Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Acts 22:12
And one Ananias, a devout man according to the law, having a good report of all the Jews which dwelt [there,]
12. Ananias, a devout man according to the law, &c.] The Apostle neglects nothing in his address which can conciliate his audience, and so he tells them that the messenger whom God sent to him was “well reported of by all the Jews that dwelt in Damascus.” (For Ananias see note on Act 9:10.) The hostility towards Christians, which was so strong in Jerusalem, had not at the time of St Paul’s conversion manifested itself so greatly in Damascus, since Ananias “a disciple” was still in good repute with the Jews there.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
See the notes on Act 9:17-18.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Act 22:12-16
And one Ananias said, The God of our fathers hath chosen thee.
The Divine ordination of human life
The verb here translated, chosen, only occurs in this form in one other place (Act 26:16), where it has the sense of making, or appointing. The idea here is ordination, or setting apart. This ordination is–
I. To an understanding of the highest subject. That thou shouldst know His will. God has a will in relation to all existences and to every individual man. It is the spring of all existence, the rule of all motion, the standard of all character. To understand it is to understand the philosophy of all being, the cause of all phenomena, and the science of all duty. All true subjects of thought are related to it, and lead into it as radia to their centre. It is, therefore, the sublimest subject of thought. It expresses the Divine nature, it reveals the universe. It is, therefore, the great theme for the study of eternity. To the study of this Paul was thus ordained. He began it then, he is at it now, he will continue at it forever.
II. To a vision of the highest existence. Not only to understand the will which is the law of the universe, but to see the Lawgiver Himself (chap. 3:14). Christ is called that Just One, not merely because, as God, He is absolutely just, nor merely because, as man, He did no sin, neither was guile found in His mouth, but as Mediator who has engaged to make unjust men just to themselves, to their fellows, to the universe, to God. Paul wan ordained to Him in order–
1. To renovate him as a sinner. The vision of Christ is the soul transforming force. Beholding, as in a glass, the glory of the Lord, we are changed, etc.
2. To qualify him as an apostle. One of the necessary qualifications of an apostle was that he should have a personal view of Christ. Hence he says, Am I not an apostle? Have I not seen the Lord?
3. To consummate his blessedness as a man. What is the heaven of souls? The beatific vision of Christ (Rev 5:6; Rev 5:12).
III. To a reception of the highest communications. And shouldst hear the voice of His mouth. To have a direct communication with Christ seemed necessary in order to put Paul on a level with the twelve apostles (Act 13:3; Gal 1:1). But whilst this was specially required for Paul as an apostle, it is the high privilege of all good men. Never man spake like this man, they said who heard Him when on earth, when He spoke only the few things that they could bear. But to listen to that voice in heaven, what an ecstasy of joy! What is the voice of your Platos compared with the voice of Christ?
IV. To a discharge of the highest mission. Thou shalt be His witness, etc. To bear witness–
1. Of the highest facts about the greatest Being.
2. Of the highest facts about the greatest Being to all mankind. How earnestly shall we aspire to such an ordination! (D. Thomas, D. D.)
Pauls ordination
From this we see–
I. What the preacher must bring along with him into the ministry.
1. The knowledge of the Divine will.
2. The experience of Divine grace.
II. What the preacher is to do in the ministry–to be a witness to all men in word and deed of what he has seen and heard.
III. On what the preacher may depend in his ministry–on the grace of God which has appointed him to the office and will strengthen him in it. (K. Gerok.)
For thou shalt be His witness.
Witnessing for Christ
Here is–
I. A special department of Christian service. Thou shalt be His witness. Sometimes a Christian is designated a steward, and is left in trust for Christ; sometimes a shepherd, and is commanded to feed the flock of God; but here he is called a witness. A witness is one who bears testimony to that with which he is personally acquainted. The apostle was a competent witness–he was permitted to see and know Christ; he was a courageous witness–he was not ashamed of the gospel of Christ; and he was a consistent witness–both by word and deed he declared the whole counsel of God. How can we witness for Christ?
1. By our self-denying labours. This is the very essence of the Christian religion. Whosoever doth not bear his cross, etc. The need of a spirit of self-abnegation is abundantly manifest. We are surrounded by the ignorant, who must be taught; by the careless, who must be awakened; and by the lost, who must be led to the Saviour.
2. By our holy deportment. The end of Christs death is the holiness of His people. The Christian is commanded to let his light so shine before men, that they may see his good works, and glorify his Father who is in heaven. Holiness is power. Argument may be resisted, entreaty may be disregarded, and eloquence may be scorned; but the exhibition of an exalted piety has a might which nothing can withstand. It is truth embodied; it is the gospel preaching in the lives of its votaries. No sophistry can elude it, no conscience can ward it off, and no bosom wears a mail that can brave the energy of its attack.
II. An extensive sphere of Christian service. To all men. If you examine a map of the countries through which the apostle travelled, you will be amazed at the extent of his labours. Distance did not damp his zeal, nor danger daunt his courage. Where can we witness for Christ?
