Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Acts 2:31
He seeing this before spake of the resurrection of Christ, that his soul was not left in hell, neither his flesh did see corruption.
31. spake of the resurrection of Christ ] Better, of the resurrection of the Christ, i.e. the Messiah, the anointed of Jehovah.
that his soul was not left in hell, &c.] The words for his soul are not found in the best MSS. Read, that neither was he left in hell nor did his flesh, &c. This is an example of a kind of variation from the earliest MSS. which is very common and can be most easily understood and explained. On the margin of some early copy the words for his soul were written as an explanation of the shorter expression used in this verse by the more full language of the Psalm in Act 2:27, and by some later scribe the words were brought into the text.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
He, seeing this before … – By the spirit of prophecy. From this it appears that David had distinct views of the great doctrines pertaining to the Messiah.
Spake … – See Psa 16:1-11.
That his soul … – See the notes on Act 2:27.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 31. That his soul was not left in hell] The words , his soul, are omitted by ABCD, Syriac, Coptic, AEthiopic, and Vulgate. Griesbach has left them out of the text, and Professor White says again, certissime delenda. The passage may be thus read: “He spake of the resurrection of Christ, that he was not left in hades, neither did his flesh see corruption.” For the various readings in this and the preceding verse, see Griesbach.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
He seeing this before; by a prophetical eye, unto which any thing that was revealed was as certain and manifest, as aught could be to the eye of the body. By the same prophetical Spirit, and with the same certainty, which he space of the incarnation, he
spake also of the resurrection of Christ. Of the rest, see Act 2:27.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
He seeing this before,…. Or by a spirit of prophecy foreseeing it, that according to God’s promise and oath, the Messiah would be raised up, and spring from his seed; and also by the same Spirit foresaw that he would suffer and die, and be laid in the grave, the pit of corruption:
spake of the resurrection of Christ; from the dead, to the sense of the following words, in Ps 16:10.
that his soul was not left in hell: neither his separate soul in Hades, nor his body in the grave;
neither his flesh did see corruption; or his body, or his “carcass”, as the Syriac version renders it, did not lie so long in the grave as to rot and putrefy.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Foreseeing (). Second aorist active participle. Did it as a prophet.
Of the Christ ( ). Of the Messiah. See under verse 32. This is a definite statement by Peter that David knew that in Ps 16 he was describing the resurrection of the Messiah.
Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament
1) “He seeing this before spake,” (proidon elalesen) “Foreseeing (this event) he spoke,” the “he” who spoke was David as an Holy prophet, Psa 16:10; 2Pe 1:21.
2) “Of the resurrection of Christ,” (peri tes ansstaseos tou Christou) “Concerning the resurrection of the Christ,” of which He Himself also spoke, Joh 2:19; Mat 26:32; Mat 28:6.
3) “That His soul was not left in hell,” (hoti oute eglate; eiphthe eis haden) “That He was neither abandoned (permitted) unto hell, the hadean realm,” not sent on, or did not voluntarily go on, a trip into hades, after He said, “it is finished,” or declared He had finished the work the Father had given Him to do, with His final cry on the cross, Joh 17:4; Luk 23:46.
4) “Neither His flesh did see corruption,” (oute he sarks autou eiden diaphthoran) “Nor did His flesh see corruption,” Psa 16:10; Rom 8:11; Act 1:11. As He went into heaven in an incorruptible resurrected, visible body, so will He come again to give to His children a body of like kind to live and ever be with Him, 1Co 15:51-55; 1Th 4:16-18.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
(31) He seeing this before. . . .In the vision of the future which St. Peter thus ascribes to David, the king had been led, as he interprets the words, not only or chiefly to speak out his own hopes, but to utter that which received its fulfilment in the fact of the resurrection. What was conspicuously not true of the historical David was found to be true of the Son of David according to the flesh.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
31. Spake of the resurrection of Christ The word Christ signifies Messiah, and it is worth while to note how Peter changes from Christ or Messiah to Jesus in the next verse. His meaning is that Messiah was predicted as having a resurrection; that this Jesus had a resurrection we know, and, therefore, a presumption, in the surrounding circumstances, that this Jesus is Messiah. For his soul was not left in hell, a reading more probable would be, he was not left in hell. The copyist probably borrowed the word soul from Act 2:27.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
31 He seeing this before spake of the resurrection of Christ, that his soul was not left in hell, neither his flesh did see corruption.
Ver. 31. Neither his flesh ] It was a pious error in those good women that embalmed his body to preserve it from corruption.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
31 .] The word distinctly asserts the prophetic consciousness of David in the composition of this Psalm. But of what sort that prophetic consciousness was, may be gathered from this same Apostle, 1Pe 1:10-12 ; that it was not a distinct knowledge of the events which they foretold, but only a conscious reference in their minds to the great promises of the covenant, in the expression of which they were guided by the Holy Spirit of prophecy to say things pregnant with meaning not patent to themselves but to us.
