Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary Acts 5:34

"But there stood up one in the council, a Pharisee, named Gamaliel, a doctor of the law, had in honor of all the people, and commanded to put the men forth a little while." — Acts 5:34 (ASV)

The “Pharisees” (GK 5757) represent the continuation of the ancient Hasidim, that group of “pious ones” in Israel who, during the Seleucid oppressions, joined the Hasmoneans (the Maccabees) in the struggle for religious freedom but later opposed the Maccabean rulers in their political and territorial claims. They came from diverse family, occupational, and economic backgrounds and gave themselves to studying the Law (Torah) in both its written and oral forms, to expounding the Law in terms of its contemporary relevance, and to preparing the people for the coming of the Messianic Age by means of education in Scripture and the oral tradition. The name “Pharisee” probably comes from the Aramaic verb meaning “to separate” (thus they are “the separated ones” or “holy ones dedicated entirely to God”). In the period before the fall of Jerusalem in A. D. 70, they were in the minority in the Sanhedrin. But their support by the people was so great that all matters of life and ceremony were guided by their interpretations, and Sadducean magistrates had to profess adherence to their principles in order to hold the formal allegiance of the populace. Theologically, the Pharisees looked for a Messianic Age and a personal Messiah; they accepted a doctrine of the resurrection of the dead (though they understood such a doctrine to mean either the immortality of the soul or the resuscitation of the body); they believed in the presence and activity of angels and demons; they held in balance the tenets of God’s eternal decrees and human freedom of will; and they tried to live a life of simple piety apart from needless wealth and luxury. The first-century Pharisee Gamaliel I, who was either the son or grandson of the famous Hillel, was one of the most highly esteemed Pharisees. Here in Acts he is portrayed as having taken charge at a certain point in the council meeting and as having gained the acquiescence of those present—not through any vested authority but through personal forcefulness and respect for what he represented. And he addresses the council members with the traditional designation “Men of Israel” (cf. 2:22).