Jesus was god's holy servant

JESUS WAS GOD'S HOLY SERVANT
EDITED BY GLENN PEASE
Acts 4:27 27Indeed Herod and Pontius Pilatemet
together with the Gentiles and the people of Israel in
this city to conspireagainstyour holy servantJesus,
whom you anointed.
Other translations have holy child rather than holy servant, and so we will see
the two in the following messages.
BIBLEHUB RESOURCES
COMMENTARIES
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers
(27) Of a truth. . . .—Manyof the better MSS. add the words “in this city.”
Against thy holy child Jesus.—Better, as before, Servant. (See Notes onActs
3:13) The word is the same as that used of David in Acts 4:25.
Both Herod, and Pontius Pilate.—The narrative of Herod’s share in the
proceedings connectedwith the Passionis, it will be remembered, found only
in Luke 23:8-12. So far as the hymn here recordedmay be consideredas an
independent evidence, the two present an undesigned coincidence.

With the Gentiles, and the people of Israel.—Evenhere the nouns are, in the
Greek, without an article. The “peoples” (the Greek noun is plural) are
rightly defined, looking to the use of the Hebrew word, as those of Israel.
MacLaren's Expositions
Acts
OBEDIENT DISOBEDIENCE
THE SERVANT AND THE SLAVES
Acts 4:25, Acts 4:27, Acts 4:29.
I do not often take fragments of Scripture for texts; but though these are
fragments, their juxtaposition results in by no means fragmentary thoughts.
There is obvious intention in the recurrence of the expressionso frequently in
so few verses, and to the elucidationof that intention my remarks will be
directed. The words are parts of the Church’s prayer on the occasionof its
first collisionwith the civil power. The incident is recorded at full length
because it is the first of a long and bloody series, in order that succeeding
generations might learn their true weaponand their sure defence. Prayeris
the right answerto the world’s hostility, and they who only ask for courage to
stand by their confessionwill never ask in vain. But it is no part of my
intention to deal either with the incident or with this noble prayer.
A word or two of explanation may be necessaryas to the language of our
texts. You will observe that, in the secondof them, I have followedthe Revised
Version, which, insteadof ‘Thy holy child,’ as in the Authorised Version,

reads ‘Thy holy Servant.’ The alterationis clearly correct. The word, indeed,
literally means ‘a child,’ but, like our own English ‘boy,’ or even ‘man,’ or
‘maid,’ it is used to express the relation of servant, when the desire is to cover
over the harsher features of servitude, and to representthe servantas a part
of the family. Thus the kindly centurion, who besought Jesus to come and heal
his servant, speaks ofhim as his ‘boy.’ And that the word is here used in this
secondarysense of‘servant’ is unmistakable. Forthere is no discernible
reasonwhy, if stress were meant to be laid on Christ as being the Son of God,
the recognisedexpressionfor that relationship should not have been
employed. Again, the Greek translationof the Old Testament, with which the
Apostles were familiar, employs the very phrase that is here used as its
translation of the well-knownOld Testamentdesignationof the Messiah, ‘the
Servant of the Lord’ and the words here are really a quotation from the great
prophecies of the secondpart of the Book ofIsaiah. Further, the same word is
employed in reference to King David and in reference to Jesus Christ. In
regard to the former, it is evident that it must have the meaning of ‘servant’;
and it would be too harsh to suppose that in the compass of so few verses the
same expressionshould be used, at one time in the one signification, and at
another in the other. So, then, David and Jesus are in some sense classified
here togetheras both servants of God. That is the first point that I desire to
make.
Then, in regard to the third of my texts, the expressionis not the same there
as in the other two. The disciples do not venture to take the loftier designation.
Rather they prefer the humble one, ‘slaves,’bondmen, the familiar expression
found all through the New Testamentas almost a synonym to Christians.
So, then, we have here three figures: the Psalmist-king, the Messiah, the
disciples;Christ in the midst, on the one hand a servant with whom He deigns
to be classed, onthe other hand the slaves who, through Him, have become
sons. And I think I shall best bring out the intended lessons ofthese clauses in
their connectionif I ask you to note these two contrasts, the servants and the

Servant; the Servant and the slaves. ‘David Thy servant’; ‘Thy holy Servant
Jesus’;us ‘Thy servants.’
I. First, then, notice the servants and the Servant.
The reasonfor the application of the name to the Psalmistlies, not so much in
his personalcharacterorin his religious elevation, as in the fact that he was
chosenof God for a specific purpose, to carry on the divine plans some steps
towards their realisation. Kings, priests, prophets, the collective Israel, as
having a specific function in the world, and being, in some sense, the
instruments and embodiments of the will of God amongstmen, have in an
eminent degree the designationof His ‘servants.’And we might widen out the
thought and saythat all men who, like the heathen Cyrus, are God’s
shepherds, though they do not know it-guided by Him, though they
understand not whence comes their power, and blindly do His work in the
world, being ‘epoch-making’men, as the fashionable phrase goes now-are
really, though in a subordinate sense, entitled to the designation.
But then, whilst this is true, and whilst Jesus Christ comes into this category,
and is one of these specialmen raised up and adapted for specialservice in
connectionwith the carrying out of the divine purpose, mark how
emphatically and broadly the line is drawn here betweenHim and the other
members of the class to which, in a certainsense, He does belong. Petersays,
‘Thy servant David,’ but he says ‘Thy holy Servant Jesus.’And in the Greek
the emphasis is still stronger, because the definite article is employed before
the word ‘servant.’ ‘The holy Servantof Thine’-that is His specific and unique
designation.
There are many imperfect instruments of the divine will. Thinkers and heroes
and saints and statesmenand warriors, as well as prophets and priests and

kings, are so regardedin Scripture, and may profitably be so regardedby us;
but amongstthem all there is One who stands in their midst and yet apart
from them, because He, and He alone, can say, ‘I have done all Thy pleasure,
and into my doing of Thy pleasure no bitter leaven of self-regardor by-ends
has ever, in the faintest degree, entered.’‘Thy holy Servant Jesus’is the
unique designationof the Servant of the Lord.
And what is the meaning of holy? The word does not originally and primarily
refer to characterso much as to relation to God. The root idea of holiness is
not righteousness normoral perfectness, but something that lies behind these-
viz, separationfor the service and uses of God. The first notion of the word is
consecration, and, built upon that and resulting from it, moral perfection. So
then these men, some of whom had lived beside Jesus Christfor all those
years, and had seeneverything that He did, and studied Him through and
through, had summered and wintered with Him, came awayfrom the close
inspection of His characterwith this thought; He is utterly and entirely
devoted to the service of God, and in Him there is neither spot nor wrinkle
nor blemish such as is found in all other men.
I need not remind you with what strange persistence ofaffirmation, and yet
with what humility of self-consciousness,our Lord Himself always claimedto
be in possessionofthis entire consecration, andcomplete obedience, and
consequentperfection. Think of human lips saying, ‘I do always the things
that please Him.’ Think of human lips saying, ‘My meat is to do the will of
Him that sent me.’ Think of a man whose whole life’s secretwas summed up
in this: ‘As the Father hath given Me commandment, so’-no more, no less, no
otherwise-’so Ispeak.’Think of a man whose inspiring principle was,
consciouslyto himself, ‘not My will, but Thine be done’; and who could say
that it was so, and not be met by universal ridicule. There followedin Jesus
the moral perfectness that comes from such uninterrupted and complete
consecrationof selfto God. ‘Thy servant David,’-what about Bathsheba,
David? What about a great many other things in your life? The poet-king,

with the poet-nature so sensitive to all the delights of sense, and so easily
moved in the matter of pleasure, is but like all God’s other servants in the fact
of imperfection. In every machine poweris lost through friction; and in every
man, the noblest and the purest, there is resistance to be overcome ere motion
in conformity with the divine impulse can be secured. We pass in review
before our minds saints and martyrs and lovely characters by the hundred,
and amongstthem all there is not a jewelwithout a flaw, not a mirror without
some dint in it where the rays are distorted, or some dark place where the
reflecting surface has been rubbed awayby the attrition of sin, and where
there is no reflectionof the divine light. And then we turn to that meek Figure
who stands there with the question that has been awaiting an answerfor
nineteen centuries upon His lips, and is unanswered yet: ‘Which of you
convinceth Me of sin?’ ‘He is the holy Servant,’ whose consecrationand
charactermark Him off from all the class to which He belongs as the only one
of them all who, in completeness, has executedthe Father’s purpose, and has
never attempted anything contrary to it.
Now there is another step to be taken, and it is this. The Servant who stands
out in front of all the group-though the noblest names in the world’s history
are included therein-could not be the Servant unless He were the Son. This
designation, as applied to Jesus Christ, is peculiar to these three or four
earlier chapters of the Acts of the Apostles. It is interesting because it occurs
over and over againthere, and because it never occurs anywhere else in the
New Testament. If we recognise whatI think must be recognised, thatit is a
quotation from the ancient prophecies, and is an assertionofthe Messianic
characterof Jesus, thenI think we here see the Church in a period of
transition in regardto their conceptions oftheir Lord. There is no signthat
the proper Sonship and Divinity of our Lord was clearbefore them at this
period. They had the facts, but they had not yet come to the distinct
apprehension of how much was involved in these. But, if they knew that Jesus
Christ had died and had risen again-andthey knew that, for they had seen
Him-and if they believed that He was the Messiah, andif they were certain
that in His characterofMessiahthere had been faultlessness andabsolute
perfection-and they were certainof that, because they had lived beside Him-

then it would not be long before they took the next step, and said, as I say, ‘He
cannot be the Servantunless He is more than man.’
And we may well ask ourselves the question, if we admit, as the world does
admit, the moral perfectness ofJesus Christ, how comes it that this Man alone
managedto escapefailures and deflections from the right, and sins, and that
He only carried through life a stainless garment, and went down to the grave
never having needed, and not needing then, the exercise ofdivine forgiveness?
Brethren, I venture to say that it is hopeless to accountfor Jesus Christ on
naturalistic principles; and that either you must give up your belief in His
sinlessness, oradvance, as the Christian Church as a whole advanced, to the
other belief, on which alone that perfectness is explicable: ‘Thou art the King
of Glory, O Christ! Thou art the Everlasting Son of the Father!’
II. And so, secondly, let us turn to the other contrasthere-the Servant and the
slaves.
I said that the humble group of praying, persecutedbelievers seemedto have
wished to take a lowerplace than their Master’s, evenwhilst they ventured to
assume that, in some sense, theytoo, like Him, were doing the Father’s will. So
they chose, by a fine instinct of humility rather than from any dogmatical
prepossessions, the name that expresses, inits most absolute and roughest
form, the notion of bondage and servitude. He is the Servant; we standing
here are slaves. And that this is not an overweighting of the word with more
than is meant by it seems to be confirmed by the factthat in the first clause of
this prayer, we have, for the only time in the New Testament, Godaddressed
as ‘Lord’ by the correlative word to slave, which has been transferred into
English, namely, despot.

