembly; heard one or other of them — As they addressed themselves by turns to people of a different language; speak in his own language — The language he had known from a child. And they marvelled — At this wonderful event; saying one to another — As they conversed upon it; Behold — How unaccountable is this! are not all these which speak, Galileans? — By birth and country? and how hear we every man — While they direct their speech to so many different people, who are here come together out of so many nations, speaking to each of us in our own tongue? Parthians, &c. — The reader, who is acquainted with ancient history, needs little or no information respecting the nations here mentioned. We may observe, however, that by the Elamites, the Persians are meant, and, by the dwellers in Mesopotamia, Bishop Cumberland thinks the remainder of the Jews are intended, who had been carried captive into Assyria, first by Tiglath-Pileser, (2 Kings 15:29,) and afterward by Shalmaneser, and placed in the cities of the Medes, 2 Kings 17:6. And in Judea — The dialect of which greatly differed from that of Galilee: Asia — The country strictly so called, Asia Minor: strangers of Rome — Greek, oiephmountev Rwmaioi, Roman

sojourners, persons born at Rome, but now living at Jerusalem. These seem to have come to Jerusalem after those who are above mentioned. All of them were partly Jews by birth, and partly proselytes. Cretes — The inhabitants of one island seem to be mentioned for those of all. We do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God — Meaning, probably, those which related to the incarnation, life, doctrine, and especially to the miracles, death, resurrection, and ascension of Christ; together with the effusion of his Spirit, as a fulfilment of his promises, and the glorious dispensations of gospel grace: or, the surprising testimonies God had given to the divine mission of Jesus, and to his being the true Messiah, the Son of God. It seems, while the apostles and other disciples were discoursing on these marvellous events, they spoke to different classes of people there assembled in such a great variety of languages, and with so much readiness and propriety, as were perfectly astonishing and unexampled, even among the most learned of mankind. And they were all amazed and in doubt — That is, the pious, or well disposed were; saying one to another, What meaneth this? — What can possibly be intended by this unaccountable appearance; but others mocking — The unbelievers begin with mocking, thence proceed to cavilling, Acts 4:7; to threats, verse 17; to imprisoning, Acts 5:18; to blows, verse 40; to slaughter, Acts 7:58. These mockers appear to have been some of the natives of Judea, and inhabitants of Jerusalem, (who understood only the dialect of the country,) by the apostles immediately directing their discourse to them in the next verse. These men are full of new wine — Greek, gleukouv, sweet wine, as the word properly signifies. There was no new wine, or must, so early in the year as pentecost; as Beza and many others have observed. Thus natural men are wont to ascribe supernatural things to mere natural causes; and many times as impudently and unskilfully as in the present case. We are informed by Plutarch, that the ancients had ways of preserving their wine sweet a great while, and such wines are known to be very intoxicating.

8. Wherein we were born—The tongue of the country of their birth. A Persian Jew understood Persic, an Egyptian one Coptic; just as an American Jew knows English, and in addition perhaps the vernacular Hebrew or Aramaic.

How shall we consider the house such as to admit so large an audience as this one hundred and twenty, three thousand devout hearers, and perhaps, five hundred mockers? We may figure an eastern structure (see fig., vol. i, pp. 121, 326) so built as to enclose a square central area, lined with galleries looking in upon the area from the four sides. The gathering crowds, called by the supernatural sound, fill the area and galleries; and from the most elevated gallery we conceive Peter as addressing the whole.

V. 9. Judea-The dialect of which greatly differed from that of Galilee. Asia-The country strictly so called.

Verse 9. Parthians] Parthia anciently included the northern part of modern Persia: it was situated between the Caspian Sea and Persian Gulf, rather to the eastward of both.

Medes] Media was a country lying in the vicinity of the Caspian Sea; having Parthia on the east, Assyria on the south, and Mesopotamia on the west.

Elamites] Probably inhabitants of that country now called Persia: both the Medes and Elamites were a neighbouring people, dwelling beyond the Tigris.

Mesopotamia] Now Diarbec in Asiatic Turkey; situated between the rivers Tigris and Euphrates; having Assyria on the east, Arabia Deserta with Babylonia on the south, Syria on the west, and Armenia on the north. It was called Padan-aram by the ancient Hebrews, and by the Asiatics is now called Maverannhar, i.e. the country beyond the river. Judea] This word has exceedingly puzzled commentators and critics; and most suspect that it is not the true reading. Bishop Pearce supposes that ioudaian is an adjective, agreeing with mesopotamian, and translates the passage thus: the dwellers in Jewish Mesopotamia. He vindicates this translation by showing that great numbers of the Jews were settled in this country: Josephus says that the ten tribes remained in this country till his time; that “there were countless myriads of them there, and that it was impossible to know their numbers.”-muriadev apeiroi, kai ariqmw gnwsqhnai mh dunamenai. See Ant. lib. xv. c. 2, s. 2, and c. 3, s. 1; Bell. Jud. lib. i. c. 1, 2. This interpretation, however ingenious, does not comport with the present Greek text. Some imagine that ioudaian is not the original reading; and therefore they have corrected it into Syriam, SYRIA; Armeniam, ARMENIA; indian, INDIA; ludian, LYDIA;

idoumaian, IDUMEA; biqunian, BITHYNIA; and kilikian, CILICIA: all these stand on very slender authority, as may be seen in Griesbach; and the last is a mere conjecture of Dr. Mangey. If Judea be still considered the genuine reading, we may account for it thus: the men who were speaking were known to be Galileans; now the Galilean dialect was certainly different from that spoken in Judea-the surprise was occasioned by a Jew being able to comprehend the speech of a Galilean, without any interpreter and without difficulty; and yet it is not easy to suppose that there was such a difference between the two dialects as to render these people wholly unintelligible to each other.

CAPPADOCIA] Was an ancient kingdom of Asia comprehending all that country that lies between Mount Taurus and the Euxine Sea. PONTUS] Was anciently a very powerful kingdom of Asia, originally a part of Cappadocia; bounded on the east by Colchis; on the west by the river Halys; on the north by the Black Sea; and on the south by Armenia Minor. The famous Mithridates was king of this country; and it was one of the last which the Romans were able to subjugate.

ASIA] Meaning probably Asia Minor; it was that part of Turkey in Asia now called Natolia.

Verses 5-13. And there were dwelling — Or sojourning; in Jerusalem, Jews — Now gathered from all parts, by the peculiar providence of God; devout — Greek, eulabeiv, pious men, from every nation under heaven — Should this be taken for an hyperbole, we have other instances in Scripture of the like way of speaking; as where we read of cities walled up to heaven, Deuteronomy 1:28; and of the dread of the Jews falling upon every nation under the whole heaven, Deuteronomy 2:25. But, not to insist upon it, that the Jews were then so numerous as to have spread through all countries, so that, as we read in Josephus, (Bell., 2:16,) “there was not a people upon earth who had not Jews inhabiting among them;” the expression here can signify no more than that there were some at Jerusalem, at that time, from all the several nations among whom the Jews were dispersed. Now when this was noised abroad — When this strange report came to be circulated, as it presently was; the multitude came together — From all parts of Jerusalem; and were confounded — Were utterly astonished; because that every man — Of this large and various assembly; heard one or other of them — As they addressed themselves by turns to people of a different language; speak in his own language — The language he had known from a child. And they marvelled — At this wonderful event; saying one to another — As they conversed upon it; Behold — How unaccountable is this! are not all these which speak, Galileans? — By birth and country? and how hear we every man — While they direct their speech to so many different people, who are here come together out of so many nations, speaking to each of us in our own tongue? Parthians, &c. — The reader, who is acquainted with ancient history, needs little or no information respecting the nations here mentioned. We may observe, however, that by the Elamites, the Persians are meant, and, by the dwellers in Mesopotamia, Bishop Cumberland thinks the remainder of the Jews are intended, who had been carried captive into Assyria, first by Tiglath-Pileser, (2 Kings 15:29,) and afterward by Shalmaneser, and placed in the cities of the Medes, 2 Kings 17:6. And in Judea — The dialect of which greatly differed from that of Galilee: Asia — The country strictly so called, Asia Minor: strangers of Rome — Greek, oiephmountev Rwmaioi, Roman

sojourners, persons born at Rome, but now living at Jerusalem. These seem to have come to Jerusalem after those who are above mentioned. All of them were partly Jews by birth, and partly proselytes. Cretes — The inhabitants of one island seem to be mentioned for those of all. We do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God — Meaning, probably, those which related to the incarnation, life, doctrine, and especially to the miracles, death, resurrection, and ascension of Christ; together with the effusion of his Spirit, as a fulfilment of his promises, and the glorious dispensations of gospel grace: or, the surprising testimonies God had given to the divine mission of Jesus, and to his being the true Messiah, the Son of God. It seems, while the apostles and other disciples were discoursing on these marvellous events, they spoke to different classes of people there assembled in such a great variety of languages, and with so much readiness and propriety, as were perfectly astonishing and unexampled, even among the most learned of mankind. And they were all amazed and in doubt — That is, the pious, or well disposed were; saying one to another, What meaneth this? — What can possibly be intended by this unaccountable appearance; but others mocking — The unbelievers begin with mocking, thence proceed to cavilling, Acts 4:7; to threats, verse 17; to imprisoning, Acts 5:18; to blows, verse 40; to slaughter, Acts 7:58. These mockers appear to have been some of the natives of Judea, and inhabitants of Jerusalem, (who understood only the dialect of the country,) by the apostles immediately directing their discourse to them in the next verse. These men are full of new wine — Greek, gleukouv, sweet wine, as the word properly signifies. There was no new wine, or must, so early in the year as pentecost; as Beza and many others have observed. Thus natural men are wont to ascribe supernatural things to mere natural causes; and many times as impudently and unskilfully as in the present case. We are informed by Plutarch, that the ancients had ways of preserving their wine sweet a great while, and such wines are known to be very intoxicating.

Ver. 9. Parthians, Medes, and Elamites. The Persians, dwelling east of the Euphrates. The Medes, whose capital was Ecbatana. Elamites, from Elam, Genesis 10:22; a nation associated with the Persians, and dwelling on the sea coast.

9-11. To give a view of the above-expressed universality, Luke now spreads out a map of Israel’s wide dispersion. And Israel’s dispersion is the type of the Babel dispersion of the race, inasmuch as these Pentecostally-gathered sons of the dispersion are here to represent all nations.

Luke’s survey commences with the far east. Parthia, Media, and the Elamites embrace areas of the old Persian empire, where Shalmanezer, king of Assyria, settled the ten tribes at the first captivity. Westward thence is Mesopotamia, (note on Acts 7:2,) whence came ancestral Abraham, and where Nebuchadnezzar settled the victims of the captivity. Luke’s western progress brings him home to Judea. Turning to the north-west, he ranges through five of the provinces of Asia Minor. By a sudden southern descent he arrives at Egypt, the seat of the old Pharaonic captivity, where large numbers of Jews, especially under the first patronage of Alexander the Great, had settled and flourished. Rome represents Europe. The strangers are the residents there of Abrahamic faith, whether Jews by birth or proselyte. The regular plan of his map then seems finished, but he adds the Cretes and Arabians as a supplement too important to be omitted. Why in this catalogue of countries, whose natives wondered to hear their dialects here spoken, Judea should be enumerated, is an unsettled question among commentators. The manuscripts admit no doubt of the true reading. The opinion of Alford, that it is named because it lay in Luke’s route westward; of Olshausen, because Luke speaks from his stand-point at Rome; of Bengel, Meyer, and others, because the dialect of Galilee was different from Judea, are all rejected by Dr. Gloag, who agrees with Hackett, that it was because Luke would enumerate all the dialects spoken. But what Luke is really enumerating is (verse 8) the countries of those who wondered to hear their dialect spoken by Galileans in Judea. This could, apparently, have been surprising to a Judean solely because the Galilean dialect was different from the Judean. But by our view of the nature of the miracle the difficulty disappears. That from the utterance of the same speaker one should hear Persic, another Coptic, and another Hebrew or Aramaic, would be as wonderful to the Judean as to the Persian.

V. 10. Roman sojourners-Born at Rome, but now living at Jerusalem. These seem to have come to Jerusalem after those who are above mentioned. All of them were partly Jews by birth, and partly proselytes.

Verse 10. PHRYGIA] A country in Asia Minor, southward of Pontus. PAMPHYLIA] The ancient name of the country of Natolia, now called Caramania, between Lycia and Cilicia, near the Mediterranean Sea. EGYPT] A very extensive country of African bounded by the Mediterranean on the north; by the Red Sea and the Isthmus of Suez, which divide it from Arabia, on the east; by Abyssinia or Æthiopia on the south; and by the deserts of Barca and Nubia on the west. It was called Mizraim by the ancient Hebrews, and now Mesr by the Arabians. It extends 600 miles from north to south; and from 100 to 250 in breadth, from east to west.

LIBYA] In a general way, among the Greeks, signified Africa; but the northern part, in the vicinity of Cyrene, is here meant. CYRENE] A country in Africa on the coast of the Mediterranean Sea, southward of the most western point of the Island of Crete. Strangers of Rome] Persons dwelling at Rome, and speaking the Latin language, partly consisting of regularly descended Jews and proselytes to the Jewish religion.

Verses 5-13. And there were dwelling — Or sojourning; in Jerusalem, Jews — Now gathered from all parts, by the peculiar providence of God; devout — Greek, eulabeiv, pious men, from every nation under heaven — Should this be taken for an hyperbole, we have other instances in Scripture of the like way of speaking; as where we read of cities walled up to heaven, Deuteronomy 1:28; and of the dread of the Jews falling upon every nation under the whole heaven, Deuteronomy 2:25. But, not to insist upon it, that the Jews were then so numerous as to have spread through all countries, so that, as we read in Josephus, (Bell., 2:16,) “there was not a people upon earth who had not Jews inhabiting among them;” the expression here can signify no more than that there were some at Jerusalem, at that time, from all the several nations among whom the Jews were dispersed. Now when this was noised abroad — When this strange report came to be circulated, as it presently was; the multitude came together — From all parts of Jerusalem; and were confounded — Were utterly astonished; because that every man — Of this large and various assembly; heard one or other of them — As they addressed themselves by turns to people of a different language; speak in his own language — The language he had known from a child. And they marvelled — At this wonderful event; saying one to another — As they conversed upon it; Behold — How unaccountable is this! are not all these which speak, Galileans? — By birth and country? and how hear we every man — While they direct their speech to so many different people, who are here come together out of so many nations, speaking to each of us in our own tongue? Parthians, &c. — The reader, who is acquainted with ancient history, needs little or no information respecting the nations here mentioned. We may observe, however, that by the Elamites, the Persians are meant, and, by the dwellers in Mesopotamia, Bishop Cumberland thinks the remainder of the Jews are intended, who had been carried captive into Assyria, first by Tiglath-Pileser, (2 Kings 15:29,) and afterward by Shalmaneser, and placed in the cities of the Medes, 2 Kings 17:6. And in Judea — The dialect of which greatly differed from that of Galilee: Asia — The country strictly so called, Asia Minor: strangers of Rome — Greek, oiephmountev Rwmaioi, Roman

sojourners, persons born at Rome, but now living at Jerusalem. These seem to have come to Jerusalem after those who are above mentioned. All of them were partly Jews by birth, and partly proselytes. Cretes — The inhabitants of one island seem to be mentioned for those of all. We do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God — Meaning, probably, those which related to the incarnation, life, doctrine, and especially to the miracles, death, resurrection, and ascension of Christ; together with the effusion of his Spirit, as a fulfilment of his promises, and the glorious dispensations of gospel grace: or, the surprising testimonies God had given to the divine mission of Jesus, and to his being the true Messiah, the Son of God. It seems, while the apostles and other disciples were discoursing on these marvellous events, they spoke to different classes of people there assembled in such a great variety of languages, and with so much readiness and propriety, as were perfectly astonishing and unexampled, even among the most learned of mankind. And they were all amazed and in doubt — That is, the pious, or well disposed were; saying one to another, What meaneth this? — What can possibly be intended by this unaccountable appearance; but others mocking — The unbelievers begin with mocking, thence proceed to cavilling, Acts 4:7; to threats, verse 17; to imprisoning, Acts 5:18; to blows, verse 40; to slaughter, Acts 7:58. These mockers appear to have been some of the natives of Judea, and inhabitants of Jerusalem, (who understood only the dialect of the country,) by the apostles immediately directing their discourse to them in the next verse. These men are full of new wine — Greek, gleukouv, sweet wine, as the word properly signifies. There was no new wine, or must, so early in the year as pentecost; as Beza and many others have observed. Thus natural men are wont to ascribe supernatural things to mere natural causes; and many times as impudently and unskilfully as in the present case. We are informed by Plutarch, that the ancients had ways of preserving their wine sweet a great while, and such wines are known to be very intoxicating.

9-11. To give a view of the above-expressed universality, Luke now spreads out a map of Israel’s wide dispersion. And Israel’s dispersion is the type of the Babel dispersion of the race, inasmuch as these Pentecostally-gathered sons of the dispersion are here to represent all nations.

Luke’s survey commences with the far east. Parthia, Media, and the Elamites embrace areas of the old Persian empire, where Shalmanezer, king of Assyria, settled the ten tribes at the first captivity. Westward thence is Mesopotamia, (note on Acts 7:2,) whence came ancestral Abraham, and where Nebuchadnezzar settled the victims of the captivity. Luke’s western progress brings him home to Judea. Turning to the north-west, he ranges through five of the provinces of Asia Minor. By a sudden southern descent he arrives at Egypt, the seat of the old Pharaonic captivity, where large numbers of Jews, especially under the first patronage of Alexander the Great, had settled and flourished. Rome represents Europe. The strangers are the residents there of Abrahamic faith, whether Jews by birth or proselyte. The regular plan of his map then seems finished, but he adds the Cretes and Arabians as a supplement too important to be omitted. Why in this catalogue of countries, whose natives wondered to hear their dialects here spoken, Judea should be enumerated, is an unsettled question among commentators. The manuscripts admit no doubt of the true reading. The opinion of Alford, that it is named because it lay in Luke’s route westward; of Olshausen, because Luke speaks from his stand-point at Rome; of Bengel, Meyer, and others, because the dialect of Galilee was different from Judea, are all rejected by Dr. Gloag, who agrees with Hackett, that it was because Luke would enumerate all the dialects spoken. But what Luke is really enumerating is (verse 8) the countries of those who wondered to hear their dialect spoken by Galileans in Judea. This could, apparently, have been surprising to a Judean solely because the Galilean dialect was different from the Judean. But by our view of the nature of the miracle the difficulty disappears. That from the utterance of the same speaker one should hear Persic, another Coptic, and another Hebrew or Aramaic, would be as wonderful to the Judean as to the Persian.

V. 11. Cretans-One island seems to be mentioned for all. The wonderful works of God-Probably those which related to the miracles, death, resurrection, and ascension of Christ, together with the effusion of his Spirit, as a fulfilment of his promises, and the glorious dispensations of Gospel grace.

Verse 11. Cretes] Natives of Crete, a large and noted island in the Levant, or eastern part of the Mediterranean Sea, now called Candia. Arabians] Natives of Arabia, a well known country of Asia, having the Red Sea on the west; the Persian Gulf on the east; Judea on the north; and the Indian Ocean on the south.

The wonderful works of God.] Such as the incarnation of Christ; his various miracles, preaching, death, resurrection, and ascension; and the design of God to save the world through him. From this one circumstance we may learn that all the people enumerated above were either Jews or proselytes; and that there was probably none that could be, strictly speaking, called heathens among them. It may at first appear strange that there could be found Jews in so many different countries, some of which were very remote from the others; but there is a passage in Philo’s Embassy to Caius which throws considerable light on the subject. In a letter sent to Caius by King Agrippa, he speaks of to the holy city of Jerusalem, not merely as the metropolis of Judea, but of many other regions, because of the colonies at different times led out of Judea, not only into neighbouring countries, such as Egypt, Phœnicia, Syria, and Cœlosyria, but also into those that are remote, such as Pamphylia, Cilicia, and the chief parts of Asia as far as Bithynia, and the innermost parts of Pontus; also in the regions of Europe, Thessaly, Bœotia, Macedonia, Ætolia, Attica, Argos, Corinth, and the principal parts of Peloponnesus. Not only the continents and provinces (says he) are full of Jewish colonies, but the most celebrated isles also, Eubœa, Cyprus, and Crete, not to mention the countries beyond the Euphrates. All these (a small part of Babylon and some other præfectures excepted, which possess fertile territories) are inhabited by Jews. Not only my native city entreats thy clemency, but other cities also, situated in different parts of the world, Asia, Europe, Africa; both islands, sea coasts, and inland countries.” PHILONIS Opera, edit. Mangey, vol. ii. p. 587.

It is worthy of remark that almost all the places and provinces mentioned by St. Luke are mentioned also in this letter of King Agrippa. These, being all Jews or proselytes, could understand in some measure the wonderful works of God, of which mere heathens could have formed no conception. It was wisely ordered that the miraculous descent of the Holy Ghost should take place at this time, when so many from various nations were present to bear witness to what was done, and to be themselves subjects of his mighty working. These, on their return to their respective countries, would naturally proclaim what things they saw and heard; and by this the way of the apostles was made plain; and thus Christianity made a rapid progress over all those parts in a very short time after the resurrection of our Lord.

Verses 5-13. And there were dwelling — Or sojourning; in Jerusalem, Jews — Now gathered from all parts, by the peculiar providence of God; devout — Greek, eulabeiv, pious men, from every nation under heaven — Should this be taken for an hyperbole, we have other instances in Scripture of the like way of speaking; as where we read of cities walled up to heaven, Deuteronomy 1:28; and of the dread of the Jews falling upon every nation under the whole heaven, Deuteronomy 2:25. But, not to insist upon it, that the Jews were then so numerous as to have spread through all countries, so that, as we read in Josephus, (Bell., 2:16,) “there was not a people upon earth who had not Jews inhabiting among them;” the expression here can signify no more than that there were some at Jerusalem, at that time, from all the several nations among whom the Jews were dispersed. Now when this was noised abroad — When this strange report came to be circulated, as it presently was; the multitude came together — From all parts of Jerusalem; and were confounded — Were utterly astonished; because that every man — Of this large and various assembly; heard one or other of them — As they addressed themselves by turns to people of a different language; speak in his own language — The language he had known from a child. And they marvelled — At this wonderful event; saying one to another — As they conversed upon it; Behold — How unaccountable is this! are not all these which speak, Galileans? — By birth and country? and how hear we every man — While they direct their speech to so many different people, who are here come together out of so many nations, speaking to each of us in our own tongue? Parthians, &c. — The reader, who is acquainted with ancient history, needs little or no information respecting the nations here mentioned. We may observe, however, that by the Elamites, the Persians are meant, and, by the dwellers in Mesopotamia, Bishop Cumberland thinks the remainder of the Jews are intended, who had been carried captive into Assyria, first by Tiglath-Pileser, (2 Kings 15:29,) and afterward by Shalmaneser, and placed in the cities of the Medes, 2 Kings 17:6. And in Judea — The dialect of which greatly differed from that of Galilee: Asia — The country strictly so called, Asia Minor: strangers of Rome — Greek, oiephmountev Rwmaioi, Roman

sojourners, persons born at Rome, but now living at Jerusalem. These seem to have come to Jerusalem after those who are above mentioned. All of them were partly Jews by birth, and partly proselytes. Cretes — The inhabitants of one island seem to be mentioned for those of all. We do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God — Meaning, probably, those which related to the incarnation, life, doctrine, and especially to the miracles, death, resurrection, and ascension of Christ; together with the effusion of his Spirit, as a fulfilment of his promises, and the glorious dispensations of gospel grace: or, the surprising testimonies God had given to the divine mission of Jesus, and to his being the true Messiah, the Son of God. It seems, while the apostles and other disciples were discoursing on these marvellous events, they spoke to different classes of people there assembled in such a great variety of languages, and with so much readiness and propriety, as were perfectly astonishing and unexampled, even among the most learned of mankind. And they were all amazed and in doubt — That is, the pious, or well disposed were; saying one to another, What meaneth this? — What can possibly be intended by this unaccountable appearance; but others mocking — The unbelievers begin with mocking, thence proceed to cavilling, Acts 4:7; to threats, verse 17; to imprisoning, Acts 5:18; to blows, verse 40; to slaughter, Acts 7:58. These mockers appear to have been some of the natives of Judea, and inhabitants of Jerusalem, (who understood only the dialect of the country,) by the apostles immediately directing their discourse to them in the next verse. These men are full of new wine — Greek, gleukouv, sweet wine, as the word properly signifies. There was no new wine, or must, so early in the year as pentecost; as Beza and many others have observed. Thus natural men are wont to ascribe supernatural things to mere natural causes; and many times as impudently and unskilfully as in the present case. We are informed by Plutarch, that the ancients had ways of preserving their wine sweet a great while, and such wines are known to be very intoxicating.

