Chapter Five

Ananias and Sapphira (1–10). Further successes of the Church of Christ and the Apostles (11–16). A new persecution by the Sanhedrin: the Apostles’ imprisonment, their release by an angel, preaching in the temple, their appearance before the Sanhedrin (17–33). The wise counsel of Gamaliel (34–39). The first sufferings for the name of Christ (40–42)

Acts 5:1. But a certain man named Ananias, with his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property, “Sold a piece of property,” Greek επώλησε κτῆμα — the Slavonic “sold a village” is more accurate: he sold a plot of land (in verse 8 — a plot — τό χωρίον — land, a small estate, a field).

Acts 5:2. and kept back part of the proceeds, with the knowledge of his wife, and brought only a certain portion and laid it at the feet of the Apostles. “Kept back some of the proceeds” — the “concealment” of the truth was itself a dishonorable act. But here it was even more criminal, because Ananias claimed to have brought everything that had been received for the land. This was not only an expression of shameful self-interest, but a deliberate, conscious lie and hypocrisy. By deceiving the entire Christian community with the Apostles at its head, they wanted to appear as self-sacrificing for the poor as the others, while in fact they were not: they served two masters while wanting to appear as serving one. Thus, instead of truthfulness and sincerity, two qualities most hostile to the holy Christian community enter it — Pharisaic hypocrisy and the greed of Judas.

Acts 5:3. But Peter said: Ananias! why have you allowed Satan to put it into your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back part of the proceeds from the land? “Peter said” — having learned of this lie and hypocrisy not from anyone else, but from the Holy Spirit who filled him. “Why has Satan filled your heart?” Greek διά τί επλήρωσεν ο σατανᾶς τήν καρδίαν σου ψεύσασθαί σε — more precisely in the Slavonic: “why has Satan filled your heart to lie.” Thus, more precisely and better, the beauty of the original might be rendered: “Why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back part of the price of the land”? In the act of Ananias, Peter reveals the work of Satan — “the father of lies” (John 8:44) and the ancient enemy of the Holy Spirit and the work of the Messiah — and therefore forestalls the entry of this most dangerous evil with so resolute and severe a measure. It is possible that self-interest, lies, and hypocrisy had developed in Ananias and Sapphira not without prior hidden growth, as in Judas — that their inner life had not been marked by special purity even before, that the seeds of evil had long since taken root in them and had only now borne their ruinous fruit. “Some say: if Satan filled the heart of Ananias, why was he punished? Because he himself was the cause of Satan filling his heart, since he had prepared himself to receive the action of Satan and to be filled with his power” (Theophylact). The concealment of the price of the land is treated here as a lie to the Holy Spirit, because Peter and the other Apostles, as representatives of the Church, were preeminently the bearers and organs of the Holy Spirit, who was active in the Church.

Acts 5:4. While it remained unsold, was it not your own? And after it was sold, was the money not in your own control? Why have you put this in your heart? You did not lie to men but to God. “While it remained, did it not remain yours?” Greek ουχί μένον, σοί έμενε — Slavonic: “was it not yours while it remained?” — more precisely rendered: “while remaining with you, did it not remain with you?” Ananias could have disposed of his property as he wished, even without selling it at all. “Was there any necessity? Are we forcing you by compulsion?” (Chrysostom). And if Ananias decided to sell it, again the money was entirely in his possession, and he could have disposed of it as he wished — could have given everything to the fund for the poor, could have given a part, could have given nothing at all. Neither the one, nor the other, nor the third matters here as much as the fact that, having brought only part of the money, he presents this part as the full sum received. “See,” says Chrysostom, “how he is accused of the fact that, having consecrated his money, he then took it back? Could you not,” he says, “after selling the property, use it as your own? Was there anyone to stop you? Why do you seize it after having promised to give it? Why,” he says, “did you do this? You wanted to keep it for yourself? You should have kept it from the start and not made the promise.” “You have not lied to men, but to God” — it was said above — “to the Holy Spirit.” A lie before “the Holy Spirit” is thus a lie before “God” — one of the clearest testimonies to the divinity of the Holy Spirit as a distinct divine Person.

