For some days he was with the disciples at Damascus. And immediately he proclaimed Jesus in the synagogues, saying, “He is the Son of God.” And all who heard him were amazed and said, “Is not this the man who made havoc in Jerusalem of those who called upon this name? And has he not come here for this purpose, to bring them bound before the chief priests?” But Saul increased all the more in strength, and confounded the Jews who lived in Damascus by proving that Jesus was the Christ. When many days had passed, the Jews plotted to kill him, but their plot became known to Saul. They were watching the gates day and night in order to kill him, but his disciples took him by night and let him down through an opening in the wall, lowering him in a basket. And when he had come to Jerusalem, he attempted to join the disciples. And they were all afraid of him, for they did not believe that he was a disciple. But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles and declared to them how on the road he had seen the Lord, who spoke to him, and how at Damascus he had preached boldly in the name of Jesus. So he went in and out among them at Jerusalem, preaching boldly in the name of the Lord. And he spoke and disputed against the Hellenists. But they were seeking to kill him. And when the brothers learned this, they brought him down to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus. So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria had peace and was being built up. And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit, it multiplied.
immediately he proclaimed Jesus in the synagogues - "Many place St. Paul's visit to Arabia (Gal. 1:15-17) between vv. 19 and 20, being of the opinion that he sought retirement with God before entering upon public ministry. Others consider that it intervenes between vv. 21 and 22; while others, again, would place it after v. 22 and and before v. 23. St. Luke has omitted all mention of it as not falling in with the special scope of his missionary history. We know from Gal. 1:17 that Paul returned from Arabia to Damascus again, and Gal. 1:16 (immediately) proves that his retirement took place very soon after his conversion. though we cannot say certainly at what point this narrative is to be interrupted to make room for it, yet, on the whole, it seems best to insert it between vv. 21 and 22. The word [immediately] of the text renders a break after v. 19 highly improbably." (Walker)
"Another reason why we find Paul proclaiming that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, here is that the book of Acts is essentially the story of Israel's fall, not the story of the birth and growth of the Church of this age. The opening question of the book is: 'Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?' (Acts 1:6). The answer at the close is: 'The salvation of God is sent unto the Gentiles' (Acts 28:28). The Body of Christ did have its beginning with Paul, during the period covered by the latter part of Acts, but the main purpose of the book is to show how Israel rejected Christ in spite of the miraculous demonstrations of Pentecost, in spite of the powerful appeals of the twelve and even in spite of the testimony of Paul, who once had been Christ's greatest enemy on earth." (Stam)
proving - "The word means 'to establish a conclusion by putting things side by side and comparing them'. Paul doubtless compared the Messianic prophecies of the Jewish Scriptures with the facts of the life and death of Jesus Christ. The verb is found again in Acts 16:10; 19:38; Eph. 4:16; Col 2:2, 19, with different renderings." (Walker)
When many days had passed - "During this time Paul went to Arabia so three years elapsed between his conversion and his going to Jerusalem (Acts 9:26). (See Gal. 1:17 - Arabia may mean anywhere in the kingdom of the Nabataeans, from near Damascus down to the Sinaitic peninsula. The intent is not to pinpoint the location but to emphasize that it was a place [in contrast to Jerusalem] where there was no apostle to instruct him. In Arabia he was alone with God, thinking through the implications of his encounter with the risen Christ on the Damascus road.)" (Ryrie)