The true position, then, for a man is to be God’s slave. The harsh, repellent
features of that wickedinstitution assume an altogetherdifferent character
when they become the features of my relation to Him. Absolute submission,
unconditional obedience, onthe slave’s part; and on the part of the Master
complete ownership, the right of life and death, the right of disposing of all
goods and chattels, the right of separating husband and wife, parents and
children, the right of issuing commandments without a reason, the right to
expectthat those commandments shall be swiftly, unhesitatingly,
punctiliously, and completely performed-these things inhere in our relation to
God. Blessedthe man who has learned that they do, and has acceptedthem as
his highestglory and the security of his most blessedlife! For, brethren, such
submission, absolute and unconditional, the blending and the absorption of
my ownwill in His will, is the secretof all that makes manhood glorious and
greatand happy.
Remember, however, that in the New Testamentthese names of slave and
ownerare transferred to Christians and Jesus Christ. ‘The Servant’ has His
slaves;and He who is God’s Servant, and does not His own will but the
Father’s will, has us for His servants, imposes His will upon us, and we are
bound to render to Him a revenue of entire obedience like that which He hath
laid at His Father’s feet.
Such slavery is the only freedom. Liberty does not mean doing as you like, it
means liking as you ought, and doing that. He only is free who submits to God
in Christ, and thereby overcomes himselfand the world and all antagonism,
and is able to do that which it is his life to do. A prison out of which we do not
desire to go is no restraint, and the will which coincides with law is the only
will that is truly free. You talk about the bondage of obedience. Ah! ‘the
weight of too much liberty’ is a far sorerbondage. They are the slaves who
say, ‘Let us break His bonds asunder, and castawayHis cords from us’; and
they are the free men who say, ‘Lord, put Thy blessedshackles onmy arms,
and impose Thy will upon my will, and fill my heart with Thy love; and then

will and hands will move freely and delightedly.’ ‘If the Sonmake you free, ye
shall be free indeed.’
Such slavery is the only nobility. In the wickedold empires, as in some of their
modern survivals to-day, viziers and prime ministers were mostly drawn from
the servile classes. Itis so in God’s kingdom. They who make themselves
God’s slaves are by Him made kings and priests, and shall reign with Him on
earth. If we are slaves, then are we sons and heirs of God through Jesus
Christ.
Remember the alternative. You cannotbe your own masters without being
your own slaves. It is a far worse bondage to live as chartered libertines than
to walk in the paths of obedience. Betterserve Godthan the devil, than the
world, than the flesh. Whilst they promise men liberty, they make them ‘the
most abjectand downtrodden vassals ofperdition.’
The Servant-Sonmakes us slaves and sons. It matters nothing to me that
Jesus Christ perfectly fulfilled the law of God; it is so much the better for
Him, but of no value for me, unless He has the powerof making me like
Himself. And He has it, and if you will trust yourselves to Him, and give your
hearts to Him, and ask Him to govern you, He will govern you; and if you will
abandon your false liberty which is servitude, and take the soberfreedom
which is obedience, then He will bring you to share in His temper of joyful
service;and even we may be able to say, ‘My meat and my drink is to do the
will of Him that sent me,’ and truly saying that, we shall have the key to all
delights, and our feet will be, at least, on the lower rungs of the ladder whose
top reaches to Heaven.
‘What fruit had ye in the things of which ye are now ashamed? But being
made free from sin, and become the slaves of God, ye have your fruit unto

holiness;and the end everlasting life.’ Brethren, I beseechyou, by the mercies
of God, that ye yield yourselves to Him, crying, ‘O Lord, truly I am Thy
servant. Thou hast loosedmy bonds.’
Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary
4:23-31 Christ's followers do best in company, provided it is their own
company. It encouragesGod's servants, both in doing work, and suffering
work, that they serve the God who made all things, and therefore has the
disposalof all events;and the Scriptures must be fulfilled. Jesus was anointed
to be a Saviour, therefore it was determined he should be a sacrifice, to make
atonement for sin. But sin is not the less evil for God's bringing goodout of it.
In threatening times, our care should not be so much that troubles may be
prevented, as that we may go on with cheerfulness and courage in our work
and duty. They do not pray, Lord let us go away from our work, now that it is
become dangerous, but, Lord, give us thy grace to go on stedfastly in our
work, and not to fear the face of man. Those who desire Divine aid and
encouragement, may depend upon having them, and they ought to go forth,
and go on, in the strength of the Lord God. Godgave a sign of acceptance of
their prayers. The place was shaken, that their faith might be establishedand
unshaken. God gave them greaterdegrees ofhis Spirit; and they were all
filled with the Holy Ghost, more than ever; by which they were not only
encouraged, but enabled to speak the word of God with boldness. When they
find the Lord Godhelp them by his Spirit, they know they shall not be
confounded, Isa 1.7.
Barnes'Notes on the Bible
For of a truth - Truly; in reality.
Thy holy child Jesus - The word "child" is commonly applied to infants, or to
sons and daughters in very early life. The word which is used here παῖς pais is
different from what is commonly applied to the Lord Jesus υἱός huios. The
latter expresses sonshipwithout respectto age. The word which is here used
also sometimes expressessonshipwith out any regard to age, and the word
"son" would have been a more happy translation. Thus, the same word is
translated in Acts 3:13, Acts 3:26. In Acts 20:12, it is translated "youngman."

Both Herod ... - Luke 23:1-12.
With the Gentiles - The Romans, to whom he was delivered to be crucified.
The people of Israel - The Jews, who were excitedto this by the rulers,
Matthew 27:20.
Jamieson-Fausset-BrownBible Commentary
25. by the mouth of … David—to whom the Jews ascribedthe secondPsalm,
though anonymous; and internal evidence confirms it. David's spirit sees with
astonishment "the heathen, the people, the kings and princes of the earth," in
deadly combination againstthe swayof Jehovahand His Anointed (his
Messiah, orChrist), and asks "why" it is. This fierce confederacyour praying
disciples see in full operation, in the "gathering togetherof Herod and Pilate,
the Gentiles (the Roman authority), and the people of Israel, againstGod's
holy Child ('Servant') Jesus." (Seeon[1950]Ac 3:13). The best ancient copies
read, after "were gatheredtogether," "inthis city," which probably answers
to "upon my holy hill of Zion," in the Ps 2:6.
Matthew Poole's Commentary
Thy holy child; it speaks Christ’s dearness to God as a child, and obeying of
God as a servant.
Whom thou hast anointed, to be a King Priest, and Prophet to his church.
Both Herod and Pontius Pilate, &c.: a strange agreementagainstChrist, his
truths, and people; Gentiles and Jews never combined so togetherbefore.
Henceforth it is no dishonour to any, if they follow that which is good, to have
greatand many enemies, for so had our Saviour: nor is it any honour to any
to persecute and despise such; so did Herod, Pilate, Judas, &c.
Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

For of a truth, againstthy holy child Jesus,.... This is the interpretation of the
above passagesin Psalm2:1 and the application of them to Jesus;who is
calledthe "child" of God, because the human nature of Christ was takeninto
union with the secondperson, who is the Son of God: unless the word should
rather be rendered "servant", as it is in Acts 4:25 and which is a character
that belongs to Christ, and is often given him as Mediator, who, as such, is
God's righteous servant; and he is called"holy", because he was so in his
conceptionand birth, and in his life and conversation, being free both from
original sin, and actualtransgression;and which is an aggravationofthe sin
and guilt of these men, that they should rise up, and gathertogetheragainst
him; and yet it was a clearcase, a notorious fact, a certaintruth, that could
not be denied: and for the further aggravationof their crime, as well as for
the sake ofexplaining the phrase "his, Christ", it is added,
whom thou hast anointed; with the oil of gladness, above his fellows. Christ
was, in some sense, anointedto be prophet, priest, and King, from eternity,
being so early setup as Mediator, or calledunto, and invested with that office;
see Proverbs 8:22 and he was anointed in time, both at his incarnation and
baptism, having the Spirit without measure given unto him, which is that
anointing, that teachethall things.
Both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel,
were gatheredtogether. This Herod was Herod Antipas, the sonof Herod the
great, and who beheaded John the Baptist; and Pontius Pilate was the Roman
governorof Judea, at the time of Christ's death; the Gentiles were those of
Pilate's council, and the Romansoldiers;
and the people of Israel, were the Jews, boththe rulers, and the common
people; the Syriac version renders it, "the synagogue ofIsrael":and these,
though they were of different nations, and of different interests, yea enemies
to one another, as the Jews and Gentiles in generalwere;and as were Herod
and Pontius Pilate in particular; yet all gathered, consented, and agreed
togetherto mock, scourge, andcrucify this innocent and holy person. The
Vulgate Latin, Syriac, and Ethiopic versions add, "in this city"; and so the
above copies of Beza's, and others; meaning, in the city of Jerusalem, where
the apostles now were, and where the above persons met together, and from

whence a prophet could only perish. The Alexandrian copy reads, "in this thy
city": which was calledthe city of God, and the holy city; and yet in this was
this wickedconvention, and all this wickednessdone.
Geneva Study Bible
For of a truth againstthy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast anointed, both
Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the {l} people of Israel, were
gatheredtogether,
(l) Although the people of Israelwere but one people, yet the plural number is
used here, not so much for the twelve tribes, every one of which counted as a
people, but because ofthe greatmultitude of them, as though many nations
had assembledthemselves together, as in Jud 5:14.
EXEGETICAL(ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)
Meyer's NT Commentary
Acts 4:27-28. Forin truth there assembled, etc. This γάρ confirms the contents
of the divine utterance quoted from that by which it had been historically
fulfilled.
ἐπʼ ἀληθείας]according to truth (Bernhardy, p. 248), really. Comp. Acts
10:34;Luke 4:25; Dem. 538;Polyb. i. 84. 6.
ἐπὶ τὸν ἅγιονπαῖδά σου Ἰησ. ὃν ἔχρισ.] againstThy holy servant, etc.
Explanation of the above κατὰ τοῦ Χριστοῦ αὐτοῦ. The (ideal) anointing of
Jesus, i.e. His consecrationon the part of God to be the Messianic king, took
place, according to Luke, at His baptism (Acts 10:38; Luke 3:21-22), by means
of the Spirit, which came upon Him, while the voice of God declaredHim the
Messiah. The consecrationofChrist is otherwise conceivedof in John (ὃν ὁ
πατὴρ ἡγίασε;see on John 10:36).