Acts 5:5. Hearing these words, Ananias fell down breathless; and great fear came upon all who heard it. “Ananias fell down and died,” Greek πεσών εζέψυζε — more precisely in the Slavonic: “falling, he gave up the ghost.” This was not a natural nervous stroke from the powerful shock of the exposure of his act, but a miraculous direct punishment of God upon the transgressor. “Three miracles in one and the same case: the first consisted in Peter knowing what had been done in secret; the second — in his discerning the mental disposition of Ananias; and the third — in Ananias losing his life at a single command” (Theophylact). — The severity of the punishment is proportionate to the gravity of the transgressor’s guilt against the Holy Spirit, for this is the sin of Judas, a sin moreover threatening danger to the whole community and therefore requiring an exemplary punishment, “so that the punishment of two might be a lesson for many” — (Jerome). “Great fear came upon all who heard it” — the event appears to have taken place in a common solemn, possibly liturgical, assembly, and the “young men” mentioned later were probably the usual attendants performing various duties in the already quite organized community, similar to those serving in the synagogues. Therefore these young men, as soon as they saw the one who had fallen lifeless, arose from the assembly and without any special order, as though aware of their duty, went to the lifeless man and carried him out for burial. In the fear or perhaps hurry and uncertainty as to his wife’s whereabouts — or rather, by divine dispensation — she is not informed of what had happened and arrives, as a participant in her husband’s sin, to share his punishment as well.

Acts 5:7. About three hours later his wife also came in, not knowing what had happened. “About three hours later” — the precision of the time indication points to the exactness and complete reliability of the narrative. These three hours passed in burying Ananias, with all the preparations involved, especially if the burial place was not nearby. The speed of burial — within three hours of death — is nothing strange in the East. “And his wife came in,” ειςῆλθεν — more precisely in the Slavonic: “she entered” — that is, into the house, into the place of assembly, which apparently had not yet dispersed, so that Peter, in asking Sapphira whether they had sold the land for so much, was probably pointing to the money still lying at the Apostle’s feet. “Peter did not summon her,” Chrysostom says, “but waited until she came of her own accord. And none of the others dared to tell her about what had happened; this is fear before the teacher, this is the respect and obedience of disciples. Three hours had passed — and the wife had not found out, and no one present had said anything about it, though there had been enough time for the news to spread. But they were in fear. The author himself speaks of this with astonishment: ‘not knowing what had happened.’”

Acts 5:8. Peter asked her: tell me, did you sell the land for such a price? She said: yes, for such a price. “For this amount?” — “Peter,” says Theophylact, “wanted to save her, for the husband had been the instigator of the sin. That is why he gives her time to clear herself and repent, saying: tell me, was it for this amount?” “Yes, for that amount.” The same lie, the same hypocrisy, the same self-interest as with Ananias.

Acts 5:9. But Peter said to her: why did you agree together to test the Spirit of the Lord? See, the feet of those who buried your husband are at the door; and they will carry you out. “Test the Spirit of the Lord” — that is, to try by deception, as it were, to test whether he is truly omniscient. “Look, they are coming,” Greek ιδού οι πόδες τῶν θαψάντων... επί τῆ θύρα — more precisely in the Slavonic: “behold, the feet of those who buried your husband are at the door.” The young men who had buried Ananias were returning at that moment, and Peter takes this occasion to pronounce the same judgment upon the wife as the husband had suffered: “they will carry you out!” — that is, dead, for burial. Whether Peter intended with his words to strike Ananias dead (verse 4), or whether it was an act of God independent of Peter’s will and intention, is not directly apparent from the text. But when Ananias had already been struck dead, the Apostle, in speaking these words to Sapphira, could already be confident that the same would happen to her as to her husband, given their equal guilt, and could pronounce the dreadful — “they will carry you out!”

Acts 5:10. She fell immediately at his feet and gave up her spirit. The young men came in, found her dead, and carried her out and buried her beside her husband. “She died” — not by the natural effect of a stroke, but by the special action of God, as had her husband (verse 5). “Note” (says Theophylact here) “that among their own the Apostles are strict, but among outsiders they refrain from punishments; both are natural. The latter was needed so that no one would think they were compelling people against their will to convert to the true faith by the fear of punishment; the former — so as not to allow those who had already converted to faith and been deemed worthy of heavenly instruction and spiritual grace to become contemptible and sacrilegious, especially at the beginning, since this would have been an occasion for defaming their preaching.”

