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Acts 1:1. I wrote the first book for you, Theophilus, about everything that Jesus did and taught from the beginning. (Luke) reminds Theophilus of (his) gospel to indicate his very careful attitude to the matter; because even at the beginning of his work he says: I decided to describe it to you in order, and not in some way, but as those who from the very beginning were eyewitnesses and ministers of the Word handed it down to us (Luke 1:2, 3). So he reminds us of the Gospel in order to remind us of the care with which it was written; and he remembers this in order to, having in mind the same careful attitude to the matter when compiling this book, be as attentive as possible to what is being written. Therefore, he did not need any other approval this time; for he who is honored to write about what he has heard, and who is believed in what he has written, justly deserves much greater faith when he states not what he heard from others, but what he himself saw. Therefore, he does not say: the first is the gospel, the hedgehog of good news, but: the first is the word; since he was alien to arrogance and humility and thought that the name: the gospel is higher than it (the work), although the apostle calls him this way for this work: brother, “praised in all churches for the gospel” (2 Cor. 8:18). But with his expression: about everyone, he seems to contradict the Evangelist John. He says that it was not possible to describe everything; and he (says): I created everything from the beginning even to the ascension. So what do we say to this? The fact that by the expression about all Luke indicates that he did not omit any of the essential and necessary things, from which the divinity and truth of the sermon is known; because both Luke and each of the evangelists in their gospels placed at the head of everything that from which the divinity and truth of the sermon is known, and, moreover, in such an exact form, as if according to some model. John the Theologian himself spoke about all this in a similar way. They did not omit any of those features through which, on the one hand, the ministry of the Word according to the flesh is known and becomes an object of faith, and on the other, His greatness shines and is revealed according to divinity. John says that if we were to describe in parts and briefly everything that the Lord said and did, then even then the world would not be able to contain the books that would be written (John 21:25); but it would be all the more impossible to contain if someone wanted to set out in writing all the works and words of the Lord with an investigation of their meaning; because the meaning of them and the reasons why the Lord worked and spoke cannot be comprehended or comprehended by the human mind, for the reason that everything that He created in human nature, He created as God; from this side, it is impossible to express the deeds and words of Christ either in words or convey them in writing. However, I also admit that this addition is a hyperbolic turn of phrase and does not certainly mean that the world could not accommodate the books being written if the presentation were more extensive. It can also be said that this evangelist (John), as having developed theoretical contemplation more than others, really knows all the creations and deeds of the Savior - not only those that He revealed in the flesh, but also those that He performed from time immemorial, both without a body and with a body. If anyone dared to describe the features of nature, origin, differences, essence, etc. each of these cases; then, even if we admit the possibility of this, it would be impossible for the world to contain written books. If anyone by the word begins to understand not just the world, but a person lying in evil and thinking about worldly and carnal things, because the word is understood this way in many places of Scripture; and in this case, John correctly says that if someone wanted to describe all the miracles performed by Christ, then such people, inclined to come to unbelief rather than to faith because of the multitude and greatness of Christ’s works, would not be able to accommodate what was written. And that is why it is the evangelists who often pass in silence a whole crowd of healed people and bypass many miraculous actions, denoting only the general fact that many were delivered from various diseases, that there were many miracles, etc., but they are not listed; because for people incapable of understanding and deceived, the enumeration of many miracles in parts usually served as a reason for unbelief and reluctance to listen (to the sermon) rather than for belief and the disposition to listen. “All that Jesus did and taught from the beginning He understands miracles and teaching - not only this, but also what Jesus taught in practice; because he not only exhorted people in words to do this or that, but did not do it himself, but through the deeds that he himself did, he convinced them to imitate Him and be zealous for virtue. It should be known that Theophilus was one of those converted to faith by Luke himself. And do not be surprised that Luke showed so much concern for one person that he wrote two complete books for him; because he was the keeper of the famous saying of the Lord, which says: “It is not the will of your Father who is in heaven, that one of these little ones should perish” (Matthew 18:14). Why, writing to Theophilus alone, did he write more than one book, but divided the subjects into two books? For the sake of clarity and in order not to confuse the