[The posts which follow make extensive use of The Acts of the Apostles, by Madame Cecilia, (Religious of St Andrew's Convent, Streatham), with an Imprimi potest dated 16 October 1907 (Westminster); Burns, Oates & Washbourne Ltd. (London). With grateful prayers for the author and her team:
REQUIEM æternam dona eis, Domine, et lux perpetua luceat eis. Requiescant in pace. Amen.ETERNAL rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. May they rest in peace. Amen.]
Acts IV : 13-22
 |
| What shall we do to these men? [verse 16] J-J Tissot |
[14] Seeing the man also who had been healed standing with them, they could say nothing against it.
[15] But they commanded them to go aside out of the council; and they conferred among themselves,
[16] Saying: What shall we do to these men? for indeed a known miracle hath been done by them, to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem: it is manifest, and we cannot deny it.
[17] But that it may be no farther spread among the people, let us threaten them that they speak no more in this name to any man.
[18] And calling them, they charged them not to speak at all, nor teach in the name of Jesus.
[19] But Peter and John answering, said to them: If it be just in the sight of God, to hear you rather than God, judge ye.
[20] For we cannot but speak the things which we have seen and heard.
[21] But they threatening, sent them away, not finding how they might punish them, because of the people; for all men glorified what had been done, in that which had come to pass.
[22] For the man was above forty years old, in whom that miraculous cure had been wrought.
[13] Videntes autem Petri constantiam, et Joannis, comperto quod homines essent sine litteris, et idiotae, admirabantur, et cognoscebant eos quoniam cum Jesu fuerant : [14] hominem quoque videntes stantem cum eis, qui curatus fuerat, nihil poterant contradicere. [15] Jusserunt autem eos foras extra concilium secedere : et conferebant ad invicem, [16] dicentes : Quid faciemus hominibus istis? quoniam quidem notum signum factum est per eos, omnibus habitantibus Jerusalem : manifestum est, et non possumus negare. [17] Sed ne amplius divulgetur in populum, comminemur eis, ne ultra loquantur in nomine hoc ulli hominum. [18] Et vocantes eos, denuntiaverunt ne omnino loquerentur, neque docerent in nomine Jesu. [19] Petrus vero et Joannes respondentes, dixerunt ad eos : Si justum est in conspectu Dei, vos potius audire quam Deum, judicate. [20] Non enim possumus quae vidimus et audivimus non loqui. [21] At illi comminantes dimiserunt eos : non invenientes quomodo punirent eos propter populum, quia omnes clarificabant id quod factum fuerat in eo quod acciderat. [22] Annorum enim erat amplius quadraginta homo, in quo factum fuerat signum istud sanitatis.
Notes
13. constancy. Better, ‘‘boldness” (παρρησιαν). See Annot. on ii. 29.
and of John. Either St John had also spoken, and thus shewed his constancy, or it was manifested by his countenance and attitude.
understanding. The verb in the original (καταλαβομενοι) is used with reference to that which has been discovered by investigation.
Cf. Yet have I found (i.e. discovered nothing) .... worthy of death (infra, xxv. 25). Since the preceding evening, the rulers had had time to make enquiries. The words do not necessarily prove that the apostles betrayed their lack of education by their speech or manner, as “illiterate” here means one who was not versed in the Jewish Law like the scribes.
ignorant. (Gk. (ἰδιωται). The word designated lay persons as distinct from those who followed any profession. It does not necessarily imply an unlearned man. From this Greek word we derive our word “ idiot,” which is an example of a word degenerating in meaning.
they knew them. Better, “ they were recognizing them.” The verb is in the imperfect (ἐπιγιυωσκον). A Bezan text reads “ some of them recognized them.” The Sadducees did not come in contact with our Lord so much as the Pharisees, who watched His movements closely, and must have known His disciples by sight, for Jesus, surrounded by His apostles, had disputed with the Sadducees in the Temple during Holy Week concerning the resurrection of the dead. Also St John was known to the high-priest (St John xviii. 15), and had procured admission for St Peter into the court of the high-spriest, so that it is possible that those Sadducees, who were members of the Sanhedrin, saw these two followers of Jesus of Nazareth on both these occasions. Now it gradually recurs to their minds and they “ recognize ” them, for the verb here employed is used of personal recognition, rather than knowledge of a fact.