Acts 5:11. And great fear came upon the whole church and upon all who heard it. “And great fear came upon the whole Church” — τήν εκκλησίαν. This is the first use of the name “Church” for the community of Christians. The repeated reference to a sense of fear speaks to its extraordinary nature. From the striking effect of God’s judgment, the fear that had at first gripped only those who witnessed the event now spread to “the whole Church” — that is, to the entire Christian community — and to “all who heard of these things,” that is, those outside the Church to whose hearing the news had only come.

Acts 5:12. And many signs and wonders were performed among the people by the hands of the Apostles; and they were all together with one accord in Solomon’s porch. Preparing to pass on to the narrative of a new persecution of the Apostles by the Sanhedrin, the author makes several general observations about the state of the Church of Christ at that time. He mentions first of all the multitude of signs and wonders performed not by Peter alone but by the Apostles in general. These signs and wonders were performed “among the people” who did not yet believe in Christ, evidently in order to draw them to that faith. “They were all together in Solomon’s Porch.” This beloved place of the Apostles — a large covered gallery at the main entrance to the temple — was obviously a particularly convenient place for their gatherings.

Acts 5:13. But of the outsiders no one dared to join them, yet the people held them in high esteem. “None of the outsiders dared join them.” So strong was the feeling of a kind of reverent awe and bewilderment before them as extraordinary people, especially when they were seen in their unanimous spirit of reverent prayer.

Acts 5:15. so that they even carried out the sick into the streets and laid them on beds and cots, so that at least the shadow of Peter as he passed might fall on some of them. Amid the great number of miraculous healings performed by the apostolic hands in general, the author notes the special wonder of Peter’s healings, such that even his shadow, falling on the sick, granted them healing. True, the author does not state this directly, but makes it sufficiently understood from the fact that the sick were carried out into the street for the shadow of the passing Peter to fall upon them. Evidently the people had become convinced of the healing power of Peter’s shadow, and convinced of this not otherwise than through experiences of healing by that shadow. Just as the mere touch of Christ’s garment, even without other acts of Christ, was accompanied by healing of those who touched it (Matt 9:20 and others), so the mere falling of Peter’s shadow produced healing. “Great is the faith of those who come,” says Chrysostom on this occasion, “even greater than it was in the time of Christ. In the time of Christ there was no instance of sick people receiving healing in the streets and from a shadow. Why did this happen? Because Christ had foretold it, saying (John 14:12): ‘the one who believes in me will also do the works that I do, and greater works than these will he do.’ Thus ‘admiration for the Apostles was growing on every side: from those who believed, from those who were healed, from those who were punished, and from the boldness of their preaching, and from their virtuous and blameless life’” (Theophylact).

Acts 5:17. But the high priest and all those who were with him, belonging to the sect of the Sadducees, were filled with jealousy, As is evident from the preceding account of the inner state of the Christian community and of the people’s attitude toward it, the Church of Christ was flourishing inwardly and was honored by the people. Naturally, the murderers of the Lord, who had been moved by jealousy toward his glory, were filled with jealousy toward his disciples, who were so honored by the people. “The high priest” — probably Caiaphas, who was then the ruling high priest, which is why he is not named. “And all who were with him (that is, the party of the Sadducees)...” Greek καί πάντες οί σύν αυτῶ (η οῦσα αίρεσις τῶν σαδδουκαίων) — more precisely in the Slavonic: “and all who were with him, the party of the Sadducees”; this shows that the high priest himself belonged to the heretical sect of the Sadducees and was its representative. Josephus explicitly states that one son of Ananus or Annas (the father-in-law of Caiaphas) belonged to the sect of the Sadducees (Antiquities XX, 9, 1). In this time of national dissolution, deviation into heresy by the high priest himself was possible — perhaps covert and with certain precautions.

Acts 5:18. and they laid their hands on the Apostles and put them in the public prison. “Laid hands on the Apostles” — used force, treating them as criminals.