reader; Yes, they were also divided in content; and therefore he rightly divided the subjects of the narrative into two books. Acts 1:2. Until the day on which He ascended, giving commands by the Holy Spirit to the Apostles whom He had chosen.” “Commanded by the Holy Spirit,” that is, speaking spiritual verbs to them; there was nothing human here; because he commanded them by the Spirit. Just as the Lord himself, in humility and adaptability to the listeners, said: if I through the Spirit of God cast out demons (Matthew 12:28): so here, commanding by the Spirit, it is said not because the Son had a need for the Spirit, but because where the Son creates, the Spirit also cooperates and is co-present as one in essence. What did he command? Go and teach all languages, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to keep all the things given to you (Matthew 28:19-20). “Having commanded, it is said, he was lifted up” (In Greek: ανεληφθη was taken up, that is, as if he did not ascend himself, but was lifted up. Ed.). He did not say: he ascended, but he still talks as about a man. From here we see that Jesus taught his disciples even after his resurrection: but no one accurately conveyed the time of this. John spent more time with Him than others; but no one announced all this clearly; because the disciples were turning their attention elsewhere. Acts 1:3. To whom He revealed Himself alive, after His suffering, with many true proofs, for forty days.” Having spoken first about the ascension, he then speaks about the resurrection. Since you heard that He ascended, so that you would not think that He was taken by others, Luke added: “to whom He showed Himself alive”; because if He appeared before them, performing a greater miracle, 8 then He was much more able to perform a smaller one 9 “For forty days”, and not every day for all forty days, 10 because He was not with them constantly, as before the resurrection, but appeared and again withdrew, elevating their thoughts and not allowing them to cling to Him in the same way as before. With great caution and wisdom, He gradually developed two sides in them - faith in His resurrection and the conviction to consider Him above man, although one contradicted the other, because from faith in the resurrection the idea of ​​many aspects of humanity should have arisen, and from the fact that He is above man, the opposite. However, both were confirmed in due time, namely “for forty days,” starting from the day of resurrection and until the day of ascension into heaven. During these days He ate and drank with them, showing by this that He was the One who was crucified and buried, and rose from the dead. Why did He not appear to everyone, but only to the apostles? Because to many who did not understand this ineffable mystery, His appearance would seem like a vision. If the disciples themselves at first did not believe and were embarrassed, even needed to be touched by the hand and share a meal with Him, then how should His appearance have amazed the crowd? Therefore, He makes the proof of His resurrection undoubted and general through the miracles that the apostles performed by the power of the grace they received; so that the resurrection became an obvious fact not only for them, who had to see it with their own eyes, but also for all people of subsequent times. Acts 1:3–4. Appearing to them and speaking about the Kingdom of God. And, having gathered them, He commanded them: do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the promise of the Father, which you have heard from Me. The Lord himself called the Kingdom in which he promised his disciples to drink a new cup with them, the Kingdom of the Father, calling the new drink that he drank with them after his resurrection; at this time He ate new food with them - He ate it differently than He ate and drank with them before, before the resurrection, because then, having become like us in everything except sin, He ate and drank like us, voluntarily allowing the flesh to demand the necessary consumption of food; therefore, he voluntarily allowed himself to be in a state of hunger. After the resurrection, he drank and ate no longer out of need, but only so that everyone would believe in the truth of His bodily nature, and also in the fact that He suffered voluntarily and rose again, as befits God. So, he called the unusual food that He ate and the unusual drink that He drank together with the disciples after the resurrection, that is, eating common salt and common food with them, as new food and new drink. But it is not for us to explain, because it was something extraordinary, it was not because nature required food, but out of condescension, in order to prove the resurrection. And revealing to them the secrets “about the Kingdom of God... he commanded them: do not leave Jerusalem.” Why did he command them to do this? Before, when they were afraid and trembling, He brought them out into Galilee, so that they could listen without fear to what He had to say to them, since they were ready to abandon the work to which they were called. Now, when they had listened and spent forty days together, “He commanded them: do not leave Jerusalem.” Why is this? Because just as no one allows soldiers who have a strong enemy to attack before they have time to arm themselves, and just as no one agrees to release the horses before the driver sits down, so the Lord does not allow the apostles to appear in competition before the descent of the Holy Spirit, lest the vast majority defeat them and take them captive. However, the Lord does not allow them to leave Jerusalem not only for this