Ἡρώδης] Luke 23:11.
σὺν ἔθνεσι κ. λαοῖς Ἰσρ.] with Gentiles and Israel’s peoples. The plural λαοῖς
does not stand for the singular, but is put on accountof Acts 4:25, and is to be
referred either, with Calvin and others, to the different nationalities (comp.
Acts 2:5) from which the Jews—ingreatmeasure from foreign countries—
were assembledat the PassoveragainstJesus;or, with Grotius and others, to
the twelve tribes, which latter opinion is to be preferred, in accordance with
such passagesas Genesis 28:3;Genesis 35:5;Genesis 48:4. The priesthoodnot
speciallynamed is included in the λαοῖς Ἰσρ.
ποιῆσαι]contains the designof the συνήχθησαν. This design of their coming
togetherwas “to kill Jesus;” but the matter is viewedaccording to the decree
of God overruling it: “to do what God has predetermined.”
ἡ χείρ σου] symbolizes in the lofty strain of the discourse the disposing power
of God. Comp. Acts 4:30; Acts 7:50; Acts 13:11;1 Peter 5:6; Herod, viii. 140.
2; Herm. ad Viger. p. 732. A zeugma is containedin προώρισε, inasmuch as
the notion of the verb does not stand in logicalrelationto the literal meaning
of ἡ χείρ σου—withwhich some such word as προητοίμασε would have been
in accord—but only to the attribute of God thereby symbolized.
The death of the Lord was not the accidentalwork of hostile caprice, but
(comp. Acts 2:23, Acts 3:18) the necessaryresult of the divine
predetermination (Luke 22:22), to which divine δεῖ (Luke 24:26)the
personally free action of man had to serve as an instrument. Οὐκ αὐτοὶ
ἴσχυσαν, ἀλλὰ σὺ εἶ ὁ τὸ πᾶν ἐπιτρέψας καὶ εἰς πέρας ἀγαγὼν, ὁ εὐμήχανος καὶ
σοφός·συνῆλθον μὲν γὰρ ἐκεῖνοι ὡς ἐχθροὶ …, ἐποίουν δὲ ἃ σὺ ἐβούλου,
Oecumenius. Beza aptly says:ποιῆσαι refers not to the consilia et voluntates
Herodis, etc., but to the eventus consiliorum. Comp. Flacius, Clav. I. p. 818.

Expositor's Greek Testament
Acts 4:27. γάρ: confirms the truth of the preceding prophecy, by pointing to
its historical fulfilment, and does not simply give a reasonfor addressing God
as ὁ εἰπών—to emphasise this fulfilment συνήχ. is againquoted, and placed
first in the sentence.—ἐπʼἀληθείας, ofa truth, i.e., assuredly, Luke 4:25; Luke
20:21;Luke 22:59, Acts 10:34; so too in LXX, Job 9:2, and also in classical
Greek. The phrase is characteristic ofSt. Luke, and is only used elsewhere in
N.T. in Mark 12:14;Mark 12:32, the usual expressionbeing ἐν ἀληθείᾳ, never
used by St. Luke (Friedrich).—παῖδα, see onActs 3:13.—ὂνἔχρισας:showing
that Jesus = τοῦ Χριστοῦ named in the quotation just made, cf. Luke 4:18,
and Isaiah61:1 and Acts 10:38. Nösgencompares also John10:36, and refuses
to limit the reference to Acts 3:21. The words may no doubt be referred to the
Baptism, but they need not be confined to that.—Ἡρῴδης = βασιλεῖς of the
Psalm, Π. Πειλᾶτος = ἄρχοντες, but Nösgen, referring to Acts 3:17, regards
the ἄρχ. as included in the λαοί. Ἡρ. insteadof Ἡρωίδης, Blass, in loco, and
Grammatik des N. G., pp. 7, 8, the iota subscript W.H[163]thus accounted
for; Winer-Schmiedel, p. 41.—ἔθνεσινκαὶ λαοῖς Ἰ.: the first word = the
centurion and soldiers, those who carried out the orders of Pilate; λαοί the
plural (quoted from the Psalm) does not refer with Calvin to the different
nationalities out of which the Jews who came up to the Feastwere gathered,
but possibly to the tribes of Israel, Grimm-Thayer, sub, λαός, like ‫ַע‬ ‫מ‬ִּ‫,םי‬
Genesis 49:10, Deuteronomy32:8, Isaiah3:13, etc., R. V., “the peoples of
Israel”. St. Luke’s Gospelalone gives us the narrative of Herod’s share in the
proceedings connectedwith the Passion, Acts 23:8-12;see Plumptre, in loco,
and Friedrich, Das Lucasevangelium, pp. 54, 55.
[163]Westcottand Hort’s The New Testamentin Greek:Critical Text and
Notes.
Cambridge Bible for Schools andColleges
27. For of a truth] Here the best MSS. insert the words in this city. The
Apostle proceeds here to apply the language of the Psalmistto the events

preceding the Crucifixion. The insertion of in this city is very natural under
such circumstances.
againstthy holy child Jesus]Readhere, Servant Jesus, as Acts 3:13, for the
original is the same though differently translated in the A.V.
whom thou hast anointed] By the descentof the Holy Ghost at His Baptism.
(Matthew 3:16.)
both Herod] The representative ofthe rulers of the Jews. This Herod was
Antipas the sonof Herod the Great by his Samaritanwife Malthace. He was
tetrarch of Galilee and Perea (Luke 3:19), and because our Lord belongedto
Galilee Pilate took occasionto send Jesus to be examined by him, as Herod
was in Jerusalemto keepthe feastof the Passover.
and Pontius Pilate]who was the Roman Governor, and so in his person were
representedmany nations at this time under the swayof Rome. His officials
and soldiers would be drawn from all lands, and the mockeryto which Jesus
was exposedat their hands might well be describedas the rage of the Gentiles.
Pontius Pilate]was the sixth Roman procuratorof Judæa;he was appointed
a.d. 25–6 in the twelfth year of Tiberius, and he continued to hold the office
till a.d. 36, when he was sentto Rome by Vitellius under an accusation
brought againsthim by the Samaritans. Of his after life and his death there
are many legends, but no history.
Bengel's Gnomen
Acts 4:27. Συνήχθησαν, were gatheredtogether)This is repeatedfrom Acts
4:26.—ἐπʼ ἀληθείας, ofa truth) as the fact itself demonstrates.—παῖδάσου,

Thy Servant or Minister [not child, as Engl. Vers.]) of whom David was a
type: for the latter is calledby the same designation, Acts 4:25, “Thy servant
(παιδός σου) David.”—ὃνἔχρισας, whom Thou hast anointed) He is the
Lord’s Anointed (= Christ) King, Acts 4:26. Psalm2:2; Psalm2:6, “Yet have I
set(Hebr. anointed) my King upon My holy hill of Zion.”—Ἡρώδης, Herod)
He, when he had Jesus in his power, nevertheless did not let Him go, but sent
Him back to Pilate; thereby consenting to those things which the latter was
about to do: Luke 23:7, etc., Acts 13:31, The Pharisees said,—“Herodwill kill
Thee.”—λαοῖς,the peoples)The plural, repeatedfrom the Psalm; used
poetically. One or two MSS. have λαός, but λαοῖς has reference to the 25th
verse, λαοὶ, plural.[36] Comp. 1 Kings 22:28, ἀκούσατελαοὶ πάντες. And the
present prayer of the disciples answers to the secondPsalm, as a comparison
shows:
[36] E and Hilary read λαος. But the weightof authorities is on the side of
λαοῖς.—E. and T.
the kings,
Herod:
the rulers,
Pontius Pilate:
the heathen,

the heathen (= the Gentiles):
the peoples,
the peoples of Israel.
The Psalmis treating of the Kingdom of Christ: wherefore Herod and Pilate
are mentioned among His enemies, rather than Caiaphas the High Priest, who
is included in Acts 4:29.
Pulpit Commentary
Verse 27. - Of a truth in this city for of a truth, A.V. Servant for child (as in
Acts 3:26), A.V.; didst anoint for hast anointed, A.V.; peoples for people, A.V.
For of a truth, etc. The saying just quoted is proved to have been the word of
God by its exactfulfillment in the heathen and Jewishrulers and peoples who
were concernedin the crucifixion of the Lord Christ. In this city. This is
omitted in the A.V. and T.R., but found in most uncials and Fathers, and
adopted by Wordsworth, Alford, Meyer, Bengel. etc. Herod. St. Luke (Luke
23:1-12)is the only one of the evangelists who records the part takenby
Herod in conjunction with Pontius Pilate in the condemnation of Christ.
Possiblythe inference may be that St. Luke was led to recordit in his Gospel
front know-tug of this applicationof Psalmit. to him and Pilate. Peoples,in
the plural, either because ofthe "many nations" (Acts 2:5) from which the
Jews ofthe dispersioncame to Jerusalem, orwith reference to the twelve
tribes (see Genesis 28:3, "Thoushalt be a multitude of peoples," Hebrew).
PRECEPT AUSTIN RESOURCES

Acts 4:27 "Fortruly in this city there were gatheredtogetheragainstYour
holy servant Jesus, whomYou anointed, both Herod and Pontius Pilate, along
with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel,
KJV Acts 4:27 For of a truth againstthy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast
anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of
Israel, were gatheredtogether,
For truly Mt 26:3; Luke 22:1; 23:1,8-12
againstYour holy servant Jesus Acts 4:30; 2:27; 3:14; Job 14:4; 15:14;25:4;
Luke 1:35; Hebrews 7:26
whom You anointed Acts 10:38; Ps 2:2,6; Ps 45:7; Isa 61:1; Luke 4:18; John
10:36
both Herod Mt 2:13-16;Luke 13:31-33;23:7-12
Pontius Pilate Acts 3:13; Mt 27:2,11-36;Mark 15:1-28;Luke 18:31-33;23:13-
38; John 19:1-24,34
along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel Acts Isa 49:7; 53:3;
Zechariah 11:7,8;Mt 20:18,19;21:28; 23:37;26:3,4,59-68;Mt 27:25,40-43;
Mark 10:33; 14:1,2,43-65;15:1-3,31;Luke 9:22; Luke 20:13-19;22:2-6,47-
52,63-71;23:1-5;John 1:11; 18:1-14,19-24;John 18:28-40;19:15
Acts 4 Resources -Multiple Sermons and Commentaries
THE INITIAL FULFILLMENT
OF PSALM 2
For (gar) - Term of explanation. Those praying are elaborating on those who
took their stand againstthe Lord and His Messiah, againstGodthe Father
and God the Son. And so the old saying is true - the enemy of my enemy is my
friend.
Truly (225)(aletheia)is used with the conjunction epi in this verse is literally
"upon truth" and means "in reality truly, certainly" (Mk. 12:14; Mk. 12:32;

Lk. 4:25; Lk. 20:21; Lk. 22:59; Acts 4:27; Acts 10:34). It adds emphasis to
what they are saying, that it was a real or actualevent.
In this city - The holy city of Jerusalemwhere the Holy One of God was
crucified.
There were gathered togetheragainstYour holy (hagios)servant Jesus
(Iesous)- This was a concertedeffortby individuals and groups who did not
even like eachother! So great was their hatred of Jesus and His messagethat
these enemies beganunited as "friends" on this one occasion.
Gathered(4863)(sunago)means assembled, convened, gatheredtogether.
Against is epi which Louw-Nida says is "a marker of opposition in a judicial
or quasijudicial context." (E.g., Mt 26:55 = “Have you come out with swords
and clubs to arrest Me as you would against[epi] a robber? Every day I used
to sit in the temple teaching and you did not seize Me.")
Servant (3816)(see preceding discussionofpais)
Like Peterhad done in Acts 3:13 and Acts 3:26, the disciples identify Jesus as
the God's Servant, using an unusual word for servant (not the familiar doulos
as Paul refers to himself in Titus 1:1 "a servant [doulos] of God"). The word
Peteruses is the Greek noun pais which is used 25 times in the NT with about
8 uses referring to children and 15 uses referring to a servant and in secular
Greek referredto an especiallyintimate and trusted servant. Pais describes
severaldifferent servants - David (Lk 1:69; Acts 4:25; Lxx - 2 Sa 7:5, 8, 19, 20,
21, 25), Israel (Lk 1:54) but most importantly Jesus the Messiah. The KJV
actually translates Acts 3:13 as "His SonJesus," whichis not bad because
Jesus is the "ServantSon" (so both translation of pais would apply to Him.
Mostmodern versions prefer to translate it as "Servant Jesus.")What would
have made Peter's use of pais so interesting to his Jewishaudience was the
fact that there are at leasttwo well-knownuses in Isaiah in which he speaks
prophetically of the Messiahas God's Servant, and in both passages, servant
is translated pais.

