Thomas Aquinas — Commentary on Scripture

Acts 1:1

that Jesus began to do and to teach: Consequently, immediately after His baptism Christ adopted a strict form of life, in order to teach us the need of taming the flesh before passing on to the office of preaching.

Acts 1:3

That Christ did not stay continually with the disciples was not because He deemed it more expedient for Him to be elsewhere: but because He judged it to be more suitable for the apostles' instruction that He should not abide continually with them.

Acts 1:7

Now the Holy Spirit taught the apostles all truth in respect of matters necessary for salvation; those things, to wit, that we are bound to believe and to do. But He did not teach them about all future events.

Acts 1:8

you shall be witnesses for me: He adds why this testimony is appropriate when he says in John's Gospel (15:27), because you have been with me from the beginning, that is, the beginning of my preaching and working of miracles, and so you can testify to what you have seen and heard.

Acts 1:9

To ascend into heaven is clearly an attribute of Christ as man, who in their sight was taken. That cloud afforded no support as a vehicle to the ascending Christ: but it appeared as a sign of the Godhead, just as God's glory appeared to Israel in a cloud over the Tabernacle (Ex. 40:32; Num. 9:15).

Acts 1:11

Now He ascended into heaven from Mount Olivet which overlooks the valley of Josaphat. Therefore He will come to judge in the neighborhood of that place.

Acts 1:16

the scripture had to be fulfilled: Not that scripture forced the event, but it did mention an event that would happen: This scripture says: He who ate my bread has lifted his heel against me.(Psalm 41:9)

who was the leader of those who apprehended Jesus: Judas had agreed with the chief priests to betray Christ, he looked for an opportunity to deliver him without disturbing the people. And because some of the crowd might resist, he took a band of soldiers, not from the Jews, but from the governor. In this way, no one would dare to resist because they would see the marks of legitimate authority. Further, some Jews might resist out of zeal for the law, especially because Christ was being taken by Gentiles. For this reason Judas took some servants or officers from the chief priests and the Pharisees. (John 18:3)

Acts 1:17

Therefore, since Judas was one of the twelve, it seems that he was chosen. I answer that one can be chosen in two ways. One is for a present righteousness; and Judas was chosen for this. The other is for final glory; and Judas was not chosen for this. Our Lord chose Judas, whom he knew would become an evil person, so that we could realize that there would be no human society which does not have some evil members: We can also understand from this that if a bishop receives someone into the Church, and this person becomes bad, the bishop should not be blamed.

Acts 2:6

Was it while speaking in one language they should be understood by all, or that they should speak in all languages? It was more fitting that they should speak in all languages, because this pertained to the perfection of their knowledge, whereby they were able not only to speak, but also to understand what was said by others. Whereas if their one language were intelligible to all, this would either have been due to the knowledge of those who understood their speech, or it would have amounted to an illusion, since a man's words would have had a different sound in another's ears, from that with which they were uttered.

Acts 2:17

in the last days:
Similar expressions that are to be found in Scripture. For they are not intended to indicate a short length of time, but to signify the last state of the world, which is the last age of all, and it is not stated definitely how long this will last. Thus neither is fixed duration appointed to old age, which is the last age of man, since sometimes it is seen to last as long as or even longer than all the previous ages,

Acts 2:21

this is done by calling on Him through love and devout worship: "When he calls on me, I will answer him" (Ps 91:15).

Acts 2:24

Peter says (Acts 2:24): "Whom God hath raised up, having loosed the sorrows of hell, as it was impossible that He should be held by it." Therefore it seems that He remained in hell until the hour of the Resurrection.

Question 52. Christ's descent into hell, Article 4

Acts 2:24

And he whom God has raised up:
The Divine power is the same thing as the operation of the Father and the Son; accordingly these two things are mutually consequent, that Christ was raised up by the Divine power of the Father, and by His own power.

Acts 2:27

For you will not abandon my soul to Hell:
It is written (1 Peter 3:19) that "Christ coming in spirit preached to those spirits that were in prison, which had some time been incredulous": and this is understood of Christ's descent into hell. Hence Damascene says "As He evangelized them who are upon the earth, so did He those who were in hell"; not in order to convert unbelievers unto belief, but to put them to shame for their unbelief, since preaching cannot be understood otherwise than as the open manifesting of His Godhead. which was laid bare before them in the lower regions by His descending in power into hell.