reason, but also because here too many were to believe, and thirdly, so that no one would say that, having left their own, they went to seek glory from strangers. Therefore, they spread undoubted evidence of the resurrection among the very people who killed the Lord, who crucified and buried Him, and in the very city where they had the audacity to commit such lawlessness. When did they hear such a command? Then, when He said to them: “It is better for you that I go; for if I do not go, the Comforter will not come to you” (John 16:7); and “again: I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Comforter” (John 14:16). Why did the Comforter not come with Him and not immediately after His departure, but after eight or nine days, that is, at the time when the day of Pentecost arrived? Moreover, how, when the Holy Spirit had not yet descended, did He say: “Receive the Holy Spirit” (John 20:22)? To this it must be said that He spoke this way in order to arouse in them the desire, readiness and ability to receive the Holy Spirit, and they accepted Him when He descended; or he spoke about what was to be as if it already existed and was present, just as when He spoke about the possibility of “treading on snakes and scorpions and all the power of the enemy” (Luke 10:19). However, it should also be said that the gifts of the Spirit are different and diverse: there is the gift of purification and perfection, the gift of sanctification and sanctifying power, the gift of tongues and prophecy, the gift of miracles and interpretation, and many other gifts. So, given the diversity and diversity of the gifts of the Spirit, nothing prevented the apostles from receiving the grace of the Spirit in different ways. But the complete communication of the Spirit, which made the apostles perfect and capable of perfecting others, was at Pentecost, when He descended on them in the form of tongues of fire and completely filled them with His power. The Lord departed, and then the Holy Spirit came, and came at the time of Pentecost, and not immediately, so that they would be imbued with desire and then receive grace. And if the Holy Spirit had come with the Son, and then the Son had departed, but the Spirit remained, then there would not have been so much consolation for them, because they were very reluctant to part with their Teacher. Therefore, He ascends and the Spirit does not come immediately, so that after some despondency, He awakens in the disciples the desire and consciousness of the necessity of the promise given to them, and so that during the descent they experience pure and complete pleasure. However, it was necessary first for our flesh to appear in heaven and complete reconciliation be accomplished, and then the Holy Spirit should descend. Know, then, what necessity the Lord placed upon them to remain in Jerusalem by this promise. So that after the Ascension they do not scatter again, with this expectation, as if by some kind of bonds, He holds them all there and with the promise of more profitable hopes disposes them to the strongest desire for these hopes, even though they are unknown. But no one would be wrong if he said that even then 11 they received some power and grace of the Spirit, not such as to raise the dead, but they received the power to forgive sins. That’s why he added: “Whose sins you forgive, their sins will be forgiven; on whomever you leave it, it will remain on him” (John 20:23), showing by this exactly what kind of power it bestows on them. Then He clothed them with this very power; and after forty days he grants them the power to perform miracles; That’s why he says: “You will receive strength” (Acts 1:8) and so on. Acts 1:5. For John baptized with water; and you, a few days after this, will be baptized with the Holy Spirit. Having told them to wait for the promise of the Father, which they had heard from the Lord, He added: “For John baptized with water,” etc., and by this he clearly shows His difference from John, and not as secretly as before, when he said: “He who is least in the Kingdom of Heaven is greater than he” (Matthew 11:11). Now he clearly says: “John baptized with water, but you... will be baptized with the Holy Spirit,” and shows that even they have become greater than John, since they too will baptize with the Holy Spirit. He did not say: “I will baptize you with the Holy Spirit,” but: “you will be baptized,” leaving us everywhere examples of humility; since from the testimony of John it is already known that the baptizer was the Lord: “He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire” (Matthew 3:11). How is it said: “you will be baptized” when there was no water in the upper room? This is said because here the actual baptism of the Spirit was meant, through which the water itself becomes effective, just as it is said of the Lord Himself that He was anointed, whereas He was never anointed with oil, but received the Spirit. However, it can be proven that the apostles were baptized not only with the Spirit, but also with water, only at different times. For us, both baptisms are performed at the same time, and then they were performed separately, because the apostles were first baptized by John with water, and then with the Holy Spirit. Why didn’t the Lord announce when the Holy Spirit would come, but only said: “a few days after this?” He says this so that they do not fall into despondency; but did not say specifically when the Holy Spirit would come, so that, while waiting for Him, they would constantly be awake. So, what is surprising in the fact that He does not tell them about the end of the world, when, for