14 . Seeing the man also .... standing with them. The man shewed gratitude to his benefactors and courage, since he ran the risk at least of being excommunicated, like the man born blind whom our Lord healed (see St John ix. 34).
they could say nothing, etc. They were embarrassed and hindered in their designs because —
(a) An evident miracle had been wrought.(b) It was manifestly unjust to punish men for a good deed.(c) They feared the people.
The Sadducees were not only reduced to silence by the words of the apostles, but “the miracle uttered a voice of its own, and that sign stopped their mouths” (St John Chrys.).
Another motive may have been working in them, as Lumby (Gk. Test., ii. 126) remarks : “ We may see from what happened afterwards that there were men in the council not without the thought that God was really working through the apostles. (Gamaliel says (v. 39) ‘ If this work he of God ’ ; and if this feeling operated in him, the recognized head of the Jewish court, it is not unlikely that others were also silent, with the consideration that haply they might be fighting against God.”
15 . they conferred among themselves. It may be asked how St Luke learned what passed within the council hall during this conference. To this question we reply, that either he was directly inspired by the Holy Spirit, or as a great multitude also of the priests obeyed the faith (infra, vi. 7) afterwards, some of these priestly converts may have related this incident.
16 . we cannot deny it. As the rulers of Israel had rejected the miracles of Christ and hardened their hearts, so now they refuse as a body to accept the signs worked by the apostles as a proof of their mission.
17. no farther spread, etc. The disciples were now a sufficiently large body to attract the attention of the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and fresh converts were daily added to the ranks.
The worst fears of the rulers were justified. Cf. Lest perhaps his disciples come .... and say to the people, He is risen from the dead ; and the last error shall be worse than the first (St Matt, xxvii. 64).
let us threaten. Lit. “ with a threat let us threaten” (ἀπειλη ἀπειλησωμεθα). This is a literal translation of the Hebrew idiom which St Luke has carefully preserved.
Examples of this idiom
(a) Hearing hear and understand not (Is, vi. 9).(b) Rejoiceth with joy (St John iii. 29).(c) By hearing you shall hear (St Matt. xlii. 14).
18. charged them, — i.e, peremptorily commanded them (παρηγγειλαν). The same word occurs in v. 28 and v. 40, and it is also used with reference to our Lord’s commands not to publish His miracles (see St Mark vi. 8 ; St Luke v. 14).
not to speak at all. Better, “ absolutely not to utter ” (το καθολου μη φθεγγεσθαι). They forbade them to mention the name of Jesus, either privately or publicly.
19. in the sight of God. “The Eternal is appealed to as the ever-present Judge, — as sitting invisible in that august council, before whom they were then pleading.
to hear you rather than God. Resistance to civil authorities is an imperative duty when their commands are opposed to those of God. The apostles were the leaders of the noble army of martyrs who sacrificed their lives rather than yield on this point. The same truth holds good in its application to the lesser duties of life. The Catholic must give God the first place in his daily life. As by “ God,” the apostles meant our Lord, they therefore distinctly asserted His Divinity.
21. threatening. That is, having further threatened. St John Chrysostom contrasts the boldness of the apostles with the fear of the Sanhedrin : —
“For who, I would ask, were the frightened? those who said, ‘that it spread no further among the people,’ or those who said, ‘ we cannot but speak the things we have seen and heard ’? And these had a delight, a freedom of speech, a joy surpassing all ; those a despondency, a shame, a fear ; for they feared the people. But these were not afraid of those ; on the contrary, while these spoke what they would, those did not what they would. Which were in chains and dangers ? was it not these last ?” (Hom., x. 4).
all men glorified. Not the rulers, but the common people who had always eagerly heard Christ. It is characteristic of St Luke to note effects produced by miracles on the spectators.
22. about forty years. As St Luke was a physician, he naturally noted the circumstances which affected the disease, — in this case its duration.
Totus tuus ego sum
Et omnia mea tua sunt;
Tecum semper tutus sum:
Ad Jesum per Mariam.
No comments:
Post a Comment