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548

SECT.

ix.

Barnabas sells his estate, and brings the money to the apostles.

In the mean time, let us frequently lift up our hearts, to the great and ever blessed God, who hath made heaven and earth, and 24 the sea, and all that is in them, that he would support and extend

the progress of that gospel in the world, which he hath so graci25, 26 ously begun to plant. Kings may still set themselves, and rulers take counsel against it; but he knows how to turn their counsels into foolishness, and their rage into shame. He hath anointed Jesus his holy child with the oil of gladness, and placed him on his throne in heaven; and all the united malice and fury of his enemies can do no more, than what shall make part of his wise and gracious scheme for the government of his people. Let us pray, that he would give freedom of speech to all employed in pleading 29 his cause; and that he will plentifully anoint them with the effusion of his Spirit: And let the signs and wonders which were done 30, 31 by the name of Jesus in former ages, encourage us to hope that he will never totally desert a scheme which he once so illustriously interposed to establish; and consequently let them animate us to exert ourselves in his service, whatever labours, threatenings, or dangers may meet us in our way!

X.

Acts

IV. 36.

SECT. X.

The sale of estates proceeding, Ananias and Sapphira attempt fraudulently to impose upon the apostles, and are immediately struck dead. That event, together with other extraordinary miracles wrought about the same time, promotes the increase of the church more and more. Acts IV. 36. to the end. V. 1—16.

poor

ACTS IV. 36.

ACTS IV. 36.

the apostles was

SECT. AMONG the rest of those primitive converts, AND Joses, who by who so generously contributed of their sirnamed Barnabas, substance for the relief and subsistence of the (which is, being interbelievers in so extraordinary a circum- preted, The son of constance, there was one Joses, who, on account of of the country of Cysolation) a Levite, and his great benevolence and usefulness, was much prus, respected in the church, and by the apostles was surnamed Barnabas, which being interpreted from the Syriac language, signifies a son of consolation: He was a Levite, who was so far

a

Joses-surnamed Barnabbas-a son of consolation.] Considering how common the names of Joses and Joseph were, there seems no just reason to conclude, as some have done, that this was the Joseph mentioned chap. i. 23. as a candidate for the office of an apostle. (Comp. note i. p. 505, on that text.)-Nor can I see any reason to conclude with Abp. Wake, (Apost. Fa

from

thers, Introd. p. 62.) that this Joses was called a son of consolation, to express the great consolation the brethren received from the sale of his estate. The name seems rather to refer to his extraordinary abilities for the ministerial work, and to those gifts of the Spirit, whereby he was enabled both to comfort, and to exhort, as the word also signifies.-Mr. Fleming

makes

Ananias sells his, and keeps back part of the price.

37 Having land, sold et, and brought the

money, and laid it at the apostles' feet.

session,

2 And kept back part of the price, his

wife also being privy

X.

549

Acts

from being prejudiced against this new religion, SECT.
as it might seem to oppose his temporal interest,
that he gladly devoted himself to its service:
[and] was a native of another country, being IV. 36.
by birth a Cyprian: And having an estate 37
which was capable of being alienated without
any transgression of the law, he sold it, and
brought the money, as others had done, and laid
it down at the feet of the apostles, desiring they
would dispose of it in such a manner, as might
be most serviceable to the necessities of the
saints: And the addition which it made to the
public stock was so considerable, that it seemed
to deserve this particular mention.

V. 1.

ACTS V. 1. But a But it is in a very different point of light and Acts certain man named Ananias, with Sapphion a very melancholy occasion, that we are ra his wife, sold a pos- obliged to mention another person before we leave this story. There was also among these early professors of the gospel a certain man named Ananias, who with the concurrence of 2 Sapphira his wife, sold an estate; And fraudulently secreted part of the price, his wife also to it, and brought a being conscious [of it;] and bringing only a certain part, and laid certain part of it, he laid it down at the feet of the apostles, as the rest did, pretending that it was the whole of the purchase-money; and consequently intimating, that having deposited his all in their hands, he should hope for the future, to be taken care of among the rest of the brethren.

it at the apostles' feet.

3 But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Sa

But, upon this, the Holy Spirit, under whose tan filled thine heart direction the apostle Peter acted, immediately to lie to the Holy suggested to him the fraud, and the awful manGhost, and to keep ner in which the Divine Wisdom saw fit to aniback part of the price

of the land?

madvert upon it: In consequence of which in-
ward suggestion, looking sternly upon him, he

makes it a most honourable title indeed, as signifying, a son of the operation of the Paraclet, that is, of the Holy Ghost.

b An estate, which was capable of being alienated, &c.] He could not have sold that which was his paternal inheritance as a Levite But this might perhaps be some legacy or purchase of land in Judea, to which he might have a title till the next Jubilee, or perhaps some land in Cyprus: and we may suppose it mentioned, either as the first foreign estate sold, or as of some extraordinary value.