1. In private. This is a far more important sphere of service than many persons think. Are we diligent in the time of service? Are we patient in the hour of suffering? Are we resigned in the season of bereavement? Then we are witnessing for Christ.
2. In public. This is not only a difficult, but a very delicate task. We may dishonour Christ by our silence, and we may displease men by our speech. But there is greater danger of grieving Christ by our indifference than of offending men by our imprudence. Our testimony must be constant and courageous. Wherever our lot may be cast, there we must be loyal to Christ.
III. An important qualification for Christian service. Of what thou hast seen and heard. An apostle must know the will and experience the grace of God. He had seen the Just One, and heard His voice; and you might as well have tried to reason him out of a belief in his own existence as to reason him out of his belief in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. If we have seen the glory of God, or enjoyed the fellowship of Christ, we must witness to all men of what we have seen and heard. (J. T. Woodhouse.)
And now why tarriest thou?—
Delay
In the New Testament all who came to Christ at all came straightway. The apostles, Saul of Tarsus, the jailer at Philippi, the eunuch of Ethiopia, Lydia. Those who hesitated never came. Rich young ruler, Agrippa, Felix. This teaches us in a striking manner the danger of delay. Men, however, urge the reasonableness of delay. They declare that a matter so important should be duly weighed. Its responsibilities must not be rashly assumed. On the other hand, there are solemn and pressing arguments for immediate action.
I. The position is one of peril. If your house was in flames, and you were awakened at the dead of night by the cries of firemen calling upon you to escape, would you reply that you must deliberate upon the situation? To use the wise mans image (Pro 23:34), would you, if you were lying on the top of the mast when the vessel was rocking violently and the crew were calling you to come down, respond that you must duly weigh the matter?
II. The position is sinful. It is a sin against the authority of God, who commands you to come; against the love of God, who yearns for you; against Jesus Christ–a rejection of the Divine claims, of His mercy. If it were theft, would you say, I will steal one year more, and then I will stop? Why, then, should you say, I will sin by rejecting Christ one year or one day more, and after that perhaps I will turn from this sin?
III. It may be instantly performed. You cannot stop fighting God gradually. Will you fire a few less guns tomorrow, and only an occasional gun the day after? Is that making peace? As the Roman ambassador drew a circle around the captive princes, and bade them accede to his terms before they passed its bounds, so God requires an immediate response to His overture of mercy.
IV. You have the ability now to perform it. No doubt you think you would prefer to have deeper convictions, stronger desires and all that; but you must learn to act on what you have. A vessel may leave the harbour with a wind of fifteen knots, or ten, or five, or one knot an hour. Act on what you have; think not of what might be. It is better to go out of the harbour of false ease and delusive security upon a wind that merely fills the flapping sails than not to go at all.
V. The difficulties will not be lessened by delay. You remember the countryman in AEsops fable who sat down by a running stream, saying: If this stream continues to flow as it does now for a little while, it will empty itself, and I will walk over dry shod. He waited in vain! and so do you. The difficulties will never become less.
VI. The difficulties will increase. The purchase of heaven is like buying of the Sibyls prophecies–the longer you delay the dearer the price. Men think as they grow older they will grow more virtuous. This is contradicted by the law of habit. Late conversions are rare. Old age is, of all the ages of life, the least fitted for the work of salvation. Facility in goodness does not come from habitually ignoring Christ.
VII. The shortness and uncertainty of life. The vistas of life seen in the perspective of hope may seem long to us; youth may smile at the suggestions of the tomb, and, conscious strength, may repel the insinuations of mortality; but the resistless hand of time is drawing us on. Nature and life are full of reminders of the brevity and incertitude of human existence. The eagle poising a moment on the wing, and then rushing at her prey; the ship that, throwing the spray from her bow, scuds before the wind; the shuttle, flashing through the loom; the shadow of the cloud sweeping the hillside, and then gone forever, not leaving a trace behind; the summer flowers that, vanishing, have left our gardens bare; the falling of the autumn leaf; the rushing of the mountain torrent; the dispersion of the morning mist; the fading of the summer day; these, with many other fleeting things, are emblems by which God through nature is teaching us how frail we are; at the longest, how short our days! (E. S. Prout.)
Arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins.—
An argument for baptism, and an appeal
I. Baptism is an ordinance of Christ. It has been a question whether the rite is of Jewish origin. Moses, indeed, ordained divers washings, to which the elders added many more. But these were essentially different from Christian baptism; they being waters of separation, this of initiation; they being repeated on any fresh pollution, this not being on any account repeated. Jewish proselyte baptism is more analogous, but is not mentioned until the Christian era. The baptism of John bears more resemblance to it, being, as he declared, the shadow of it. They certainly are not identical, or Paul would not have baptized again the disciples of John at Ephesus. So we conclude that baptism is exclusively Christian. How or why we can hardly tell, except it were gathered from a few such hints as that prediction of Isaiah–So shall He sprinkle many nations. There prevailed among the Jews an expectation that Christ should institute a new and peculiar baptism. This impression is evident from the question put by the Pharisees to John–Why baptizest thou, then, if thou be not that Christ, etc. It is, therefore, no wonder chat earnest men among them flocked to receive the baptism of repentance, nor Chat afterwards Jesus made and baptized more disciples than John; and from His own baptism, needful only for examples sake, the Teacher from heaven acted out this prevailing idea–an idea which gave an evident and definite meaning to that saying of His to Nicodemus, Except a man be born of water, etc., which agreed exactly with the current expectation, and must be law as long as men have to be translated out of the kingdom of this world into the kingdom of our Lord; which further appears from the very last charge of the Saviour (Mat 28:19-20).
II. Baptism represents the washing away of sins. Nothing can be clearer than this. Sin has ever been regarded as a defilement which required to be washed away to make a man fit to stand in the sight of God. When this purification became possible, through the water and the blood which flowed from the Saviours side, the fact was set forth by a rite in which water was employed; at the same time the Lord declared the Spirit of God, which He came to give, to be essential to that new birth without which there is no personal efficacy in baptism. Yet this is the matter upon which there has been most unaccountable and fatal confusion. The text says, Be baptized, and wash away your sins–two things as different as a sign, and the thing signified. Yet these two have been declared to he the same. If it were so, I myself should have been a new creature in Christ Jesus in virtue of it, without any conversion; but I know that I was not. If it were so, then Simon Magus must have been among the saved. The idea of baptism being the actual remission of sins, or regeneration, or anything whatever beyond a sign of these as needful and possible, is too groundless for argument. But it does show us, as clearly as any earthly image can, the necessity and the possibility of the washing of regeneration.
III. Baptism is of perpetual importance and obligation. Christianity and spirituality are all but synonymous terms, this being emphatically the dispensation of the Spirit. The ceremonial law of Moses was in itself very burdensome; but those who would prefer outward rites to true religion were always heaping up traditions upon it, until it became a yoke of bondage too heavy to be borne. Then the Saviour gave the very character of His economy when He said, God is a Spirit, etc.; in harmony with which He said also, The kingdom of God cometh not with observation, etc., which Paul did but illustrate when he said, The kingdom of God is not meat and drink, etc. Now, from these and a hundred such Scriptures we might have argued that the pure Spirit of Christ, without any figure, was Christianity. But our conceits, however logical they may seem, are not Christianity; and seeing that the thoughts and ways of God are so immeasurably higher than those of men, and wiser, and kinder, it is ever better to inquire what He has decreed than to imagine what He would do. We have already proved that Christ did institute this rite. Its very institution proves its importance then; and if it had any then, it must have as much if not more now; for if ever the outward and visible sign could be dispensed with, it must be while the Divine Teacher was living in our world to explain and to enforce His doctrines. And the most spiritual men have confessed that the two sacraments have proved a real help to their faith. At the dedication of their offspring to God in Christ, as well as at the table of the Lord, they have felt and learnt what they never learnt before, becoming more spiritual than ever. Whether this were so or not, the Divinely attested fact that Jesus decreed the baptism of all nations in His very last words is the proof that it is to have a continuance unto the end of the world. If one may explain away the rites ordained by the Lord, another may explain away the doctrines which they were ordained to teach; and, alas! many do both this day. What the very apostles needed we cannot less need; and it must be a right and safe conclusion that Christ only can unmake any ordinance which He has made, and that until He does so it rests upon all His disciples as an unquestionable obligation.
IV. Baptism is to be administered to all who worship Christ. The last clause of the text is of all importance. It proves, even before it is expounded, that baptism alone, the rite as the outward action of another, cannot save, but that its efficacy depends upon the state of mind and heart in the subject; for there is something else to be done while it is being performed. What this is is now the question. Of course it does not mean the formal mention of His holy name, nor does it mean calling, without any wish or hope of answer. The phrase is one borrowed from the Old Testament, where it always intends the actual worship of God in the prayer of faith. In the Psalms it; is said, I will offer to Thee the sacrifice of thanksgiving, and will call upon the name of the Lord; O give thanks unto the Lord, call upon His name. The phrase in question is also one of those which bind together the two Testaments. Joel says, It shall come to pass that whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be delivered–which prediction both Peter and Paul quote word for word; and whatever may have been the prophets idea, we know the apostles intention in the name of the Lord. These meant not the Lord Jehovah, but the Lord Jesus. So, then, what Ananias here required from Saul was that with the highest possible intention he should call Jesus Master and Lord; and if any man whatever do this with apparent honesty, and is yet unbaptized, to him every minister of Christ should say, And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins. (J. De Kewer Williams.)
Directions to the awakened sinner
There is this idea in the text, this Divine purport and meaning–All things are ready. A redemption is obtained. A kingdom is purchased;up and take possession.
