THEOSISJohn Chrysostom
O madness! "They feared," it says, "the people." What benefit did the people bring them? They ought to have feared God, Who continually snatched the apostles from their hands like fledglings. Instead, they feared the people more.
Acts 5:26Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers
Then went the officer with the ministers and brought them without violence: for they feared the people, lest they should be stoned.
τοτε απελθων ο στρατηγος συν τοις υπηρεταις ηγαγεν αυτους ου μετα βιας εφοβουντο γαρ τον λαον ινα μη λιθασθωσιν
The Church Fathers on this verse
6 Church Fathers comment on this verse
Alexander Gorsky
Having received a new sign as confirmation of God's good pleasure, for the place where they prayed was shaken, they preached the gospel with still greater boldness. This became the cause of the apostles' second imprisonment, now in the public prison, as disturbers of public peace.
The Sadducees were again the chief actors. To mock their vain designs, an angel opened the prison doors for the apostles, though they denied the very existence of angels. They were again in the temple and teaching.
From there they were taken and brought before the Sanhedrin. They were examined as men who had violated the command of the authorities. They were not asked how they had come out of prison. They were asked why they preached about Him whose name was hateful to them.
Read more (66 words)
But the apostles, without hesitation, said that one must obey God rather than men. They preached the resurrection of Jesus and the witness of the Holy Spirit. The Sadducees could no longer endure this and wished to put the apostles to death.
Yet the voice of the learned Pharisee Gamaliel, honored by all the people, served the work of God. They were only punished and released.
Bogolepow D.P.
Nevertheless, those who crucified the Lord remain harshly consistent even now. When the session opened, it became clear that the apostles had been freed from prison bonds of themselves, though the prison doors had been carefully locked and the guard had kept watch.
It was clear that they were protected by the right hand of God. Yet the Sanhedrin ordered them brought to trial as criminals.
The captain of the guard, carrying out this command, did not use violence against the innocent only because the people were advocates for the apostles, their benefactors. Instead, he brought them out of the temple without compulsion.
The high priest begins the interrogation, which the writer of Acts conveys only in its main features. "Did we not strictly command you not to teach in this name?"
Read more (189 words)
The high priest does not call Jesus by name, wishing thereby to show contempt for Him. He considers it beneath himself even to pronounce the name of Him whom the apostles preach.
Meanwhile their teaching about Christ is such that the high priest and the others, the chief perpetrators of Christ's death, are directly accused of the innocent murder of the Righteous One.
This especially irritated the judges: "Behold, you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and you intend to bring this Man's blood upon us." But the apostles, as Peter and John had done before (Acts 4:19), answered calmly and powerfully.
They testified directly and decisively that one must obey God rather than men. This is God who truly raised from the dead the One crucified by the Jewish leaders.
Through His Ascension into heaven, He exalted Him as the Author and Perfecter of faith and as Savior of men from their sins. To this they were witnesses, as eyewitnesses, and so was the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit dwells in those who believe in Christ and works through them many majestic miracles for the glory of Christ.
Lopuchin A.P.
In extreme confusion the members of the Sanhedrin once more sent the temple captain to arrest them, but this time without any violence that might have led to dangerous consequences. The apostles offered no resistance. Immediately they were set where their Savior had once stood, in the middle of the dread semicircle of angry judges.
Michail (Lusin)
"The captain of the guard went": he went with the officers, of course, because news had reached the Sanhedrin that the apostles were teaching the people in the temple (v. 25).
"Without compulsion": voluntarily on the part of the apostles, and without using violence against them, as had been done when they were imprisoned. "They feared the people, lest they be stoned": this is why no violence was used against the apostles this time.
Perhaps even when the apostles were imprisoned, the authorities had already seen signs of popular agitation. Now they feared stirring it up still more. Or perhaps the people had now plainly become agitated and threatened to use violence against the oppressors if violence was used against the apostles.
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In any case, it is clear that the people's sympathy for the apostles had reached a high degree. The police guard feared being stoned by them.
The people had seen the apostles' violent imprisonment the day before. They saw that now the apostles were teaching in the temple. They saw that yesterday's enemies were taking them again, probably for trial.
They likely concluded that the apostles had been miraculously freed from prison. For if the authorities themselves had released them voluntarily, they would not now be taking them again to judgment.
Thus the people probably reasoned out their miraculous release from prison. They could answer violence against them with violence, that is, with revolt.
This was all the more so because the apostles, through their many healings of the sick, were benefactors of this people. They stirred up its sympathy for themselves to the highest degree (v. 13). On stoning, see the note on Acts 7:58.
Nikanor (Kamenski)
The bringing of the apostles before the Sanhedrin is marked by notable features. It was done with fitting respect toward them, because it was clear that if they were taken by force, the people might kill those who had come to seize them.
So great was the people's affection for them. Conversely, such was their hatred for the unworthy leaders and ministers of the people. Apparently, even in the Sanhedrin they at first did not dare treat the apostles harshly.
For example, they did not ask how they had come out of prison. They were probably afraid that a new miracle, which they guessed or had secretly heard about, would be made known.
Read more (208 words)
"The people probably also reasoned out the apostles' miraculous deliverance from prison. They could answer violence against them with violence, that is, with revolt.
This was all the more so because the apostles, through their many healings of the sick, were benefactors of this people, stirring up sympathy for themselves to the highest degree."
The placing of the apostles before the Sanhedrin shows that the case was conducted formally, with the proper question. Through this they hoped to obtain the necessary elements of a crime, which until then had still not been found.
Since excessive anger and envy were shown in all this, Saint John Chrysostom says: "The soul is diseased when a man grows angry, envies, or does something similar.
Or better, it is diseased when it suffers. For to have anger and envy is not to act, but to suffer. For this reason they are called passions of the soul, wounds, and ulcers.
Understand then, you who grow angry, that you do this through passion. Consequently, he who does not grow angry does not suffer.
Do you see that it is not the man who endures wrongs who suffers, but the man who inflicts them? From anger arise illnesses: dullness of sight, madness, and many others."
Cross references
Passages read together with this verse.
- Acts 5:13But of the rest no man durst join himself unto them: but the people magnified them.
- Acts 4:21But they, threatening, sent them away, not finding how they might punish them, because of the people: for all men glorified what had been done, in that which had come to pass.
- Matt 26:5But they said: Not on the festival day, lest perhaps there should be a tumult among the people.
- Luke 22:2And the chief priests and the scribes sought how they might put Jesus to death: but they feared the people.
- Acts 5:24Now when the officer of the temple and the chief priests heard these words, they were in doubt concerning them, what would come to pass.
- Luke 20:6But if we say, of men: the whole people will stone us. For they are persuaded that John was a prophet.
- Matt 21:26If we shall say, from heaven, he will say to us: Why then did you not believe him? But if we shall say, from men, we are afraid of the multitude: for all held John as a prophet.
- Matt 14:5And having a mind to put him to death, he feared the people: because they esteemed him as a prophet.
The original text
Greek text, 18 words with lemma, transliteration and Strong’s number. Tap to expand.
- ΤότεtotethenG5119 · τότε
- ἀπελθὼνapelthōnI come or go away fromG565 · ἀπέρχομαι
- ὁhotheG3588 · ὁ
- στρατηγὸςstratēgosa generalG4755 · στρατηγός
- σὺνsynwithG4862 · σύν
- τοῖςtoistheG3588 · ὁ
- ὑπηρέταιςhypēretaisa servantG5257 · ὑπηρέτης
- ἦγενēgenI leadG71 · ἄγω
- αὐτούςautousheG846 · αὐτός
- οὐounoG3756 · οὐ
- μετὰmetawithG3326 · μετά
- βίαςbiasforceG970 · βία
- ἐφοβοῦντοephobountoI fearG5399 · φοβέω
- γὰρgarforG1063 · γάρ
- τὸνtontheG3588 · ὁ
- λαόνlaona peopleG2992 · λαός
- μὴmēnotG3361 · μή
- λιθασθῶσινlithasthōsinI stoneG3034 · λιθάζω