Albert Barnes Commentary Acts 8:26

"But an angel of the Lord spake unto Philip, saying, Arise, and go toward the south unto the way that goeth down from Jerusalem unto Gaza: the same is desert." — Acts 8:26 (ASV)

And the angel of the Lord. The word angel is used in the Scriptures in a great variety of meanings. (See Barnes on Matthew 1:20).

Here it has been supposed by some to mean literally a celestial messenger sent from God; others have supposed that it means a dream, others a vision, etc. The word properly means a messenger; and all that it can be shown to signify here is, that the Lord sent a message to Philip of this kind. It is most probable, I think, that the passage means that God communicated the message by his Spirit; for, in Acts 8:29, 39, it is expressly said that the Spirit spoke to Philip, etc. Thus, in Acts 16:7, the Spirit is said to have forbidden Paul to preach in Bithynia; and in Acts 16:9, the message on the subject is said to have been conveyed in a vision. There is no absurdity, however, in supposing that an angel literally was employed to communicate this message to Philip. (Genesis 19:1; Genesis 22:11; Judges 6:12).

Spoke unto Philip. .

Arise. (See Barnes on Luke 15:18).

And go, etc. Philip had been employed in Samaria. As God now intended to send the gospel to another place, he gave a special direction to Philip to go and convey it.

It is evident that God designed the conversion of this eunuch, and the direction to Philip shows how he accomplishes his designs. It is not by miracle, but by the use of means. It is not by direct power without truth, but it is by a message fitted to the end.

The salvation of a single sinner is an object worthy of God’s attention. When such a sinner is converted, it is because God forms a plan or purpose to do it. When it is done, he inclines his servants to labor, he directs their labors, he leads his ministers, and he prepares the way (Acts 8:28) for the reception of the truth.

Toward the south. That is, south of Samaria, where Philip was then laboring.

Unto Gaza. Gaza, or Azzah (Genesis 10:19), was a city of the Philistines, given by Joshua to Judah (Joshua 15:47; 1 Samuel 6:17). It was one of the five principal cities of the Philistines. It was formerly a large place, was situated on an eminence, and commanded a beautiful prospect. It was in this place that Samson took away the gates of the city and bore them off (Judges 16:2–3). It was near Askelon, about sixty miles southwest from Jerusalem.

Which is desert. This may refer either to the way or to the place. The natural construction is the latter.

In explanation of this, it is to be observed that there were two towns of that name, Old and New Gaza. The prophet Zephaniah (Zephaniah 2:4) said that Gaza should be forsaken, i.e., destroyed.

“This was partly accomplished by Alexander the Great. (Jos. Antiq. b. xi. ch. viii. § 3, 4; b. xiii. ch. xiii. § 3.) Another town was afterwards built of the same name, but at some distance from the former; and Old Gaza was abandoned to destruction. Strabo mentions ‘Gaza the desert,’ and Diodorus Siculus speaks of ‘Old Gaza.’” (Robinson, Calmet.)

Some have supposed, however, that Luke refers here to the road leading to Gaza, as being desolate and uninhabited. But I regard the former interpretation as most natural and obvious.

In this place, in 1823, the American missionaries, Messrs. Fisk and King, found Gaza, a town built of stone, making a very humble appearance, and containing about five thousand inhabitants. (Hall on the Acts.)