Acts 5:19–20. But an angel of the Lord during the night opened the doors of the prison and, leading them out, said: go and, standing in the temple, speak to the people all these words of life. “Stand in the temple and speak,” σταθέντες λαλεῖτε εν τῶ ιερῶ — more precisely in the Slavonic: “standing, speak in the church.” The more persistent the persecution by the enemies becomes, the more clearly the Lord shows his help to those who are persecuted — partly to admonish and terrify the persecutors, but generally for the spread and establishment of the newly-founded Church. The angel commands them to speak “in the temple” — boldly, fearlessly, without being frightened by threats and persecutions. “All the words of this life,” Greek πάντα τά ρήματα τῆς ζωῆς τάυτης — more precisely in the Slavonic: “all the words of this life” — all the words of this life, that is, the true, eternal, gracious life in which you yourselves dwell.

Acts 5:21. When they heard this, they entered the temple at dawn and began to teach. Meanwhile the high priest and those with him arrived, convened the Sanhedrin and all the elders from among the sons of Israel, and sent to the prison to bring the Apostles. “All the elders” — in addition to the members of the Sanhedrin. The case of the Apostles appeared so important, or they wished to pursue it so insistently and decisively, that they convened not only the Sanhedrin in its full composition but all the elders of Israel, so that the decisions of the Sanhedrin would carry particular force. “Sent to the prison.” Consequently, the miraculous release of the Apostles and the fact that they were already teaching the people in the temple were still unknown: evidently the session had convened early in the morning, as is done for the most serious matters admitting no delay.

Acts 5:22. But the officers, when they arrived, did not find them in the prison, and returning they reported, Acts 5:23. saying: we found the prison locked with every precaution and the guards standing at the doors; but when we opened it we found no one inside. Acts 5:24. When the high priest, the captain of the temple guard, and the other chief priests heard these words, they were perplexed about what this could mean. The only place in the entire New Testament where “the high priest” is for some reason called simply ιερούς rather than αρχιερεύς. Further along, distinct from him, “the chief priests” are also mentioned. These were probably former high priests, since, according to Josephus (Antiquities III, 15), the high priests were changed very frequently, and those removed continued to be called high priests and remained members of the Sanhedrin. It is also possible that here the chief priests of each of the 24 divisions into which David had already divided all the priests are referred to as “chief priests” (1 Chr 23:6; 2 Chr 8:14; Ezra 8:24).

Acts 5:25. Then someone came and reported to them, saying: see, the men whom you put in the prison are standing in the temple and teaching the people. Acts 5:26. Then the captain of the guard went with the officers and brought them without force, because they were afraid of the people, lest they be stoned. “Brought them without force” — that is, evidently by inviting the Apostles voluntarily, without laying hands on them, to appear at the Sanhedrin’s summons. Undoubtedly the people’s sympathy for the Apostles had by now grown so great that open violence against them was extremely dangerous.

Acts 5:27. And having brought them, they placed them in the Sanhedrin; and the high priest questioned them, saying: Acts 5:28. did we not strictly forbid you to teach in this name? And yet you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching and intend to bring upon us the blood of that Man. From all the circumstances of the whole case, the miraculous release of the Apostles from prison was plainly evident; yet it is all the more remarkable that in the Sanhedrin this circumstance is completely passed over in silence, and what is brought forward as the accusation against the Apostles is a formality that loses all meaning in the general chain of events. Such are these true formalists and hypocrites, sufficiently familiar to us from the Gospels and the Lord’s terrible denunciations (‘straining out a gnat but swallowing a camel’ (Matt 23:24)). “Not to teach in this name.” What petty contempt for the very name of Jesus: they avoid even naming it, demonstrating thereby, moreover, that “no one can call upon this most holy Name unless by the Holy Spirit.” “You intend to bring this man’s blood upon us” — that is, divine retribution for its innocent shedding. They themselves had once cried out: “His blood be on us and on our children!” (Matt 27:25). And now they want to blame everything on the Apostles! Into what bitter irony about themselves do the unfortunate murderers of the Lord entangle themselves! And how inexorably does the wise justice of God bring them to light!

Acts 5:29. But Peter and the Apostles answered: we must obey God rather than men. To the accusation of the Sanhedrin, Peter responds the same as before (Acts 4:19-20), but now more decisively and irrefutably. “Great wisdom in their words, and such as to reveal from this the enmity of those others against God” (Chrysostom).

