Chapter 11

1 Peter, being accused for going in to the Gentiles, 5 maketh his defence, 18 which is accepted. 19 The gospel being spread into Phenice, and Cyprus, and Antioch, Barnabas is sent to confirm them. 26 The disciples there are first called Christians. 27They send relief to the brethren in Judaea in time of famine.

1. In Judaea. Or, “throughout Judea.” The context implies that while Peter remained at Caesarea the news of his contact with Cornelius traveled widely, first probably to Joppa and Lydda, and then to Jerusalem.

The Gentiles. This must have been shocking to the Jerusalem church. As far as is known, this was the first time that uncircumcised Gentiles had been baptized and received into the church.

2. To Jerusalem. Which was still the headquarters (see on ch. 8:14).

Of the circumcision. There is no indication that this expression describes a particular class of Jewish Christians, for all Christians were either Jews or proselytes at the time these events occurred. Therefore the protest must have come from the whole church. However, Luke’s narrative was written at a later time, when those who were “of the circumcision” had become a distinct party, and when their influence was working a definite division in the Christian congregations. Therefore Luke’s employment of the expression must be taken as significant. See on v. 3.

Those who had been born Jews, and who had neither heard of Peter’s vision nor seen the gift of the Holy Ghost poured out upon Cornelius and his household, are to be pardoned if their scruples caused them to challenge Peter’s conduct. When these had heard his story they were satisfied (see v. 18), but many Jewish Christians elsewhere continued to make this a matter of contention (see Acts 15:1; Gal. 2:11–14).

Contended. Gr. diakrinoµ, “to separate,” “to doubt,” “to hesitate”; “to make a difference,” “to discriminate”; “to oppose,” “to contend with” (see chs. 10:20; 11:12; 15:9). Here it means that they separated themselves from Peter in a hostile sense, opposed him, disputed with him. The contenders insisted that the difference between Jew and Gentile should still be maintained. That is, that Christians should hold fellowship only with those who had become proselytes to Judaism and gave due obedience to the ritual law. Cornelius had not been received into the fellowship of the Jews in Caesarea (see ch. 10:2), and the active Judaizing sentiment in the church would tend to prevent his being accepted into the Christian community. The prejudice that had grown up among the Jews through generations of ceremonial observance makes this comprehensible. An entire nation is not brought to a radical change of feeling in a short period of time.

Incidentally, the fact that Peter could be militantly challenged demonstrates that he was not considered the head of the church, nor the “chief of the apostles,” and certainly not infallible.

3. Wentest in. See on ch. 10:28.

Men uncircumcised. This expression, as used by a Jew, was the essence of scorn. Indeed, it shows the strength of feeling that had arisen against Peter. The men with whom he had mixed are not called Gentiles, but “the uncircumcised,” words of profound reproach in the mouth of a pious Jew.

Didst eat. Peter had eaten with men among whom there would ordinarily be no regard as to kinds of food and ways in which it was prepared—things very important to the Jew. This charge was the real issue. Compare the Pharisees’ accusations against Christ (Luke 5:30; 15:1, 2; etc.). The Jewish attitude in regard to eating with Gentiles is strikingly revealed by a passage in the book of Jubilees, probably from the late 3d century b.c.:

“And do thou, my son Jacob, remember my words,

And observe the commandments of Abraham, thy father:

Separate thyself from the nations,

And eat not with them”(22:16; in R. H. Charles,The Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha of the Old Testament, vol. 2, p. 46).

4. Peter rehearsed the matter. Rather, “began and set forth the matter.” The almost word-for-word repetition of the narrative of ch. 10 in ch. 11 appears at first inconsistent with Luke’s skill in literary composition. Some commentators offer the explanation that Luke obtained the first account from the disciples he met at Caesarea, and the second from those at Jerusalem, and realized that their similarity confirmed the incident. Luke does the same with the narratives of Paul’s experience at Damascus (chs. 9; 22; 26), leaving the slight variations as proof of independent accounts, and as the testimony of different witnesses.

