John Gill Commentary Acts 5

But a certain man named Ananias
A name common among the Jews, the same with Hananiah, (Jeremiah 28:1) (Acts 9:10) (23:2) it signifies not the humility of the Lord, or the affliction of the Lord, or the answer of the Lord, as say some, as if it was derived from (hne) ; but the grace of the Lord, or the Lord's gracious one, coming from (Nnx) : there is no dependence on names; though this man's name signified one that was in the grace and favour of God; he was not so, but a graceless person, as appears by what follows.

It is very likely he was a minister of the word, since the account of him follows upon that of Barnabas, and is opposed to it; it may be he was one of the hundred and twenty, on whom the Holy Ghost fell on the day of Pentecost; and yet, though he had great gifts, had no grace. This shows there are hypocrites among men of the greatest names and characters, and in the purest churches; this first and pure church, which, in the preceding chapter, has such large encomiums, was not free from them:

with Sapphira his wife ;
whether this is the same name with "Shiphrah", (Exodus 1:15) or "Zipporah", (Exodus 2:21) both which are by the Septuagint called "Sephora", or whether another, and may signify "beautiful", is not very material. Jerom ^F3 says, in the Syriac language this name signifies "beautiful"; though he first gives other explanations of it, as "narrantem, literatam, sive librariam", as though it was derived from the Hebrew word (rpo) . The precious stone called sapphire seems to come from the same root as this, and to be so called because of its beautiful azure colour. The name "Sappho", which was the name of a famous poetess, the inventress of a kind of verse called "Sapphic" verse, is said to be the diminutive of this name "Sapphira". Drusius observes, it may be read (arypu) , "Tzephira"; which comes near to "Zipporah", and among other things signifies a "she goat"; and it was usual to give women names taken from such creatures. So "Rachel", a "sheep", and "Tabitha", or "Dorcas", a "doe".

But whatever her name or person were, her actions were disagreeable:

sold a possession ;
which was their own. So the Arabic and Syriac versions read, "their own field", or "farm"; and the Ethiopic version, "their own vineyard": it might be his wife's dowry or jointure, and so her consent was necessary; or they might be jointly concerned in this sale, to show not only their concord and harmony among themselves; but that they agreed in their devotion and religious actions, and that being both filled with zeal for God, and love to the brethren, sold their estate to support the common cause.

FOOTNOTES:

• F3: De Nominibus Hebraicis, fol. 106. C.

And kept back part of the price
At which the possession was sold; he reserved it for his own use, after he had given out that he sold it for the service of the church:

his wife also being privy to it ;
to this private reserve:

and brought a certain part ;
whether the greater part, or an equal part, half of it, or a lesser part; some little part of it, so the phrase seems to signify, is not certain:

and laid it at the apostles' feet ;
as the rest did, thereby to make a show of charity, and cover the deceit.

But Peter said, Ananias
Peter, by divine revelation, or by a spirit of discerning, such as Elisha had, who knew what his servant Gehazi had done, knowing what a reserve Ananias had made, calls him by his name, and says to him,

why has Satan filled your heart ?
or emboldened you, given you so much spirit and courage to act in such an impudent and audacious manner; so the phrase is used in (Esther 7:5) (Ecclesiastes 8:11) see the Septuagint there, and often in Talmudic writings.

Says R. Joshua, I never (ybl ynalm) , "filled my heart"; or my heart never filled me to say to a man, go and take the change of these three things ^F4 .'' And says another Rabbi ^F5 , ``though I say so, (ybl ynalm al) , "I never filled my heart", or my heart never filled me to transgress the words of the companions;'' that is, I never durst do so. And again <sup>F6</sup> , it being observed, that Isaiah should say, "hear, O heavens!" it is said, ``who, or what is this, who (wbl walm) , "has filled his heart", or whose heart has filled him to call to the heavens to hear.''

But this instance of Ananias was such, that none but Satan could have put him upon, or emboldened him to have done; who from hence appeared to have the power over him, and to have possessed him, to have great access to him, even to his heart, and great influence upon it, so as to prompt him

to lie to the Holy Ghost ;
who was in the apostles, and by whom they were acted, and to whom he had given a discerning of spirits; so that it was a daring action, and downright madness, to go about to deceive them: or he pretended he had an impulse from the Spirit of God to sell his estate, and give the whole price of it to the apostles, and yet kept back part of it; which was acting contrary to that Spirit he pretended to be influenced by.

And to keep back part of the price of the land :
that is, he lied against the Holy Ghost, by keeping back part of the price the land was sold for; when he had declared he sold it with this view, to give the whole for charitable uses, and affirmed that what he brought was the whole.

FOOTNOTES:

• F4: T. Hieros. Maaserot, fol. 48. 4.
• F5: Sabbat, fol. 14. 3.
• F6: Tzeror Hammor, fol. 160. 1. Vid. Shaare ora, fol. 2. 1.

Whiles it remained, was it not thine own
Before it was sold, it was his own proper estate; he had the sole propriety in it, and could have kept it, or disposed of it as he pleased: he was not obliged to sell it, he might have kept it as his own property; for selling of possessions at this time was a voluntary thing; it was what no man was forced to; it was a pure act of liberality, and what was not enjoined by the apostles; every man was left to his liberty.

And after it was sold, was it not in thine own power ?
that is, the price for which it was sold: before he had declared that he sold it, in order to give the whole of it to the church, had brought it to the apostles as the whole; it was in his own power to dispose of, as he pleased, whether to give the whole, or a part of it, or it. He might have kept it all if he had thought fit, or have given what portion he pleased.

Why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart ?
for though Satan had an hand in it, and greatly solicited him to it, and spirited him up to do it, yet in conjunction with his own heart; and perhaps it began there, which Satan helped forward. It was not so of Satan as to excuse the wickedness of his heart. It was owing partly to the sin of covetousness, which reigned in him, and partly to a desire of vain glory, and being thought a very religious man, that he acted such a part, and was so notoriously guilty of lying and hypocrisy.

Thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God ;
that is, not to men only, for he had lied to the apostles; but to God also, to the Holy Ghost, who is truly and properly God, of which this passage is a full proof; and it was owing to his omniscience, which is a peculiar attribute of deity, that this wicked man, and this fraud of his, were discovered.

And Ananias hearing these words
Of Peter's; by which he found his sin was detected, and by which he was convicted of it: and which set forth the evil nature of it, with its aggravated circumstances; and such power went along with them, and they cut so deep, as that immediately

he fell down and gave up the ghost ;
which is an instance of what the Jews call death by the hand of heaven: and this was done either by an angel; or rather by an extraordinary gift bestowed on Peter, being such an one as the Apostle Paul had, and used, when he smote Elymas the sorcerer with blindness, and delivered the incestuous person, and Alexander and Hymeneus to Satan.

And great fear came upon all them that heard these things ;
both upon the members of the church, and so was of service to make them careful of their words and actions, and cautious and circumspect in their lives and conversations; and upon those that were without, and might be a means of making them fearful of speaking against them, or mocking at them, or of joining themselves to them, without being thoroughly satistied that they should, and had a right, and were meet for it.