Having land, sold it and brought the price and laid it at the feet of the Apostles.
υπαρχοντος αυτω αγρου πωλησας ηνεγκεν το χρημα και εθηκεν παρα τους ποδας των αποστολων
6 Church Fathers comment on this verse
Notice here how the writer indicates the weakening of the Law when he says, "a Levite, a native of Cyprus." Thus Levites were already in the dispersion. Now the writer intends to narrate about Ananias and Sapphira. Wishing to show that this man committed a most grievous sin, he first mentions the one who acted as he ought. "Having land," the writer said, expressing that he had nothing else. "He sold it, brought the money, and laid it at the feet of the Apostles."
But intending to narrate what happened with Ananias and Sapphira, and wishing to show that they sinned, the writer first mentions a man who acted rightly.
The active love of the first Christians, and the danger of its distortion into hypocrisy. Ananias and Sapphira (4:32-5:11). After the preceding clash of the apostles Peter and John with the Sanhedrin, the Christians enjoyed outward peace for a time. Yet at this time, within the community itself, the God-enlightened attention of the apostles discovered and removed a danger to its inner state and growth. For this reason it was a greater danger than external persecutions from the enemies of the Church. The state of the Church of Christ remained the same as before. The same union among the Christians marked the first Christian community. It was a union and concord not only in matters of faith, but also in all thoughts and moral dispositions.
Thus, in the words of the writer of Acts, the multitude of those who believed had one heart and one soul. The same communion of love also marked them, in which no one called anything of his possessions his own, but they had all things in common (v. 32). Among this assembly of saints the apostles stand forth with special majesty. Among their own they are guides, teachers, and stewards. Outside the Church they bear the mighty and powerfully effective word concerning the resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ. However great the number of believers was, there was not a needy person among them (v. 34). This was achieved precisely through the mutual brotherly assistance of the Christians. Moved by love for their Christian brethren, the wealthier members of the Apostolic Church brought their resources to the apostles for their disposal. The apostles then distributed to each as anyone had need. As an example of this self-denying love, freely and without compulsion renouncing property for the benefit of the community, the writer of Acts points to the deed of Joses-Barnabas. He owned land in his homeland, the island of Cyprus. He sold it and brought the money for the apostles to dispose of.
The apostles continued their work with still greater zeal, and the assembly of believers became still more distinguished by its virtues and its unparalleled unanimity. "The multitude of those who believed had one heart and one soul. No one said that any of the things he possessed was his own, but they had all things in common." This does not mean that the first Christians adopted the dreamy and practically unrealizable theory known as communism, whose essence lies in the rejection of all personal property. Communism presupposes the compulsory abolition of all personal property. Among the first Christians, however, the communion of possessions was only an expression of the inner spirit of self-denial with which they approached works of love for mankind.
They sold everything in order to form, so to speak, a fund for helping needy brethren. Hence this communion of possessions was clearly not compulsory. If certain persons, such as Barnabas, a Levite from the island of Cyprus, even sold his land in order to bring the proceeds to the feet of the apostles, this case is noted as exceptional. The other case, that of Ananias, clearly proves that such communion of possessions was not obligatory.
"He sold land": priests and Levites could possess immovable property, namely plots of land in Palestine, as is clear from the example of the prophet Jeremiah (Jer 32:7 and following). This was the Barnabas so well known in apostolic history, the companion of the Apostle Paul, about whom the writer of the Acts of the Apostles later narrates much.
From the multitude of generous givers, the writer names only one by name, Joses, indicating also his other name, his origin, and his occupation.
This is because this Joses, or Barnabas, was among the seventy Apostles and took manifold part in the destinies of the earliest Church.
He was distinguished by many extraordinary gifts, for example, the gift of animated and even prophetic speech; see Acts 13:1. Much more is said of him later as a companion of the holy Apostle Paul.
A writing remained from him that was so esteemed that it was preserved alongside the canonical apostolic writings.
The example of such a great and glorious man surely had imitators. He was fully worthy that testimony about such an ascetic deed of his be recorded forever by one close to him in apostolic journeys.
For the writer of the book of Acts, the holy Apostle Luke, was also among the companions of the holy Apostle Paul.
By dignity, the name of Barnabas appears in the book of the Acts of the Holy Apostles after the eleven, Matthias, and Justus. For among earlier workers it is difficult to point to anyone equal to him.
There is testimony that Barnabas left the island of Cyprus early and studied under Gamaliel together with the young Saul.
He was the nephew of Mary, the mother of John Mark (see Acts 12:12). In her house he often saw Jesus Christ, and still more often in the Jerusalem temple.
After Jesus Christ departed to Galilee, he too followed Him and was among His seventy disciples.
Probably he was called Barnabas, that is, son of consolation, because of his great gift to the Church. Perhaps it was also because of his special gift for comforting those who suffered and were burdened by needs of every kind, especially spiritual needs.
After many apostolic labors in different countries, in Antioch and Milan, he suffered martyrdom in Salamis, being stoned. This was after the destruction of Jerusalem.
John Mark buried him and placed in his tomb the Gospel according to Matthew, copied by Barnabas’ own hand. It was found together with his relics, incorrupt, in the year 488, under Emperor Zeno.
Some Western scholars see in the repetition of the account concerning the inner condition of the earliest Church the narrator’s use of a source different from the one he used when writing chapter 2.
In refutation of this unjust opinion, a specialist researcher on the book of Acts says the following.
“As a skilled writer, Saint Luke, by this remark, or repetition, wishes to point out the hidden foundation of the conquering power living in the first Christian community. This power is rooted in the spirit that penetrates and animates Christians.
“With the disclosure of a hostile attitude toward Christians, external security for the Christian community was destroyed.
“If the ‘communion of possessions’ had then been a consequence of the community’s happy condition, and had not been rooted in the unshakable foundations of the spirit, the new turn of events would have struck it a severe blow.
“The fact that the communion of possessions is again confirmed by the narrator of Acts must be new proof for us that its foundations must be sought in the inner constitution of the community.
“And if so, the sacred writer did not need to seek anything better to testify to the inner vital energy of the community, and to its invincibility before the persecutions that were beginning.
“He could simply limit himself to a new indication of the communion of possessions as the most characteristic manifestation of the spiritual power living in the first community.
“And so he did. Thus there is nothing unnatural in Saint Luke’s repetition of one and the same description of the state of the earliest Church.
“This in no way speaks against the unity of the writer of the whole work.
“In vain do they see a contradiction between this depiction of the state of the earliest community and the discord between Hebrew Christians and Hellenists over the assistance given to widows; see Acts 6:1 and following.
“In early Christian usage, ‘communion’ (koinonia) means communion of faith and love; see Phlm 1:6; 2 Cor 13:13; 1 Jn 1:7.
“It has the meaning of close communion of persons; see Gal 2:9. It is expressed in giving to the poor; see Rom 15:26, and in doing good to them; see Heb 13:16.
“Its motto was: ‘Not to each his own, but to each what is mine.’ The holy Apostle Barnabas, who himself gave up his estate, says in his epistle, ‘Share everything with your neighbor, and do not call it your own property’ (19:8; compare The Teaching of the Twelve Apostles, 4, 8).”
Passages read together with this verse.
Greek text, 14 words with lemma, transliteration and Strong’s number. Tap to expand.
THEOSIS