A
C T S
CHAP. XIII.
We
have not yet met with any things concerning the spreading of the gospel to the
Gentiles which bears any proportion to the largeness of that commission,
"Go, and disciple all nations." The door was opened in the baptizing
of Cornelius and his friends; but since then we had the gospel preached to the
Jews only, ch. xi. 19. It should seem as if the light which began to
shine upon the Gentile world had withdrawn itself. But here in this chapter
that work, that great good work, is revived in the midst of the years; and
though the Jews shall still have the first offer of the gospel made to them,
yet, upon their refusal, the Gentiles shall have their share of the offer of
it. Here is, I. The solemn ordination of Barnabas and Saul, by divine
direction, to the ministry, to the great work of spreading the gospel among
the nations about (and it is probable that other apostles or apostolical men
dispersed themselves by order from Christ, upon the same errand, ver. 1-3).
II. Their preaching the gospel in Cyprus, and the opposition they met with
there from Elymas the sorcerer, ver. 4-13. III. The heads of a sermon which
Paul preached to the Jews at Antioch in Pisidia, in their synagogue, which is
given us as a specimen of what they usually preached to the Jews, and the
method they took with them, ver. 14-41. IV. The preaching of the gospel to the
Gentiles at their request, and upon the Jews' refusal of it, wherein the
apostles justified themselves against the displeasure which the Jews conceived
at it, and God owned them, ver. 42-49. V. The trouble which the infidel Jews
gave to the apostles, which obliged them to remove to another place (ver.
50-52), so that the design of this chapter is to show how cautiously, how
gradually, and with what good reason the apostles carried the gospel into the
Gentile world, and admitted the Gentiles into the church, which was so great
an offence to the Jews, and which Paul is so industrious to justify in his
epistles.
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The
Mission of Paul and Barnabas.
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1 Now there were in
the church that was at Antioch certain prophets and teachers; as Barnabas, and
Simeon that was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen, which had been
brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. 2 As they ministered
to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul
for the work whereunto I have called them. 3 And when they had
fasted and prayed, and laid their hands on them, they sent them
away.
We have here a divine warrant and commission to Barnabas and Saul to go and
preach the gospel among the Gentiles, and their ordination to that service by
the imposition of hands, with fasting and prayer.
I. Here is an account of the present state of the church at Antioch, which was
planted, ch. xi. 20.
1. How well furnished it was with good ministers; there were there certain
prophets and teachers (v. 1), men that were eminent for gifts,
graces, and usefulness. Christ, when he ascended on high, gave some
prophets and some teachers (Eph. iv. 11); these were both. Agabus seems to
have been a prophet and not a teacher, and many were teachers who were not
prophets; but those here mentioned were at times divinely inspired, and had
instructions immediately from heaven upon special occasions, which gave them
the title of prophets; and withal they were stated teachers of the church in
their religious assemblies, expounded the scriptures, and opened the doctrine
of Christ with suitable applications. These were the prophets, and scribes, or
teachers, which Christ promised to send (Matt. xxiii. 34), such as were every
way qualified for the service of the Christian church. Antioch was a great
city, and the Christians there were many, so that they could not all meet in
one place; it was therefore requisite they should have many teachers, to
preside in their respective assemblies, and to deliver God's mind to them.
Barnabas is first named, probably because he was the eldest, and Saul last,
probably because he was the youngest; but afterwards the last became first,
and Saul more eminent in the church. Three others are mentioned. (1.) Simeon,
or Simon, who for distinction-sake was called Niger, Simon the Black,
from the color of his hair; like him that with us was surnamed the Black
Prince. (2.) Lucius of Cyrene, who some think (and Dr. Lightfoot
inclines to it) was the same with this Luke that wrote the Acts, originally a
Cyrenian, and educated in the Cyrenian college or synagogue at Jerusalem, and
there first receiving the gospel. (3.) Manaen, a person of some
quality, as it should seem, for he was brought up with Herod the tetrarch,
either nursed of the same milk, or bred at the same school, or pupil to the
same tutor, or rather one that was his constant colleague and companion--that
in every part of his education was his comrade and intimate, which gave him a
fair prospect of preferment at court, and yet for Christ's sake he quitted all
the hopes of it; like Moses, who, when he had come to years, refused to be
called the son of Pharaoh's daughter. Had he joined in with Herod, with
whom he was brought up, he might have had Blastus's place, and have been his
chamberlain; but it is better to be fellow-sufferer with a saint than
fellow-persecutor with a tetrarch.
2. How well employed they were (v. 2): They ministered to the Lord,
and fasted. Observe, (1.) Diligent faithful teachers do truly minister
unto the Lord. Those that instruct Christians serve Christ; they really do him
honour, and carry on the interest of his kingdom. Those that minister to the
church in praying and preaching (both which are included here), minister
unto the Lord, for they are the church's servants for Christ's sake; to
him they must have an eye in their ministrations, and from him they shall have
their recompence. (2.) Ministering to the Lord, in one way or other, ought to
be the stated business of churches and their teachers; to this work time ought
to be set apart, nay, it is set apart, and in this work we ought to spend some
part of every day. What have we to do as Christians and ministers but to serve
the Lord Christ? Col. iii. 24; Rom. xiv. 18. (3.) Religious fasting
is of use in our ministering to the Lord, both as a sign of our humiliation
and a means of our mortification. Though it was not so much practised by the
disciples of Christ, while the bridegroom was with them, as it was by
the disciples of John and of the Pharisees; yet, after the bridegroom was
taken away, they abounded in it, as those that had well learned to deny
themselves and to endure hardness.
II. The orders given by the Holy Ghost for the setting apart of Barnabas and
Saul, while they were engaged in public exercises, the ministers of the
several congregations in the city joining in one solemn fast or day of prayer:
The Holy Ghost said, either by a voice from heaven, or by a strong
impulse on the minds of those of them that were prophets, Separate me
Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them. He does not
specify the work, but refers to a former call of which they themselves knew
the meaning, whether others did or no: as for Saul, he was particularly told
that he must bear Christ's name to the Gentiles (ch. ix. 15),
that he must be sent to the Gentiles (ch. xxii. 21); the matter
was settled between them at Jerusalem before this, that as Peter, James, and
John laid out themselves among those of the circumcision, so Paul and Barnabas
should go to the heathen, Gal. ii. 7-9. Barnabas, it is likely, knew
himself designed for this service as well as Paul. Yet they would not thrust
themselves into this harvest, though it appeared plenteous, till they received
their orders from the Lord of the harvest: Thrust in thy sickle for the
harvest is ripe, Rev. xiv. 15. The orders were, Separate me Barnabas
and Saul. Observe here, 1. Christ by his Spirit has the nomination of his
ministers; for it is by the Spirit of Christ that they are qualified in some
measure for his services, inclined to it, and taken off from other cares
inconsistent with it. There are some whom the Holy Ghost has separated for the
service of Christ, has distinguished from others as men that are offered and
that willingly offer themselves to the temple service; and concerning them
directions are given to those who are competent judges of the sufficiency of
the abilities and the sincerity of the inclination: Separate them. 2.
Christ's ministers are separated to him and to the Holy Ghost: Separate
them to me; they are to be employed in Christ's work and under the
Spirit's guidance, to the glory of God the Father. 3. All that are separated
to Christ as his ministers are separated to work; Christ keeps no servants to
be idle. If any man desires the office of a bishop, he desires a good work;
that is what he is separated to, to labour in the word and doctrine.
They are separated to take pains, not to take state. 4. The work of Christ's
ministers, to which they are to be separated, is work that is already settled,
and that which all Christ's ministers hitherto have been called to, and which
they themselves have first been, by an external call, directed to and have
chosen.
III. Their ordination, pursuant to these orders: not to the ministry in
general (Barnabas and Saul had both of them been ministers long before this),
but to a particular service in the ministry, which had something peculiar in
it, and which required a fresh commission, which commission God saw fit at
this time to transmit by the hands of these prophets and teachers, for
the giving of this direction to the church, that teachers should ordain
teachers (for prophets we are not now any longer to expect), and that those
who have the dispensing of the oracles of Christ committed to them should, for
the benefit of posterity, commit the same to faithful men, who shall be
able also to teach others, 2 Tim. ii. 2. So here, Simeon, and Lucius, and
Manaen, faithful teachers at this time in the church of Antioch, when they
had fasted and prayed, laid their hands on Barnabas and Saul, and sent them
away (v. 3), according to the directions received. Observe, 1. They
prayed for them. When good men are going forth about good work, they ought to
be solemnly and particularly prayed for, especially by their brethren that are
their fellow-labourers and fellow-soldiers. 2. They joined fasting with their
prayers, as they did in their other ministrations, v. 3. Christ has
taught us this by his abstaining from sleep (a night-fast, if I may so call
it) the night before he sent forth his apostles, that he might spend it in
prayer. 3. They laid their hands on them. Hereby, (1.) They gave them their
manumission, dismission, or discharge from the present service they were
engaged in, in the church of Antioch, acknowledging that they went off not
only fairly and with consent, but honourably and with a good report. (2.) They
implored a blessing upon them in their present undertaking, begged that God
would be with them, and give them success; and, in order to this, that they
might be filled with the Holy Ghost in their work. This very thing is
explained ch. xiv. 26, where it is said, concerning Paul and Barnabas,
that from Antioch they had been recommended to the grace of God for the
work which they fulfilled. As it was an instance of the humility of
Barnabas and Saul that they submitted to the imposition of the hands of those
that were their equals, or rather their inferiors; so it was of the good
disposition of the other teachers that they did not envy Barnabas and Saul the
honour to which they were preferred, but cheerfully committed it to them, with
hearty prayers for them; and they sent them away with all expedition,
out of a concern for those countries where they were to break up fallow
ground.
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Elymas
Struck with Blindness.
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4 So they, being sent forth by the Holy Ghost,
departed unto Seleucia; and from thence they sailed to Cyprus. 5
And when they were at Salamis, they preached the word of God in the synagogues
of the Jews: and they had also John to their minister. 6
And when they had gone through the isle unto Paphos, they found a certain
sorcerer, a false prophet, a Jew, whose name was Bar-jesus:
7 Which was with the deputy of the country, Sergius Paulus, a prudent man; who
called for Barnabas and Saul, and desired to hear the word of God.
8 But Elymas the sorcerer (for so is his name by interpretation) withstood
them, seeking to turn away the deputy from the faith. 9 Then Saul,
(who also is called Paul,) filled with the Holy Ghost, set his eyes on
him, 10 And said, O full of all subtilty and all mischief, thou
child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteousness, wilt thou not
cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord? 11 And now, behold,
the hand of the Lord is upon thee, and thou shalt be blind, not seeing
the sun for a season. And immediately there fell on him a mist and a darkness;
and he went about seeking some to lead him by the hand. 12 Then
the deputy, when he saw what was done, believed, being astonished at the
doctrine of the Lord. 13 Now when Paul and his company loosed from
Paphos, they came to Perga in Pamphylia: and John departing from them returned
to Jerusalem.
