The holy spirit being tested

THE HOLY SPIRIT BEING TESTED
EDITED BY GLENN PEASE
Acts 5:9 9Peter said to her, "How could you conspire
to test the Spirit of the LORD? Listen! The feet of the
men who buried your husband are at the door, and
they will carry you out also."
Question:"Why did Godkill Ananias and Sapphira for lying?"
Answer: The story of Ananias and Sapphira is found in Acts 5, and it is a sad
story, indeed. It actually begins at the end of chapter 4 with the description of
the early church in Jerusalem, a group of believers so filled with the Holy
Spirit that they were of one heart and one mind. Greatpowerand grace were
on the apostles, who preachedand testified of the risen Savior. So knit
togetherwere the hearts of the people that they held all their possessions
looselyand willingly sharedthem with one another, not because they were
coercedbut because theyloved one another. Those who sold land and houses
gave of their profits to the apostles, who distributed the gifts to those in need.
Two members of this group were Ananias and his wife, Sapphira; they also
had sold a field. Part of the profit from their sale was kept back by the couple,
and Ananias only laid a part of the money at the apostles’feet. However,
Ananias made a pretense of having given all the proceeds. This hypocritical

show may have fooledsome, but not Peter, who was filled with the powerof
the Spirit. Peterknew instantly that Ananias was lying—not just to him but to
God—and exposedhis hypocrisy then and there. Ananias fell down and died
(Acts 5:4). When Sapphira showedup, she, too, lied to Peterand to God,
saying that they had donated the entire proceeds ofthe sale of the land to the
church. When her lie had been exposed, she also fell down and died at Peter’s
feet.
Some speculate that these two deaths were from natural causes.Perhaps
Ananias died from shock or guilt, but Peterpronounced Sapphira’s death
before she died, and the coincidentaltiming and place of their deaths indicate
that this was indeed God’s judgment. The question is why. Why would God
kill two people for lying?
God’s reasons for bringing about the deaths of Ananias and Sapphira involve
His abhorrence of sin, the hypocrisy of the couple, and the lessonfor the rest
of the church, both then and now. It can be easytoday to gloss overthe
holiness of God, to forgetthat He is righteous and pure and that He hates sin
wholeheartedly. This particular sin of hypocrisy in the church was dealt with
swiftly and decisively.
Were Ananias and Sapphira saved? We believe they probably were. Their
story is told in the context of the actions of “all the believers” (Acts 4:32).
They knew of the Holy Spirit (Acts 5:3), and Ananias’s lie could have been an
earlier promise that he would give the whole amount of the sale to the Lord.
But the best evidence that they were children of God may be that they
receiveddiscipline: “If you are not disciplined—and everyone undergoes
discipline—then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all”
(Hebrews 12:8; see also 1 Corinthians 5:12). Ananias and his wife had
conspiredto garnerthe accolades ofthe church; but their conspiracyled to
the sin unto death.

The case ofAnanias and Sapphira illustrates the fact that even believers can
be led into bold, flagrant sin. It was Satanthat had filled their hearts to lie in
this way (Acts 5:3) and “to test the Spirit of the Lord” (verse 9). Covetousness,
hypocrisy, and a desire for the praise of men all played a part in their demise.
The sudden, dramatic deaths of Ananias and Sapphira servedto purify and
warn the church. “Greatfear seizedthe whole church” (Acts 5:11). Right
away, in the church’s infancy, God made it plain that hypocrisy and
dissimulation were not going to be tolerated, and His judgment of Ananias
and Sapphira helped guard the church againstfuture pretense. Godlaid the
bodies of Ananias and Sapphira in the path of every hypocrite who would seek
to enter the church.
Furthermore, the incident involving Ananias and Sapphira helped to establish
the apostles’authority in the church. The sinners had fallen dead at Peter’s
feet. It was Peterwho had known of the secretsinand had the authority to
pronounce judgment in the church (see Matthew 16:19). If the hypocrisy of
Ananias and Sapphira had succeededin fooling Peter, it would have severely
damagedthe apostles’authority.
The sadstory of Ananias and Sapphira is not some obscure incident from the
Old Testamentregarding a violation of Mosaic Law. This occurredin the
first-century church to believers in Jesus Christ. The story of Ananias and
Sapphira is a reminder to us today that Godsees the heart (1 Samuel 16:7),
that He hates sin, and that He is concernedfor the purity of His church (1
Corinthians 11; 1 John 5). As Jesus told the compromising church in
Thyatira, “All the churches will know that I am he who searches hearts and
minds, and I will repay eachof you according to your deeds” (Revelation
2:23). GOTQUESTIONS.ORG

