Bede — Commentary on Scripture

Acts 8:33

In his humiliation his judgment was taken away: and who shall declare his generation? for his life is taken from the earth.

Who shall declare his generation? Either it is to be understood of his divinity that it is impossible to know the mysteries of his divine birth, of which the Father speaks: I have begotten you from the womb before the morning star (Psalm 110); or of the Virgin's birth, which can be explained with difficulty. To Mary, seeking the reason, it is said through the angel: The Holy Spirit will come upon you. So either the angel or the evangelist should declare only the sacraments of his birth, who is a rare narrator.

Acts 8:35

Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus.

But Philip opening his mouth, etc. Philip interpreted means 'the mouth of a lamp,' and it is a beautiful sense that the mouth of a lamp opened its mouth, while it brought forth the obscure things of prophecy into the light of knowledge. Although these circumlocutions according to history could signify that his speech at that time would be somewhat longer.

Acts 8:36 · 2 passages

And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized?

They came to a certain water. Even today there is a village called Bethsoro in the tribe of Judah, on the twentieth milestone of those going from Chebron of Elias. Near it, a fountain bubbling up at the roots of a mountain is absorbed by the soil from which it springs. In this place, the eunuch was baptized by Philip.

Who prohibits me from being baptized? And he commanded the chariot to stop, and the rest. Here another translation according to the Greek exemplar has a few more verses where it is written: Behold water, who prohibits me from being baptized? But Philip said to him: If you believe with all your heart, you will be saved. And responding, he said: I believe in Christ, the Son of God. And he commanded the chariot to stop, and the rest. I believe, therefore, that our own interpreter initially translated these verses as well, but they were later omitted due to the fault of the scribes.

Acts 8:39

And when they were come up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, that the eunuch saw him no more: and he went on his way rejoicing.

The Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away. There are some who testify that an angel did this in the Holy Spirit, as Jerome reports.

Acts 8:40

But Philip was found at Azotus: and passing through he preached in all the cities, till he came to Caesarea.

He preached to all the cities until he came to Caesarea. He says of Palestine, where it is described below that he had a house, which is shown to this day, as well as the room of his four prophesying virgin daughters.

Acts 9:1

And Saul, yet breathing out threatenings and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord, went unto the high priest,

Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord. Evidently present by afflicting with murders, and deterring the absent with threats.

Acts 9:4

And he fell to the earth, and heard a voice saying unto him, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?

Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? He did not say: Why do you persecute my members? but why do you persecute me? because he still suffers the unrighteous in his own body, which is the Church. He even declares that benefits bestowed upon his members are done unto him when he says: I was hungry, and you gave me something to eat (Matt. 25). And he added in explanation: As long as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me (Ibid.).

Acts 9:5

And he said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest: it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks.

I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. He did not say: I am God, I am the Son of God, but he says: Accept the weakness of my humility and lay down the scales of your pride.

Acts 9:6

And he trembling and astonished said, Lord, what wilt thou have me to do? And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the city, and it shall be told thee what thou must do.

Rise and enter the city, and you will be told what you must do. He did not immediately show him what was to be done but advised that it would be heard later in the city, so that he would stand more firmly in good things as he had previously fallen completely from his former error.

Acts 9:8

And Saul arose from the earth; and when his eyes were opened, he saw no man: but they led him by the hand, and brought him into Damascus.

And when his eyes were opened, he saw nothing. He could not see well again unless he was first properly blinded, and excluding his own confounding wisdom, would he commit himself to faith in all things.

Acts 9:9

And he was three days without sight, and neither did eat nor drink.

And he was without sight for three days. Because he had not believed that the Lord had conquered death by rising on the third day, he is now instructed by his own example, who would change the darkness of three days with the returning light.

Acts 9:11-12

And the Lord said unto him, Arise, and go into the street which is called Straight, and enquire in the house of Judas for one called Saul, of Tarsus: for, behold, he prayeth,

Behold, he prays and sees a man named Ananias entering and laying hands on him. In Greek, it is held thus: And he saw in a vision a man, that is, ἐν ὁράματι, which name Juvencus the priest also used in the evangelical poem, saying: Make all ignorant of this vision. Therefore, it appears that during those three days, in which he, being blinded, awaited the grace of future light, he was by no means idle or torpid, but rather elevated by divine illumination, he explored heavenly secrets; and, unless I am mistaken, it is credible that at that time he was taught the mystery of the evangelical dispensation, of which he himself boasts to the Galatians, saying: For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but through a revelation of Jesus Christ (Gal. I). And shortly afterwards: But when it pleased Him who separated me from my mother's womb, and called me by His grace, to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach among the Gentiles, I did not immediately confer with flesh and blood, nor did I go up to Jerusalem, etc. (Ibid.). Also, the text of this little book, which is appended…