In these verses we have,
I. A general account of the coming of Barnabas and Saul to the famous island
of Cyprus; and perhaps thitherward they steered their course because Barnabas
was a native of that country (ch. iv. 36), and he was willing they
should have the first-fruits of his labours, pursuant to his new commission.
Observe, 1. Their being sent forth by the Holy Ghost was the great thing that
encouraged them in this undertaking, v. 4. If the Holy Ghost send them
forth, he will go along with them, strengthen them, carry them on in their
work, and give them success; and then they fear no colours, but can cheerfully
venture upon a stormy sea from Antioch, which was now to them a quiet harbour.
2. They came to Seleucia, the sea-port town opposite to Cyprus, thence crossed
the sea to Cyprus, and in that island the first city they came to was Salamis,
a city on the east side of the island (v. 5); and, when they had sown
good seed there, thence they went onward through the isle (v.
6) till they came to Paphos, which lay on the western coast. 3. They
preached the word of God wherever they came, in the synagogues of the
Jews; so far were they from excluding them that they gave them the
preference, and so left those among them who believed not inexcusable; they
would have gathered them, but they would not. They did not act
clandestinely, nor preach the Messiah to others unknown to them, but laid
their doctrine open to the censure of the rulers of their synagogues, who
might, if they had any thing to say, object against it. Nor would they have
acted separately, but in concert with them, if they had not driven them out
from them, and from their synagogues. 4. They had John for their minister;
not their servant in common things, but their assistant in the things of God,
either to prepare their way in places where they designed to come or to carry
on their work in places where they had begun it, or to converse familiarly
with those to whom they preached publicly, and explain things to them; and
such a one might be many ways of use to them, especially in a strange country.
II. A particular account of their encounter with Elymas the sorcerer,
whom they met with at Paphos, where the governor resided; a place famous for a
temple built to Venus there, thence called Paphian Venus; and therefore
there was more than ordinary need that the Son of God should there be
manifested to destroy the works of the devil.
1. There the deputy, a Gentile, Sergius Paulus by name,
encouraged the apostles, and was willing to hear their message. He was
governor of the country, under the Roman emperor; proconsul or proprætor,
such a one as we should call lord lieutenant of the island. He had the
character of a prudent man, an intelligent, considerate man, that was
ruled by reason, not passion nor prejudice, which appeared by this, that,
having a character of Barnabas and Saul, he sent for them, and desired to
hear the word of God. Note, When that which we hear has a tendency to lead
us to God, it is prudence to desire to hear more of it. Those are wise people,
however they may be ranked among the foolish of this world, who are
inquisitive after the mind and will of God. Though he was a great man, and a
man in authority, and the preachers of the gospel were men that made no
figure, yet, if they have a message from God, let him know what it is, and, if
it appear to be so, he is ready to receive it.
2. There Elymas, a Jew, a sorcerer, opposed them, and did all he could
to obstruct their progress. This justified the apostles in turning to the
Gentiles, that this Jew was so malignant against them.
(1.) This Elymas was a pretender to the gift of prophecy, a sorcerer, a
false-prophet--one that would be taken for a divine, because he was
skilled in the arts of divination; he was a conjurer, and took on him to tell
people their fortune, and to discover things lost, and probably was in league
with the devil for this purpose; his name was Bar-jesus--the son of Joshua;
it signifies the son of salvation; but the Syriac calls him, Bar-shoma--the
son of pride; filius inflationis--the son of inflation.
(2.) He was hanging on at court, was with the deputy of the country. It
does not appear that the deputy called for him, as he did for Barnabas and
Saul; but he thrust himself upon him, aiming, no doubt, to make a hand of him,
and get money by him.
(3.) He made it his business to withstand Barnabas and Saul, as the magicians
of Egypt, in Pharaoh's court, withstood Moses and Aaron, 2 Tim. iii. 8.
He set up himself to be a messenger from heaven, and denied that they were.
And thus he sought to turn away the deputy from the faith (v.
8), to keep him from receiving the gospel, which he saw him inclined to do.
Note, Satan is in a special manner busy with great men and men of power, to
keep them from being religious; because he knows that their example, whether
good or bad, will have an influence upon many. And those who are in any way
instrumental to prejudice people against the truths and ways of Christ are
doing the devil's work.
(4.) Saul (who is here for the first time called Paul) fell upon him for this
with a holy indignation. Saul, who is also called Paul, v. 9.
Saul was his name as he was a Hebrew, and of the tribe of Benjamin; Paul was
his name as he was a citizen of Rome. Hitherto we have had him mostly
conversant among the Jews, and therefore called by his Jewish name; but now,
when he is sent forth among the Gentiles, he is called by his Roman name, to
put somewhat of a reputation upon him in the Roman cities, Paulus being a very
common name among them. But some think he was never called Paul till now that
he was instrumental in the conversion of Sergius Paulus to the faith of
Christ, and that he took the name Paulus as a memorial of this victory
obtained by the gospel of Christ, as among the Romans he that had conquered a
country took his denomination from it, as Germanicus, Britannicus,
Africanus; or rather, Sergius Paulus himself gave him the name Paulus in
token of his favour and respect to him, as Vespasian gave his name Flavius to
Josephus the Jew. Now of Paul it is said,
[1.] That he was filled with the Holy Ghost upon this occasion, filled
with a holy zeal against a professed enemy of Christ, which was one of the
graces of the Holy Ghost--a spirit of burning; filled with power to
denounce the wrath of God against him, which was one of the gifts of the Holy
Ghost--a spirit of judgment. He felt a more than ordinary fervour in
his mind, as the prophet did when he was full of power by the Spirit of the
Lord (Mic. iii. 8), and another prophet when his face was made harder
than flint (Ezek. iii. 9), and another when his mouth was made like a
sharp sword, Isa. xlix. 2. What Paul said did not come from any personal
resentment, but from the strong impressions which the Holy Ghost made upon his
spirit.
[2.] He set his eyes upon him, to face him down, and to show a holy
boldness, in opposition to his wicked impudence. He set his eyes upon him, as
an indication that the eye of the heart-searching God was upon him, and saw
through and through him; nay, that the face of the Lord was against him,
Ps. xxxiv. 16. He fixed his eyes upon him, to see if he could discern in his
countenance any marks of remorse for what he had done; for, if he could have
discerned the least sign of this, it would have prevented the ensuing doom.
[3.] He gave him his true character, not in passion, but by the Holy Ghost,
who knows men better than they know themselves, v. 10. He describes him
to be, First, An agent for hell; and such there have been upon this
earth (the seat of the war between the seed of the woman and of the serpent)
ever since Cain who was of that wicked one, an incarnate devil, slew
his brother, for no other reason than because his own works were evil
and his brother's righteous. This Elymas, though called Bar-jesus--a
son of Jesus, was really a child of the devil, bore his image, did
his lusts, and served his interests, John viii. 44. In two things he resembled
the devil as a child does his father-- 1. In craftiness. The serpent was
more subtle than any beast of the field (Gen. iii. 1), and Elymas, though
void of all wisdom, was full of all subtlety, expert in all the arts of
deceiving men and imposing upon them. 2. In malice. He was full of all
mischief--a spiteful ill-conditioned man, and a sworn implacable enemy to
God and goodness. Note, A fulness of subtlety and mischief together make a man
indeed a child of the devil. Secondly, An adversary to heaven. If he be
a child of the devil, it follows of course that he is an enemy to all
righteousness, for the devil is so. Note, Those that are enemies to the
doctrine of Christ are enemies to all righteousness, for in it all
righteousness is summed up and fulfilled.
[4.] He charged upon him his present crime, and expostulated with him upon it:
"Wilt thou not cease to pervert the right ways of the Lord, to
misrepresent them, to put false colours upon them, and so to discourage people
from entering into them, and walking in them?" Note, First, The
ways of the Lord are right: they are all so, they are perfectly so. The ways
of the Lord Jesus are right, the only right ways to heaven and happiness. Secondly,
There are those who pervert these right ways, who not only wander out of these
ways themselves (as Elihu's penitent, who owns, I have perverted that which
was right and it profited me not), but mislead others, and suggest to them
unjust prejudices against these ways: as if the doctrine of Christ were
uncertain and precarious, the laws of Christ unreasonable and impractical, and
the service of Christ unpleasant and unprofitable, which is an unjust
perverting of the right ways of the Lord, and making them seem crooked ways. Thirdly,
Those who pervert the right ways of the Lord are commonly so hardened in it
that, though the equity of those ways be set before them by the most powerful
and commanding evidence, yet they will not cease to do it. Etsi suaseris,
non persuaseris--You may advise, but you will never persuade; they will
have it their own way; they have loved strangers, and after them they will
go.
[5.] He denounced the judgment of God upon him, in a present blindness (v.
11): "And now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon thee, a
righteous hand. God is now about to lay hands on thee, and make thee his
prisoner, for thou art taken in arms against him; thou shalt be blind, not
seeing the sun for a season." This was designed both for the proof of
his crime, as it was a miracle wrought to confirm the right ways of the Lord,
and consequently to show the wickedness of him who would not cease to pervert
them, as also for the punishment of his crime. It was a suitable punishment;
he shut his eyes, the eyes of his mind, against the light of the gospel, and
therefore justly were the eyes of his body shut against the light of the sun;
he sought to blind the deputy (as an agent for the god of this world, who
blindeth the minds of those that believe not, lest the light of the gospel
should shine unto them, 2 Cor. iv. 4), and therefore is himself struck
blind. Yet it was a moderate punishment: he was only struck blind, when he
might most justly have been struck dead; and it was only for a season;
if he will repent, and give glory to God, by making confession, his sight
shall be restored; nay, it should seem, though he do not, yet his sight shall
be restored, to try if he will be led to repentance either by the judgments of
God or by his mercies.
[6.] This judgment was immediately executed: There fell on him a mist and a
darkness, as on the Sodomites when they persecuted Elisha. This silenced
him presently, filled him with confusion, and was an effectual confutation of
all he said against the doctrine of Christ. Let not him any more pretend to be
a guide to the deputy's conscience who is himself struck blind. It was also an
earnest to him of a much sorer punishment if he repent not; for he is one of
those wandering stars to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness for
ever, Jude 13. Elymas did himself proclaim the truth of the miracle, when he
went about seeking some to lead him by the hand; and where now is all his
skill in sorcery, upon which he had so much valued himself, when he can
neither find his way nor find a friend that will be so kind as to lead him!