Acts 5:30. The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom you killed by hanging him on a tree. “You killed,” διεχειρίσασθε — murdered with your own hands, a strong expression intended to point to the guilt of the judges themselves, in order to remove the charge that the Apostles wanted to bring the blood of that Man upon the members of the Sanhedrin. “Hanging him on a tree” — again a strengthened expression, borrowed from the Mosaic law, where the concept of hanging on a tree is associated with the concept of a curse (cf. Gal 3:13). This once again raises the guilt of the crucifiers of the Messiah to horrifying proportions.

Acts 5:31. God exalted him by his right hand to be Leader and Savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. “God exalted him at his right hand as Leader and Savior,” Greek: τοῦτον ο Θεός αρχηγόν καί σωτῆρα ύφοσε. The Slavonic preserves better, as it were, the “fragrance” of the original: “this one God exalted as Leader and Savior at his right hand.” This expression conveys that Jesus was already before our “Leader” and “Savior” (his royal and high-priestly dignity and ministry), but that was as it were hidden and humbled by the state of his voluntary self-emptying in the form of a servant. But with his resurrection and ascension, the dignity of Jesus as our Leader and Savior was manifested in all its glory, fullness, and power. The Russian translation loses this “fragrance” of the original, expressing it as though Jesus had not previously been that into which God then exalted him.

Acts 5:32. And we are witnesses to these things, as is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him. “Witnesses of these things” (more precisely in the Slavonic: “of these words” — τῶν ρημάτων τούτων — of everything said about him) “we and the Holy Spirit.” The testimony of the Apostles and the testimony of the Holy Spirit regarding the stated exaltation — the resurrection and ascension of the Lord — are identical in content (cf. John 15:26-27). Their juxtaposition and separate indication here, as in the Gospel of John, has the meaning that the Apostles were not unconscious instruments of the Spirit acting through them, but, while under his influence, remained at the same time independent and personally free agents; in particular, as eyewitnesses of his deeds and direct hearers of his teaching from the very beginning of his public ministry, they could, as it were independently of the Spirit, be reliable witnesses to him as the Messiah — the Son of God. “To those who obey him” — not only to the Apostles alone, but to all believers.

Acts 5:33. When they heard this, they were cut to the quick with rage and wanted to kill them. Acts 5:34. But a Pharisee in the Sanhedrin named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law held in honor by all the people, stood up and ordered the Apostles to be put outside for a short time, “Gamaliel,” mentioned here as a member of the Sanhedrin, a Pharisee, and a teacher of the law held in honor by the people, is the renowned rabbi of the Talmud as well — the most famous Jewish rabbi, son of Rabbi Simeon and grandson of another most famous rabbi, Hillel. He was also the teacher of the Apostle Paul (Acts 22:3), and afterward, like his pupil, he too became a Christian and a preacher of the Gospel, for which the Holy Church bestowed on him the name “equal to the apostles” (Menologion, January 4 and August 2).

Acts 5:35. and said to them: men of Israel! think carefully among yourselves about what you intend to do with these men. Acts 5:36. For not long ago Theudas appeared, claiming to be somebody great, and about four hundred men joined him; but he was killed, and all who followed him were scattered and came to nothing. Acts 5:37. After him, in the days of the census, Judas the Galilean appeared and drew away considerable numbers of people after him; but he perished, and all who followed him were dispersed. Following Gamaliel’s counsel, the Sanhedrin would do best not to interfere in the matter of Christianity but to leave it to the natural course of events, confident that if it is not God’s work it will collapse on its own. To demonstrate this, Gamaliel cites two recent cases in which two great deceivers of the people perished without any intervention by the Sanhedrin, along with all their undertakings. These are the revolts of Theudas and Judas the Galilean. This mention by the author, however, raises significant difficulties: first, Gamaliel’s speech belongs to a time before the historical Theudas actually appeared (no earlier than 44 A.D.); and second, this Theudas appears to have risen up before Judas the Galilean, who revolted “in the days of the census” — “Theudas... after him Judas.” To reconcile these discrepancies, many scholarly commentators allow for two rebels with the name Theudas; others explain this inaccuracy simply as an error of memory on the part of the author (analogous to Acts 12:16), supposing that the name Theudas brought to his mind some other rebel who actually lived in the time Luke indicates (before Judas the Galilean). “Claiming to be someone great” — evidently a prophet or the Messiah. The Theudas mentioned by Josephus closely resembles the one described in Acts, although the time of his appearance indicated by the author does not allow for identifying the two. Josephus preserves some very interesting accounts of Judas the Galilean as well, confirming the historical reality of this event. Josephus calls Judas a “Gaulanite” (Antiquities XVIII, 1, 1), since he was from Gamala in lower Gaulanitis (on the eastern shore of the Sea of Galilee), and also calls him a Galilean (Antiquities XX, 5, 2; Jewish War Jude 2:8). He stirred up the people and drew a great multitude after him on the basis of discontent with the census ordered by Augustus in Judea (Luke 2:2). Seeing in this census the final enslavement of the “chosen” people to the “pagan” one, he urged the people not to submit to Caesar’s census decree, crying out: “We have one Lord and Master, God!” “He perished.” Josephus speaks specifically of the death only of this Judas’s children, while Gamaliel mentions the perishing of Judas himself — two accounts that do not exclude but rather perhaps complement each other.