Whom You anointed - Anointed (5548)is the verb chrio the root verb of
Christos in Acts 4:26. (See also Messiah - Anointed One) In the OT, priests,
kings and prophets were anointed and the Messiahis all three!
Both Herod and Pontius Pilate - The Kings and Rulers about which David had
prophesied in Psalm 2:2! "Herod Antipas, who was a king of the Jews,
mockedJesus;Pontius Pilate, a Gentile ruler, murdered Jesus. Herod scorned
Him because he was angry; Pilate sentencedHim because he was afraid. The
motive for rejecting Christ is different, the result is the same." (Phillips
Exploring Acts)
Along with the Gentiles (ethnos) and the peoples of Israel - Notice that this
verse allows for no elementof anti-Semitism regarding the death of Christ on
the Cross. The point this passagemakes is that Gentiles and Jews are ALL
guilty. You and I are guilty of putting Christ on the Cross!The Jews and
Herod and Pontius Pilate just happened to be the immediate "instruments"
God used to bring about His predestined purpose (Acts 4:28).
Marshallmakes a salientpoint regarding the inclusion of the phrase the
peoples of Israel - The inclusion of Israelamong the foes of the Messiahmarks
the beginning of the Christian understanding that insofar as the people of
Israelreject the Messiahthey cease to be the Lord’s people and can be ranked
with unbelieving Gentiles.
Acts 4:28 to do whatever Your hand and Your purpose predestined to occur.
KJV Acts 4:28 For to do whatsoeverthy hand and thy counseldetermined
before to be done.
to do whateverYour hand Acts 2:23; 3:18; 13:27-29;Genesis 50:20;Ps 76:10;
Mt 26:24,54;Luke 22:22;Luke 24:44-46;1 Peter2:7,8
Your purpose predestined to occur Job12:13; Pr 21:30; Isa 5:19; 28:29;
40:13;46:10; 53:10;Eph 1:11; Hebrews 6:17
Acts 4 Resources -Multiple Sermons and Commentaries
GOD'S SOVEREIGN PLAN

FROM ALL ETERNITY
These believers are acknowledgingthat although kings and rulers came
againstJesus, Godhad long before planned and allowedthese events to occur.
In so doing they are praising God for His omniscience.
To do whateverYour hand and Your purpose predestined to occur - While
Acts 4:27 describes man's responsibility for the Crucifixion of Messiah, this
verse teaches that the Crucifixion was God's sovereignpurpose for His
Anointed. Ultimately God is in complete control, even when men seemto be
"winning."
Furneaux comments that here the disciples "rise above sight and seemto see
the Hand which 'shapes men's ends, rough hew them how they will."
Constable (quoting Neil) says the praying disciples "see in this beginning of
persecutionthe continued fulfilment [sic]of Scripture which had been evident
in the PassionofJesus."
Your hand - Speaks ofGod's powerto order all things as He sees fit. He's Got
the Whole World in His Hands! Do you really believe He's got you in His
hands? Every trial? Every affliction? Every persecution? Yes, all are in His
hands! So let the peace ofGod which surpasses allcomprehension, guard your
hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus!(Php 4:7+)
Marshallcomments that "the thought is of God’s mighty hand which carried
out what His will ordained, and this will include not only the plotting of His
enemies, which He allowed, but also their frustration and defeat. In view of all
this, the church could now bring its own situation before the Lord, confident
that this too was under His control. (Acts 4:29)" (TNTC-Acts)
RelatedResource:
Multiple resources onthe Hand of the Lord
Purpose (plan) (1012)(boule)when used of man expresses a decision, a
purpose or a plan which is the result of inner deliberation. Boule is that which
has been purposed and planned. Boule referring to God is a strong term,
indicating His fixed intention, His purpose. That which is His purpose stands

utterly fixed and cannot be changed by any actionof others. And what was
His purpose? To provide a satisfactorysubstitutionary sacrifice so that sinful
men might be redeemedfrom sin and eternal death and receive righteousness
and eternallife through faith in Christ Jesus, God's SacrificialLamb (Jn
1:29).
As Phillips (Exploring Acts) says "Godturned that horrible scaffoldupon
which men murdered their Makerinto a stage upon which He demonstrated
the wonderof His saving grace. Godconvertedthat gallows into a means of
grace, so that the cross that meant a horrible death to Jesus now means life
everlasting to us. Well might we sing with George Bennard(see history of this
hymn):
In the old rugged cross
Stained with blood so divine,
A wondrous attractionI see;
For 'twas on that old cross
Jesus sufferedand died
To pardon and sanctify me
(Play this hymn)
(Another vocal)
As MacArthur says "God is the supreme Historian Who wrote all history
before it everbegan. Having done their worst, they merely succeededin
fulfilling God's eternalplan (cf. Acts 2:23). As the psalmist expressedit, "The
wrath of man shall praise Thee" (Ps. 76:10). (MacArthur New Testament
Commentary – Acts)
Bob Utley - Even before creationGodhad His plan of redemption (cf. Matt.
25:34;John 17:24;Eph. 1:4; 1 Pet. 1:20; Rev. 13:8; Acts 2:13; 3:18; 13:29).
These enemies of Christ only performed that which God wanted them to
perform. Jesus came to die (cf. Mark 10:45)

Predestined(4309)(proorizo from pró = before + horízo = determine
boundary or limit<> English word horizon - God's boundary betweenheaven
and earth) literally means to designate before, to mark out beforehand, to set
the the limits or boundaries in advance of any place or thing. When used of
persons, proorizo means to put limitations upon that personthus conveys the
idea of to determine his destiny. Though proorizo meant simply to plan in
advance, in the New Testamentit attracteda specialmeaning. Here the idea is
a divine decree of God, whereby He determined in advance that something
should happen.
Proorizo reminds us that God is the supreme historian who wrote all history
before it everbegan and it is therefore not surprising that proorizo is used
only of God in the NT.
Note that the Scripture never uses predestination to mean that God has
predestined certain people to eternal condemnation. A personis condemned
because he or she refuses to trust Christ. Stated another way the truth of
predestination applies only to savedpeople. Peterexplains the heart of the
Father…
The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient
toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.
(see note 2 Peter3:9)
Proorizo - 6x - Acts 4:28; Rom. 8:29; Rom. 8:30; 1 Co. 2:7; Eph. 1:5; Eph.
1:11
J D Watsonon prohorizo - So, just as the horizon marks a limit betweenwhat
we can and can't see, Godhas placedus within a certain limit, a certain
"horizon." He has put us in a place where we cansee and comprehend many
things but where many other things are hidden from our sight and
understanding, many things that are beyond our horizon. Further, even if we
walk closerto the horizon, and understand things we never understood
before, a new horizon appears. We will never understand it all this side of
heaven. This word graphicallydemonstrates that God has marked out
something for eachof His elect;He has marked out a destiny. Much of that
destiny is hidden from us; it is beyond the horizon. But, praise be to God, he

reveals more of it with eachnew step we take toward it. What is that destiny?
What is that purpose? While we don't know it all, we do know some of it. The
primary purpose in God's predestination is "that [Christ] might be the
firstborn among many brethren" (Rom. 8:29), that is, that Christ might be
made preeminent. Scripture reveals that the firstborn always had
preeminence. God's ultimate object, therefore, is to glorify His Son. Further,
Ephesians 1:5 likewise tells us that God predestined us to adoption (see Jan.
2), making us Christ's brethren. Think of it! Eachof us is either a brother or
sisterto our dear Savior. Then in Ephesians 1:11 we read that we are
predestined to an inheritance, that is, spiritual riches, in Christ. That is our
destiny. So, we would submit that no controversyis warranted. Predestination
is simply God's marking out a destiny befitting His foreknownpeople. (A
Word for the Day)
SPROUL
The GreatConspiracy
“Indeed Herod and Pontius Pilate met togetherwith the Gentiles and the
people of Israelin this city to conspire againstYour holy servant Jesus, whom
You anointed” (v. 27).
- Acts 4:23–37
After Peterand John had been threatened by the Sanhedrin, they went back
to the church and reported what happened to them. Then they all joined in
prayer and committed themselves anew to the Lord.
In this prayer, they quoted from Psalm2, which refers to the conspiracyof all
men againstGod. In Psalm2, David reflectedon the fact that the nations
around Israelwere in rebellion againstGod. “The nations rage, and the

peoples plot,” he said. The leaders of these nations fought among themselves,
but were united in their opposition to God. These leaders “took theirstand”
againstHim, and conspired togetheragainstHis anointed one, the king. In
David’s day, he was the anointed one (in Hebrew, messiah). The conspiracy
was againstDavid because he stoodfor God.
Peterand the disciples applied Psalm 2 to their own situation. The conspiracy
was againstGod’s anointed servant, Jesus. Thosewho conspiredwere the
nations and the peoples, in this case “the Gentiles and the people of Israel.”
The leaders who conspired were Herod and Pontius Pilate, who had been
adversaries until they came to agree on putting Jesus to death (Luke 23:12).
Psalm2 goes on to give God’s response to the conspiracies ofmen. “He that
sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord has them in derision” (Psalm 2:4). In the
psalm, God laughs because He is in total control. In Acts 4, God laughs even
more because ofthe irony of the situation. The conspirators who slew Jesus
were doing exactly what God wanted them to do, what He had predestined
them to do (Acts 4:28). The death of Jesus was God’s victory over His
enemies, because in Jesus’death, the powerof sin was destroyed.
In Psalm 2:5–6, David said that God rebukes the conspirators in His anger
and terrifies them in His wrath, proclaiming that He has installed His holy
king over them all. This thought is picked up in Acts 4:29–31. The disciples
prayed for greatboldness in the face of persecution. They askedGodto make
visible, through miracles and signs, the fact that Jesus had ascendedand
become King of Kings. In response, Godfilled them with the Spirit and caused
the building to shake.
Coram Deo