3. Notwithstanding all the endeavours of Elymas to turn away the deputy
from the faith, he was brought to believe, and this miracle, wrought upon
the magician himself (like the boils of Egypt, which were upon the
magicians, so that they could not stand before Moses, Exod. ix. 11),
contributed to it. The deputy was a very sensible man, and observed something
uncommon, and which intimated its divine original, (1.) In Paul's preaching:
he was astonished at the doctrine of the Lord, the Lord Christ--the
doctrine that is from him, the discoveries he has made of the
Father--the doctrine that is concerning him, his person, natures,
offices, undertaking. Note, The doctrine of Christ has a great deal in it that
is astonishing; and the more we know of it the more reason we shall see to
wonder and stand amazed at it. (2.) In this miracle: When he saw what was
done, and how much Paul's power transcended that of the magician, and how
plainly Elymas was baffled and confounded, he believed. It is not said that he
was baptized, and so made a complete convert, but it is probable that he was.
Paul would not do his business by the halves; as for God, his work is
perfect. When he became a Christian, he neither laid down his government,
nor was turned out of it, but we may suppose, as a Christian magistrate, by
his influence helped very much to propagate Christianity in that island. The
tradition of the Romish church, which has taken care to find bishoprics for
all the eminent converts we read of in the Acts, has made this Sergius
Paulus bishop of Narbon in France, left there by Paul in his journey to Spain.
III. Their departure from the island of Cyprus. It is probable that they did a
great deal more there than is recorded, where an account is given only of that
which was extraordinary--the conversion of the deputy. When they had done what
they had to do, 1. They quitted the country, and went to Perga. Those
that went were Paul and his company, which, it is probable, was
increased in Cyprus, many being desirous to accompany him. AnacqenteV
oi peri ton Paulon--Those that were about Paul
loosed from Paphos, which supposes that he went too; but such an affection
had his new friends for him that they were always about him, and by their good
will would be never from him. 2. Then John Mark quitted them, and returned
to Jerusalem, without the consent of Paul and Barnabas; either he did not
like the work, or he wanted to go and see his mother. It was his fault, and we
shall hear of it again.
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Paul
at Antioch in Pisidia.
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14 But when they departed from Perga, they came
to Antioch in Pisidia, and went into the synagogue on the sabbath day, and sat
down. 15 And after the reading of the law and the prophets the
rulers of the synagogue sent unto them, saying, Ye men and
brethren, if ye have any word of exhortation for the people, say on.
16 Then Paul stood up, and beckoning with his hand said, Men of Israel,
and ye that fear God, give audience. 17 The God of this people of
Israel chose our fathers, and exalted the people when they dwelt as strangers
in the land of Egypt, and with a high arm brought he them out of it.
18 And about the time of forty years suffered he their manners in the
wilderness. 19 And when he had destroyed seven nations in the land
of Chanaan, he divided their land to them by lot. 20 And after
that he gave unto them judges about the space of four hundred and fifty
years, until Samuel the prophet. 21 And afterward they desired a
king: and God gave unto them Saul the son of Cis, a man of the tribe of
Benjamin, by the space of forty years. 22 And when he had removed
him, he raised up unto them David to be their king; to whom also he gave
testimony, and said, I have found David the son of Jesse, a man after
mine own heart, which shall fulfil all my will. 23 Of this man's
seed hath God according to his promise raised unto Israel a Saviour,
Jesus: 24 When John had first preached before his coming the
baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel. 25 And as John
fulfilled his course, he said, Whom think ye that I am? I am not he.
But, behold, there cometh one after me, whose shoes of his feet I am
not worthy to loose. 26 Men and brethren, children of the
stock of Abraham, and whosoever among you feareth God, to you is the word of
this salvation sent. 27 For they that dwell at Jerusalem, and
their rulers, because they knew him not, nor yet the voices of the prophets
which are read every sabbath day, they have fulfilled them in
condemning him. 28 And though they found no cause of death in
him, yet desired they Pilate that he should be slain. 29 And
when they had fulfilled all that was written of him, they took him down
from the tree, and laid him in a sepulchre. 30 But God
raised him from the dead: 31 And he was seen many days of them
which came up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are his witnesses unto
the people. 32 And we declare unto you glad tidings, how that the
promise which was made unto the fathers, 33 God hath fulfilled the
same unto us their children, in that he hath raised up Jesus again; as it is
also written in the second psalm, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten
thee. 34 And as concerning that he raised him up from the dead, now
no more to return to corruption, he said on this wise, I will give you the
sure mercies of David. 35 Wherefore he saith also in another psalm,
Thou shalt not suffer thine Holy One to see corruption. 36 For
David, after he had served his own generation by the will of God, fell on
sleep, and was laid unto his fathers, and saw corruption: 37 But
he, whom God raised again, saw no corruption. 38 Be it known unto
you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto
you the forgiveness of sins: 39 And by him all that believe are
justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of
Moses. 40 Beware therefore, lest that come upon you, which is
spoken of in the prophets; 41 Behold, ye despisers, and wonder,
and perish: for I work a work in your days, a work which ye shall in no wise
believe, though a man declare it unto you.
Perga in Pamphylia was a noted place, especially for a temple there erected to
the goddess Diana, yet nothing at all is related of what Paul and Barnabas did
there, only that thither they came (v. 13), and thence they
departed, v. 14. But the history of the apostles' travels, as that
of Christ's, passes by many things worthy to have been recorded, because, if
all had been written, the world could not have contained the books. But
the next place we find them in is another Antioch, said to be in Pisidia, to
distinguish it from that Antioch in Syria from which they were sent out.
Pisidia was a province of the Lesser Asia, bordering upon Pamphylia; this
Antioch, it is likely, was the metropolis of it. Abundance of Jews lived
there, and to them the gospel was to be first preached; and Paul's
sermon to them is what we have in these verses, which, it is likely, is the
substance of what was preached by the apostles generally to the Jews in all
places; for in dealing with them the proper way was to show them how the New
Testament, which they would have them to receive, exactly agreed with the Old
Testament, which they not only received, but were zealous for. We have here,
I. The appearance which Paul and Barnabas made in a religious assembly of the
Jews at Antioch, v. 14. Though they had lately had such good success
with a Roman deputy, yet, when they came to Antioch, they did not
enquire for the chief magistrate, nor make their court to him, but they
applied to the Jews, which is a further proof of their good affection to them
and their desire of their welfare. 1. They observed their time of worship, on
the sabbath day, the Jewish sabbath. The first day of the week they
observed among themselves as a Christian sabbath; but, if they will meet the
Jews, it must be on the seventh-day sabbath, which therefore, upon such
occasions, they did as yet sometimes observe. For, though it was by the death
of Christ that the ceremonial law died, yet it was in the ruins of Jerusalem
that it was to be buried; and therefore, though the morality of the fourth
commandment was entirely transferred to the Christian sabbath, yet it was not
incongruous to join with the Jews in their sabbath sanctification. 2. They met
them in their place of worship, in the synagogue. Note, Sabbath days
should be kept holy in solemn assemblies; they are instituted chiefly for
public worship. The sabbath day is a holy convocation, and for that
reason no servile work must be done therein. Paul and Barnabas were
strangers; but, wherever we come, we must enquire out God's faithful
worshippers, and join with them (as these apostles here did), as those that
desire to keep up a communion with all saints; though they were strangers, yet
they were admitted into the synagogue, and to sit down there. Care should be
taken in places of public worship that strangers be accommodated, even the
poorest; for, of those of whom we know nothing else, we know this, that they
have precious souls, for which our charity binds us to be concerned.
II. The invitation given them to preach. 1. The usual service of the synagogue
was performed (v. 15): The law and the prophets were read, a
portion of each, the lessons for the day. Note, When we come together to
worship God, we must do it not only by prayer and praise, but by the reading
and hearing of the word of God; hereby we give him the glory due to his
name, as our Lord and Lawgiver. 2. When that was done, they were asked by the
rulers of the synagogue to give them a sermon (v. 15): They sent a
messenger to them with the respectful message, Men and brethren, if you
have any word of exhortation for the people, say on. It is probable that
the rulers of the synagogue had met with them, and been in private
conversation with them before; and, if they had not an affection to the
gospel, yet they had at least the curiosity to hear Paul preach; and therefore
not only gave him permission, but begged the favour of him that he would speak
a word of exhortation to the people. Note, (1.) The bare reading of the
scriptures in the public assemblies is not sufficient, but they should be
expounded, and the people exhorted out of them. This is spreading the net, and
assisting people in doing that which is necessary to the making of the word
profitable to them--that is, the applying of it to themselves. (2.) Those that
preside, and have power, in public assemblies, should provide for a word of
exhortation to the people, whenever they come together. (3.) Sometimes a word
of exhortation from a strange minister may be of great use to the people,
provided he be well approved. It is likely Paul did often preach in the
synagogue, when he was not thus invited to it by the rulers of the
synagogues; for he often preached with much contention, 1 Thess. ii. 2.
But these were more noble, more generous, than the rulers of the synagogues
generally were.
III. The sermon Paul preached in the synagogue of the Jews, at the invitation
of the rulers of the synagogue. He gladly embraced the opportunity given him
to preach Christ to his countrymen the Jews. He did not object to them that he
was a stranger, and that it was none of his business; nor object to himself,
that he might get ill-will by preaching Christ among the Jews; but stood
up, as one prepared and determined to speak, and beckoned with his
hand, to excite and prepare them to hear. He waved his hand as an orator,
not only desiring silence and attention, but endeavouring to move affection,
and to show himself in earnest. Perhaps, upon the moving of them to give an
exhortation to the people, there were those in the synagogue that were
ready to mutiny against the rulers, and opposed the toleration of Paul's
preaching, and that occasioned some tumult and commotion, which Paul
endeavoured to quiet by that decent motion of his hand; as also by his modest
desire of a patient impartial hearing: "Men of Israel, that are Jews
by birth, and you that fear God, that are proselyted to the Jewish
religion, give audience; let me beg your attention a little, for I have
something to say to you which concerns your everlasting peace, and would not
say it in vain." Now this excellent sermon is recorded, to show that
those who preached the gospel to the Gentiles did it not till they had first
used their utmost endeavours with the Jews, to persuade them to come in and
take the benefit of it; and that they had no prejudice at all against the
Jewish nation, nor any desire that they should perish, but rather that they
should turn and live. Every thing is touched in this sermon that might be
proper either to convince the judgment or insinuate into the affections of the
Jews, to prevail with them to receive and embrace Christ as the promised
Messiah.
1. He owns them to be God's favourite people, whom he had taken into special
relation to himself, and for whom he had done great things. Probably the
Jews of the dispersion, that lived in other countries, being more in
danger of mingling with the nations, were more jealous of their peculiarity
than those that lived in their own land were; and therefore Paul is here very
careful to take notice of it, to their honour.
(1.) That the God of the whole earth was, in a particular manner, the
God of this people Israel, a God in covenant with them, and that he
had given them a revelation of his mind and will, such as he had not given
to any other nation or people; so that hereby they were distinguished
from, and dignified above, all their neighbours, having peculiar precepts to
be governed by, and peculiar promises to depend upon.