"During this many days he made a journey to Arabia. The first chapter in Galatians tells us of this fact. 'Neither went I up to Jerusalem to them which were Apostles before, but I went into Arabia, and returned again unto Damascus' (Gal. 1:17). This is the only time his journey into Arabia is mentioned in the Bible. How long he spent there and what he did there is unrevealed. It is incorrect to say he spend three years in Arabia; in Galatians the statement is made that three years after his return to Damascus he went to Jerusalem. This does not mean that he was for three years in Arabia." [notice that Gaebelein contradicts Ryrie here] (Gaebelein)
"Nothing would have pleased him [Paul] better than to return at once to the city he loved so well and preach the Name he once despised. but he did not confer with flesh and blood, nor did he go up to Jerusalem to them which were Apostles before him (Gal. 1:16-17). It had to be so to prove that he had his apostleship apart from Jerusalem. This is the reason why this historical account is embodied in the first chapter of the Epistle to the Galatians. In his defence of the Gospel contained in that epistle he shows first that he is an Apostle and how he became an Apostle. The twelve in Jerusalem had nothing to do with it...But we must again examine the historical record contained in the Apostle's own words in Galatians 1. There we learn the details of this visit. He did not see all the Apostles, but only Peter and James, the Lord's brother. The other Apostles he did not see. This detailed statement is made to show that no council of the Apostles was called before which (according to ecclesiastical rules in our day) Saul had to appear to receive the sanctiot of the Apostles upon his own Apostleship, a kind of ordination. He did not need this; the Lord had called and ordained him. He was an Apostle, not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ." (Gaebelein)
watching - "We have here an undesigned coincidence with 2 Cor. 11:32-33,—where we read that the ethnarch under king Aretas guarded the gates in order to apprehend Paul. Aretas was king of Arabia Petraea. We do not know how Damascus came into his hands at that time, but it can hardly have been without Roman consent. Coins which are extant prove that it was under direct Roman administration in A.D. 33-34, and again in A.D. 62-63. It must, therefore have come into Aretas' possession subsequent to A.D. 34; and Caligula (A.D. 37-41), who encouraged independent kingdoms in the East, is the emperor most likely to have conferred the city on the Arabian sovereign. These dates admirably suit the chronology adopted in this commentary, which gives A.D. 38 as the year in question. A comparison of the two accounts of this incident makes it clear that the Jews secured the ethnarch's favour and cooperation in their attempt to seize Paul." (Walker)
"We are told that Aretas was father-in-law to Herod Antipas and that he had made war on Herod for casting aside his daughter for his (Herod's) brother Philip's wife, Herodias (cf. Mark 6:17,18). If this be true the Jews at Damascus may well have sided against Herod, and the governor under Aretas may have reciprocated by trying to seize Saul for them." (Stam)
Barnabas - "His name means 'son of encouragement,' and he was that to Paul. Described by Luke as one who consoles or encourages (Acts 4:36), a good man who was full of the Holy Spirit (Acts 11:24), he played an important role on four occasions: (1) he convinced the apostles of the genuineness of Paul's conversion (Acts 9:27); (2) he represented the apostles at Antioch and recognized that the movement there was the work of God (Acts 11:22-24); (3) he and Paul were sent by the Spirit on the first missionary journey (Acts 13:2); and (4) he defended the work among Gentiles at the Jerusalem council (Acts 15:12, 22, 25)." (Ryrie)
Hellenists - Greek-speaking Jews who were born in lands outside of Israel.