e Laid it down at the feet of the apostles.] Orobio insinuates, apud Limborch. Collat. p. 134. (and it is one of the weakest and meanest things I remember in his writings) that it was no small advantage to poor fish

said,

ermen to be treasurers of so considerable a
bank. But nothing can be more unjust
and unnatural, than to suspect, that men,
who were so ready to sacrifice their lives
to the cause of truth and the happiness of
mankind, should be capable of falsifying
such a trust as this, for the sake of a
little money.
Their miraculous powers
were joined with a thousand marks of
probity in their daily conduct to warrant
such a confidence, which was but a natural
token of due respect. We see in chap. vi.
2, 3, 4. how ready they were soon to
transfer the management of this affair to
other hands; and the following story fur-
nishes us with an additional answer to this
cavil, which is beyond all exception.

322

d Filled

3

550

X

Ananias is struck dead as having lied to God

4 Whilst it remained, was it not thine own? And after it was

SECT. said, 0 Ananias, why hath Satan through thine own wickedness in yielding to his temptations, Acts filled thine heart with such a degree of covetousV. 3. ness, falsehood, folly and presumption, [that thou shouldst audaciously attempt] to impose on the Holy Spirit himself under whose special direction we are; and to secrete part of the price of the land thou hast sold, when thou pretend4 est to have brought the whole? While it remained unsold, did it not continue thine, notwithstanding thy profession of faith in Jesus? sold, was it not in And when it was sold, was it not still in thine thine Own power? Why hast thou conown power; to have given or not given the ceived this thing in whole, or any part of it, into the treasury of thine heart? Thou the church, as thou shouldst think proper? hast not lied unto men, Why then hast thou admitted this thing into but unto God. thine heart, so meanly and so profanely to dissemble on this solemn occasion? Thou hast not lied to men alone, to us, or to the church, whose treasurers we are ; but hast lied to the blessed God himself, who residing in us by his divine Spirit, is determined to make thee a terrible example of his displeasure for an affront so directly levelled at himself, in the midst of this astonishing train of his extraordinary opera tions.

5

And Ananias hearing these words, while the sound of them was yet in his ears, fell down and expired; that by his sad example all might

a

d Filled thine heart-to impose on the Holy Spirit.] The Hebrews express person's being emboldened to do a thing, by the phrase of his heart being filled: (Compare Esth. vii. 5. and Eccles. viii. 11.) And Bos has abundantly shewn, that Y:vraobal riva signifies to lye to a person, or to impose upon him, (Bos. Exercit. p. 73, 74.) but I cannot recollect, that it ever signifies to belye a person, as Dr. Benson would here render it. Hist. of Christianity, Vol. I. p. 103.

e When it was sold, was it not in thine own power?] It evidently appears from hence, that no Christian converts were obliged to sell their estates. An answer to the Popish argument from hence, in favour of works of supererogation, may be collect ed from our paraphrase on Mat. xix. 12. P. 97

f Anamas-fell down and expired.] This severity was not only righteous, considering that complication of vain-glory and coverousness, of fraud and impiety, which, as Limborch and Mr. Biscoe, (p. 659-661) have well proved, the action contained;

learn

5 And Ananias hear down and gave up the

ing these words, fell

Ghost:

but also on the whole, was wise and gra❤ cious, both as it served to vindicate the honour of the blessed Spirit, so notoriously affronted by this attempt to impose on those, who had been so lately and eminently anointed by his extraordinary effusion, and farther, as it tended most effectually to deter any dishonest persons from joining the Christians, merely for the sake of a present alms, to which, by a fraud like this, many might on easy terms have purchased a pretence, who would also, no doubt, have proved a great scandal to a profession taken up on such infamous motives, (Compare ver. 13) This likewise was a very convincing attestation of the apostle's most upright conduct, in the management of the sums, with which they were intrusted, and indeed in general, of their divine mission; for none can imagine, that Peter would have had the assurance to pronounce, and much less the power to execute such a sentence as this, if he had been at the same time guilty of a much baser fraud of the like kind, or had been belying the Holy Ghost, in the whole of his pretensions to be

under

His wife Sapphira joins in the same lie, and dies.

heard these things.

551

X.

Acts

Ghost and great fear learn how dangerous it was to affront that di- SECT. came on all them that vine Spirit under whose influence the apostles acted: And it answered its end, for great fear came not only on the immediate spectators, but V. 5. on all that heard the report of these things. Then some of the young and able-bodied men in 6 the assembly arose, and perceiving there was no room to hope for the recovery of one who was struck dead by such an immediate act of the divine power, thev bound him up in his mantle, without any farther circumstance of mourning or delay, and carrying him out, they buried him.

6 And the young men arose, wound him up, and carried him out, and buried him.

And it was about

the space of three hours after, when his wife, not knowing what was done, came in.

8 And Peter answered unto her, Tell me whether ye sold the land for so much. And she said, Yea, for so

much.

9 Then Peter said unto her, How is it that ye have agreed together to tempt the

And after the interval of about three hours, his wife Sapphira also, who was absent when this happened, not knowing what was done, came in to the place in which they were assembled And 8 Peter upon this occasion said to her before them all, Tell me freely, Sapphira, with that uprightness which becomes a disciple of Jesus, whether you indeed sold the land only for so much money, as you know your husband brought hither, naming the sum. And she said, Yes, it was sold 9 exactly for so much. Then Peter by an immediate impulse of the same Spirit, which had before Spirit of the Lord? so awfully interposed, said unto her again, How Behold, the feet of is it that you have thus wickediy conspired together to tempt the Spirit of the Lord, as if you had really suspec ed, whether he were capable of discerning the affair or not, and were resolved to bring it to a trial? Alas, unhappy woman, it will appear to be a fatal experiment to you both; for behold, the feet of those who have just been burying thy husband, whom divine vengeance has already struck dead on this occasion, are even now at the door upon their return, and they shall forthwith carry thee out, and lay thee 10 Then fell she by him in the grave. down straightway at

them which have buried thy husband are

at the door, and shall Carry thee out,

his feet, and yielded

up the ghost and the young men came in,

And immediately upon this, she also fell down 10 at his feet, and expired; And the young men, who were just then coming in, found her quite and found her dead, dead in a moment; and accordingly they carried and carrying her forth buried her by her husher out, and buried her by Ananias her husband. band.

under his miraculous influence and direction. See Cradock's Apost. Hist. p. 27. and Reynold's Lett. to a Deist. p. 245.

She also fell do:en-and expired.] To what is said before in vindication of this seeming severity, in note f, we may add, that such exemplary punishment of so heinous a crime was the more expedient, as Christianity

And

[blocks in formation]

X.

552 Fear comes on all, and none dare join them on a false pretence. SECT. And great fear came upon all the assembly, who 11 And great fear were eye-witnesses of what had passed, and upon church, and upon as came upon all the all others that heard the report, which was soon many as heard these V. 11. spread abroad of these things; who could not things. but acknowledge, that it was the immediate hand of God by which they both died, and that he was just in this awful dispensation.

Acts

12

12 And by the hands of the apostles were many signs and won

were all with

one

And many other stupendous signs and wonders were done among the people in the most public manner, by the hands of the apostles: And they ders wrought among continued in the strictest fellowship, and union the people; (and they with the whole company of believers, and were accord in Solomon's frequently all unanimously together in that spa- porch. cious building, which we have already mentioned by the name of Solomon's portico, conversing together with the most affectionate expressions

durst no

14 And

man join to them:

believers

13 of mutual endearment. And none of the rest 13 And of the rest who were not really converted to Christianity, himself presumed to join himself to them", as some mean but the people magni, spirited creatures might possibly otherwise have fied them. done for a while, in a low view of some transient advantage, by a share in the distributions that were made. But all the people had a mighty veneration for the apostles, and magnified them with the highest expressions of reverence and respect, as persons who were owned by God in the most signal manner: And though the death of these two unhappy offenders terrified were the more added many from hypocritically joining their company, tudes both of men and yet the success of the gospel was promoted, women.) rather than hindered by it, so that great multitudes both of men and women, believing their testimony, were so much the more [willingly] added in a solemn manner to the church of the Lord, and made an open profession of their faith; wisely inferring from what had happened, how dangerous

14

h None of the rest presumed to join himself to them.] Dr. Lightfoot explains this of the rest of the hundred and twenty, that they durst not join to the twelve, or equal themselves to the apostles in office or dignity (Lightf. Comment. in loc.) But as there is no mention of that number in this chapter, so (as Dr. Whitby observes,) they never joined themselves before to the apostles in this sense; nor is this any where the meaning of the word xhaca, which signifies to associate, or unite with, to adhere or cleave to any. (Compare Acts ix. 26. x. 28. xvii. 34.)- -Beza would have it, that xohλac Ja signifies here to attack or touch, and that 201w, the rest, refers to their powerful enemies as distinguished from the people: But that siguifi

to the Lord, multi

cation of xshe is, as he acknowledges, very unusual, and is here quite unnecessary.

L'Enfant thinks the meaning is, that persons of distinction had not the resolution to join them, whatever inward conviction they might have as to the truth of their doctrine. But after all, it is most natural to understand it, as if it had been said, "The people held them in distant admira tion, and presumed not on any false pretence to join them, if not truly converted to their religion;" which yet (as it ap pears by the next verse,) many were, who readily came into a full and solemn profession of it, as indeed the late miracle was a glorious, though dreadful, demonstration of its truth.

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