Acts 7:53
Verse
Context
Sermons
Don McClure
Rolfe BarnardSummary
Commentary
- Adam Clarke
- Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
- John Gill
Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
By the disposition of angels - Εις διαταγας αγγελων. After all that has been said on this difficult passage, perhaps the simple meaning is, that there were ranks, διαταγαι, of angels attending on the Divine Majesty when he gave the law: a circumstance which must have added greatly to the grandeur and solemnity of the occasion; and to this Psa 68:17 seems to me most evidently to allude: The chariots of God are twenty thousand, even many thousands of angels: the Lord is among them as in Sinai, in the holy place. It was not then by the mouths nor by the hands of angels, as prime agents, that Moses, and through him the people, received the law; but God himself gave it, accompanied with many thousands of those glorious beings. As it is probable they might be assisting in this most glorious solemnity, therefore St. Paul might say, Gal 3:19, that it was ordained by angels, διαταγεις δι' αγγελων, in the hand of a Mediator. And as they were the only persons that could appear, for no man hath seen God at any time, therefore the apostle might say farther, (if indeed he refers to the same transaction, see the note there), the word spoken by angels was steadfast, Heb 2:2. But the circumstances of this case are not sufficiently plain to lead to the knowledge of what was done by the angels in this most wonderful transaction; only we learn, from the use made of this circumstance by St. Stephen, that it added much to the enormity of their transgression, that they did not keep a law, in dispensing of which the ministry of angels had been employed. Some think Moses, Aaron, and Joshua are the angels here intended; and others think that the fire, light, darkness, cloud and thick darkness were the angels which Jehovah used on this occasion, and to which St. Stephen refers; but neither of these senses appears sufficiently natural, and particularly the latter.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
Who have received the law by the disposition--"at the appointment" or "ordination," that is, by the ministry. of angels, and have not kept it--This closing word is designed to shut up those idolizers of the law under the guilt of high disobedience to it, aggravated by the august manner in which they had received it.
John Gill Bible Commentary
But he being full of the Holy Ghost,.... That is, Stephen, as Beza's ancient copy, and some others express it; and so the Ethiopic version; the Syriac version reads, "full of faith, and of the Holy Ghost", as in Act 6:5 and so some copies; being under the influences of the Spirit of God, and filled with his divine comforts, and strong in the faith of Jesus Christ, and having a holy boldness, courage, and intrepidity of mind; instead of being discouraged and dejected, of being cast down in his spirits, and looking down upon the ground, he looked up steadfastly to heaven; where he desired to be, and hoped and believed he should be; and from whence he knew his help came, and which he might now implore, as well as forgiveness for his enemies. And saw the glory of God; not the essential glory of God, but some extraordinary light and brightness, which was a token and representation of him: and Jesus standing on the right hand of God; of that glory which was a Symbol of him: Jesus being risen from the dead, and ascended on high, was set at the right hand of God, in human nature, and so was visible to the corporeal eye of Stephen; whose visual faculty was so extraordinarily enlarged and assisted, as to reach the body of Christ in the third heavens; where he was seen by him standing, to denote his readiness to assist him, and his indignation at his enemies.
Acts 7:53
The Tabernacle of the Testimony
52Which of the prophets did your fathers fail to persecute? They even killed those who foretold the coming of the Righteous One. And now you are His betrayers and murderers—53you who received the law ordained by angels, yet have not kept it.”
- Scripture
- Sermons
- Commentary
Hebrews 1:4-14
By Don McClure1.2K47:40ACT 7:53GAL 3:19HEB 1:10HEB 1:14REV 19:15In this sermon, the speaker emphasizes the fulfillment of God's plan through Jesus Christ. He compares the fulfillment to someone going on a journey and finally appearing in person, making the previous descriptions and pictures unnecessary. The speaker also highlights the role of angels as servants to the heirs of salvation, emphasizing that they are not to be worshipped but rather seen as ambassadors carrying out God's authority and power. The main focus of the sermon is to establish that Jesus Christ is superior to all beings, including angels, and that the writer of Hebrews aims to show this superiority throughout the book.
Christ's Death as Preached by the Early Church
By Rolfe Barnard91128:14Early ChurchISA 53:5MAT 6:33JHN 3:16ACT 7:53ROM 5:82CO 5:18EPH 2:8In this sermon, the preacher emphasizes the significance of the death of Jesus Christ on the cross. He acknowledges that it was man who physically killed Jesus, mocking and despising him. However, he also highlights that it was God's divine purpose to sacrifice his son as a substitute for our sins. The preacher references Luke 9:22, where Jesus himself states that he must suffer and be slain. He concludes by emphasizing that the cross was not a defeat for God, but rather a victory and a means of reconciling sinners to himself.
- Adam Clarke
- Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
- John Gill
Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
By the disposition of angels - Εις διαταγας αγγελων. After all that has been said on this difficult passage, perhaps the simple meaning is, that there were ranks, διαταγαι, of angels attending on the Divine Majesty when he gave the law: a circumstance which must have added greatly to the grandeur and solemnity of the occasion; and to this Psa 68:17 seems to me most evidently to allude: The chariots of God are twenty thousand, even many thousands of angels: the Lord is among them as in Sinai, in the holy place. It was not then by the mouths nor by the hands of angels, as prime agents, that Moses, and through him the people, received the law; but God himself gave it, accompanied with many thousands of those glorious beings. As it is probable they might be assisting in this most glorious solemnity, therefore St. Paul might say, Gal 3:19, that it was ordained by angels, διαταγεις δι' αγγελων, in the hand of a Mediator. And as they were the only persons that could appear, for no man hath seen God at any time, therefore the apostle might say farther, (if indeed he refers to the same transaction, see the note there), the word spoken by angels was steadfast, Heb 2:2. But the circumstances of this case are not sufficiently plain to lead to the knowledge of what was done by the angels in this most wonderful transaction; only we learn, from the use made of this circumstance by St. Stephen, that it added much to the enormity of their transgression, that they did not keep a law, in dispensing of which the ministry of angels had been employed. Some think Moses, Aaron, and Joshua are the angels here intended; and others think that the fire, light, darkness, cloud and thick darkness were the angels which Jehovah used on this occasion, and to which St. Stephen refers; but neither of these senses appears sufficiently natural, and particularly the latter.
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
Who have received the law by the disposition--"at the appointment" or "ordination," that is, by the ministry. of angels, and have not kept it--This closing word is designed to shut up those idolizers of the law under the guilt of high disobedience to it, aggravated by the august manner in which they had received it.
John Gill Bible Commentary
But he being full of the Holy Ghost,.... That is, Stephen, as Beza's ancient copy, and some others express it; and so the Ethiopic version; the Syriac version reads, "full of faith, and of the Holy Ghost", as in Act 6:5 and so some copies; being under the influences of the Spirit of God, and filled with his divine comforts, and strong in the faith of Jesus Christ, and having a holy boldness, courage, and intrepidity of mind; instead of being discouraged and dejected, of being cast down in his spirits, and looking down upon the ground, he looked up steadfastly to heaven; where he desired to be, and hoped and believed he should be; and from whence he knew his help came, and which he might now implore, as well as forgiveness for his enemies. And saw the glory of God; not the essential glory of God, but some extraordinary light and brightness, which was a token and representation of him: and Jesus standing on the right hand of God; of that glory which was a Symbol of him: Jesus being risen from the dead, and ascended on high, was set at the right hand of God, in human nature, and so was visible to the corporeal eye of Stephen; whose visual faculty was so extraordinarily enlarged and assisted, as to reach the body of Christ in the third heavens; where he was seen by him standing, to denote his readiness to assist him, and his indignation at his enemies.