Behold, he prays and sees a man named Ananias entering and laying hands on him. In Greek, it is held thus: And he saw in a vision a man, that is, ἐν ὁράματι, which name Juvencus the priest also used in the evangelical poem, saying: Make all ignorant of this vision. Therefore, it appears that during those three days, in which he, being blinded, awaited the grace of future light, he was by no means idle or torpid, but rather elevated by divine illumination, he explored heavenly secrets; and, unless I am mistaken, it is credible that at that time he was taught the mystery of the evangelical dispensation, of which he himself boasts to the Galatians, saying: For I neither received it from man, nor was I taught it, but through a revelation of Jesus Christ (Gal. I). And shortly afterwards: But when it pleased Him who separated me from my mother's womb, and called me by His grace, to reveal His Son in me, that I might preach among the Gentiles, I did not immediately confer with flesh and blood, nor did I go up to Jerusalem, etc. (Ibid.). Also, the text of this little book, which is appended: He was with the disciples who were at Damascus for some days, and immediately in the synagogues he preached Jesus, that He is the Son of God (Acts IX), in no way asserts that he learned anything from men, but rather confirms that he immediately took up the ministry of an eminent teacher after baptism. Certainly, he is to be compared to him of whom it is written: Because the word of the Lord set him on fire (Psalm CIV).

Acts 9:16

For I will shew him how great things he must suffer for my name's sake.

For I will show him how much he must suffer for my name. He should not (he says) be feared as a persecutor, but rather be embraced as a brother, who is ready to endure the adversities which he had inflicted upon the saints, together with the saints.

Acts 9:18

And immediately there fell from his eyes as it had been scales: and he received sight forthwith, and arose, and was baptized.

And immediately something like scales fell from his eyes. It is said that the entire body of the dragon is covered with scales. Because the Jews are called serpents and brood of vipers, those who followed their perfidy had covered the eyes of their heart as if with the skin of a serpent. But when the scales fell from his eyes under the hand of Ananias, it was shown in his face that he had already received true light in his mind.

Acts 9:23-24

And after that many days were fulfilled, the Jews took counsel to kill him:

The Jews made a council to kill him. But the plot against Paul was known to him; and they watched the gates of the city day and night to kill him. It was not the Jews who kept watch, but the citizens themselves with their king Aretas, as the Apostle himself, who was besieged and escaped, writes to the Galatians. For both Gentiles and Jews, although they disagree among themselves, always agree in the persecution of Christians.

Acts 9:25 · 2 passages

Then the disciples took him by night, and let him down by the wall in a basket.

But his disciples took him by night. That is, the disciples of Christ. For in Greek, there is no addition of "his", but only "disciples" so that they are understood generally as disciples of Christ or the Church. For Paul had not yet been read as having made disciples but only as having confounded the Jews who lived in Damascus.

They let him down through the wall, lowering him in a basket. This kind of escape is still preserved in the Church today when someone, surrounded by the snares of the ancient enemy or the traps of this world, is not saved by his hope and faith. For the wall of Damascus, which is interpreted as drinking blood, is the adversity of the world. King Aretas, who is interpreted as descent, is understood as the devil. The basket, which is usually made of rushes and palm leaves, signifies the conjunction of faith and hope. For the rush signifies the greenness of faith, and the palm signifies the hope of eternal life. Therefore, whoever sees himself surrounded by the wall of adversity, let him quickly ascend by the basket of virtues by which he may escape.

Acts 9:26 · 2 passages

And when Saul was come to Jerusalem, he assayed to join himself to the disciples: but they were all afraid of him, and believed not that he was a disciple.

When he had come to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples. In this verse, in Greek, the name Paul is applied: "When Paul had come to Jerusalem," not because at that time he was yet called so, before he converted Sergius Paulus, the proconsul of Cyprus, to the faith of Christ, but he is now called by anticipation in this way, the blessed Luke speaking opportunely: to indicate beforehand that he was to be called Paul, when he first came to Jerusalem after his conversion, and was said to be joined to the apostles, so that where a little earlier he had exited as a proud persecutor of the Church, he now entered as a humble protector of the Church. For since in Latin "paulum" means "little," rightly did he prefer to be called Paul, who did not cease to remain humble amid the greatest works of virtue. Nor is it to be thought that Paul or Peter are Hebrew words, but rather Latin or Greek words, since it is certain Hebrews do not have the letter p in any way.

When he had come to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples. Let us not believe that he came to the apostles in Jerusalem immediately after being baptized, but as he himself wrote to the Galatians, first he went to Arabia and then returned again to Damascus. Then after three years, coming to Jerusalem, he saw Peter and stayed with him for fifteen days. But he did not see any other of the apostles, except James the brother of the Lord. And then, as Luke also follows, he came into the regions of Syria and Cilicia. Whether he endured the plots in Damascus the first or second time is not easily evident. For it can also be understood the second time since it is said that after many days were fulfilled, the Jews made a plot to kill him. Therefore, it seems that Luke omits Arabia because he did not preach there, according to what he himself later said to King Agrippa: because I preached first in Damascus, and in Jerusalem, and throughout all the region of Judea, and to the Gentiles.