39, 40. the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip--To deny
[as MEYER,
OLSHAUSEN,
BLOOMFIELD] the miraculous nature of Philip's disappearance,
is vain. It stands out on the face of the words, as just a repetition of
what we read of the ancient prophets, in
1Ki 18:12;
2Ki 2:16.
And the same word (as BENGEL remarks) is employed
to express a similar idea in
2Co 12:2, 4;
1Th 4:17.
the eunuch saw him no more--nor, perhaps, for very joy, cared to see
him [BENGEL].
and he went on his way rejoicing--He had found Christ, and the key
to the Scriptures; his soul was set free, and his discipleship sealed;
he had lost his teacher, but gained what was infinitely better: He felt
himself a new man, and "his joy was full." Tradition says he was the
first preacher of the Gospel in Ethiopia; and how, indeed, could he
choose but "tell what the Lord had done for his soul?" Yet there is no
certainty as to any historical connection between his labors and the
introduction of Christianity into that country.
JFB.
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