the reason we have indicated, He did not want to announce this approaching hour? The expression “you will be baptized” means the abundance and, as it were, the richness of the communication of the Holy Spirit, just as someone who is baptized in water, immersing his whole body, sensually feels it, while he who simply receives the water is not completely irrigated, not in all places of his body. So, in what is now said, there is no contradiction with what is said in the Divine Gospels, for it is clear that although after the resurrection of Christ from the dead it was said to the apostles: “You will receive the Holy Spirit,” and they accepted Him, it is said there that they received the Holy Spirit. Here the expression “you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit” means the outpouring and richness of grace to guide others, which the Lord granted to them by ascending to the Father. Just as, having faith, they come to Him and say: “Increase faith in us” (Luke 17:5), - so here, in addition to the communion of the Spirit that they already had, they received, after the descent of the Holy Spirit on them, the possibility of a stronger unity with Him. Acts 1:6–8. Therefore, they came together and asked Him, saying: Are you at this time, O Lord, restoring the kingdom to Israel? He said to them, “It is not your business to know the times or seasons that the Father has ordained in His power.” But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you. Intending to ask, they come to the Teacher together in order to influence Him with their numbers; because they knew that His previous answer, namely: “about that day... and hour no one knows” (Matthew 24:36), was such an answer not due to ignorance, but because He evaded answering. So they ask again. When they heard that they were about to receive the Holy Spirit, then they wanted to find out about this and get rid of disasters as worthy, since they did not want to expose themselves to extreme dangers again. They do not ask: “when,” but: “Will You restore the kingdom to Israel at this time?” “Isn’t it now,” they say - they so badly wanted this day. It seems to me that it was still unclear to them what this kingdom was, since there was not yet the Holy Spirit to guide them. They do not ask: “When will it come,” but: “Do You restore it” Yourself? They already thought so highly of Him. Therefore, He talks to them without insistence, because He no longer says that about “that day and hour no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son” (Mark 13:32), but that He says: “It is not your business to know the times or dates.” Not because he attributed to the Father the knowledge of the fulfillment of times, so that He Himself did not know, but because the question itself was unnecessary; and therefore He answered it with silence for their benefit. His goal was to suppress the extreme curiosity of His disciples, since He sent them to preach the Kingdom of Heaven, and not to indicate the number of times. He does not tell them about this time, whereas He taught them much more - for the purpose, as we have mentioned more than once, to make them stay awake, and also because, not knowing about it, they did not lose anything, since He revealed to them truths much higher than this - revealed that He is the Son of God, that He is equal with the Father, that He has risen, that there will be a resurrection of the dead, that judgment will come, and that He is seated at the right hand of the Father. Tell me, what is more important - to know that He will reign or when? Moses learned the beginning of the world and when and in how many centuries it was created, and he counts the years, although it is generally more difficult to know the beginning than the end. However, the apostles did not ask the Lord about the final consummation of times, “saying: is it not at this time... Are You restoring the kingdom to Israel?” But He did not reveal this to them either, but as He answered before, turning them away from thinking about it, so that they would not think that deliverance from disasters was near, but would know that they would still be exposed to many dangers, He answers now, only softer: “but you will receive strength.” Then, so that they would not ask Him again, He immediately ascended. Moreover, lest they ask: “Why do you leave us perplexed about this subject?” - The Son says: “Which the Father has placed in His power.” But the power of the Father is, of course, also the power of the Son, because “just as the Father raises the dead and gives life, so the Son gives life to whomever he wants” (John 5:21). If, in those cases where something extraordinary and miraculous needs to be accomplished, the Son creates with the same authority as the Father, then even more so in cases where knowledge is required, because raising the dead, and moreover, with an authority equal to the authority of the Father, is much more important than knowing the day. Why didn’t Christ answer what the disciples asked, but said: “Receive power!” In response to them, He said: “It’s not your business to know,” and then he added: “But you will accept the power.” These words explain in some way the descent and, so to speak, outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Here we should mention the Phrygian heresy, which believed that the Comforter Spirit was sent two hundred years after the Ascension of Christ to the women considered prophetesses, Priscilla and Maximilla, and to Montanus, who was infected with the same madness; then, they say, the promise was fulfilled: “I will send” the Comforter “to you” (John 16:7). - Why does he