For fuller comment on the story that follows in vs. 5–17 see on ch. 10:9–48. In the comment on ch. 11:5–17 attention will be given only to those points not discussed under ch. 10. The variations in the narrative, as given in chs. 10; 11, are few and of little importance.

5. It came even to me. There is a vivid touch of personal recollection in the description of the sheet coming “even to me,” that is, toward me; it not only came down, but moved forward to Peter.

6. I considered. Or, “I was pondering.” Another vivid detail. The apostle recalls the intense, eager gaze with which he had looked on the strange vision.

9. Call not thou common. The admonition is directed at Peter’s judgment of men, not of beasts (see on ch. 10:28).

10. Drawn up again. A somewhat more vivid description than that in the parallel account in ch. 10:16.

11. Where I was. Textual evidence is divided (cf. p. 10) between this and the reading “where we were,” including his six companions in the statement.

12. The Spirit bade me. Guided by the Spirit, Peter had raised no contention, as those “of the circumcision” were now doing. These were challenging what the Spirit had led Peter to do.

Nothing doubting. Textual evidence maybe cited (cf. p. 10) for the omission of these words.

These six brethren. They had been his companions on the journey to Caesarea, and Peter had brought them to Jerusalem, that their statement might support his account, and that they might declare to the church what they had witnessed.

14. Shall be saved. The words are not found in the report of the angel’s speech in ch. 10:4–6, but are implied in it. Cornelius longed for salvation, and when he was told, in answer to his prayer, to send for a certain one who could speak to him, he knew he would hear of the way of salvation.

15. I began. The Holy Spirit was ready to act upon Cornelius and his family as soon as everyone involved was prepared psychologically and spiritually to appreciate what was to happen. The opening words of Peter’s sermon (ch. 10:34–43) doubtless brought his hearers to this point. So the Spirit is ever ready to bless, when men are ready to receive Him.

At the beginning. That is, at the Feast of Pentecost. These words of defense were spoken to fellow apostles and disciples who had shared in the Pentecostal gift. Peter testified that what he witnessed at Caesarea was no less certainly the Spirit’s work than what the disciples had experienced at the first.

16. Remembered I. What a wonderful experience it must have been to have the Spirit call to their minds the things Jesus Christ had taught them! This is what Christ had promised would happen (see John 14:26).

The word of the Lord. The special promise referred to was that recorded in ch. 1:5 concerning the baptism by the Holy Spirit. When it was given, the promise had seemed to the disciples to refer only to them. Now Peter saw the gift of the Spirit in a broader perspective, as one to be bestowed also on those who were not of Israel. Since the baptism of the Holy Spirit was given to them also, therefore, as the greater includes the lesser, they also were admissible to the baptism of water.

17. Like. Literally, “equal.” They were, equally with the Christian Jews, recipients of the Holy Spirit.

Who believed. Literally, “having believed,” definitely and finally. The words refer alike to “them” and to “us.” Thus the two cases are made parallel, as in v. 15. For just as the faith of Peter and the apostles existed before the gift of the Spirit, so with Cornelius and his companions there existed, before the gift, a measure of faith (see on ch. 10:35). The measure of faith was sufficient in their case to qualify them for greater gifts, and their acceptability for baptism and for fellowship with the church became evident.

What was I? The clause reads literally, “I, who was I? Able to withstand God?” That is, how was I, being such a one as I am, able to withstand God?

18. Held their peace, and glorified. Or, “held their peace, and began glorifying.” The difference in tense of the two Greek verbs indicates that they first “held their peace,” and then began a continuous utterance of praise. However, important textual evidence may be cited (cf. p. 10) for the reading “glorified,” with the same tense as “held their peace.” The fact that Cornelius and his household received the Spirit of God was obviously of immense importance as bearing on the question soon to arise between Paul and the Judaizers (see Acts 15; Gal. 2). The Spirit led in the first step in the free admission of Gentiles into the church at the hands of Peter, and the formal approval of the apostles and the other Jewish Christians of Jerusalem was added.

