The Ethiopian Eunuch
Acts 8:26-40
26 And
the angel of the Lord spake unto Philip, saying, Arise, and go toward the south
unto the way that goeth down from Jerusalem unto Gaza, which is desert. 27
And he arose and went: and, behold, a man of Ethiopia, an eunuch of great
authority under Candace queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her
treasure, and had come to Jerusalem for to worship, 28 Was returning, and sitting in his chariot
read Esaias the prophet. 29 Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go
near, and join thyself to this chariot. 30 And Philip ran thither to
him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what
thou readest? 31 And he said, How can I, except some man should
guide me? And he desired Philip that he would come up and sit with him. 32 The place of the scripture which he read was
this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and like a lamb dumb before his
shearer, so opened he not his mouth: 33 In his humiliation his
judgment was taken away: and who shall declare his generation? for his life is
taken from the earth. 34 And the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I
pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this? of himself, or of some other man?
35 Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture,
and preached unto him Jesus. 36 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? 37 And Philip said, If thou believest with
all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus
Christ is the Son of God. 38 And he commanded the chariot to stand
still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and
he baptized him. 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. 40 But Philip was found at Azotus: and
passing through he preached in all the cities, till he came to Caesarea.
Outline:
I. The Direction
to the Ethiopian Eunuch (8:26-28)
II. The Exposition to the Ethiopian Eunuch
(8:29-35)
III. The Baptism of the Ethiopian Eunuch (8:36-40)
I. The Direction
to the Ethiopian Eunuch (8:26-28)
26 And
the angel of the Lord spake unto Philip, saying, Arise, and go toward the south
unto the way that goeth down from Jerusalem unto Gaza, which is desert. 27
And he arose and went: and, behold, a man of Ethiopia, an eunuch of great
authority under Candace queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her
treasure, and had come to Jerusalem for to worship, 28 Was returning, and sitting in his chariot
read Esaias the prophet.
In these three
verses we learn where the Ethiopian Eunuch was, who he was, and what he was
doing as this next episode in the history of the early Church opens.
1. The Location of the Ethiopian Eunuch (8:26)
2. The Identity of the Ethiopian Eunuch
(8:27)
3. The Activity of the Ethiopian Eunuch
(8:28)
Possible connections to:
Zeph. 2:4, 11-12; 3:4, 10[1];
Ethiopians: Ps. 68:31; Is. 18:1; 45:14;
and by implication 1 Ki. 8:41-43; eunuchs:
Is. 56:3-8; Dt. 23:1; Jer. 41:19; Cushites: Gen. 10:6-8
1. The Location
of the Ethiopian Eunuch (8:26)
And the angel of the Lord spake unto
Philip, saying, Arise, and go toward the south unto the way that goeth down
from Jerusalem unto Gaza, which is desert.
Philip was first mentioned as one of the Seven in Acts
6:1-7, and then as the Evangelist in Samaria in Acts 8:1-25.
Now Philip is directed from Samaria southwest across Judea to the desert way between Jerusalem and Gaza, a city of the Philistines.
2. The Identity
of the Ethiopian Eunuch (8:27)
And he arose and went: and, behold, a
man of Ethiopia, an eunuch of great authority under Candace queen of the
Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her treasure, and had come to Jerusalem
for to worship,
“Candace.
Title given to ancient Ethiopian queens. Philip, an
apostle and leader in the early church, met and baptized “an Ethiopian, a
eunuch, a minister of the Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, in charge of all
her treasure” on the road from Jerusalem to Gaza (Acts 8:27). That Candace,
whose name was probably Amanitere, ruled over Nubia (modern Sudan) from a.d. 25 to 41.”[2]
3. The Activity
of the Ethiopian Eunuch (8:28)
Was returning, and sitting in his
chariot read Esaias the prophet.
II. The
Exposition to the Ethiopian Eunuch (8:29-35)
29
Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this chariot. 30
And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said,
Understandest thou what thou readest? 31 And he said, How can I,
except some man should guide me? And he desired Philip that he would come up
and sit with him. 32 The
place of the scripture which he read was this, He was led as a sheep to the
slaughter; and like a lamb dumb before his shearer, so opened he not his mouth:
33 In his humiliation his judgment was taken away: and who shall
declare his generation? for his life is taken from the earth. 34 And
the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet
this? of himself, or of some other man? 35 Then Philip opened his
mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus.
What does it take to study the Scriptures properly? How is understanding of the Bible brought?
Asking the right questions and seeking the answers is part
of it.
1. The Illumination Question of Scripture
(8:29-31)
2. The Prophetic Question of Scripture
(8:32-33)
3. The Central Question of Scripture
(8:34-35)
1. The Illumination
Question of Scripture (8:29-31)
29
Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this chariot. 30
And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said,
Understandest thou what thou readest? 31 And he said, How can I,
except some man should guide me? And he desired Philip that he would come up
and sit with him.
Remember Acts 6:1-7 - Philip was selected along with the
others of the Seven for being filled with the Holy Spirit and wisdom. There is a need for teachers of the
Scriptures. Just as there is no
sanctification in isolation, even so there can be no true interpretation done
in isolation either.
2. The Prophetic
Question of Scripture (8:32-33)
32 The place of the scripture which he read was
this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and like a lamb dumb before his
shearer, so opened he not his mouth: 33 In his humiliation his
judgment was taken away: and who shall declare his generation? for his life is
taken from the earth.
