Jim McDonald

Philip had preached to the Samaritans and many of them were converted because they believed Philip’s preaching “concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ and were baptized, both men and women” (Acts 8:12). When the apostles in Jerusalem heard that “the Samaritans had received the word of God,” they sent Peter and John there to confirm these disciples and to also do something which Philip (albeit a worker of miracles) could not do. They laid their hands on them and empowered them with spiritual gifts just like they had earlier laid hands upon Philp, giving him power to work miracles. Such shows that the power to impart spiritual gifts lay only with the apostles.

The Lord had more work for Philip, so an angel of the Lord spoke to him, “Arise, and go toward the south unto the way that goeth down from Jerusalem unto Gaza” (Acts 8:26). Philip “arose and went” and presently he saw a chariot approaching. A eunuch from Ethiopia was riding in the chariot. The man was of great authority under Candace, queen of the Ethiopians. He was over all her treasury. He had been to Jerusalem to worship and was returning home. The Spirit said to Philip, “Go near and join thyself to this chariot” (Acts 8:29).

As Philip drew near the chariot, he heard the eunuch reading from Isaiah and asked him, “Understandest thou what thou readest?” The eunuch answered, “How can I except some man should guide me?” (Acts 8:31). The eunuch asked Philip to come up and sit in the chariot with him.

There are many things we do not know about this eunuch. We do not know his name nor whether he was a Jew or proselyte. And after we read the next few verses, we will never hear of him again. The extent of our knowledge of the eunuch is what the Spirit instructed the historian to write about his conversion. We know the man had traveled about 1,000 miles to worship in Jerusalem which showed he was a man of deep conviction. We know he was interested in learning more of the Scriptures. Isaiah had lived over 700 years before the time this man lived, yet the eunuch was aware of the work of this prophet. Perhaps the eunuch had purchased his copy of Isaiah while he was in Jerusalem and wished to learn of the prophecies he had written. There were several things the prophet had written that the eunuch could learn — not only prophecies which concerned the coming Messiah, but of other people and events not directly connected with the Messiah. The eunuch had a long journey ahead of him which would take many days, and what better way to pass those days than by reading from an inspired prophet?

When Philip got into the chariot, the eunuch asked about the passage he had been reading: “Of whom speaketh the prophet this; of himself or of some other?” The eunuch was reading from chapter 53 which said, “He was lead as a sheep to the slaughter, and as a lamb before his shearer is dumb so he opened not his mouth. In his humiliation his judgment was taken away, His generation who shall declare: For his life is taken from the earth.”

Philip began with this scripture and “preached to him Jesus.” We know that for Philip to preach to him Jesus meant that he preached to him about Jesus and what more appropriate passage could Philip have had to begin with than Isaiah 53? Would anyone doubt that just as the Spirit had direct involvement in pointing Philip to this chariot, that the same Spirit had a hand in seeing that the eunuch was reading from this passage?

The passage specifically mentioned as the place the eunuch was reading was a recording 700 years before the time that Jesus would stand before Pilate and refuse to defend Himself. In fact, His silence was so obvious Pilate marveled at his actions (Matthew 27:14). The statement, “In his humiliation his judgment was taken away,” was a prophecy before that although Pilate said he found no fault in Him, that he would chastise Him and release Him. Pilate did not release Him; he commanded that Jesus should be crucified (Luke 23:14-17; 24-25). There was so much more in this chapter Philip could have used to “preach Jesus” to the eunuch, and likely did for the whole of the chapter deals with so much regarding the death of Jesus.

As they went on their way, they came to a certain water and the eunuch said, “See, here is water. What doth hinder me to be baptized and Philip said, if thou believest, thou mayest.” The eunuch answered, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.” When the eunuch said this, “He commanded the chariot to stand still and they both went down into the water, both Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him” (Acts 8:38). Isaiah 53 does not mention Jesus by name, nor is anything said about baptism there, but when Philip “preached Jesus” to the eunuch it was necessary that the person of whom Isaiah wrote be identified as Jesus of Nazareth. Isaiah did not mention the miracles Jesus worked before His death, but Philip doubtlessly recounted those as well for it was by those miracles God showed that Jesus was His Son (John 20:30-31). Clearly Philip, in preaching Jesus to the eunuch, discussed the purpose of Jesus’ death, and of His commission to His apostles to “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, but he that believeth not shall be damned” (Mark 16:15-16).

When the eunuch had confessed his faith that Jesus was the Son of God and was baptized, he had been born again, just as Jesus told Nicodemus all must be:“Verily, verily I say unto thee, except a man be born anew, He cannot see the kingdom of God” and “Verily, verily I say unto thee, except a man be born of the water and the spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God” (John 3:3, 5). The eunuch had heard the Spirit’s words and had believed them. He had been born of the Spirit. He had been baptized by Philip. He had been born of the water. The eunuch had been born again.

Like the 3,000 on Pentecost in Acts 2 and the Samaritans in Acts 8, the eunuch had also been born again. The eunuch had been converted.