Acts 8:33 - Printer Friendly

ESV: In his humiliation justice was denied him. Who can describe his generation? For his life is taken away from the earth."

NIV: In his humiliation he was deprived of justice. Who can speak of his descendants? For his life was taken from the earth."

NASB: IN HUMILIATION HIS JUSTICE WAS TAKEN AWAY; WHO WILL DESCRIBE HIS GENERATION? FOR HIS LIFE IS TAKEN AWAY FROM THE EARTH.'

CSB: In his humiliation justice was denied him. Who will describe his generation? For his life is taken from the earth.

NLT: He was humiliated and received no justice. Who can speak of his descendants? For his life was taken from the earth.'

KJV: In his humiliation his judgment was taken away: and who shall declare his generation? for his life is taken from the earth.

NKJV: In His humiliation His justice was taken away, And who will declare His generation? For His life is taken from the earth.”

Philip, a Jesus-follower, has met with a traveling eunuch (Acts 8:26–32) and will soon explain how Isaiah 53:7–8 has recently been fulfilled. Isaiah 53 includes the account of the "Suffering Servant." It describes the Servant as a root growing from the dry ground, without any noble features, despised and rejected—seemingly by God. It says the Servant was pierced and crushed and took on our sins, but didn't defend Himself (Isaiah 53:1–7).

Philip goes on to explain that the Suffering Servant is Jesus (Acts 8:35). Jesus was humiliated; He was betrayed by a friend (Mark 14:43–50), denied by another (Mark 14:66–72), beaten and spat on by the guards of the Sanhedrin (Mark 14:65), and flogged and mocked by Pilate's guards (John 19:1–2). He was then pierced by the nails in His hands and feet and again by the spear (John 19:18, 34).

The last two lines are difficult to understand; the source material is a little clearer. Isaiah 53:8 says, "and as for his generation, who considered that he was cut off out of the land of the living?" The literal transliteration is, "and his generation, who considers?" It means that the people of Jesus' time and place didn't care that He was wrongly convicted, tortured, and executed. This is clearly seen by how easily the priests convinced the people to demand Jesus' death (Matthew 27:20–23).

Acts 8:26–40 completes the story of Philip's early ministry. Driven out of Jerusalem by persecution, he first travels north into Samaria and spreads the gospel to a people Jews had believed accursed (Acts 8:5–13). Now, an angel tells him to go south where he meets an official of the Ethiopian court who is reading from the book of Isaiah. Philip's ministry shows that God doesn't care if someone is born into His chosen people, or are ethnically and theologically confused, or are even a foreign eunuch. He loves equally and desires that everyone will repent and come to Him.

Jesus told the apostles they would spread the gospel (Acts 1:8) and persecution makes that happen. Upon the death of the first Christian martyr (Acts 7:54–60), a young Pharisee named Saul builds on the momentum to arrest and, if possible, execute Jesus followers (Acts 8:1–3; 26:10). The apostles mostly stay in Jerusalem, but the church members flee, spreading the gospel to Judea, Samaria, and the ends of the earth. Important encounters in this passage include a magician named Simon and the conversion of an Ethiopian court official.

Acts 1:8 gives the outline of the book of Acts; Acts 1—7 describes the spread of the gospel through Jerusalem; Acts 8:1—11:18 shows the gospel spreading in Judea and Samaria; Acts 11:19—28:31 sees the gospel spread to the ''end of the earth,'' finalizing in Rome. Ironically, although Paul is the central figure in spreading Jesus' good news to the ends of the earth, his early persecution of the church in Jerusalem is instrumental in spreading the gospel through Judea and Samaria.

The summary of the book of Acts is provided in Jesus' words in Acts 1:8: ''But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.'' In Acts 2:1–13, the Christ-followers receive the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:14—7:60 describes the rapid growth of the church in Jerusalem. Chapters 8—12 find Jewish persecution inadvertently spreading the gospel throughout Judea and Samaria. And in chapters 13—28, Paul and his companions spread the good news throughout the Roman Empire.