Acts 1:19-26

19 And it is knowe vnto all the inhabiters of Ierusalem: in so moche that that felde is called in their mother tonge Acheldama that is to saye the bloud felde.

20 It is written in the boke of Psalmes: His habitacio be voyde and no man be dwellinge therin: and his bisshoprycke let another take.

21 Wherfore of these me which have copanyed with vs all ye tyme that the Lorde Iesus wet in and out amonge vs

22 begynninge at the baptyme of Iohn vnto that same daye that he was taken vp from vs must one be ordeyned to be are witnes with vs of his resurreccion.

23 And they appoynted two Ioseph called Barsabas (whose syr name was Iustus) and Mathias.

24 And they prayed sayinge: thou Lorde which knowest the hertes of all me shewe whether of these two thou hast chosen

25 that the one maye take the roume of this ministracion and apostleshippe from the which Iudas by transgression fell that he myght go to his awne place.

26 And they gave forthe their lottes and the lot fell on Mathias and he was counted with the eleven Apostles.

Acts 1:19-26 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO ACTS

This book, in some copies, is called, "The Acts of the holy Apostles". It contains an history of the ministry and miracles of the apostles of Christ, and is a sort of a journal of their actions, from whence it takes its name. It begins at the ascension of Christ, and reaches to the imprisonment of the Apostle Paul at Rome; and is a history of upwards of thirty years: it gives an account of the first Gospel church at Jerusalem, and of the progress of the Gospel there, and in Judea, by the means of all the apostles, and particularly Peter, the minister of the circumcision, and who also first opened the door of faith to the Gentiles: it shows how the Gospel went forth from Jerusalem, and was spread in the Gentile world, especially by the Apostle Paul, whose companion Luke was, that was the writer of this book; for that it was written by him is very evident from the beginning of it, it being dedicated to the same person his Gospel is, and of which he makes mention; and in the Complutensian edition the book is called, "The Acts of the Apostles of Saint Luke the Evangelist"; and so the title of it in the Syriac version is, "the Book of the Acts: that is, the history of the blessed apostles, which my Lord Luke the Evangelist collected for the saints". It was by him written in the Greek language; and we are told {a}, that there was a version of it into the Hebrew language, and which was laid up in the library of the Jews at Tiberias; and is cited by R. Azarias {b} under the name of twlweph, "the Acts": of the authority of this book there has been no doubt, among the ancients, only Cerinthus the heretic endeavoured to discredit it; and it was not received by another sort of heretics called Severiani, from Severus, a disciple of Tatian {c}. It is a most excellent and useful work, showing the first planting of Christianity, and of Christian churches, both among the Jews and Gentiles; the spread and progress of the Gospel in several parts of the world; what sufferings the apostles endured for the sake of it; and with what patience and courage they bore them; and what success attended them; and is a standing proof and confirmation of the Christian religion.

{a} Epiphan. Contr. Haeres. l. 1. Haeres. 30. {b} Meor Enayim, p. 167. {c} Euseb. Eccl. Hist. l. 4. c. 29.