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NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Act_8:26-40
26But an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip saying, "Get up and go south to the road that descends from Jerusalem to Gaza." (This is a desert road.) 27So he got up and went; and there was an Ethiopian eunuch, a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure; and he had come to Jerusalem to worship, 28and he was returning and sitting in his chariot, and was reading the prophet Isaiah 29 Then the Spirit said to Philip, "Go up and join this chariot." 30Philip ran up and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet, and said, "Do you understand what you are reading?" 31And he said, "Well, how could I, unless someone guides me?" And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him. 32Now the passage of Scripture which he was reading was this: "He was led as a sheep to slaughter; And as a lamb before its shearer is silent, So He does not open His mouth. 33In humiliation His judgment was taken away; Who will relate His generation? For His life is removed from the earth." 34The eunuch answered Philip and said, "Please tell me, of whom does the prophet say this? Of himself or of someone else?" 35Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning from this Scripture he preached Jesus to him. 36As they went along the road they came to some water; and the eunuch said, "Look! Water! What prevents me from being baptized?" 37And Philip said, "If you believe with all your heart, you may." And he answered and said, "I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God." 38And he ordered the chariot to stop; and they both went down into the water, Philip as well as the eunuch, and he baptized him. 39When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away; and the eunuch no longer saw him, but went on his way rejoicing. 40But Philip found himself at Azotus, and as he passed through he kept preaching the gospel to all the cities until he came to Caesarea.
Act_8:26 "an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip" Here "the angel of the Lord" and "the Holy Spirit" seem to be synonymous (cf. Act_8:29). This is common in Acts. See note at Act_5:19.
▣ "Get up and go south" These are both imperatives. This could refer to one of two roads to Egypt. This message may have been audible because of its specificity. This is obviously a divinely prepared evangelistic encounter (like Paul's).
NASB "(This is a desert road.)"
NKJV "This is desert"
NRSV "(This is a wilderness road)"
TEV "(This road is not used nowadays)"
NJB "the desert road"
If this is a comment by Luke, is Luke clarifying his source, or is this is a comment from Luke's source (probably Philip, cf. Act_21:8)? These questions cannot be answered with certainty. Inspiration covers Bible productions no matter how many separate persons are involved.
Act_8:27 "a court official" The term "official" is literally the term "eunuch." However, it is uncertain whether he was a physical eunuch or simply an official at court (derived meaning). In the OT, Potiphar is called a eunuch and yet he is married (cf. Gen_39:1). In the OT, Deu_23:1 forbids a eunuch from becoming a part of the Jewish community; however, in Isa_56:3-5, this ban is removed. This clearly shows the new age of the Spirit has dawned. Whether this man was a god-fearer or a proselyte is simply uncertain, but probable. The descriptive phrase implies he was a high government official.
▣ "Candace, queen of the Ethiopians" Candace is a title like "Pharaoh" or "Caesar." The reason the queen is mentioned is because the king in Ethiopia was considered to be a deity and, therefore, it was beneath him to deal with simple administrative or political affairs.
Act_8:28 "reading the prophet Isaiah" Apparently this man had bought an expensive leather scroll of Isaiah, which would have been over 29 feet long (i.e., one found in the Dead Sea Scrolls). By the Spirit's direction, he had opened it to the Messianic passage of Isa_53:7-8 and was reading it.
Act_8:29 "the Spirit said to Philip, 'Go up and join this chariot'" This is an aorist passive imperative. It literally meant "be glued." The Spirit is giving Philip every specific guidance.
Act_8:30 "Philip ran up and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet" Ancients all read aloud even when alone.
▣ "Do you understand what you are reading" What a great question! It is possible to read Scripture and not clearly see its intent. The Spirit is directing Philip to a "divine appointment" which will
1. show the new age has dawned
2. give a powerful witness to another people group
Act_8:31 A. T. Robertson's Word Pictures in the New Testament comments on this verse, "This is a mixed condition, the conclusion coming first belongs to the fourth class. . .with 'an' and the optative, but the condition. . .is of the first class. . .a common enough phenomenon in Koine" (p. 110). This first class condition, like Luk_19:40 uses ean instead of ei. The condition is determined by the mood, not the construction (cf. Luk_19:40).
Act_8:32-33 This quote is from the Messianic passage from the Septuagint of Isa_53:7-9. I am surprised that these verses are emphasized and not other Messianic verses in this OT context. However, Philip starts right where he was reading and explains the entire passage in light of the life, ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth. The OT prophecy has been fulfilled and forgiveness through Christ is offered to everyone!
Act_8:35 "Philip opened his mouth" This shows the centrality of the OT passage concerning "the Suffering Servant" to gospel proclamation. I believe Jesus, Himself, showed the early church how these ancient prophecies applied to Himself (cf. Luk_24:27).
Act_8:36 "Look! Water! What prevents me from being baptized" Philip's gospel message included baptism (cf. Matthew 3; Mat_28:19; Act_2:38; Rom_6:1-11; Col_2:12)! See Special Topic at Act_2:38. Notice he did not need approval from the Apostles in Jerusalem to baptize a convert. Baptism is not a denominational issue, but a kingdom issue. We must be careful of the denominational traditions that have so muddied the biblical waters as far as expected procedures in our day!
Was the eunuch worried about being accepted?
1. racial issue
2. physical issue
3. socio-economic issue
4. catechism issue
All barriers are down in Jesus Christ (cf. Eph_2:11 to Eph_3:13). Whosoever will may come (cf. Joh_1:12; Joh_3:16; Rom_10:9-13)!
Act_8:37 This verse, which records the eunuch's confession, is not included in the ancient Greek papyri manuscripts P45 (Chester Beatty Papyri), P74 (Bodmer Papyri), or the ancient uncial Greek manuscripts à , A, B, or C. Neither is it present in some of the ancient Vulgate, Syriac, Coptic, or Ethiopian translations. Act_8:37 is not original to Acts. UBS4 gives its omission an "A" rating, meaning certain. It is not even included in the text of NASB (1970) edition, but is included in the 1995 update with brackets.
Act_8:38-39 "went down into the water. . .came up out of the water" This is not a proof-text for immersion. The context implies they walked into a body of water, not the method of the baptism. Be careful of your preconceived biases!
Act_8:39 "the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away" Whether this is a miraculous occurrence like Elijah's (cf. 1Ki_18:12; 2Ki_2:16) or Ezekiel's (cf. Eze_3:14; Eze_8:3) or simply a reference to his immediate departure is uncertain. The Spirit was intimately involved in this conversion. Notice also that extensive follow-up and catechism apparently did not occur, but the convert had the scroll of Isaiah and the indwelling Spirit!
▣ "went on his way rejoicing" The Good News is always accompanied by rejoicing (cf. Act_8:8). Ireaneus records the tradition that this eunuch became a gospel missionary to his own people. The Spirit Himself must have done the follow-up discipling!
Act_8:40 Philip continued (imperfect middle indicative) his evangelistic ministry in the Philistine town of Ashdod (i.e., Azotus) on his way home to Caesarea by the sea. It is obvious that Philip understood the universal evangelistic implication of the Samaritans and the Ethiopians. The gospel included even Philistines!
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