11. Wonderful works of God—When the human spirit, wherein resides man’s susceptibility to the religious emotions, is breathed upon by the Divine Spirit, and awakened into ecstasy, it may call the poetic powers into action, and evolve itself in the psalm. And if the man be endowed with the gift of genius, his psalm, like those of David, may be a permanent gift of God to his Church. Even among our Aryan ancestors a few of the hymns of their Rig-Veda, or Psalm-lore, evince that there were even with them some faint breathings of the blessed Spirit. Minds less endowed, when awakened to religious devotion, rather avail themselves of the strains of their greater predecessors than succeed in producing psalms of pure and perfect originality. This present passage confirms the idea that Mary’s Magnificat (Luke 1:46) was improvised and uttered in a spiritual ecstasy. And the Magnificat may be read as furnishing some idea of the nature of these raptured Pentecostal utterances.

Besides these strains in Luke’s first chapter, the New Testament age was not inspired to furnish any permanent psalmody to the sacred canon. There is nothing in the New Testament corresponding with the Psalms in the Old. The prose narrative, epistle, and prophecy, ending in the semi-poetic Apocalypse, were all that the Church’s discerning of spirits could recognise as entitled to a place in her new Scriptures.

V. 12. They were all amazed-All the devout men.

Verses 5-13. And there were dwelling — Or sojourning; in Jerusalem, Jews — Now gathered from all parts, by the peculiar providence of God; devout — Greek, eulabeiv, pious men, from every nation under heaven — Should this be taken for an hyperbole, we have other instances in Scripture of the like way of speaking; as where we read of cities walled up to heaven, Deuteronomy 1:28; and of the dread of the Jews falling upon every nation under the whole heaven, Deuteronomy 2:25. But, not to insist upon it, that the Jews were then so numerous as to have spread through all countries, so that, as we read in Josephus, (Bell., 2:16,) “there was not a people upon earth who had not Jews inhabiting among them;” the expression here can signify no more than that there were some at Jerusalem, at that time, from all the several nations among whom the Jews were dispersed. Now when this was noised abroad — When this strange report came to be circulated, as it presently was; the multitude came together — From all parts of Jerusalem; and were confounded — Were utterly astonished; because that every man — Of this large and various assembly; heard one or other of them — As they addressed themselves by turns to people of a different language; speak in his own language — The language he had known from a child. And they marvelled — At this wonderful event; saying one to another — As they conversed upon it; Behold — How unaccountable is this! are not all these which speak, Galileans? — By birth and country? and how hear we every man — While they direct their speech to so many different people, who are here come together out of so many nations, speaking to each of us in our own tongue? Parthians, &c. — The reader, who is acquainted with ancient history, needs little or no information respecting the nations here mentioned. We may observe, however, that by the Elamites, the Persians are meant, and, by the dwellers in Mesopotamia, Bishop Cumberland thinks the remainder of the Jews are intended, who had been carried captive into Assyria, first by Tiglath-Pileser, (2 Kings 15:29,) and afterward by Shalmaneser, and placed in the cities of the Medes, 2 Kings 17:6. And in Judea — The dialect of which greatly differed from that of Galilee: Asia — The country strictly so called, Asia Minor: strangers of Rome — Greek, oiephmountev Rwmaioi, Roman

sojourners, persons born at Rome, but now living at Jerusalem. These seem to have come to Jerusalem after those who are above mentioned. All of them were partly Jews by birth, and partly proselytes. Cretes — The inhabitants of one island seem to be mentioned for those of all. We do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God — Meaning, probably, those which related to the incarnation, life, doctrine, and especially to the miracles, death, resurrection, and ascension of Christ; together with the effusion of his Spirit, as a fulfilment of his promises, and the glorious dispensations of gospel grace: or, the surprising testimonies God had given to the divine mission of Jesus, and to his being the true Messiah, the Son of God. It seems, while the apostles and other disciples were discoursing on these marvellous events, they spoke to different classes of people there assembled in such a great variety of languages, and with so much readiness and propriety, as were perfectly astonishing and unexampled, even among the most learned of mankind. And they were all amazed and in doubt — That is, the pious, or well disposed were; saying one to another, What meaneth this? — What can possibly be intended by this unaccountable appearance; but others mocking — The unbelievers begin with mocking, thence proceed to cavilling, Acts 4:7; to threats, verse 17; to imprisoning, Acts 5:18; to blows, verse 40; to slaughter, Acts 7:58. These mockers appear to have been some of the natives of Judea, and inhabitants of Jerusalem, (who understood only the dialect of the country,) by the apostles immediately directing their discourse to them in the next verse. These men are full of new wine — Greek, gleukouv, sweet wine, as the word properly signifies. There was no new wine, or must, so early in the year as pentecost; as Beza and many others have observed. Thus natural men are wont to ascribe supernatural things to mere natural causes; and many times as impudently and unskilfully as in the present case. We are informed by Plutarch, that the ancients had ways of preserving their wine sweet a great while, and such wines are known to be very intoxicating.

V. 13. But others mocking-The world begins with mocking, thence proceeds to cavilling, Acts 4:7; to threats, Acts 4:17; to imprisoning, Acts 5:18; blows, Acts 5:40; to slaughter, Acts 7:58. These mockers appear to have been some of the natives of Judea, and inhabitants of Jerusalem, (who understood only the dialect of the country,) by the apostle's immediately directing his discourse to them in the next verse.

They are full of sweet wine-So the Greek word properly signifies. There was no new wine so early in the year as pentecost. Thus natural men are wont to ascribe supernatural things to mere natural causes; and many times as impudently and unskilfully as in the present case.

Verse 13. These men are full of new wine.] Rather sweet wine, for gleukouv, cannot mean the mustum, or new wine, as there could be none in Judea so early as pentecost. The gleukov, gleucus, seems to have been a peculiar kind of wine, and is thus described by Hesychius and Suidas: gleukov, to apostagma thv stafulhv, prin pathqh. Gleucus is that which distils from the grape before it is pressed. This must be at once both the strongest and sweetest wine. Calmet observes that the ancients had the secret of preserving wine sweet through the whole year, and were fond of taking morning draughts of it: to this Horace appears to refer, Sat. l. ii. s. iv. ver. 24.

Aufidius forti miscebat mella Falerno.

Mendose: quoniam vacuis committere venis

Nil nisi lene decet: leni præcordia mulso

Prolueris melius———

Aufidius first, most injudicious, quaffed

Strong wine and honey for his morning draught.

With lenient bev’rage fill your empty veins,

For lenient must will better cleanse the reins.

FRANCIS.

Verses 5-13. And there were dwelling — Or sojourning; in Jerusalem, Jews — Now gathered from all parts, by the peculiar providence of God; devout — Greek, eulabeiv, pious men, from every nation under heaven — Should this be taken for an hyperbole, we have other instances in Scripture of the like way of speaking; as where we read of cities walled up to heaven, Deuteronomy 1:28; and of the dread of the Jews falling upon every nation under the whole heaven, Deuteronomy 2:25. But, not to insist upon it, that the Jews were then so numerous as to have spread through all countries, so that, as we read in Josephus, (Bell., 2:16,) “there was not a people upon earth who had not Jews inhabiting among them;” the expression here can signify no more than that there were some at Jerusalem, at that time, from all the several nations among whom the Jews were dispersed. Now when this was noised abroad — When this strange report came to be circulated, as it presently was; the multitude came together — From all parts of Jerusalem; and were confounded — Were utterly astonished; because that every man — Of this large and various assembly; heard one or other of them — As they addressed themselves by turns to people of a different language; speak in his own language — The language he had known from a child. And they marvelled — At this wonderful event; saying one to another — As they conversed upon it; Behold — How unaccountable is this! are not all these which speak, Galileans? — By birth and country? and how hear we every man — While they direct their speech to so many different people, who are here come together out of so many nations, speaking to each of us in our own tongue? Parthians, &c. — The reader, who is acquainted with ancient history, needs little or no information respecting the nations here mentioned. We may observe, however, that by the Elamites, the Persians are meant, and, by the dwellers in Mesopotamia, Bishop Cumberland thinks the remainder of the Jews are intended, who had been carried captive into Assyria, first by Tiglath-Pileser, (2 Kings 15:29,) and afterward by Shalmaneser, and placed in the cities of the Medes, 2 Kings 17:6. And in Judea — The dialect of which greatly differed from that of Galilee: Asia — The country strictly so called, Asia Minor: strangers of Rome — Greek, oiephmountev Rwmaioi, Roman

sojourners, persons born at Rome, but now living at Jerusalem. These seem to have come to Jerusalem after those who are above mentioned. All of them were partly Jews by birth, and partly proselytes. Cretes — The inhabitants of one island seem to be mentioned for those of all. We do hear them speak in our tongues the wonderful works of God — Meaning, probably, those which related to the incarnation, life, doctrine, and especially to the miracles, death, resurrection, and ascension of Christ; together with the effusion of his Spirit, as a fulfilment of his promises, and the glorious dispensations of gospel grace: or, the surprising testimonies God had given to the divine mission of Jesus, and to his being the true Messiah, the Son of God. It seems, while the apostles and other disciples were discoursing on these marvellous events, they spoke to different classes of people there assembled in such a great variety of languages, and with so much readiness and propriety, as were perfectly astonishing and unexampled, even among the most learned of mankind. And they were all amazed and in doubt — That is, the pious, or well disposed were; saying one to another, What meaneth this? — What can possibly be intended by this unaccountable appearance; but others mocking — The unbelievers begin with mocking, thence proceed to cavilling, Acts 4:7; to threats, verse 17; to imprisoning, Acts 5:18; to blows, verse 40; to slaughter, Acts 7:58. These mockers appear to have been some of the natives of Judea, and inhabitants of Jerusalem, (who understood only the dialect of the country,) by the apostles immediately directing their discourse to them in the next verse. These men are full of new wine — Greek, gleukouv, sweet wine, as the word properly signifies. There was no new wine, or must, so early in the year as pentecost; as Beza and many others have observed. Thus natural men are wont to ascribe supernatural things to mere natural causes; and many times as impudently and unskilfully as in the present case. We are informed by Plutarch, that the ancients had ways of preserving their wine sweet a great while, and such wines are known to be very intoxicating.

13. Others mocking—Those who asked What meaneth this? spoke in solemn sympathy with, as well as amazement at, the scene. But there was another quite different set, who have had their like in all generations, of worldly, irreligious mockers. The former class are said to be all; that is, all the devout foreign residers in Jerusalem; while these others are more likely to be Palestinian Jews, either profane in character or bigoted Judaists, and so hostile to Christianity. Out of sympathy, they were perhaps unsusceptible of receiving the supernatural impression.

New wine—The must, or unfermented juice of the grape, which was a very luscious wine and not intoxicating, but only exhilarating. It is true that the grapes of the year had not been gathered, so that real new wine could not yet have been made. But there were processes by which the fermentation could be prevented, and the must be preserved through the year. One method was to boil it, (see note on John 2:3;) another was to put it into a perfectly tight cask and submerge the cask entirely in water for forty days. The fact that the must was only exhilarating seems to indicate that even these mockers did not see enough in the one hundred and twenty such ecstasies as to suggest a charge of complete drunkenness. Kuinoel quotes a Greek line which describes a minstrel as “exhilarated with must singing the sports of the Muses.” Though the Pentecostal brethren were exulting with joyous rapture, yet was every thing done “decently and in order.” After the mockers had fully exhibited their folly, the miraculous tongues became silent; and, from the mass of the hundred and twenty, Peter stood forth as vindicator and spokesman for the whole. With the eleven—Who, heretofore undistinguished in the body of believers, now stood forth as witnesses, (verse 32,) to sustain the testimony of their orator. Lifted up his voice—Lifted, because the audience he addressed was vast, and, however silent, needed a fulness of voice to be reached. After a graceful defensive exordium, Peter proceeds to answer their question, (verse 12,) What meaneth this?

2. Second Speech of Peter—that at Pentecost. 14-40.

V. 14. Then Peter standing up-All the gestures, all the words of Peter, show the utmost sobriety;

lifted up his voice-With cheerfulness and boldness;

and said to them-This discourse has three parts; each of which, Acts 2:14, 22, 29, begins with the same appellation, men: only to the last part he prefixes with more familiarity the additional word brethren. Men of Judea-That is, ye that are born in Judea. St. Peter spoke in Hebrew, which they all understood.

Verse 14. Peter, standing up with the eleven] They probably spoke by turns, not altogether; but Peter began the discourse.

All ye that dwell at Jerusalem] oi katoikountev would be better translated by the word sojourn, because these were not inhabitants of Judea, but the strangers mentioned in Acts 2:9-11, who had come up to the feast.

Verses 14, 15. But Peter, standing up with the eleven — Who were then in company with him, and who, doubtless, also all, or at least most of them, addressed the people on this occasion, some in one language, and others in another, speaking by turns, or even altogether, in different parts of the assembly, to those who understood the languages in which they spoke, and therefore flocked about them. Peter, however, it appears, spoke first, and addressing himself to the native Jews, undoubtedly spoke in the language of the country, the Chaldaio-Syriac, which they all understood. It is probable that the others, who discoursed in other languages, uttered truths similar to those declared by Peter; and certainly it was not by Peter’s preaching only, but that of all, or most of the rest of the hundred and twenty, that the three thousand souls were that day converted and added to the church. But Peter’s sermon is recorded, to be an evidence for him, that he was thoroughly recovered from his fall, and thoroughly restored to the divine favour. He that had in a timid, cowardly manner, denied Christ, now as courageously confesses him. Peter, by standing up, showed that he was not drunk; and by the regular, consistent, and conclusive manner in which he reasoned, he manifested the utmost sobriety, and most perfect recollection. He lifted up his voice — As one that was both well assured of, and much affected with, what he said; and was neither afraid nor ashamed to avow it; and in order that those who had been reproaching them might hear him; and said, Ye men of Judea — Andrev Ioudaioi, ye men that are Jews; and you especially that dwell at Jerusalem — Who were accessary to the death of Jesus; be this known unto you — Which ye did not know before, and which it infinitely concerns you to know now; and hearken to my words — With an attention becoming the importance of the subject on which I address you. My Master is gone, whose words you often heard in vain, and shall hear no more as you have done; but he speaks to you by us: hearken now to our words. For these are not drunken, as ye suppose — These disciples of Christ, that now speak with other tongues, speak good sense, and know what they say, as do those to whom they speak; who are led by their discourses into the knowledge of the wonderful works of God; and, indeed, it is very unreasonable and uncharitable for you to imagine that they are men intoxicated; seeing it is but the third hour of the day — That is, nine in the morning. The hour of morning sacrifice, before which, you know, none, who have any regard for their character, will allow themselves so much as to taste wine, and much less to drink any large quantity of it, whereby they would be rendered incapable of attending the service of the temple, and especially would not do it on such a solemn festival as this. Josephus tells us, that on feast-days the Jews seldom ate or drank any thing till noon; a circumstance which, if true, as there is reason to suppose it was, rendered this calumny still the more incredible. Peter’s discourse has three parts, each of which (see verses 14, 22, 29) begins with the same appellation, men: only to the last part he also prefixes, with more familiarity, the additional word brethren.

Ver. 14. Ye men of Judea, and all ye that dwell at Jerusalem. These addresses indicate that this sermon was delivered in the courts of the temple, and at nine o’clock, the hour before the usual worship began.

14. Men… dwell—Of course, during the Pentecost the men of Judea were gathered to the capital. We have, indeed, present several classes of persons more or less mingling—Palestinian Jews, foreign Jews, devout residents and mockers.

V. 15. It is but the third hour of the day-That is, nine in the morning. And on the solemn festivals the Jews rarely ate or drank any thing till noon.

Verse 15. But the third hour of the day] That is, about nine o’clock in the morning, previously to which the Jews scarcely ever ate or drank, for that hour was the hour of prayer. This custom appears to have been so common that even the most intemperate among the Jews were not known to transgress it; Peter therefore spoke with confidence when he said, these are not drunken-seeing it is but the third hour of the day, previously to which even the intemperate did not use wine.

Verses 14, 15. But Peter, standing up with the eleven — Who were then in company with him, and who, doubtless, also all, or at least most of them, addressed the people on this occasion, some in one language, and others in another, speaking by turns, or even altogether, in different parts of the assembly, to those who understood the languages in which they spoke, and therefore flocked about them. Peter, however, it appears, spoke first, and addressing himself to the native Jews, undoubtedly spoke in the language of the country, the Chaldaio-Syriac, which they all understood. It is probable that the others, who discoursed in other languages, uttered truths similar to those declared by Peter; and certainly it was not by Peter’s preaching only, but that of all, or most of the rest of the hundred and twenty, that the three thousand souls were that day converted and added to the church. But Peter’s sermon is recorded, to be an evidence for him, that he was thoroughly recovered from his fall, and thoroughly restored to the divine favour. He that had in a timid, cowardly manner, denied Christ, now as courageously confesses him. Peter, by standing up, showed that he was not drunk; and by the regular, consistent, and conclusive manner in which he reasoned, he manifested the utmost sobriety, and most perfect recollection. He lifted up his voice — As one that was both well assured of, and much affected with, what he said; and was neither afraid nor ashamed to avow it; and in order that those who had been reproaching them might hear him; and said, Ye men of Judea — Andrev Ioudaioi, ye men that are Jews; and you especially that dwell at Jerusalem — Who were accessary to the death of Jesus; be this known unto you — Which ye did not know before, and which it infinitely concerns you to know now; and hearken to my words — With an attention becoming the importance of the subject on which I address you. My Master is gone, whose words you often heard in vain, and shall hear no more as you have done; but he speaks to you by us: hearken now to our words. For these are not drunken, as ye suppose — These disciples of Christ, that now speak with other tongues, speak good sense, and know what they say, as do those to whom they speak; who are led by their discourses into the knowledge of the wonderful works of God; and, indeed, it is very unreasonable and uncharitable for you to imagine that they are men intoxicated; seeing it is but the third hour of the day — That is, nine in the morning. The hour of morning sacrifice, before which, you know, none, who have any regard for their character, will allow themselves so much as to taste wine, and much less to drink any large quantity of it, whereby they would be rendered incapable of attending the service of the temple, and especially would not do it on such a solemn festival as this. Josephus tells us, that on feast-days the Jews seldom ate or drank any thing till noon; a circumstance which, if true, as there is reason to suppose it was, rendered this calumny still the more incredible. Peter’s discourse has three parts, each of which (see verses 14, 22, 29) begins with the same appellation, men: only to the last part he also prefixes, with more familiarity, the additional word brethren.

15. Not drunken—Base and preposterous as their ribaldry was, Peter replies with a most elevated calmness of denial. The third hour—Eight or nine o’clock, the Jewish hour of morning prayer, when none but profligates, as no one supposed these to be, were drunken. I. Peter’s first answer to the question of verse 12.—vv. 16-21. This is the predicted inauguration of the Church of the Spirit, 16-18; by wonderful omens is heralded this notable day, 19-21. Peter is now not only an expounder of prophecy, but an empowered and inspired prophet. His comment, and even his variations, are of an equal authority with the original text.

V. 16. But this is that which was spoken of by the prophet-But there is another and better way of accounting for this. Joel 2:28

Verse 16. Spoken by the prophet Joel] The prophecy which he delivered so long ago is just now fulfilled; and this is another proof that Jesus whom ye have crucified is the Messiah.

Verses 16-21. But this is that which was spoken by the Prophet Joel — But there is another and better way of accounting for what you see and hear. It is the accomplishment of a remarkable prophecy, in its primary and literal sense intended of these times, and this event. Of this whole paragraph see the notes on Joel 2:28-32, where it is explained at large. It shall come to pass in the last days — So the times of the Messiah are frequently called, the gospel being the last dispensation of divine grace; I will pour out of my Spirit — Not on the day of pentecost only; upon all flesh — On persons of every age, sex, and rank. And your young men shall see visions — In young men the outward senses are most vigorous, and the bodily strength is entire, whereby they are best qualified to sustain the shock which usually attends the visions of God. In old men the internal senses are most vigorous, suited to divine dreams. Not that the old are wholly excluded from the former, or the young from the latter. And upon my servants — On those who are literally in a state of servitude. And I will show prodigies in heaven above, and signs on earth beneath — Great revelations of grace are usually attended with great judgments on those who reject it. In heaven — Treated of, verse 20. On earth — Described in this verse. Such signs were those mentioned verse 22, before the passion of Christ; which are so mentioned as to include also those at the very time of the passion and resurrection, at the destruction of Jerusalem, and at the end of the world. Terrible, indeed, were those prodigies in particular, which preceded the destruction of Jerusalem: such as the flaming sword hanging over the city, and the fiery comet, pointing down upon it for a year; the light that shone upon the temple and the altar in the night, as if it had been noon-day; the opening of the great and heavy gate of the temple without hands; the voice heard from the most holy place, Let us depart hence; the admonition of Jesus, the son of Ananus, crying, for seven years together, Wo, wo, wo; the vision of contending armies in the air, and of intrenchments thrown up against a city there represented; the terrible thunders and lightnings, and dreadful earthquakes, which every one considered as portending some great evil: all which, through the singular providence of God, are particularly recorded by Josephus. Blood — War and slaughter. Fire — Burning of houses and towns, involving all in clouds of smoke. See the notes on Isaiah 66:6; Luke 21:11. The moon shall be turned into blood — A bloody colour; before the day of the Lord — Eminently the last day; though not excluding any other day or season, wherein the Lord shall manifest his glory, in taking vengeance on his adversaries. But whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord — This expression implies the whole of religion, and particularly prayer uttered in faith; shall be saved — From all those plagues: from sin and hell. See on Joel 2:32.