Satandid not stopconspiring againstGod and His Anointed after the work of
Herod and Pilate. He is continually at work. C. S. Lewis said that we often err
either by ascribing too much or too little powerto the father of lies. Pray that
you would not take him too lightly, but that you would have confidence in
God’s ultimate sovereignty.
Passages forFurther Study
Ephesians 6:10–18
Colossians 1:15–18
1 Peter5:8
CHARLES SIMEON
CHRIST’S SUFFERINGSFORE-ORDAINED
Acts 4:27-28. Of a truth againstthy holy child Jesus, whom thou hast
anointed, both Herod, and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of
Israel, were gatheredtogether, for to do whatsoeverthy hand and thy counsel
determined before to be done.
A COMPARISON ofevents with prophecy is a source ofthe strongest
conviction and consolationto the mind. So the Apostles found it in the hour of
trial, when, for the Gospel’s sake, theyhad been imprisoned, and menaced
with the severestpunishment that could be inflicted on them. They saw that
the prophecies relating to their Divine Masterhad all been unwittingly
fulfilled, even by his bitterest enemies:and they comforted themselves with
the thought, that the same God, who had so accomplishedhis own gracious
purposes in relationto him, would in like manner bring glory to himself out of
the sufferings which they also were called to endure. They cite before God the

prediction brought to their minds; and they declare, that, in all which had
been done to the holy child Jesus, they saw nothing less than a complete
accomplishmentof God’s eternal counsels and decrees.
In discoursing on these words, I will,
I. Confirm their assertion—
The assertionis made in the form of an appeal to God: and it relates to the
sufferings of Christ,
1. As fore-ordained of God—
[All of them were fore-ordained, when God determined to give up his only
dear Son to die for the sins of men. Man had merited condemnation: and
Jesus must be condemned by a legalprocess, andbe “numbered with
transgressors.”Manhad incurred the penalty of God’s law, and was to be
accursedfrom God: and Christ must die a death which God’s law pronounced
accursed, eventhe death of the cross [Note:Galatians 3:13.]. In executing this
judgment, there must be a concurrence ofall orders of men, Jews and
Gentiles, the highest rulers and the lowestpopulace;Jews, to accusehim
according to their law; and Gentiles, to adjudge him to a death which was not
recognisedby that law, and which could be inflicted by Gentiles only. Man
had deservedthe utmost shame and contempt: and to these must Jesus be
exposed, even as one “worthy to be abhorred” by all mankind [Note:Isaiah
49:7.]. He must be scourgedalso [Note:Psalms 129:3.], though that was no
part of the punishment connectedwith crucifixion. A vast number of very
minute circumstances,also, were to attend his crucifixion. He was to be
betrayed by one of his own Disciples;sold for thirty pieces of silver, the price
of a slave; and, whilst yet upon the cross, to be taunted by the populace, and
challenged, if he were not an impostor, to save himself. Vinegar was to be
offered to him, instead of a draught that should assuagehis anguish: lots were
to be castfor his vesture: and though no bone of his was to be broken, he was
to be piercedin his hands and feet, and in his side even to the heart [Note:
John 19:36-37.]. Togetherwith these, and a multitude of other minute
circumstances whichwere ordained of God to be attendant on his death, it
was appointed that he should “make his grave with the rich.”

And all these things the Apostles speak of,]
2. As executedby man—
[The Psalmistclearly predicts the union of all manner of persons, Jews and
Gentiles, rich and poor, in the executionof this bloody tragedy. And the
Apostles call God to witness, that the prophecy adduced had been literally
fulfilled in Herod and Pontius Pilate, with the Gentile soldiers and the people
Israel[Note: Psalms 2:2-3. with ver. 25, 26.]. Yea, so exactly had every
prophecy been fulfilled, that it seemedas if all the different classeshadbeen
calledtogether, to examine carefully into the predictions; and eachpersonhad
had his part assignedhim, so that not one jot or tittle of them might remain
unfulfilled. Judas shall betray him. The chief priests, unable, by reasonof
their subjection to the Romans, to execute their own law, shall deliver him to
Pilate, the Romangovernor. He, willing to pacify them, shall have him
scourged;but afterwards shall be constrained, by their clamour, to give
orders for his crucifixion. The populace shall be ready enough, eachin his
place, to fulfil the rest; and the Roman soldier, to ascertain, or complete, his
death, shall pierce him with the spear. All shall be as active as if they had
conspiredtogether to perform their respective parts, and to accomplishevery
prediction respecting him. Thus it had been ordained of God that it should be:
and thus, in fact, it was;even one acting an independent part, as occasion
calledfor it, and as his situation enabled him to act: and thus was there as
complete an agreementbetweenthe predictions and events, as betweena seal
with ten thousand lines and the impression takenfrom it.]
Their assertionbeing thus confirmed, I will proceedto,
II. Shew the proper and legitimate consequencesto be deduced from it—
If we mark only the expressions in my text, we shall be ready to draw from
them very erroneous inferences and deductions. We shall be ready to say, ‘If
what these people did was only “what God’s hand and counselhad
determined before to be done,” we must not condemn them: they were only
instruments in the hand of a superior power: and if there be any evil in what
they did, it must be tracedto Jehovah himself, whose counselhad decreedit,
and who, by his power, stimulated them to the commissionof it.’ But all this is

quite erroneous. ThoughGod had ordained these things, he never instigated
any man to the commission of them; he only elevatedmen to situations, where,
if they were so disposed, they might execute all the evil that was in their
hearts, and left them at liberty to follow their own will. It was thus that he
elevatedPharaohto the throne of Egypt, and gave him up to the hardness of
his ownheart: and Pharaoh, of his own mind and will, persisted in his
opposition, till the Jews were irrecoverablydelivered, and he with all his army
were destroyed. Thus St. Petertold the Jews, thatthough Jesus had been
“delivered according to the determinate counselof God, they with wicked
hands had crucified and slain him [Note:Acts 2:23.].” “As for God, he cannot
be tempted of evil; neither tempteth he any man [Note: James 1:13.].” In all
that those murderers did, they were voluntary agents, and put forth only the
evil that was in their ownhearts. Therefore to them, and to them alone, must
be imputed all the evil which they respectivelycommitted.
But if we look to the facts, they will afford very rich and useful instruction.
From them may be
deduced the following most important consequences:
1. That Christ is assuredly the true Messiah—
[If there had been but few predictions relative to the Messiah’s death, and
they such as admitted of being carried into effect by a well-concerted
conspiracy, the fulfilment of them would have had comparatively but little
weight in a subject of such importance. But they were so numerous, so minute,
and, if I may so express myself, so contradictory, that it was not possible for
his friends to form a conspiracyequal to the occasion. Besides, there were
many of the predictions which could not be carriedinto effect, but by enemies.
Who but enemies could deliver him up to the Gentiles? who but enemies could
nail him to the cross, and load him with such contempt, and pierce him to the
heart with the spear? But when we see so many prophecies fulfilled by people
wholly unconnectedwith eachother, yea, and hostile to eachother, as Herod
and Pilate were, and Jews andGentiles were, the convictionis irresistible: He
is, and must be, the predicted Messiah, the Son of God, the Saviour of the
world — — —]

2. That no opposition, howeversanctionedby the greatand learned, should at
all weakenour conviction of the truths we have received—
[Against the Lord Jesus Christ were engagedallthe greatand learned of the
land. But was his religion, therefore, the more questionable? No:if there had
not been one added to his Apostles as a witness for him, he would still have
been the same Almighty Saviour, worthy of all possible honour and trust. So I
may say with respectto us at this day. Many will urge, as they did, in
reference to our Saviour, “Have any of the rulers and of the Pharisees
believed on him? But this poor people are cursed.” Yes, many will ask, with a
kind of confidence, ‘What do your governors in Church and State think of
your opinions? Do you find them walking in the same strict and self-denying
ways that you do?’ I grant, there are not many rich, or mighty, or noble, or
wise, that are called: and that, for the most part, it is to the poor that the Lord
Jesus Christ is preached;and that by them, almost alone, is he received. But,
if this invalidated not in any degree the testimony of the Apostles, neither does
it weakenour testimony respecting the Gospelof Christ. “It is to the word and
to the testimony” that we make our appeal; and by that must all sentiments be
tried and judged. And, if we speak according to the Scriptures, we should not
regard it, even though, like Elijah, we, in appearance, stoodalone in the midst
of the land. I grant, that singularity will not prove us to be right: but neither
will it prove us to be wrong. Christ’s have ever been a “little flock,” and his
way “a narrow way:” and if ever we would be saved, we must come forth, like
Lot, from Sodom; and be saved, like Noah, in the Ark prepared for us.]
3. That no trial shall come upon us beyond what our all-wise God shall see fit
to permit, and what our infinitely gracious Godwill overrule for our good—
[Of all the heavy trials which our blessedLord sustained, there was not so
much as one which was not allotted to him by infinite Wisdom, and rendered
subservient to the greatends of his mission. No one could seize him before his
time: and though they drove nails through parts full of small bones, and
pierced his side with a spear, no one was permitted to break so much as one of
his bones. Now, thus will God take care of us, both in our individual and
collective capacity. The attempts to destroy his Church have been numerous
and sanguinary: but the gates ofhell have never been able to prevail against

it. And our trials, also, may be heavy; but God has engaged, that“they shall
all work togetherfor our spiritual and eternalgood.” We may well, therefore,
adopt the language ofthe Psalmist;and say, “We will not fear, though the
earth be removed, and though the mountains be carriedinto the midst of the
sea;though the waters thereofroar and be troubled; though the mountains
shake with the swelling thereof [Note:Psalms 46:2-3.].” Beholdthe Lord Jesus
Christ as enthroned in glory, and see in what his troubles have issued:or
behold Joseph, whenat the highest post of honour in Egypt, and his parents
and his brethren were bowing down to him. There you see in what his
successive trials issued;and how every one was but as a link in the chain of
God’s eternal purposes; a link without which, humanly speaking, allGod’s
purposes respecting him had failed. Be not then castdown, because your
troubles are numerous and heavy, and because youcannot yet discernwhat
will be the end of them; but commit yourselves to God, in the assured
expectation, that “if you suffer with your adorable Lord, you shall also reign
with him in due time, and be eternally glorified together.”]
Acts 4:30 30Stretchout your hand to heal and
perform signs and wonders through the name of your
holy servantJesus."
God's Holy Servant
J. W. Burn.
Acts 4:29-30
And now, Lord, behold their threatenings:and grant to your servants, that
with all boldness they may speak your word,…

