18. Now as foon as it was day, there was no fmall firamong the foldiers, what was become of Peter. 19. And when Herod had fought for him, and found him not, he examined the keepers, and commanded that they should be put to death. And he went down from Judea to Cefarea, and there abode. 20. And Herod was highly difpleafed [Or, bare an hoftile mind intending war] with them of Tyre and Sidon: but they came with one accord to him, and having made Blaftus the kings chamberlain [Gr. that was over the king's bed-chamber] their friend, defired peace; because their country was nourished by the kings country. 21. And upon a fet day, Herod arayed in royal apparel, fat upon his throne, and made an oration unto them. 22. And the people gave a fhout, faying, It is the voice of a god, and not of a man. 23. And immediately the angel of the Lord fmote him, because he b gave not God the glory: and he was eaten of worms, and gave up the ghost. 24. But the word of God grew and multiplied. 25. And Barnabas and Saul returned from Jerufalem, when they had fulfilled their dminiftry [Or, charge], and took with them John whole firname was Mark. C HA P. XIII. Year of our Lord 45. h C OW there were in the church that was at f Antioch, certain prophets and teachers; as Barnabas, and Simeon that was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen, which had been brought up with Herod [Or, Herod's fofter brother] the tetrarch, and Saul. miniftred to the Lord, and fafted, the holy 2. As they Ghofst said, Separate exalt not thy felf in the Day of Ho nour: for the Works of the Lord are wonderful, and his Works 2 mong Men are hidden. d e See on Acts 6. 7. † A&s 13. 5, 13. 8. See on A&s 11.27. h. Rom. 16. 21. Timotheus my Work-fellow, and Lucius, and Jafon, and Sofipater my Kinmen Lalute you. 111 Separate me Barnabas and Saul, for the work whereunto I have called them. 3. And when they had fafted and prayed, and laid their hands on them, they fent them away. 4. So they being fent forth by the holy Ghoft, departed unto Seleucia; and from thence they failed to " Cyprus. 5.And when they were at Salamis, they preached the word of God in the fynagogues of the Jews: and they had alfo John to their minifter. 6. And when they had gone through the ifle unto Paphos, they found a certain forcerer, a falfe prophet, a Jew, whofe name was Barjefus: 7Which was with the deputy of the country, Sergius Paulus, a. prudent man, who called for Barnabas and Saul, and defired to hear the word of God. 8. But P Elymas the forcerer (for fo is his name by interpretation) a withstood them, feeking to turn away the deputy from the faith. 9. Then Saul (who alfo is called Paul) filled with the holy Ghoft, fet his eyes on him, 10. And faid, O full of all fubtilty and all mischief, thou child of the devil, thou enemy of all righteoufnels, wilt thou not ceafe to pervert the right ways of the Lord? 11. And now behold, the hand of the Lord is upon thee, and thou fhalt be blind, not feeing the fun for a feafon. And immediately there fell on him a mist and a darkness; and he went about feeking fome to lead him by the hand. 12. Then the deputy when he faw what was See the Note on Acts 6. 6. Acts 4. 36. Jofes, who by the Apostles was firnamed Barnabas, -a Levite, and of the Country. of Cyprus. 15 was Mark. S done, • Acts 8. 9. There was a certain Man named Simon, which before time in the fame City ufed Sorcery, and bewitched the People of Sa maria. s Acts 9.35. All that dwelt at nt Acts 12. 25. Acts 15.20 Lydda and Saron, faw him, and 37. Barnabas determined to take with them John, whofe firname turned to the Lord. b d a done, believed, being aftonished at the doctrine of the Lord. 13. Now when Paul and his company loofed from Paphos, they came to Perga in Pamphilia: and John departing from them, returned to Jerufalem. 