3. The Central
Question of Scripture (8:34-35)
34
And the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the
prophet this? of himself, or of some other man? 35 Then Philip
opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus.
Luke 24:25-27, 44-46 - preaching Christ from the Old
Testament
Old Testament saints and the reception of the New
Covenant
III. The
Baptism of the Ethiopian Eunuch (8:36-40)
36
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? 37 And
Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered
and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. 38 And he
commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water,
both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him. 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. 40 But
Philip was found at Azotus: and passing through he preached in all the cities,
till he came to Caesarea.
Here is a subject that so many get wrong.
The practices of the vast majority of those who call
themselves “Christians” will not stand the test of the Scriptures.
If we really believe in “Sola Scriptura”, that the Bible
alone is our sole and final source of authority for all matters of faith and practice,
and that the Scriptures are sufficient in and of themselves for this, then we
may know without a doubt how to obey the command to “baptize”.
Let there be no uncertainty where the truth lies on this
matter of one of the two ordinances commanded by the Lord!
1. The Mode of Baptism - Baptism by full
immersion (8:36)
2. The Subjects of Baptism - Baptism of
believers (8:37-38)
3. The Effect of Baptism - Baptism in
obedience (8:39-40)
1. The Mode
of Baptism - Baptism by full immersion (8:36)
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?
How much is enough?
“A little dab’ll do ya”?
2. The Subjects
of Baptism - Baptism of believers (8:37-38)
37 And
Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he
answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. 38
And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the
water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him.
3. The Effect
of Baptism - Baptism in obedience (8:39-40)
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. 40
But Philip was found at Azotus: and passing through he preached in all the
cities, till he came to Caesarea.
the Spirit of the
Lord caught away - I Ki. 18:12; 2 Ki. 2:16; and Ezek. 3:14
Conclusion:
I. The Direction
to the Ethiopian Eunuch (8:26-28)
1. The Location of the
Ethiopian Eunuch (8:26)
2. The Identity of the
Ethiopian Eunuch (8:27)
3. The Activity of the
Ethiopian Eunuch (8:28)
II. The Exposition to the Ethiopian Eunuch
(8:29-35)
1. The Illumination
Question of Scripture (8:29-31)
2. The Prophetic Question
of Scripture (8:32-33)
3. The Central Question
of Scripture (8:34-35)
III. The Baptism of the Ethiopian Eunuch (8:36-40)
1. The Mode of Baptism -
Baptism by full immersion (8:36)
2. The Subjects of
Baptism - Baptism of believers (8:37-38)
3. The Effect of Baptism
- Baptism in obedience (8:39-40)
[Sermon preached 1
DEC 2013 by Pastor John T. “Jack” Jeffery at Wayside Gospel Chapel, Greentown,
PA.]
Resources:
G. K. Beale and D. A. Carson, eds., Commentary on the New Testament Use of the Old
Testament (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2007), pp. 513-606.
Darrell L. Bock, Acts, Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament, eds. Robert W.
Yarbrough and Robert H. Stein (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2007)
F. F. Bruce, The
Acts of the Apostles: The Greek Text with Introduction and Commentary, 2nd
ed. (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1951, 1952).
I. Howard Marshall, Acts: An Introduction And
Commentary, Vol. 5 in Tyndale New
Testament Commentaries, gen. ed. Leon Morris (Downers Grove, IL:
InterVarsity Press, 1980; 2008 reprint).
David G. Peterson, The Acts of the Apostles, The Pillar New Testament Commentaries,
gen. ed. D. A. Carson (Grand Rapids: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 2009).
John B. Polhill, Acts, Vol. 26 in The New American Commentary, gen. ed.
David S. Dockery (Nashville, TN: Broadman & Holman, Publishers, 1992).
Eckhard J. Schnabel, Acts, Vol. 5 in the Zondervan Exegetical Commentary on the New
Testament, gen. ed. Clinton E. Arnold (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2012).
William H. Willimon, Acts, in Interpretation: A Bible Commentary for Teaching and Preaching,
series ed. James Luther Mays, New Testament ed. Paul J. Achtemeier (Louisville,
KY: Westminster John Knox Press, 2010).
[1] “Hanson (1967: 109) notes the suggestion made by Clarke
(1922: 101–3) that the story of Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch has been shaped
so as to suggest that it is a fulfillment of Zeph. 2:4, 11–12; 3:4, 10, where
there are references to Gaza, desert, midday, worship by all the nations,
Ethiopians (but slain by the sword of the Lord), prophets borne by the wind (pneumataphoroi [3:4 LXX]), and from
beyond the rivers of Ethiopia God’s scattered people bringing sacrifices to
him. This is an interesting set of coincidences running through the prophecy.
It is the kind of material that might suggest to some scholars that the story
in Acts was constructed as a midrash on elements in the prophecy, but it defies
imagination to envisage how anyone might have done so. Nevertheless, the
possibility remains that the story has been told in such a way as to suggest a
reference to the fulfillment of the prophecy in Zeph. 3:10.” Beale, G. K., & Carson, D. A. (2007). Commentary on the New Testament use of the
Old Testament (573). Grand Rapids, MI; Nottingham, UK: Baker Academic;
Apollos.
[2] Elwell, W. A., & Beitzel, B. J. (1988). Baker encyclopedia of the Bible (414).
Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House.
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