(2.) That he had chosen their fathers to be his friends: Abraham was
called the friend of God; to be his prophets, by whom he would reveal
his mind to his church, and to be the trustees of his covenant with the
church. He puts them in mind of this, to let them know that the reason why God
favoured them, though undeserving, and ill deserving, was because he would
adhere to the choice he had made of their fathers, Deut. vii. 7, 8. They
were beloved purely for the fathers' sakes, Rom. xi. 28.
(3.) That he had exalted that people, and put a great deal of honour
upon them, had advanced them into a people, and raised them from nothing, when
they dwelt as strangers in the land of Egypt, and had nothing in them to
recommend them to the divine favour. They ought to remember this, and to infer
hence that God was no debtor to them; for it was ex mero motu--out of his
mere good pleasure, and not upon a valuable consideration, that they had
the grant of the divine favour; and therefore it was revocable at pleasure;
and God did them no wrong if he at length plucked up the hedge of their
peculiarity. But they were debtors to him, and obliged to receive such further
discoveries as he should make to his church.
(4.) That he had with a high hand brought them out of Egypt, where they
were not only strangers, but captives, had delivered them at the expense of a
great many miracles, both of mercy to them and judgment on their oppressors (signs
and wonders, Deut. iv. 34), and at the expense of a great many lives, all
the first-born of Egypt, Pharaoh, and all his host, in the Red Sea; I gave
Egypt for thy ransom, gave men for thee. Isa. xliii. 3, 4.
(5.) That he had suffered their manners forty years in the wilderness, v.
18, Etropoforhsen. Some
think it should be read, etrofoforhsen--he
educated them, because this is the word the Septuagint use concerning the
fatherly care God took of that people, Deut. i. 31. Both may be included; for,
[1.] God made a great deal of provision for them for forty years in the
wilderness: miracles were their daily bread, and kept them from starving: They
lacked not any thing. [2.] He exercised a great deal of patience with
them. They were a provoking, murmuring, unbelieving people; and yet he bore
with them, did not deal with them as they deserved, but suffered his anger
many a time to be turned away by the prayer and intercession of Moses. So many
years as we have each of us lived in this world, we must own that God has thus
been as a tender father to us, has supplied our wants, has fed us all our
life long unto this day, has been indulgent to us, a God of pardons (as he
was to Israel, Neh. ix. 17), and not extreme to mark what we have done
amiss; we have tried his patience, and yet not tired it. Let not the Jews
insist too much upon the privileges of their peculiarity, for they have
forfeited them a thousand times.
(6.) That he had put them in possession of the land of Canaan (v. 19): When
he had destroyed seven nations in the land of Canaan,
that were doomed to be rooted out to make room for them, he divided their
land to them by lot, and put them in possession of it. This was a signal
favour of God to them, and he owns that hereby a great honour was put upon
them, from which he would not in the least derogate.
(7.) That he had raised up men, inspirited from heaven, to deliver them out of
the hands of those that invaded their rights, and oppressed them after their
settlement in Canaan, v. 20, 21. [1.] He gave them judges, men
qualified for public service, and, by an immediate impulse upon their spirits,
called to it, pro re nata--as the occasion required. Though they were a
provoking people, and were never in servitude but their sin brought them to
it, yet upon their petition a deliverer was raised up. The critics find some
difficulty in computing these four hundred and fifty years. From the deliverance
out of Egypt to David's expulsion of the Jebusites from the stronghold
of Zion, which completed the casting out of the heathen nations, was
four hundred and fifty years; and most of that time they were under
judges. Others thus: The government of the judges, from the death of Joshua to
the death of Eli, was just three hundred and thirty-nine years, but it
is said to be [wV] as it
were four hundred and fifty years, because the years of their servitude
to the several nations that oppressed them, though really they were included
in the years of the judges, are yet mentioned in the history as if they had
been distinct from them. Now these, all put together, make one hundred and
eleven years, which added to the three hundred and thirty nine,
make them four hundred and fifty; as so many, though not really so
many. [2.] He governed them by a prophet, Samuel, a man divinely
inspired to preside in their affairs. [3.] He afterwards at their
request set a king over them (v. 21), Saul, the son of Cis.
Samuel's government and his lasted forty years, which was a kind of
transition from the theocracy to the kingly government. [4.] At last, he made
David their king, v. 22. When God had removed Saul, for his
mal-administration, he raised up unto them David to be their king, and
made a covenant of royalty with him, and with his seed. When he had
removed one king, he did not leave them as sheep without a shepherd, but soon
raised up another, raised him up from a mean and low estate, raised him up
on high, 2 Sam. xxiii. 1. He quotes the testimony God gave concerning him,
First, That his choice was divine: I have found David, Ps.
lxxxix. 20. God himself pitched upon him. Finding implies seeking; as if God
had ransacked all the families of Israel to find a man fit for his purpose,
and this was he. Secondly, That his character was divine: A man
after my own heart, such a one as I would have, one on whom the image of
God is stamped, and therefore one in whom God is well pleased and whom he
approves. This character was given of him before he was first anointed, 1 Sam.
xiii. 14. The Lord hath sought out a man after his own heart, such a
one as he would have. Thirdly, That his conduct was divine, and under
divine direction: He shall fulfil all my will. He shall desire and
endeavour to do the will of God, and shall be enabled to do it, and employed
in the doing of it, and go through with it. Now all this seems to show not
only the special favour of God to the people of Israel (with the
acknowledgment of which the apostle is very willing to oblige them) but the
further favours of another nature which he designed them, and which were now,
by the preaching of the gospel, offered to them. Their deliverance out of
Egypt, and settlement in Canaan, were types and figures of good things to
come. The changes of their government showed that it made nothing
perfect, and therefore must give way to the spiritual kingdom of the
Messiah, which was now in the setting up, and which, if they would admit it
and submit to it, would be the glory of their people Israel; and
therefore they needed not conceive any jealousy at all of the preaching of the
gospel, as if it tended in the least to damage the true excellences of the
Jewish church.
2. He gives them a full account of our Lord Jesus, passing from David to the
Son of David, and shows that this Jesus is his promised Seed (v. 23): Of
this man's seed, from that root of Jesse, from that man after
God's own heart, hath God, according to his promise, raised unto Israel a
Saviour--Jesus, who carries salvation in his name.
(1.) How welcome should the preaching of the gospel of Christ be to the Jews,
and how should they embrace it, as well worthy of all acceptation, when
it brought them the tidings, [1.] Of a Saviour, to deliver them out of the
hands of their enemies, as the judges of old, who were therefore called saviours;
but this a Saviour to do that for them which, it appears by the
history, those could not do--to save them from their sins, their worst
enemies. [2.] A Saviour of God's raising up, that has his commission from
heaven. [3.] Raised up to be a Saviour unto Israel, to them in the
first place: He was sent to bless them; so far was the gospel from
designing the gathering of them. [4.] Raised up of the seed of David,
that ancient royal family, which the people of Israel gloried so much in, and
which at this time, to the great disgrace of the whole nation, was buried in
obscurity. It ought to be a great satisfaction to them that God had raised
up this horn of salvation for them in the house of his servant David, Luke
i. 69. [5.] Raised up according to his promise, the promise to David
(Ps. cxxxii. 11), the promise to the Old-Testament church in the latter times
of it: I will raise unto David a righteous branch, Jer. xxiii. 5. This
promise was it to which the twelve tribes hoped to come (ch.
xxvi. 7); why then should they entertain it so coldly, now that it was brought
to them? Now,
(2.) Concerning this Jesus, he tells them,
[1.] That John the Baptist was his harbinger and forerunner, that great man
whom all acknowledged to be a prophet. Let them not say that the Messiah's
coming was a surprise upon them, and that this might excuse them if they took
time to consider whether they should entertain him or no; for they had
sufficient warning by John, who preached before his coming, v.
24. Two things he did--First, He made way for his entrance, by
preaching the baptism of repentance, not to a few select disciples, but
to all the people of Israel. He showed them their sins, warned them
of the wrath to come, called them to repentance, and to bring forth
fruits meet for repentance, and bound those to this who were willing to be
bound by the solemn rite or sign of baptism; and by this he made ready a
people prepared for the Lord Jesus, to whom his grace would be acceptable
when they were thus brought to know themselves. Secondly, He gave
notice of his approach (v. 25): As he fulfilled his course, when
he was going on vigorously in his work, and had had wonderful success in it,
and an established interest: "Now," saith he to those that attended
his ministry, "Whom think you that I am? What notions have you of
me, what expectations from me? You may be thinking that I am the Messiah,
whom you expect; but you are mistaken, I am not he (see John i. 20),
but he is at the door; behold, there cometh one immediately after
me, who will so far exceed me upon all accounts, that I am not worthy
to be employed in the meanest office about him, no, not to help him on and off
with his shoes--whose shoes of his feet I am not worthy to loose, and
you may guess who that must be."
[2.] That the rulers and people of the Jews, who should have welcomed him, and
been his willing, forward, faithful subjects, were his persecutors and
murderers. When the apostles preach Christ as the Saviour, they are so
far from concealing his ignominious death, and drawing a veil over it, that
they always preach Christ crucified, yea, and (though this added much
to the reproach of his sufferings) crucified by his own people, by those
that dwelt in Jerusalem, the holy city--the royal city, and their
rulers, v. 27. First, Their sin was that though they
found no cause of death in him, could not prove him, no, nor had any
colour to suspect him, guilty of any crime (the judge himself that tried him,
when he had heard all they could say against him, declared he found no
fault with him), yet they desired Pilate that he might be slain (v.