Fuente: Henry Alford’s Greek Testament
Act 2:31 . , cf. Gal 3:8 . The word ascribes prophetic consciousness to David in the composition of the Psalm, but, as we learn from St. Peter himself, that prophetic consciousness did not involve a distinct knowledge of the events foretold (1Pe 1:10-12 ); that which the Holy Ghost presignified was only in part clear to the prophets, both as to the date of fulfilment and also as to historical shaping (Schmid, Biblische Theol. des N. T. , p. 395, and Alford, in loco ). : introducing the words which follow as a fuller explanation, or simply as expressing a well-known fact. : aorists, not futures, because from St. Peter’s standpoint the prophecy had been already fulfilled (Felten, Wendt). With this verse we naturally compare the mention of Christ’s descent into Hades and His agency in the realms of the dead in St. Peter’s First Epistle, Act 3:19 ( cf. Phi 2:10 , Eph 4:9 , Rom 10:7 ; Zahn, Das Apost. Symbolum , pp. 71 74; but see also Schmid, ubi supra , p. 414). Thus while the words bore, as we have seen, a primary and lower reference to David himself, St. Peter was led by the Holy Ghost to see their higher and grander fulfilment in Christ. : on the construction see above on Act 2:27 , and on the Jewish view of Sheol or Hades in the time of our Lord as an intermediate state, see Charles, Book of Enoch , p. 168 and p. 94, and compare also the interesting although indirect parallel to 1Pe 3:19 , which he finds in The Book of the Secrets of Enoch , p. 45. ff.; Weber, Jdische Theologie , pp. 163, 341.
Fuente: The Expositors Greek Testament by Robertson
seeing this before = fore-seeing(it). Greek. proeidon. Here and Gal 1:3, Gal 1:8.
resurrection. Greek. anastasis. App-178.
Christ = the Christ. App-98.
His soul. Texts read “He”.
left. Greek. kataleipo, but the texts read enkataleipo, as in Act 2:27.
did see = saw.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
31.] The word distinctly asserts the prophetic consciousness of David in the composition of this Psalm. But of what sort that prophetic consciousness was, may be gathered from this same Apostle, 1Pe 1:10-12; that it was not a distinct knowledge of the events which they foretold, but only a conscious reference in their minds to the great promises of the covenant, in the expression of which they were guided by the Holy Spirit of prophecy to say things pregnant with meaning not patent to themselves but to us.
Fuente: The Greek Testament
Act 2:31. , seeing before) in prophetical vision.-, he spake) in that 16th Psalm.- , of Christ) Peter thus reasons: David did not speak of himself, as the fact shows; therefore he must have spoken of Christ, as being about to rise again from the dead. But how is the resurrection inferred from the promise concerning the kingdom? Answer-Because Christ had not heretofore entered upon the kingdom, and because the future kingdom was an eternal one. Therefore David recognised the inner nature (character) of the kingdom of Messiah.- , His soul) The Latin Vulg. omits this. For it has neque derelictus est in inferno; where the masculine derelictus shows that the translator has purposely written it so (and not by an oversight). Other very ancient authorities accord with this. More modern authorities have supplied it from Act 2:27.[15]
[15] Thence both, in this passage, the margin of Ed. 2, to which the Gnomon along with the Vers. Germ. corresponds, has advanced the briefer reading, which in the larger Ed. is rated at a lower estimate, to the mark .-E. B.
Ee support , with the Rec. Text. But ABC corrected, D Vulg. Memph. Theb. Syr. and Iren. omit the words.-E. and T.
Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament
hell
Hades. (See Scofield “Luk 16:23”).
Fuente: Scofield Reference Bible Notes
seeing: 1Pe 1:11, 1Pe 1:12
spake: Act 2:27, Act 13:35, Psa 16:10
Reciprocal: Psa 40:3 – many Psa 49:9 – see Psa 69:15 – pit Psa 113:7 – out of Mat 22:43 – General Act 1:16 – which the 1Co 15:42 – in corruption Phi 3:10 – and the power Heb 4:7 – saying
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
1
To do as just predicted. it would be necessary for him to come forth from the grave so that he could establish that throne. “Being a prophet,” it was possible for David to make the prediction of the resurrection.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Act 2:31. He seeing this before spake of the resurrection of Christ, that his soul was not left in hell, neither did his flesh see corruption. David as a seer looking () into the far future, wrote of this great Descendant of hisof whom the prophet Nathan had spoken as establishing the throne of his kingdom for everas One who should die and yet should not see corruption, for He should be raised from the dead.
Fuente: A Popular Commentary on the New Testament
See notes on verse 29
Fuente: McGarvey and Pendleton Commentaries (New Testament)
Verse 31
His soul; that is, Christ’s soul.