Acts 5:38. And now I tell you, keep away from these men and leave them alone; for if this undertaking and this work are from men, it will be destroyed, “Of men” (cf. Matt 21:25) — that is, of human origin and character, with human ends and aspirations only, without God’s will or blessing.

Acts 5:39. but if it is from God, you will not be able to destroy it; take care lest you be found fighting against God. “But if it is of God.” According to Chrysostom’s interpretation: “He is as if saying: wait and see! If these men too have risen by themselves, then without any doubt — they too will be scattered... If this work is human, there is no need for you to be troubled. But if it is God’s, then with all your efforts you will not be able to prevail against them”... It can be said with confidence that such counsel as Gamaliel gave could only be given by a man disposed to see in Christianity precisely the power of God; for, while correct in general terms, this position in its application to human activity in relation to events cannot always be unconditionally true, since an unconditional application of this principle in general would make it seem superfluous to struggle against the development of evil principles in life — sometimes permitted by God — which is contrary to the laws of conscience and the Law of God. In the mouth of a man disposed to see in Christianity the power of God, however, this position has its full force, presupposing that the power of God will here certainly manifest itself in subsequent events in a more vivid and convincing way. In this case, Gamaliel’s counsel also loses the character of indifference and a frivolous relation to events for which all things are equal — this way or that. — In any case, the favorable attitude toward Christianity in Gamaliel’s counsel is undeniable (cf. Chrysostom and Theophylact). This is also evident from Gamaliel’s further warning to the members of the Sanhedrin that they might be found “opposing God” (Greek and Slavonic more strongly — “fighters against God” — θεομάχοι — rising up against God, waging war against him).

Acts 5:40. They listened to him; and having called the Apostles in, they beat them and forbade them to speak in the name of Jesus, and released them. Gamaliel’s powerful speech made an impression on the Sanhedrin and inclined it to comply with the good advice — in the sense that the plan to kill the Apostles (verse 33) was abandoned without being carried out. This did not, however, preclude the possibility of hostile treatment on the part of those who were not disposed, following Gamaliel, to suspect in their work the power of God. The Apostles were subjected to corporal punishment (flogging), probably on the pretext of their disobedience to the earlier decision of the Sanhedrin, now renewed with its former force. “They could not resist the irrefutable justice of his words; but despite that, they satisfied their fury, and moreover, they again hoped in this way to remove the Apostles” (Chrysostom)...

Acts 5:41. And they went out from the Sanhedrin, rejoicing that they had been counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name of the Lord Jesus. Acts 5:42. And every day, both in the temple and from house to house, they did not cease to teach and to proclaim the good news about Jesus Christ. “Rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name of the Lord Jesus.” They counted this dishonor a special mercy to them from their Lord and Teacher; for what can be more consoling and more precious for a loving heart in relation to its Beloved Lord and Teacher than the readiness and possibility of laying down even one’s own life for him! The preaching of the Gospel, of course, continued in its proper course after this, not at all ceasing or weakening but on the contrary growing even stronger: both “in the temple and from house to house,” “every day” — that is, ceaselessly, without pause, both privately and publicly.