14. But when they departed from Perga, they came to Antioch in Pifidia, and went into the fynagogue on the fabbath-day, and fat down. 15. And after the reading of the law and the prophets, the rulers of the fynagogue fent unto them, saying, Yemen and brethren, if ye have any word of Exhortation for the people, fay on. 16. Then Paul ftood up, and beckening with his hand, faid, Men of Ifrael, and ye that (1) fear God, give audience. 17. The God of this people of Ifrael chofe our fathers, and exalted the people when they dwelt as ftrangers in the land of Egypt, and with an high b. Acts 16. 13. On the Sabbath zareth, where he had been brought 43. e Heb. 13. 22. See on Ver f See on A&ts 12. 17. 8 Ver: 42, 43. h Pfal. 147. 19, 20. He fheweth his Word unto Jacob, his Statutes and Judgments unto Ifrael. He hath not dealt fo with any Nati on. 1 i* Exod. I. 1. Now thefe are the Names of the Children of If rael, which came into Egypt, every Man and his Houthold came with Jacob. (1): We meet with thefe Characters, a devout Man, a devout Greek, a religious Profelyte, a Man fearing God, in feveral Places of the Hiftory of the Acts; it may therefore be proper to obferve, that by thefe Characters are defcribed the Profelytes or Converts to the fewith Religion. The Jews therefore are here diftinguifhed by this Title,Men of Ifracl,and the Converts to their Religion, Te that fear God. In the 26th Verfe, the Jews are called Children of the Stock of Abraham, and the Profelytes, Whofover among you feareth God. Of thefe Profelytes they reckoned two forts. Fir Thofe who believed in and worshipped the God of Ifrael, but were not circumcifed Thefe they called Profelytes of the Gate; but notwith standing they accounted them unclean: Such an one Cornelius feems to have been. Secondly, Thofe who embraced the whole Jewish Religion, and were circumcifed, they called Profelytes of the Covenant, and of Righ teousness. Some think the Hellenists or Greeks were of this fort. - 111 high arm brought he them out of it. 18. And about the time of forty years (1) fuffered he their manners in the wildernefs. 19. And when he had deftroyed feven nations in the land of Canaan, he divided their land to them by (2) lot. 20. And after that he gave unto them judges a time turned he his Anger away, and did not ftir up all his Wrath. k+Exod. 6. 6. Say unto the Children of Ifrael, 1 am the Lord, and I will bring you out from under the Burdens of the Egyptians, and I will rid you out of their Bon- 5 dage and I will redeem you with a ftretched out Arm, and with great Judgments. Exod. 13. 14. By trength of Arm the Lord brought us out from Egypt, from the Houfe 15 of Bondage. * Exod. 16. 35. The Children of Ifrael did eat Manna forty years, until they came to a Land inhabited.- Numb. 14. 34. After the 15 Number of the Days in which ye fearched the Land, even forty Days (each Day for a Year) fhall ye bear your Iniquities, even forty Years. Pfal. 95. 10. Forty Years long was I grieved with this Generation. 20 Numb. 14. 22. All thofe Men which have feen my Glory, and my Miracles which I did in Egypt, and in the Wilderness, and 25 have tempted me now thefe ten times, and have not hearkned to my Voice [fhall not fee the Land]. Pfal. 78. 38. He being full of Compaffion, forgave their Iniquity, and destroyed them not; yea, many 30 Deut. 7. 1. When the Lord thy God fhall bring thee into the Land whither thou goeit to poffefs it, and haft caft out many Nations before thee, the Hittites, and the Girgafhites, and the Amorites, and the Canaanites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebufites, feven Nations greater and mightier than thou. • Numb. 26. 54, 55, 56. To many thou fhalt give the more Inheri tance, and to few thou fhalt give the lefs Inheritance: to every one fhall his Inheritance be given, according to those that were numbred of him. Notwithstanding the Land fhall be divided by Lot: according to the Names of the Tribes of their Fathers they fhall inherit. According to the Lot fhall the Poffeffion thereof be divided between many and few. Josh. 14. 2. By Lot was their Inberitance, as the Lord commanded by the Hand of Mofes.- Pfal. 78. 55. He caft out the Heathen alfo before them, and divided them an Inheritance by Line.→→→ * (1) ‡ Gr. ¿tgowopógnov, perhaps for iτgopopógnter, burs, or, fed them, as a Nurfe beareth or feedeth her Child; Deut 1. 13. 2 Mac. 7. 27. according to the Septuag. and so Chryfoft. (2) If it be asked, how is the Dividing of the Land of Canaan by Lot confiftent with the Equality required, Numb 26. 54. To many thou shalt give the more Inheritance, and to few thou fhalt give the lefs Inheritance? I anfwer: The moft likely account of this Matter feems to be this; The feveral Borders or Provinces of the whole Land were affigned to the feveral Tribes by Lot; and the general Divifion being thus made, the Extent of Ground each Tribe was to poffefs, was measured according to the Number of Perfons it confifted of. And to this fecond Divifion the Pfalmift may refer, Pfal 78. 55. He divided them an Inheritance by Line. b judges, about the fpace of four hundred and fifty years, until Samuel the prophet. 21. And afterward they def red a king and God gave unto them Saul the fon of Cis, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, by the space of forty years. 22. And when he had removed him, he raifed up unto them David to be their king; to whom alfo he gave teftimony, and faid, I have found David, the son of Jenie, a man after mine own heart, which fhall fulfil all my will 23. Of this mans feed hath God according to his promife raifed unto Ifrael a Saviour Jefus: 24. When John had first preached before his coming, the baptifm of repentance to all the people of Ifrael 25. And as John fulfilled his courfe, he faid, Whom think ye that I am? I am not he But behold, there cometh one after me, whose fhoes of i feet I am not worthy to loofe. 26. Men and brethren, children of the flock of Abraham, and whofoever among you feareth God, to you is the word of this falvation fent. 27. For they that dwell at Jerufalem, and their rulers, be Judg. 2. 16. The Lord raifed -up Judges, which delivered them yout of the Hand of them that fpoiled them. Judg. 3.9. When the Children of Ifrael cried unto the Lord, the Lord raised up a Deliverer W h ป. caufe came upon David, from that Day forward. Pfal. 89. 20. I have found David my Servant, with my holy Oyl have I anointed him. 5ft1 Sam. 13. 14. -The Lord hath fought a Man after his own Heart, and the Lord hath commanded him to be Captain over his People b1 Sam. 8. 5 Behold thou art -old, and thy Sons walk not in thy W Vays: now make us a King to 10 judge us like the Nations. C. ti Sam. 1o. 1: Samuel took a Vial of Oyl, and poured it upon his [Sauls] Head, and kiffed him, and faid, Is it not because the Lord 15 hath anointed thee to be Captain 0ver his Inheritance? Hof. 13.11. I gave thee a King in mine Anger, and took him away in my Wrath. 1 Sam. 15. 28. Samuel faid 20 unto him, The Lord hath rent the Kingdom of Ifrael from thee this . Day, and hath given it to a Neighbour of thine, that is better than thou. e, * 1 Sam. 16. 13. Then Samuel took the Horn of Oyl, and anointed him in the midft of his Brethren and the Spirit of the Lord 25 1 See on Mat. 1.1. and Acts 2.30. h See on A&ts 2. 30. and Luk. 24.27. - d Mat. 3. 1. See on Mar. 1.4. † Mat. 3. 11.-He that com eth after me is mightier than I, whofe Shoes I am not worthy to bear † Luk. 3. 16. -One mightier than I cometh, the Latchet of whofe Shoes I am not worthy to unloofe.- "Joh. 1. 20, 26, 27. He confeffed, and denied not; but confeffed I am not the Chrift. -I baptize with Water: bot there ftandeth one among you,whom after ye know not, he it is who coming me, is preferred before me, whofe Shoes latchet I am not worthy loofe. 1 Mat. 10. 6. on ver. 46. to un A&s3.26. See |