1. Arise, that is, lift up your hearts to the Redeemer! Lift up your eyes to the hill Calvary, whence cometh your help. Arise, hang down and droop thy head no more as if no balm was in Gilead, or as if there were no Physician there that could heal thee; though thou art a poor prodigal child, and hast been feeding upon the husks, the pleasures and vanities of a sinful world, thou hast a Father that loves thee, arise and go to Him. Thou hast a dear Saviour whose wounds will heal thy spoiled and poisoned nature. Thou hast the Holy Ghost, who will lead thee and comfort thee as a mother comforteth her only son. Arise, leave thy sins, thy lusts, thy dangerous place, and venture to come to the sinners refuge, and it shall go well with thee.
2. Be baptized, be immersed and covered in the bloody sweat of Jesus, be baptized with the baptism wherewith He was baptized, those great drops which fell from Him in His agony shall wash away thy great crimes and frightful offences.
3. Wash away thy sins, that is, come to the blood of the Lamb. No Jordan, no pool of Siloam, no Bethesda is like it. Whoever comes to this laver, to this fountain, though his sins were more than the hairs of his head, or the sands upon the seashore, all shall be washed away and remembered no more: and though his crimes were the most vile and abominable, so that his heart failed him, yet the blood of Christ shall make him whiter than the snow in Salmon, and soften and melt his hard and icy nature, and speak peace and pardon to his guilty conscience.
4. Calling upon the name of the Lord, this is to direct you where to apply, to whom you may address yourselves and make your requests, namely, to the Lord Jesus that appeared to Paul in the way. He is the Friend of sinners. He is the Minister of the true sanctuary, who hears prayer, and has the tenderest heart. Ask of Him and He will give you, seek to Him and you shall find, knock at the door of the sheepfold, and you shall find entrance by the new and living way of His flesh and blood, into the holiest place of all. (John Cennick.)
Getting rid of sin
is–
I. A possible work. Be baptized, and wash away thy sins. The Holy Word represents the sinful state of the soul under different figures–sleep, slavery, disease, death, pollution. Here pollution. The words imply that it is–
1. A cleansable pollution. It is not ingrained. It is something separable from the soul. It can be washed away. Baptism to Saul would symbolise moral cleansing. No water, of course, can wash the soul; all the waters of the Atlantic could not cleanse one moral stain. There is, however, a spiritual water, the truth as it is in Jesus, by which the Eternal Spirit does cleanse (Eze 36:25; Eze 36:27; 1Co 6:11; Tit 3:7; Eph 5:25-26; Rev 1:5-6; Rev 7:14).
2. A pollution of which man must cleanse himself: Wash away thy sins. No one can do it for us.
II. It is a praying work. Calling upon the name of the Lord. Christs name is Himself; to call upon His name is to call upon Him.
1. Christ is the efficient cleanser of human souls. His work is to wash away the sins of the world, to purify the moral garments of humanity.
2. Prayer is the ordained means of attaining His cleansing influence (Rom 10:13). The prayer addressed to Him in the upper room at Jerusalem brought down His cleansing influences on the day of Pentecost. You may get wealth by industry, intelligence by study, wisdom by experience, but moral purity only by prayer.
III. It is an urgent work. Why tarriest thou? Or, more literally, Why art thou about acting, instead of acting really? Do not hesitate a moment. Be prompt. The importance of promptitude may be argued–
1. From the greatness of the work. Eternity depends upon it.
2. From the time already lost. The whole life should have been given to it, but much has run to waste.
3. From the increase of difficulties. Disinclination, insensibility, force of habit–all increase by delay.
4. From the character of the future. It is–
(1) Brief;
(2) uncertain. (D. Thomas, D. D.)
Fuente: Biblical Illustrator Edited by Joseph S. Exell
According to the law; this is added to distinguish him from a proselyte, and to let them know that he had received the gospel, not from a convert out of Gentilism, (who though they admitted, yet they had a greater jealousy over, and less kindness for), but from one like unto themselves in all things.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
12. Ananias, a devout man, accordingto the law, having a good report of all the Jews which dweltthereOne would not know from this description of Ananias thathe was a Christian at all, the apostles object being to hold him upas unexceptionable, even to the most rigid Jews.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And one Ananias, a devout man according to the law,…. The Alexandrian copy, and Vulgate Latin version, read only, “a man according to the law”; one whose walk, life, and conversation, were agreeable to it: a strict observer of the law of Moses, both moral and ceremonial: he not only lived a holy life and conversation, according to the moral law, but he religiously and devoutly attended to the rituals of the ceremonial law; and this part of his character the apostle chose to mention, as what would recommend him to the notice of the Jews he now addressed: for though he was a disciple, a believer in Christ, yet as many of the believing Jews did, so he strictly observed the rituals of the law. The Ethiopic version adds, “who was of the apostles”; one of that number, and in that office, which is nowhere said that he was; and had he, it would not have been agreeable to the apostle’s design to have mentioned it; and he is said to be one of the seventy disciples, and bishop or pastor of the church at Damascus; [See comments on Lu 10:1]. Of this Ananias, his name and character, [See comments on Ac 9:10].