Tarsus - "Capital of Cilicia and birthplace of Paul. He remained there about five years before being called by Barnabas to work at Antioch (Acts 11:25-26)." (Ryrie)
"There we lose sight of him till Barnabas fetches him from thence in Acts 11:25, except that we know that he worked as an evangelist during at least part of the intermediate period in Syria and Cilicia (Gal. 1:21) and founded churches there (Acts 15:23, 41)." (Walker)
"In Gal. 1:21, referring to the same period of his [Paul's] life, he says: 'Afterwards I came into the regions of Syria and Cilicia.' It may well be, then, that Tarsus was merely his base of operations from which he preached Christ in Syria and Cilicia. In fact there appears to be considerable evidence that this was the case. We read in Acts 15:23 of the communication set by the Church at Jerusalem to 'the brethren which are of the Gentiles in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia.' Also, in Acts 15:41 we are told that after Paul's separation from Barnabas he 'went through Syria and Cilicia confirming the churches.' Now how and when did it come about that there were Gentile believers in Syria and Cilicia? Who had founded churches there? In answer to this question it should be observed first that neither Paul nor Jewish believers from Judaea could have led these Gentiles to Christ before the conversion of Cornelius for according to the testimonies of both Peter and James in Acts 15:7, 14, Cornelius and those of his household were the first Gentiles to 'hear the word of the gospel and believe.' There were men of Cilicia in Jerusalem during Stephen's ministry there (Acts 6:9) but these could not have brought Christ to Cilicia for they themselves had rejected Stephen's testimony and had helped to bring about his martyrdom. Those scattered by 'the persecution that arose about Stephen' could hardly have brought Christ to the Gentiles of this territory, for we are distinctly told that they 'travelled as far as Phoenice, and Cyprus, and Antioch, preaching the Word to none but unto the Jews only. And some of them ... when they were come to Antioch, spake unto the Grecians [or Greeks, R.V.] preaching the Lord Jesus' (Acts 11:9,20). Thus these scattered believers reached as far as Antioch, but not further into Syria, much less Cilicia. Moreover Antioch is designated as the one city where they ventured to preach Christ to the Gentiles at that time. It was the conversion of the Gentiles at Antioch, of course, that brought Saul there, and there he ministered for 'a whole year' (Acts 11:26). We would not exclude the possibility that he evangelized Syria and Cilicia during that year, but again the record seems to confine his ministry to Antioch for that entire period, for it is written: 'a whole year they assembled themselves with the church, and taught much people' (Acts 11:26). Nor could Paul have founded these churches during his first apostolic journey, for his route is outlined for us in the record, and it did not take him further into Syria or into Cilicia. It is true that Paul could have sent evangelists into Syria and Cilicia during the year he spent at Antioch, but in the absence of any statement to that effect it would seem more probably that these churches were founded by Paul during this so-called 'period of retirement' in Tarsus. Indeed, the statement in Acts 15:41 that 'he went through Syria and Cilicia, confirming the churches,' would seem to imply that these were churches which he had founded." (Stam)
So - "Or 'therefore'. The chief opponent Saul was now a convert. Political events, too, favoured the church, for the attention of the Jews was mainly concentrated on the attempts of the emperor Caligula to set up his image for worship in the temple at Jerusalem. Their suspense only ceased with his death (A.D. 41). " (Walker)
immediately he proclaimed Jesus in the synagogues - "Many place St. Paul's visit to Arabia (Gal. 1:15-17) between vv. 19 and 20, being of the opinion that he sought retirement with God before entering upon public ministry. Others consider that it intervenes between vv. 21 and 22; while others, again, would place it after v. 22 and and before v. 23. St. Luke has omitted all mention of it as not falling in with the special scope of his missionary history. We know from Gal. 1:17 that Paul returned from Arabia to Damascus again, and Gal. 1:16 (immediately) proves that his retirement took place very soon after his conversion. though we cannot say certainly at what point this narrative is to be interrupted to make room for it, yet, on the whole, it seems best to insert it between vv. 21 and 22. The word [immediately] of the text renders a break after v. 19 highly improbably." (Walker)
"Another reason why we find Paul proclaiming that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, here is that the book of Acts is essentially the story of Israel's fall, not the story of the birth and growth of the Church of this age. The opening question of the book is: 'Lord, wilt thou at this time restore again the kingdom to Israel?' (Acts 1:6). The answer at the close is: 'The salvation of God is sent unto the Gentiles' (Acts 28:28). The Body of Christ did have its beginning with Paul, during the period covered by the latter part of Acts, but the main purpose of the book is to show how Israel rejected Christ in spite of the miraculous demonstrations of Pentecost, in spite of the powerful appeals of the twelve and even in spite of the testimony of Paul, who once had been Christ's greatest enemy on earth." (Stam)