28), and presented their address against Christ with such fury and outrage
that they compelled Pilate to crucify him, not only contrary to his
inclination, but contrary to his conscience; they condemned him to so great
a death, though they could not convict him of the least sin. Paul cannot
charge this upon his hearers, as Peter did (ch. ii. 23): You have
with wicked hands crucified and slain him; for these, though Jews, were
far enough off; but he charges it upon the Jews at Jerusalem and the rulers,
to show what little reason those Jews of the dispersion had to be so jealous
for the honour of their nation as they were, when it had brought upon itself
such a load and stain of guilt as this, and how justly they might have been
cut off from all benefit by the Messiah, who had thus abused him, and yet they
were not; but, notwithstanding all this, the preaching of this gospel shall
begin at Jerusalem. Secondly, The reason of this was because they
knew him not, v. 27. They knew not who he was, nor what errand he
came into the world upon; for, if they had known, they would not have
crucified the Lord of glory. Christ owned this in extenuation of their
crime: They know not what they do; and so did Peter: I wot that
through ignorance you did this, ch. iii. 17. It was also because
they knew not the voice of the prophets though they heard them read every
sabbath day. They did not understand nor consider that it was foretold that
the Messiah should suffer, or else they would never have been the instruments
of his suffering. Note, Many that read the prophets do not know the voice of
the prophets, do not understand the meaning of the scriptures; they have the
sound of the gospel in their ears, but not the sense of it in their heads, nor
the savour of it in their hearts. And therefore men do not know Christ,
nor know how to carry it towards him, because they do not know the voice of
the prophets, who testified beforehand concerning Christ. Thirdly, God
overruled them, for the accomplishment of the prophecies of the Old-Testament:
Because they knew not the voice of the prophets, which warned them not
to touch God's Anointed, they fulfilled them in condemning him; for so
it was written that Messiah the prince shall be cut off, but not for
himself. Note, It is possible that men may be fulfilling scripture
prophecies, even when they are breaking scripture precepts, particularly in
the persecution of the church, as in the persecution of Christ. And this
justifies the reason which is sometimes given for the obscurity of scripture
prophecies, that, if they were too plain and obvious, the accomplishment of
them would thereby be prevented. So Paul saith here, Because they knew not
the voice of the prophets, therefore they have fulfilled them,
which implies that if they had understood them they would not have fulfilled
them. Fourthly, All that was foretold concerning the sufferings of the
Messiah was fulfilled in Christ (v. 29): When they had fulfilled all
the rest that was written of him, even to the giving of him vinegar to
drink in his thirst, then they fulfilled what was foretold concerning his
being buried. They took him down from the tree, and laid him in a
sepulchre. This is taken notice of here as that which made his
resurrection the more illustrious. Christ was separated from this world, as
those that are buried have nothing more to do with this world, nor this world
with them; and therefore our complete separation from sin is represented by
our being buried with Christ. And a good Christian will be willing to
be buried alive with Christ. They laid him in a sepulchre, and thought they
had him fast.
[3.] That he rose again from the dead, and saw no corruption. This was
the great truth that was to be preached; for it is the main pillar, by which
the whole fabric of the gospel is supported, and therefore he insists largely
upon this, and shows,
First, That he rose by consent. When he was imprisoned in the grave for
our debt, he did not break prison, but had a fair and legal discharge from the
arrest he was under (v. 30): God raised him from the dead, sent
an angel on purpose to roll away the stone from the prison-door, returned to
him the spirit which at his death he had committed into the hands of his
Father, and quickened him by the Holy Ghost. His enemies laid him in a
sepulchre, with design he should always lay there; but God said, No;
and it was soon seen whose purpose should stand, his or theirs.
Secondly, That there was sufficient proof of his having risen (v.
31): He was seen many days, in divers places, upon divers occasions, by
those that were most intimately acquainted with him; for they came up with
him from Galilee to Jerusalem, were his constant attendants, and they
are his witnesses unto the people. They were appointed to be so, have
attested the thing many a time, and are ready to attest it, though they were
to die for the same. Paul says nothing of his own seeing him, which was more
convincing to himself than it could be when produced to others.
Thirdly, That the resurrection of Christ was the performance of the
promise made to the patriarchs; it was not only true news, but good news:
"In declaring this, we declare unto you glad tidings (v.
32, 33), which should be in a particular manner acceptable to you Jews. So far
are we from designing to put any slur upon you, or do you any wrong, that the
doctrine we preach, if you receive it aright, and understand it, brings you
the greatest honour and satisfaction imaginable; for it is in the resurrection
of Christ that the promise which was made to your fathers is fulfilled to
you." He acknowledges it to be the dignity of the Jewish nation that to
them pertained the promises (Rom. ix. 4), that they were the heirs of the
promise, as they were the children of the patriarchs to whom the promises were
first made. The great promise of the Old Testament was that of the Messiah, in
whom all the families of the earth should be blessed, and not the family
of Abraham only; though it was to be the peculiar honour of that family that
he should be raised up of it, yet it was to be the common benefit of all
families that he should be raised up to them. Note, 1. God hath raised up
Jesus, advanced him, and exalted him; raised him again (so
we read it), meaning from the dead. We may take in both senses. God
raised up Jesus to be a prophet at his baptism, to be a priest to make
atonement at his death, and to be a king to rule over all at his ascension;
and his raising him up from the dead was the confirmation and
ratification of all these commissions, and proved him raised of God to these
offices. 2. This is the fulfilling of the promises made to the fathers, the
promise of sending the Messiah, and of all those benefits and blessings which
were to be had with him and by him: "This is he that should come, and in
him you have all that God promised in the Messiah, though not all that you
promised yourselves." Paul puts himself into the number of the Jews to
whom the promise was fulfilled: To us their children. Now, if those who
preached the gospel brought them these glad tidings, instead of looking
upon them as enemies to their nation, they ought to caress them as their best
friends, and embrace their doctrine with both arms; for if they valued the
promise so much, and themselves by it, much more the performance. And the
preaching of the gospel to the Gentiles, which was the great thing that the
Jews found themselves aggrieved at, was so far from infringing the promise
made to them that the promise itself, that all the families of the earth
should be blessed in the Messiah, could not otherwise be accomplished.
Fourthly, That the resurrection of Christ was the great proof of his
being the Son of God, and confirms what was written in the second Psalm (thus
ancient was the order in which the Psalms are now placed), Thou art my Son,
this day have I begotten thee. That the resurrection of Christ from the
dead was designed to evidence and evince this is plain from that of the
apostle (Rom. i. 4): He was declared to be the Son of God with power, by
the resurrection from the dead. When he was first raised up out of
obscurity, God declared concerning him by a voice from heaven, This is my
beloved Son (Matt. iii. 17), which has a plain reference to that in the
second Psalm, Thou art my Son. Abundance of truth there is couched in
those words: that this Jesus was begotten of the Father before all worlds--was
the brightness of his glory and the express image of his person, as the
son is of the father's--that he was the logoV,
the eternal thought of the eternal mind,--that he was conceived by the
power of the Holy Ghost in the womb of the virgin; for upon this account,
also, that holy thing was called the Son of God (Luke i. 35), that he
was God's agent in creating and governing the world, and in redeeming it and
reconciling it to himself, and faithful as a son in his own house, and
as such was heir of all things. Now all this, which was declared at
Christ's baptism and again at his transfiguration, was undeniably proved by
his resurrection. The decree which was so long before declared was then
confirmed; and the reason why it was impossible he should be held by the bands
of death was because he was the Son of God, and consequently had life in
himself, which he could not lay down but with a design to resume it. When
his eternal generation is spoken of, it is not improper to say, This day
have I begotten thee; for from everlasting to everlasting is with
God as it were one and the same eternal day. Yet it may also be accommodated
to his resurrection, in a subordinate sense, "This day have I made it to
appear that I have begotten thee, and this day have I begotten all that are
given to thee;" for it is said (1 Pet. i. 3) that the God and Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ, as our God and Father, hath begotten us again
to a lively hope, by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.
Fifthly, That his being raised the third day, so as not to see
corruption, and to a heavenly life, so as no more to return to corruption,
that is, to the state of the dead, as others did who were raised to life,
further confirms his being the Messiah promised.
a. He rose to die no more; so it is expressed, Rom. vi. 9: As
concerning that he raised him up from the dead, now no more to return to
corruption, that is, to the grave, which is called corruption, Job
xvii. 14. Lazarus came out of the grave with his grave-clothes on, because he
was to use them again; but Christ, having no more occasion for them, left them
behind. Now this was the fulfilling of that scripture (Isa. lv. 3), I will
give you the sure mercies of David; ta osia
Dabid ta pista--the holy things of David, the
faithful things; for in the promise made to David, and in him to Christ,
great stress is laid upon the faithfulness of God (Ps. lxxxix. 1, 2, 5, 24,
33), and upon the oath God had sworn by his holiness, Ps. lxxxix. 35.
Now this makes them sure mercies indeed that he who is entrusted with the
dispensing of them has risen to die no more; so that he ever lives to see his
own will executed, and the blessings he hath purchased for us given out to us.
As, if Christ had died and had not risen again, so if he had risen to die
again, we had come short of the sure mercies, or at least could not have been
sure of them.
b. He rose so soon after he was dead that his body did not see
corruption; for it is not till the third day that the body begins to change.
Now this was promised to David; it was one of the sure mercies of David,
for it was said to him in Ps. xvi. 10, Neither wilt thou suffer thy Holy
One to see corruption, v. 35. God had promised to David that he
would raise up the Messiah of his seed, who should therefore be a man, but
should not, like other men, see corruption. This promise could not have its
accomplishment in David, but looked forward to Christ.
(a.) It could not be accomplished in David himself (v. 36), for David,
after he had served his own generation, by the will of God, who raised him
up to be what he was, fell asleep, and was laid to his fathers, and saw
corruption. Here we have a short account of the life, death, and burial,
of the patriarch David, and his continuance under the power of death. [a.]
His life: He served his own generation, by the will of God, before he
slept the sleep of death. David was a useful good man; he did good in the
world by the will of God. He made God's precepts his rule; he served
his own generation so as therein to serve God; he so served and pleased
men (as whatever the king did pleased the people, 2 Sam. iii. 36), as
still to keep himself the faithful servant of God. See Gal. i. 10. He served
the good of men, but did not serve the will of men. Or, by the will of God's
providence so ordering it, qualifying him for, and calling him to, a public
station, he served his own generation; for every creature is that to us
which God makes it to be. David was a great blessing to the age wherein he
lived; he was the servant of his generation: many are the curse, and
plague, and burden of their generation. Even those that are in a lower and
narrower sphere must look upon it that they live to serve their generation;
and those that will do good in the world must make themselves servants of
all, 1 Cor. ix. 19. We were not born for ourselves, but are members of
communities, to which we must study to be serviceable. Yet here is the
difference between David and Christ, that David was to serve only his own
generation, that generation in which he lived, and therefore when he had done
what he had to do, and written what he had to write, he died, and continued in
the grave; but Christ (not by his writings or words upon record only as David,
but by his personal agency) was to serve all generations, must ever
live to reign over the house of Jacob, not as David, for forty years, but for
all ages, as long as the sun and moon endure, Ps. lxxxix. 29, 36, 37. His
throne must be as the days of heaven, and all generations must be blessed in
him, Ps. lxxii. 17. [b.] His death: He fell asleep. Death is a
sleep, a quiet rest, to those who, while they lived, laboured in the service
of God and their generation. Observe, He did not fall asleep till he had
served his generation, till he had done the work for which God raised him up.
God's servants have their work assigned them; and, when they have accomplished
as a hireling their day, then, and not till then, they are called to rest.
God's witnesses never die till they have finished their testimony; and then the
sleep, the death, of the labouring man will be sweet. David was not
permitted to build the temple, and therefore when he had made preparation for
it, which was the service he was designed to, he fell asleep, and left the
work to Solomon. [c.] His burial: He was laid to his fathers.
Though he was buried in the city of David (1 Kings ii. 10), and not in
the sepulchre of Jesse his father in Bethlehem, yet he might be said to be laid
to his fathers; for the grave, in general, is the habitation of our
fathers, of those that are gone before us, Ps. xlix. 19. [d.] His
continuance in the grave: He saw corruption. We are sure he did not
rise again; this Peter insists upon when he freely speaks of the patriarch
David (ch. ii. 29): He is both dead and buried, and his sepulchre is
with us unto this day. He saw corruption, and therefore that promise could
not have its accomplishment in him. But,
(b.) It was accomplished in the Lord Jesus (v. 37): He whom
God raised again saw no corruption; for it was in him that the sure
mercies were to be reserved for us. He rose the third day, and therefore did
not see corruption then; and he rose to die no more, and therefore never did.
Of him therefore the promise must be understood, and no other.
c. Having given them this account of the Lord Jesus, he comes to make
application of it.
(a.) In the midst of his discourse, to engage their attention, he had
told his hearers that they were concerned in all this (v. 26): "To
you is the word of this salvation sent, to you first. If you by your
unbelief make it a word of rejection to you, you may thank yourselves; but it
is sent to you for a word of salvation; if it be not so, it is your own
fault." Let them not peevishly argue that because it was sent to the
Gentiles, who had no communion with them, therefore it was not sent to them;
for to them it was sent in the first place. "To you men this is
sent, and not to the angels that sinned. To you living men, and not to the
congregation of the dead and damned, whose day of grace is over." He
therefore speaks to them with tenderness and respect: You are men and
brethren; and so we are to look upon all those that stand fair with us for
the great salvation as having the word of salvation sent to them. Those to
whom he does by warrant from heaven here bring the word of salvation
are, [a.] The native Jews, Hebrews of the Hebrews, as Paul himself was:
"Children of the stock of Abraham, though a degenerate race, yet
to you is this word of salvation sent; nay, it is therefore sent to you, to
save you from your sins." It is an advantage to be of a good stock; for,
though salvation does not always follow the children of godly parents, yet the
word of salvation does: Abraham will command his children and his
house-hold after him. [b.] The proselytes, the Gentiles by birth,
that were in some degree brought over to the Jews' religion: "Whosoever
among you that feareth God. You that have a sense of natural religion, and
have subjected yourselves to the laws of that, and taken hold of the comforts
of that, to you is the word of this salvation sent; you need the
further discoveries and directions of revealed religion, are prepared for
them, and will bid them welcome, and therefore shall certainly be welcome to
take the benefit of them."
(b.) In the close of his discourse he applies what he had said
concerning Christ to his hearers. He had told them a long story concerning this
Jesus; now they would be ready to ask, What is all this to us? And he
tells them plainly what it is to them.
[a.] It will be their unspeakable advantage if they embrace Jesus
Christ, and believe this word of salvation. It will relieve them where their
greatest danger lies; and that is from the guilt of their sins: "Be it
known unto you therefore, men and brethren--we are warranted to proclaim
it to you, and you are called to take notice of it." He did not stand up
to preach before them, but to preach to them, and not without hopes of
prevailing with them; for they are men, reasonable creatures, and capable of
being argued with; they are brethren, spoken to, and dealt with, by men
like themselves; not only of the same nature, but of the same nation. It is
proper for the preachers of the gospel to call their hearers brethren, as
speaking familiarly to them, and with an affectionate concern for their
welfare, and as being equally interested with them in the gospel they preach.
Let all that hear the gospel of Christ know these two things--1st, That
it is an act of indemnity granted by the King of kings to the children of men,
who stand attainted at his bar of treason against his crown and dignity; and
it is for and in consideration of the mediation of Christ between God and man
that this act of grace is passed and proclaimed (v. 38): "Through
this man, who died and rose again, is preached unto you the forgiveness
of sins. We have to tell you, in God's name, that your sins, though many
and great, may be forgiven, and how it is come about that they may be so,
without any injury to God's honour, and how you may obtain the forgiveness of
your sins. We are to preach repentance for the remission of sins, and divine
grace giving both repentance and remission of sins. The remission of
sins is through this man. By his merit it was purchased, in his name it
is offered, and by his authority it is bestowed; and therefore you are
concerned to be acquainted with him, and interested in him. We preach to you the
forgiveness of sins. That is the salvation we bring you, the word of God;
and therefore you ought to bid us welcome and look upon us as your friends,
and messengers of good tidings." 2ndly, That it does that for us
which the law of Moses could not do. The Jews were jealous for the law, and
because it prescribed expiatory and pacificatory sacrifices, and a great
variety of purifications, fancied they might be justified by it before God.
"No," saith Paul, "be it known to you that it is by Christ only
that those who believe in him, and none else, are justified from all
things, from all the guilt and stain of sin, from which you could not
be justified by the law of Moses" (v. 39); therefore they
ought to entertain and embrace the gospel, and not to adhere to the law in
opposition to it, because the gospel is perfective, not destructive, of the
law. Note, 1. The great concern of sinners it to be justified, to be acquitted
from guilt and accepted as righteous in God's sight. 2. Those who are truly
justified are acquitted from all their guilt; for if any be left charged upon
the sinner he is undone. 3. It was impossible for a sinner to be justified by
the law of Moses. Not by his moral law, for we have all broken it, and are
transgressing it daily, so that instead of justifying us it condemns us. Not
by his remedial law, for it was not possible that the blood of bulls and
goats should take away sin, should satisfy God's offended justice, or
pacify the sinner's wounded conscience. It was but a ritual and typical
institution. See Heb. ix. 9; x. 1, 4. 4. By Jesus Christ we obtain a complete
justification; for by him a complete atonement was made for sin. We are
justified, not only by him as our Judge, but by him as our righteousness, the
Lord our righteousness. 5. All that believe in Christ, that rely upon him
and give up themselves to be ruled by him, are justified by him, and none but
they. 6. What the law could not do for us, in that it was weak,
that the gospel of Christ does; and therefore it was folly, out of a jealousy
for the law of Moses and the honour of that institution, to conceive a
jealousy of the gospel of Christ and the designs of that more perfect
institution.
[b.] It is at their utmost peril if they reject the gospel of Christ,
and turn their backs upon the offer now made them (v. 40, 41): Beware
therefore; you have a fair invitation given you, look to yourselves, lest
you either neglect or oppose it." Note, Those to whom the gospel is
preached must see themselves upon their trial and good behaviour, and are
concerned to beware lest they be found refusers of the grace offered.
"Beware lest you not only come short of the blessings and benefits spoken
of in the prophets as coming upon those that believe, but fall under the doom
spoken of in the prophets as coming upon those that persist in unbelief: lest
that come upon you which is spoken of." Note, The threatenings are
warnings ; what we are told will come upon impenitent sinners is designed to
awaken us to beware lest it should come upon us. Now the prophecy referred to
we have Hab. i. 5, where the destruction of the Jewish nation by the Chaldeans
is foretold as an incredible unparalleled destruction; and this is here
applied to the destruction that was coming upon that nation by the Romans, for
their rejecting the gospel of Christ. The apostle follows the Septuagint
translation, which reads, Behold, you despisers (for, behold, you
among the heathen); because it made the text more apposite to his purpose.
1st, "Take heed lest the guilt come upon you which was spoken of
in the prophets--the guilt of despising the gospel and the tenders of it, and
despising the Gentiles that were advanced to partake of it. Beware lest it be
said to you, Behold, you despisers." Note, It is the ruin of many
that they despise religion, they look upon it as a thing below them, and are
not willing to stoop to it. 2ndly, "Take heed lest the judgment
come upon you which was spoken of in the prophets: that you shall wonder
and perish, that is, wonderfully perish; your perdition shall be amazing
to yourselves and all about you." Those that will not wonder and be saved
shall wonder and perish. Those that enjoyed the privileges of the church, and
flattered themselves with a conceit that these would save them, will wonder
when they find their ,,am presumption overruled and that their privileges do
but make their condemnation the more intolerable. Let the unbelieving Jews
expect that God will work a work in their days which you shall in no wise
believe, though a man declare it unto you. This may be understood as a
prediction, either, 1. Of their sin, that they should be incredulous, that
that great work of God, the redemption of the world by Christ, though it
should be in the most solemn manner declared unto them, yet they would in
no wise believe it, Isa. liii. 1, Who hath believed our report?
Though it was of God's working, to whom nothing is impossible, and of his
declaring, who cannot lie, yet they would not give credit to it. Those that
had the honour and advantage to have this work wrought in their days had not
the grace to believe it. Or, 2. Of their destruction. The dissolving of the
Jewish polity, the taking of the kingdom of God from them and giving it to the
Gentiles, the destruction of their holy house and city, and the dispersion of
their people, was a work which one would not have believed should have ever
been done, considering how much they had been the favourites of Heaven. The
calamities that were brought upon them were such as were never before brought
upon any people, Matt. xxiv. 21. It was said of their destruction by the
Chaldeans, and it was true of their last destruction, All the inhabitants
of the world would not have believed that the enemy would have entered into
the gates of Jerusalem as they did, Lam. iv. 12. Thus is there a strange
punishment to the workers of iniquity, especially to the despisers of
Christ, Job xxxi. 3.
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Paul at Antioch in Pisidia.
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42 And when the Jews were gone out of the
synagogue, the Gentiles besought that these words might be preached to them
the next sabbath. 43 Now when the congregation was broken up, many
of the Jews and religious proselytes followed Paul and Barnabas: who, speaking
to them, persuaded them to continue in the grace of God. 44 And
the next sabbath day came almost the whole city together to hear the word of
God. 45 But when the Jews saw the multitudes, they were filled
with envy, and spake against those things which were spoken by Paul,
contradicting and blaspheming. 46 Then Paul and Barnabas waxed
bold, and said, It was necessary that the word of God should first have been
spoken to you: but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of
everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles. 47 For so hath the
Lord commanded us, saying, I have set thee to be a light of the
Gentiles, that thou shouldest be for salvation unto the ends of the
earth. 48 And when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad, and
glorified the word of the Lord: and as many as were ordained to eternal life
believed. 49 And the word of the Lord was published throughout all
the region. 50 But the Jews stirred up the devout and honourable
women, and the chief men of the city, and raised persecution against Paul and
Barnabas, and expelled them out of their coasts. 51 But they shook
off the dust of their feet against them, and came unto Iconium. 52
And the disciples were filled with joy, and with the Holy Ghost.
The design of this story being to vindicate the apostles, especially Paul (as
he doth himself at large, Rom. xi.), from the reflections of the Jews upon him
for preaching the gospel to the Gentiles, it is here observed that he
proceeded therein with all the caution imaginable, and upon due consideration,
of which we have here an instance.
I. There were some of the Jews that were so incensed against the preaching of
the gospel, not to the Gentiles, but to themselves, that they would not bear
to hear it, but went out of the synagogue while Paul was preaching (v.
42), in contempt of him and his doctrine, and to the disturbance of the
congregation. It is probable they whispered among themselves, exciting one
another to it, and did it by consent. Now this bespoke, 1. An open infidelity,
as plain a profession of unbelief as coming to hear the gospel is of faith.
They thus publicly avowed their contempt of Christ and of his doctrine and
law, were not ashamed, neither could they blush; and they thus endeavoured to
beget prejudices in the minds of others against the gospel; they went out to
draw others to follow their pernicious ways. 2. An obstinate infidelity. They
went out of the synagogue, not only to show that they did not believe the
gospel, but because they were resolved they would not, and therefore got out
of the hearing of those things that had a tendency to convince them. They
stopped their ears like the deaf adder. Justly therefore was the gospel taken
from them, when they first took themselves from it, and turned themselves out
of the church before they were turned out of it. For it is certainly true that
God never leaves any till they first leave him.
II. The Gentiles were as willing to hear the gospel as those rude and
ill-conditioned Jews were to get out of the hearing of it: They besought
that these words, or words to this effect, might be preached to them
the next sabbath; in the week between, so some take it; on the
second and fifth days of the week, which in some synagogues were their lecture
days. But it appears (v. 44) that it was the next sabbath day that they
came together. They begged, 1. That the same offer might be made to them that
was made to the Jews. Paul in this sermon had brought the word of salvation to
the Jews and proselytes, but had taken no notice of the Gentiles; and
therefore they begged that forgiveness of sins through Christ might be
preached to them, as it was to the Jews. The Jews' leavings, nay, loathings,
were their longings. This justifies Paul in his preaching to them, that he was
invited to it, as Peter was sent for to Cornelius. Who could refuse to break
the bread of life to those who begged so hard for it, and to give that to the
poor at the door which the children at the table threw under their feet? 2.
That the same instructions might be given to them. They had heard the doctrine
of Christ, but did not understand it at the first hearing, nor could they
remember all that they had heard, and therefore they begged it might be
preached to them again. Note, It is good to have the word of Christ repeated
to us. What we have heard we should desire to hear again, that it may take
deep root in us, and the nail that is driven may be clenched and be as a
nail in a sure place. To hear the same things should not be
grievous, because it is safe, Phil. iii. 1. It aggravates the bad disposition
of the Jews that the Gentiles desired to hear that often which they were not
willing to hear once; and commends the good disposition of the Gentiles that
they did not follow the bad example which the Jews set them.
III. There were some, nay, there were many, both of Jews and proselytes, that
were wrought upon by the preaching of the gospel. Those who aggravated the
matter of the Jews' rejection by the preaching of the gospel, cried out, as is
usual in such cases, "They have cast away, and cast off, all the people
of God." "Nay," says Paul, "it is not so; for abundance of
the Jews have embraced Christ, and are taken in;" himself for one, Rom.
xi. 1, 5. So it was here: Many of the Jews and religious proselytes
followed Paul and Barnabas, and received further instructions and
encouragement from them. 1. They submitted to the grace of God, and were
admitted to the benefit and comfort of it, which is implied in their being
exhorted to continue in it. They followed Paul and Barnabas; they
became their disciples, or rather the disciples of Christ, whose agents they
were. Those that join themselves to Christ will join themselves to his
ministers, and follow them. And Paul and Barnabas, though they were sent to
the Gentiles, yet bade those of the Jews welcome that were willing to come
under their instructions, such hearty well-wishers were they to all the Jews
and their friends, if they pleased. 2. They were exhorted and encouraged to
persevere herein: Paul and Barnabas, speaking to them with all the
freedom and friendship imaginable, persuaded them to continue in the grace
of God, to hold fast that which they had received, to continue in their
belief of the gospel of grace, their dependence upon the Spirit of grace, and
their attendance upon the means of grace. And the grace of God shall not be
wanting to those who thus continue in it.
IV. There was a cheerful attendance upon the preaching of the gospel the next
sabbath day (v. 44): Almost the whole city (the generality
of whom were Gentiles) came together to hear the word of God. 1. It is
probable that Paul and Barnabas were not idle in the week-days, but took all
opportunities in the week between (as some think the Gentiles desired) to
bring them acquainted with Christ, and to raise their expectations from him.
They did a great deal of service to the gospel in private discourse and
conversation, as well as in their public sermons. Wisdom cried in the chief
places of concourse, and the opening of the gates, as well as in the
synagogues, Prov. i. 20, 21. 2. This brought a vast concourse of people to the
synagogue on the sabbath day. Some came out of curiosity, the thing being new;
others longing to see what the Jews would do upon the second tender of the
gospel to them; and many who had heard something of the word of God came to
hear more, and to hear it, not as the word of men but as the word of God,
by which we must be ruled and judged. Now this justified Paul in preaching to
the Gentiles, that he met with the most encouraging auditors among them. There
the fields were white to the harvest, and therefore why should he not
there put in his sickle?
V. The Jews were enraged at this; and not only would not receive the gospel
themselves, but were filled with indignation at those that crowded after it (v.
45): When the Jews saw the multitudes, and considered what an
encouragement it was to Paul to go on in his work when he saw the people thus
flying like doves to their windows, and what probability there was that among
these multitudes some would be, without doubt, wrought upon, and probably the
greater part, to embrace Christ--this filled them with envy. 1. They
grudged the interest the apostles had in the people, were vexed to see the
synagogue so full when they were going to preach. This was the same spirit
that worked in the Pharisees towards Christ; they were cut to the heart when
they saw the whole world go after him. When the kingdom of heaven was
opened they not only would not go in themselves, but were angry with those
that did. 2. They opposed the doctrine the apostles preached: They spoke
against those things that were spoken by Paul, cavilled at them, started
objections against them, finding some fault or other with every thing he said,
contradicting and blaspheming; antelegon
antilegonteV--contradicting, they contradicted.
They did it with the utmost spite and rage imaginable: they persisted in their
contradiction, and nothing would silence them, they contradicted for
contradiction-sake, and denied that which was most evident; and, when they
could find no colour of objection, they broke out into ill language against
Christ and his gospel, blaspheming him and it. From the language of the carnal
man that receives not the things of the Spirit of God, and therefore
contradicts them, they proceed to the language of incarnate devils, and
blaspheme them. Commonly those who begin with contradicting end with
blaspheming.
VI. The apostles hereupon solemnly and openly declare themselves discharged
from their obligations to the Jews, and at liberty to bring the word of
salvation to the Gentiles, even by the tacit consent of the Jews themselves.
Never let the Jew lay the fault of the carrying of the kingdom of God to the
Gentiles upon the apostles, for that complaint of theirs is for ever silenced
by their own act and deed, for what they did here is for ever a bar to it.
"Tender and refusal (we say) are good payment in law." The Jews had
the tender of the gospel, and did refuse it, and therefore ought not to say
any thing against the Gentiles having it. In declaring this, it is said (v.
46), Paul and Barnabas waxed bold, more bold than they had been while
they were shy of looking favourably upon the Gentiles, for fear of giving
offence to the Jews, and laying a stumbling-block in their way. Note, There is
a time for the preachers of the gospel to show as much of the boldness of the
lion as of the wisdom of the serpent and the harmlessness of the dove. When
the adversaries of Christ's cause begin to be daring, it is not for its
advocates to be timid. While there is any hope of working upon those that
oppose themselves they must be instructed with meekness (2 Tim. ii.
25); but, when that method has long been tried in vain, we must wax bold, and
tell them what will be the issue of their opposition. The impudence of the
enemies of the gospel, instead of frightening, should rather embolden its
friends; for they are sure that they have a good cause, and they know in whom
they have trusted to bear them out. Now Paul and Barnabas, having made the
Jews a fair offer of gospel grace, here give them fair notice of their
bringing it to the Gentiles, if by any means (as Paul says Rom. xi. 14)
they might provoke them to emulation. 1. They own that the Jews were
entitled to the first offer: "It was necessary that the word of God
should first have been spoken to you, to whom the promise was made, to you
of the lost sheep of the house of Israel, to whom Christ reckoned
himself first sent." And his charge to the preachers of his gospel to begin
at Jerusalem (Luke xxiv. 47) was a tacit direction to all that went into
other countries to begin with the Jews, to whom pertained the giving of the
law, and therefore the preaching of the gospel. Let the children first
be served, Mark vii. 27. 2. They charge them with the refusal of it:
"You put it from you; you will not accept of it; nay, you will not
so much as bear the offer of it, but take it as an affront to you." If
men put the gospel from them, God justly takes it from them; why should manna
be given to those that loathe it and call it light bread, or the
privileges of the gospel forced on those that put them away, and say, We
have no part in David? Herein they judge themselves unworthy of
everlasting life. In one sense we must all judge ourselves unworthy of
everlasting life, for there is nothing in us, nor done by us, by which we can
pretend to merit it, and we must be made sensible of this; but here the
meaning is, "You discover, or make it to appear, that you are not meet
for eternal life; you throw away all your claims and give up your pretensions
to it; since you will not take it from his hands, into whose hand the Father
has given it, krinete, you
do, in effect, pass this judgment upon yourselves, and out of
your own mouth you shall be judged; you will not have it by Christ, by
whom alone it is to be had, and so shall your doom be, you shall not have it
at all." 3. Upon this they ground their preaching the gospel to the
uncircumcised: "Since you will not accept eternal life as it is offered,
our way is plain, Lo, we turn to the Gentiles. If one will not, another
will. If those that were first invited to the wedding-feast will not come, we
must invite out of the highways and hedges those that will, for the wedding
must be furnished with guests. If he that is next of kin will not do the
kinsman's part, he must not complain that another will," Ruth iv. 4. 4.
They justify themselves in this by a divine warrant (v. 47): "For
so hath the Lord commanded us; the Lord Jesus gave us directions to
witness to him in Jerusalem and Judea first, and after that to the utmost
part of the earth, to preach the gospel to every creature, to disciple
all nations." This is according to what was foretold in the
Old-Testament. When the Messiah, in the prospect of the Jews' infidelity, was
ready to say, I have laboured in vain, he was told, to his
satisfaction, that though Israel were not gathered, yet he should be
glorious, that his blood should not be shed in vain, nor his purchase made
in vain, nor his doctrine preached in vain, nor his Spirit sent in
vain--"For I have set thee, not only raised thee up, but
established thee, to be a light of the Gentiles, not only a shining
light for a time, but a standing light, set thee for a light, that thou
shouldst be for salvation unto the ends of the earth." Note, (1.)
Christ is not only the Saviour, but the salvation, is himself our
righteousness, and life, and strength. (2.) Wherever Christ is designed to be
salvation, he is set up to be a light; he enlightens the understanding, and so
saves the soul. (3.) He is, and is to be, light and salvation to the Gentiles,
to the ends of the earth. Those of every nation shall be welcome to him, some
of every nation have heard of him (Rom. x. 18), and all nations shall at
length become his kingdom. This prophecy has had its accomplishment in part in
the setting up of the kingdom of Christ in this island of ours, which lies, as
it were, in the ends of the earth, a corner of the world, and shall be
accomplished more and more when the time comes for the bringing in of the
fulness of the Gentiles.
VII. The Gentiles cheerfully embraced that which the Jews scornfully rejected,
v. 48, 49. Never was land lost for want of heirs; through the fall
of the Jews, salvation is come to the Gentiles: the casting off of them
was the reconciling of the world, and the diminishing of them the riches of
the Gentiles; so the apostle shows at large, Rom. xi. 11, 12, 15. The
Jews, the natural branches, were broken off, and the Gentiles, that were
branches of the wild olive, were thereupon grafted in, v. 17, 19. Now
here we are told how the Gentiles welcomed this happy turn in their favour.
1. They took the comfort of it: When they heard this they were glad. It
was good news to them that they might have admission into covenant and
communion with God by a clearer, nearer, and better way than submitting to the
ceremonial law, and being proselyted to the Jewish religion--that the
partition-wall was taken down and they were as welcome to the benefits of the
Messiah's kingdom as the Jews themselves, and might share in their promise,
without coming under their yoke. This was indeed glad tidings of great joy
to all people. Note, Our being put into a possibility of salvation, and a
capacity for it, ought to be the matter of our rejoicing; when the Gentiles
did but hear that the offers of grace should be made them, the word of grace
preached to them, and the means of grace afforded them, they were glad.
"Now there is some hope for us." Many grieve under doubts whether
they have an interest in Christ or no, when they should be rejoicing that they
have an interest in him; the golden sceptre is held out to them, and they are
invited to come and touch the top of it.
2. They gave God the praise of it: They glorified the word of the Lord;
that is, Christ (so some), the essential Word; they entertained a profound
veneration for him, and expressed the high thoughts they had of him. Or,
rather, the gospel; the more they knew of it, the more they admired it.
Oh! what a light, what a power, what a treasure, does this gospel bring along
with it! How excellent are its truths, its precepts, its promises! How far
transcending all other institutions! How plainly divine and heavenly is its
origin! Thus they glorified the word of the Lord, and it is this which
he has himself magnified above all his name (Ps. cxxxviii. 2), and will
magnify and make honourable, Isa. xlii. 21. They glorified the
word of the Lord, (1.) Because now the knowledge of it was diffused and not
confined to the Jews only. Note, It is the glory of the word of the Lord that
the further it spreads the brighter it shines, which shows it to be not like
the light of the candle, but like that of the sun when he goes forth in his
strength. (2.) Because now the knowledge of it was brought to them. Note,
Those speak best of the honour of the word of the Lord that speak
experimentally, that have themselves been subdued by its power, and comforted
by its sweetness.
3. Many of them became, not only professors of the Christian faith, but
sincerely obedient to the faith: As many as were ordained to eternal life
believed. God by his Spirit wrought true faith in those for whom he had in
his councils from everlasting designed a happiness to everlasting. (1.) Those
believed to whom God gave grace to believe, whom by a secret and mighty
operation he brought into subjection to the gospel of Christ, and made willing
in the day of his power. Those came to Christ whom the Father drew, and to
whom the Spirit made the gospel call effectual. It is called the faith of
the operation of God (Col. ii. 12), and is said to be wrought by the
same power that raised up Christ, Eph. i. 19, 20. (2.) God gave this grace
to believe to all those among them who were ordained to eternal life (for whom
he had predestinated, them he also called, Rom. viii. 30); or, as many
as were disposed to eternal life, as many as had a concern about their
eternal state, and aimed to make sure of eternal life, believed in Christ, in
whom God hath treasured up that life (1 John v. 11), and who is the only way
to it; and it was the grace of God that wrought it in them. Thus all those
captives, and those only, took the benefit of Cyrus's proclamation, whose
spirit God had raised up to build the house of the Lord which is in Jerusalem,
Ezra i. 5. Those will be brought to believe in Christ that by his grace are
well disposed to eternal life, and make this their aim.
4. When they believed they did what they could to spread the knowledge of
Christ and his gospel among their neighbours (v. 49): And the word
of the Lord was published throughout all the region. When it was received
with so much satisfaction in the chief city, it soon spread into all parts of
the country. Those new converts were themselves ready to communicate to others
that which they were so full of themselves. The Lord gave the word, and
then great was the company of those that published it, Ps. lxviii. 11.
Those that have become acquainted with Christ themselves will do what they can
to bring others acquainted with him. Those in great and rich cities that have
received the gospel should not think to engross it, as if, like learning and
philosophy, it were only to be the entertainment of the more polite and
elevated part of mankind, but should do what they can to get it published in
the country among the ordinary sort of people, the poor and unlearned, who
have souls to be saved as well as they.
VIII. Paul and Barnabas, having sown the seeds of a Christian church there,
quitted the place, and went to do the like else-where. We read not any thing
of their working miracles here, to confirm their doctrine, and to convince
people of the truth of it; for, though God then did ordinarily make use of
that method of conviction, yet he could, when he pleased, do his work without
it; and begetting faith by the immediate influence of his Spirit was itself
the greatest miracle to those in whom it was wrought. Yet, it is probable that
they did work miracles, for we find they did in the next place they came to, ch.
xiv. 3. Now here we are told,
1. How the unbelieving Jews expelled the apostles out of that country.
They first turned their back upon them, and then lifted up the heel against
them (v. 50): They raised persecution against Paul and Barnabas,
excited the mob to persecute them in their way by insulting their
persons as they went along the streets; excited the magistrates to persecute
them in their way, by imprisoning and punishing them. When they
could not resist the wisdom and spirit wherewith they spoke, they had
recourse to these brutish methods, the last refuge of an obstinate infidelity.
Satan and his agents are most exasperated against the preachers of the gospel
when they see them go on successfully, and therefore then will be sure to
raise persecution against them. Thus it has been the common lot of the best
men in the world to suffer ill for doing well, to be persecuted instead of
being preferred for the good services they have done to mankind. Observe, (1.)
What method the Jews took to give them trouble: They stirred up the devout
and honourable women against them. They could not make any considerable
interest themselves, but they applied to some ladies of quality in the city,
that were well affected to the Jewish religion, and were proselytes of the
gate, therefore called devout women. These, according to the genius of
their sex, were zealous in their way, and bigoted; and it was easy, by false
stories and misrepresentations, to incense them against the gospel of Christ,
as if it had been destructive of all religion, of which really it is
perfective. It is good to see honourable women devout, and well affected to
religious worship: The less they have to do in the world, the more they should
do for their souls, and the more time they should spend in communion with God;
but it is sad when, under colour of devotion to God, they conceive an enmity
to Christ, as those here mentioned. What! women persecutors! Can they forget
the tenderness and compassion of their sex? What! honourable women! Can they
thus stain their honour, and disgrace themselves, and do so mean a thing? But,
which is strangest of all, devout women! Will they kill Christ's servants, and
think therein they do God service? Let those therefore that have zeal see that
it be according to knowledge. By these devout and honourable women they
stirred up likewise the chief men of the city, the magistrates and the
rulers, who had power in their hands and set them against the apostles, and
they had so little consideration as to suffer themselves to be made the tools
of this ill-natured party, who would neither go into the kingdom of heaven
themselves nor suffer those who were entering to go in. (2.) How far they
carried it, so far that they expelled them out of their coasts; they
banished them, ordered them to be carried, as we say, from constable to
constable, till they were forced out of their jurisdiction; so that it was not
by fear, but downright violence, that they were driven out. This was one
method which the overruling providence of God took to keep the first planters
of the church from staying too long at a place; as Matt. x. 23, When they
persecute you in one city flee to another, that thus you may the sooner go
over the cities of Israel. This was likewise a method God took to make
those that were well disposed the more warmly affected towards the apostles;
for it is natural to us to pity those that are persecuted, to think the better
of those that suffer when we know they suffer unjustly, and to be the more
ready to help them. The expelling of the apostles out of their coasts made
people inquisitive what evil they had done, and perhaps raised them more
friends than conniving at them in their coasts would have done.
2. How the apostles abandoned and rejected the unbelieving Jews (v.
51): They shook off the dust of their feet against them. When they went
out of the city they used this ceremony in the sight of those that sat in the
gate; or, when they went out of the borders of their country, in the sight of
those that were sent to see the country rid of them. Hereby, (1.) They
declared that they would have no more to do with them, would take nothing that
was theirs; for they sought not theirs, but them. Dust they are, and
let them keep their dust to themselves, it shall not cleave to them. (2.) They
expressed their detestation of their infidelity, and that, though they were
Jews by birth, yet, having rejected the gospel of Christ, they were in their
eyes no better than heathen and profane. As Jews and Gentiles, if they
believe, are equally acceptable to God and good men; so, if they do not, they
are equally abominable. (3.) Thus they set them at defiance, and expressed
their contempt of them and their malice, which they looked upon as impotent.
It was as much as to say, "Do your worst, we do not fear you; we know
whom we serve and whom we have trusted." (4.) Thus they left a testimony
behind them that they had had a fair offer made them of the grace of the
gospel, which shall be proved against them in the day of judgment. This dust
will prove that the preachers of the gospel had been among them, but were
expelled by them. Thus Christ had ordered them to do, and for this reason,
Matt. x. 14; Luke ix. 5. When they left them, they came to Iconium, not
so much for safety, as for work.
3. What frame they left the new converts in at Antioch (v. 52): The
disciples, when they saw with what courage and cheerfulness Paul and
Barnabas not only bore the indignities that were done them, but went on with
their work notwithstanding, they were in like manner inspirited. (1.) They
were very cheerful. One would have expected that when Paul and Barnabas were
expelled out of their coasts, and perhaps forbidden to return upon pain of
death, the disciples would have been full of grief and full of fear, looking
for no other than that, if the planters of Christianity go, the plantation
would soon come to nothing; or that it would be their turn next to be banished
the country, and to them it would be more grievous, for it was their own. But
no; they were filled with joy in Christ, had such a satisfactory
assurance of Christ's carrying on and perfecting his own work in them and
among them, and that either he would screen them from trouble or bear them up
under it, that all their fears were swallowed up in their believing joys. (2.)
They were courageous, wonderfully animated with a holy resolution to cleave to
Christ, whatever difficulties they met with. This seems especially to be meant
by their being filled with the Holy Ghost, for the same expression is
used of Peter's boldness (ch. iv. 8), and Stephen's (ch. vii.
55), and Paul's, ch. xiii. 9. The more we relish the comforts and
encouragements we meet with in the power of godliness, and the fuller our
hearts are of them, the better prepared we are to face the difficulties we
meet with in the profession of godliness.
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