Having a good report of all the Jews that dwelt there: that is, at Damascus, as the Ethiopic version reads; and so do the Complutensian edition, the Alexandrian copy, and several other copies; for though he was a Christian, yet being not only a man of an unblemished life and conversation, but zealous and devout in the observance of the ceremonial law, was very much interested in the affections and esteem of the Jews.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
A devout man according to the law ( ). See on Acts 2:5; Acts 8:2; Luke 2:25 for the adjective . Paul adds “according to the law” to show that he was introduced to Christianity by a devout Jew and no law-breaker (Lewin).
Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament
A devout man, etc. In ch. 9 10, he is called a disciple. Paul here “affirms that he was not introduced to Christianity by an opponent of Judaism, but by a strict Jew” (Gloag).
Fuente: Vincent’s Word Studies in the New Testament
1) “And one Ananias,” (Ananias de tis) “Then a certain Ananias,” a certain kind of person, Act 9:10; Act 9:12-13; Act 9:17.
2) “A devout man according to the law,” (aner eulabes kata ton nomon) “A devout man according to or in harmony with the law,” the law of Moses, on moral and ethical grounds, a disciple at Damascus, and perhaps pastor of a congregation into whose fellowship he was baptized, is believed to have baptized, Paul, Act 9:10; Act 22:16.
3) “Having a good report,” (marturoumenos) “Holding a good testimony, witness, or reputation,” even as Cornelius had, though unsaved, Act 10:2; Act 10:22; He was a well known, as well as a good man.
4) “Of all the Jews which dwelt there,” (hupo panton ton katoikouton loudaion) “By all the Jews residing there,” dwelling or making their residence in Damascus. This “good report” from these without, without the church, was a prerequisite to being an ordained elder, or to one’s being a bishop – – – a pastor, 1Ti 3:7. To have obtained this “good report” of all the Jewish residents of Damascus it is necessarily inferred that he had lived among them for a considerable time.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
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12. One Ananias. Paul proceedeth now unto the fourth point, to wit, that he did not only give his name to Christ, being astonished with miracles, but that he was also well and thoroughly instructed in the doctrine of the gospel. I have already said that Ananias met Paul, not by chance, but through the direction of Christ. And whereas he giveth him the title of godliness as concerning the law, and saith that he was well reported of by the whole nation, in these words he preventeth the wrong − (505) opinion which they might conceive. As they loathed the Gentiles, so they would never have allowed any teacher coming from them; and one that had revolted from the law should have been most detestable. Therefore, he witnesseth that he worshipped God according to the law, and that his godliness was known and commended among all the Jews, so that they ought not to suspect him. These words, according to the law, are ignorantly, by some, coupled with the text following, that he was approved according to the law. For Ananias’ religion is rather distinguished by this mark from the superstitions of the Gentiles. Though we must note, that the law is not mentioned to establish the merits of works, that they may be set against the grace of God; but Ananias’ godliness is clearly acquitted of all evil suspicion which might have risen among the Jews. And seeing that he restoreth sight to Paul with one word, it appeareth thereby that he was sent of God, as I have said before. −
(505) −
“
Sinistram,” sinister.
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(12) A devout man according to the law.In Act. 9:10, Ananias is simply described as a disciple. The special description here was obviously given with a view to conciliate those who were listening to the speech. One, such as Ananias was, was not likely to have connected himself with a profane blasphemer, nor to have received the converted persecutor except on evidence that the change had come from God. St. Paul naturally confines himself to what came within his own experience, and does not dwell on the vision which had been seen by Ananias.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
12. A devout man Paul brings out specially the holy Judaism and wide reputation of Ananias, to show him as a worthy witness to his divine legation from the risen Jesus.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
“And one Ananias, a devout man according to the law, well reported of by all the Jews who dwelt there, came to me, and standing by me said to me, ‘Brother Saul, receive your sight. And in that very hour I looked up on him.’ ”
And then a man had come to him. A devout Jew as measured by the Law (the Torah – the Books of Moses), and well spoken of by all Jews in Damascus. His name was Ananias. And he had stood by him and told him that he would receive his sight, and in that very hour his eyes had been opened and he had been able to see him. So in his need and helplessness the God of Israel had sent one of His true servants to speak to him and enlighten him. From the commencement until now the whole experience had been that of a Jew in close contact with Jews, involved one whose whole aim was to please God, as his whole life evidenced, and one who was enlightened by a pious Jew. The experience was Jewish through and through.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Paul and Ananias:
v. 12. And one Ananias, a devout man according to the Law, having a good report of all the Jews which dwelt there,
v. 13. came unto me, and stood, and said unto me, Brother Saul, receive thy sight. And the same hour I looked up upon him.