Acts 2:34

But what He says, namely, sit at my right hand, can be referred to the divine nature in which Christ is equal to the Father, because He has judiciary and royal power equal to the Father: ‘All that the Father has are mine’ (Jn. 16:15). Indeed, the Father Himself said this from eternity, because He engendered the Son by speaking, and by engendering gave Him equality with the Father. It can also be referred to the human nature, according to which He sits near the transcendent goods of the Father. In this case the Father spoke, when He joined His Word to a human nature. But why does he say, footstool? Perhaps because that word signifies nothing more than full and perfect subjection, for that is said to be perfectly subject to someone which he can tread under foot; or because just as God is the head of Christ, as it says in 1 Cor. (11:3), so Christ’s feet would be His humanity: ‘We shall adore in the place where his feet stood’ (Ps. 131:7). I will make them your footstool, i.e., not only will I subject you enemies to your divinity, but even to your humanity.

Acts 2:36

Hereby it is also clear that Peter’s saying that God has made this same Jesus, is to be referred to the Son in His human nature, in which He began to have in time what in His nature He had from eternity.

Acts 2:38

Do penance: He had admonished men to do penance before admonishing them to be baptized, this would be because also before Baptism some kind of penance is required. Confession is a part of sacramental Penance, which is not required before Baptism, but the inward virtue of Penance is required. Moreover, the penance which precedes Baptism is not the sacrament of Penance. And you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit: the sacrament of confirmation unto renovation: ‘By the laver of regeneration and renovation of the Holy Spirit’ (Titus. 3:5). For in confirmation the Holy Spirit is given for strength to enable a man to boldly confess Christ’s name before men. For just as in the natural order a man is first born and then grows and becomes strong, so, too, in the order of grace. Hence Pope Melchiades says: "The Holy Spirit, Who comes down on the waters of Baptism bearing salvation in His flight, bestows at the font, the fulness of innocence; but in Confirmation He confers an increase of grace. In Baptism we are born again unto life; after Baptism we are strengthened." Christ, by the pow…

Do penance:
He had admonished men to do penance before admonishing them to be baptized, this would be because also before Baptism some kind of penance is required. Confession is a part of sacramental Penance, which is not required before Baptism, but the inward virtue of Penance is required. Moreover, the penance which precedes Baptism is not the sacrament of Penance.

And you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit:
the sacrament of confirmation unto renovation: ‘By the laver of regeneration and renovation of the Holy Spirit’ (Titus. 3:5). For in confirmation the Holy Spirit is given for strength to enable a man to boldly confess Christ’s name before men. For just as in the natural order a man is first born and then grows and becomes strong, so, too, in the order of grace. Hence Pope Melchiades says: "The Holy Spirit, Who comes down on the waters of Baptism bearing salvation in His flight, bestows at the font, the fulness of innocence; but in Confirmation He confers an increase of grace. In Baptism we are born again unto life; after Baptism we are strengthened." Christ, by the power which He exercises in the sacraments, bestowed on the apostles the reality of this sacrament, i.e. the fulness of the Holy Spirit, without the sacrament itself, because they had received "the first fruits of the Spirit" (Romans 8:23). In like manner, too, when the apostles imposed their hands, and when they preached, the fulness of the Holy Spirit came down under visible signs on the faithful. However, the apostles commonly made use of chrism in bestowing the sacrament, when such like visible signs were lacking. Now the grace of the Holy Spirit is signified by oil; hence Christ is said to be "anointed with the oil of gladness" (Psalm 44:8), by reason of His being gifted with the fulness of the Holy Spirit. Consequently oil is a suitable matter of this sacrament. Pierre de Tarentaise, (Sent. iv, D, 7) held that it was instituted by the apostles. But this cannot be admitted; since the institution of a new sacrament belongs to the power of excellence, which belongs to Christ alone. And therefore we must say that Christ instituted this sacrament not by bestowing, but by promising it, according to John 16:7: "If I go not, the Paraclete will not come to you, but if I go, I will send Him to you." And this was because in this sacrament the fulness of the Holy Spirit is bestowed, which was not to be given before Christ's Resurrection and Ascension; according to John 7:39: "As yet the Spirit was not given, because Jesus was not yet glorified."

Acts 2:46

and to break bread among the houses:
The houses in which this sacrament is celebrated denotes the Church, and is termed a church; and so it is fittingly consecrated, both to represent the holiness which the Church acquired from the Passion, as well as to denote the holiness required of them who have to receive this sacrament.

Acts 3:11

We have to know that the temple included not just its main building, but the surrounding porticos as well; it was on these porticos that the people stood and prayed, for only the priests prayed in the temple.

Acts 3:15

The Author of Life:
He is Author of Life in 2 ways, first, is by teaching it by word; the second is by impressing it upon our hearts