Lying to the Holy Spirit
by Richard T. Ritenbaugh
Forerunner, "ReadyAnswer," August 1995
Topics
Ananias and Sapphira
Anthropomorphism
Church, First Century
Constantine
Fire Imagery
God's Body
Holy Spirit
More...
Related
What Does 'Non-Trinitarian' Mean?
God Is . . . What?
The Holy Spirit and the Trinity (Part 1)
The Holy Spirit
Is Obedience Required Before Receiving God's Holy Spirit?
The Holy Spirit
Grieving the Holy Spirit

More...
What a time to be alive! Jesus had just recently died and rose again, and on
Pentecost, He had sent the Holy Spirit to the apostles. Fromthat point, the
church had grown incredibly—by the thousands!And oh, what a spirit of
accord!The church was united, and as Christ had taught, they were freely
sharing their blessings with one another (Acts 4:32).
Many who owned lands or houses were selling them, and the church
distributed the proceeds to those who were in need (verses 34-35). One of
these was Joses, surnamedBarnabas by the apostles, who soldhis land and
gave the entire price to the fledgling church (verses 36-37). Generosityand
Christian love were so evident in these early believers.
One couple, Ananias and his wife Sapphira, decided to sell one of their
possessions(Acts 5:1). Thoughseeming to give all the proceeds to the apostles,
they kept back part of it for their own use (verse 2). But they could not fool
God; He knew what they had done. More importantly, He knew their hearts.
By His Spirit, God made the apostle Peteraware oftheir attitude as well.
Thus Peterasked, "Ananias, why has Satanfilled your heart to lie to the Holy
Spirit?" (verse 3). For their sin, Ananias and Sapphira both died that same
day. What a shock this was to the newly founded church (verse 11)!
ParallelVerses
In itself, this event so early in the life of the church is very instructive about
the attitude that God requires of us and about how serious He is about His
children living by His every word. But trinitarians use Peter's question as
"proof" that the Holy Spirit is a divine being. They say, "One cannot sin
againstan attribute. One cannot lie to something that is not sentient. Thus, the
Holy Spirit must be a personality within the Godhead." But is their reasoning
true? Or are they so busy looking for "proof" to fit their theory that they have
ignored the plain meaning of Peter's words and the overwhelming evidence of
other scriptures?
On the surface, this argument seems plausible. It does seema stretch to think
that one could lie to a thing, whether it be an objector a poweror an

attribute. Normally, we would not use the language this way. However, when
writing about the Holy Spirit, the apostles had no reservations about
interchangeablyusing verbs associatedwith things rather than people.
For example, Paul tells Timothy "to stir up the gift of God which is in you
through the laying on of my hands. For God has not given us a spirit of fear . .
." (II Timothy 1:6-7). We usually stir liquids and mixtures, not people. Several
writers use the verb "pour" to describe God's use of the Spirit (see Isaiah
32:15;44:3; Ezekiel39:29;Joel2:28-29;Zechariah12:10; Acts 2:17-18, 33). A
person cannotbe poured.
On the other hand, many verses show that the Holy Spirit "speaks,""tells,"
"declares," "convicts,""guides,""hears," andothers. By themselves, these
verbs can give us no conclusive proof that the Holy Spirit is or is not a divine
being.
To understand what Petermeant by "to lie to the Holy Spirit," we must see if
the contextexplains what he meant. At the end of Acts 5:4, Petermakes a
parallel accusation:"You have not lied to men but to God." "God" is
translated from theos, the generalGreek wordfor deity. In the broadestsense,
PeteraccusesAnanias of sinning againstGod (see Genesis 20:6;39:9;
Leviticus 6:2; Psalm 51:4).
When he speaks to Sapphira later on in the scene, Peterrepeats the accusation
in a slightly different way: "How is it that you have agreedtogetherto test
[tempt, KJV] the Spirit of the Lord?" (Acts 5:9). Here, Peteruses "Lord"
from the Greek kurios, meaning "master" or "lord." In this verse the Holy
Spirit is shown to be the possessionofGod.
Thus in these three parallel verses, Peterclarifies whathe meant: Ananias and
Sapphira had tried to deceive God, who was presentin them and in the
apostles by the powerof His Spirit. Did they not realize, Peterasks, that
through His Spirit God knew not only what they were doing, but also their
hearts?
The Whole Bible

But why did Petermake it seemas if the Spirit had personality? Becauseas
the means, the power, the vehicle, the agency, by which the Fatherand the
Son accomplishtheir will (for example, creating—Genesis1:2), the Spirit
takes on properties that they have. We do this in our own speechand writing:
Money talks. Powercorrupts. Words bite. To describe actions of things, we
often use verbs that more accuratelydescribe human actions. Wind moans or
shrieks. Fire licks wood. Rain dances. Waterruns. These words do not make
the things human.
In Romans 5-7 Paul personifies death, law and sin. "Deathreigned from
Adam to Moses" (Romans 5:14). "The law has dominion" (7:1). "Sin . . .
deceivedme, and by it killed me" (7:11). We know that none of these things
has personality, and we think nothing more of it. The same applies to the
Spirit of God. Just because we use verbs that normally describe the actions of
a person does not mean that the subject is a person. It is a non-argument; it
means nothing.
More important is how the entirety of the Bible treats the conceptof God's
Spirit. Using one verse like Acts 5:3 to "prove" a doctrine is called"proof
texting." This method violates two of the paramount points of biblical
understanding: 1) Always use clearverses to explain unclear verses, and 2)
gather all of the pertinent verses from the whole Bible and study them
completely before reaching a conclusionon a doctrine.
Acts 5:3 is an unclear verse on the nature of the Holy Spirit, and it must stand
in the light of verses from other parts of the Bible before it is correctly
understood. Forinstance, nowhere in the Bible is the Holy Spirit shown to
have manlike shape. The Fatherand the Son are revealedto have body parts
like us—they even sit on thrones—but the Spirit is described to be like wind,
oil, fire and water.
The only shape it is ever given is that of a dove (Matthew 3:16; Mark 1:10;
Luke 3:22; John 1:32), and some dispute that the Spirit lookedlike a dove but
rather in a visible form descendedlike a dove. Nevertheless, the Spirit is never
describedto have a humanlike shape. Man was createdin the image and
likeness ofGod (Genesis 1:26-27), so man looks like God. If the Spirit were

also a personin a "trinity," it too would look like a man just as the Fatherand
Son do (John 14:9). Yet, at best, the Spirit had a dove's shape in one instance,
and a man and a dove have never been mistakenfor eachother.
Other verses show the apostles giving praise, glory and honor to the Father
and Son without mentioning the Spirit (Romans 1:7; I Corinthians 1:1-4;
Galatians 1:1-5; and so on through the epistles). If it were part of the
Godhead, this would be a grave omission.
Many of the Spirit's attributes can be shown to originate in the Father or the
Son. For example, the Spirit is named "Comforter" in John 14:26 (KJV), yet
the Fatheris called "the Godof all comfort" in II Corinthians 1:3-4. Other
examples include making intercession:Romans 8:26—I Timothy 2:5 and
Hebrews 7:25; and enabling spiritual understanding: I Corinthians 2:10—I
Corinthians 2:16 and I John 5:20.
In addition, the Spirit has no familial relationship to Christians. God is our
Father and Christ is our Elder Brother. Paul says "Jerusalemabove . . . is the
mother of us all" (Galatians 4:26). The Spirit, though, is not a person but a
gift of God, the mind and powerof God working in and through us (II
Timothy 1:7).
Finally, the history of the trinity doctrine is open knowledge. The true church
never acceptedthe idea, and even the false church did not embrace it until
three centuries after Christ! Even then, it was only acceptedas a political
concessionto the Roman emperor, Constantine. Add these facts to its absence
in the Scripture, and it is no wonder the Catholics and Protestants callit a
mystery!
The Lessonof Acts 5:1-11
Peteris not the only one who mentions sinning againstthe Spirit. Isaiah
writes, "But [Israel] rebelled and grievedHis Holy Spirit; so He turned
Himself againstthem" (Isaiah 63:10). The antecedentof "He" is easilyseenas
"the LORD" (verse 7). Stephen seems to be referring to this verse in Acts
7:51, as does Paul in Ephesians 4:30.

Clearly, it is possible to sin againstthe Holy Spirit. Ananias and Sapphira lied
to it, or more correctly "attempted to deceive by falsehood," as some lexicons
read. What does this mean? How did they lie to the Spirit?
For starters, they were hypocritically appearing to do goodwhile committing
a very selfishact. They wanted the members of the church to see how
concernedand generous they were—andon the sly make a bit of a profit.
Jesus stronglycondemned this kind of hypocritical behavior in the Pharisees
(Matthew 23:25, 27-28).
They also tried to deceive God. Did they think He was so much like them that
He would not notice they were trying "to pull the woolover" His eyes? As the
omniscient Judge of all (Ecclesiastes11:9), He sees and hears everything by
the powerof His Spirit (Psalm 139:1-12). Almost as if he were thinking of this
couple's sin, Paul writes,
Do not be deceived, God is not mocked;for whatevera man sows, thathe will
also reap. For he who sows to his flesh will of the flesh reap corruption, but he
who sows to the Spirit will of the Spirit reap everlasting life. (Galatians 6:7-8)
God must have consideredtheir sin to be of such a heinous nature that He
immediately took their lives. Such sudden death evokes memories ofAaron's
sons, Nadaband Abihu (Leviticus 10), and of Uzzah (II Samuel 6:1-7), whom
God slew immediately for their sins. He may have made such a tragic example
of Ananias and Sapphira to stun the young church into thinking about how
serious the Christian calling is (Acts 5:11). Christianity is not for those who
are unwilling to commit their whole lives to overcoming human nature and
growing to the high standard of Jesus Christ. The stakes are too high for us to
treat His calling lightly.
Acts 5:1-11 means so much more than just a trinitarian proof text. It records
an event that made a lasting, sobering impression on the church of God. By
that event, we know how vital it is for a calledson of God to dedicate his
whole life to serving God and the church. Unlike Ananias and Sapphira, we
cannot "keepback" anypart of our lives from God. He redeemed us, and our
lives and all our possessions are His.

It is goodfor us to recall Paul's advice in Romans 12:1: "I beseechyou
therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies a
living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service."If
we do this, we will never have to worry about lying to the Holy Spirit."
Lying to the Holy Spirit
Postedon January 22, 2017 by William Earnhardt
GoodSalt.com-kibas0431
Once, I was talking to a church treasure who told me every week she finds a
few empty tithe envelopes turned into the offering plate. She figured it was
kids turning them in. I was more skepticaland wonderedif it was adults
wanting to look like they were giving an offering. This was before online
giving. Either way, the church has always had people pretending to be more
giving than they are.
You may say, “Wellthat’s really none of your business William!” and you are
right. It is none of my business. It is nobody’s business but God’s. In the dark
ages the church would bribe, guilt and bully people into giving them their
money, and there are churches and ministries that do this today. Some
ministries and individuals expect certainpeople to help them financially and
are disappointed when they don’t, forgetting that everyone has the right to do
what they want with their own money. Jesus tells a parable about some people
working in a vineyard that were expecting the owner to give them more than
others, but the owner rightly answered,
Is it againstthe law for me to do what I want with my money? Matthew 20:15
NLT
God always provides, and even though I support God’s work faithfully, it was
doing quite well before I came along and will continue to thrive after I am

gone. God doesn’tneed my money. I need to express my thankfulness to God
for His love, and systematic giving is one way I do so. Notice what Paul says,
You must eachdecide in your heart how much to give. And don’t give
reluctantly or in response to pressure. “ForGod loves a personwho gives
cheerfully.” 2 Corinthians 9:6 NLT
I see three important things here.
1. You must decide how much you are going to give. This goes fortithe as well.
Yes it is 10%, but some say you should tithe on your gross, others saynet. Of
course if you own a business you tithe on your profit, and only you would
know what that is. For example, when I am studying with someone about
tithes and offerings, I ask them, if your neighbor pays you $50.00 to mow their
lawn, and you spent $5.00 on gas then how much did you make? You made
$45.00, so you would tithe on the $45.00. (See Deuteronomy14:22.)Bottom
line is that Paul says you must decide in your heart. Be honest. I have my own
convictions about tithing on the gross but I have no business telling you what
to do and neither does anyone else. Paulsays decide in your heart, that is,
follow your consciencebasedon what you have read in God’s Word.
2. Paul says don’t give reluctantly or in response to pressure. If you don’t
want to give, then don’t! God doesn’t need your money. The church and
various ministries will survive and thrive without it. But your spirit will
whither and die unless you give!
3. Paul says “Godloves a cheerful giver” and so He wants us to give
cheerfully. Giving is worship, and the Psalmistsays enter His gates with
praise and thanksgiving. Giving otherwise is not worship. God wants us to
give where we cangive cheerfully and what we can give cheerfully.
In one of my first districts as a Bible WorkerI was looking for a place to live.
At prayer meeting one night a family told me in front of everyone that they
owned a place where I could stay for free. They said in front of everyone, that
they were pleasedto have me do Bible work for the church and stay at their
place at no charge. WhenI got to where I was staying that night, they called
me privately, to tell me they actually did want some rent. What they wanted

the church to hear was different from what they were actually willing to do.
That’s where the problem begins. In Acts 5 when Ananias and his wife sold
their land, the problem was not that they did not give all the money to the
church. The problems is they saidthey were giving all while they were not.
He brought part of the money to the apostles, claiming it was the full amount.
Acts 5:2 NLT
The problem is that He was lying, saying he was giving it all while he was
holding some back. Are we lying when we claim to be returning an honest
tithe but are holding some back? Peterwent on to say,
“Ananias, why have you let Satanfill your heart? You lied to the Holy Spirit,
and you keptsome of the money for yourself. The property was yours to sell
or not sell, as you wished. And after selling it, the money was also yours to
give away. How could you do a thing like this? You weren’t lying to us but to
God!” Acts 5:3-4 NLT 1
While it was nobody’s business what Ananias did with his money he was still
lying to the Holy Spirit, which was much worse than lying to people! So while
we may say it is nobody’s business what we give, it is God’s business, and we
need to be honestwith Him. God needs us to give where and how we can
cheerfully, and honestly.
By the way, notice Petersays Ananias lied to the Holy Spirit, and then later
said he lied to God, thus demonstrating that the Holy Spirit is God. Some say
that the Spirit is just the “spirit” or attitude of Jesus, but one doesn’t lie to
someone’s attitude. One lies to a person. The Holy Spirit is a Person."
BIBLEHUB RESOURCES
ConspiracyAgainst God
Acts 5:7-11 (or ver. 11)

R.A. Redford
While much in the previous paragraphrepeated here, a new phase of sin
presented. It was distinctly on the ground of deliberate agreementto tempt
the Spirit of the Lord that Sapphira's death was added to that of her husband.
I. The intimate connectionof the proclamation of gospeltruth and mercy with
THE RENOVATION OF HUMAN SOCIETY.
1. Family life, domestic intimacy, the root of public life. We must choose all
our relations with the light of God in Christ.
2. The conspiracyof Ananias and Sapphira was a blow at the work of the
Spirit in raising up a new spiritual life on the basis of self-sacrifice and
absolute truthfulness.
3. The awful judgment was a proclamation of mercy - Come and hide under
this Divine power and be safe.
II. A marvelous display of THE SPIRIT OF PROPHECYpoured out on the
apostles. The words of Peteran example:
1. Of the Spirit of truth and grace in him; he proceededwith the utmost care,
publicity, tenderness, pity. The wife had the opportunity of repentance, while
the appealwas made, not on the ground of terror, for she knew nothing, but
on the ground of simple truth - Tellme the truth.
2. Of the spirit of discernment and, in the Name of the Lord, of prediction.
Had not Peterunder supernatural impulse foreseenthe death of the woman,
he would not have dared to utter such words. As it was, it was a responsibility
which none but an inspired man would have assumed. Such a fact speaks
volumes on the supernatural state of the Church at that time.
III. A GRACIOUS APPLICATION of extraordinary facts.
1. To the Church itself. The solemnization of fellowship. God thus said," Take
heed how you join my people." The ethical setin the light of the spiritual. "Be
ye holy." The sins of falsehood, presumption, avarice, self-confidence, set
forth. The Divine kingdom clearly revealed. If God is so near, and yet to all

who trust in Christ near to bless, how glorious this time! What is he not
doing? and how little need we fear the world's opposition when he can strike
dead our enemies? "Standstill and see the salvation." Compare the Israelites
looking back on Pharaoh's host and forward to the promised land.
2. To the world. "All that heard these things." Such facts preached, loudly
and widely, where the preacher's voice did not reach. We must remember that
grace and providence go hand-in-hand. Fallow ground broken up by the
ploughshare of terrible events and warning dispensations. "Judgmentbegins
at the house of God; what shall the end be," etc.? Yet the "fearwas a fear
mingled with the light of hope;" for these deaths pointed to the way of life.
The Church was the more conspicuouslyrevealedas a refuge openedby God
for all. So in the terrible times of human history religion has gone forth with
specialpower. What messagehas philosophy at such times? Where are the
rationalists and the doubters in the greatcrises of the world? Press home the
facts upon those who tempt the Spirit of the Lord by untruthfulness, rebellion,
indifference, worldliness. - R.
Plain language
H. W. Beecher.
I think that one of the master incantations, one of the most signaldeceits,
which we practise upon ourselves, comes fromthe use of language. There are
words that we learn in childhood which we abandon when we come to
manhood. Generally speaking, ourfireside words are old Saxonwords —
short, knotty, tough, and imbued with moral and affectionalmeanings;but as
we grow older these words are too rude and plain for our use, and so we get
Latin terms and periphrases by which to express many of our thoughts. When
we talk about ourselves we almostinvariably use Latin words, and when we
talk about our neighbours we use Saxonwords. And one of the best things a
man can do, I think, is to examine himself in the Saxontongue. If a man tells
that which is contrary to the truth let him not say, "I equivocate";let him say,

"I lie." Lie! why, it brings the judgment day right home to a man's thought.
Men do not like it, but it is exactly the thing that will most effectually touch
the moral sense;and the more the moral sense is touched the better. If a man
has departed from rectitude in his dealings with another, let him not say, "I
took advantage," whichis a roundabout long sentence:let him say, "I
cheated." Thatis a very direct word. It springs straight to the conscience, as
the arrow flies whizzing from the bow to the centre of the mark. Does it grate
harshly on your ear? Nevertheless,it is better that you should employ it; and
you should come to this determination: "I will call things that I detect in my
conduct by those clear-faced, rough-tonguedwords that my enemies would
use if they wantedto sting me to the quick."
(H. W. Beecher.)
The sin in the purpose more than in the act
It is said by sceptics thatSt. Peter's question to Sapphira, "Tellme whether ye
sold the land for so much?" was a temptation to the sin of falsehood;but it is
plain, from the story in the fifth chapter of the Acts, that Sapphira had
committed herselfto a fraudulent undertaking. The sin had been already
committed when she adopted her sinful purpose. Peter's question was only to
make the secretpurpose known. It is an abuse of language to speak of
tempting one to do what he has committed himself to do, We do not tempt a
shopkeeperwhenwe propose to buy what he wishes to sell. No more did Peter
tempt Sapphira to become a liar. She was a liar before his question, quite as
much as after her answer. The ethical principle is that it is the purpose, not
the act, which constitutes the essentialsin.
The sin of Sapphira greaterthan that of Ananias
Rieger.
1. She had longer time for consideration.

2. Peter, by a yet more pointed question, gave her a much better opportunity
for reflection, and for giving glory to God.
3. She answeredstill more shamelessly.
4. And is, therefore, obliged to listen more fully to her sentence, andto hear
what has happened to her husband.
(Rieger.)
The perversion of the marriage bond
K. Gerok.
In families where marriage is nothing more than —
1. A fellowshipof goods and a business transactionto become rich insteadof a
union of hearts in the Lord; or,
2. A union to the service of the world, the flesh, and the devil, insteadof a
pious resolution. "I and my house will serve the Lord." And,
3. A walking togetherto hell, it may be to a hell on earth, or to eternal
perdition, instead of the married pair being helpers of one another's joys and
blessedness, andstriving how the one might bring the other to heaven. "How
is it that ye have agreedtogether?" — a serious question to every married
pair.
(K. Gerok.)
Then she fell down straightwayat his feet and gave up the ghost.
Deathby the visitation of God
C. S. Robinson, D. D.
It would not be difficult to find some instances ofdirect and swift punishment
even in modern times. In the old town of Devizes the tourist is led up to see an

interesting inscription in the public market-place. It reads thus: "The mayor
and corporationof Devizes avail themselves of the stability of this building to
transmit to future times the recordof an awful event which occurredin this
market-place in the year 1753;hoping that such a record may serve as a
salutary warning againstthe danger of impiously invoking the Divine
vengeance, orof calling on the holy name of God to concealthe devices of
falsehoodand fraud. On Thursday, the 25th of January, 1753, Ruth Pierce, of
Pottera, in this county, agreedwith three other womento buy a sack of wheat
in the market, eachpaying her due proportion towards the same. One of these
women, in collecting the severalquotas of money, discovereda deficiency, and
demanded of Ruth Pierce the sum which was wanting to make goodthe
amount. Ruth Pierce protestedthat she had paid her share, and said she
wished she might drop down dead if she had not. She rashly repeatedthis
awful wish, when, to the consternationofthe surrounding multitude, she
instantly fell down and expired, having the money concealedin her hand."
(C. S. Robinson, D. D.)
STUDYLIGHT.ORG RESOURCES
Verse-by-Verse Bible Commentary
Acts 5:9
Acts 5:8
Acts 5
Acts 5:10

Then Petersaid to her, "Why is it that you have agreedtogetherto put the
Spirit of the Lord to the test? Behold, the feet of those who have buried your
husband are at the door, and they will carry you out as well."
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Adam Clarke Commentary
To tempt the Spirit of the Lord? - So the Holy Ghost, God, and the Spirit of
the Lord, are the same person.
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These files are public domain.
Bibliography
Clarke, Adam. "Commentary on Acts 5:9". "The Adam Clarke
Commentary". https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/acc/acts-
5.html. 1832.
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Albert Barnes'Notes onthe Whole Bible

