33 in his humiliation his judgment was taken away, and his generation -- who shall declare? because taken from the earth is his life.'
By restraint and by judgment he hath been taken, And of his generation who doth meditate, That he hath been cut off from the land of the living? By the transgression of My people he is plagued,
Therefore I give a portion to him among the many, And with the mighty he apportioneth spoil, Because that he exposed to death his soul, And with transgressors he was numbered, And he the sin of many hath borne, And for transgressors he intercedeth.
For Job hath said, `I have been righteous, And God hath turned aside my right,
Dried up as an earthen vessel is my power, And my tongue is cleaving to my jaws.
Declaring righteous the wicked for a bribe, And the righteousness of the righteous They turn aside from him.
To turn aside from judgment the poor, And to take violently away the judgment Of the afflicted of My people, That widows may be their prey, That the fatherless they may spoil.
And after the sixty and two weeks, cut off is Messiah, and the city and the holy place are not his, the Leader who hath come doth destroy the people; and its end `is' with a flood, and till the end `is' war, determined `are' desolations.
Therefore doth law cease, And judgment doth not go forth for ever, For the wicked is compassing the righteous, Therefore wrong judgment goeth forth.
And in his being accused by the chief priests and the elders, he did not answer any thing, then saith Pilate to him, `Dost thou not hear how many things they witness against thee?' And he did not answer him, not even to one word, so that the governor did wonder greatly. And at the feast the governor had been accustomed to release one to the multitude, a prisoner, whom they willed, and they had then a noted prisoner, called Barabbas, they therefore having been gathered together, Pilate said to them, `Whom will ye I shall release to you? Barabbas or Jesus who is called Christ?' for he had known that because of envy they had delivered him up. And as he is sitting on the tribunal, his wife sent unto him, saying, `Nothing -- to thee and to that righteous one, for many things did I suffer to-day in a dream because of him.' And the chief priests and the elders did persuade the multitudes that they might ask for themselves Barabbas, and might destroy Jesus; and the governor answering said to them, `Which of the two will ye `that' I shall release to you?' And they said, `Barabbas.' Pilate saith to them, `What then shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?' They all say to him, `Let be crucified!' And the governor said, `Why, what evil did he?' and they were crying out the more, saying, `Let be crucified.' And Pilate having seen that it profiteth nothing, but rather a tumult is made, having taken water, he did wash the hands before the multitude, saying, `I am innocent from the blood of this righteous one; ye -- ye shall see;' and all the people answering said, `His blood `is' upon us, and upon our children!' Then did he release to them Barabbas, and having scourged Jesus, he delivered `him' up that he may be crucified;
From this `time' was Pilate seeking to release him, and the Jews were crying out, saying, `If this one thou mayest release, thou art not a friend of Caesar; every one making himself a king, doth speak against Caesar.' Pilate, therefore, having heard this word, brought Jesus without -- and he sat down upon the tribunal -- to a place called, `Pavement,' and in Hebrew, Gabbatha; and it was the preparation of the passover, and as it were the sixth hour, and he saith to the Jews, `Lo, your king!' and they cried out, `Take away, take away, crucify him;' Pilate saith to them, `Your king shall I crucify?' the chief priests answered, `We have no king except Caesar.' Then, therefore, he delivered him up to them, that he may be crucified, and they took Jesus and led `him' away,
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Acts 8
Commentary on Acts 8 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 8
In this chapter we have an account of the persecutions of the Christians, and the propagating of Christianity thereby. It was strange, but very true, that the disciples of Christ the more they were afflicted the more they multiplied.
Act 8:1-3
In these verses we have,
Act 8:4-13
Samson's riddle is here again unriddled: Out of the eater comes forth meat, and out of the strong sweetness. The persecution that was designed to extirpate the church was by the overruling providence of God made an occasion of the enlargement of it. Christ had said, I am come to send fire on the earth; and they thought, by scattering those who were kindled with that fire, to have put it out, but instead of this they did but help to spread it.
Act 8:14-25
God had wonderfully owned Philip in his work as an evangelist at Samaria, but he could do no more than an evangelist; there were some peculiar powers reserved to the apostles, for the keeping up of the dignity of their office, and here we have an account of what was done by two of them there-Peter and John. The twelve kept together at Jerusalem (v. 1), and thither these good tidings were brought them that Samaria had received the word of God (v. 14), that a great harvest of souls was gathered, and was likely to be gathered in to Christ there. The word of God was not only preached to them, but received by them; they bade it welcome, admitted the light of it, and submitted to the power of it: When they heard it, they sent unto them Peter and John. If Peter had been, as some say he was, the prince of the apostles, he would have sent some of them, or, if he had seen cause, would have gone himself of his own accord; but he was so far from this that he submitted to an order of the house, and, as a servant to the body, went whither they sent him. Two apostles were sent, the two most eminent, to Samaria,
Act 8:26-40
We have here the story of the conversion of an Ethiopian eunuch to the faith of Christ, by whom, we have reason to think, the knowledge of Christ was sent into that country where he lived, and that scripture fulfilled, Ethiopia shall soon stretch out her hands (one of the first of the nations) unto God, Ps. 68:31.