The text I would like to call your attention to this morning is Acts 8:25-40. We will be looking at Philip & the Ethiopian Eunuch. Let’s read our main text, pray, and examine/apply it together.

Verse

25 Now when they had testified and spoken the word of the Lord, they returned to Jerusalem, preaching the gospel to many villages of the Samaritans. 26 Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Rise and go toward the southto the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” This is a desert place.

Commentary

After the Simon the Magician incident, Philip, Peter, and John went into other Samaritan villages to preach the gospel. When Peter and John completed their Samaritan objectives, they returned to Jerusalem leaving Philip behind. While Philip continued to minister to Samaritans he was visited by an angel of the Lord who gave him special instructions. Guidance often came to the early church through an angel of the Lord (Acts 5:19-20, 12:7). The angel said to Philip, “Rise and go toward the southto the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” Luke added that the area was a desert place.

Gaza was one of the 5 chief cities of the Philistines and was situated at the southernmost part of Philistia. From Gaza down to Egypt there was nothing but desert. From Gaza east to Jerusalem there was nothing but desert. Gaza had been destroyed by Alexander the Great and was left in ruins. A new Gaza was built two miles away next to the Ocean. Between Jerusalem and Gaza there were two roads. One of the roads was highly traveled because it was a safer. The other was rarely traveled because it shot right through the hottest and harshest parts of the desert. Luke added the nuance “desert place” so that his readers would know that Philip was sent to the desert road.

Notice how limited the angel’s instructions were. The angel said, “Go south towards the desert road to Gaza.” That’s it. He didn’t say, “And once you get there do this or do that or when you get there wait for further instructions”. All he said was “Go south towards the desert road.” This is reminiscent of Abram’s call. God gave Abram no specifics. God said, “Abram, leave Ur and your relatives and go to the place I will show you”. That’s it. And by faith Abram trusted God and set out on his journey. How did Philip respond? Look at verses 27-28:

Verse

27 And he rose and went. And there was an Ethiopian, a eunuch, a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure. He had come to Jerusalem to worship 28 and was returning, seated in his chariot, and he was reading the prophet Isaiah.

Commentary

Like Abram, Philip trusted God and began his journey. What happened once he reached the desert road? Luke tells us that he noticed an Ethiopian sitting in his chariot. He then gives 5 important details about him.

1. He was a Eunuch.

A Eunuch is a man who has been emasculated. Emasculation was required in some nations for certain palace jobs. If a man desired to serve the queen or the king’s harem he might have to be emasculated. Some men were emasculated as an act of worship to their god.

2. He was a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians.

This guy served the queen of Ethiopia. Candace is a title not a name. The queens of Ethiopia and other countries were referred to as Candace. Similar to how Rome called their leader Caesar and Egypt called theirs Pharaoh.

3. He was in charge of the queen’s treasure.

The eunuch’s special task was to guard and protect the queen’s fortune. He served as her personal treasurer which meant that untold riches passed through his hands regularly. He was very trustworthy.

4. He was returning to Ethiopia after worshiping God at Jerusalem.

This guy was a type of Jewish convert. It is not certain how he joined the Jewish faith but there was a large Jewish colony north of Ethiopia at Alexandria. Interestingly, Eunuchs were excluded from the Jewish assembly and prevented from fully converting to Judaism (Deut 23:1). When the law was issued, God was fashioning a people unto Himself. They were to be a holy people set apart and different from the surrounding nations. Because of the law in Deuteronomy 23:1 a eunuch could only become half Jewish. The title these half-Jews were given was God-fearer. God-fearers were permitted to enter synagogues and read the Scriptures but banned from entering the temple. Even though the eunuch was banned from entering the temple, he still traveled the great distance from Ethiopia to Jerusalem several times a year to worship God during special feasts and festivals.

5. He was reading the prophet Isaiah.

This means that the eunuch owned his own personal scroll of the OT. We have to remember that this took place before the invention of the printing press so there were limited copies of the Scriptures out there. The Scriptures were normally read at the temple and at synagogues. But the eunuch had his own copy and there is no doubt that it cost him a small fortune. Luke wrote that he was reading Isaiah. Isaiah may have had special meaning to him since the book speaks encouragingly to eunuchs (Isaiah 56:3-5).

Let’s get back to Philip. Philip was walking along the desert road and he sees this man sitting in his chariot reading a scroll. Look at verses 29-30:

Verse

29 And the Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and join this chariot.” 30 So Philip ran to him and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet and asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?”

Commentary

Notice how the Holy Spirit entered the scene. Back in Samaria it was an angel of the Lord who gave instructions. But here it is the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and join his chariot”. The Holy Spirit gives the people of God their evangelistic promptings. He is the one that shows us who to approach. He is the one that tells us when to approach them. How many times have you received a little nudge to speak truth to somebody at work, at the grocery store, at home, or at some other place? That could very well be the Spirit prompting you.

The text says Philip ran to him and as he drew closer he heard him reading Isaiah out loud. Philip responded very enthusiastically didn’t he? He ran to the eunuch. How enthusiastic are we about sharing the gospel with those whom the Spirit leads us to? And when we approach people how enthusiastic are our presentations? Reading out loud was an ancient custom, it was normal. But before the Scriptures were read out loud, an educated person, one who was trained to handle the Scriptures, would first give a brief description so that the text would make sense. The eunuch however was reading Isaiah out loud by himself without any aid. Philip saw this as an opportunity to provide commentary and most importantly to preach the gospel. So Philip ran to him, heard him reading, and then hollered, “Do you understand what you are reading?” Look at how the eunuch replied. Look at 31:

Verse

31 And he said, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.

Commentary

The eunuch was perplexed. He was at a standstill of understanding. He couldn’t figure out the meaning of the text on his own.

The eunuch exclaimed, “How can I understand it unless someone guides me?” Philip understood the passage perfectly and was very eager to interpret it for him. Seeing his excitement and willingness to help the eunuch said, “Climb aboard and take a seat.”

Look at 32-34:

Verse

32 Now the passage of the Scripture that he was reading was this: “Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter and like a lamb before its shearer is silent, so he opens not his mouth. 33 In his humiliation justice was denied him. Who can describe his generation? For his life is taken away from the earth.” 34 And the eunuch said to Philip, “About whom, I ask you, does the prophet say this, about himself or about someone else?”

Commentary

The passage the eunuch was reading was taken from Isaiah 53:7-8. His confusion over it is totally understandable since contemporary Jewish thought was divided on the interpretation of this passage. Some held that the slaughtered sheep represented the nation, others that Isaiah spoke of himself, still others that he referred to the Messiah. There was no doubt in Philip’s mind, however of who Isaiah wrote.

Like his Lord, Paul, Apollos, and Stephen, Philip was knowledgeable enough in the Scriptures to meet the eunuch where he was. Every believer should strive to be proficient in the Scriptures so that we, too, can meet people at the point of their perplexity and lead them to the Savior. The Apostle Peter said, “Always be ready to make a defense to everyone who asks to give an account for the hope that is in us” (1 Peter 3:15). Look at 35-36:

Verse

35 Then Philip opened his mouth, and beginning with this Scripture he told him the good news about Jesus. 36 And as they were going along the road they came to some water, and the eunuch said, “See, here is water! What prevents me from being baptized?”

Commentary

Luke summarized Philip’s explanation for the sake of his reader Theophilus. There is no doubt that Philip took his time to explain how Jesus was the one Isaiah wrote about. The text says that Philip drew the good news, the gospel out of Isaiah’s passage and presented it to the eunuch. He may have done it like this:

- Jesus of Nazareth was the sheep that was slaughtered to make a full and final propitiation for the sins of many.

- Jesus of Nazareth was the lamb, the Lamb of God, who remained quiet before the Sanhedrin. Like a silent lamb before its shearer, He opened not His mouth to defend Himself for He knew that He had to be found guilty, be condemned, and be crucified in order to bring the Father’s plan of salvation nearer to completion.

- Jesus of Nazareth was humiliated and justice was denied Him. He was beaten mercilessly, spit on, crowned with thorns, cursed, stripped, exposed, and nailed to a cross like a common criminal. He was granted no clemency from heaven or earth. He was denied justice and brought to death by the hands of wicked men.

- Jesus of Nazareth had His life taken away from the earth but the Father gave it back to Him, resurrecting Him by His mighty power and now He is seated at the right hand of the Majesty fulfilling His offices as Prophet, Priest, and King of Kings.

At some point the eunuch must have asked how to be saved because in verse 36 he asked to be baptized. Baptism was part of the apostle’s gospel invitation. Not as a component of salvation but as a means to express ones faith publically. When Peter preached he called for his listeners to repent, believe in Jesus of Nazareth, and be baptized. Philip obviously included baptism in his gospel presentation. Acts 8:12 affirms this. After explaining the gospel from the book of Isaiah Philip explained how to receive Jesus and as they were rolling down the desert road they noticed water (maybe a creek, pond, or small lake).

The eunuch saw the water and said, “See, here is water! What prevents me from being baptized?” This was a great question. Baptism was required for Jewish converts. If a person wanted to convert to the Jewish faith they were taken through a religious process which ended with baptism. When they were submerged their gentile-ness was washed away when they came up they were seen as a Jew. But eunuchs were denied the ordinance of baptism because they were not permitted to fully convert to Judaism. The eunuch knew this and when he saw the water he pondered to himself “I wonder if being a eunuch will prevent me from being baptized and fully converted to the faith Philip has explained to me?” “I wonder if being a eunuch will prevent me from being fully accepted by Jesus of Nazareth?” The eunuch understood the law. He knew that he was restricted. That’s why he said, “What is to prevent me?” He did however have had a measure of hope. He believed that someday the restriction would be lifted. His trusted passage was Isaiah 56:3-5.

Isaiah 56:3-5

Let not the foreigner who has joined himself to the Lord say, “The Lord will surely separate me from his people”; and let not the eunuch say, “Behold, I am a dry tree.”

4 For thus says the Lord: “To the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths, who choose the things that please me and hold fast my covenant, 5 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 that shall not be cut off.

When he read this he probably thought: “The law says I’m restricted but the prophet says God will lift the restriction in the future. I can’t wait for that day and I hope I live to see it, no more exclusion from the assembly of the Lord!” What the eunuch was about to discover is that Isaiah’s prophesy had come true in Jesus. Jesus brought the restriction in Deut 23:1 to an end and He fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah 56:3-5. Isaiah’s prophesy is about the messianic kingdom. Isaiah said that when the Messiah comes to initiate His kingdom people of every color and background, foreigners, eunuchs or whatever, will be fully received and accepted through faith in Him. Jesus came as the Messiah and He initiated His kingdom. The kingdom began with His arrival and the full consummation of His kingdom will occur when He returns. So Deuteronomy 23:1 and Isaiah 56:3-5 have both been fulfilled in Jesus Christ.

The day the eunuch longed to see had come. Full access and acceptance had been made available through the person and work of Jesus Christ. Take notice to how verse 37 is missing. Some translations, like the King James, include verse 37. Verse 37 shows Philip explaining to the eunuch that in order to be baptized he must first be saved. Translators added verse 37 as a precautionary measure to safeguard against error and heresy. Verse 37 is not included in the original manuscripts and that is why some translations exclude it. In my opinion verse 37 is unnecessary because the context does the job very well. We shouldn’t fault translators because they were trying to guard against the heresy of baptism salvation.

OK, so the chariot is rolling and the eunuch has heard the gospel and he’s ready to express his new faith in Jesus Christ through baptism. He points to the water and asks the million dollar question, “What is to prevent me from being baptized?” Philip must have declared, “NOTHING!” Look at verse 38:

Verse

38 And he commanded the chariot to stop, and they both went down into the water, Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him.

Commentary

Immediately the eunuch called for the chariot to stop and the two of them went right down into the water and Philip baptized him in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (Matt 28:19). Baptism for this man meant acceptance.

And baptism affirmed what he as was already starting to experience on the inside which is the acceptance of Jesus Christ. That is what he had been longing for. And Philip helped him find it. Also, a person of his importance, a treasurer for a queen, would have traveled with a large entourage. There would have been many servants, guards, and animal keepers in his group. He was baptized in front of them all. What a testimony! Let’s look at 39:

Verse

39 And when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord carried Philip away, and the eunuch saw him no more, and went on his way rejoicing.

Commentary

When the eunuch surfaced, Philip was gone. Verse 39 is linked to a number of passages that describe how other servants of the Lord were whisked away by the Spirit (1 Kings 18:12; 2 Kings 2:16; Ezekiel 3:12, 14; 8:3). Philip had disappeared just as mysteriously as he had appeared. The eunuch and his entourage were making their way down the old deserted road and then he saw Philip running towards his chariot. How mysterious! And then while he’s being baptized he can feel Philip’s hand on the back of his head pushing him under the water but when he comes up Philip is gone. How mysterious! The eunuch looked to the left and to the right but Philip was gone. How did the eunuch respond? It says he “Went on his way rejoicing!”

The eunuch was filled with joy just as the Samaritans had been filled with joy. He rolled along in his chariot rejoicing. Joy is the mark of a true believer. We saw none of this with Simon the Magician. What a contrast?! Look at our last verse, verse 40:

Verse

40 But Philip found himself at Azotus, and as he passed through he preached the gospel to all the towns until he came to Caesarea.

Commentary

I would imagine that the eunuch wasn’t the only one surprised by Philip’s mysterious exit. I’m pretty sure Philip was blown away too! According to the Scriptures this had never happened to Philip before. When he realized he was somewhere else he may have wondered, “Where’d the eunuch go? My clothes are still wet, where am I at? What town is this?” At some point he figured out that he was at Azotus. Azotus used to be called Ashdod; it was also a Philistine city. It was 20 miles north of Gaza. Philip preached the gospel in Azotus and then throughout other cities along the Mediterranean coast. He preached in Joppa (Yo-pay) and Lydda (Lou-dah) and then settled in Caesarea. In Acts 9 the Apostle Peter went to these cities to minister to the believers. These believers had been converted through Philip’s gospel preaching.

According to Acts 21:9 Philip made his home in Caesarea. Caesarea was built by Herod the Great as a tribute to the Roman Caesar. Caesarea was predominantly Greek which made it a great missions-field for a Hellenist like Philip. Luke does not give us the subsequent history of the Ethiopian eunuch. However, according to the church father Irenaeus (115AD-202AD), the Ethiopian eunuch became a missionary to the Ethiopians.

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In closing I’d like to point out the overarching and most important theme of this passage which is the Sovereignty of God in salvation. God has chosen to save people from every tongue and trine (Rev 7:9). The Bible teaches that God not only knows who these people are, who He will save, but that He chose to set His salvation and affection on them according to the counsel of will before the foundation of the world (John 15:16; Acts 13:48; Ephesians 1:4–6; Col. 3:12; 1 Thess. 1:4; 2 Thess. 2:13; 2 Tim. 2:10; Titus 1:1; 1 Pet. 1:1; 2:9; 5:13; Rev. 17:14).

This of course means that there exists nothing in all of creation that can delay, divert, frustrate, or prevent God from saving those whom He has chosen to save. Our passage illustrates God’s sovereignty over salvation and the precision by He carries out His salvation in an extraordinary way. Let me draw it out for you.

1. God had chosen in eternity past to save an Ethiopian eunuch.

2. God initiated His plan of salvation for the Ethiopian eunuch by beginning a work of grace in his life.

This is evidenced by the fact that the eunuch not only looked into Judaism, but that he became a subscriber and worshiper to the best of his ability. He traveled to Jerusalem to partake in the feasts, celebrations, and to worship the God he wanted to know.

3. God lead the Ethiopian eunuch down the desert road instead of the other road.

Nearly no one used the desert road because it was dangerous, desolate, and hot.

4. God sent an angel to Philip the evangelist, who was in Samaria, to tell him to go to the desert road that lies between Jerusalem and Gaza.

5. Philip arrived at the desert road at the exact time the Ethiopian eunuch was riding along in his chariot.

6. The Holy Spirit commanded Philip to go speak to the Ethiopian eunuch.

7. When Philip approached his chariot he heard the Ethiopian eunuch reading Isaiah 53:7-8 out loud which is about the coming the Messiah.

8. Philip, a stranger, was invited to climb aboard and explain the meaning of the text.

9. Philip taught the Ethiopian eunuch that Isaiah was prophesying about Jesus Christ who is God’s sent Messiah. Philip gave him the good news, the gospel!

10. The Ethiopian eunuch repented of his sin, put his faith in Jesus Christ, and was baptized.

11. Philip gets whisked away and the Ethiopian eunuch continues on his journey rejoicing!

All of these things were pre-planned, prepared, and then carried out by the sovereign God. God used Judaism, an angel, an obedient servant (Philip), the Scriptures, and the oversight, instruction, and illuminating power of His Spirit to bring to fruition his sovereign plan of salvation for the Ethiopia eunuch. This is nothing short of amazing!

I’d like to submit to you that if you are in Christ today, He did the same thing for you. Your story and process may be different from the Ethiopian’s but make no mistake, it was God Almighty who chose you, who set His affection upon you, who brought you through the experiences of your life, who began to touch you with His grace, who illuminated your darkened heart and who quickened your dead spirit through the gospel and the power of the Holy Spirit, and who preserves you at this very moment and will, one day, bring you into His marvelous presence forevermore. In light of God’s sovereign power, grace and goodness, I say rejoice! Rejoice O church, rejoice! Rejoice at the salvation of our God, for He has done a mighty work for you, for me, and for many. And may we continue to trust Him and rejoice in knowing that He has promised to bring to completion the good work that He began in our lives. Amen.