Acts 10:39

Acts 10:39-42 . And we — His apostles, of whom I have the honour and happiness to be one; are witnesses of all things which he did — Having been present when he did them; both in the land of the Jews — In all parts of Judea; and particularly in Jerusalem — Their capital city; for we attended him in all the progress which he made, beholding with astonishment his miracles, and hearing with delight his discourses; whom — Nevertheless, this unbelieving and ungrateful people were so far from receiving with a becoming regard, that, in a most infamous manner, they slew and hanged him on a tree — Crucifying him, as if he had been the vilest of malefactors and slaves. Their crucifying Christ is here spoken of, the rather, to show how justly the Jews were now to be abandoned of God, and that they had no cause to complain of their rejection and the calling of the Gentiles, seeing that they had in such a manner rejected Christ. Him — This very same person, though so injuriously treated by men; God raised up the third day — According to the repeated predictions of the prophets. Peter thus preaches unto them the resurrection which immediately followed his crucifixion, lest the Gentiles should be deterred from believing in him, and should take offence at the scandal of the cross. And showed him openly — Greek, εδωκεν αυτον εμφανη γενεσθαι , gave him to become manifest, namely, after his resurrection; and evidently to appear.

As if he had said, That he rose is unquestionable, it having been evidenced in all the ways by which any thing can be proved. For Christ was seen, and heard, and felt by many after his resurrection; he appeared not now indeed to all the people — As before his death; but unto witnesses — Persons appointed to be witnesses of this fact; chosen before of God — For this purpose; even to us, who did eat and drink — And converse frequently and familiarly with him, after he arose from the dead — As we had done during the time of his ministry; so that we can, and do, with the greatest certainty, bear witness to the truth of these important matters. And he commanded us — Gave it us in charge in a most solemn manner; to preach unto the people — The glad tidings of salvation, present and eternal; and to testify — Wherever we come; that it is he — This very Jesus of Nazareth; who is ordained of God to be the judge of quick and dead — That is, of all mankind, whether they be alive at his coming, or had died before it. This was declaring to them, in the strongest terms, how entirely their happiness depended on a timely and humble subjection to him, who was to be their final Judge.

We are witnesses; the apostles, whom Christ had chosen to go in and out with him, and to be eye and ear witnesses of all that was done by him, or against him. Whom they slew: their killing of our Saviour is the rather here spoken of, to show how rightfully the Jews were now to be forsaken, and that they had no cause to complain of the calling in of the Gentiles, being themselves had in such a manner rejected Christ; but especially, that they who were here met, and we, all might consider, how much it cost our blessed Saviour to deliver us from sin and hell. He was made a curse for us, Galatians 3:13 , as Deu 21:23 that the blessing of Abraham might come upon us, Galatians 3:14 .

39 . And we are witnesses of all things ] Because they had been with Jesus from the beginning of His ministerial life ( Luke 24:48 ). whom they slew and hanged on a tree ] Rather (with the oldest MSS.) “whom also they slew, hanging him on a tree.” For the latter part of the expression cp. Acts 10:30 note.

Acts 10:39-41 . Ὃν καὶ ἀνεῖλον ] namely, οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι . Ὃν refers to the subject of ἐποίησεν . There lies at the bottom of the καί , also , the conception of the other persecutions, etc., to which even the ἀνεῖλον was added. See on the climactic idea indicated by καί after relatives, Hartung, Partikell. I. p. 136. ἀνεῖλ . κρεμάσ .] as in Acts 2:23 . ἐπὶ ξύλου ] as in Acts 5:30 . καὶ ἔδωκεν κ . τ . λ .] and granted (comp. Acts 2:27 ) that He should become manifest (by visible appearances, Acts 1:3 ; John 21:1 ), not to all the people, but to witnesses who (quippe qui) are chosen before of God , (namely) to us, who , etc. τοῖς προκεχειρ . ὑπὸ τοῦ Θεοῦ ] Peter with correct view regards the previous election of the apostles to be witnesses of the resurrection of Jesus ( Acts 1:3 , Acts 2:22 , Acts 3:22 , al. ) as done by God ( John 17:6 ; John 17:9 ; John 17:11 ; John 6:37 ); they are apostles διὰ θελήματος Θεοῦ ( 1 Corinthians 1:1 ; Galatians 1:1 , al. ), ἀφωρισμένοι εἰς εὐαγγ . Θεοῦ ( Romans 1:1 ; Galatians 1:15 ). And with the προ in προκεχειρ . he points back to the time of the previous choice as disciples , by which their election to be the future witnesses of the resurrection in reality took place. On προχειροτονεῖν (only here in the N. T.), comp. Plat.

Legg. vi. p. 765 B. μετὰ τὸ ἀναστ . αὐτὸν ἐκ νεκρῶν ] is not, with Cameron and Bengel, to be connected with ἐμφανῆ γενέσθαι , Acts 10:40 ,[260] so that Οὐ ΠΑΝΤῚ … ΑὐΤῷ would have to be arbitrarily and violently converted into a parenthesis; but with ΟἽΤΙΝΕς ΣΥΝΕΦ. Κ. ΣΥΝΕΠ. ΑὐΤῷ , which even without the passages, Acts 1:4 , Luke 24:41 ; Luke 24:43 , John 21:12 , would have nothing against it, as the body of the Risen One was not yet a glorified body. See on Luke 24:51 , note; Ignat. ad Smyrn. 5; Constitt. Ap. vi. 30. 5. The words clearly exhibit the certainty of the attested bodily resurrection, but annexed to Acts 10:40 they would contain an unimportant self-evident remark. The apparent inconsistency of the passage with Luke 22:18 is removed by the more exact statement to Matthew 26:29 ; see on that passage. [260] So also Baur, I. p. 101, ed. 2, who, at the same time, simply passes over, with quite an arbitrary evasion, the difficulty that the criterion of apostleship in this passage is as little suitable for the alleged object of vindicating Paul as it is in Acts 1:21-22 .

(39) And we are witnesses of all things. —The Apostle still keeps before him the main idea of his mission as laid down in the command given by his Lord ( Acts 1:8 ). Both in the land of the Jews.—Speaking as St. Peter did at Cæsarea, and as a Galilean, we must probably take the word in its narrower sense as meaning the inhabitants of Judæa. So taken, the words have the interest of implying the ministry in Judæa, of which the first three Gospels record so little, but which comes out into full prominence in the fourth. (See Introduction to St. John’s Gospel.) Whom they slew and hanged on a tree.—As in Acts 2:23, Peter represents the Crucifixion as virtually the act of the rulers and people of Jerusalem and not of the Roman governor. The mode of death is described as in the Greek of Deuteronomy 28:26 and in Galatians 3:10, rather than in the more technical language of the Gospels.