ACC ~ Acts 26 v19 - 23

OVERVIEW:

These words give a Lukan summary of Paul’s gospel. The statement that Paul is “saying nothing but what the prophets and Moses said would come to pass” indicates one of the New Testament texts that grounds the “spiritual sense” of the Fathers of the church, while the notion that “the Christ must suffer” is found in Luke 24:7, 26, 46 as formulated by Jesus as he explains “Moses and all the prophets” in the light of his suffering and resurrection. The last words of this section mention once again both “the people and the Gentiles” and explicitly say that Jesus would proclaim light to them.

The passages here from Ammonius and Didymus are not well structured, and yet there is a common anthropological element to both that can be summarized in the symbol of the mirror. Paul has the quality of being a reflector of the Light that he has seen. Ammonius’s passage is quite clear: there is an inaccessible quality to what we must know, and so human models leading communities are requisite for the continuation of this message. Didymus’s passage is not so straightforward. He has several concerns, but here we will only point out the commonality with Ammonius. As the context of Didymus’s passage, Romans 15:7-13, makes clear, Paul not only became light but also encouraged it in others. There must be visible effects of the revelation in the lives of believers; otherwise the revelation ceases to refract in them. In other words, the locus of revelation becomes the community, and those who are graced with experiences such as Paul’s receive them for the community.

26:19 | Not Disobedient

A CALL TO IMITATION. AMMONIUS: After Paul announced the faith of those by whom he is judged, near the end of his speech he speaks to the people and to the Gentiles, so that he may convert Agrippa and the Gentiles, who were with him, and all the Jews, who were present. And then he says, “King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision: just as I believed, so must he, who listens to me, believe me. I do not proclaim what I have heard from others but what I heard and saw from heaven. Through the vision comes the pure view, which is beyond humankind: one, who is in the flesh, is unable to see what is not revealed to bodily eyes.” CATENA ON THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES 26.19-20.

26:22 | Help That Comes from God

SHOWING CHRIST. DIDYMUS THE BLIND: Since he wanted to show that Moses knew the passion and resurrection of Christ and that he enlightened the people and the Gentiles, [Paul] made use of the praise addressed to Judah and transferred completely to Christ, which is in part, “Judah is a lion’s whelp; from the prey, my son, you have gone up. He crouches down, he stretches out like a lion’s whelp: who raises him up?” … And [Christ] is the expectation of the nations: among them death is called sleep, and resurrection is called a rising. After this resurrection, he sent his disciples to “teach all the nations.” Many have thought that other words said by Moses are about the cross: “You will see your life suspended on the tree before your eyes,” but you may also use, “Rejoice nations with his people,” which are reported in Deuteronomy. By proclaiming Christ, Paul has shown the light not only to the nations but also to the people of Israel. CATENA ON THE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES 26.23.