Ver. 16. This is that which was spoken by the prophet Joel, Joel 2:28-

32. The days mentioned by the prophet are those new days or times, which the Messiah should create. See the notes on the passage. There is no other period in jewish history to which this luminous prophecy can be referred.

16. This is that—This wonderful manifestation is the (or a) fulfilment of the ancient predictions of the prophets, especially of Joel 2:28-32, that the age of the Messiah should be the dispensation of the Spirit. This inaugural effusion is the earnest, nevertheless, of future still more widespread and powerful effusions which are yet to be—the characteristics of the last days.

V. 17. The times of the Messiah are frequently called the last days, the Gospel being the last dispensation of Divine grace.

I will pour out of my Spirit-Not on the day of pentecost only, upon all flesh-On persons of every age, sex, and rank.

And your young men shall see visions-In young men the outward sense, are most vigorous, and the bodily strength is entire, whereby they are best qualified to sustain the shock which usually attends the visions of God. In old men the internal senses are most vigorous, suited to divine dreams. Not that the old are wholly excluded from the former, nor the young from the latter.

Verse 17. In the last days] The time of the Messiah; and so the phrase was understood among the Jews.

I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh] Rabbi Tanchum says, “When Moses laid his hands upon Joshua, the holy blessed God said, In the time of the old text, each individual prophet prophesied; but, in the times of the Messiah, all the Israelites shall be prophets.” And this they build on the prophecy quoted in this place by Peter.

Your sons and your daughters shall prophesy] The word prophesy is not to be understood here as implying the knowledge and discovery of future events; but signifies to teach and proclaim the great truths of God, especially those which concerned redemption by Jesus Christ. Your young men shall see visions, &c.] These were two of the various ways in which God revealed himself under the Old Testament. Sometimes he revealed himself by a symbol, which was a sufficient proof of the Divine presence: fire was the most ordinary, as it was the most expressive, symbol. Thus he appeared to Moses on Mount Horeb, and afterwards at Sinai; to Abraham, Genesis 15:1-21; to Elijah, 1 Kings 19:11, 12. At other times he revealed himself by angelic ministry: this was frequent, especially in the days of the patriarchs, of which we find many instances in the book of Genesis.

By dreams he discovered his will in numerous instances: see the remarkable case of Joseph, Genesis 37:5, 9; of Jacob, Genesis 28:1, &c.; Genesis 46:2, &c.; of Pharaoh, Genesis 41:1-7; of Nebuchadnezzar, Daniel 4:10-17. For the different ways in which God communicated the knowledge of his will to mankind, see the note on Genesis 15:1.

Verses 16-21. But this is that which was spoken by the Prophet Joel — But there is another and better way of accounting for what you see and hear. It is the accomplishment of a remarkable prophecy, in its primary and literal sense intended of these times, and this event. Of this whole paragraph see the notes on Joel 2:28-32, where it is explained at large. It shall come to pass in the last days — So the times of the Messiah are frequently called, the gospel being the last dispensation of divine grace; I will pour out of my Spirit — Not on the day of pentecost only; upon all flesh — On persons of every age, sex, and rank. And your young men shall see visions — In young men the outward senses are most vigorous, and the bodily strength is entire, whereby they are best qualified to sustain the shock which usually attends the visions of God. In old men the internal senses are most vigorous, suited to divine dreams. Not that the old are wholly excluded from the former, or the young from the latter. And upon my servants — On those who are literally in a state of servitude. And I will show prodigies in heaven above, and signs on earth beneath — Great revelations of grace are usually attended with great judgments on those who reject it. In heaven — Treated of, verse 20. On earth — Described in this verse. Such signs were those mentioned verse 22, before the passion of Christ; which are so mentioned as to include also those at the very time of the passion and resurrection, at the destruction of Jerusalem, and at the end of the world. Terrible, indeed, were those prodigies in particular, which preceded the destruction of Jerusalem: such as the flaming sword hanging over the city, and the fiery comet, pointing down upon it for a year; the light that shone upon the temple and the altar in the night, as if it had been noon-day; the opening of the great and heavy gate of the temple without hands; the voice heard from the most holy place, Let us depart hence; the admonition of Jesus, the son of Ananus, crying, for seven years together, Wo, wo, wo; the vision of contending armies in the air, and of intrenchments thrown up against a city there represented; the terrible thunders and lightnings, and dreadful earthquakes, which every one considered as portending some great evil: all which, through the singular providence of God, are particularly recorded by Josephus. Blood — War and slaughter. Fire — Burning of houses and towns, involving all in clouds of smoke. See the notes on Isaiah 66:6; Luke 21:11. The moon shall be turned into blood — A bloody colour; before the day of the Lord — Eminently the last day; though not excluding any other day or season, wherein the Lord shall manifest his glory, in taking vengeance on his adversaries. But whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord — This expression implies the whole of religion, and particularly prayer uttered in faith; shall be saved — From all those plagues: from sin and hell. See on Joel 2:32.

17. The last days—This phrase occurs many times in both Testaments with somewhat different meanings. What the last days are somewhat depends upon what are the antithetical first days. In the Old Testament, the Old Testament dispensation being the first age or days, the last days were the days of the Messiah, or the Christian dispensation. Such is the meaning here. All flesh—Not upon a few priests and prophets alone, but upon all ranks and classes; not for one race alone, but inherited by all nations. Prophesy… visions… dreams—The Pentecostal Church inaugurated by this effusion was a charismatic Church. Yet the signs and gifts here predicted, being really attendants upon the person of Jesus, commenced at his approaching advent. Note on Matthew 1:20.

After a long withdrawal of miracle and sign, the Baptist’s birth was announced by a vision of Zachariah’s. Our Saviour’s birth was heralded by the dreams of Joseph, the vision of Mary, and that of the shepherds. Simeon, Agabus the Apocalyptist, and others, prophesied. All these were in essence concentrated in the Spirit’s power bestowed at Pentecost.

V. 18. And upon my servants-On those who are literally in a state of servitude.

Verse 18. On my servants and on my handmaidens] This properly means persons of the lowest condition, such as male and female slaves. As the Jews asserted that the spirit of prophecy never rested upon a poor man, these words are quoted to show that, under the Gospel dispensation, neither bond nor free, male nor female, is excluded from sharing in the gifts and graces of the Divine Spirit.

Verses 16-21. But this is that which was spoken by the Prophet Joel — But there is another and better way of accounting for what you see and hear. It is the accomplishment of a remarkable prophecy, in its primary and literal sense intended of these times, and this event. Of this whole paragraph see the notes on Joel 2:28-32, where it is explained at large. It shall come to pass in the last days — So the times of the Messiah are frequently called, the gospel being the last dispensation of divine grace; I will pour out of my Spirit — Not on the day of pentecost only; upon all flesh — On persons of every age, sex, and rank. And your young men shall see visions — In young men the outward senses are most vigorous, and the bodily strength is entire, whereby they are best qualified to sustain the shock which usually attends the visions of God. In old men the internal senses are most vigorous, suited to divine dreams. Not that the old are wholly excluded from the former, or the young from the latter. And upon my servants — On those who are literally in a state of servitude. And I will show prodigies in heaven above, and signs on earth beneath — Great revelations of grace are usually attended with great judgments on those who reject it. In heaven — Treated of, verse 20. On earth — Described in this verse. Such signs were those mentioned verse 22, before the passion of Christ; which are so mentioned as to include also those at the very time of the passion and resurrection, at the destruction of Jerusalem, and at the end of the world. Terrible, indeed, were those prodigies in particular, which preceded the destruction of Jerusalem: such as the flaming sword hanging over the city, and the fiery comet, pointing down upon it for a year; the light that shone upon the temple and the altar in the night, as if it had been noon-day; the opening of the great and heavy gate of the temple without hands; the voice heard from the most holy place, Let us depart hence; the admonition of Jesus, the son of Ananus, crying, for seven years together, Wo, wo, wo; the vision of contending armies in the air, and of intrenchments thrown up against a city there represented; the terrible thunders and lightnings, and dreadful earthquakes, which every one considered as portending some great evil: all which, through the singular providence of God, are particularly recorded by Josephus. Blood — War and slaughter. Fire — Burning of houses and towns, involving all in clouds of smoke. See the notes on Isaiah 66:6; Luke 21:11. The moon shall be turned into blood — A bloody colour; before the day of the Lord — Eminently the last day; though not excluding any other day or season, wherein the Lord shall manifest his glory, in taking vengeance on his adversaries. But whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord — This expression implies the whole of religion, and particularly prayer uttered in faith; shall be saved — From all those plagues: from sin and hell. See on Joel 2:32.

18. My servants… my handmaidens—The words in the Old Testament signify servants or slaves, male and female; and the meaning is, that the Spirit shall condescend to the lowest rank. But Peter, in a true New Testament spirit, inserting the my, elevates them into God’s servants and hand-maids.

V. 19. And I will show prodigies in heaven above, and signs on earth beneath-Great revelations of grace are usually attended with great judgments on those who reject it.

In heaven-Treated of, Acts 2:20.

On earth-Described in this verse. Such signs were those mentioned, Acts 2:22, before the passion of Christ; which are so mentioned as to include also those at the very time of the passion and resurrection, at the destruction of Jerusalem, and at the end of the world.

Terrible indeed were those prodigies in particular which preceded the destruction of Jerusalem: such as the flaming sword hanging over the city, and the fiery comet pointing down upon it for a year; the light that shone upon the temple and the altar in the night, as if it had been noon-day; the opening of the great and heavy gate of the temple without hands; the voice heard from the most holy place, Let us depart hence; the admonition of Jesus the son of Ananus, crying for seven years together, Wo, wo, wo; the vision of contending armies in the air, and of entrenchments thrown up against a city there represented; the terrible thunders and lightnings, and dreadful earthquakes, which every one considered as portending some great evil: all which, through the singular providence of God, are particularly recorded by Josephus.

Blood-War and slaughter.

Fire-Burnings of houses and towns, involving all in clouds of smoke.

Verse 19. I will show wonders] It is likely that both the prophet and the apostle refer to the calamities that fell upon the Jews at the destruction of Jerusalem, and the fearful signs and portents that preceded those calamities. See the notes on Matthew 24:5-7, where these are distinctly related.

Blood, fire, and vapour of smoke] Skirmishes and assassinations over the land, and wasting the country with fire and sword.

Verses 16-21. But this is that which was spoken by the Prophet Joel — But there is another and better way of accounting for what you see and hear. It is the accomplishment of a remarkable prophecy, in its primary and literal sense intended of these times, and this event. Of this whole paragraph see the notes on Joel 2:28-32, where it is explained at large. It shall come to pass in the last days — So the times of the Messiah are frequently called, the gospel being the last dispensation of divine grace; I will pour out of my Spirit — Not on the day of pentecost only; upon all flesh — On persons of every age, sex, and rank. And your young men shall see visions — In young men the outward senses are most vigorous, and the bodily strength is entire, whereby they are best qualified to sustain the shock which usually attends the visions of God. In old men the internal senses are most vigorous, suited to divine dreams. Not that the old are wholly excluded from the former, or the young from the latter. And upon my servants — On those who are literally in a state of servitude. And I will show prodigies in heaven above, and signs on earth beneath — Great revelations of grace are usually attended with great judgments on those who reject it. In heaven — Treated of, verse 20. On earth — Described in this verse. Such signs were those mentioned verse 22, before the passion of Christ; which are so mentioned as to include also those at the very time of the passion and resurrection, at the destruction of Jerusalem, and at the end of the world. Terrible, indeed, were those prodigies in particular, which preceded the destruction of Jerusalem: such as the flaming sword hanging over the city, and the fiery comet, pointing down upon it for a year; the light that shone upon the temple and the altar in the night, as if it had been noon-day; the opening of the great and heavy gate of the temple without hands; the voice heard from the most holy place, Let us depart hence; the admonition of Jesus, the son of Ananus, crying, for seven years together, Wo, wo, wo; the vision of contending armies in the air, and of intrenchments thrown up against a city there represented; the terrible thunders and lightnings, and dreadful earthquakes, which every one considered as portending some great evil: all which, through the singular providence of God, are particularly recorded by Josephus. Blood — War and slaughter. Fire — Burning of houses and towns, involving all in clouds of smoke. See the notes on Isaiah 66:6; Luke 21:11. The moon shall be turned into blood — A bloody colour; before the day of the Lord — Eminently the last day; though not excluding any other day or season, wherein the Lord shall manifest his glory, in taking vengeance on his adversaries. But whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord — This expression implies the whole of religion, and particularly prayer uttered in faith; shall be saved — From all those plagues: from sin and hell. See on Joel 2:32.

Ver. 19. Blood and fire, and vapour of smoke. Not content with quoting the prophecy of the effusion of the Spirit, St. Peter speaks of the consequent rejection of the gospel; the more than a million of lives that were lost in the rebellion against the Romans, the burning of the city, and the total obscuration of the Hebrew sun: and all this before the great and final day of scrutiny of the whole world.

19. Wonders in heaven—The angels appearing in the sky to the shepherds; the descent of the Spirit, dove-like, from heaven at Jesus’ baptism; the voice from heaven, John 12:28; the Pentecostal mighty rushing as of wind from heaven. In the earth—Birth and miracles of Christ and his apostles, and especially Christ’s resurrection. Blood—The wonderful blood at the crucifixion. Fire—The opening wonder of the Pentecost. Vapour of smoke—At the darkness and earthquake of the crucifixion.

V. 20. The moon shall be turned into blood-A bloody colour: before the day of the Lord-Eminently the last day; though not excluding any other day or season, wherein the Lord shall manifest his glory, in taking vengeance of his adversaries.

Verse 20. The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood] These are figurative representations of eclipses, intended most probably to point out the fall of the civil and ecclesiastical state in Judea: see Clarke’s notes on “Matthew 24:29”. That the SUN is darkened when a total eclipse takes place, and that the MOON appears of a bloody hue in such circumstances, every person knows.

Verses 16-21. But this is that which was spoken by the Prophet Joel — But there is another and better way of accounting for what you see and hear. It is the accomplishment of a remarkable prophecy, in its primary and literal sense intended of these times, and this event. Of this whole paragraph see the notes on Joel 2:28-32, where it is explained at large. It shall come to pass in the last days — So the times of the Messiah are frequently called, the gospel being the last dispensation of divine grace; I will pour out of my Spirit — Not on the day of pentecost only; upon all flesh — On persons of every age, sex, and rank. And your young men shall see visions — In young men the outward senses are most vigorous, and the bodily strength is entire, whereby they are best qualified to sustain the shock which usually attends the visions of God. In old men the internal senses are most vigorous, suited to divine dreams. Not that the old are wholly excluded from the former, or the young from the latter. And upon my servants — On those who are literally in a state of servitude. And I will show prodigies in heaven above, and signs on earth beneath — Great revelations of grace are usually attended with great judgments on those who reject it. In heaven — Treated of, verse 20. On earth — Described in this verse. Such signs were those mentioned verse 22, before the passion of Christ; which are so mentioned as to include also those at the very time of the passion and resurrection, at the destruction of Jerusalem, and at the end of the world. Terrible, indeed, were those prodigies in particular, which preceded the destruction of Jerusalem: such as the flaming sword hanging over the city, and the fiery comet, pointing down upon it for a year; the light that shone upon the temple and the altar in the night, as if it had been noon-day; the opening of the great and heavy gate of the temple without hands; the voice heard from the most holy place, Let us depart hence; the admonition of Jesus, the son of Ananus, crying, for seven years together, Wo, wo, wo; the vision of contending armies in the air, and of intrenchments thrown up against a city there represented; the terrible thunders and lightnings, and dreadful earthquakes, which every one considered as portending some great evil: all which, through the singular providence of God, are particularly recorded by Josephus. Blood — War and slaughter. Fire — Burning of houses and towns, involving all in clouds of smoke. See the notes on Isaiah 66:6; Luke 21:11. The moon shall be turned into blood — A bloody colour; before the day of the Lord — Eminently the last day; though not excluding any other day or season, wherein the Lord shall manifest his glory, in taking vengeance on his adversaries. But whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord — This expression implies the whole of religion, and particularly prayer uttered in faith; shall be saved — From all those plagues: from sin and hell. See on Joel 2:32.

20. Sun… darkness—At the Saviour’s death. Moon… blood—The optical effect of the miracle of darkness. Yet physical wonders are but the visible signs and indexes of the spiritual and moral movements in the kingdom of God. And all these wonders had their type in the manifestations at Sinai. Again, Sinai and Pentecost are antithesis to each other. Notable day—Illustrious day, according to the Septuagint. The Hebrew may mean terrible day. Both were true. The same day has a bright and a dark side to it; the stern old prophet gives the dark side as for God’s enemies; the serene apostle gives to these Pentecostal hearers the side of brightness and promise. Nevertheless, for the persistent mockers (verse 13) the dark side remains true. Day—The prophetic passage quoted by Peter comes to a point upon this very day; and the question (verse 12) What meaneth this? is answered.

V. 21. But-whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord-This expression implies the whole of religion, and particularly prayer uttered in faith;

shall be saved-From all those plagues; from sin and hell.

Verse 21. Whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.] The predicted ruin is now impending; and only such as receive the Gospel of the Son of God shall be saved. And that none but the Christians did escape, when God poured out these judgments, is well known; and that ALL the Christians did escape, not one of them perishing in these devastations, stands attested by the most respectable authority. See Clarke’s note on “Matthew 24:13”.

Verses 16-21. But this is that which was spoken by the Prophet Joel — But there is another and better way of accounting for what you see and hear. It is the accomplishment of a remarkable prophecy, in its primary and literal sense intended of these times, and this event. Of this whole paragraph see the notes on Joel 2:28-32, where it is explained at large. It shall come to pass in the last days — So the times of the Messiah are frequently called, the gospel being the last dispensation of divine grace; I will pour out of my Spirit — Not on the day of pentecost only; upon all flesh — On persons of every age, sex, and rank. And your young men shall see visions — In young men the outward senses are most vigorous, and the bodily strength is entire, whereby they are best qualified to sustain the shock which usually attends the visions of God. In old men the internal senses are most vigorous, suited to divine dreams. Not that the old are wholly excluded from the former, or the young from the latter. And upon my servants — On those who are literally in a state of servitude. And I will show prodigies in heaven above, and signs on earth beneath — Great revelations of grace are usually attended with great judgments on those who reject it. In heaven — Treated of, verse 20. On earth — Described in this verse. Such signs were those mentioned verse 22, before the passion of Christ; which are so mentioned as to include also those at the very time of the passion and resurrection, at the destruction of Jerusalem, and at the end of the world. Terrible, indeed, were those prodigies in particular, which preceded the destruction of Jerusalem: such as the flaming sword hanging over the city, and the fiery comet, pointing down upon it for a year; the light that shone upon the temple and the altar in the night, as if it had been noon-day; the opening of the great and heavy gate of the temple without hands; the voice heard from the most holy place, Let us depart hence; the admonition of Jesus, the son of Ananus, crying, for seven years together, Wo, wo, wo; the vision of contending armies in the air, and of intrenchments thrown up against a city there represented; the terrible thunders and lightnings, and dreadful earthquakes, which every one considered as portending some great evil: all which, through the singular providence of God, are particularly recorded by Josephus. Blood — War and slaughter. Fire — Burning of houses and towns, involving all in clouds of smoke. See the notes on Isaiah 66:6; Luke 21:11. The moon shall be turned into blood — A bloody colour; before the day of the Lord — Eminently the last day; though not excluding any other day or season, wherein the Lord shall manifest his glory, in taking vengeance on his adversaries. But whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord — This expression implies the whole of religion, and particularly prayer uttered in faith; shall be saved — From all those plagues: from sin and hell. See on Joel 2:32.

21. Shall be saved—And this for his listeners the truest glory of the notable day. It is a day of an offered Saviour, and all these signs are proclamations of a day for men to repent, and accept him of whom the prophets spake.

II. Peter’s second answer to the question of verse 12: This effusion is shed forth from the crucified and risen Jesus, 22-33.

Jesus, wickedly slain, has risen, (22-24,) as is proved by David’s prediction, (25-28,) as interpreted by Peter, (29-31,) and confirmed by witnesses, 32. Therefore from the risen and ascended Jesus this effusion is shed forth. Which is the full answer to the question.

Sustained now, both by the Pentecostal miracle and its confirmation by prophecy, Peter is emboldened to assert and maintain by further prophecy the great miracle which proves Christianity true—the resurrection of Jesus—and that resurrection enables him to explain the Pentecostal miracle.

Verse 22. A man approved of God] apodedeigmenon, celebrated, famous. The sense of the verse seems to be this: Jesus of Nazareth, a man sent of God, and celebrated among you by miracles, wonders, and signs; and all these done in such profusion as had never been done by the best of your most accredited prophets. And these signs, &c., were such as demonstrated his Divine mission.

Verse 22. Ye men of Israel, hear these words — Let me charge it upon you, as a most important duty, to pay attention to these remarkable words of the prophet, which I have now repeated in your hearing; and a part of which is this day evidently fulfilled, and the rest shall be fulfilled in their season. Jesus of Nazareth — So I call him, because he was generally known among you by that name, though he was not born there, nor, properly speaking, was a Nazarene; a man approved of God among you — Censured, indeed, and condemned by men, but approved of God, who testified his approbation of his life, doctrine, and of the whole of his proceedings, by the miraculous powers he gave him; a man, marked out by God, as Dr. Hammond translates apo tou qeou apodedeigmenon, signalized and made remarkable among you that now hear me; for you yourselves are witnesses how remarkable he was rendered by the miracles, wonders, and signs, works above the power of nature, out of its ordinary course, and contrary to it, which God did by him — That is, which he did by that divine power with which he was clothed, and in which God plainly co-operated with him; for no man could do such works, unless God were with him. Observe, reader, the amazing stress Peter lays upon Christ’s miracles: 1st, The matter of fact was not to be denied; they were done, says he, in the midst of you — In the midst of your country, your city, your solemn assemblies; as ye yourselves also know — You have been eye- witnesses of his miracles, and I appeal to yourselves whether you have any thing to object against them, or can offer any thing to disprove them. 2d, The inference from them cannot be disputed; the reasoning is as strong as the evidence; if he did those miracles, certainly God approved of him, showed him to be what he declared himself to be, the Son of God and the Saviour of the world: for the God of truth would never set his seal to a lie.

22. Ye men of Israel—The orator at this point seems to collect his strength and begin anew. He addresses them by their noblest title of Israel, as if to show that it is from no want of love or respect that he lays upon them firmly the charge of being the slayers of Jesus. Jesus of Nazareth— Pity that our English translators, and so our English speaking Christendom, had not retained the true literal terms, Jesus the Nazarene. We should have more clearly felt the power of the prophecy in Matthew 2:23; and we should more constantly recognise the inspired magnanimity with which the early apostles gave the key-note of glorying in the cross of that name. Approved of—Sanctioned by. Miracles… wonders… signs—As

prophesied in 19-21. And of course to the believers in genuine prophecy there need be no difficulty in believing real miracles. Ye yourselves also know—It was but little more than fifty days since Jesus lived on earth. The devout foreign Jews had, doubtless, all been at the Passover, and witnessed, and in some degree shared in the crucifixion; and most knew Jesus and his miracles as eye-witnesses. But of the dwellers of Jerusalem the knowledge of Jesus’ works and participation in his death were matters that Peter could safely charge.

V. 23. Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God-The apostle here anticipates an objection, Why did God suffer such a person to be so treated? Did he not know what wicked men intended to do? And had he not power to prevent it? Yea. He knew all that those wicked men intended to do. And he had power to blast all their designs in a moment. But he did not exert that power, because he so loved the world! Because it was the determined counsel of his love, to redeem mankind from eternal death, by the death of his only-begotten Son.

Verse 23. Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel] Bp. Pearce paraphrases the words thus: Him having been given forth; i.e. sent into the world, and manifested by being made flesh, and dwelling among you, as it is said in John 1:14; see also Acts 4:28. Kypke contends that ekdoton, delivered, does not refer to GOD, but to Judas the traitor “the Jews received Jesus, delivered up to them by Judas; the immutable counsel of God so permitting.”

By the determinate counsel, wrismenh boulh; that counsel of God which defined the time, place, and circumstance, according (prognwsei) to his foreknowledge, which always saw what was the most proper time and place for the manifestation and crucifixion of his Son; so that there was nothing casual in these things, God having determined that the salvation of a lost world should be brought about in this way; and neither the Jews nor Romans had any power here, but what was given to them from above. It was necessary to show the Jews that it was not through Christ’s weakness or inability to defend himself that he was taken; nor was it through their malice merely that he was slain; for God had determined long before, from the foundation of the world, Revelation 13:8, to give his Son a sacrifice for sin; and the treachery of Judas, and the malice of the Jews were only the incidental means by which the great counsel of God was fulfilled: the counsel of God intending the sacrifice, but never ordering that it should be brought about by such wretched means. This was permitted; the other was decreed. See the observations at the end of this chapter. See Clarke “Acts 2:47”.

By wicked hands have crucified and slain] I think this refers to the Romans, and not to the Jews; the former being the agents, to execute the evil purposes of the latter. It is well known that the Jews acknowledged that they had no power to put our Lord to death, John 18:31, and it is as well known that the punishment of the cross was not a Jewish, but a Roman, punishment: hence we may infer that by dia ceirwn anomwn, by the hands of the wicked, the Romans are meant, being called anomoi, without law, because they had no revelation from God; whereas the others had what was emphatically termed o nomov tou qeou, the law of God, by which they professed to regulate their worship and their conduct. It was the Jews, therefore, who caused our Lord to be crucified by the hands of the heathen Romans.

Verses 23, 24. Him, being delivered — Unto death, by God his heavenly Father, who not only permitted him to be put to death, but delivered him up for us all. Romans 8:32; devoted and gave him up; and yet he was approved of God: and there was nothing in this that implied, in any degree, the disapproving of him. For it was done by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God — In infinite wisdom, and for holy ends, in which, and in the means leading to them, Jesus himself freely and fully concurred. For it was necessary that thus divine justice should be satisfied, God and man reconciled, sinners saved, and Christ himself glorified. It must be observed, the apostle here anticipates an objection. Why did God suffer such a person to be so treated? Did he not know what wicked men intended to do? And had he not power to prevent it? Yea, he knew all that those wicked men intended to do. And he had power to blast all their designs in a moment. But he did not exert that power, because he so loved the world! Because it was the determinate counsel of his love to redeem mankind from eternal death, by the death of his only-begotten Son. Ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified, &c. — Thus the apostle speaks, because neither God’s foreknowing what they would do, nor his designing that his Son should be offered as a sacrifice to expiate the sins of mankind, nor his bringing unspeakable and everlasting good out of this fact, could in the least excuse their sin who were agents in it; for it was their voluntary act and deed, proceeding from a principle morally evil, and therefore they are justly said to have perpetrated it with wicked hands. It is probable some of those who had cried, Crucify him, crucify him, or who had been otherwise aiding and abetting in the murder, were here present, and that Peter knew it. Be this as it may, it was justly looked upon as a national act, because done by the vote of the great council, and by the voice of the great crowd, clamouring for his blood. He charges it particularly upon them, as a part of the nation on which it would be peculiarly visited, the more effectually to bring them to repentance and faith, because that was the only way to distinguish themselves from the guilty that were about to perish in their sins, and to discharge themselves from the guilt of so dreadful a crime, and save themselves from the coming vengeance due to it. Whom God hath raised up — Whose honour God hath abundantly vindicated, and to whose innocence, truth, and dignity he hath borne a most glorious testimony; having loosed the pains of death — Or the bonds in which he lay, when the pains of death had done their work upon him; because it was not possible that he — The Prince of life, and a person who had never sinned, and therefore was not liable to the penalty of death, only due to sinners; should be finally holden of it — Or detained under its power. The word wdinav, here rendered pains, properly means, the pains of a woman in travail, an expression which seems to be here used to signify the agony which Christ suffered in his soul before he was nailed to the cross: and the extreme anguish he afterward endured, before he bowed his head and gave up the ghost. The word, however, seems to be used by the LXX. for cords and bands, Psalms 18:4Psalm 18:4; and Dr. Hammond thinks, that from them the apostle here used it in the same sense, to which, indeed, the metaphor of being held and loosing best agrees. Christ was imprisoned for our debt, was thrown into the bonds of death; but divine justice being satisfied, it was not possible he should be detained there, either by right or by force, for he had life in himself, and in his own power, and had conquered the prince of death.

Ver. 23. Him being (ekdoton given) delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God. Dr. Lightfoot makes Peter here anticipate the objection of the jews who said, “Can he be the Messiah that was crucified and slain? The Messiah to whom belong honour and glory above all kings, as all the prophets have said. Can he be the Messiah who was spit upon, scourged, and pierced with a spear? Yes, says Peter; these things had all been foretold of him from Moses to Malachi.” Nor could he at all have been the Messiah, had he not suffered all those indignities, as stated on Luke 24:44. See on Jeremiah 36:3.

23. Determinate—This Greek participle is derived from a noun signifying boundary line; hence, the determinate counsel is the well-defined counsel, the definite counsel, namely, his counsel that Christ should redeem the world by voluntarily dying for it. The term counsel in Greek, boulh, is the word from which our words volition and will are derived, but signifies a counsel or decree. Wicked hands—The best reading omits have taken. For with wicked hands the preferable reading is with the hands of lawless men. They had used the instrumentality of a Gentile (without law, Romans 2:12) soldiery for the deed. The apostle discriminates with delicacy between the act of God and the act of man. He is no fatalist or predestinarian. The delivery of Christ was His act; the wicked slaying was their responsible act, foreseen by the foreknowledge of God. There were thousands of ways in which Christ could have died without being obliged to these wicked hands for its accomplishment God needs not any man’s sin. But God selected that point in human history where the most wicked men were ready to show how far wickedness could go, to place his consenting Son at the post of duty and death. Hence, he was holily delivered by God’s counsel, but wickedly slain by wicked hands. And now, graceful and respectful as is the style in which our apostle has addressed these men, he firmly reveals to them, in the light of prophecy and well-known fact, that they have committed the greatest crime in human history. See note on Acts 4:28, and Romans 8:29, 30.

V. 24. Having loosed the pains of death-The word properly means, the pains of a woman in travail.

As it was not possible that he should be held under it-Because the Scripture must needs be fulfilled.

Verse 24. Whom God hath raised up] For, as God alone gave him up to death, so God alone raised him up from death.

Having loosed the pains of death] It is generally supposed that this expression means, the dissolving of those bonds or obligations by which those who enter into the region of the dead are detained there till the day of the resurrection; and this is supposed to be the meaning of twm ylbj chebley maveth, in <19B603>Psalm 116:3, or lwav ylbj chebley sheol, in Psalms 18:5Psalm 18:5, and in 2 Samuel 22:6, to which, as a parallel, this place has been referred. But Kypke has sufficiently proved that luein tav wdinav qanatou, signifies rather to REMOVE the pains or sufferings of death. So Lucian, Deuteronomy Conscr. Hist., says, “a copious sweat to some, eluse ton pureton, REMOVES or carries off the fever.” So STRABO, speaking of the balm of Jericho, says, luei de kefalalgiav qaumastwv-it wonderfully REMOVES the headache, &c. That Christ did suffer the pains and sorrows of death in his passion is sufficiently evident; but that these were all removed, previously to his crucifixion, is fully seen in that calm manner in which he met it, with all its attendant terrors. If we take the words as commonly understood, they mean that it was impossible for the Prince of Life to be left in the empire of death: his resurrection, therefore, was a necessary consequence of his own Divine power. Instead of qanatou, of death, the Codex Bezæ, Syriac, Coptic, and Vulgate, have aiJdou, of hell, or the place of separate spirits; and perhaps it was on no better authority than this various reading, supported but by slender evidence, that, He descended into hell, became an article in what is called the apostles’ creed. And on this article many a popish legend has been builded, to the discredit of sober sense and true religion.

Verses 23, 24. Him, being delivered — Unto death, by God his heavenly Father, who not only permitted him to be put to death, but delivered him up for us all. Romans 8:32; devoted and gave him up; and yet he was approved of God: and there was nothing in this that implied, in any degree, the disapproving of him. For it was done by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God — In infinite wisdom, and for holy ends, in which, and in the means leading to them, Jesus himself freely and fully concurred. For it was necessary that thus divine justice should be satisfied, God and man reconciled, sinners saved, and Christ himself glorified. It must be observed, the apostle here anticipates an objection. Why did God suffer such a person to be so treated? Did he not know what wicked men intended to do? And had he not power to prevent it? Yea, he knew all that those wicked men intended to do. And he had power to blast all their designs in a moment. But he did not exert that power, because he so loved the world! Because it was the determinate counsel of his love to redeem mankind from eternal death, by the death of his only-begotten Son. Ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified, &c. — Thus the apostle speaks, because neither God’s foreknowing what they would do, nor his designing that his Son should be offered as a sacrifice to expiate the sins of mankind, nor his bringing unspeakable and everlasting good out of this fact, could in the least excuse their sin who were agents in it; for it was their voluntary act and deed, proceeding from a principle morally evil, and therefore they are justly said to have perpetrated it with wicked hands. It is probable some of those who had cried, Crucify him, crucify him, or who had been otherwise aiding and abetting in the murder, were here present, and that Peter knew it. Be this as it may, it was justly looked upon as a national act, because done by the vote of the great council, and by the voice of the great crowd, clamouring for his blood. He charges it particularly upon them, as a part of the nation on which it would be peculiarly visited, the more effectually to bring them to repentance and faith, because that was the only way to distinguish themselves from the guilty that were about to perish in their sins, and to discharge themselves from the guilt of so dreadful a crime, and save themselves from the coming vengeance due to it. Whom God hath raised up — Whose honour God hath abundantly vindicated, and to whose innocence, truth, and dignity he hath borne a most glorious testimony; having loosed the pains of death — Or the bonds in which he lay, when the pains of death had done their work upon him; because it was not possible that he — The Prince of life, and a person who had never sinned, and therefore was not liable to the penalty of death, only due to sinners; should be finally holden of it — Or detained under its power. The word wdinav, here rendered pains, properly means, the pains of a woman in travail, an expression which seems to be here used to signify the agony which Christ suffered in his soul before he was nailed to the cross: and the extreme anguish he afterward endured, before he bowed his head and gave up the ghost. The word, however, seems to be used by the LXX. for cords and bands, Psalms 18:4Psalm 18:4; and Dr. Hammond thinks, that from them the apostle here used it in the same sense, to which, indeed, the metaphor of being held and loosing best agrees. Christ was imprisoned for our debt, was thrown into the bonds of death; but divine justice being satisfied, it was not possible he should be detained there, either by right or by force, for he had life in himself, and in his own power, and had conquered the prince of death.

Ver. 24. Whom God hath raised up. Peter asserts the divinity of Christ by three acts; — by his resurrection from the dead — by his session at the right hand of God, which designates the highest regal glory — and by the effusion of the Holy Ghost. “He hath shed forth this which ye now see and hear.” Could either prophet or rabbi expect more of the Messiah? A large remnant of Israel was saved, and the fulness of the gentiles began to come in.

24. Whom God hath raised—Now comes the great sequel to this crucifixion—the resurrection. The listeners knew the crucifixion; the apostles, as Peter will assure them, (verse 32,) knew the resurrection. But first he will prove it by testimony infallible, namely, testimony before the fact, being Divine prophecy. Loosed the pains of death—In his resurrection Jesus was not released from the “pains of death,” for they had ceased when he expired. In Psalms 18:5Psalm 18:5, the Hebrew word for “snares” or “bonds of death” may signify either snares, or birth-pains, or agonies in general. The Septuagint Greek has wdinev, a word of this last signification. Luke, in translating Peter’s speech from the Hebrew, in which it was spoken, into Greek, uses the Septuagint word. Probably in the Hebraized Greek of the day the word had the same double meaning; so that an English translator might suitably render it snares or “bonds of death;” a meaning suggested by the terms loosed and holden. Not possible—The impossibility that Christ should fail of a resurrection was not because it was prophetically predicted, but it was predicted because it was an impossibility. The Prince of Life could die in order to be the author of life to dying men; but the conquest of death must give way to a resurrection. His death was voluntary, his resurrection a necessity. The impossibility is additional, in Peter’s own view, to the prophecy. He knew it to lie in the very nature of Christ, who was able not only to lay down his life but to take it again. Hence in a true sense his resurrection was a natural event, being the legitimate effect of a sufficient cause. Hence, there is a fine truth in a striking reply of Goldwin Smith to those who object to a religion’s depending on human testimony. The resurrection of Christ is a necessary result of the high perfection of his character. If his life is a true life, and his death a transcendent death, then his resurrection is a necessary sequence, whether proved by human testimony or not. Not only does the testimony prove the fact, but the fact proves the testimony. Holden of it—Holden of death. We have a mighty Saviour who submitted to death, conquered death, and finally holds the keys of death and of Hades. His resurrection, surely, is a very natural event.

V. 25. Psalms 16:8Psalm 16:8.

Verse 25. For David speaketh concerning him] The quotation here is made from Psalms 16:8Psalm 16:8-11, which contains a most remarkable prophecy concerning Christ, every word of which applies to him, and to him exclusively. See the notes there.

Verses 25-28. For David speaketh concerning him — Namely, Psalms 16:8Psalm 16:8-11, where see the notes. I foresaw the Lord always before my face — In the Psalm, according to the Hebrew, it is, I have set the Lord always before me. Our Lord Jesus had a constant regard to his Father in his whole undertaking. He set his Father’s glory before him as his end, and his Father’s will as his rule, in every part of it. And he foresaw that his sufferings would redound abundantly to the honour of God, and would issue in his own everlasting joy and felicity. These things were set before him, and these he had an eye to in all he did and suffered; and with the prospect of these, he was supported and carried on. He is on my right hand — The instrument of action, strengthening, upholding, and guiding it; that I should not be moved — Shaken in, or driven from, my undertaking, by the hardships I must undergo. Therefore, &c. — On account of the firm confidence I had in him, that I should be supported in, and carried through all my labours and sufferings, and that they should have a glorious issue; my heart rejoiced in the midst of them; and my tongue was glad — Praised God in a joyful manner. In the Psalm it is, My glory rejoiceth: for our tongue is our glory; the faculty of speech is an honour to us; and never more so than when it is employed in praising God. Moreover my flesh shall rest in hope — The grave shall be to my body a bed of repose, and I shall cheerfully deliver it up to be laid there, in hope of a blessed resurrection. Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell — Eiv adou, in the invisible world. For it does not appear that ever our Lord’s soul went into what we call hell. On the contrary, when it was separated from the body, it went to paradise, Luke 23:43. The meaning is, Thou wilt not leave my soul in its state of separation from the body, nor suffer my body to be corrupted. See note on Psalms 16:10Psalm 16:10. Thou hast made known to me the ways of life — To which thou wilt assuredly conduct me; and after all my sufferings here, thou shalt make me full of joy with thy countenance — With manifestations of thy love and favour, in those upper and more glorious regions to which thou wilt raise me.

25. Concerning him—Namely, Christ. The quotation is from Psalm xvi, which psalm the best Christian interpreters apply to Christ—truly, no doubt, if it be true that David, even as a representative man, speaks in the first person of the Messiah, the Holy One. (Verse 27.) This is an epithet that no mere man is entitled to apply to himself; and if it could be truly applied to any being, that being would be entitled never to see corruption. If David were truly inspired, he could mean such a title only for some One higher than himself. I foresaw—The prefix fore merely implies what is expressed in the following word, before. Right hand—As my right-hand man, that is, my aid or seconder.

Verse 26. And my tongue was glad] In the Hebrew it is ydwbk lgyw vaiyagel kebodi, “And my glory was glad:” but the evangelist follows the Septuagint, in reading kai hgalliasato h glwssa mon, what all the other Greek interpreters in the Hexapla translate doxa mon, my glory. And what is to be understood by glory here! Why the soul, certainly, and not the tongue; and so some of the best critics interpret the place.

Verses 25-28. For David speaketh concerning him — Namely, Psalms 16:8Psalm 16:8-11, where see the notes. I foresaw the Lord always before my face — In the Psalm, according to the Hebrew, it is, I have set the Lord always before me. Our Lord Jesus had a constant regard to his Father in his whole undertaking. He set his Father’s glory before him as his end, and his Father’s will as his rule, in every part of it. And he foresaw that his sufferings would redound abundantly to the honour of God, and would issue in his own everlasting joy and felicity. These things were set before him, and these he had an eye to in all he did and suffered; and with the prospect of these, he was supported and carried on. He is on my right hand — The instrument of action, strengthening, upholding, and guiding it; that I should not be moved — Shaken in, or driven from, my undertaking, by the hardships I must undergo. Therefore, &c. — On account of the firm confidence I had in him, that I should be supported in, and carried through all my labours and sufferings, and that they should have a glorious issue; my heart rejoiced in the midst of them; and my tongue was glad — Praised God in a joyful manner. In the Psalm it is, My glory rejoiceth: for our tongue is our glory; the faculty of speech is an honour to us; and never more so than when it is employed in praising God. Moreover my flesh shall rest in hope — The grave shall be to my body a bed of repose, and I shall cheerfully deliver it up to be laid there, in hope of a blessed resurrection. Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell — Eiv adou, in the invisible world. For it does not appear that ever our Lord’s soul went into what we call hell. On the contrary, when it was separated from the body, it went to paradise, Luke 23:43. The meaning is, Thou wilt not leave my soul in its state of separation from the body, nor suffer my body to be corrupted. See note on Psalms 16:10Psalm 16:10. Thou hast made known to me the ways of life — To which thou wilt assuredly conduct me; and after all my sufferings here, thou shalt make me full of joy with thy countenance — With manifestations of thy love and favour, in those upper and more glorious regions to which thou wilt raise me.

V. 27. Thou wilt not leave my soul in hades-The invisible world. But it does not appear, that ever our Lord went into hell. His soul, when it was separated from the body, did not go thither, but to paradise, Luke 23:43. The meaning is, Thou wilt not leave my soul in its separate state, nor suffer my body to be corrupted.

Verse 27. Thou wilt not leave my soul in hell] eiv aiJdou, in hades, that is, the state of separate spirits, or the state of the dead. Hades was a general term among the Greek writers, by which they expressed this state; and this HADES was Tartarus to the wicked, and Elysium to the good. See the explanation of the word in the notes, see Clarke “Matthew 11:23”.

To see corruption.] Dust thou art, and unto dust thou shalt return, was a sentence pronounced on man after the fall: therefore this sentence could be executed on none but those who were fallen; but Jesus, being conceived without sin, neither partook of human corruption, nor was involved in the condemnation of fallen human nature; consequently, it was impossible for his body to see corruption; and it could not have undergone the temporary death, to which it was not naturally liable, had it not been for the purpose of making an atonement. It was therefore impossible that the human nature of our Lord could be subject to corruption: for though it was possible that the soul and it might be separated for a time, yet, as it had not sinned, it was not liable to dissolution; and its immortality was the necessary consequence of its being pure from transgression.

Verses 25-28. For David speaketh concerning him — Namely, Psalms 16:8Psalm 16:8-11, where see the notes. I foresaw the Lord always before my face — In the Psalm, according to the Hebrew, it is, I have set the Lord always before me. Our Lord Jesus had a constant regard to his Father in his whole undertaking. He set his Father’s glory before him as his end, and his Father’s will as his rule, in every part of it. And he foresaw that his sufferings would redound abundantly to the honour of God, and would issue in his own everlasting joy and felicity. These things were set before him, and these he had an eye to in all he did and suffered; and with the prospect of these, he was supported and carried on. He is on my right hand — The instrument of action, strengthening, upholding, and guiding it; that I should not be moved — Shaken in, or driven from, my undertaking, by the hardships I must undergo. Therefore, &c. — On account of the firm confidence I had in him, that I should be supported in, and carried through all my labours and sufferings, and that they should have a glorious issue; my heart rejoiced in the midst of them; and my tongue was glad — Praised God in a joyful manner. In the Psalm it is, My glory rejoiceth: for our tongue is our glory; the faculty of speech is an honour to us; and never more so than when it is employed in praising God. Moreover my flesh shall rest in hope — The grave shall be to my body a bed of repose, and I shall cheerfully deliver it up to be laid there, in hope of a blessed resurrection. Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell — Eiv adou, in the invisible world. For it does not appear that ever our Lord’s soul went into what we call hell. On the contrary, when it was separated from the body, it went to paradise, Luke 23:43. The meaning is, Thou wilt not leave my soul in its state of separation from the body, nor suffer my body to be corrupted. See note on Psalms 16:10Psalm 16:10. Thou hast made known to me the ways of life — To which thou wilt assuredly conduct me; and after all my sufferings here, thou shalt make me full of joy with thy countenance — With manifestations of thy love and favour, in those upper and more glorious regions to which thou wilt raise me.

Ver. 27. Thou wilt not leave my soul in hell, or hades. The spirit of our Saviour descended into hades, or the state of the dead. The rabbinical theology says that in hades there are two roads, the one for good men, and the other for bad. Hence, our Saviour’s going to hades was no other than his going to paradise. This gloss is very obvious from Isaiah 14:9, where the good kings of Judah are represented as in hades.

27. Hell—The place of departed spirits, Hades. (See notes on Luke 16:23,) Thine Holy One—A term which David under inspiration would hardly apply to himself simply. Corruption—Rationalists have denied that the Hebrew word used by David signifies corruption; but they are refuted on this point by Hengstenberg. As he well remarks, corruption refers to the body, as Hades refers to the soul. Good proof that in both David’s and Peter’s theology body and soul are different things, and may exist apart.

V. 28. Thou hast made known to me the ways of life-That is, Thou hast raised me from the dead.

Thou wilt fill me with joy by thy countenance-When I ascend to thy right hand.

Verse 28. Thou hast made known to me the ways of life] That is, the way from the region of death, or state of the dead and separate spirits; so that I shall resume the same body, and live the same kind of life, as I had before I gave up my life for the sin of the world.

Verses 25-28. For David speaketh concerning him — Namely, Psalms 16:8Psalm 16:8-11, where see the notes. I foresaw the Lord always before my face — In the Psalm, according to the Hebrew, it is, I have set the Lord always before me. Our Lord Jesus had a constant regard to his Father in his whole undertaking. He set his Father’s glory before him as his end, and his Father’s will as his rule, in every part of it. And he foresaw that his sufferings would redound abundantly to the honour of God, and would issue in his own everlasting joy and felicity. These things were set before him, and these he had an eye to in all he did and suffered; and with the prospect of these, he was supported and carried on. He is on my right hand — The instrument of action, strengthening, upholding, and guiding it; that I should not be moved — Shaken in, or driven from, my undertaking, by the hardships I must undergo. Therefore, &c. — On account of the firm confidence I had in him, that I should be supported in, and carried through all my labours and sufferings, and that they should have a glorious issue; my heart rejoiced in the midst of them; and my tongue was glad — Praised God in a joyful manner. In the Psalm it is, My glory rejoiceth: for our tongue is our glory; the faculty of speech is an honour to us; and never more so than when it is employed in praising God. Moreover my flesh shall rest in hope — The grave shall be to my body a bed of repose, and I shall cheerfully deliver it up to be laid there, in hope of a blessed resurrection. Because thou wilt not leave my soul in hell — Eiv adou, in the invisible world. For it does not appear that ever our Lord’s soul went into what we call hell. On the contrary, when it was separated from the body, it went to paradise, Luke 23:43. The meaning is, Thou wilt not leave my soul in its state of separation from the body, nor suffer my body to be corrupted. See note on Psalms 16:10Psalm 16:10. Thou hast made known to me the ways of life — To which thou wilt assuredly conduct me; and after all my sufferings here, thou shalt make me full of joy with thy countenance — With manifestations of thy love and favour, in those upper and more glorious regions to which thou wilt raise me.

28. Ways of life—In the Hebrew, the way of life; signifying, as applied to the Messiah, his path through resurrection to life. Thy countenance— After his ascension to God.

V. 29. The patriarch-A more honourable title than king.

Verse 29. Let me speak freely-of the patriarch David] In Midris Tillin, it is said, in a paraphrase on the words, my flesh shall rest in hope, “Neither worm nor insect had power over David.” It is possible that this opinion prevailed in the time of St. Peter, and, if so, his words are the more pointed and forcible; and therefore thus applied by Dr. Lightfoot: “That this passage, Thou shalt not leave my soul in hell, &c., is not to be applied to David himself appears in that I may confidently aver concerning him, that he was dead and buried, and never rose again; but his soul was left eiv adou, in the state of the dead, and HE saw corruption; for his sepulchre is with us to this day, under that very notion, that it is the sepulchre of David, who died and was there buried; nor is there one syllable mentioned any where of the resurrection of his body, or the return of his soul ex adou from the state of the dead.” To this the same author adds the following remarkable note: I cannot slip over that passage, Hieros. Chagig. fol. 78: Rab. Jose saith, David died at pentecost, and all Israel bewailed him, and offered their sacrifices the day following. This is a remarkable coincidence; and may be easily applied to him of whom David was a type.

Verses 29-31. Men and brethren — Thus he addresses himself to them, with a title of respect; let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch David — Let it be no offence to you, if I tell you that David cannot be understood here as speaking of himself, but of the Messiah to come. David is here called a patriarch, a more honourable title than king, because he was the father of the royal family, and a man of great note and eminence in his generation; that he is both dead and buried, and his sepulchre is with us — And as no one ever pretended that he had risen, therefore he could not say of himself, that he should not see, or suffer corruption; it being evident he did suffer it. St. Paul urges this same argument, chap. 13:35-37. Therefore, being a prophet, &c. — He therefore spoke it as a prophet, with an eye to the Messiah, to whose sufferings the prophets bore testimony beforehand, as also to the glory that should follow; knowing that God had sworn with an oath — In a special revelation from heaven; that of the fruit of his loins — Or, out of his descendants; he would raise up Christ — That is, the promised Messiah; to sit on his throne — That is, promised him a son; the throne of whose kingdom should be established for ever, 2 Samuel 7:12. He seeing this before — With a firm reliance on the faithfulness of God, spake of the resurrection of Christ in the words just now repeated; not meaning them of himself, or intending they should be taken in any lower sense. But how does that promise of a kingdom imply Christ’s resurrection? Because he did not receive it before he died, and because his kingdom was to endure for ever, 2 Samuel 7:13.

29. Freely speak—In spite of your great reverence for David. Patriarch—Evincing his profound respect for David by this unusual, but most venerable title, which belonged more strictly to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and his twelve sons, the fathers of the twelve tribes. Sepulchre is with us—And the “tomb of David” is still standing on the brow of Mount Zion. From Nehemiah 3:16, we learn that “the sepulchre of David” was near to a “pool that was made;” and the present tomb is near the pool of Gihon. It is jealously guarded by the Turks, no Christian being allowed to enter upon pain of death. Dr. Barclay, in his “City of the Great King,” narrates that his own laughter, by a singular adventure, obtained entrance long enough to sketch a picture of its gorgeous interior, which is exhibited in rich colorings in his book. Peter could, of course, assume this tomb to be monumental evidence that David had not passed through a resurrection and ascension.

V. 30. Psalms 89:4Psalm 89:4, &c.

Verse 30. According to the flesh, he would raise up Christ] This whole clause is wanting in ACD, one of the Syriac, the Coptic, Æthiopic, Armenian, and Vulgate; and is variously entered in others. Griesbach rejects it from the text, and Professor White says of the words, “certissime delenda,” they should doubtless be expunged. This is a gloss, says Schoettgen, that has crept into the text, which I prove thus: 1. The Syriac and Vulgate, the most ancient of the versions, have not these words. 2. The passage is consistent enough and intelligible without them. 3. They are superfluous, as the mind of the apostle concerning the resurrection of Christ follows immediately in the succeeding verse. The passage therefore, according to Bp. Pearce, should be read thus: Therefore being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath, of the fruit of his loins, to set on his throne; and foreseeing that he (God) would raise up Christ, he spake of the resurrection of Christ, &c. “In this transition, the words which Peter quotes for David’s are exactly the same with what we read in the psalm above mentioned; and the circumstance of David’s foreseeing that Christ was to be raised up, and was the person meant, is not represented as a part of the oath; but is only made to be Peter’s assertion, that David, as a prophet, did foresee it, and meant it.”

Verses 29-31. Men and brethren — Thus he addresses himself to them, with a title of respect; let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch David — Let it be no offence to you, if I tell you that David cannot be understood here as speaking of himself, but of the Messiah to come. David is here called a patriarch, a more honourable title than king, because he was the father of the royal family, and a man of great note and eminence in his generation; that he is both dead and buried, and his sepulchre is with us — And as no one ever pretended that he had risen, therefore he could not say of himself, that he should not see, or suffer corruption; it being evident he did suffer it. St. Paul urges this same argument, chap. 13:35-37. Therefore, being a prophet, &c. — He therefore spoke it as a prophet, with an eye to the Messiah, to whose sufferings the prophets bore testimony beforehand, as also to the glory that should follow; knowing that God had sworn with an oath — In a special revelation from heaven; that of the fruit of his loins — Or, out of his descendants; he would raise up Christ — That is, the promised Messiah; to sit on his throne — That is, promised him a son; the throne of whose kingdom should be established for ever, 2 Samuel 7:12. He seeing this before — With a firm reliance on the faithfulness of God, spake of the resurrection of Christ in the words just now repeated; not meaning them of himself, or intending they should be taken in any lower sense. But how does that promise of a kingdom imply Christ’s resurrection? Because he did not receive it before he died, and because his kingdom was to endure for ever, 2 Samuel 7:13.

30. A prophet—In the sense both of speaking by inspiration and of predicting the future. An oath—In 2 Samuel 7:5-16, God promises to David a successorship on the throne forever; in <19D211>Psalm 132:11, David affirms that God had so sworn; both in consequence of David’s determination to build a house for Jehovah. Fruit of his loins—Peter speaks as if it was, as it were, through his line of descent that David was able to look prophetically as through a line of light. Thereby he identifies himself with his great descendant the Messiah, and speaks in Psalm xvi as Messiah himself. The best reading, instead of he would raise Christ to sit on his throne, would substitute, that of the fruit of his loins One should sit on his throne. With that future One Peter now (in verse 32) identifies Jesus.

Verse 31. That his soul was not left in hell] The words h yuch autou, his soul, are omitted by ABCD, Syriac, Coptic, Æthiopic, and Vulgate. Griesbach has left them out of the text, and Professor White says again, certissime delenda. The passage may be thus read: “He spake of the resurrection of Christ, that he was not left in hades, neither did his flesh see corruption.” For the various readings in this and the preceding verse, see Griesbach.

Verses 29-31. Men and brethren — Thus he addresses himself to them, with a title of respect; let me freely speak unto you of the patriarch David — Let it be no offence to you, if I tell you that David cannot be understood here as speaking of himself, but of the Messiah to come. David is here called a patriarch, a more honourable title than king, because he was the father of the royal family, and a man of great note and eminence in his generation; that he is both dead and buried, and his sepulchre is with us — And as no one ever pretended that he had risen, therefore he could not say of himself, that he should not see, or suffer corruption; it being evident he did suffer it. St. Paul urges this same argument, chap. 13:35-37. Therefore, being a prophet, &c. — He therefore spoke it as a prophet, with an eye to the Messiah, to whose sufferings the prophets bore testimony beforehand, as also to the glory that should follow; knowing that God had sworn with an oath — In a special revelation from heaven; that of the fruit of his loins — Or, out of his descendants; he would raise up Christ — That is, the promised Messiah; to sit on his throne — That is, promised him a son; the throne of whose kingdom should be established for ever, 2 Samuel 7:12. He seeing this before — With a firm reliance on the faithfulness of God, spake of the resurrection of Christ in the words just now repeated; not meaning them of himself, or intending they should be taken in any lower sense. But how does that promise of a kingdom imply Christ’s resurrection? Because he did not receive it before he died, and because his kingdom was to endure for ever, 2 Samuel 7:13.

31. Spake of the resurrection of Christ—The word Christ signifies Messiah, and it is worth while to note how Peter changes from Christ or Messiah to Jesus in the next verse. His meaning is that Messiah was predicted as having a resurrection; that this Jesus had a resurrection we know, and, therefore, a presumption, in the surrounding circumstances, that this Jesus is Messiah. For his soul was not left in hell, a reading more probable would be, he was not left in hell. The copyist probably borrowed the word soul from verse 27.

V. 32. He foreseeing this, spake of the resurrection Of Christ-St. Peter argues thus: It is plain, David did not speak this of himself. Therefore he spake of Christ's rising. But how does that promise of a kingdom imply his resurrection? Because he did not receive it before he died, and because his kingdom was to endure for ever, 2 Samuel 7:13.

Verse 32. Whereof we all are witnesses.] That is, the whole 120 saw him after he rose from the dead, and were all ready, in the face of persecution and death, to attest this great truth.

Verses 32-36. This Jesus — Whom we assert to be the true Messiah; hath God raised up — According to the tenor of his promise; whereof — Of which resurrection; we all are witnesses — On our personal and certain knowledge; having seen him with our eyes, and examined into the truth of the matter with all possible care. Therefore, being by the right hand of God — That is, by God’s almighty power, exalted from the grave to heaven; or, as some read the clause, Being exalted to the right hand of God, to supreme power, majesty, and glory; and having received of the Father — As the great anointed one of the Lord; the promise of the Holy Ghost — The Holy Ghost promised to his disciples; he hath — Agreeably to the notices he gave us before his ascension; shed forth this miraculous effusion of it, the effects of which ye now see and hear. For David himself — Who has not yet been raised from the dead; is not — With respect to his body; ascended into heaven — To be advanced there to the highest dignity and power: but he saith — In another Psalm, (where he plainly shows that he spoke of another person, and such another as was superior to himself, even his Lord;) The Lord — Namely, Jehovah, (the word here used;) said unto my Lord — That is, God the Father said unto the Messiah, (whom, though in one sense David’s son, he honoured as his Lord;) Sit thou on my right hand — Be thou invested with the highest power and glory; until I make thy foes — All that are so presumptuous as to persist in hostility to thee; thy footstool — Until I lay them prostrate at thy feet, so that thou mayest trample upon them at pleasure, as entirely subdued. See note on <19B001>Psalm 110:1. This text is here quoted with the greatest address, as suggesting, in the words of David, their great prophetic monarch, how certain their own ruin must be, if they went on to oppose Christ. It may be proper to observe here, that in these two verses there is an allusion to two ancient customs: one, to that of kings placing those persons on their right hands to whom they intended the highest honour; as Solomon did Bathsheba, when sitting on his throne, 1 Kings 2:19; and the other, to the custom of conquerors, who used to tread on the necks of their vanquished enemies, as a token of their entire victory and triumph over them. Therefore — Upon the whole, from this concurrent evidence, both of prophecy and miracle, and from the testimony God has given to that Jesus whom we preach, not only by his resurrection from the dead, but by the effusion of the Holy Spirit on his followers; let all the house of Israel know assuredly — How contrary soever it may be to their former apprehensions and rooted prejudices; that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have rejected and crucified, both Lord and Christ — Hath demonstrated him to be the expected Messiah, and hath constituted him the King of his people, and Lord of all: let them know certainly that this truth has now received its full confirmation, and we our full commission to publish it. Thus Peter shows, in a striking light, what aggravated wickedness they had been guilty of, in that they had crucified one whom God designed to glorify, and had put him to death as a deceiver, who had given such pregnant proofs of a divine mission.

32. We—The men whose divine authority you have seen demonstrated in this pentecostal miracle. Witnesses—See note on Luke 1:2. Our eyes can testify the accordance of fact with prophecy.

V. 33. Being exalted by the right hand of God-By the right hand; that is, the mighty power of God. Our Lord was exalted at his ascension to God's right hand in heaven.

Verse 33. By the right hand of God exalted] Raised by omnipotence to the highest dignity in the realms of glory, to sit at the right hand of God, and administer the laws of both worlds.

The promise of the Holy Ghost] This was the promise that he had made to them a little before he suffered, as may be seen in John 14:16, &c., John 16:7, &c., and after he had risen from the dead. Luke 24:49, and which as the apostle says was now shed forth.

Verses 32-36. This Jesus — Whom we assert to be the true Messiah; hath God raised up — According to the tenor of his promise; whereof — Of which resurrection; we all are witnesses — On our personal and certain knowledge; having seen him with our eyes, and examined into the truth of the matter with all possible care. Therefore, being by the right hand of God — That is, by God’s almighty power, exalted from the grave to heaven; or, as some read the clause, Being exalted to the right hand of God, to supreme power, majesty, and glory; and having received of the Father — As the great anointed one of the Lord; the promise of the Holy Ghost — The Holy Ghost promised to his disciples; he hath — Agreeably to the notices he gave us before his ascension; shed forth this miraculous effusion of it, the effects of which ye now see and hear. For David himself — Who has not yet been raised from the dead; is not — With respect to his body; ascended into heaven — To be advanced there to the highest dignity and power: but he saith — In another Psalm, (where he plainly shows that he spoke of another person, and such another as was superior to himself, even his Lord;) The Lord — Namely, Jehovah, (the word here used;) said unto my Lord — That is, God the Father said unto the Messiah, (whom, though in one sense David’s son, he honoured as his Lord;) Sit thou on my right hand — Be thou invested with the highest power and glory; until I make thy foes — All that are so presumptuous as to persist in hostility to thee; thy footstool — Until I lay them prostrate at thy feet, so that thou mayest trample upon them at pleasure, as entirely subdued. See note on <19B001>Psalm 110:1. This text is here quoted with the greatest address, as suggesting, in the words of David, their great prophetic monarch, how certain their own ruin must be, if they went on to oppose Christ. It may be proper to observe here, that in these two verses there is an allusion to two ancient customs: one, to that of kings placing those persons on their right hands to whom they intended the highest honour; as Solomon did Bathsheba, when sitting on his throne, 1 Kings 2:19; and the other, to the custom of conquerors, who used to tread on the necks of their vanquished enemies, as a token of their entire victory and triumph over them. Therefore — Upon the whole, from this concurrent evidence, both of prophecy and miracle, and from the testimony God has given to that Jesus whom we preach, not only by his resurrection from the dead, but by the effusion of the Holy Spirit on his followers; let all the house of Israel know assuredly — How contrary soever it may be to their former apprehensions and rooted prejudices; that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have rejected and crucified, both Lord and Christ — Hath demonstrated him to be the expected Messiah, and hath constituted him the King of his people, and Lord of all: let them know certainly that this truth has now received its full confirmation, and we our full commission to publish it. Thus Peter shows, in a striking light, what aggravated wickedness they had been guilty of, in that they had crucified one whom God designed to glorify, and had put him to death as a deceiver, who had given such pregnant proofs of a divine mission.

33. Therefore—As the result of the whole. Exalted—A clear testimony to the ascension. Shed forth this—So that we have here Peter’s second answer to the question, (verse 12,) What meaneth this?—It is a manifestation sent down from the ascended Jesus Messiah. Peter now confirms the exalted Lordship of the ascended Jesus by further prophecy.

V. 34. Sit thou on my right hand-In this and the following verse is an allusion to two ancient customs; one, to the highest honour that used to be paid to persons by placing them on the right hand, as Solomon did Bathsheba, when sitting on his throne, 1 Kings 2:19; and the other, to the custom of conquerors, who used to tread on the necks of their vanquished enemies, as a token of their entire victory and triumph over them.

Verse 34. David is not ascended] Consequently, he has not sent forth this extraordinary gift, but it comes from his Lord, of whom he said, The Lord said unto my Lord, &c. See Clarke’s note on these words, “Matthew 22:44”.

Verses 32-36. This Jesus — Whom we assert to be the true Messiah; hath God raised up — According to the tenor of his promise; whereof — Of which resurrection; we all are witnesses — On our personal and certain knowledge; having seen him with our eyes, and examined into the truth of the matter with all possible care. Therefore, being by the right hand of God — That is, by God’s almighty power, exalted from the grave to heaven; or, as some read the clause, Being exalted to the right hand of God, to supreme power, majesty, and glory; and having received of the Father — As the great anointed one of the Lord; the promise of the Holy Ghost — The Holy Ghost promised to his disciples; he hath — Agreeably to the notices he gave us before his ascension; shed forth this miraculous effusion of it, the effects of which ye now see and hear. For David himself — Who has not yet been raised from the dead; is not — With respect to his body; ascended into heaven — To be advanced there to the highest dignity and power: but he saith — In another Psalm, (where he plainly shows that he spoke of another person, and such another as was superior to himself, even his Lord;) The Lord — Namely, Jehovah, (the word here used;) said unto my Lord — That is, God the Father said unto the Messiah, (whom, though in one sense David’s son, he honoured as his Lord;) Sit thou on my right hand — Be thou invested with the highest power and glory; until I make thy foes — All that are so presumptuous as to persist in hostility to thee; thy footstool — Until I lay them prostrate at thy feet, so that thou mayest trample upon them at pleasure, as entirely subdued. See note on <19B001>Psalm 110:1. This text is here quoted with the greatest address, as suggesting, in the words of David, their great prophetic monarch, how certain their own ruin must be, if they went on to oppose Christ. It may be proper to observe here, that in these two verses there is an allusion to two ancient customs: one, to that of kings placing those persons on their right hands to whom they intended the highest honour; as Solomon did Bathsheba, when sitting on his throne, 1 Kings 2:19; and the other, to the custom of conquerors, who used to tread on the necks of their vanquished enemies, as a token of their entire victory and triumph over them. Therefore — Upon the whole, from this concurrent evidence, both of prophecy and miracle, and from the testimony God has given to that Jesus whom we preach, not only by his resurrection from the dead, but by the effusion of the Holy Spirit on his followers; let all the house of Israel know assuredly — How contrary soever it may be to their former apprehensions and rooted prejudices; that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have rejected and crucified, both Lord and Christ — Hath demonstrated him to be the expected Messiah, and hath constituted him the King of his people, and Lord of all: let them know certainly that this truth has now received its full confirmation, and we our full commission to publish it. Thus Peter shows, in a striking light, what aggravated wickedness they had been guilty of, in that they had crucified one whom God designed to glorify, and had put him to death as a deceiver, who had given such pregnant proofs of a divine mission.

34. David is not ascended—And it is not, therefore, David’s exaltation that the prediction announces. And as the Jewish Church admits that the Messiah, and he alone, is foretold in David’s psalms, so if it be not David, it must be Messiah. The Lord—David’s Hebrew for Lord (Psalm cx) is JEHOVAH, which is God’s proper name; just as David is the proper name of the man so named. It is, therefore, an incommunicable name, belonging to the God of Israel alone. So solemnly did the ancient Jews reverence is as never to utter it vocally; and as the ancient Jews had no vowels in their writing, so both the pronunciation and the proper vowels are lost. When the sacred name occurred in the Holy Text, the Jews in reading substituted the word Adonai, Lord; and when the vowel characters were afterward invented, not knowing the proper vowels to be added to the consonants of the sacred name, they gave it the vowels of the word Adonai. Nor is it probable that these were the proper vowels, nor are they certainly known. The English translators, most improperly following in many places the example of the Septuagint, have rendered the name Jehovah by the word LORD, spelling it, however, as here, in capitals.

V. 35. Until I make thine enemies thy footstool-This text is here quoted with the greatest address, as suggesting in the words of David, their great prophetic monarch, how certain their own ruin must be, if they went on to oppose Christ. <19B001>Psalm 110:1.

Verse 35. Until I make thy foes thy footstool.] It was usual with conquerors to put their feet on the necks of vanquished leaders, as emblematical of the state of subjection to which they were reduced, and the total extinction of their power. By quoting these words, Peter shows the Jews, who continued enemies to Christ, that their discomfiture and ruin must necessarily take place, their own king and prophet having predicted this in connection with the other things which had already been so literally and circumstantially fulfilled. This conclusion had the desired effect, when pressed home with the strong application in the following verse.

Verses 32-36. This Jesus — Whom we assert to be the true Messiah; hath God raised up — According to the tenor of his promise; whereof — Of which resurrection; we all are witnesses — On our personal and certain knowledge; having seen him with our eyes, and examined into the truth of the matter with all possible care. Therefore, being by the right hand of God — That is, by God’s almighty power, exalted from the grave to heaven; or, as some read the clause, Being exalted to the right hand of God, to supreme power, majesty, and glory; and having received of the Father — As the great anointed one of the Lord; the promise of the Holy Ghost — The Holy Ghost promised to his disciples; he hath — Agreeably to the notices he gave us before his ascension; shed forth this miraculous effusion of it, the effects of which ye now see and hear. For David himself — Who has not yet been raised from the dead; is not — With respect to his body; ascended into heaven — To be advanced there to the highest dignity and power: but he saith — In another Psalm, (where he plainly shows that he spoke of another person, and such another as was superior to himself, even his Lord;) The Lord — Namely, Jehovah, (the word here used;) said unto my Lord — That is, God the Father said unto the Messiah, (whom, though in one sense David’s son, he honoured as his Lord;) Sit thou on my right hand — Be thou invested with the highest power and glory; until I make thy foes — All that are so presumptuous as to persist in hostility to thee; thy footstool — Until I lay them prostrate at thy feet, so that thou mayest trample upon them at pleasure, as entirely subdued. See note on <19B001>Psalm 110:1. This text is here quoted with the greatest address, as suggesting, in the words of David, their great prophetic monarch, how certain their own ruin must be, if they went on to oppose Christ. It may be proper to observe here, that in these two verses there is an allusion to two ancient customs: one, to that of kings placing those persons on their right hands to whom they intended the highest honour; as Solomon did Bathsheba, when sitting on his throne, 1 Kings 2:19; and the other, to the custom of conquerors, who used to tread on the necks of their vanquished enemies, as a token of their entire victory and triumph over them. Therefore — Upon the whole, from this concurrent evidence, both of prophecy and miracle, and from the testimony God has given to that Jesus whom we preach, not only by his resurrection from the dead, but by the effusion of the Holy Spirit on his followers; let all the house of Israel know assuredly — How contrary soever it may be to their former apprehensions and rooted prejudices; that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have rejected and crucified, both Lord and Christ — Hath demonstrated him to be the expected Messiah, and hath constituted him the King of his people, and Lord of all: let them know certainly that this truth has now received its full confirmation, and we our full commission to publish it. Thus Peter shows, in a striking light, what aggravated wickedness they had been guilty of, in that they had crucified one whom God designed to glorify, and had put him to death as a deceiver, who had given such pregnant proofs of a divine mission.

35. Thy footstool—A figure taken from the custom of ancient conquerors of setting their feet on the heads or necks of their captured foes. So Josephus paints the Jewish hero Jonathan as treating Pudens the Roman: “Treading upon the dead general he shook his bloody sword, with his shield in his left hand, shouting many things to the army, boasting over his fallen foe, and scoffing at the Romans looking on.” But the conqueror in the present Messianic image is sitting in quiet victorious state beside the throne of Jehovah, with all his foes lying like a footstool beneath his feet.

V. 36. Lord-Jesus, after his exaltation, is constantly meant by this word in the New Testament, unless sometimes where it occurs, in a text quoted from the Old Testament.

Verse 36. Both Lord and Christ.] Not only the Messiah, but the supreme Governor of all things and all persons, Jews and Gentiles, angels and men. In the preceding discourse, Peter assumes a fact which none would attempt to deny, viz. that Jesus had been lately crucified by them. He then, 1. Proves his resurrection. 2. His ascension. 3. His exaltation to the right hand of God. 4. The effusion of the Holy Spirit, which was the fruit of his glorification, and which had not only been promised by himself, but foretold by their own prophets: in consequence of which, 5. It was indisputably proved that this same Jesus, whom they had crucified, was the promised Messiah; and if so, 6. The Governor of the universe, from whose power and justice they had every thing to dread, as they refused to receive his proffered mercy and kindness.

Verses 32-36. This Jesus — Whom we assert to be the true Messiah; hath God raised up — According to the tenor of his promise; whereof — Of which resurrection; we all are witnesses — On our personal and certain knowledge; having seen him with our eyes, and examined into the truth of the matter with all possible care. Therefore, being by the right hand of God — That is, by God’s almighty power, exalted from the grave to heaven; or, as some read the clause, Being exalted to the right hand of God, to supreme power, majesty, and glory; and having received of the Father — As the great anointed one of the Lord; the promise of the Holy Ghost — The Holy Ghost promised to his disciples; he hath — Agreeably to the notices he gave us before his ascension; shed forth this miraculous effusion of it, the effects of which ye now see and hear. For David himself — Who has not yet been raised from the dead; is not — With respect to his body; ascended into heaven — To be advanced there to the highest dignity and power: but he saith — In another Psalm, (where he plainly shows that he spoke of another person, and such another as was superior to himself, even his Lord;) The Lord — Namely, Jehovah, (the word here used;) said unto my Lord — That is, God the Father said unto the Messiah, (whom, though in one sense David’s son, he honoured as his Lord;) Sit thou on my right hand — Be thou invested with the highest power and glory; until I make thy foes — All that are so presumptuous as to persist in hostility to thee; thy footstool — Until I lay them prostrate at thy feet, so that thou mayest trample upon them at pleasure, as entirely subdued. See note on <19B001>Psalm 110:1. This text is here quoted with the greatest address, as suggesting, in the words of David, their great prophetic monarch, how certain their own ruin must be, if they went on to oppose Christ. It may be proper to observe here, that in these two verses there is an allusion to two ancient customs: one, to that of kings placing those persons on their right hands to whom they intended the highest honour; as Solomon did Bathsheba, when sitting on his throne, 1 Kings 2:19; and the other, to the custom of conquerors, who used to tread on the necks of their vanquished enemies, as a token of their entire victory and triumph over them. Therefore — Upon the whole, from this concurrent evidence, both of prophecy and miracle, and from the testimony God has given to that Jesus whom we preach, not only by his resurrection from the dead, but by the effusion of the Holy Spirit on his followers; let all the house of Israel know assuredly — How contrary soever it may be to their former apprehensions and rooted prejudices; that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have rejected and crucified, both Lord and Christ — Hath demonstrated him to be the expected Messiah, and hath constituted him the King of his people, and Lord of all: let them know certainly that this truth has now received its full confirmation, and we our full commission to publish it. Thus Peter shows, in a striking light, what aggravated wickedness they had been guilty of, in that they had crucified one whom God designed to glorify, and had put him to death as a deceiver, who had given such pregnant proofs of a divine mission.

Ver. 36. God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ. This was the grandest stroke of pulpit eloquence. He arraigns, he accuses, and he convicts his auditory. Being first wounded, then they apply for balm. A minister must preach as the prophets preached, else he cannot have the echo of the hearer’s heart. He must commend himself to every man’s conscience in the sight of God. Nathan’s sermon had been lost on David, without the final stroke which clinched the nail, “thou art the man.”

36. Therefore—And now comes the inference in conclusion. The crucified and ascended Jesus, from whom this Pentecostal effusion has come, is Lord and Messiah; and well it is that the house of Israel should note the assured fact. Whom ye have crucified—Your crucified victim is your triumphant Lord.

V. 37. They said to the apostles, Brethren-They did not style them so before.

Verse 37. When they heard this, they were pricked in their heart] This powerful, intelligent, consecutive, and interesting discourse, supported every where by prophecies and corresponding facts, left them without reply and without excuse; and they plainly saw there was no hope for them, but in the mercy of him whom they had rejected and crucified. What shall we do?] How shall we escape those judgments which we now see hanging over our heads?

Verses 37-39. Now when they heard this — Having patiently heard Peter out, and not given him the interruption they had been used to give Christ in his discourses; (which was an important point gained;) they were pricked in their heart — Or, were pierced to the heart, with deep and lively sorrow, and felt such a sense of their enormous guilt, in the injuries and indignities which they had offered to this glorious, this divine person, that, with the utmost eagerness and solicitude, they cried out to Peter, &c., Men and brethren — See how their language is altered: they did not style them so before! what shall we do? — Is that Jesus, whom we crucified, both Lord and Christ? Then what will become of us who crucified him? How shall we free ourselves from that guilt and danger in which our own folly and wickedness have involved us? Then Peter said, Repent — Of this aggravated crime, and let a sense of the horrid guilt which you have thereby contracted, awaken you to a penitent reflection upon all your other sins, and to bitter remorse and sorrow for them. This was the same doctrine that John the Baptist and Christ had preached, and, now the Spirit is poured out, it is still insisted on. See notes on Matthew 3:2; Mark 1:15; Luke 3:8-14. And be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ — That is, believe in Jesus Christ, not only as a teacher come from God, but as the Messiah, the Son of God, the Saviour of the world: believe in his doctrine as infallibly true and infinitely momentous, and make it the rule of your faith and practice: rely on his mediation for reconciliation with God: submit to his grace and government: and make an open and solemn profession of this by submitting to the ordinance of baptism. See notes on Matthew 28:19, 20; Mark 16:16. This is pressed on each particular person; every one of you, says the apostle. Even those of you that have been the greatest sinners, if they comply with these terms, shall find mercy through this Jesus: and those that think they have been the greatest saints, yet have need to comply with them; repentance, faith, and new obedience being necessary for all. For the remission of sins — Which you may obtain through Christ crucified, in this way, and can obtain in no other. Repent of your sins and they shall not be your ruin; believe in Jesus, and be baptized in that faith, and you shall be justified. Yea, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost — By which he will own and attest the work of his grace in your hearts, and will qualify you for serving that Lord, whom you have crucified. Some of you shall receive even these external and extraordinary gifts, and every one of you, if you be sincere in your repentance and faith, shall receive his internal graces and comforts; shall be sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise. Observe, reader, all that receive the remission of sins, and are adopted into God’s family, receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, as a spirit of adoption and regeneration; to assure them of their sonship, and renew them after God’s image. For, says the apostle, the promise is unto you — To any and all of you here present; and to your children — Your posterity to the latest generation; and to all that are afar off — To the Gentiles in the most remote countries, whom God is ready to admit to the same privileges with you. It appears evidently from the manner in which St. Peter here expresses himself, that the gift of the Holy Ghost does not, in this place, mean merely the power of speaking with tongues, and working miracles, for the promise of this was not given to all the Jews there present, and their posterity, much less to all that were afar off, in distant ages and nations; but it rather signifies, the ordinary graces of the Spirit, living faith and its fruits, even righteousness and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost, which certainly are free for all that earnestly desire, and will seek them in the way God hath appointed. See Luke 11:13; John 4:10; and 7:37. Whomsoever the Lord our God shall call — Namely, by his word and Spirit, whether they are Jews or Gentiles, and who are not disobedient to the heavenly calling. It is observable, that Peter did not now understand the very words he spoke: for he knew nothing, as yet, of the intended calling of the Gentiles. He could only mean, therefore, by what he now said, that the gospel should be preached to all the dispersed of Israel, and their posterity, in distant nations; but the Holy Spirit had doubtless a further view.

Ver. 37. When they heard this they were pricked in their heart. The Hebrews had terrific ideas of the blood of a prophet. They saw, or thought they saw, the blood of Zechariah and his brothers, still springing up between the porch and the altar. Now, the blood of Christ being shed, they were filled with alarms for its visitation on them, and on their children. All their personal sins, how great soever they might be, were light compared with this.

It is the same still. We cannot arouse the consciences of the wicked without demonstrations of guilt, and alarms of punishment. Young people will not forsake their pleasures till they feel their emptiness and insufficiency. The world will not leave their courses till they perceive the abyss; the unclean will not exscind their right hand till they glance on the fire of gehenna. The cry of guilt is, turn or burn.

But how shall the preacher do this? How shall he follow the proteus in all its changing shapes, and the windings and workings of the carnal mind in all its evasions; for as he reasons against the sinner, the sinner will reason against him. Let him pray, like Peter, to be filled with the Holy Ghost, and then his sermons will be the voice of God, and be echoed by the sinner’s conscience.

37. Pricked—Pierced to the heart. Remorse for their sin, and terror at its consequences from the triumphant Christ on high, are their struggling emotions. Even these devout Jews (verse 5) discover that the prophecies of the Testament, and all the forces of the old dispensation, are against them; that the great Messiah has truly come, but that, instead of being his friends, they are the foes beneath his feet. What shall we do?—We, crucifiers of the Jesus who is now the glorified Lord and Christ.

V. 38. Repent-And hereby return to God:

be baptized-Believing in the name of Jesus-And ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost-See the three-one God clearly proved. See Acts 26:20. The gift of the Holy Ghost does not mean in this place the power of speaking with tongues. For the promise of this was not given to all that were afar off, in distant ages and nations. But rather the constant fruits of faith, even righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost. Whomsoever the Lord our God shall call-(Whether they are Jews or Gentiles) by his word and by his Spirit: and who are not disobedient to the heavenly calling. But it is observable St. Peter did not yet understand the very words he spoke.

Verse 38. Peter said unto them, Repent] metanohsate; Humble yourselves before God, and deeply deplore the sins you have committed; pray earnestly for mercy, and deprecate the displeasure of incensed justice. For a definition of repentance, see Clarke on “Matthew 3:2”. And be baptized every one of you] Take on you the public profession of the religion of Christ, by being baptized in his name; and thus acknowledge yourselves to be his disciples and servants.

For the remission of sins] eiv afesin amartiwn, In reference to the remission or removal of sins: baptism pointing out the purifying influences of the Holy Spirit; and it is in reference to that purification that it is administered, and should in consideration never be separated from it. For baptism itself purifies not the conscience; it only points out the grace by which this is to be done.

Ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.] If ye faithfully use the sign, ye shall get the substance. Receive the baptism, in reference to the removal of sins, and ye shall receive the Holy Ghost, by whose agency alone the efficacy of the blood of the covenant is applied, and by whose refining power the heart is purified. It was by being baptized in the name of Christ that men took upon themselves the profession of Christianity; and it was in consequence of this that the disciples of Christ were called CHRISTIANS.

Verses 37-39. Now when they heard this — Having patiently heard Peter out, and not given him the interruption they had been used to give Christ in his discourses; (which was an important point gained;) they were pricked in their heart — Or, were pierced to the heart, with deep and lively sorrow, and felt such a sense of their enormous guilt, in the injuries and indignities which they had offered to this glorious, this divine person, that, with the utmost eagerness and solicitude, they cried out to Peter, &c., Men and brethren — See how their language is altered: they did not style them so before! what shall we do? — Is that Jesus, whom we crucified, both Lord and Christ? Then what will become of us who crucified him? How shall we free ourselves from that guilt and danger in which our own folly and wickedness have involved us? Then Peter said, Repent — Of this aggravated crime, and let a sense of the horrid guilt which you have thereby contracted, awaken you to a penitent reflection upon all your other sins, and to bitter remorse and sorrow for them. This was the same doctrine that John the Baptist and Christ had preached, and, now the Spirit is poured out, it is still insisted on. See notes on Matthew 3:2; Mark 1:15; Luke 3:8-14. And be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ — That is, believe in Jesus Christ, not only as a teacher come from God, but as the Messiah, the Son of God, the Saviour of the world: believe in his doctrine as infallibly true and infinitely momentous, and make it the rule of your faith and practice: rely on his mediation for reconciliation with God: submit to his grace and government: and make an open and solemn profession of this by submitting to the ordinance of baptism. See notes on Matthew 28:19, 20; Mark 16:16. This is pressed on each particular person; every one of you, says the apostle. Even those of you that have been the greatest sinners, if they comply with these terms, shall find mercy through this Jesus: and those that think they have been the greatest saints, yet have need to comply with them; repentance, faith, and new obedience being necessary for all. For the remission of sins — Which you may obtain through Christ crucified, in this way, and can obtain in no other. Repent of your sins and they shall not be your ruin; believe in Jesus, and be baptized in that faith, and you shall be justified. Yea, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost — By which he will own and attest the work of his grace in your hearts, and will qualify you for serving that Lord, whom you have crucified. Some of you shall receive even these external and extraordinary gifts, and every one of you, if you be sincere in your repentance and faith, shall receive his internal graces and comforts; shall be sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise. Observe, reader, all that receive the remission of sins, and are adopted into God’s family, receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, as a spirit of adoption and regeneration; to assure them of their sonship, and renew them after God’s image. For, says the apostle, the promise is unto you — To any and all of you here present; and to your children — Your posterity to the latest generation; and to all that are afar off — To the Gentiles in the most remote countries, whom God is ready to admit to the same privileges with you. It appears evidently from the manner in which St. Peter here expresses himself, that the gift of the Holy Ghost does not, in this place, mean merely the power of speaking with tongues, and working miracles, for the promise of this was not given to all the Jews there present, and their posterity, much less to all that were afar off, in distant ages and nations; but it rather signifies, the ordinary graces of the Spirit, living faith and its fruits, even righteousness and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost, which certainly are free for all that earnestly desire, and will seek them in the way God hath appointed. See Luke 11:13; John 4:10; and 7:37. Whomsoever the Lord our God shall call — Namely, by his word and Spirit, whether they are Jews or Gentiles, and who are not disobedient to the heavenly calling. It is observable, that Peter did not now understand the very words he spoke: for he knew nothing, as yet, of the intended calling of the Gentiles. He could only mean, therefore, by what he now said, that the gospel should be preached to all the dispersed of Israel, and their posterity, in distant nations; but the Holy Spirit had doubtless a further view.

38. Repent—Literally, change your minds, namely, from your guilty hostility to Christ to a full faith in his name. In its full Christian sense repentance includes a perfect and saving faith in Christ. Repent, and be baptized—By repentance they renounce their hostility to the crucified One, and all the sins that slew him; by baptism they are accepted into the body of his friends; and by the gift of the Holy Ghost they become truly one with the sanctified hundred and twenty, (ver. 1,) and are empowered to do mighty wonders in behalf of Christ the exalted Lord. For the remission of sins—Baptism is the external act and manifestation of an internal justifying faith already existing. As the outward act and manifestation of the conditional faith, baptism is mentioned before that remission which follows the internal faith, although the instant divine act of remission has actually preceded the baptism. Internal faith precedes the divine act of remission; while the external baptismal act of faith is the organic condition to the normal state of remission. Hence only the justified person is rightly baptized. The infant is baptized as a virtual, and the adult as an actual believer. From all this it would follow that a wilful neglect of baptism, where no impossibility exists, endangers the permanence of the remission, and so of the salvation. To the question whether a justified, unbaptized person may rightfully commune at the Lord’s Supper, we should reply that it is the wrong order; nevertheless, the wrong consists not in the communing, but in the omission of a previous baptism. Baptism externally brings us into the Church; communion testifies that we are in the Church.

Verse 39. For the promise is unto you] Jews of the land of Judea: not only the fulfilment of the promise which he had lately recited from the prophecy of Joel was made to them, but in this promise was also included the purification from sin, with every gift and grace of the Holy Spirit. To all that are afar off] To the Jews wherever dispersed, and to all the Gentile nations; for, though St. Peter had not as yet a formal knowledge of the calling of the Gentiles, yet, the Spirit of God, by which he spoke, had undoubtedly this in view; and therefore the words are added, even as many as the Lord our God shall call, i.e. all to whom, in the course of his providence and grace, he shall send the preaching of Christ crucified.

Verses 37-39. Now when they heard this — Having patiently heard Peter out, and not given him the interruption they had been used to give Christ in his discourses; (which was an important point gained;) they were pricked in their heart — Or, were pierced to the heart, with deep and lively sorrow, and felt such a sense of their enormous guilt, in the injuries and indignities which they had offered to this glorious, this divine person, that, with the utmost eagerness and solicitude, they cried out to Peter, &c., Men and brethren — See how their language is altered: they did not style them so before! what shall we do? — Is that Jesus, whom we crucified, both Lord and Christ? Then what will become of us who crucified him? How shall we free ourselves from that guilt and danger in which our own folly and wickedness have involved us? Then Peter said, Repent — Of this aggravated crime, and let a sense of the horrid guilt which you have thereby contracted, awaken you to a penitent reflection upon all your other sins, and to bitter remorse and sorrow for them. This was the same doctrine that John the Baptist and Christ had preached, and, now the Spirit is poured out, it is still insisted on. See notes on Matthew 3:2; Mark 1:15; Luke 3:8-14. And be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ — That is, believe in Jesus Christ, not only as a teacher come from God, but as the Messiah, the Son of God, the Saviour of the world: believe in his doctrine as infallibly true and infinitely momentous, and make it the rule of your faith and practice: rely on his mediation for reconciliation with God: submit to his grace and government: and make an open and solemn profession of this by submitting to the ordinance of baptism. See notes on Matthew 28:19, 20; Mark 16:16. This is pressed on each particular person; every one of you, says the apostle. Even those of you that have been the greatest sinners, if they comply with these terms, shall find mercy through this Jesus: and those that think they have been the greatest saints, yet have need to comply with them; repentance, faith, and new obedience being necessary for all. For the remission of sins — Which you may obtain through Christ crucified, in this way, and can obtain in no other. Repent of your sins and they shall not be your ruin; believe in Jesus, and be baptized in that faith, and you shall be justified. Yea, and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost — By which he will own and attest the work of his grace in your hearts, and will qualify you for serving that Lord, whom you have crucified. Some of you shall receive even these external and extraordinary gifts, and every one of you, if you be sincere in your repentance and faith, shall receive his internal graces and comforts; shall be sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise. Observe, reader, all that receive the remission of sins, and are adopted into God’s family, receive the gift of the Holy Ghost, as a spirit of adoption and regeneration; to assure them of their sonship, and renew them after God’s image. For, says the apostle, the promise is unto you — To any and all of you here present; and to your children — Your posterity to the latest generation; and to all that are afar off — To the Gentiles in the most remote countries, whom God is ready to admit to the same privileges with you. It appears evidently from the manner in which St. Peter here expresses himself, that the gift of the Holy Ghost does not, in this place, mean merely the power of speaking with tongues, and working miracles, for the promise of this was not given to all the Jews there present, and their posterity, much less to all that were afar off, in distant ages and nations; but it rather signifies, the ordinary graces of the Spirit, living faith and its fruits, even righteousness and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost, which certainly are free for all that earnestly desire, and will seek them in the way God hath appointed. See Luke 11:13; John 4:10; and 7:37. Whomsoever the Lord our God shall call — Namely, by his word and Spirit, whether they are Jews or Gentiles, and who are not disobedient to the heavenly calling. It is observable, that Peter did not now understand the very words he spoke: for he knew nothing, as yet, of the intended calling of the Gentiles. He could only mean, therefore, by what he now said, that the gospel should be preached to all the dispersed of Israel, and their posterity, in distant nations; but the Holy Spirit had doubtless a further view.

39. The promise—The promise, of verse 21, that in the new age of Christ the Lord, all that call on him shall be saved; and hence the save yourselves of verse 40. Unto you—Even, emphatically, unto you, who (verse 36) have crucified this Lord. And, more abundantly, it dies not with you, but extends to your children, your offspring. Nor geographically is it limited to your lineage, but extends afar off; for that promise of salvation to all that call upon the Lord (verse 21) shall extend even to all that the Lord by his Gospel shall call. To ask whether this means Jews or Gentiles is an empty question; for the apostle has not race in view, and is thinking only of the extension of the Gospel invitation in its blessed but indefinite vastness. Good proof this that the apostles and their followers expected the conversion (and not the immediate destruction) of the world.

V. 40. And with many other words did he testify and exhort-In such an accepted time we should add line upon line, and not leave off, till the thing is done.

Save yourselves from this perverse generation-Many of whom were probably mocking still.

Verse 40. Save yourselves from this untoward generation.] Separate yourselves from them: be ye saved, swqhte: the power is present with you; make a proper use of it, and ye shall be delivered from their obstinate unbelief, and the punishment that awaits it in the destruction of them and their city by the Romans.