v. 14. And he said, The God of our fathers hath chosen thee that thou shouldest know His will and see that Just One, and shouldest hear the voice of His mouth.
v. 15. For thou shalt be His witness unto all men of what thou hast seen and heard.
v. 16. And now, why tarriest thou? Arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord. Paul here from his personal experience, from the events which had been impressed upon his mind with indelible characters, gives a fuller account of the words of Ananias than that which had been reported in Chapter 9. This Ananias was by no means a Gentile, nor a Jew without reputation and standing, but, as Paul emphasizes, a devout man, pious in accordance with Jewish law, according to their own standard, vouched for by all the Jews that lived in Damascus. Through him Paul received the commission to preach the Gospel of Christ, especially to the Gentiles, as he here is careful to bring out. For this Ananias came to him and stood by or over him as he lay or sat there, prostrate with sorrow, addressed him as a brother, and by a simple word of command performed the miracle of restoring his sight. In the same hour, that is, in the same instant, his sight was returned to him. And then Ananias had explained to him in just what way the Lord’s plans had been carried out and were to be carried out. The God of their fathers, the true God, as the Jews worshiped Him, had appointed in advance that Paul was to know His will, to find out for what important duty he had been selected. His seeing the Just One and hearing the voice from His mouth in the vision near the city had also been arranged beforehand by God. This is an additional proof that Paul actually did see Jesus Christ. And this same voice of the Lord which had spoken to him before the city was now again addressing him with the commission that he should be a witness to the Lord to all men concerning what he had seen and heard. Why should there then be any cause for hesitation? Ananias had asked him. He had told him to arise, to be baptized, and thereby to have his sins washed away, and at the same time to call upon the name of the Lord. Note: Baptism is not a mere external form or symbol to signify the receipt of the forgiveness of sins before or after, but by the washing of the water in Baptism the sins are taken away, the filth of the soul is washed off; it is a washing of regeneration and renewing of the Holy Ghost, Tit 3:5. Through the name of Jesus and by faith in the Redeemer, which trusts the Word of God in Baptism, the great blessings are conferred and sealed.
Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann
Act 22:12-15 . But Ananias, a religious man according to the law, attested (praised, comp. Act 10:22 , Act 6:3 ) by all the Jews resident (in Damascus), thus a mediator, neither hostile to the law nor unknown!
] , which may signify as well to look up , as also visum recuperare (see on Joh 9:11 , and Fritzsche, ad Marc . p. 328), has here (it is otherwise in Act 9:17-18 ) the former meaning, which is evident from : look up! and at the same hour I looked up to him . We are to conceive the apostle as sitting there blind with closed eyelids, and Ananias standing before him.
.] has appointed thee thereto. See on Act 3:20 ; comp. Act 26:16 .
] Jesus , on whom, as the righteous (2Co 5:21 ), the divine will to save ( ) was based. Comp. Act 3:14 , Act 7:52 .
. .] Direction of the ., as in Act 13:31 : to all men [135]
[135] That is, according to the popular expression: before all the world . Frequently so in Isocrates. See Bremi, ad Panegyr . 23, p. 28. But the universal destination of the apostle is implied therein. Comp. ver. 21.
Fuente: Heinrich August Wilhelm Meyer’s New Testament Commentary
12. ] That Ananias was a Christian , is not here mentioned, and is added: both, as addressed to a Jewish audience . Before the Roman governor in ch. 26, he does not mention him at all , but compresses the whole substance of the command given to Ananias into the words spoken by the Lord to himself. A heathen moralist could teach, ‘Quid de quoque viro, et cui dicas, spe videto’ (Hor. Eph 1:18 , 68): and a Christian Apostle was not unmindful of the necessary caution. Such features in his speeches are highly instructive and valuable to those who would gather from Scripture itself its own real character: and be, not slaves to its letter, but disciples of its spirit.
Fuente: Henry Alford’s Greek Testament
Act 22:12 . ., Act 9:10 . The description is added, . ., manifestly fitting before a Jewish audience, and a proof that the brother who came to Saul was no law-breaker, Lewin, St. Paul , ii., 146. On the reading , cf. Act 2:5 . .: seems to imply that Ananias had dwelt for some time in Damascus, 9.
Fuente: The Expositors Greek Testament by Robertson
NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Act 22:12-16
12″A certain Ananias, a man who was devout by the standard of the Law, and well spoken of by all the Jews who lived there, 13came to me, and standing near said to me, ‘Brother Saul, receive your sight!’ And at that very time I looked up at him. 14And he said, ‘The God of our fathers has appointed you to know His will and to see the Righteous One and to hear an utterance from His mouth. 15’For you will be a witness for Him to all men of what you have seen and heard. 16’Now why do you delay? Get up and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on His name.'”
