3 And Peter said, `Ananias, wherefore did the Adversary fill thy heart, for thee to lie to the Holy Spirit, and to keep back of the price of the place?
And Peter said unto her, `How was it agreed by you, to tempt the Spirit of the Lord? lo, the feet of those who did bury thy husband `are' at the door, and they shall carry thee forth;'
And after the morsel, then the Adversary entered into that one, Jesus, therefore, saith to him, `What thou dost -- do quickly;'
And the Adversary entered into Judas, who is surnamed Iscariot, being of the number of the twelve,
`When thou vowest a vow to Jehovah thy God, thou dost not delay to complete it; for Jehovah thy God doth certainly require it from thee, and it hath been in thee -- sin.
and the great dragon was cast forth -- the old serpent, who is called `Devil,' and `the Adversary,' who is leading astray the whole world -- he was cast forth to the earth, and his messengers were cast forth with him. And I heard a great voice saying in the heaven, `Now did come the salvation, and the power, and the reign, of our God, and the authority of His Christ, because cast down was the accuser of our brethren, who is accusing them before our God day and night; and they did overcome him because of the blood of the Lamb, and because of the word of their testimony, and they did not love their life -- unto death;
Be sober, vigilant, because your opponent the devil, as a roaring lion, doth walk about, seeking whom he may swallow up,
be subject, then, to God; stand up against the devil, and he will flee from you;
put on the whole armour of God, for your being able to stand against the wiles of the devil, because we have not the wrestling with blood and flesh, but with the principalities, with the authorities, with the world-rulers of the darkness of this age, with the spiritual things of the evil in the heavenly places; because of this take ye up the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to resist in the day of the evil, and all things having done -- to stand. Stand, therefore, having your loins girt about in truth, and having put on the breastplate of the righteousness, and having the feet shod in the preparation of the good-news of the peace; above all, having taken up the shield of the faith, in which ye shall be able all the fiery darts of the evil one to quench,
and did keep back of the price -- his wife also knowing -- and having brought a certain part, at the feet of the apostles he laid `it'.
And the Tempter having come to him said, `If Son thou art of God -- speak that these stones may become loaves.' But he answering said, `It hath been written, Not upon bread alone doth man live, but upon every word coming forth from the mouth of God.' Then doth the Devil take him to the `holy' city, and doth set him on the pinnacle of the temple, and saith to him, `If Son thou art of God -- cast thyself down, for it hath been written, that, His messengers He shall charge concerning thee, and on hands they shall bear thee up, that thou mayest not dash on a stone thy foot.' Jesus said to him again, `It hath been written, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.' Again doth the Devil take him to a very high mount, and doth shew to him all the kingdoms of the world and the glory of them, and saith to him, `All these to thee I will give, if falling down thou mayest bow to me.' Then saith Jesus to him, `Go -- Adversary, for it hath been written, The Lord thy God thou shalt bow to, and Him only thou shalt serve.' Then doth the Devil leave him, and lo, messengers came and were ministering to him.
When thou vowest a vow to God, delay not to complete it, for there is no pleasure in fools; that which thou vowest -- complete.
`When a man voweth a vow to Jehovah, or hath sworn an oath to bind a bond on his soul, he doth not pollute his word; according to all that is going out from his mouth he doth.
And Jehovah God saith to the woman, `What `is' this thou hast done?' and the woman saith, `The serpent hath caused me to forget -- and I do eat.' And Jehovah God saith unto the serpent, `Because thou hast done this, cursed `art' thou above all the cattle, and above every beast of the field: on thy belly dost thou go, and dust thou dost eat, all days of thy life; and enmity I put between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; he doth bruise thee -- the head, and thou dost bruise him -- the heel.' Unto the woman He said, `Multiplying I multiply thy sorrow and thy conception, in sorrow dost thou bear children, and toward thy husband `is' thy desire, and he doth rule over thee.' And to the man He said, `Because thou hast hearkened to the voice of thy wife, and dost eat of the tree concerning which I have charged thee, saying, Thou dost not eat of it, cursed `is' the ground on thine account; in sorrow thou dost eat of it all days of thy life,
Thou, then, who art teaching another, thyself dost thou not teach? thou who art preaching not to steal, dost thou steal? thou who art saying not to commit adultery, dost thou commit adultery? thou who art abhorring the idols, dost thou rob temples?
while it remained, did it not remain thine? and having been sold, in thy authority was it not? why `is' it that thou didst put in thy heart this thing? thou didst not lie to men, but to God;'
Compassed Me with feigning hath Ephraim, And with deceit the house of Israel. And Judah again is ruling with God, And with the Holy Ones `is' faithful!
Is any one hidden in secret places, And I see him not? an affirmation of Jehovah, Do not I fill the heavens and the earth? An affirmation of Jehovah.
And they say, `Jehovah doth not see, And the God of Jacob doth not consider.' Consider, ye brutish among the people, And ye foolish, when do ye act wisely? He who planteth the ear doth He not hear? He who formeth the eye doth He not see?
And thou hast said, `What -- hath God known? Through thickness doth He judge?
And there standeth up an adversary against Israel, and persuadeth David to number Israel, And David saith unto Joab, and unto the heads of the people, `Go, number Israel from Beer-Sheba even unto Dan, and bring unto me, and I know their number.' And Joab saith, `Jehovah doth add to His people as they are a hundred times; are they not, my lord, O king, all of them to my lord for servants? why doth my lord seek this? why is he for a cause of guilt to Israel?'
`And the spirit goeth out, and standeth before Jehovah, and saith, I -- I do entice him; and Jehovah saith unto him, By what? and he saith, I go out, and have been a spirit of falsehood in the mouth of all his prophets; and He saith, Thou dost entice, and also thou art able; go out and do so.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Acts 5
Commentary on Acts 5 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 5
In this chapter we have,
Act 5:1-11
The chapter begins with a melancholy but, which puts a stop to the pleasant and agreeable prospect of things which we had in the foregoing chapters; as every man, so every church, in its best state has its but.
Act 5:12-16
We have here an account of the progress of the gospel, notwithstanding this terrible judgment inflicted upon two hypocrites.
Act 5:17-25
Never did any good work go on with any hope of success, but it met with opposition; those that are bent to do mischief cannot be reconciled to those who make it their business to do good. Satan, the destroyer of mankind, ever was, and will be, an adversary to those who are the benefactors of mankind; and it would have been strange if the apostles had gone on thus teaching and healing and had had no check. In these verses we have the malice of hell and the grace of heaven struggling about them, the one to drive them off from this good work, the other to animate them in it,
Act 5:26-42
We are not told what it was that the apostles preached to the people; no doubt it was according to the direction of the angel-the words of this life; but what passed between them and the council we have here an account of; for in their sufferings there appeared more of a divine power and energy than even in their preaching. Now here we have,