Verse 40. And with many other words — To the same purpose; did he testify — Gospel truths; and exhort — To gospel duties. In such an accepted time, when the power of the word is felt, and good impressions appear to be made on men’s minds, we should add line upon line, and extend our discourses to a greater length than usual, in order that, if possible, they may be not only almost, but altogether persuaded to be Christians. Saying, Save yourselves — Greek, swqhte, be ye saved, namely, by complying with the exhortation given; from this untoward — Greek, thv skoliav tauthv, this perverse, generation — Many of whom were probably mocking still. Observe, reader, those that repent of their sins, and give themselves up to Jesus Christ, must evidence their sincerity by breaking off all intimate society with the carnal and wicked. Depart from me, ye evil doers, must be the language of every one that determines to keep the commandments of his God, <19B9115>Psalm 119:115. To separate ourselves from such, is the only way to save ourselves from them.

40. Save yourselves—Rather passively, be saved. Perform the conditions necessary to being saved; saved, that is, with a present salvation from sin, and liability to hell. Untoward generation—Which has upon it the guilt of special crime, and a doom of special destruction. (See notes upon Matthew 23:33-36, and upon Luke 21:32.)

3. Pentecostal Church—First Repose Period with community of goods, 41-47.

V. 41. And there were added-To the hundred and twenty.

Verse 41. They that gladly received his word] The word asmenwv, which signifies joyfully, readily, willingly, implies that they approved of the doctrine delivered; that they were glad to hear of this way of salvation; and that they began immediately to act according to its dictates. This last sense is well expressed in a similar phrase by Josephus: when speaking of the young Israelites enticing the Midianitish women to sin, by fair speeches, he says, ai de asmenwv dexamenai touv logouv sunhesan autoiv, Ant. l. iv. c. 4. Then they who approved of their words consorted with them. The word is however omitted by ABCD, Coptic, Sahidic, Æthiopic, Vulgate, the Itala of the Codex Bezæ, Clemens, and Chrysostom. Were baptized] That is, in the name of Jesus, Acts 2:38, for this was the criterion of a Jew’s conversion; and when a Jew had received baptism in this name he was excluded from all communication with his countrymen; and no man would have forfeited such privileges but on the fullest and clearest conviction. This baptism was a very powerful means to prevent their apostasy; they had, by receiving baptism in the name of Jesus, renounced Judaism, and all the political advantages connected with it; and they found it indispensably necessary to make the best use of that holy religion which they had received in its stead. Dr. Lightfoot has well remarked, that the Gentiles who received the Christian doctrine were baptized in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Ghost; whereas the Jewish converts, for the reasons already given, were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.

Were added-three thousand souls.] proseteqhsan, They went over from one party to another. The Greek writers make use of this verb to signify that act by which cities, towns, or provinces changed their masters, and put themselves under another government. So these 3000 persons left the scribes and Pharisees, and put themselves under the teaching of the apostles, professing the Christian doctrine, and acknowledging that Christ was come, and that he who was lately crucified by the Jews was the promised and only Messiah; and in this faith they were baptized. These 3000 were not converted under one discourse, nor in one place, nor by one person. All the apostles preached, some in one language, and some in another; and not in one house-for where was there one at that time that could hold such a multitude of people? For, out of the multitudes that heard, 3000 were converted; and if one in five was converted it must have been a very large proportion. The truth seems to by this: All the apostles preached in different, parts of the city, during the course of that day; and in that day, th hmera ekeinh, 3000 converts were the fruits of the conjoint exertions of these holy men. Dr. Lightfoot thinks that the account in this place is the fulfilment of the prophecy in <19B001>Psalm 110:1, &c.: The Lord said unto my Lord, sit thou on my right hand; this refers to the resurrection and ascension of Christ. Thy people shall be willing in the day of thy power, <19B003>Psalm 110:3. This was the day of his power; and while the apostles proclaimed his death, resurrection, and ascension, the people came willingly in, and embraced the doctrines of Christianity.

Verse 41. Then they that gladly received his word, &c. — The apostle’s exhortation was not given in vain; many were awakened and savingly brought to God by it; for the influence of the Holy Spirit accompanied it, and wrought wonders thereby. Many of the same persons that had been eye-witnesses of the death of Christ, and of the prodigies that had attended it, and were not at all influenced by them, were now effectually wrought upon by the preaching of the word, and found it the power of God to their salvation. Such were baptized — Gladly receiving the word, believing with the heart, they made confession with the mouth, and enrolled themselves among the disciples of Christ, by that sacred rite and ceremony which he had instituted. Hereby there were added to the hundred and twenty disciples of Christ about three thousand souls that same day; the conversion of whom, by the word now spoken, was a greater work than the feeding of four or five thousand with a few loaves and fishes. Let it be observed here, they who are joined to Christ, ought to join themselves to the disciples of Christ, and be united with them: when we take God for our God, we must take his people for our people. It is commonly said, that all these were converted by one sermon, but, as has been intimated on verse 14, it is probable, that while Peter was preaching in the Chaldaio-Syriac language, the other apostles were preaching at some small distance, much to the same purpose, in other languages; and it is not surely to be imagined, that none of them but Peter should be blessed as the means of converting any souls; not to insist upon it that he himself might deliver several discourses that day (and it was th hmera ekeinh, in that day, that the number here spoken of was added) to different auditories, when the concourse of people was so great, and their languages so various.

Ver. 41. Then they that gladly received his word were baptized. They burst at once into the spiritual birth of the family of God, and entered the Messiah’s kingdom. They saw the old testament full of the sufferings and the glory of Christ, and rushed as the new Israel, the chosen of God and precious, into the new and living temple of their God and king. No man touched by the ministry is safe unless he join himself to his minister, and to the people of God.

41. Then—Forthwith at the close of the sermon. Pity that the routine of modern congregations were not oftener thus broken up by immediate repentance, faith, and self-consecration to Christ. Three thousand souls— The unforced words affirm that three thousand were baptized in one day. Places enough for immersion, doubtless, there might be; but the publicity of the movement, in addition to the previous excitements, would have been eminently unsafe, and is not a supposable thing.

V. 42. And they continued steadfast-So their daily Church communion consisted in these four particulars:

1. Hearing the word; 2. Having all things common; 3. Receiving the Lord's Supper; 4. Prayer.

Ye diff'rent sects, who all declare,

Lo here is Christ, and Christ is there;

Your stronger proofs divinely give,

And show me where the Christians live!

Verse 42. They continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine] They received it, retained it, and acted on its principles.

And fellowship] koinwnia, community; meaning association for religious and spiritual purposes, The community of goods cannot be meant; for this is mentioned Acts 2:44, 45, where it is said, they had all things common.

And in breaking of bread] Whether this means the holy eucharist, or their common meals, it is difficult to say. The Syriac understands it of the former. Breaking of bread was that act which preceded a feast or meal, and which was performed by the master of the house, when he pronounced the blessing-what we would call grace before meat. See the form on Matthew 26:26.

And in prayers.] In supplications to God for an increase of grace and life in their own souls; for establishment in the truth which they had received, and for the extension of the kingdom of Christ in the salvation of men. Behold the employment of the primitive and apostolic Church. 1. They were builded up on the foundation of the prophets and apostles, Jesus Christ himself being the corner stone. 2. They continued steadfastly in that doctrine which they had so evidently received from God. They were separated from the world, and lived in a holy Christian fellowship, strengthening and building up each other in their most holy faith. 4. They were frequent in breaking bread; in remembrance that Jesus Christ died for them. 5. They continued in prayers; knowing that they could be no longer faithful than while they were upheld by their God; and knowing also that they could not expect his grace to support them, unless they humbly and earnestly prayed for its continuance.

Verses 42, 43. And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine — Notwithstanding all the apparent danger to which they were exposed, they regularly attended on the word which the apostles preached, and resolutely adhered to their doctrine. And they all lived in the most endearing communion and intimate friendship one with another, and especially expressed their mutual affection in breaking of bread — Together, and joining in the exercise of social prayer. Though we have great reason to believe that the eucharist was often celebrated among these primitive converts to Christianity, perhaps much oftener than every Lord’s day, yet there seems no sufficient reason to conclude with Lightfoot, Pearson, and many others, that this phrase must here refer to it, since it may undoubtedly signify common meals, as Grotius, Wolfius, and several others have shown; in which sense the same phrase is used, Luke 24:35, for there, it is plain, the eucharist could not be intended. And fear came upon every soul — Many who were not converted and did not join with the Christians, when they observed how the testimony of the apostles, concerning the resurrection of Jesus, was confirmed by the gift of tongues and other miracles, and saw the wonderful effect of their preaching, were so mightily struck and impressed thereby, that a reverential fear and inward dread fell upon them, and gradually spread itself over the whole city and neighbourhood; for they apprehended such unexampled events might be the forerunners of some public calamities on those who had slain Jesus, it being declared by his disciples, that these extraordinary things were all effected by his power. And the consternation was still further increased, by the many wonders and signs which continued to be daily wrought in his name by his apostles, all which plainly showed an extraordinary divine interposition, and proved incontestably that they spoke and acted by God’s authority.

Ver. 42. They continued stedfast in the apostles’ doctrine; and so much so, that they would shut their ears against any doctrine not taught by the holy apostles.

And in fellowship. There were at that time about four hundred and eighty synagogues in Jerusalem and its vicinity, and as the christians encreased to almost twenty thousand, the apostles divided them into christian synagogues for prayer, reading the scriptures, exhortations, and hymns of praise. These were infant churches in the houses and rooms of the brethren, as circumstances allowed.

And in breaking of bread. This phrase being used for bread broken at a common meal, as well as for the holy sacrament, I see no reason why it may not be taken in both the senses here. The apostles breaking of bread seems first and principally to refer to the holy supper; and breaking bread from house to house seems to be a christian entertainment, accompanied with prayer, praise, and heavenly conversation.

42. Steadfastly—Though the conversion was sudden, the perseverance was steadfast. Apostles’ doctrine—The apostles’ instruction. As yet no Gospels were written for them to read, and they listened to and studied the oral teachings of the apostles as their living Gospels. See our vol. ii, pp. 5,

6. Theirs was that pregnant faith in the unknown whole of the apostolic Christianity from which ready belief in its details of truth was produced. Believe, in order that you may understand, and soon you will believe because you understand, and understand because you believe. Under their inspired teachers they studied the life of Christ and its relation to prophecy; the death of Christ, its relation to their salvation; the example of Christ, its power over their lives; and the love of Christ, its spirit within their own hearts. And such being their tuition under the Pentecostal refreshing, we see what manner of Christianity appeared in them. A brief millennium brightened, in one blessed spot, upon the world! Fellowship—What is called in the Apostles’ Creed “the communion of saints.” Breaking of bread—Repeated in verse 46. The time of large church edifices had not yet come, and so the religious exercises were conducted in various private homes, when not using the Pentecostal house and not at the temple. Nor were the different sorts of religious exercise classified and separated. Hence, melted into one large, loving family, the new Church variously assembled in as large a number as allowable, every day took a repast, called the agape, or love-feast, preceded or followed by the Lord’s Supper. So the Lord himself had united a meal with his first eucharist. The Agape, or Love-Feast, was an institute of the earliest apostolic times, and was continued for centuries, though often abused, and finally disused. Besides this place, they are alluded to in Jude 1:12 as feasts of charity; and, perhaps, in 2 Peter 2:13. St. Ignatius: “Not without the bishop is it lawful either to baptize or hold a love-feast.” St. Chrysostom calls the love-feast “a custom most beautiful and most useful; for it was the supporter of love, a solace of poverty, a moderator of wealth, and a discipline of humility.” Abuses of the institution are rebuked in 1 Corinthians xi, consisting in making them a luxurious and riotous meal. In later centuries they are recognized as existing in various places. They were revived in modern times by the Moravians, and adopted by Mr. Wesley as one of the institutes of Methodism.

V. 43. And fear came upon every soul-Of those who did not join with them: whereby persecution was prevented, till it was needful for them.

Verse 43. And fear came upon every soul] Different MSS. and versions read this clause thus, And GREAT fear and TREMBLING came upon every soul in JERUSALEM. For several weeks past they had a series of the most astonishing miracles wrought before their eyes; they were puzzled and confounded at the manner in which the apostles preached, who charged them home with the deliberate murder of Jesus Christ, and who attested, in the most positive manner, that he was risen from the dead, and that God had sent down that mighty effusion of the Spirit which they now witnessed as a proof of his resurrection and ascension, and that this very person whom they had crucified was appointed by God to be the Judge of quick and dead. They were in consequences stung with remorse, and were apprehensive of the judgments of God; and the wonders and signs continually wrought by the apostles were at once proofs of the celestial origin of their doctrine and mission, and of their own baseness, perfidy, and wickedness.

Verses 42, 43. And they continued steadfastly in the apostles’ doctrine — Notwithstanding all the apparent danger to which they were exposed, they regularly attended on the word which the apostles preached, and resolutely adhered to their doctrine. And they all lived in the most endearing communion and intimate friendship one with another, and especially expressed their mutual affection in breaking of bread — Together, and joining in the exercise of social prayer. Though we have great reason to believe that the eucharist was often celebrated among these primitive converts to Christianity, perhaps much oftener than every Lord’s day, yet there seems no sufficient reason to conclude with Lightfoot, Pearson, and many others, that this phrase must here refer to it, since it may undoubtedly signify common meals, as Grotius, Wolfius, and several others have shown; in which sense the same phrase is used, Luke 24:35, for there, it is plain, the eucharist could not be intended. And fear came upon every soul — Many who were not converted and did not join with the Christians, when they observed how the testimony of the apostles, concerning the resurrection of Jesus, was confirmed by the gift of tongues and other miracles, and saw the wonderful effect of their preaching, were so mightily struck and impressed thereby, that a reverential fear and inward dread fell upon them, and gradually spread itself over the whole city and neighbourhood; for they apprehended such unexampled events might be the forerunners of some public calamities on those who had slain Jesus, it being declared by his disciples, that these extraordinary things were all effected by his power. And the consternation was still further increased, by the many wonders and signs which continued to be daily wrought in his name by his apostles, all which plainly showed an extraordinary divine interposition, and proved incontestably that they spoke and acted by God’s authority.

43. Fear came upon every soul—This refers to the nearest margin of population outside the Church. There appeared something so supernatural upon these “Nazarenes,” their doctrines of judgment upon unbelievers, and the wonders and signs done by the apostles combined, as to hush the mockers and stay the hand of persecutors. The Church had power and peace.

Verse 44. And, all that believed] oi pisteuontev, The believers, i.e. those who conscientiously credited the doctrine concerning the incarnation, crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ, and had, in consequence, received redemption in his blood.

Were together] epi to auto. “These words signify either, in one time, Acts 3:1; or in one place, Acts 2:1; or in one thing. The last of these three senses seems to be the most proper here; for it is not probable that the believers, who were then 3000 in number, Acts 2:41, besides the 120 spoken of Acts 1:15, were used all to meet at one time, or in one place, in Jerusalem.” See Bp. Pearce.

And had all things common] Perhaps this has not been well understood. At all the public religious feasts in Jerusalem, there was a sort of community of goods. No man at such times hired houses or beds in Jerusalem; all were lent gratis by the owners: Yoma, fol. 12. Megill. fol.

26. The same may be well supposed of their ovens, cauldrons, tables, spits, and other utensils. Also, provisions of water were made for them at the public expense; Shekalim, cap. 9. See Lightfoot here. Therefore a sort of community of goods was no strange thing at Jerusalem, at such times as these. It appears, however, that this community of goods was carried farther; for we are informed, Acts 2:45, that they sold their possessions and their goods, and parted them to all, as every man had need. But, this probably means that, as in consequence of this remarkable outpouring of the Spirit of God; and their conversion, they were detained longer at Jerusalem than they had originally intended, they formed a kind of community for the time being, that none might suffer want on the present occasion; as no doubt the unbelieving Jews, who were mockers, Acts 2:13, would treat these new converts with the most marked disapprobation. That an absolute community of goods never obtained in the Church at Jerusalem, unless for a very short time, is evident from the apostolical precept, 1 Corinthians 16:1, &c., by which collections were ordered to be made for the poor; but, if there had been a community of goods in the Church, there could have been no ground for such recommendations as these, as there could have been no such distinction as rich and poor, if every one, on entering the Church, gave up all his goods to a common stock. Besides, while this sort of community lasted at Jerusalem, it does not appear to have been imperious upon any; persons might or might not thus dispose of their goods, as we learn front the case of Ananias, Acts 5:4. Nor does it appear that what was done at Jerusalem at this time obtained in any other branch of the Christian Church; and in this, and in the fifth chap., where it is mentioned, it is neither praised nor blamed. We may therefore safely infer, it was something that was done at this time, on this occasion, through some local necessity, which the circumstances of the infant Church at Jerusalem might render expedient for that place and on that occasion only.

Verses 44, 45. And all that believed were together — Meeting as frequently as possible, even in the same place, and at the same time. Or, if this was impracticable, (their number being already, at least, three thousand one hundred and twenty, and in a few days several thousands more,) they probably assembled, as Dr. Lightfoot explains it, in several distinct companies, or congregations, according as their languages, nations, or other circumstances, brought and kept them together. And had all things in common — That is, such was their mutual affection and love to each other, that they chose rather to part with their property, whatever it was, than that any of their brethren should want; and accordingly they who had estates, or any other valuable possessions, sold them, and parted the price of them to all men — That is, to their brethren; as every man had need — Herein, it is probable, they had an eye to the command which Christ gave to the rich man, as a test of his sincerity; sell what thou hast, and give to the poor. Not that this was intended for an example, or to be a constant and binding rule to all Christians, in all places and ages; as if they were bound to sell all their property, and give the money arising from the sale in charity. For St. Paul, in his epistles, after this, often speaks of the rich and poor, as distinguished from each other; and Christ said, The poor you have always with you; evidently meaning that this always would, more or less, be the case among his followers. Indeed, the New Testament abounds with passages which plainly show that what now took place at Jerusalem, was not intended to be a general practice in the church of Christ. But the case was now extraordinary; and, as Dr. Doddridge observes, “peculiar reasons made this community of goods eligible at this time; not only as so many sojourners, who had come from other parts, would justly be desirous to continue at Jerusalem much longer than they intended, when they came up to the feast, that they might get a thorough knowledge of the gospel; but as the prospect, likewise, of the Roman conquests, which, according to Christ’s known prediction, were soon to swallow up all Jewish property, would of course dispose many more readily to sell their lands.” For they who believed Christ to be a divinely-commissioned teacher, must believe that the Jewish nation would shortly be destroyed, and an end put to the possession of goods and estates by the Jews in Judea; and in the belief of that, the converted Jews resident in the country wisely sold theirs for the present service of Christ and his church, before they were snatched from them by the enemy. It does not appear, however, that the apostles enjoined this upon any of them, as an absolute duty; for Peter tells Ananias, (Acts 5:4,) that the possession he had sold was his own property before he had sold it, and that, after he had disposed of it, the price he had received for it was still in his own power, to have given, or not given, the whole or any part of it. But by this conduct, these first Christians manifested in a remarkable manner their firm faith in the declarations and predictions of Christ, respecting the calamities coming on Judea, their deadness to, and contempt of, this world, their assurance of another, their love to their brethren, their compassion for the poor, and their great zeal for the encouraging of Christianity, and the nursing of it in its infancy. The apostles left all to follow Christ, and were to give themselves wholly to the ministry of the word, and prayer; it was necessary, therefore, that something should be done for their maintenance; so that this extraordinary liberality was like that of Israel in the wilderness, toward the building of the tabernacle, which needed to be restrained. It is true the apostles, who wrought so many wonderful miracles, could probably have maintained themselves and the poor that were among them miraculously, as Christ fed thousands with little food; but it was as much for the glory of God that it should be done by a miracle of grace, inclining people to sell their estates to do it, as if it had been done by a miracle in nature. In the mean time, the gospel-word from their mouths did wonders, and God blessed their endeavours for the increase of the number of believers, adding to the church daily such as should be, or, as the word swzomenouv rather means, such as were saved — Namely, from the guilt and power of their sins, by believing in Christ.

Ver. 44. They had all things common. Like the manna in the days of Moses, he that gathered much had nothing over, and he that gathered little had no lack. Being all cut off from the old synagogues, the widows and the sick did not want in the daily administrations. And as the ordinary contributions failed, such was the strength of faith in Christ, that Jerusalem should soon be burned, and such was their love to his name, that they spontaneously and gradually began to sell houses to supply the church with funds, that there might be no want. Their love, like a morning fire, burned with a pure and heavenly flame.

44. Together—Not residing together, but united together, having their common family reunions at their agapes. All things common—Common not by joint ownership, but by freedom of use. On this special liberality we may note, 1. It partly arose from the non-resident or pilgrim character of a large part of the converts. (See note on verse 5.) 2. It was not an obligatory rule; the laws of ownership or property were not disturbed or questioned. Even Ananias might have kept all his lands unblamed. (Note on Acts 5:4.) 3. This liberality was local, being confined to Jerusalem; and temporary, not surviving the dispersion of the Church by the Sauline persecution. 4. It was not what Renan calls it, a coenobitical or communistic institute, had no monastic quality, but was a common impartation arising from the exigency of the times and the free spirit of Christian love. 5. The Jerusalem Church, under pressure of the hierarchy, was a long time impoverished, and Paul labored largely for contributions to its poor during years of his ministry.

V. 45. And sold their possessions-Their lands and houses; and goods-Their movables.

And parted them to all as any one had need-To say the Christians did this only till the destruction of Jerusalem, is not true; for many did it long after. Not that there was any positive command for so doing: it needed not; for love constrained them. It was a natural fruit of that love wherewith each member of the community loved every other as his own soul. And if the whole Christian Church had continued in this spirit, this usage must have continued through all ages. To affirm therefore that Christ did not design it should continue, is neither more nor less than to affirm, that Christ did not design this measure of love should continue. I see no proof of this.