proving - "The word means 'to establish a conclusion by putting things side by side and comparing them'. Paul doubtless compared the Messianic prophecies of the Jewish Scriptures with the facts of the life and death of Jesus Christ. The verb is found again in Acts 16:10; 19:38; Eph. 4:16; Col 2:2, 19, with different renderings." (Walker)
When many days had passed - "During this time Paul went to Arabia so three years elapsed between his conversion and his going to Jerusalem (Acts 9:26). (See Gal. 1:17 - Arabia may mean anywhere in the kingdom of the Nabataeans, from near Damascus down to the Sinaitic peninsula. The intent is not to pinpoint the location but to emphasize that it was a place [in contrast to Jerusalem] where there was no apostle to instruct him. In Arabia he was alone with God, thinking through the implications of his encounter with the risen Christ on the Damascus road.)" (Ryrie)
"During this many days he made a journey to Arabia. The first chapter in Galatians tells us of this fact. 'Neither went I up to Jerusalem to them which were Apostles before, but I went into Arabia, and returned again unto Damascus' (Gal. 1:17). This is the only time his journey into Arabia is mentioned in the Bible. How long he spent there and what he did there is unrevealed. It is incorrect to say he spend three years in Arabia; in Galatians the statement is made that three years after his return to Damascus he went to Jerusalem. This does not mean that he was for three years in Arabia." [notice that Gaebelein contradicts Ryrie here] (Gaebelein)
"Nothing would have pleased him [Paul] better than to return at once to the city he loved so well and preach the Name he once despised. but he did not confer with flesh and blood, nor did he go up to Jerusalem to them which were Apostles before him (Gal. 1:16-17). It had to be so to prove that he had his apostleship apart from Jerusalem. This is the reason why this historical account is embodied in the first chapter of the Epistle to the Galatians. In his defence of the Gospel contained in that epistle he shows first that he is an Apostle and how he became an Apostle. The twelve in Jerusalem had nothing to do with it...But we must again examine the historical record contained in the Apostle's own words in Galatians 1. There we learn the details of this visit. He did not see all the Apostles, but only Peter and James, the Lord's brother. The other Apostles he did not see. This detailed statement is made to show that no council of the Apostles was called before which (according to ecclesiastical rules in our day) Saul had to appear to receive the sanctiot of the Apostles upon his own Apostleship, a kind of ordination. He did not need this; the Lord had called and ordained him. He was an Apostle, not of men, neither by man, but by Jesus Christ." (Gaebelein)
watching - "We have here an undesigned coincidence with 2 Cor. 11:32-33,—where we read that the ethnarch under king Aretas guarded the gates in order to apprehend Paul. Aretas was king of Arabia Petraea. We do not know how Damascus came into his hands at that time, but it can hardly have been without Roman consent. Coins which are extant prove that it was under direct Roman administration in A.D. 33-34, and again in A.D. 62-63. It must, therefore have come into Aretas' possession subsequent to A.D. 34; and Caligula (A.D. 37-41), who encouraged independent kingdoms in the East, is the emperor most likely to have conferred the city on the Arabian sovereign. These dates admirably suit the chronology adopted in this commentary, which gives A.D. 38 as the year in question. A comparison of the two accounts of this incident makes it clear that the Jews secured the ethnarch's favour and cooperation in their attempt to seize Paul." (Walker)
"We are told that Aretas was father-in-law to Herod Antipas and that he had made war on Herod for casting aside his daughter for his (Herod's) brother Philip's wife, Herodias (cf. Mark 6:17,18). If this be true the Jews at Damascus may well have sided against Herod, and the governor under Aretas may have reciprocated by trying to seize Saul for them." (Stam)
Barnabas - "His name means 'son of encouragement,' and he was that to Paul. Described by Luke as one who consoles or encourages (Acts 4:36), a good man who was full of the Holy Spirit (Acts 11:24), he played an important role on four occasions: (1) he convinced the apostles of the genuineness of Paul's conversion (Acts 9:27); (2) he represented the apostles at Antioch and recognized that the movement there was the work of God (Acts 11:22-24); (3) he and Paul were sent by the Spirit on the first missionary journey (Acts 13:2); and (4) he defended the work among Gentiles at the Jerusalem council (Acts 15:12, 22, 25)." (Ryrie)
Hellenists - Greek-speaking Jews who were born in lands outside of Israel.