announce to them what they did not ask, namely: “receive force!” Because He is the Teacher; The teacher’s calling is to teach not what the student wants, but what is useful to know. Acts 1:8. And you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the ends of the earth. Since he previously said: “Do not go into the way of the pagans, and do not enter the city of the Samaritans” (Matthew 10:5), wanting the word of God to be preached first to the Jews, and now it should spread throughout the entire universe, he opportunely adds “in all Judea and Samaria and even to the ends of the earth.” The saying, “You will be my witnesses,” is both an exhortation and an immutable prophecy, because they testified to their preaching to the utmost ends of the earth. Acts 1:9–10. Having said this, He rose up in their sight, and a cloud took Him out of their sight. And when they looked at the sky, during His ascension ... " He resurrected in such a way that they did not see, but they saw His ascension; since the vision this time did not resolve everything: they saw the end of the resurrection, but did not see its beginning; saw the beginning of the ascension, but did not see its end. Why? Because it was unnecessary to see the beginning there, since the Risen One Himself was in front of them and spoke about it, and since the tomb itself showed that He was not in it; here it was necessary to know the end, since the entire height was inaccessible to the eyes and vision could not decide whether He ascended to heaven or, having risen to a certain height, stopped. Therefore, the Angels, appearing before them, reveal to them what they could not understand through sight. And the cloud lifted Him up because it is a symbol of the Lord and Divine power, since in the cloud one cannot see a symbol of any other power. That is why David says about the Father: “You make the clouds Your chariot” (Ps. 103:3), and in another place: “Behold, the Lord sits on a light cloud” (Is. 19:1). And many other places say the same. However, the Lord did this not simply and not without a purpose, but knowing that if He ascended invisibly for them, as He descended and, even more so, as He descended, then even when the Spirit appeared, they would not believe that it was the same Spirit that He had promised to send a few days before; knowing that in this case He will prepare in them the suspicion that He Himself did not come from heaven; knowing, finally, that in this case, if, having ascended invisibly, He had then called Paul from heaven, if He had sent from there to Peter the shroud not made with hands (see Acts 10:11), then they would not have believed that He was doing this after His removal from them in the flesh - knowing all this, He ascended “while they were looking at heaven.” From the cloud of the Virgin He enters the cloud and, through the cloud, ascends to where he was before. The expression “where was” should not be understood in the sense of place and not in the sense that He laid aside His flesh and His incarnate Divinity became as before incorporeal; no, the expression “where was,” - listen to me - indicates the height of incorporeality in corporeality, the greatness of incorporeality in fleshiness, the self-existent value of His voluntary humility in the embodiment of His immutability, the fact that He no longer visibly turns or dwells among people. Acts 1:10–11. Suddenly two men in white clothes appeared to them and said: Men of Galilee! Why are you standing and looking at the sky? This Jesus, who ascended from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw Him ascending into heaven. They did not say: “lifted” or “carried,” but: “ascending.” If before the cross He, clothed with a body still subject to suffering and heavy, walked on the waters, then no one should doubt that He, after taking on an incorruptible body, cut through the air. “He will come,” they say, not “he will be sent.” “He will come in the same way,” that is, with the body. This is what they wanted to hear about, and also that He would come again in the days of judgment on a cloud (see Matt. 24:30). The evangelist calls the Angels men, showing the event in the form in which it appeared to the eye, since the Angels actually took on the image of men so as not to frighten them. The two men appeared because “by the mouth of two or three witnesses every word was confirmed” (Matthew 18:16). Having said: “Why are you standing and looking at the sky?” - they did not allow them to remain in place any longer and hope to see Him again, but urged them to finally return to Jerusalem for the work of preaching. Angels serve Him everywhere as the Lord - both at birth, and at resurrection, and at ascension, and before that, before His appearance in the world in the flesh. But the Angels appeared so that people could see them. The expression “in white clothes” indicates either the purity of the Angels, or the illumination that was granted to the holy apostles. Otherwise, you need to look at the expression “they saw Him.” Knowing that people with damaged minds would appear who would say that He was not from heaven or did not come from heaven and did not ascend to heaven, but was transferred to some place outside the earth, which included the followers of the Vitaliy sect - knowing this, the Lord ascended before the eyes of the apostles as they gazed at the sky. Acts 1:12. Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mountain called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath's journey away. When “then they returned!” When they heard what the Angels said, because they would not have left their place if the Angels had not informed them about the second coming. And it seems to me that this happened on the Sabbath, because Luke would not have indicated the distance like this: “from the mountain called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, within the distance of a Sabbath journey.” The length of the journey that the Jews were allowed to travel on the Sabbath day was certain. Josephus, in his twentieth book of antiquities, relates that the Mount of Olives was eight furlongs from Jerusalem. 12 And Origen in the fifth book says: “The path of the Sabbath was three 13 cubits.” And the holy tabernacle with the ark preceded the camp at such a distance and was located at such a distance from it that the worshipers were allowed to pass on Saturday. This distance is one mile." 14 Acts 1:13–14. And when they came, they went up to the upper room, where they stayed, Peter and James, John and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot, and Judas the brother of James. They all continued with one accord in prayer and supplication, with some of the women and Mary, the Mother of Jesus, and with His brothers. Prudently lists students. Since one of them betrayed, the other renounced, the third did not believe, it shows that, except for the traitor, everyone was present. But how does he say: “with the Matter of Jesus?” Although the evangelist said that “from that time on the disciple... took Her to himself” (John 19:27), but this does not at all contradict the previous one, because if this disciple himself was here, then nothing prevented Her from being present. How does he not mention Joseph here? He does not mention because Joseph had already died, because if the brothers believed and were present, who had often previously expressed disbelief, then Joseph, who never expressed any doubt, would have been much more faithful and would not have wanted to remove himself from the presence of the apostles if he were still alive. Acts 1:15–17. And in those days Peter, standing in the midst of the disciples, said, “There was a meeting of about a hundred and twenty people: Men, brethren!” It was necessary to fulfill what the Holy Spirit foretold in the Scriptures through the mouth of David about Judas, the former leader of those who took Jesus; he was numbered among us and received the lot of this ministry. “In those days,” that is, in the days before Pentecost, “Peter, standing in the midst of the disciples, spoke,” as an ardent disciple and one to whom Christ had entrusted His flock, and, finally, as the first. But pay attention: he does everything with the general consent and nothing - arbitrarily and autocratically. He convinces even on the basis of a prediction and does not say what David said, but: “the Holy Spirit prophesied through the mouth of David”; then he adds “about Judas, the former leader of those who took Jesus.” Notice here the wisdom of this man - notice how in the story he does not insult and does not speak of Judas as despicable and most despicable, but simply states what happened; and does not say that the Jews acquired it, but: Judas “acquired the land,” and rightly so, because the one who contributed the money should be considered the owner in justice, even if others also bought it. And the payment was his. Listen: Acts 1:18–19. But he acquired the land with an unrighteous bribe, and when he fell, his belly was split open and all his entrails fell out. And this became known to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem. He speaks of the punishment that Judas suffered in this life, and not of future punishment, because the souls of weak people do not pay as much attention to the future as to the present. Observe: he spoke not about the sin, but about the punishment for it, because Judas did not die in the noose, but lived even later, since he was captured before he hanged himself. Papias, a disciple of John, talks about this more clearly in the fourth book of his explanation of the words of the Lord. He says this: “A great example of wickedness was represented in this world by Judas, whose body was swollen to such an extent that he could not pass where a cart could pass, and not only could he not pass, but even his head alone. The eyelids of his eyes, they say, were so swollen that he could not see the light at all, and his eyes themselves could not be seen even with a medical diopter, they were so deep from the outer surface... After great torment and torment, he died, they say, in his village; and this village remains empty and uninhabited even to this day; even to this day it is impossible for anyone to walk through this place without holding their nostrils with their hands. Such is the stench that came from his body to the earth.” This served as some relief for the apostles. But just as the womb of Judas poured forth, so did the womb of the heretic Arius. Acts 1:19–20. So that land in their native dialect is called Akeldama, that is, “land of blood.” In the book of Psalms it is written: “let his court be empty, and let there be no one living in it,” and: “let another take his dignity.” The name of the village “Akeldama” was given by the Jews in connection with what happened to Judah. Peter cites this fact here, presenting as witnesses the enemies who gave this land such a name. The words “let his court be empty” (see also Ps. 68:26) were spoken about this land and about the house of Judah, for what could be more empty than a cemetery, and a public cemetery, what this land has become? And the words: “let another take his dignity” (see also Ps. 108:8) indicate the rank of priesthood. Acts 1:21–22. Therefore, it is necessary