(see Acts 3:26): — The term translated in the Authorised Version here, and in
ver. 21, "child" is more correctly rendered in ver. 25, in regardto David,
"servant." The word is so given in Matthew 12:18, where Isaiah13:1 — part
of the greatprophecy of the Servant of the Lord — is applied to Christ. This
prophecy and its fulfilment in Jesus was evidently running in the minds of the
apostles throughout these discourses. The term "holy" in conjunction with
"servant" suggests thatGod has servants who are —
I. WITHOUT HOLINESS — creatures whom God has not endowedwith a
moral being, and can therefore render neither a holy nor an unholy service.
This applies to the laws, forces, substancesofnature to sun, moon, stars, the
earth, and all its inhabitants except man. These perform an unconscious
service.
II. UNHOLY — creatures in antagonismto the Divine will; devils and evil
men. These are servants by right, for God made them for service, equipped
them for service, placedthem in spheres for service, and gave them a work to
do. But their powers and opportunities are occupied in endeavouring to
thwart the Divine purpose. Do they succeed?Nay, they are servants in fact as
well as by right. Let the conduct of the rulers, fitting types of their class, show
this, and Judas also and his confederatesin the Crucifixion. Their service is an
unwilling service.
III. IMPERFECTLYHOLY. Such are true Christians, whose lifelong
experience is gradual separationfrom sin and growing approximation to
complete consecrationto God. In both sides of this experience the Divine and
human co-operate.The blood of Jesus Christ is cleansing them from sin, and
they are cleansing themselves "from all filthiness of flesh and spirit," thus
"perfecting holiness in the fear of God." The Holy Spirit sanctifies, sets them

apart for God. They "present themselves living sacrifices, holy, acceptable to
God." Their service is a conscious andglad service.
IV. HOLY. Such was Adam; such are the angels. But the holiness was not
inherent in the first, for he fell; nor in the second, forsome of their order fell.
Angelic purity is Divinely imparted, and for their Divine work they are
Divinely sustained.
V. DIVINELY HOLY. Such and such only is Jesus.
1. He is holy by nature — essentially, eternally.
2. His work is perfectly holy without a flaw, and such as God can accept
without the leastreservation.
3. His merits make the holiestholy.
(J. W. Burn.)
THE HOLY CHILD, JESUS NO. 545
A SERMON DELIVERED ON SUNDAYMORNING, DECEMBER20,
1863, BYTHE REV. C. H. SPURGEON,AT THE METROPOLITAN
TABERNACLE, NEWINGTON.

“Thatsigns and wonders may be done by the name of Your holy child, Jesus.”
Acts 4:30.
THE opposition of the world is often a very greatblessing to the Church. If it
is met by holy boldness, it is sure to yield a glorious triumph for the servants
of God. Sanctifiedby the Holy Spirit, out of the eatercomes forth honey, for it
becomes anincentive to greaterzeal. Now that the enemy is determined to
conquer, the Church will be resolvedto hold its own. Pressure from without
drives the members of the Church together, and so promotes holy love, and
when love and zeal come together, then there is such a blessedunity of action,
and such a powerin every effort that greatsuccessmust follow! Woe unto the
world when it persecutes the Church, for it kicks with its naked foot against
the pricks;it stirs up a nest of hornets about its own ears;yes, it provokes the
Lion of the tribe of Judah to spring upon His enemies!Our text is a portion of
an apostolic song which celebratedthe release ofPeterand John and the
confusionof the priests and scribes. Everypersecutionshall yield songs of
victory for the people of God! There is one sweetresultwhich always flows
from the oppositionof the world, namely, that it draws true disciples nearerto
their Master. You will perceive that they sing concerning the birth, and death,
and resurrectionof Jesus Christ—the Lord is the theme of their grateful song!
The title by which they salute Him, “Your holy child, Jesus,” is most
appropriate to their case. The history of the Church is Christ’s life written out
in length. Our Lord enters the world a holy child—when the Church begins
her history, she is as a holy child, too, and therefore rejoices in the childhood
of her gracious Lord. How precious is it to see Jesus as made in all points like
His people and how rapturous for His people to see their Redeemer’s features
drawn by the pencil of fellowship in themselves. Trial is often sanctifiedto this
noble end. Let the world oppress the Church; let the members of that Church
be thoroughly weanedfrom any other ground of comfort; let the Lord Jesus
be their only rock and refuge, and they will soonperceive analogiesin the
history of Christ beautifully explaining their own—analogies whichthey never
would have discoveredexcept in the glare of the furnace. In the chapter

before us, the apostles are thrown back upon the person of Jesus for comfort,
and they revel in the thought of His being a child, because they discoverin this
His likeness to the Church, which, in its infancy, the enemy sought to destroy,
even as Herod soughtto slaythe newborn King of the Jews!Brothers and
sisters, wheneverwe endure adversities, ortribulations, or distresses, it is ours
to turn to Christ, and considerthe Apostle and High Priestof our profession;
for we may rest assuredthat the black finger of our distresses will often point
out beauties in the person of Immanuel up to now unseen. There is a certain
spot from which alone each glorious trait in the Savior’s charactercanbe
seen—andmany of our most painful positions are ordained for us in order
that we may, from their vantage ground, behold the Lamb of God! Our
subject this morning may, perhaps, be suitable to the experience of some—
may the Lord make it useful to all! Taking the text as we find it, we shall, first
of all, meditate upon the humanity of Christ as here declared. Secondly, we
shall view it as here described—“Aholy child.” And thirdly, we shall then
behold it in the glory which surrounds it—signs and wonders are workedby
the name of the holy child, Jesus. I. First, then, dear friends, may our hearts
be enlightened to see, as the apostles did, the beauty and excellence ofTHE
REAL HUMANITY OF OUR LORD AND SAVIOR JESUS CHRIST. While
we always contend that Christ is God, very God of very God, let us never lose
the firm conviction He is most certainly and truly a man. He is not a God
humanized, nor yet a human being deified; but, as to His Godhead, pure
Godhead, equal and co-eternalwith the Father; as to His manhood, perfect
The Holy Child, Jesus Sermon#545
Tellsomeone today how much you love Jesus Christ. Volume 9
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manhood—made in all respects like unto the restof mankind, sin alone
excepted. His humanity was real, for He was born. He lay hidden in the
virgin’s womb, and, in due time, was born into a world of suffering. The gate
by which we enter upon the first life, He also passedthrough; He was not
created, nor transformed, but His humanity was begotten and born. As He

was born, so in the circumstances ofHis birth, He is completelyhuman; He is
as weak and feeble as any other baby. He is not even royal, but human. Those
who were born in marble halls of old were wrapped in purple garments, and
were thought by the vulgar to be a superior race. But this baby is wrapped in
swaddling clothes and has a manger for His cradle—thatthe true humanity of
His being may come out. More than a man, He is a Prince of the House of
David. He knows the woes ofa peasant’s child. As He grows up, the very
growth shows how completely human He is. He does not spring into full
manhood at once, but He grows in stature, and in favor both with Godand
man. When He reaches man’s estate, He gets the common stamp of manhood
upon His brow. “In the sweatofyour brow shall you eat bread” is the
common heritage of us all, and He receives no better! The carpenter’s shop
must witness to the toils of a Savior, and when He becomes the preacherand
the prophet, still we read such significant words as these—“Jesus,being
weary, sat thus on the well.” We find Him needing to betake Himself to restin
sleep, He slumbers at the stern of the vesselwhen it is tossedin the midst of
the tempest. Brothers and sisters, if sorrow is the mark of real manhood, and
“man is born to trouble as the sparks fly upward,” certainly Jesus Christ has
the true evidence of being a man! If to hunger and to thirst are signs that He
was no shadow, and His manhood no fiction, you have these. If to associate
with His fellow men, and eat and drink as they did, will be proof to your mind
that He was none other than a man—you see Him sitting at a feastone day—
at another time, He graces a marriage supper, and on anotheroccasion, He is
hungry, and “has not where to lay His head.” Since the day when the prince of
the powerof the air obtained dominion in this world, men are tempted and
He, though He is born pure and holy, must not be delivered from
temptation— “The desertHis temptation knew His conflict and His victory,
too.” The garden marked the bloody sweat, as it started from every pore,
while He endured the agony of conflict with the prince of this world. If, since
we have fallen and must endure temptation, we have need to pray, so had
He— “Cold mountains and the midnight air Witnessedthe fervor of His
prayer.” Strong crying and tears go up to heavenmingled with His pleas and
entreaties!What clearerproof could we have of His being man of the
substance of His mother, and man like ourselves, than this, that He was heard
in that He feared? There appearedunto Him an angel strengthening Him; to

whom but men are angels ministering spirits? Beloved, we have never
discoveredthe weaknessofour manhood more than when God has deserted
us. When the spiritual consolations whichcomfortedus have been withdrawn,
and the light of God’s face has been hidden from us, then, we have said, “I am
a worm and no man,” and out of the dust and ashes of human weaknesshave
we cried unto the most high God. Let, “Eloi!Eloi! lama Sabachthani” assure
you that Christ has felt the same!Follow man whereveryou will, and you find
the footprints of the Son of Mary. Go after man where you will, into scenesof
sorrow of every hue, and you shall find traces of Jesus’pilgrimage there. You
shall find in whateverstruggle and conflict of which man is capable, the
Captain of our salvationhas had a share!Leave out sin, and Christ is the
perfect picture of humanity. Simple as the truth of God is, and lying as it does
at the very basis of our Christianity, yet, let us not despise it, but try to geta
personalgrip of it if we can. Jesus, my mediator, is a man—“Immanuel, God
with us.” He is a child born. He is better than that, for “Unto us a child is
born, unto us a son is given.” He is to us a brother; He is bone of our bone
today. As a man leaves his father and mother, and cleaves unto his wife and
they, two, become one flesh, so has He left the glory of His Father’s house and
become one flesh with His people. Flesh and bone, and blood and heart, that
may ache and suffer, and be broken and be bruised, yes, and may die—such is
Jesus;for herein He completes the picture. As the whole human race must
yield its neck to the greatiron-crowned monarch, so must Christ Himself say,
“Into Your hands I commend My spirit, Father,” and He, too, must yield up
the ghost. Oh, Christian, see your nearness to Him and be glad this morning!
Oh, sinner, see His nearness to you! Come to Him with confidence, for in body
and soul He is completely human!
Sermon #545 The Holy Child, Jesus
Volume 9 Tell someone todayhow much you love Jesus Christ.
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Having thus, insisted upon the humanity of Christ, let us gathera few
reflections from it. There are a thousand things which it indicates, but, as the

garden is too full of flowers for us to bring them all, we have gatheredbut a
handful. As the first meditation, let us marvel at His condescension. It is the
greatestmiracle that was everheard or read of, that, “The Word was made
flesh and dwelt among us.” Cyprian well said, “I do not wonder at any
miracle, but I do marvel at this, which is a miracle among miracles, that God
should become man.” That God should make a creature out of nothing is
certainly a marvelous manifestationof power, but that God should enter into
that creature, and should take it into intimate union with His own nature—
this is the strangestof all acts of condescending love!Indeed, so marvelous is
it, that in all the heathen mythologies—thoughimagination has there played
strange freaks—intheir theology, we do find instances of the gods appearing
in the likeness ofmen—yet never do we find anything like the hypostatical
union of the two natures in the personof Christ. Human wisdom, in its most
happy moments, has never risen to anything like the thought of Deity
espousing manhood that man might be redeemed! To you and to me, the
marvel lies in the motive which prompted the incarnation. What could it have
been that brought Immanuel to such a stoopas this? What unrivalled,
indescribable, unutterable love was this that made Him leave His Father’s
glory, the adoration of angels, and all the hallowedjoy of heaven, that He
might be made a man like ourselves, to suffer, to bleed, to die? “He was seen
of angels,” says the apostle, and this was a greatwonder, for the angels had
worshipped at His throne! But their createdeyes couldnot bear to look upon
the brightness of His person—they veiled their faces with their wings when
they cried, “Holy! Holy! Holy!” And yet, angels saw the Son of God lying in a
manger! They saw the Lord of all wrestling with a fallen spirit in the
wilderness!They saw the Prince of Peace hanging upon the tree on Calvary!
“Seenof angels” wasone of the wonders concerning the incarnation of Christ;
but that He should be seenof men? No, that He should be the associate ofthe
worstof men, that He should be called the friend of publicans and sinners, so
perfectly incarnating Himself and condescending so low that He comes to the
very loweststate of humanity—all this, my brothers and sisters, is
condescensionconcerning which words fail me! A prince who puts aside his
crown, and clothes himself with beggar’s rags to investigate the miseries of his
country, is but a worm condescending to his fellow worm. An angelthat
should lay aside his beauty, and become decrepit and lame, and walk the

streets in pain and poverty to bless the race of man were nothing, for this were
but a creature humbling himself to creatures a little lowerthan himself; but,
here is the Creatortaking the creature into union with Himself! The Immortal
becoming mortal, the Infinite an infant, the Omnipotent taking weakness,
even human weakness, into union with His ownperson! We may truly sayof
Jesus that He was weak as the dust, and yet, as mighty as the Eternal God. He
was subjectto suffering, and yet, God overall blessedforever. O the depth of
the love of Jesus!Let us reflectupon another theme. See the fitness of Christ
for His work! He is perfect man—He could not be a priest if He were not. But
now, “He can be touched with the feeling of our infirmities, seeing He was
tempted in all points like as we are.” being not ashamedto call us brothers
and sisters, He can compassionatethe ignorant and those who are out of the
way. O brothers and sisters, if He were not man, He could not have been our
substitute; man sinned, and man must pay the penalty—He must be perfect
man to make atonement! If He were not man, His righteousness wouldnot
have availed us, for while we need a divine righteousness to coverthe
infiniteness of God’s demands, we need a righteousness whichis human, for it
is that which the law requires. O Soul, if you are in sadness andsickness
today, let your arms embrace the man, Christ Jesus. Feel, in the fact that He is
your brother, how suitable is such a Saviorto your poverty, your weakness,
and your sin! Let us think, too, of another thought. Inasmuch as Christ is
man, think of His near relationship and union to His people. He is no stranger
of whom we speak—He is our brother—no, more than that, He has become
our Head. Nota head of gold, and feet of clay, or limbs of basermetal; but, as
we are, so was He, that as He is, so might we be. It is manhood which is at the
head of the Church, as it is manhood which constitutes the members. Union to
Jesus is, I think, the sweetestdoctrine in revelation. There are other doctrines
which possessa more transcendent grandeur, but the doctrine of union is the
quintessence of all delights. What is heaven, but union to Christ realized? And
what shall be the foretaste ofheaven, but union to Christ believed? As you see
Him, then, completely—suchas you are—know, Christian, how near, how
dear, how intimately one with Him you are, and be glad this day!

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Let me give you another flower. See the glory of manhood now restored!Man
was but a little lower than the angels, and had dominion over the fowl of the
air, and over the fish of the sea. Thatroyalty he lost; the crownwas taken
from his head by the hand of sin, and the beauty of the image of Godwas
dashed by his rebellion. But all this is given back to us! We see Jesus, who was
made a little lowerthan the angels, for the suffering of death, crownedwith
glory and honor; and, at this day, all things are put under Him, waiting, as He
does, and expecting the time, when all His enemies shall be beneathHis feet,
and the last enemy, Death, shall be destroyedby man—by the very man whom
he boastedthat he had destroyed! It is our nature, brothers and sisters, Jesus
in our manhood, who is now Lord of Providence;it is our nature which has
hanging at its belt the keys of heaven, and earth, and hell; it is our nature
which sits upon the throne of Godat this very day! No angelever satupon
God’s throne, but a man has done it, and is doing it now! Of no angelwas it
ever said, “You shall be King of kings, and Lord of lords, they who dwell in
the wilderness shallbow before you, and your enemies shall lick the dust.” But
this is said of a man! It is the man who shall judge the world in righteousness;
a man who shall distribute crowns of reward—a man who shall denounce,
“Depart, you cursed”; a man, the thunder of whose words shall make hell
shrink with fright! Oh, how glorious is renovated manhood! What an honor it
is, my brothers and sisters, to be man, not of the fallen first Adam, but man
made in the image in the secondAdam! Let us, with all our weaknesses, and
infirmities, and imperfections, yet bless and praise God, who made us what we
are by His divine grace, forman, in the person of Christ, is secondonly to
God—no, is in such union with God, that he cannot be nearer to Him! When
we think of the true and proper manhood of Christ, ought we not to rejoice
that a blessedchannel is openedby which God’s mercy can come to us? “How
can God reachman?” was once the question; but now, brothers and sisters,
there is another question—“How canGod refuse to bless those men who are
in Christ?” The everlasting Father must bless His only-begotten Son, and, in
blessing Him, He has blesseda man, and that man, having all the electin His
loins, they are necessarilyall blessedin Him. Look upon the person of Christ

as that of a representative individual. Whatever Christ is, all His electare,
just as whateverAdam was, all men who were in him became. If Adam fell, all
manhood fell; if Christ stands and is honored and glorified, then all who are
in Christ—that is the goodly fellowshipof His elect—are allblessedin Him!
Now, it is utterly impossible but that God should bless Jesus Christ, for Jesus
Christ is foreverone with God, and His manhood is also One with Godhead.
As an old writer observes, “The nearestunion that we know of is the union
betweenthe humanity and the divinity in the person of Christ. That of the
three persons in the Trinity may rather be called a unity than a union—but
this is the closestunion we know of—the union betweenhumanity and Deity
in Christ.” So complete is it that you cannot think of Christ aright as a man
apart from God, nor as God apart from man. The very idea of Christ has in it
the two natures, and it is a clearimpossibility that the Godheadshould not
impart of its blessedness to the manhood, and that manhood, being thus
blessed, every electsoulis necessarilyblessed, also. O see whata channel is
thus opened; a channel through which the streamcannot but flow; a golden
pipe through which divine grace cannotbut come! The laws of nature might
be reversed, but not the laws of God’s nature, and it is a law of God’s nature
that, in the person of Christ, the Deity must bless the manhood, and that
manhood, being blessed, it is another law that electmanhood must be blessed,
since that electmanhood is forever indissolubly bound up with the personof
the Lord Jesus Christ. See what a deep and broad river is here opened for us,
and what a fullness there is in that river— for all the fullness of the Deity
dwells in Christ, and the fullness of that Deity, thus, flows to man. See again,
beloved, what a door of access is thus opened betweenus and God! I am a
man; Christ is a man. I come to the man Christ Jesus—No,I have not even to
do that—I am in the man Christ! If I am a believer, I am a portion of Him.
Well, being a portion of the man Christ, and God being united with Him, I am
very near to God. I have such nearness ofaccess,then, to God, that whatever
may be my desires and my prayers, I have no need to climb to heaven nor to
descendinto the depth in order to obtain them, for God’s earmust be near to
me inasmuch as God is in Christ, and, my soul being in Christ, I am very, very
near to God. Christ’s body is the veil that hangs before the majestyof God,
that veil was torn; and whoever, by a living faith, knows how to come through
the torn body of the man, Christ, comes at once into the presence of God!

Such communion, such sacredcommerce—suchblessedinterchangesbetween
mankind and God could never have takenplace in any other plan. That
ladder which Jacobsaw was but a faint and dreamy picture of this. This is no
ladder, but the accessis such as though God, who
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was at the top of Jacob’s ladder, had come down to Jacobas he lay sleeping
there. There is no ladder needed now—the person of Christ brings God to
man; and brings man to God in closercontactthan the ladder can ever
picture! Brothers and sisters let us come boldly unto the throne of the
heavenly grace, to obtain grace to help in every time of need! Another thing I
cannot leave out is this—beloved, do see it, do see it—how safe we are!Our
soul’s estate was once put in the hands of Adam—he was a fallible man—how
unsafe our salvation was then! The salvation of every believer now is in the
hand of a man; it is the man Christ Jesus!And what a man! Can He fail? Can
He sin? Can He fall? O no, beloved, for the Deity is in intimate union with the
manhood, and the man Christ Jesus, since He can never sin, can never fall,
and is, therefore, a sure foundation for the perpetual salvationof all the elect.
When the angels were all in heaven, before the fall of Satan, I think they could
never be perfectly happy because they knew that if they sinned they would
perish, and this surely would mar their bliss—because there was a fear of
their losing all their glory. But, beloved, our salvation does not rest with
ourselves, we may have all the joy of perfect security because it rests in the
hands of one who cannot by any possibility sin, one who cannot err, cannot
fail, but who stands fast forever, from everlasting to everlasting, God!See
then, the comfort and security of God’s people! But, indeed, there are so many
sheaves in this field of incarnation that I cannotpossibly unbind them all for
you. You must come and pluck an ear or two for yourselves, and rub them in
your hands on this Sunday that your hunger may be relieved. Beloved, do you
not see that here is your adoption? You become sons of God because Christ

becomes a Son of man. Do you not perceive that here is your acceptance?The
man, Christ, is accepted, and you, since He stands for you, are acceptedin
Him. No, there is not a mercy in the covenant;there is not a single streamof
blessing which flows to the believer, that does not spring from the factthat
Christ is to be called the “holy child Jesus,” being most certainly and properly
a man. Thus much, then, upon the first point. II. Now, let us VIEW THE
HUMANITY AS IT IS HERE DESCRIBED. The words teachit to us— holy
child. Christ’s humanity was perfectly holy. Upon this doctrine, you are well
established;but you may well wonder that Jesus was always holy. He is
conceivedof a woman, and yet, no sort of sin comes from His birth. “That
holy Thing which is born of you shall be called the Son of God.” He is
educatedin the midst of sinful persons. It could not be otherwise, forthere
were none on earth who could be called good—allhaving become
unprofitable—and although residing in the midst of sinners, in Him is no taint
or trace of sin! He goes into the world, and as a physician must mingle with
the sick, so He is found in the very worstof society. The harlot may speak to
Him, and from the publican He turns not away, yet, from none of these did He
receive any corrupt influence. He is tempted, and it is usually supposed that a
man can scarcelybe tempted; even should he overcome the temptation,
without receiving some injury to his innocence. But the prince of this world
came and had nothing in Christ; his fiery darts fell upon the nature of Christ
as upon water, and were quenched at once. Satanwas but as one who should
whip the sea;he left no mark upon the perfectholiness of Christ. Imputation
of sin would be the nearestapproachto making our Lord a sinner; but let it
always be remembered that, though Jehovah made Him to be sin for us, yet,
He knew no sin. The world’s sin was put upon the shoulders of Christ, and
yet, He had no sin for all that; the imputation was accomplishedin such a
manner that it did not in any sense or in any degree derogate from His title to
perfect holiness. I have read sermons upon the imputation of sin to Christ
which have left painful impressions upon my mind, because I remember to
have met with the expressionthat Christ was the greatestsinnerwho ever
lived, because He stoodin the place of millions of sinners! Now, it is true that
Jesus took the sinner’s place, but yet, He never was a sinner, nor ever canin
any sense be thought of as unholy. The greatRedeemerstoodperfect, pure,
spotless;and even in the conflict, when all the powers of hell were let loose

againstHim, and when God Himself had withdrawn— that withdrawal of
God from us would have hardened our hearts—but it did not harden His
heart. The taking awayof God’s grace from us is the ruin of our graces;but
He had a wellspring of divine grace within Himself, and His purity lived on
when God had withdrawn from Him. From the first dawn of His humanity in
the womb to the time when He is laid in the new tomb, He is “holy.” The next
word is one that requires most attention. Why is Christ calleda “holy child”?
We canunderstand His being called a child while He was so, but why a “holy
child” now that He is ascendedup
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on high? Why, dear friends, because the character of Christ is more aptly
pictured by that of a child than that of a man! If you conceive ofa perfectly
holy child, you have, then, before you a representationof Christ. There is that
in childhood, in holy childhood, which you cannot find even in holy manhood!
You note in childhood its simplicity—the absence ofall cunning. We dare not
in manhood usually wearour heart upon our sleeve as children do; we have
lost the trustfulness of our youth, and are upon our guard in society. We have
learned by very painful experience to suspectothers, and we walk among our
fellow men often with our heart lockedup with many locks, thinking that,
when thieves are abroad, goodhousekeepers must not leave the door open.
We have to practice the wisdom of serpents, as wellas the harmlessness of
doves. But a child is perfectly guileless;it prattles out its little heart; it has no
caution or reserve;it cannot scheme, for it cannotgo round about with the
skillful words of the politician; it knows not how to spin the web of sophistry;
it is plain, transparent, and you see through it. Now, suchwas Christ! Not
foolish, for there is much difference betweensimplicity and folly. He was
never foolish; they who mistook Him for such and sought to entrap Him, soon
discoveredthat the child was a wise child. Still, He is always a child—He tells
His heart out everywhere. He eats, He drinks like other men. They callHim a

drunk and a wine-bibber; does He, then, from prudential motives, ceaseto eat
and drink as other men? O no! He is quite a child. In everything that He does,
there is an artless simplicity. You see through Him, and you can trust Him,
because there is trustfulness about His whole nature; He knows what is in
man, yet, He does not actwith suspicion towards men, but always with
simplicity. In a child we expect to see much humbleness. There is a
humbleness of association. There is a little child yonder—it is a king’s
daughter, and here is another little child belonging to a gypsy woman. Leave
the two in a room, and see if they will not be at play together in five minutes.
If it had been the queen and the gypsy woman, they would have satas far
apart as possible. O no! They do not associate togetherat all! Distinctions of
rank, and all that kind of thing, they studiously maintain, and therefore,
remain isolated. But the two children will be down on the floor together, and
if there happens to be some little heap of dust or a few pieces of broken crock,
the princess will find in them almostas much mirth as the beggarwoman’s
child! Here is humbleness of mind. So with Christ—He is King of kings and
Prince of the House of David—yet, He is always with the poor and needy, and
sympathizes with them just as heartily as though He were altogethersuchas
they were. You do not find little children sitting down and planning how they
shall win crowns—inwhat way they shall obtain popularity or applause. O
no! They are quite satisfied to do their father’s will, and live on his smile. It is
so with Christ. What a childlike actthat was—whenthey would have made
Him a king, He went and hid Himself! And how childlike does He seemwhen
He rides upon the colt, the foal of an ass, through the streets of Jerusalem, and
must have the mother ass there, too, lest either of the two creatures should be
distressed. He is the friend of the brute creationas well as of man in general—
so thoughtful and so kind, so simple, so humble in all that He does!We picture
a holy child as being all obedient. You have but to sayto it, “Do this,” and it
does it. It asks no questions. Was it not so with Jesus His whole life? “My meat
and My drink is to do the will of Him who sent Me.” “Know you not that I
must be about My Father’s business?” So, again, we look in holy children for
a forgiving temper. We know that sometimes the blood comes up in the little
face, and a little angry quarrel ensues, but it is soonover, and with their arms
about eachother’s neck, and many a loving kiss, it is soonmade up againby
the little ones. Well, with Jesus this characteristic ofchildhood is carried out

to the fullest extent, for His latest Words are, “Father, forgive them, for they
know not what they do.” Ah, holy child! No fire from heaven do You call, like
John. No denunciations come from Your lips againstsinners. “Neitherdo I
condemn you; go and sin no more,” says He to the womantaken in adultery.
He is the child all through. Scripture calls Him the man-child and what if we
call Him the greatchild-man? He was a child when He had become a man! He
never had childish things to put away in the sense in which the apostle speaks
of it, for as to all the folly, and the littleness, and giddiness of youth, Christ
knew not these. He knew everything that is beautiful, and lovely, and just, in
the virgin innocence of a pure and holy child—such as children would have
been, if their parents had not fallen. all this you see in the person of Christ
Jesus!Beloved, I think there is something very sweetin this picture of Christ’s
humanity, because we are none of us afraid to approach a child. Men who are
childlike men—we are never afraid of. You know
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certain people in the world—you could not tell your trouble to them; they
have a haughty manner; they look down upon you; you feel that you can
never reach their hearts. There are certainothers with an open and honest
face, and you instinctively feel, “There, I cantell that man anything; I know I
can. If I were in any kind of distress, ortrouble, I would go to him—I know he
would help me if he could.” Well, that is because sucha man has a degree of
childlikeness about him. Now, in the personof Christ there is all this carried
out to the fullest degree!Come, then, and tell Jesus everything. Whatever
your trouble or difficulty may be, stand not back through shame or fear. Will
you fear Immanuel, or dread the Lamb of God? Will you be afraid of a holy
child? No, rather come, and like Simeon, take Him in your arms, and
acknowledge Him as your consolationandyour trust. I would I could geta
hold, this morning, on those timid ones who always say, “I am afraid of
Jesus.” Why, dear friends, how can you talk so? You do Him wrong. You

know Him not, or you would not thus speak!This is the unkindest cut of all, to
think that He is unwilling to forgive. Dying for you, living as a holy child for
you—O can it be, canit be possible that He should be hard to forgive and
receive you? Thinking of a holy child while I lookedthrough this verse, I
turned to Mrs. Harriet BeecherStowe’sstoryof Eva and little Topsy. She
gives a graphic picture there of a holy child, indeed. There is the law in the
person of Miss Ophelia—she whips the child, but the more she whips her, the
worse she is; she gets no further than, “I’s so wicked, I can’t help it; I’s so
wicked.” Thatis all the law cando; it can only make a man feelhe is “so
wicked,” that he cannot help it, and he goes on sinning. But what a picture is
that when St. Clair draws the curtain and sees the two little children sitting
with their cheeks together. Eva says, “Whatdoes make you so bad, Topsy?
Why won’t you try and be good? Don’tyou love anybody, Topsy?” “Don’t
know nothing ‘bout love; I loves candy and sich, that’s all,” said Topsy. “But
you love your father and mother?” “Neverhad none, you know; I telled you
that, Miss Eva.” “Oh, I know,” saidEva sadly, “but hadn’t you any brother,
or sister, or aunt, or—” “No, none of ‘em—never had nothing nor nobody.”
“But, Topsy, if you’d only try to be good, you might.” “Couldn’t never be
nothin’ but a Nigger, if I was everso good,” saidTopsy. “O Topsy, poor child,
I love you!” said Eva, with a sudden burst of feeling. And laying her little thin
white hand on Topsy’s shoulder, she said, “I love you because youhaven’t had
any father, or mother, or friends—because you’ve been a poor, abusedchild! I
love you, and I want you to be good. I am very unwell, Topsy, and I think I
shan’t live a greatwhile; and it really grieves me to have you be so naughty. I
wish you would try to be goodfor my sake. It’s only a little while I shall be
with you.” The round, keeneyes of the black child were overcastwith tears—
large, bright drops rolled heavily down, one by one, and fell on the little white
hand. Yes, in that moment, a ray of real belief, a ray of heavenly love had
penetrated the darkness of her heathen soul! She laid her head down between
her knees, andwept and sobbed—while the beautiful child, bending over her,
lookedlike the picture of some bright angel stooping to reclaim a sinner.
Now, something like this, only in a far nobler style, Jesus Christ has behaved
towards us. He sees us lostand ruined, wicked—hopelesslywicked—andHe
comes as a holy child and sits down by our ruined humanity. And He says, “I
love you—I love you because you are so lost, so ruined, so hopelesslyruined—

because I know the dreadful doom into which you will fall. There is nothing in
you that makes Me loves you, but I do love you; I cannotbear to see you die
like this. I would soonerdie than you should remain a sinner. I would sooner
die and bear My Father’s wrath for you, than that you should be a sinner and
disobedient to Him.” The holy child sits down by you, this morning, and
weeps for you. Will you grieve Immanuel? Will you break the heart of Jesus,
your soul’s lover? Oh, will you open His wounds afresh and crucify Him
again? If you would not, then trust Him now—fly to Him—give yourselves up
to Him! He waits to be gracious to you; His loving arms are wide open to
receive you. “Whoeverwill,” He says, “lethim come, and he who comes to Me
I will in no wise castout.” Such is the coming of the “holy child Jesus.” III. To
conclude—itseems that the name of this holy child is to work greatwonders.
Only for one second, let us turn aside, and behold THE GLORY OF HIS
HUMANITY. Although Christ was a man, all the powers of nature knew
their Masterand crouchedat His feet. He could command the sea or the
boisterous wind—diseases, the myrmidons of death, and Deaththeir prince,
all owned allegiance to Him who is immortality and life. After His
resurrection, He endowed His disciples with His own powerand more than
His own power—”Forgreaterworks thanthese shall you do, because I go
unto My Father.” The name of Jesus was uttered, uttered by feeble men—and
devils
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fled, dumb mouths beganto sing, lame men leapedlike a hart, and the blind
beganto see—no, inseveralinstances the grave, itself, yielded up its prey
when the name of Jesus sounded through its hollow vaults! The age of
miracles passedoff, it was wellit should. Miracles are but the cradle in which
the man-child, the Church, must be rocked. When the Church became strong
enough to stand alone, she left her swaddling bands behind her; but the name
of Jesus has not less powertoday because no risen dead, no openedeyes follow

Jesus was god's holy servant

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Jesus was god's holy servant