Tarsus - "Capital of Cilicia and birthplace of Paul. He remained there about five years before being called by Barnabas to work at Antioch (Acts 11:25-26)." (Ryrie)
"There we lose sight of him till Barnabas fetches him from thence in Acts 11:25, except that we know that he worked as an evangelist during at least part of the intermediate period in Syria and Cilicia (Gal. 1:21) and founded churches there (Acts 15:23, 41)." (Walker)
"In Gal. 1:21, referring to the same period of his [Paul's] life, he says: 'Afterwards I came into the regions of Syria and Cilicia.' It may well be, then, that Tarsus was merely his base of operations from which he preached Christ in Syria and Cilicia. In fact there appears to be considerable evidence that this was the case. We read in Acts 15:23 of the communication set by the Church at Jerusalem to 'the brethren which are of the Gentiles in Antioch and Syria and Cilicia.' Also, in Acts 15:41 we are told that after Paul's separation from Barnabas he 'went through Syria and Cilicia confirming the churches.' Now how and when did it come about that there were Gentile believers in Syria and Cilicia? Who had founded churches there? In answer to this question it should be observed first that neither Paul nor Jewish believers from Judaea could have led these Gentiles to Christ before the conversion of Cornelius for according to the testimonies of both Peter and James in Acts 15:7, 14, Cornelius and those of his household were the first Gentiles to 'hear the word of the gospel and believe.' There were men of Cilicia in Jerusalem during Stephen's ministry there (Acts 6:9) but these could not have brought Christ to Cilicia for they themselves had rejected Stephen's testimony and had helped to bring about his martyrdom. Those scattered by 'the persecution that arose about Stephen' could hardly have brought Christ to the Gentiles of this territory, for we are distinctly told that they 'travelled as far as Phoenice, and Cyprus, and Antioch, preaching the Word to none but unto the Jews only. And some of them ... when they were come to Antioch, spake unto the Grecians [or Greeks, R.V.] preaching the Lord Jesus' (Acts 11:9,20). Thus these scattered believers reached as far as Antioch, but not further into Syria, much less Cilicia. Moreover Antioch is designated as the one city where they ventured to preach Christ to the Gentiles at that time. It was the conversion of the Gentiles at Antioch, of course, that brought Saul there, and there he ministered for 'a whole year' (Acts 11:26). We would not exclude the possibility that he evangelized Syria and Cilicia during that year, but again the record seems to confine his ministry to Antioch for that entire period, for it is written: 'a whole year they assembled themselves with the church, and taught much people' (Acts 11:26). Nor could Paul have founded these churches during his first apostolic journey, for his route is outlined for us in the record, and it did not take him further into Syria or into Cilicia. It is true that Paul could have sent evangelists into Syria and Cilicia during the year he spent at Antioch, but in the absence of any statement to that effect it would seem more probably that these churches were founded by Paul during this so-called 'period of retirement' in Tarsus. Indeed, the statement in Acts 15:41 that 'he went through Syria and Cilicia, confirming the churches,' would seem to imply that these were churches which he had founded." (Stam)
So - "Or 'therefore'. The chief opponent Saul was now a convert. Political events, too, favoured the church, for the attention of the Jews was mainly concentrated on the attempts of the emperor Caligula to set up his image for worship in the temple at Jerusalem. Their suspense only ceased with his death (A.D. 41). " (Walker)
No comments:
Post a Comment