Acts 6

Acts 12, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28

 


Acts 6:1

Ἐν δὲ ταῖς ἡμέραις ταύταις, πληθυνόντων τῶν μαθητῶν, ἐγένετο γογγυσμὸς τῶν Ἑλληνιστῶν πρὸς τοὺς Ἑβραίους, ὅτι παρεθεωροῦντο ἐν τῇ διακονίᾳ τῇ καθημερινῇ αἱ χῆραι αὐτῶν.

Now in those days, when the disciples were increasing, there was a complaint of the Hellenists against the Hebrews because their widows were overlooked in the daily ministry. 

Paraphrase:  Now after these things, the number of those who desired to follow Jesus greatly increased.  The apostles and elders took charge of the administration of this growing body of believers.  As the church grew larger, however, it became increasingly difficult for them to manage all the responsibilities.  At one point, those Christians who were not native to Palestine, raised a complaint.  They wondered why their widows were not being cared for in the church’s mercy ministry.  They noted that those widows who were native to Palestine were receiving this help while their widows were neglected.  

Comments:

It’s not certain, but there do appear to be elders in the Jerusalem church at this time. (Acts 11:30)

Keener notes the desire of Jewish people to be buried in Palestine.  Hence, the elderly widows would often move to Jerusalem to die there and be buried in the promised land.  This would account for the increased number of widows in the Jerusalem church.  Acts, 1:1268.

Lightfoot goes deep into the question of who the Ἑλληνιστῶν and Ἑβραίους were. source

Olshausen points out that the διακονίᾳ here was likely a food distribution since it was given daily and the next verse describes it as “to serve tables”. source

 


Acts 6:2

Προσκαλεσάμενοι δὲ οἱ δώδεκα τὸ πλῆθος τῶν μαθητῶν, εἶπαν, Οὐκ ἀρεστόν ἐστιν ἡμᾶς, καταλείψαντας τὸν λόγον τοῦ Θεοῦ, διακονεῖν τραπέζαις.

Now the twelve, calling the multitude of disciples said, “It is not fitting we, leaving the word of God, to serve tables.

Paraphrase:  When the apostles heard this complaint, they immediately saw the inconsistency.  They called a meeting of the congregation and explained to the brothers and sisters that it was not appropriate for them to oversee the ministry of benevolence to the poor.  Their calling was to teach the word of God and to proclaim law and gospel both within and without the church.  The time they spent administering the food program to the poor and the widows was time they could not spend in the study of God’s word.

Comments:

The accusative ἡμᾶς is the agent of the διακονεῖν; see §744.

 


Acts 6:3

ἐπισκέψασθε δέ, ἀδελφοί, ἄνδρας ἐξ ὑμῶν μαρτυρουμένους, ἑπτὰ πλήρεις Πνεύματος καὶ σοφίας, οὓς καταστήσομεν ἐπὶ τῆς χρείας ταύτης.

but brothers, you find men from you, being witnessed, seven, full of the Spirit and wisdom, whom we may put in charge of this need.

Paraphrase:  That being said, brothers, we are asking you to nominate and select seven men from among you.  Be sure these are men who have a reputation for honesty and integrity, full of the Spirit of God.  Men who have wisdom and discernment so that they can manage this kind of ministry effectively.  Once you have selected these men, we will give them the mandate to administer the benevolent fund and to see to it that all the needy in our community are cared for without any partiality. (1 Timothy 5:21)

Comments:

 


Acts 6:4

ἡμεῖς δὲ τῇ προσευχῇ καὶ τῇ διακονίᾳ τοῦ λόγου προσκαρτερήσομεν.

but we will continue in prayer and in the ministry of the word. 

Paraphrase:  Now that we have confidence that the benevolent fund is in good hands, we can devote ourselves to prayer and to the teaching and preaching of the Scriptures.

Comments:

 


Acts 6:5

Καὶ ἤρεσεν ὁ λόγος ἐνώπιον παντὸς τοῦ πλήθους· καὶ ἐξελέξαντο Στέφανον, ἄνδρα πλήρης* πίστεως καὶ Πνεύματος Ἁγίου, καὶ Φίλιππον, καὶ Πρόχορον, καὶ Νικάνορα, καὶ Τίμωνα, καὶ Παρμενᾶν, καὶ Νικόλαον, προσήλυτον Ἀντιοχέα,

and the word was acceptable before all the multitude and they chose, Stephen, a man full of faith and the Holy Spirit, and Philip, and Prokoros, and Nicanora, and Timona, and Paremanan, and Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch.

Paraphrase:  This announcement found favor with all.  The process of choosing the men began right then and there; and after some discussion, they chose:

              1. Stephen, a man who everyone knew to be a strong believer and full of the Holy Spirit;
              2. Philip;
              3. Procorus;
              4. Nicanor;
              5. Timon;
              6. Parmenas;
              7. Nicolaus, a proselyte of Antioch.

