Atos 26
David Guzik · Citado em PreceptAustin
Atos 26
Guzik - Paul made it clear that in both his heart and mind, he remained a faithful Jew. His trust in Jesus was an outgrowth of his trust in the hope of the promise made by God and he argued that for this hope’s sake… I am accused by the Jews. (Commentary) Fruchtenbaum observes that "This was the second time Paul addressed Agrippa as king. This hope was the Messianic Hope, and the irony was that the Messianic Hope was a Jewish hope. Yet, over this issue that he was being attacked by the leadership of Israel!" Jack Andrews explains that "Paul was being accused of believing that Jesus was raised from the dead in which Paul affirmed! Paul did not deny the resurrection! God had promised his people that there would be a resurrection. Job 19:25-26 says, “For I know that my Redeemer lives, and He shall stand at last on the earth; 26 And after my skin is destroyed, this I know, that in my flesh I shall see God” In Ezekiel 37:1-14 God promised there would be a resurrection. The Jews—who believed the Old Testament believed there was life after death and there was a promise of the resurrection. Paul says that it was for this hope’s sake that he was accused by the Jews. Paul believed in the resurrection—the dividing point was over the resurrection of Jesus Christ— whom the Jews refused to belief was raised. Without the resurrection of Jesus Christ there is no salvation in Jesus Christ. God raised Jesus from the dead—He is the Living, Reigning—Lord!:" Hope (1680)(elpis) in Scripture is not the world's definition of "I hope so", with a few rare exceptions (e.g., Acts 27:20) Hope is defined as a desire for some future good with the expectation of obtaining it. Hope is always an expectation of something good as well as descriptive of something for which we must wait. Hope is the opposite of despair. And the opposite of a "living hope" is a "dead hope." Hope is a key term in Acts - Acts 2:26; Acts 16:19; Acts 23:6; Acts 24:15; Acts 26:6; Acts 26:7; Acts 27:20; Acts 28:20; Howard Marshall on hope - It refers to the believing expectation that God will fulfil the promises and prophecies made in the Old Testament, and for Paul it refers specifically to the belief that these promises have been and will be fulfilled in Jesus. The question at issue is thus whether the Jews believe in the fulfilment of God’s promises. More precisely, the specific hope that Paul has in mind is that of the resurrection from the dead which will bring God’s people into the experience of salvation. The Jews hoped to attain to this experience, which they described as ‘the age to come’, by their devotion to God expressed in continuous worship.(TNTC-Acts) Comment - I would add to Marshall's statement that the hope "will be fulfilled in Jesus." Hope was fulfilled with His resurrection, for now all who believe in Him will experience that hope (figuratively we have been raised with Him as in Ro 6:5+, but literally we await a future resurrection - 1 Cor 15:44). In addition, the hope of Israel receiving a Kingdom will also be fulfilled in Jesus, for when He returns, He will defeat all His enemies and establish His Messianic Kingdom for which the Jews had been looking (it was their hope - absolute certainty that God would do them good in the future. See comments on Acts 1:6).
Atos 26
Guzik - Since Agrippa was an expert in all customs and questions which have to do with the Jews (Acts 26:3), he should have understood the belief that God could, or would, raise the dead. Why should it be thought incredible that God can do anything? As Jesus said, with God all things are possible (Matthew 19:26). Yet it should be especially easy for Agrippa to believe that God raises the dead, given some clear statements in the Old Testament (such as Job 19:25-27), the nature of God, and the intuitive grasp of the eternal among mankind. (Commentary) Warren
Atos 26
Guzik writes "Paul later speaks of the great regret he had over his prior life as a persecutor (1 Corinthians 15:9, 1 Timothy 1:15). Perhaps the fact that he compelled them to blaspheme weighed especially on his conscience." Blaspheme (987)(blasphemeo derived from bláx = sluggish, slow, stupid + phémē = rumor, fame) OR MORE LIKELY (derived from bláptō = to hurt, injure, harm + phémē from phēmí = to speak) means literally to speak to harm and in general therefore means to bring into ill repute and so to slander, to defame (to harm the reputation of by libel or slander), speak evil of, to rail at (revile or scold in harsh, insolent, or abusive language and rail stresses an unrestrained berating), to speak calumny (noun form = a misrepresentation intended to blacken another’s reputation = the act of uttering false charges or misrepresentations maliciously calculated to damage another’s reputation), to calumniate (verb form = to utter maliciously false statements, charges, or imputations about - calumniate imputes malice to the speaker and falsity to the assertions) Marshall writes that "The best parallel to Paul’s activity is provided at a later date by Pliny, the Roman governor of Bithynia, who tells us that he brought people suspected of being Christians before his court: ‘Those who denied they were, or ever had been, Christians, who repeated after me an invocation to the gods, and offered invocation, with wine and frankincense, to your image, which I had ordered to be brought for that purpose, together with those of the gods, and who finally cursed Christ—none of which acts, it is said, those who are really Christians can be forced into performing—these I thought it proper to discharge’ (Epistles 10:96). This account is written, of course, with reference to a pagan court, but a similar kind of procedure will have taken place in a Jewish setting." (Ibid)
Atos 26
Guzik comments that Jesus' words "emphasize: The personal appeal of Jesus (Saul, Saul). The misdirected nature of his persecution (Me).The folly of persecuting Jesus (Why). Persecuting (present tense = continually)(1377)(dioko from dío = pursue, prosecute, persecute) means to follow or press hard after, literally to pursue as one does a fleeing enemy. It means to chase, harass, vex and pressure and was used for chasing down criminals. Dioko speaks of an intensity of effort leading to a pursue with earnestness and diligence in order to obtain. To go after with the desire of obtaining or in some contexts the desire to harm. It gives us the picture of going on the track of something like the hounds on the hunt and pursuing after the fox and implying a continuing effort to overtake, reach, or attain the goal. Dioko in Acts - Acts 7:52; Acts 9:4; Acts 9:5; Acts 22:4; Acts 22:7; Acts 22:8; Acts 26:11; Acts 26:14; Acts 26:15
Atos 26
Guzik quips that "The gospel, when properly proclaimed and lived, will make some people think we are crazy. Paul put it this way: the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing (1 Corinthians 1:18)." Your great learning is driving you mad." - "Is turning you around." Gramma is used in the plural here with the meaning "learning." And great learning = "many letters" probably referring to the OT Scriptures about which Paul had been speaking.