Verses 44, 45. And all that believed were together — Meeting as frequently as possible, even in the same place, and at the same time. Or, if this was impracticable, (their number being already, at least, three thousand one hundred and twenty, and in a few days several thousands more,) they probably assembled, as Dr. Lightfoot explains it, in several distinct companies, or congregations, according as their languages, nations, or other circumstances, brought and kept them together. And had all things in common — That is, such was their mutual affection and love to each other, that they chose rather to part with their property, whatever it was, than that any of their brethren should want; and accordingly they who had estates, or any other valuable possessions, sold them, and parted the price of them to all men — That is, to their brethren; as every man had need — Herein, it is probable, they had an eye to the command which Christ gave to the rich man, as a test of his sincerity; sell what thou hast, and give to the poor. Not that this was intended for an example, or to be a constant and binding rule to all Christians, in all places and ages; as if they were bound to sell all their property, and give the money arising from the sale in charity. For St. Paul, in his epistles, after this, often speaks of the rich and poor, as distinguished from each other; and Christ said, The poor you have always with you; evidently meaning that this always would, more or less, be the case among his followers. Indeed, the New Testament abounds with passages which plainly show that what now took place at Jerusalem, was not intended to be a general practice in the church of Christ. But the case was now extraordinary; and, as Dr. Doddridge observes, “peculiar reasons made this community of goods eligible at this time; not only as so many sojourners, who had come from other parts, would justly be desirous to continue at Jerusalem much longer than they intended, when they came up to the feast, that they might get a thorough knowledge of the gospel; but as the prospect, likewise, of the Roman conquests, which, according to Christ’s known prediction, were soon to swallow up all Jewish property, would of course dispose many more readily to sell their lands.” For they who believed Christ to be a divinely-commissioned teacher, must believe that the Jewish nation would shortly be destroyed, and an end put to the possession of goods and estates by the Jews in Judea; and in the belief of that, the converted Jews resident in the country wisely sold theirs for the present service of Christ and his church, before they were snatched from them by the enemy. It does not appear, however, that the apostles enjoined this upon any of them, as an absolute duty; for Peter tells Ananias, (Acts 5:4,) that the possession he had sold was his own property before he had sold it, and that, after he had disposed of it, the price he had received for it was still in his own power, to have given, or not given, the whole or any part of it. But by this conduct, these first Christians manifested in a remarkable manner their firm faith in the declarations and predictions of Christ, respecting the calamities coming on Judea, their deadness to, and contempt of, this world, their assurance of another, their love to their brethren, their compassion for the poor, and their great zeal for the encouraging of Christianity, and the nursing of it in its infancy. The apostles left all to follow Christ, and were to give themselves wholly to the ministry of the word, and prayer; it was necessary, therefore, that something should be done for their maintenance; so that this extraordinary liberality was like that of Israel in the wilderness, toward the building of the tabernacle, which needed to be restrained. It is true the apostles, who wrought so many wonderful miracles, could probably have maintained themselves and the poor that were among them miraculously, as Christ fed thousands with little food; but it was as much for the glory of God that it should be done by a miracle of grace, inclining people to sell their estates to do it, as if it had been done by a miracle in nature. In the mean time, the gospel-word from their mouths did wonders, and God blessed their endeavours for the increase of the number of believers, adding to the church daily such as should be, or, as the word swzomenouv rather means, such as were saved — Namely, from the guilt and power of their sins, by believing in Christ.

45. Sold their possessions—Under the Pentecostal power the solids melted into fluids.

V. 46. Continuing daily-breaking the bread-in the Lord's Supper, as did many Churches for some ages.

They partook of their food with gladness and singleness of heart-They carried the same happy and holy temper through all their common actions: eating and working with the same spirit wherewith they prayed and received the Lord's Supper.

Verse 46. They, continuing daily with one accord in the temple] They were present at all the times of public worship, and joined together in prayers and praises to God; for it in not to be supposed that they continued to offer any of the sacrifices prescribed by the law. Breaking bread from house to house] This may signify, that select companies, who were contiguous to each other, frequently ate together at their respective lodgings on their return from public worship. But katJ oikon, which we translate from house to house, is repeatedly used by the Greek writers for home, at home, (see margin,) for though they had all things in common, each person lived at his own table. Breaking bread is used to express the act of taking their meals. The bread of the Jews was thin, hard, and dry, and was never cut with the knife as ours is, but was simply broken by the hand.

With gladness and singleness of heart] A true picture of genuine Christian fellowship. They ate their bread: they had no severe fasts; the Holy Spirit had done in their souls, by his refining influence, what others vainly expect from bodily austerities. It may be said also, that, if they had no severe fasts, they had no splendid feasts: all was moderation, and all was contentment. They were full of gladness, spiritual joy and happiness; and singleness of heart, every man worthy of the confidence of his neighbour; and all walking by the same rule, and minding the same thing.

Verses 46, 47. And continuing daily with one accord — With unanimity and fraternal affection; in the temple — At the appointed hours of public service. This was their place of rendezvous: and here they worshipped not only on sabbaths, and solemn feast-days, but every day: for to worship God is the daily work of a true Christian, and where there is opportunity, the oftener it is done publicly the better. God loveth the gates of Zion, and so must we: and to have fellowship with God in his ordinances, is the best fellowship we can have with one another. And breaking bread from house to house — For they associated as frequently as they could at other times, each family that was of ability entertaining their brethren, especially those that were sojourners in Jerusalem; they eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart — With the greatest joy, on the part of those who made the entertainments; and with disinterested simplicity of heart, in those who received them; and on all sides with the sincerest sentiments of devotion and friendship. Thus did these first Christians carry the same holy and happy temper in which they worshipped God, through all their common actions, eating and working with the same spirit wherewith they prayed, and received the Lord’s supper! Praising God — For the riches of his grace to them, for the wonderful things he had done for them, in redeeming them by the life, death, and resurrection of his Son, for the assurances he had given them of their justification and regeneration through him, and for the bright prospects he had opened before them, of glory and felicity for ever in his presence and kingdom. Having favour with all the people — That is, with the generality of them, particularly the common people. So wonderfully had the fear, spoken of verse 43, the signs and wonders wrought by the apostles, and the astonishing events which had taken place, restrained the spirit of persecution; which, however, was soon revived, and broke forth in all its fury: and no wonder; for the carnal mind will still be enmity against God, however the outward manifestations of that enmity may, on certain occasions, be checked for a season. In this remarkable passage, then, we have a striking picture of the primitive church, and that in its first days: its state of infancy, indeed, but the state of its greatest innocence. 1st, The members of it were regular in their attendance on holy ordinances, and abounded in all instances of piety and devotion. For Christianity, received in the power of it, will cause men to delight in communion with God in all those ways wherein he has commanded us to meet him, and has promised to meet us. They were, therefore, constant in their attendance on the preaching of the word; frequently received the Lord’s supper, celebrating that memorial of their Master’s death, as persons who were not ashamed to own their relation to, and dependance upon him, who had been crucified; they continued instant in prayer, social and public, as well as private; and abounded in praise and thanksgiving. 2d, Their charity was as eminent as their piety, their joining together in holy ordinances tending greatly to endear them to one another, and to unite them together in disinterested friendship and brotherly affection. Hence they were peculiarly loving and kind to one another, had a deep concern for each other’s welfare, and were constantly ready to help each other in any way in their power, suffering no one to want what another had. 3d, God owned them for his people, giving daily and signal tokens of his presence with them, and delight in them, bearing testimony to the word of his grace, and causing his power so to attend the ministration of it, that the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified, his kingdom enlarged, and multitudes, both of men and women, were added to the society of the faithful.

O, what an age of golden days!

O, what a choice, peculiar race!

Join’d by the unction from above,

In mystic fellowship of love.

Meek, simple followers of the Lamb,

They lived, and spake, and thought the same

They joyfully conspired to raise

Their ceaseless sacrifice of praise.

With grace abundantly endued,

A pure, believing multitude;

Wash’d in the Lamb’s all-cleansing blood

Anointed kings and priests to God!

Ye different sects, who all declare,

Lo, here is Christ! and Christ is there!

Your stronger proofs divinely give,

And show me where the Christians live.

Ver. 46. Breaking bread from house to house. It will most gratify the reader to translate the exact words of Syrus and Œcumenius. After prayer, “they celebrated the eucharist. Then followed the agapæ or love feast, [epulum] their peace-offerings or common feast, in memory of our Lord’s last supper, and in such humble way as the church could afford; not always in one house, but in rotation, as convenience and the encreasing numbers of the faithful might require.” In these love feasts they enjoyed christian liberty, and could, as St. Paul says, “all prophecy one by one.” Oh what an age of golden days,

Oh what a choice peculiar race!

Washed in the Lamb’s all-cleansing blood,

Anointed kings and priests to God!

46. Daily… in the temple—They not only forsook not the old Jewish temple service, but were specially punctual at the morning and evening sacrifices (John 1:29) and other services therein, even after the great atonement, following the example of Jesus. To the Jews they thereby still appeared to be true Jews, only with the peculiarity of a special sort of piety, and a belief that the expected Messiah had come in the person of Jesus. One accord—The accord of perfect Christian unity. From house to house—In social worship at their various dwellings.

V. 47. The Lord added daily such as were saved-From their sins: from the guilt and power of them.

Verse 47. Praising God] As the fountain whence they had derived all their spiritual and temporal blessings; seeing him in all things, and magnifying the work of his mercy.

Having favour with all the people.] Every honest, upright Jew would naturally esteem these for the simplicity, purity, and charity of their lives. The scandal of the cross had not yet commenced; for, though they had put Jesus Christ to death, they had not get entered into a systematic opposition to the doctrines he taught.

And the Lord added to the Church daily such as should be saved.] Though many approved of the life and manners of these primitive Christians, yet they did not become members of this holy Church; God permitting none to be added to it, but touv swzomenouv, those who were saved from their sins and prejudices. The Church of Christ was made up of saints; sinners ware not permitted to incorporate themselves with it. One MS. and the Armenian version, instead of touv swzomenouv, the saved, have toiv swzomenoiv, to them who were saved; reading the verse thus: And the Lord added daily to those who were saved. He united those who were daily converted under the preaching of the apostles to those who had already been converted. And thus every lost sheep that was found was brought to the flock, that, under the direction of the great Master Shepherd, they might go out and in, and find pasture. The words, to the Church, th ekklhsia, are omitted by BC, Coptic, Sahidic, Æthiopic, Armenian, and Vulgate; and several add the words epi to auto, at that tine, (which begin the first verse of the next chapter) to the conclusion of this. My old MS. English Bible reads the verse thus: For so the Lord encresed hem that weren maad saaf, eche day, into the same thing. Nearly the same rendering as that in Wiclif. Our translation of touv swzomenouv, such as should be saved is improper and insupportable. The original means simply and solely those who were then saved; those who were redeemed from their sins and baptized into the faith of Jesus Christ. The same as those whom St. Paul addressed, Ephesians 2:8: By grace ye are saved, este seswsmenoi; or, ye are those who have been saved by grace. So in Titus 3:5: According to his mercy he saved us, eswsen hmav, by the washing of regeneration. And in 1 Corinthians 1:18, we have the words toiv swzomenoiv, them who are saved, to express those who had received the Christian faith; in opposition to toiv apollumenoiv, to those who are lost, namely the Jews, who obstinately refused to receive salvation on the terms of the Gospel, the only way in which they could be saved; for it was by embracing the Gospel of Christ that they were put in a state of salvation; and, by the grace it imparted, actually saved from the power, guilt, and dominion of sin. See 1 Corinthians 15:2: I made known unto you, brethren, the Gospel which I preached unto you, which ye have received, and in which ye stand; and BY WHICH YE ARE SAVED, diJ ou kai swzesqe. Our translation, which indeed existed long before our present authorized version, as may be seen in Cardmarden’s Bible, 1566, Beck’s Bible, 1549, and Tindall’s Testament, printed by Will. Tylle, in 1548, is bad in itself; but it has been rendered worse by the comments put on it, viz. that those whom God adds to the Church shall necessarily and unavoidably be eternally saved; whereas no such thing is hinted by the original text, be the doctrine of the indefectibility of the saints true or false-which shall be examined in its proper place.

ON that awful subject, the foreknowledge of God, something has already been spoken: see Acts 2:23. Though it is a subject which no finite nature can comprehend, yet it is possible so to understand what relates to us in it as to avoid those rocks of presumption and despondency on which multitudes have been shipwrecked. The foreknowledge of God is never spoken of in reference to himself, but in reference to us: in him properly there is neither foreknowledge nor afterknowledge. Omniscience, or the power to know all things, is an attribute of God, and exists in him as omnipotence, or the power to do all things. He can do whatsoever he will; and he does whatsoever is fit or proper to be done. God cannot have foreknowledge, strictly speaking, because this would suppose that there was something coming, in what we call futurity, which had not yet arrived at the presence of the Deity. Neither can he have any afterknowledge, strictly speaking, for this would suppose that something that had taken place, in what we call pretereity, or past time, had now got beyond the presence of the Deity. As God exists in all that can be called eternity, so he is equally every where: nothing can be future to him, because he lives in all futurity; nothing can be past to him, because he equally exists in all past time; futurity and pretereity are relative terms to us; but they can have no relation to that God who dwells in every point of eternity; with whom all that is past, and all that is present, and all that is future to man, exists in one infinite, indivisible, and eternal NOW. As God’s omnipotence implies his power to do all things, so God’s omniscience implies his power to know all things; but we must take heed that we meddle not with the infinite free agency of this Eternal Being. Though God can do all things, he does not all things. Infinite judgment directs the operations of his power, so that though he can, yet he does not do all things, but only such things as are proper to be done. In what is called illimitable space, he can make millions of millions of systems; but he does not see proper to do this. He can destroy the solar system, but he does not do it: he can fashion and order, in endless variety, all the different beings which now exist, whether material, animal, or intellectual; but he does not do this, because he does not see it proper to be done. Therefore it does not follow that, because God can do all things, therefore he must do all things. God is omniscient, and can know all things; but does it follow from this that he must know all things? Is he not as free in the volitions of his wisdom, as he is in the volitions of his power? The contingent as absolute, or the absolute as contingent? God has ordained some things as absolutely certain; these he knows as absolutely certain. He has ordained other things as contingent; these he knows as contingent. It would be absurd to say that he foreknows a thing as only contingent which he has made absolutely certain. And it would be as absurd to say that he foreknows a thing to be absolutely certain which in his own eternal counsel he has made contingent. By absolutely certain, I mean a thing which must be, in that order, time, place, and form in which Divine wisdom has ordained it to be; and that it can be no otherwise than this infinite counsel has ordained. By contingent, I mean such things as the infinite wisdom of God has thought proper to poise on the possibility of being or not being, leaving it to the will of intelligent beings to turn the scale. Or, contingencies are such possibilities, amid the succession of events, as the infinite wisdom of God has left to the will of intelligent beings to determine whether any such event shall take place or not. To deny this would involve the most palpable contradictions, and the most monstrous absurdities. If there be no such things as contingencies in the world, then every thing is fixed and determined by an unalterable decree and purpose of God; and not only all free agency is destroyed, but all agency of every kind, except that of the Creator himself; for on this ground God is the only operator, either in time or eternity: all created beings are only instruments, and do nothing but as impelled and acted upon by this almighty and sole Agent. Consequently, every act is his own; for if he have purposed them all as absolutely certain, having nothing contingent in them, then he has ordained them to be so; and if no contingency, then no free agency, and God alone is the sole actor. Hence the blasphemous, though, from the premises, fair conclusion, that God is the author of all the evil and sin that are in the world; and hence follows that absurdity, that, as God can do nothing that is wrong, WHATEVER IS, is RIGHT. Sin is no more sin; a vicious human action is no crime, if God have decreed it, and by his foreknowledge and will impelled the creature to act it. On this ground there can be no punishment for delinquencies; for if every thing be done as God has predetermined, and his determinations must necessarily be all right, then neither the instrument nor the agent has done wrong. Thus all vice and virtue, praise and blame, merit and demerit, guilt and innocence, are at once confounded, and all distinctions of this kind confounded with them. Now, allowing the doctrine of the contingency of human actions, (and it must be allowed in order to shun the above absurdities and blasphemies,) then we see every intelligent creature accountable for its own works, and for the use it makes of the power with which God has endued it; and, to grant all this consistently, we must also grant that God foresees nothing as absolutely and inevitably certain which he has made contingent; and, because he has designed it to be contingent, therefore he cannot know it as absolutely and inevitably certain. I conclude that God, although omniscient, is not obliged, in consequence of this, to know all that he can know; no more than he is obliged, because he is omnipotent, to do all that he can do.

How many, by confounding the self and free agency of God with a sort of continual impulsive necessity, have raised that necessity into an all-commanding and overruling energy, to which God himself is made subject! Very properly did Milton set his damned spirits about such work as this, and has made it a part of their endless punishment:- Others apart sat on a hill retired,

In thoughts more elevate; and reasoned high

Of providence, foreknowledge, will, and fate;

Fixed fate, free-will, foreknowledge absolute,

And found no end, in wand’ring mazes lost.

PARAD. LOST, b. ii. l. 557.

Among some exceptionable expressions, the following are also good thoughts on the flee agency and fall of man:-

—————I made him just and right,

Sufficient to have stood, though free to fall.

Not free, what proof could they have given sincere

Of true allegiance, constant faith or love,

When only what they needs must do appeared,

Not what they would? What praise could they receive?.

Useless and vain, of freedom both despoiled,

Made passive, both had served NECESSITY,

Not ME.————

So without least impulse or shadow of fate,

Or aught by me immutably foreseen,

They trespass, authors to themselves in all

Both what they judge, and what they choose, for so

I formed them free, and free they must remain

Till they enthrall themselves: I else must change

Their nature, and revoke the high decree

Unchangeable, eternal, which ordained

Their freedom; they themselves ordained their fall.

Ibid, b. iii. l. 98, 103, 120.

I shall conclude these observations with a short extract from Mr. Bird’s Conferences, where, in answer to the objection, “If many things fall out contingently, or as it were by accident, God’s foreknowledge of them can be but contingent, dependent on man’s free will,” he observes: “It is one thing to know that a thing will be done necessarily; and another, to know necessarily that a thing will be done. God doth necessarily foreknow all that will be done; but he doth not know that those things which shall be done voluntarily will be done necessarily: he knoweth that they will be done; but he knoweth withal that they might have fallen out otherwise, for aught he had ordered to the contrary. So likewise God knew that Adam would fall; and get he knew that he would not fall necessarily, for it was possible for him not to have fallen. And as touching God’s preordination going before his prescience as the cause of all events this would be to make God the author of all the sin in the world; his knowledge comprehending that as well as other things. God indeed foreknoweth all things, because they will be done; but things are not (therefore) done, because he foreknoweth them. It is impossible that any man, by his voluntary manner of working, should elude God’s foresight; but then this foresight doth not necessitate the will, for this were to take it wholly away. For as the knowledge of things present imports no necessity on that which is done, so the foreknowledge of things future lays no necessity on that which shall be; because whosoever knows and sees things, he knows and sees them as they are, and not as they are not; so that God’s knowledge doth not confound things, but reaches to all events, not only which come to pass, but as they come to pass, whether contingency or necessarily. As, for example, when you see a man walking upon the earth, and at the very same instant the sun shining in the heavens, do you not see the first as voluntary, and the second as natural? And though at the instant you see both done, there is a necessity that they be done, (or else you could not see them at all,) yet there was a necessity of one only before they were done, (namely, the sun’s shining in the heavens,) but none at all of the other, (viz. the man’s walking upon the earth.) The sun could not but shine, as being a natural agent; the man might not have walked, as being a voluntary one.” This is a good argument; but I prefer that which states the knowledge of God to be absolutely free, without the contradictions which are mentioned above. “But you deny the omniscience of God.”-No, no more than I deny his omnipotence, and you know I do not, though you have asserted the contrary. But take heed how you speak about this infinitely free agent: if you will contradict, take heed that you do not blaspheme. I ask some simple questions on the subject of God’s knowledge and power: if you know these things better than your neighbour, be thankful, be humble, and pray to God to give you amiable tempers; for the wrath of man worketh not the righteousness of God. May he be merciful to thee and me! ACTS

Verses 46, 47. And continuing daily with one accord — With unanimity and fraternal affection; in the temple — At the appointed hours of public service. This was their place of rendezvous: and here they worshipped not only on sabbaths, and solemn feast-days, but every day: for to worship God is the daily work of a true Christian, and where there is opportunity, the oftener it is done publicly the better. God loveth the gates of Zion, and so must we: and to have fellowship with God in his ordinances, is the best fellowship we can have with one another. And breaking bread from house to house — For they associated as frequently as they could at other times, each family that was of ability entertaining their brethren, especially those that were sojourners in Jerusalem; they eat their meat with gladness and singleness of heart — With the greatest joy, on the part of those who made the entertainments; and with disinterested simplicity of heart, in those who received them; and on all sides with the sincerest sentiments of devotion and friendship. Thus did these first Christians carry the same holy and happy temper in which they worshipped God, through all their common actions, eating and working with the same spirit wherewith they prayed, and received the Lord’s supper! Praising God — For the riches of his grace to them, for the wonderful things he had done for them, in redeeming them by the life, death, and resurrection of his Son, for the assurances he had given them of their justification and regeneration through him, and for the bright prospects he had opened before them, of glory and felicity for ever in his presence and kingdom. Having favour with all the people — That is, with the generality of them, particularly the common people. So wonderfully had the fear, spoken of verse 43, the signs and wonders wrought by the apostles, and the astonishing events which had taken place, restrained the spirit of persecution; which, however, was soon revived, and broke forth in all its fury: and no wonder; for the carnal mind will still be enmity against God, however the outward manifestations of that enmity may, on certain occasions, be checked for a season. In this remarkable passage, then, we have a striking picture of the primitive church, and that in its first days: its state of infancy, indeed, but the state of its greatest innocence. 1st, The members of it were regular in their attendance on holy ordinances, and abounded in all instances of piety and devotion. For Christianity, received in the power of it, will cause men to delight in communion with God in all those ways wherein he has commanded us to meet him, and has promised to meet us. They were, therefore, constant in their attendance on the preaching of the word; frequently received the Lord’s supper, celebrating that memorial of their Master’s death, as persons who were not ashamed to own their relation to, and dependance upon him, who had been crucified; they continued instant in prayer, social and public, as well as private; and abounded in praise and thanksgiving. 2d, Their charity was as eminent as their piety, their joining together in holy ordinances tending greatly to endear them to one another, and to unite them together in disinterested friendship and brotherly affection. Hence they were peculiarly loving and kind to one another, had a deep concern for each other’s welfare, and were constantly ready to help each other in any way in their power, suffering no one to want what another had. 3d, God owned them for his people, giving daily and signal tokens of his presence with them, and delight in them, bearing testimony to the word of his grace, and causing his power so to attend the ministration of it, that the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified, his kingdom enlarged, and multitudes, both of men and women, were added to the society of the faithful.

O, what an age of golden days!

O, what a choice, peculiar race!

Join’d by the unction from above,

In mystic fellowship of love.

Meek, simple followers of the Lamb,

They lived, and spake, and thought the same

They joyfully conspired to raise

Their ceaseless sacrifice of praise.

With grace abundantly endued,

A pure, believing multitude;

Wash’d in the Lamb’s all-cleansing blood

Anointed kings and priests to God!

Ye different sects, who all declare,

Lo, here is Christ! and Christ is there!

Your stronger proofs divinely give,

And show me where the Christians live.

Ver. 47. Such as should be saved. The Vulgate has misguided very many future translators. Dominus autem augebat qui salvi fierent quotidie in idipsum. The passive participle, swzomenov, is always rendered in the present tense. See 1 Corinthians 1:18: to us “who are saved.” Also Revelation 21:24: the nations “which are saved” shall walk in the light of it. The word applies likewise to such as had escaped the pollutions of the age; and to the present sufferings of the saints, who “scarcely escape.” 1 Peter 4:18, I do not recollect any example, either in the septuagint or the new testament, in which tonv swzomenouv is applied to future time. The Lord added to the church those, who being obedient to the word, ver. 40, saved themselves from that untoward generation.

47. Favour with all—Not being considered apostates, their piety seemed to excuse their slight heresy, and their lovingness won love. Such as should be saved—A prolix and excuseless mistranslation of a Greek participle signifying the saved, or, those being saved, that is, with a present salvation from sin and guilt. (See note on verse 40.) Peter had exhorted them to be saved and they did become saved. And so the Lord added daily the saved to the Church.