Comments:

Many scholars have noted that the names here are Greek which may indicate that the Christians of that time chose Hellenists to adminster this work to ensure that the Hellenist widows were not neglected.  Abbott writes: “The church apparently put the work of distribution largely in the hands of the complainants.” source  Neander writes:

Here, as in many other instances in the history of the church, human weakness and imperfection subserved the divine wisdom, and promoted the interests of the kingdom of God; for by this appointment of deacons for the Hellenistic part of the church, distinguished men of Hellenistic descent and education were brought into the public service of the church, and the Hellenists, by their freer mental culture, were in many respects better qualified rightly to understand and to publish the gospel as the foundation of a method of salvation independent of Judaism, and intended for all men equally without distinction. The important consequences resulting from this event, will appear in the course of the history. source

 


Acts 6:6

οὓς ἔστησαν ἐνώπιον τῶν ἀποστόλων· καὶ προσευξάμενοι, ἐπέθηκαν αὐτοῖς τὰς χεῖρας.

who they placed before the apostles and praying, they laid hands on them.

Paraphrase:  Then the assembled church presented these seven men to the apostles.  They all prayed while the apostles laid hands on them and commissioned them to go and do the work to which they had been set apart confessing their dependence on the Holy Spirit for the strength and wisdom they would need to perform it well.

Comments:

For the meaning of laying on of hands, see Hort or Ferguson, The Early Church at Work and Worship, 1.160.

 


Acts 6:7

Καὶ ὁ λόγος τοῦ Θεοῦ ηὔξανεν, καὶ ἐπληθύνετο ὁ ἀριθμὸς τῶν μαθητῶν ἐν Ἰερουσαλὴμ σφόδρα· πολύς τε ὄχλος τῶν ἱερέων ὑπήκουον τῇ πίστει.

And the word of God expanded and the number of the disciples multiplied in Jerusalem greatly.  A great crowd of priests were submitting in faith.

Paraphrase:  With this difficulty resolved, the preaching of the word went forth with even greater force.  Everywhere, people flocked to Jesus Christ, turned from their former life, and began to follow Jesus.  They became people of the Way (Acts 9:2) confessing publicly that Jesus was the Way, the Truth, and the Life.  Even from the priests themselves, many came to bow before Jesus and to confess that He is Lord.

Comments:

The priests were bitterly opposed to Christianity. (Luke 23:10; Acts 4:1; 5:17)  Luke’s note here leads us to believe that the apostle Paul was not the only one powerfully led by the Spirit of God to bow before the despised Nazarene.  Olshausen believes that these priests would have come from the Pharisees, not the Sadducees. source  We read later of Pharisees who had become Christians. (Acts 15:5)  Lindsay, however, believes that these priests would have been Sadducees.  He also makes the interesting observation that these priests must have been the source for the information that the temple curtain tore from top to bottom when Jesus died. source

 


Acts 6:8

Στέφανος δὲ, πλήρης χάριτος καὶ δυνάμεως, ἐποίει τέρατα καὶ σημεῖα μεγάλα ἐν τῷ λαῷ.

Now Stephen, full of grace and power, was doing wonders and great signs among the people.

Paraphrase:  Now one of these deacons deserves special mention.  His name was Stephen, and he was, in an extraordinary way, filled with the Holy Spirit to such an extent that his power quickly became something that drew attention.  The miracles which he performed were truly astonishing and done in plain view of all the people. 

Comments:

 


Acts 6:9

ἀνέστησαν δέ τινες τῶν ἐκ τῆς συναγωγῆς τῆς λεγομένης Λιβερτίνων, καὶ Κυρηναίων καὶ Ἀλεξανδρέων καὶ τῶν ἀπὸ Κιλικίας καὶ Ἀσίας, συζητοῦντες τῷ Στεφάνῳ.

But certain of those from the synagogue of those who were called Freedmen and Cyrenians and Alexandrians and those from Cilicia and Asia arose disputing with Stephen.

Paraphrase:  In Jerusalem at this time, there was a synagogue which was called the synagogue of the Freedmen.  They were called such because these Jews had once been slaves but through a variety of methods had regained their freedom and had settled in Cyrene, Alexandria, Cilicia and other parts of Asia.  Now the men of this synagogue in particular got into a hot dispute with Stephen.  They were not at all happy with the doctrines he was putting forth.

Comments:

Farrar writes:

The freedmen may have been the descendants of those Jews whom Pompey had sent captive to Italy, and Jews were to be counted by myriads in Greece, in Alexandria, and in the cities of Asia. But to us the most interesting of all these Greek-speaking Jews was Saul of Tarsus, who, beyond all reasonable doubt, was a member of the synagogue of the Cilicians, and who in that case must not only have taken his part in the disputes which followed the exhortations of the fervid deacon,2 but as a scholar of Gamaliel and a zealous Pharisee, must have occupied a prominent position as an uncompromising champion of the traditions of the fathers.  source

 


Acts 6:10

καὶ οὐκ ἴσχυον ἀντιστῆναι τῇ σοφίᾳ καὶ τῷ Πνεύματι ᾧ ἐλάλει.

and they were not able to withstand the wisdom and Spirit by which he was speaking.

Paraphrase:  For all this, they had great difficulty in denying the truth of what he was teaching.  Stephen’s knowledge of Scripture was profound (Acts 7), and he was able to turn aside all their rebuttals with a “Thus saith the Lord…”  The Spirit of God was on him; and therefore, the wisdom and accuracy of his arguments were unanswerable.

Comments:

I’m assuming here that ἀνθίστημι takes its object in the dative case.

 


Acts 6:11

Τότε ὑπέβαλον ἄνδρας, λέγοντας ὅτι, Ἀκηκόαμεν αὐτοῦ λαλοῦντος ῥήματα βλάσφημα εἰς Μωϋσῆν καὶ τὸν Θεόν.

Then they stirred up men saying, “We heard him saying blasphemous words against Moses and God.

Paraphrase:  Having been put to the worst by Stephen in argument, they conspired together to throw him under the bus.  They found some unprincipled men and told them to spread the news that Stephen was blaspheming God and saying insulting things about the Jewish religion.

Comments:

 


Acts 6:12

συνεκίνησάν τε τὸν λαὸν καὶ τοὺς πρεσβυτέρους καὶ τοὺς γραμματεῖς, καὶ ἐπιστάντες, συνήρπασαν αὐτὸν καὶ ἤγαγον εἰς τὸ συνέδριον.

and they stirred up the people and the elders and the scribes and they came up quickly, arrested him, and led to the Sanhedrin.

Paraphrase:  These rumors spread like wildfire amongst the people and eventually reached the ears of the Jewish leaders.  They quickly summoned their temple guard who fell on Stephen and placed him under arrest.  Just like the apostles previously, they put him in prison until the Sanhedrin could assemble to hear his case.

Comments:

 


Acts 6:13

Ἔστησάν τε μάρτυρας ψευδεῖς, λέγοντας, Ὁ ἄνθρωπος οὗτος, οὐ παύεται λαλῶν ῥήματα κατὰ τοῦ τόπου τοῦ ἁγίου [τούτου] καὶ τοῦ νόμου·

and they set up false witnesses saying, “This man does not stop saying words against this holy place and the law.

Paraphrase:  Then these unprincipled men, who had been hired by the men from the Freedmen’s Synagogue, gave their testimony.  They charged Stephen with making many speeches which violated the words of Scripture.  They also pointed out that Stephen had taught the people that the temple itself was completely unnecessary to bring one closer to God.”

Comments:

 


Acts 6:14

ἀκηκόαμεν γὰρ αὐτοῦ λέγοντος ὅτι Ἰησοῦς ὁ Ναζωραῖος οὗτος καταλύσει τὸν τόπον τοῦτον καὶ ἀλλάξει τὰ ἔθη ἃ παρέδωκεν ἡμῖν Μωϋσῆς.

For we have heard him saying that this Jesus, the Nazarene will destroy this place and change the rituals which Moses handed down to us.

Paraphrase:  “What specifically did he say about the temple?” inquired the men of the Sanhedrin.  “Well,” said one of the witnesses, “I heard him say on several different occasions that Jesus, the teacher from Nazareth, was greater than our temple!” (Matthew 12:6)  Another witness stood and told how he had heard Stephen say that the Great God does not live in temples made by human hands (Acts 7:48) and that the time was coming when God’s worship would not be centered in Jerusalem or in any other place but that people would worship God wherever they were. (John 4:21)  Finally, the last witness stood and told how he had once heard Stephen say that the day was coming in which even the temple itself would be completely destroyed!”  The Sanhedrin were shocked at these charges and began to investigate further.  “What did he say about the laws of Moses and the religion which has been handed down to us from his time?”  Again, the witnesses affirmed that they had heard Stephen teaching that many of the rituals which Moses had commanded were no longer necessary and that some how the coming of Jesus had rendered them obsolete.

Comments:

 


Acts 6:15

Καὶ ἀτενίσαντες εἰς αὐτὸν, πάντες οἱ καθεζόμενοι ἐν τῷ συνεδρίῳ εἶδον τὸ πρόσωπον αὐτοῦ ὡσεὶ πρόσωπον ἀγγέλου.

and staring at him, all those who were seated in the Sanhedrin saw his face, it was like the face of an angel.

Paraphrase:  Having heard these charges, the men of the Sanhedrin turned to Stephen to hear his response.  Immediately, they recoiled in shock!  Stephen’s face was shining like the face of an angel! (Exodus 34:29).  The elders stared at him in astonishment having never seen anything like this.

Comments:

Recall Jesus’ words in Matthew 10:19, 20; Mark 13:11–13; Luke 12:11; 21:14, 15.

 

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