Matthew Henry Commentary Acts 8:26-40

"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. And he arose and went: and behold, a man of Ethiopia, a eunuch of great authority under Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was over all her treasure, who had come to Jerusalem to worship; and he was returning and sitting in his chariot, and was reading the prophet Isaiah. And the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to this chariot. And Philip ran to him, and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet, and said, Understandest thou what thou readest? And he said, How can I, except some one shall guide me? And he besought Philip to come up and sit with him. Now the passage of the Scripture which he was reading was this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; And as a lamb before his shearer is dumb, So he openeth not his mouth: In his humiliation his judgment was taken away: His generation who shall declare? For his life is taken from the earth. And the eunuch answered Philip, and said, I pray thee, of whom speaketh the prophet this? of himself, or of some other? And Philip opened his mouth, and beginning from this Scripture, preached unto him Jesus. And as they went on the way, they came unto a certain water; and the eunuch saith, Behold, [here is] water; what doth hinder me to be baptized? [And Philip said, If thou believest with all thy heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.] And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they both went down into the water, both Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him. And when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip; and the eunuch saw him no more, for he went on his way rejoicing. But Philip was found at Azotus: and passing through he preached the gospel to all the cities, till he came to Caesarea." — Acts 8:26-40 (ASV)

Philip was directed to go to a desert. Sometimes God opens a door of opportunity to His ministers in very unlikely places. We should strive to do good to those we meet while traveling. We should not be as shy of all strangers as some are inclined to be. Regarding those about whom we know nothing else, we know this: they have souls.

It is wise for those occupied with business to redeem time for holy duties, filling up every minute with something that will prove beneficial. When reading the Word of God, we should often pause to inquire about whom and what the sacred writers spoke; especially, our thoughts should be occupied with the Redeemer.

The Ethiopian was convinced by the teaching of the Holy Spirit of the exact fulfillment of Scripture. He came to understand the nature of the Messiah's kingdom and salvation and desired to be counted among the disciples of Christ. Those who seek the truth and spend their time searching the Scriptures will surely reap benefits.

The Ethiopian's avowal must be understood as expressing simple reliance on Christ for salvation and unreserved devotion to Him.

Let us not be satisfied until we obtain faith, as the Ethiopian did, through diligent study of the Holy Scriptures and the teaching of the Spirit of God. Let us not be satisfied until it is firmly established as a principle in our hearts. As soon as he was baptized, the Spirit of God took Philip away from him, so that he saw him no more; but this served to confirm his faith.

When the seeker of salvation becomes acquainted with Jesus and His gospel, he will go on his way rejoicing. He will fulfill his role in society and perform his duties from different motives and in a different manner than before.

Though one is baptized with water in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, this is not enough without the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Lord, grant this to every one of us; then we shall go on our way rejoicing.