Daily Thought For April 22, 2021
Philip & The Ethiopian Eunuch (Commentary)
From Samaria, the Holy Spirit presses Philip onward, directing him to join an Ethiopian eunuch, probably a Jewish proselyte, whom he finds reading a passage from the prophet Isaiah (cf. Acts 8:29–30):
As a sheep led to the slaughter or a lamb before its shearer is dumb, so he opens not his mouth. In his humiliation justice was denied him. Who can describe his generation? For his life is taken up from the earth (Acts 8:32–33; cf. Is. 53:7–8).
When asked if he understands what he is reading, the eunuch replies, “How can I, unless some one guides me?” (Acts 8:31). The eunuch’s response conveys the profound truth that Scripture does not interpret itself, but rather must be interpreted in light of the Tradition handed on by Jesus to the apostles. Countless learned Jews had studied Isaiah 53:7–8 without comprehending its application to the messianic work of Jesus. The passage refers to one who allows himself to be offered up as a sacrificial lamb and does not speak in his own defense, whose death is unjust, but who is “taken up from the earth.” Philip explains the passage in reference to Jesus’ rejection and Passion, followed by His Resurrection and Ascension, which vindicate His messianic status.
At the eunuch’s request, Philip baptizes him (cf. Acts 8:36–38), which ironically fulfills another prophecy in Isaiah:
For thus says the LORD: “To the eunuchs who keep my sabbaths, who choose the things that please me and hold fast my covenant, I will give in my house and within my walls a monument and a name better than sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name which shall not be cut off” (Is. 56:4–5).
Isaiah’s prophecy of the eunuchs’ coming to God is immediately followed by another concerning the foreigners who do so as well (cf. Is. 56:6–8). Thus, the baptism of the Ethiopian eunuch serves as a prelude to the baptism of the first Gentile by Peter (cf. Acts 10).
Pimentel, S. (2002). Witnesses of the Messiah: On Acts of the Apostles 1–15 (pp. 87–89). Steubenville, OH: Emmaus Road Publishing.