NOTES for Act 8:26-40
26 And the angel of the Lord spake unto Philip, saying, Arise, and go toward the south unto the way that goeth down from Jerusalem unto Gaza, which is desert. |
27 And he arose and went: and, behold, a man of Ethiopia, an eunuch of great authority under Candace queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her treasure, and had come to Jerusalem for to worship, |
28 Was returning, and sitting in his chariot read Esaias the prophet. |
29 Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this chariot. |
30 And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest? |
31 And he said, How can I, except some man should guide me? And he desired Philip that he would come up and sit with him. |
32 The place of the scripture which he read was this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and like a lamb dumb before his shearer, so opened he not his mouth: |
33 In his humiliation his judgment was taken away: and who shall declare his generation? for his life is taken from the earth. |
34 And the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this? of himself, or of some other man? |
35 Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus. |
36 And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized? |
37 And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. |
38 And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him. |
39 And when they were come up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, that the eunuch saw him no more: and he went on his way rejoicing. |
40 But Philip was found at Azotus: and passing through he preached in all the cities, till he came to Caesarea. |
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In the story of the conversion of the Ethiopian official, what seems important is how "independent" it is, how much God (and His servant Philip) respects this person's freedom. After all, no one forced the eunuch to read the prophecies about Christ; he himself began to seek the Lord, and he himself wanted to be baptized. Philip's function is reduced mainly to bearing witness to what these words of the prophet Isaiah, or all of Scripture, or his meeting with Jesus, mean in his life, and also to baptism, which can be administered only by someone who is already among Christ's disciples. Historically, Christians have not always known how to keep the balance between their calling to mission and respect for human freedom. Either they began baptizing others "with fire and sword," or they declared that "religion is everyone's personal affair" and stopped bearing witness to their faith. But, as we see from today's reading, these two components (the personal desire to meet God and the testimony of someone who already believes) work only together and bear the best fruit.
Other notes
For Act 8:26-40
26 And the angel of the Lord spake unto Philip, saying, Arise, and go toward the south unto the way that goeth down from Jerusalem unto Gaza, which is desert. |
27 And he arose and went: and, behold, a man of Ethiopia, an eunuch of great authority under Candace queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her treasure, and had come to Jerusalem for to worship, |
28 Was returning, and sitting in his chariot read Esaias the prophet. |
29 Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this chariot. |
30 And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest? |
31 And he said, How can I, except some man should guide me? And he desired Philip that he would come up and sit with him. |
32 The place of the scripture which he read was this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and like a lamb dumb before his shearer, so opened he not his mouth: |
33 In his humiliation his judgment was taken away: and who shall declare his generation? for his life is taken from the earth. |
34 And the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this? of himself, or of some other man? |
35 Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus. |
36 And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized? |
37 And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. |
38 And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him. |
39 And when they were come up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, that the eunuch saw him no more: and he went on his way rejoicing. |
40 But Philip was found at Azotus: and passing through he preached in all the cities, till he came to Caesarea. |
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For Act 8:26-39
26 And the angel of the Lord spake unto Philip, saying, Arise, and go toward the south unto the way that goeth down from Jerusalem unto Gaza, which is desert. |
27 And he arose and went: and, behold, a man of Ethiopia, an eunuch of great authority under Candace queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her treasure, and had come to Jerusalem for to worship, |
28 Was returning, and sitting in his chariot read Esaias the prophet. |
29 Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this chariot. |
30 And Philip ran thither to him, and heard him read the prophet Esaias, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest? |
31 And he said, How can I, except some man should guide me? And he desired Philip that he would come up and sit with him. |
32 The place of the scripture which he read was this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and like a lamb dumb before his shearer, so opened he not his mouth: |
33 In his humiliation his judgment was taken away: and who shall declare his generation? for his life is taken from the earth. |
34 And the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this? of himself, or of some other man? |
35 Then Philip opened his mouth, and began at the same scripture, and preached unto him Jesus. |
36 And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized? |
37 And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. |
38 And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him. |
39 And when they were come up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, that the eunuch saw him no more: and he went on his way rejoicing. |
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Readings for 18 October 2025
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