To the Gentiles. The Jews thought very highly of themselves, as if God’s blessings had been designed for them only, and ill of other nations. “Thou madest the world for our sakes,” says the book of Esdras. “As for the other people … thou hast said that they are nothing, but be like unto spittle. … These heathen … have ever been reputed as nothing” (2 Esdras 6:55–57). The expected Messiah was to save the Jews and make them a glorious people, but was to destroy all other nations or to enslave them to the Jews. To free the growing Christian church from this arrogant the Lord made the singular display of His Spirit on Cornelius and those with him.

The lesson that the church learned in the experience of Cornelius was that God designed that the “middle wall of partition” (Eph. 2:14) between Jews and Gentiles was to be broken down. Paul knew that the gospel of Christ must accomplish this breaking down. The typical ceremonies were brought to an end in Christ’s death. His saving grace and divine strength, imparted to the believer and enabling him to keep the law, remove the law’s condemnation from the sinner (Rom. 8:1–4). Since both Jew and Gentile benefit from this, there is no difference: all are condemned; all are saved who believe (Gal. 3:27–29); Col. 3:10, 11). Both groups are reconciled to God and brought into harmony with the heavenly Father (Eph. 2:11–22).

This is the “mystery” now revealed (Eph. 3:1–12). The grace of God had rested upon Israel in the flesh. They had not recognized that He intended it to extend also to the nations. Now in Christ all is made plain. The Gentiles may enter into the “fellowship of the mystery” (Eph. 3:9 of righteousness, which includes all in the same great plan of salvation.

Granted repentance. God gives repentance. Faith is the gift of God (Rom. 12:3), and so is the repentance that follows it (Rom. 2:4; 2 Tim. 2:25). Through His Spirit God had given these Gentiles not only the opportunity for, but the experience of, repentance. Changed in heart (cf. Jer. 24:7; Eze. 11:19; 36:26), repentant and forgiven, they were accepted of God. How, indeed, could Peter withstand God?

19. Scattered abroad. What now follows is a continuation of ch. 8:1–4. There has been a digression to tell the story of Philip’s work with the Samaritans and the Ethiopian, of Saul’s with the Cilicians, and of Peter’s with Cornelius and his household. This digression prepares the reader for the narrative that now follows, which tells of the conversion of Greeks to the gospel.

Persecution. Or, “tribulation.” Reference is to the persecution in which Saul had taken an active part (see chs. 8:1; 9:1, 2).

About Stephen. The death of the martyr was followed, as ch. 8:1–4 shows, by a fanatical outburst against the Christians in Jerusalem. This resulted in a dispersion of many believers. Philip labored in Samaria and Caesarea. Others went to Phoenicia, to the cities of Tyre, Sidon, and Ptolemais, and were probably instrumental in founding the churches mentioned in chs. 21:3–7; 27:3. In Cyprus the way was prepared for the later work of Barnabas and Saul (see ch. 13:4–13), See Persecution and Expansion of the Early Church.

As far as Phenice. That is, Phoenicia, the district in which were the important cities of Tyre and Sidon (see Vol. II, pp. 67-69).

Cyprus. See on ch. 13:4.

Antioch. Here is the first-mentioned contact between the infant Christian church and the capital of Syria. Following Rome, Alexandria, and Ephesus, Antioch was the greatest city of the Roman Empire, and long a chief Christian center. Perhaps Nicolas, the proselyte of Antioch (ch. 6:5), had returned to proclaim his new faith. The entrance of Christianity there was of great importance. Located on the Orontes River, some 15 mi. (24 km.) inland from the port of Seleucia, Antioch, founded by Seleucus I Nicator about 300 b.c. and named after his father Antiochus, had grown in wealth and importance to be the leading city of Asia. The world acclaimed its men of letters and literature. To one of them, Archias, Cicero made a famous oration. Juvenal recognized the influence of Antioch upon Roman life and taste by declaring: “What fraction of our dregs come from Greece? The Syrian Orontes has long since poured into the Tiber, bringing with it its lingo and its manners, its flutes and its slanting harpstrings” (Satires iii. 62–64; Loeb ed., p. 37).

Antioch had a large colony of Jews, in honor of whom Herod the Great built a marble colonnade that ran the length of the city. Antioch was headquarters for the Roman prefect, or propraetor, of Syria. Christianity found itself at Antioch in closer contact with Greek culture than at Jerusalem or Caesarea. Here also it encountered heathenism in its most tempting and debasing forms. Its groves to Daphne were famous for their voluptuous, idolatrous worship. It was an amazing victory that the church was able to make Antioch one of its principal headquarters.

To none but unto the Jews only. Or, “to no one but Jews.” This, of course, was to be expected from those who had left Jerusalem before the conversion of Cornelius had occurred, or had become generally known. They had not been informed, as had Peter, that the time had come to carry out Christ’s prophetic command to its fullest extent (ch. 1:8). The singling out of the Jews is apparently noted in contrast both with the preceding narrative concerning Peter and Cornelius and with the following statement of missionary labors.

20. Men of Cyprus and Cyrene. In the case of these men, with their more cosmopolitan background, there was probably less hesitation about mixing with Gentiles than there was among the Jews of Palestine, the home of the Jewish nation and the stronghold of their prejudices. Who these men were we can only conjecture: possibly Lucius of Cyrene, who appears in the list of prophets in ch. 13:1; possibly Simon of Cyrene, who, there is reason to think, was a disciple of Christ (see on Matt. 27:32; see Mark 15:21). The founders of the church in Antioch must remain unknown.

To Antioch. See on v. 19.

Spake. The tense of the Greek verb used here implies that they began to speak and continued speaking.

Grecians. Textual evidence is divided (cf. p. 10) mainly between two readings: Helleµnistai, Greek-speaking Jews, or, more broadly, “Greek speakers,” and Helleµnai, Greeks by descent—or, more loosely in the NT, Gentiles—the weight of evidence inclining slightly in favor of the former. If we accept Helleµnistai, as the KJV does, then we must suppose that the stress is upon the fact that the evangelists, instead of speaking to the Jews at large (many of whom, being Syrians, would speak Aramaic), preached especially to the Greek-speaking Jews and proselytes. If so, they followed in Stephen’s footsteps, and indirectly prepared the way for Paul; for the Helleµnestai were, as a body, the link between the Jews, as a race, and the Helleµnai, who were Gentiles.

On the whole, however, other evidence tips the scale in favor of the reading, Helleµnai, Greeks (Gentiles). Several reasons support this reading: (1) Since the Helleµnistai were Jews, Luke would naturally include them among the Jews of v. 19, and so there would be no contrast indicated by their mention in v. 20. Luke would scarcely have had occasion to call attention to the fact that the preaching at Antioch was to Helleµnistai, Greek Jews, for there was a large number of them already in the church at Jerusalem (see ch. 6:1), and probably these Grecian and Cyprian teachers were themselves Greek Jews. But special mention by Luke is appropriate if they began preaching to the Helleµnai, that is, Greeks (Gentiles), in Antioch. (2) The contrast thus drawn between Jews and Helleµnai is an entirely natural one (see chs. 14:1; 18:4), and if the word Helleµnai is the true reading, here is a needed note of progress. Later references clearly imply the presence of Gentile Christians in Antioch of Syria (ch. 15:1, 28–31; AA 155–161, 188). (3) Also, if these were Helleµnai, they may not have been entirely heathen idolaters when they were converted. Perhaps, like Cornelius, some of them already feared God (see on ch. 10:2), and were attending the services of the synagogue (cf. the Corinthians, Acts 18:4).

Whether the conversion of the Helleµnai in this chapter preceded or followed the conversion of Cornelius cannot be known—the data are insufficient to provide an answer. It seems probable that the work went on at Antioch for many months among the Hellenistic and other Jews, and that the men of Cyprus and Cyrene arrived after the experience with Cornelius had set in motion forces that brought about the removal of restraints against reaching non-Jews.

Preaching. See on ch. 10:36.

21. Hand of the Lord. The expression is a common one in the OT for the direct interposition of God in the affairs of the world. See Ex. 14:31: “And Israel saw that great work [Heb. yad, “hand”] which the Lord did upon the Egyptians.” Compare the statement of the Egyptians magicians: “This is the finger of God” (Ex. 8:19). The expression makes vivid the truth of a very personal God.

A great number believed. Here is a further record of phenomenal increase in the church. See chs. 2:47; 4:4; 5:14; 6:7; 8:6, 12; see on chs. 9:31; 11:24.

22. Tidings of these things. Or, “the report concerning them,” that is, concerning these converts at Antioch. If, as is probable, the new converts were Gentiles, the apparently favorable reception that the news of their conversion received at Jerusalem was doubtless due to the acceptance that probably already had been accorded to Cornelius.

Church … in Jerusalem. See on ch. 8:14.

Persecution and Expansion, c. A.D. 34–c. A.D. 45

Sent forth Barnabas. To strengthen the work at Antioch and to give it the approval and direction of the church in Jerusalem, even as Peter and John had been sent into Samaria (ch. 8:14). Perhaps the choice fell upon Barnabas because he was known to sympathize with the work going on in Antioch. He was a friend of Saul, whom he had introduced to certain of the disciples at Jerusalem (ch. 9:27), and he must have known of Saul’s convictions and hopes regarding the Gentiles. Therefore he would welcome the opportunity to work in the same way. The fact that he was of the same country as some of the missionaries working in Antioch would further qualify him.

That he should go. Textual evidence favors (cf. p. 10) the omission of this expression.

As far as Antioch. Barnabas may have visited other congregations on the way to Antioch.

23. Grace of God. For comment see on Rom. 3:24.

Was glad. Barnabas saw in the new work only that which would call for his approval, and the fact that more members were being added to the church was a source of deep joy to him. In fact, the whole Christian experience and program should at all times be one of continuous and undiminished rejoicing.

Exhorted. Or, “began exhorting.” The tense may be understood to imply the beginning of continuous action.

Purpose. Barnabas wished them to be able to say, with the psalmist, “My heart is fixed” (Ps. 57:7; Ps. 108:1).

Cleave unto the Lord. Allegiance must be to Jesus Christ Himself, and must remain in Him “with purpose of heart,” as is indicated in the preceding phrase. Barnabas had seen the result of the operation of God’s grace upon those of Antioch, but he knew, as every true pastor knows, that man’s will, or lack of it, can frustrate that grace. “Once saved, always saved” is not true; men backslide and apostatize, and the cooperation of man’s will is necessary to bring the work of sanctification to completion.

24. Good. Or, “upright” (see Luke 18:18, 19). Applied to Barnabas, this was high praise, and no doubt expressed Luke’s personal opinion of the man. He was perhaps careful to put this recommendation into the record because he would shortly have to narrate the contention that was to separate Barnabas from Luke’s own friend and fellow worker, Saul of Tarsus (Acts 15:39).

Full of the Holy Ghost. A man of character like Barnabas, eminent among the Greek Jews of Antioch, would have a great influence among both Jews and Greeks in the city. The same qualification is given for Stephen (ch. 6:5). It was in consequence of the persecution following Stephen’s death that the preachers had come to Antioch. Some of them may have been Grecians who had been active in the work for which Stephen was martyred.

Much people. Literally, “a great multitude,” implying a large increase over the work related in v. 21. The approval of the church in Jerusalem on what was being done, as expressed in the joy and encouragement of Barnabas, “the son of exhortation,” would increase the zeal of these earnest workers for Christ.

25. Barnabas to Tarsus. This is significant. It presupposes that Saul would approve the work that was going forward in Antioch, and shows the confidence of Barnabas that Saul was the right person to aid in the work there. It implies, too, that some intercourse had been maintained with Saul by letter or messenger since his departure from Jerusalem. Saul, it is to be inferred, had remained in and around Tarsus, preaching the gospel there and in the neighboring towns of Cilicia (see pp. 101, 102; see on ch. 15:41).