that one of those who were with us throughout the entire time that the Lord Jesus stayed and spoke with us, starting from the baptism of John until the day on which He ascended from us, should be a witness with us to His resurrection. Presents the matter as a common one with the brethren, so that it does not meet with objections and does not give rise to competition. Therefore, at the beginning of the conversation he said: “Men and brethren, we must choose from among you,” - giving the choice to everyone, and at the same time granting honor to the chosen ones, and he himself is freed from criticism from anyone. And that this should have been so, he himself says about this, and brings the prophet as a witness. Who should be chosen from? “Of those who were with us all the time.” He says because it is necessary and it had to be. And he did not say: “from the honest people who are with us,” because then it would seem that he was insulting others. And now the matter was decided by time. “He was a witness with us of His resurrection,” so that the face of the disciples would not be truncated on any side. He says: “a witness of the resurrection,” and not of anything else, for whoever appears worthy to testify that the Lord, who ate and drank with the disciples, was crucified, and rose again, he can and should much more be entrusted with testifying about other events, because what was sought was the resurrection, since it happened in secret, and the rest - openly. Acts 1:23–26. And they appointed two: Joseph, called Barsaba, who was called Justus, and Matthias. And they prayed and said: You, Lord, knower of the hearts of all, show of these two one whom You have chosen to accept the lot of this ministry and Apostleship, from which Judas fell away in order to go to his place. And they cast lots for them, and the lot fell to Matthias, and he was numbered among the eleven Apostles. “And they installed two.” Why not many? So that there would not be a big disorder, besides, the matter concerned only a few. In good time they call upon the Knower of the Heart in prayer. They do not further say: “Choose,” but: “Show... whom You have chosen,” knowing that with God everything is determined before the thoughts of man. Everywhere he calls election “taking the lot,” showing by this that everything happens according to God’s love for mankind and according to God’s election, and reminding them of ancient events, because God chose both the Levites and them by lot. What kind of men were they? Perhaps they were from among the seventy who were with the twelve apostles, or from other believers, but they believed more fervently and were more pious than the others. Such were both Joseph and Matthias. He calls Joseph both Barsavo and Just, perhaps because they called one person by these names; but, perhaps, as a result of a change in lifestyle, a new name was given; finally, the nickname may have been assigned to the way of occupation. Why doesn’t James, who accepted the bishopric in Jerusalem, begin the word, but cedes the right to speak to the people to Peter? Because he was imbued with humility; then they did not think about anything human, but had in mind the common good. For the same reason, the apostles yield the pulpit to him and do not compete with him or argue with him. Why do they prefer election by lot? Because they did not yet consider themselves worthy to know about this through any sign and the Holy Spirit had not yet descended on them; and there was no need for a sign, because the lot had great significance. If neither prayer nor the wisdom of men helped in determining the correct opinion regarding Jonah, but on the contrary, the lot meant so much, then even more so in this case. "Go to your place". The place that Matthias had the right to occupy, Luke calls “his”, or “his own,” because just as Judas, even before he fell from it, from the time he fell ill with the disease of love of money and betrayal, was already alienated from this place, so even before Matthias took this place, from the time he made himself worthy of such a gift, it became his property. And in other words: “to his own place”: everyone prepares for himself either a good or a bad place by his deeds. So, when Luke says this, he says that Judas went “to his place” - the bad one that he made for himself by betraying Jesus; because places are not good or bad for us by nature, but by our deeds we make a place for ourselves. The word "place" has many meanings. It means, by the way, some kind of position; thus, we say “the place of a bishop or presbyter.” One can see the same thing from the opposite, depending on how everyone prepares his own place by his actions: thus one can have the place of a false teacher and a false apostle, as well as a tyrant and the perpetrator of other criminal deeds. So, since Judas, carried away by the passion for the love of money, took the place of a traitor, it is rightly said about him: “go to his place.” Having lost his place among the apostles for his actions, he made himself “his own place. That is, rising from the dead. – Note. ed. That is, ascending to heaven. – Note. ed. That is, not every day for forty days. – Note. ed. That is, when Jesus Christ told them: receive the Holy Spirit (John 20:22), etc. - Note. ed. Stage – 125 steps (eight stages of 1000 steps). – Note. ed. The place is without any doubt damaged; Origen has 2000 cubits (1000 steps). – Note. ed. A mile of 1000 steps. – Note. ed. Papias presents this story in the sense of rumor, and not in the sense of true tradition; therefore he makes a reservation: “they say.” – Note. ed. You might be interested in: