And laid it down before the feet of the apostles. And distribution was made to every one, according as he had need.
και ετιθουν παρα τους ποδας των αποστολων διεδιδοτο δε εκαστω καθοτι αν τις χρειαν ειχεν
8 Church Fathers comment on this verse
Out of great reverence for the Apostles, they laid it not in their hands, but at their feet. But let us return to what was said above. They sold, it says, and "brought the price of what was sold and laid it at the feet of the Apostles." See, beloved, how they did not entrust the selling to the Apostles, but sold it themselves and gave the price to them.
This testifies to the great dignity and great piety of those who brought offerings. They did not even dare to give into the hands, but laid them at the feet of the Apostles. They made the Apostles masters and stewards over what was brought, so that the expenses would be met as though not from private property, but from common property. This delivered the givers from vainglory, and gave the recipients a twofold joy: relief from poverty and freedom from shame.
According to the Acts of the Apostles, when the blood of our Lord was still warm and the new faith of the believers still burned, they sold all their possessions and laid the money received at the Apostles' feet. This showed that money must be trampled down. And distribution was made to each as anyone had need.
The apostle calls the last member of the sinful body covetousness, teaching that one must not only refrain from desiring another's goods, but must also magnanimously despise one's own. So acted the community of believers mentioned in the book of Acts, of which it is said: "The multitude of those who believed had one heart and one soul; and no one called anything of his possessions his own, but they had all things in common... For all who possessed lands or houses sold them, brought the price of what was sold, and laid it at the apostles' feet; and distribution was made to each as anyone had need" (Acts 4:32, 34-35). And lest it seem that this concerns only a few, the apostle testifies that covetousness is idolatry (Col 3:5), and rightly so.
For whoever does not give what is necessary to the poor, and prefers his money, which he preserves through distrustful stinginess, to Christ's commandments, falls into the vice of idolatry. He prefers love for worldly substance to the love of God.
The active love of the first Christians and the danger of its distortion into hypocrisy. Ananias and Sapphira (4:32-5:11). After the previously described clash of the apostles Peter and John with the council, the Christians enjoyed outward peace for a time. Yet at this time, within the society itself, a danger to its inner state and development was revealed and removed by the God-enlightened attention of the apostles. For that reason it was a greater danger than outward persecutions from the Church's enemies. The state of Christ's Church at this time remained the same as before. The same union of Christians among themselves characterized the first Christian society even now. This was union and agreement not only in matters of faith, but also in all thoughts and moral dispositions.
Thus, according to the writer of Acts, "the multitude of those who believed had one heart and one soul." The same communion of love characterized them, by which no one called anything of his possessions his own, but they had all things in common (v. 32). Amid this assembly of saints, the apostles stand forth with special majesty. Among their own, they are guides, teachers, and household stewards. Outside the Church, they bear the mighty and powerfully active word concerning the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. However great the number of believers was, there was no one among them in need (v. 34). This was achieved precisely through the mutual brotherly assistance of the Christians. Moved by love for their Christian brethren, the more prosperous members of the Apostolic Church brought their means to the apostles for their disposal. The apostles then gave to each according to his need. As an example of this self-denying love, freely and without compulsion renouncing its own property for the society's benefit, the writer of Acts points to the deed of Joses-Barnabas. In his homeland, the island of Cyprus, he owned land. He sold it and brought the money for the apostles to dispose of.
The apostles continued their work with still greater zeal. The assembly of believers was distinguished still more by its virtues and by its incomparable concord. "The multitude of those who believed had one heart and one soul; and no one called anything of his possessions his own, but they had all things in common." This does not mean that the first Christians adopted a dreamy and practically unrealizable theory known as communism. Its essence consists in the rejection of all personal property. Communism presupposes the compulsory abolition of all personal property. Among the first Christians, however, the sharing of possessions was only an expression of the inner spirit of self-denial with which they approached works of philanthropy.
They sold everything in order to form, as it were, a fund for helping needy brethren. Hence this sharing of possessions was clearly not obligatory. If certain persons, such as Barnabas, a Levite from the island of Cyprus, even sold his field and brought the proceeds to the apostles' feet, this case is marked out as exceptional. Then another case, that of Ananias, clearly proves that such sharing of possessions was not obligatory.
"They laid it at the feet of the Apostles": that is, at their full disposal and under their management. The Apostles, as teachers, are presented as sitting (cf. Lk 2:46; Mt 3:1), and the offerings are laid at their feet. One may suppose that this took place in solemn, perhaps liturgical, gatherings of the community, when the Apostles instructed the believers.
The placing of the price of what was sold at the apostles' feet meant that all of it was given into their full disposal. Only those who sold brought such proceeds, and there were many of them. Yet not everyone who owned property or a house necessarily sold it. Some did not sell their possessions, but brought what they wished, for this matter was entirely voluntary (cf. Acts 5:4). Others sold only part of their property. Yet it seems that, according to the common spirit, they brought the whole price of what was sold (cf. Acts 5:2). According to blessed Theophylact, "the offering of the price of what was sold at the apostles' feet testifies to the great piety of those who brought it.
For they did not even dare to give it into their hands, but laid it at their feet, thereby making them masters and stewards over what was brought." "The apostles, as teachers, are presented as sitting (cf. Lk 2:46; Mt 3:1), and the donations are laid at their feet. One may suppose that this took place in solemn, perhaps liturgical, gatherings of the society, when the apostles instructed the believers." "The Church received the offering, regarding it, according to the zeal and intention of the giver, as a pledge of piety. Love brought these sacrifices, and love distributed them. The pastors in each Church were the chief stewards of these offerings. From the Apostolic Church, the spirit of active love in the sharing of possessions poured out into the whole Christian world." Concerning various incorrect views of the sharing of property in the primitive Church, one may read the refutations in I. Nikolin's work, published in 1896, under the title The Acts of the Holy Apostles: An Essay in Historical-Critical Introduction. It says: "The sharing of possessions then was not absolute. The equalization consisted in a proportional relation not to what had been contributed, but to each person's needs." "The communion of faith and love (see Phlm 1:6; 2 Cor 9:13; 1 Jn 1:3, 7) is the foundation of the sharing of property."
Passages read together with this verse.
Greek text, 15 words with lemma, transliteration and Strong’s number. Tap to expand.
THEOSIS