To seek Saul. Literally, “to hunt up Saul.” He to whom the Lord had appeared, and who had been marked as a “chosen vessel” (ch. 9:15) to carry the name of Christ to the Gentiles, was now asked to join Barnabas in this new work of preaching to the Gentiles at Antioch. Doubtless having already heard of the operation of the power of God there, Saul accepted the invitation.

26. A whole year. Unlike preceding instances, here the length of time is given with exactness. Saul had preached at Damascus and at Jerusalem with his life in his hands, so to speak. With the church at Antioch he found a degree of quiet and a wide scope of opportunity suited to his earnestness.

With the church. Or, “in the church.” Not in the church building—buildings were not in the possession of the church until the 3d century—but in the congregations. Those interested met with the believers and were incorporated into the body of the church as rapidly as they fully accepted the gospel message.

Taught much people. See on vs. 21, 24.

Were called Christians. Rather, “received the name of Christians.” The Roman emperor Julian, called the Apostate (a.d. 361–363), noted that the tendency to invent nicknames as a form of satire characterized the population of Antioch in his time. The same tendency doubtless prevailed at the time of the first appearance of Christianity. The first syllable of the word Christian is from the Greek Christos, “Christ,” while the ending is essentially Latin, and comparable to such words as Pompeiani, the followers of Pompey, and other party names. Similarly in the Gospels appears an analogous term, Herodians (Herodianai; Matt. 22:16), which apparently reflects Roman association. Possibly also, the name was given in ridicule to Christians by the heathen, somewhat as the term Lutherani was used derisively 15 centuries later by the enemies of Luther’s followers.

Apparently the disciples of Christ did not give the name to themselves; and since the use of it would imply that those who bore it were followers of the Messiah, the Christ, it is certain that it would not be given to them by the Jews. The reason for the new term is apparent. When these new Gentile converts joined the church at Antioch, none of the former names would embrace the entire cosmopolitan body. They were no longer all Nazarenes or Galileans or Greek Jews, and in the eyes of the people of Antioch they must have seemed a strange mixture. Therefore, the hybrid term “Christians,” a Greek word with a Latin termination, would seem to fit them. At a later time, what had been at first a taunt became a name in which to glory: “If any man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed” (1 Peter 4:16).

Tradition, however, ascribes the origin of the name to Euodius, the first bishop of Antioch. Ignatius, the successor of Euodius as leader of the church there, used it frequently.

27. In these days. See Additional Notes on Chapter 12, Note 2.

Came prophets. A fulfillment of the prophecy of Joel, referred to by Peter in his Pentecostal sermon (ch. 2:17), that there should be prophets in the infant church (see Acts 13:1, 2; Eph. 2:20). We cannot, however, gather from NT records a clear description of what this office of the “prophets” was. They were men who possessed a gift of the Spirit, who were sometimes occupied in preaching and explaining the Word of God, and sometimes had the power of foretelling future events, as Agabus did here (see Acts 13:1; 15:32; 19:6; 21:9, 10; Rom. 12:6; 1 Cor. 12:10, 28, 29; 13:2; 14:6, 29–37). The mission of the prophets must obviously be taken as a further approval given by the church at Jerusalem to the work that Saul and Barnabas were carrying on at Antioch.

28. Agabus. The same prophet appears later in the narrative at Caesarea (ch. 21:10, 11).

Signified by the Spirit. Compare the statement of ch. 21:11.

Great dearth. This famine is probably that mentioned by Josephus (Antiquities xx. 2. 5), who tells how Helena, queen of Adiabene, east of the Tigris, while visiting at Jerusalem helped the people by obtaining for them corn from Alexandria and dried figs from Cyprus. This famine may be seen as a partial fulfillment of Jesus’ prophecy in Matt. 24:7. For its bearing on NT chronology see pp. 98, 100; Additional Notes on ch. 12, Note 1.

World. Gr. oikoumeneµ, a word referring to the inhabited earth. In Luke 2:1; 4:5, and elsewhere in the NT, it is used for the Roman Empire.