Act 22:12 This is a much fuller description of Ananias than Act 9:10. He was a lay person who apparently, like Paul, was devout by the standard of the Mosaic Law. This may imply he was also a Pharisee.
1. Luke similarly describes Simeon, the one who saw Jesus in the temple as a child (cf. Luk 2:25).
2. Luke also uses it of Jews of the diaspora who came to Jerusalem on Pentecost when the Spirit came with power (cf. Act 2:5).
3. Luke uses it a third time of the men who buried Stephen after his stoning (cf. Act 8:2).
Therefore, this term does not relate to a believer in Christ as much as a sincere follower of Judaism. He is called a “disciple” in Act 9:10; therefore, he had become a believer. Yet, even though he was a Christian, he still had the respect of the Jewish community in Damascus.
Act 22:13 Ananias’ ministry to Paul shows us that there is no clear division of believers in the NT between clergy (special ordained group) and laity. Jesus’ words were his authority to:
1. lay hands (cf. Act 9:12; Act 9:17) on Paul and command healing (aorist active imperative, Act 22:13, See Special Topic at Act 6:6)
2. reveal Jesus’ will for Paul’s ministry (Act 22:15)
3. tell Paul to be baptized (Paul may have baptized himself as Jews required of proselytes, Aorist middle imperative, Act 22:16)
4. be the instrument of Paul being filled with the Spirit (cf. Act 9:17)
You can see Ananias’ heart when he calls this vicious persecutor and murder (cf. Act 9:13-14) “Brother Saul.”
Act 22:14 “The God of our fathers” This phrase was used to describe the Deity of Jewish worship. Paul wants to make clear that it was YHWH (see Special Topic at Acts 1:68) who contacted him and commissioned him through His Son, Jesus. Paul was not called by any other god than Judaism’s God!
“to know His will” YHWH’s primary will is for humans is to know Jesus (cf. Joh 6:29; Joh 6:40). God’s further will for Paul was to be the missionary Apostle to the Gentiles (cf. Act 9:15; Act 22:15; Act 26:16).
“to see the Righteous One” This is a Messianic title (cf. Psalms 45; Psalms 72; Act 3:14; Act 7:52; 1Jn 2:1). Paul would have the privilege of a personal revelation of the glorified Jesus (as did Stephen, cf. Act 7:55-56). See SPECIAL TOPIC: RIGHTEOUSNESS at Act 3:14.
“and to hear an utterance from His mouth” This seems to refer to the voice from heaven in Act 22:7-8 (i.e., Bat Kol, cf. Deu 4:12; 1Ki 19:12-13; Job 4:16; Jer 25:30; Eze 1:25; Eze 1:28; Joe 3:16; Amo 1:2; Luk 3:22; Luk 9:35; Act 10:13; Act 10:15), but it could just as much refer to Act 22:17-21. It is also possible that it refers to several special visions which Paul had throughout his ministry. See list at Act 22:17-21.
Act 22:15 “a witness. . .to all men” This is the marvelous truth that the gospel of Jesus Christ is for all men (cf. Joh 3:16; Joh 4:42; 1Ti 2:4; 1Ti 4:10; Tit 2:11; 2Pe 3:9; 1Jn 2:1; 1Jn 4:14). Not all will receive, not all may clearly hear, but all are included in God’s love and Jesus’ sacrifice and Paul’s preaching! This is the very truth that this mob rejected (cf. Act 22:22).
Paul purposefully does not use the word “Gentile” that Ananias passed on to him from Jesus (cf. Act 9:15). Paul knew how explosive this derogatory term go’im (the nations or Gentiles) was to these ultra-conservative Jews. Their biases and racial arrogance had even robbed the OT prophets of their inclusive prophecies!
“what you have seen and heard” This first verb is a perfect active indicative; the second is an aorist active indicative. Why they are different tenses is uncertain. They seem to be parallel. Paul will carry the memory of this personal encounter with the risen Christ throughout his life. He mentions it three times in Acts. He probably gave his personal testimony in every synagogue.
Act 22:16 “be baptized and wash away your sins” These are both aorist middle imperatives. This is an OT allusion to the ceremonial ablutions (cf. Lev 11:25; Lev 11:28; Lev 11:40; Lev 13:6; Lev 13:34; Lev 13:56; Lev 14:8-9; Lev 15:5-13; Lev 15:21-22; Lev 15:27; Lev 16:26; Lev 16:28; Lev 17:15-16; Num 8:7; Num 8:21; Num 19:19; Deu 23:11). It is used here as a symbol of our spiritual cleansing in Christ (cf. 1Co 6:11; Eph 5:26; Tit 3:5; Heb 10:22). Baptism was the early Church’s public profession of faith. See notes and Special Topic at Act 2:38 for a fuller theological discussion.
