Charles Ellicott Commentary Acts 15:22

"Then it seemed good to the apostles and the elders, with the whole church, to choose men out of their company, and send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas; [namely], Judas called Barsabbas, and Silas, chief men among the brethren:" — Acts 15:22 (ASV)

The apostles and elders, with the whole church.—The latter words are important, as showing the position occupied by the laity. If they concurred in the letter, it must have been submitted for their approval, and the right to approve involves the power to reject and, probably, to modify.

It is probable enough, as in the analogous constitution of Greek republics mentioned earlier (see Note on Acts 15:4), that the Ecclesia, or popular assembly, did not possess the power of initiating measures; however, their right to vote appears, from this instance, to have been indisputable. (See, however, Note on the next verse.) It does not follow, of course, that the polity of the apostolic age was necessarily adapted for the Church of all subsequent ages; but the exclusion of the laity from all share in Church synods, though it may be defended as a safeguard against the violence of a barbarous or faithless age, must, at any rate, be admitted to be at variance with primitive and apostolic practice.

To send chosen men.—Literally, as the participle has an active meaning, to choose and send men. This was obviously necessary to guard against suspicion. Had Paul and Barnabas alone been the bearers of such a letter, it might have been said that they had forged it.

Judas surnamed Barsabas.—The same patronymic is found, it will be remembered, in Acts 1:23, as belonging to “Joseph, called Barsabas, who was surnamed Justus.” It is a natural inference that the two were brothers, and therefore that the disciple now mentioned had been among those who were personally followers of our Lord. This would naturally clothe him with a high authority. The fact that he is spoken of in Acts 15:32 as a prophet makes it probable that he was one of the Seventy. (See Note on Luke 10:1.)

Silas.—This may have been either a contracted form of Silvanus, as Antipas was of Antipatros, or an Aramaic name, for which Silvanus was adopted as the nearest Greek equivalent. It is probable that he, too, fulfilled the same conditions as his companion. He also was a prophet (Acts 15:32). His later history will be noticed as we encounter it. Since the name is connected with the Hebrew word for “three,” he has by some been identified with Tertius of Romans 16:22; but it is hardly probable that one who had been known at Corinth as Silvanus (2 Corinthians 1:19) would have afterward changed his name.

Chief men among the brethren.—The title thus given is the same as “those that bear rule over you,” in Hebrews 13:17, and implies that they had a position of greater authority than the other elders, as at least primi inter pares. This also aligns with the view that they had been disciples of Christ, who, as the number of witnesses diminished, came more and more into prominence.