Claudius Caesar. Textual evidence attests (cf. p. 10) the omission of “Caesar.” The reign of Claudius lasted from a.d. 41 to 54, which period was memorable for frequent famines (Suetonius Claudius xviii. 2; Tacitus Annals xii. 43).

29. Then the disciples. That is, the church of Antioch.

According to his ability. Literally, “as each prospered.” Apparently the collection was made, in consequence of the prophecy, before the famine itself came. Undoubtedly Saul and Barnabas were active in stirring up the Gentiles to support this charity. It was the first of those collections for the “poor saints … at Jerusalem” (Rom. 15:25, 26) that were afterward so prominent in Paul’s labors (cf. Acts 24:17; 1 Cor. 16:1; 2 Cor. 9; Gal. 2:10), and that the apostle regarded as a bond of union between the Jewish and the Gentile sections of the church. The liberality of the converts in Jerusalem in the glory of their first love (Acts 2:45), together with their subsequent persecution (ch. 8:1), probably had left them more exposed than most others to the pressure of poverty. Thus when the famine came it may have found them to a great extent dependent on the help of churches located in areas not affected by the famine. The church at Antioch set a worthy example for other churches.

30. Elders. Gr. presbuteroi, “older [men],” and so “elders,” “presbyters.” This is the first notice of such officers in the Christian church. They were probably not the apostles, for elders are mentioned separately from apostles in ch. 15:2, 4, 6. Henceforth they appear as a prominent element of church organization. The term “elder,” and to a considerable extent the office in the church to which it referred, had backgrounds in both Gentile and Jewish life. Papyri from Egypt show that the “elders” played an important role in the economic life of local villagers. Thus appeals were made to them in questions regarding the renting of land and the payment of taxes (see J. H. Moulton and G. Milligan, The Vocabulary of the Greek Testament, p. 535). In Asia Minor the term was used for the members of a corporation, and in Egypt, for the priests of a temple (see A. Deissmann, Bible Studies, pp. 156, 233). In Jewish life “elder” (presbuteros) was used to designate the leader of a local synagogue, as is shown by the Theodotus Inscription (see on ch. 6:9). It was also used for lay members (Heb. zeqenim) of the Sanhedrin (see on ch. 4:5). The term thus lay ready at hand for the Christian church to adopt for their officers who held the primary responsibilities in their local congregations. In addition to these local responsibilities, the elders in the church at Jerusalem may also have occupied a position somewhat analogous to that of the zeqenim in the Jewish Sanhedrin, inasmuch as they, with the apostles, are seen in ch. 15 to have had some authority beyond the limits of their own congregation. In the present instance it was to them that the funds collected at Antioch were sent for distribution to those in need, by the hands of Barnabas and Saul.

In the early church the elder was also known as an episkopos, meaning “overseer,” a word that has come into English as “bishop.” Although historically, at least since the 3d century a.d., the terms “presbyter” (elder) and “bishop” have represented two different officers of the church, the evidence of the NT indicates clearly that in apostolic times the two terms referred to the same official (cf. 1 Tim. 3:2–7 with Titus 1:5–9; see on Acts 20:28; cf. Phil. 1:1). Clement of Rome (c. a.d. 96) appears to equate the two (Epistle to the Corinthians 44), and Chrysostom (d. a.d. 407) declared, “In olden times the elders were called overseers [or bishops] and ministers [or deacons] of Christ, and the overseers, elders” (First Homily on Epistle to the Corinthians 1, in Migne, Patrologia Graeca, vol. 62, col. 183).

According to Jame’s epistle one of the duties of an elder is visiting the sick, praying to the Lord for their restoration to health, and anointing them with oil for healing (ch. 5:14). For a discussion of later developments in the offices of elder and bishop see pp. 26, 38–43.

Ellen G. White comments

1–4AA 141; SR 290

12 AA 137; SR 290

15–17AA 141; SR 290

17 AA 193

18 AA 142; SR 291

19 AA 155

20 AA 166

20–25AA 156

21,24 SR 301

26 AA 157; SR 302

27–306T 271