Notice that the middle voice refers to both baptism (aorist middle imperative) and cleansing (aorist middle imperative). Paul could not wash away his sins, but he could baptize himself (Jewish practice for proselytes). Often it is said that immersion is the only NT pattern (cf. Romans 6 and Colossians 2), but here baptism is linked to the metaphor of washing (cf. Act 2:38; 1Co 6:11; Eph 5:26; Tit 3:5; Heb 10:22). Theologically 1Pe 3:21 shows that it is a symbol, not a sacrament!
Modern interpreters must be careful of basing too much on the middle or passive voice because these were merging into the passive form in Koine Greek. Paul is said to have been baptized (PASSIVE) in Act 9:18. The mode of Paul’s baptism is not the issue, but his baptism itself is!
“calling on His name” The “name” is not a magical formula, but a public acknowledgment of Jesus’ ownership and the beginning of a personal relationship with Him (aorist middle participle used as an imperative), which issues in a Christlike attitude and lifestyle. The early Church’s baptismal formula as stated orally by the candidate was “Jesus is Lord” (cf. Rom 10:9-13; 1Co 1:2; 2Ti 2:22). The exact words or formula is not the key (sacramentalism), but the heart of the candidate (believe, receive). See note at Act 2:38 and Special Topic at Act 2:21.
Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley
one = a certain. Greek. tis. App-123.
devout. Greek. eusebes. See note on Act 10:2, but the texts read eulabes, as in Act 2:5.
having a good report = borne witness to. Greek. matureo, as in Act 22:5. Compare Heb 11:2, Heb 11:4, &c, Revised Version.
dwelt. Greek. katoikeo. See note on Act 2:5.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
12.] That Ananias was a Christian, is not here mentioned,-and is added: both, as addressed to a Jewish audience. Before the Roman governor in ch. 26, he does not mention him at all, but compresses the whole substance of the command given to Ananias into the words spoken by the Lord to himself. A heathen moralist could teach,-Quid de quoque viro, et cui dicas, spe videto (Hor. Ep. 1:18, 68): and a Christian Apostle was not unmindful of the necessary caution. Such features in his speeches are highly instructive and valuable to those who would gather from Scripture itself its own real character: and be, not slaves to its letter, but disciples of its spirit.
Fuente: The Greek Testament
Act 22:12. , who dwelt) Understand there, as in ch. Act 13:1, , the church which was there. They knew Ananias well. These Jews that dwelt (there) may seem to be put in opposition to the Jews , who wandered about, vagabond, ch. Act 19:13.
Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament
one: Act 9:10-18
a devout: Act 8:2, Act 17:4, Luk 2:25
having: Act 6:3, Act 10:22, 2Co 6:8, 1Ti 3:7, Heb 11:2, 3Jo 1:12
Reciprocal: Act 2:5 – devout Act 9:17 – Ananias Act 22:10 – there Phi 4:8 – are of 1Ti 5:10 – reported 1Ti 5:25 – the good
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
2
Act 22:12. Ananias was a disciple of Christ as well as having been devout under the regulations of the law. (See chapter 9:12.)
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Act 22:12. And one Ananias, a devout man according to the law, having a good report of all the Jews which dwelt there. In the account of the conversion of chap. Act 9:10, this Ananias is merely mentioned as a disciple a follower of Jesus of Nazareth; here, however, we have a detailed description of the man who was sent to the blinded Saul after the heavenly vision. It seems not improbable that, although a believer in the Crucified, he was a well-known and respected Jew of Damascus,one, in fact, blameless in all the ordinances of the law in the Syrian capital, as was James the Lords brother in Jerusalem. Such a one as Paul describes, even though he were not well known to the Jerusalem Jews (which at least seems probable), yet seeing he was a devout man according to the law, and well reported of in his own city, would surely not have visited and received into friendship a blasphemer and an enemy of the lawwould never, save on very weighty evidence, have accepted Saul the persecutor as a brother-disciple.
Fuente: A Popular Commentary on the New Testament
In Damascus, a devout, God-fearing man came to Paul, restored his sight and told him God had appointed him to know his will, see the righteous one and hear his voice. He further said God planned for him to be a witness to all men. Too, he told Paul to be baptized in order to have his sins washed away. The apostle then told the multitude that he returned to Jerusalem and was praying when the Lord told him to leave quickly because they would not receive his testimony. Though Paul argued with the Lord, telling him the Jews knew of his zeal, the Lord told him to depart because he would send him to the Gentiles ( Act 22:12-21 ).
Fuente: Gary Hampton Commentary on Selected Books
See notes on verse 3
Fuente: McGarvey and Pendleton Commentaries (New Testament)
Verse 12
According to the law; the Jewish law.
Fuente: Abbott’s Illustrated New Testament
Paul described Ananias as a devout Jew who carefully observed the law and one who had a good reputation among his fellow Israelites. Paul related Ananias’ words more fully here than Luke did in chapter 9. This respected Jew had also received a revelation from God that he communicated to Paul in distinctly Jewish terms. Paul sought to impress his hearers with the fact that a pious Jew had communicated God’s mission to him. Ananias had even called Paul his brother.