Agreed together - Conspired, or laid a plan. From this it seems that Sapphira
was as guilty as her husband,
To tempt - To try; to endeavorto impose on, or to deceive;that is, to actas if
the Spirit of the Lord could not detectthe crime. They did this by trying to see
whether the Spirit of God could detect hypocrisy.
At the door - Are near at hand. They had not yet returned. The dead were
buried without the walls of cities; and the space of three hours, it seems, had
elapsedbefore they returned from the burial.
Shall carry thee out - This passageshowsthat it was by divine interposition or
judgment that their lives were taken. The judgment was in immediate
connectionwith the crime, and was designedas an expressionof the divine
displeasure.
If it be askedhere “why” Ananias and Sapphira were punished in this severe
and awful manner, an answermay be found in the following considerations:
(1) This was an atrocious crime - a deep and dreadful act of iniquity. It was
committed knowingly, and without excuse, Acts 5:4. It was important that
sudden and exemplary punishment should follow it, because the societyof
Christians was just then organized, and it was designedthat it should be a
“pure” society, and should be regardedas a body of holy men. Much
depended on making an “impression” on the people that sin could not be
allowedin this new community, but would be detectedand punished.
(2) God has often, in a most solemn manner, shown his abhorrence of
hypocrisy and insincerity. By awful declarations and fearful judgments he has
declaredhis displeasure at it. In a particular manner, no small part of the
preaching of the Saviour was employed in detecting the hypocrisy of the
scribes and Pharisees, anddenouncing heavy judgments on them. See Mark
12:15;Luke 12:1; 1 Timothy 4:2; Job8:13; Job13:16; Job15:34; Job 20:5;
Job 36:13;Matthew 7:5; Luke 11:44. In the very beginning of the Christian
church it was important, by a decided and awful act, to impress upon the
church and the world the danger and guilt of hypocrisy. Well did the Saviour
know that it would be one of the most insidious and deadly foes to the purity

of the church; and at its very “threshold,” therefore, he setup this solemn
warning to guard it, and laid the bodies of Ananias and Sapphira in the path
of every hypocrite that would enter the church. If they enter and are
destroyed, they cannot plead that they were not fully warned. If they practice
iniquity “in” the church, they cannotplead ignorance ofthe fact that God
intends to detectand punish them.
(3) the apostles were just then establishing their authority. They claimed to be
under the influence of inspiration. To establish that, it was necessaryto show
that they could know the views and motives of those who became connected
with the church. If easilyimposed on, it would go far to destroy their
authority and their claim to infallibility. If they showedthat they could detect
hypocrisy, even where most artfully concealed, it would establishthe divine
authority of their message. At the “commencement” oftheir work, therefore,
they gave this decisive and most awful proof that they were under the
guidance of an infallible Teacher.
(4) this case does not stand alone in the New Testament. It is clear from other
instances that the apostles hadthe powerof punishing sinners, and that a
violation of the commands of Christ was attendedby sudden and fearful
judgments. See 1 Corinthians 11:30, and the case of Elymas the sorcererin
Acts 13:8-11.
(5) neither does this event stand alone in the history of the world. Acts of
judgment sometimes occuras sudden and decided, in the providence of God,
as in this case. The profane man, the drunkard, the profligate offender is
sometimes suddenly strickendown, as in this instance. Caseshave not been
uncommon where the blasphemer has been smitten in death with the curse on
his lips; and God often thus comes forth in judgment to slaythe wicked, and
to show that there is a God that reigns in the earth. This narrative cannotbe
objectedto as improbable until “all” such casesare disposedof, nor can this
infliction be regardedas unjust until all the instances where people die by
remorse of conscience, orby the direct judgment of heaven, are “proved” to
be unjust also.
In view of this narrative, we may remark:

(1) That Godsearches the heart, and knows the purposes of the soul. Compare
Psalm1:1-6. 10. Their “property,” as well as their bodies and their spirits,
they have devoted to him, and they profess to desire to employ it as “he” shall
direct and please. And yet, is it not clearthat the sin of Ananias has not ceased
in the church? How many professing Christians there are who give “nothing”
really to God; who contribute nothing for the poor and needy; who devote
nothing, or next to nothing, to any purposes of benevolence;who would
employ “million” for their own gratification, and their families, “but not a
cent for tribute” to God. The case ofAnanias is, to all such, a case ofmost
fearful warning. And on no point should Christians more faithfully examine
themselves than in regard to the professeddevotion of their “property” to
God. If God punished this sin in the beginning of the Christian church, he will
do it still in its progress;and in nothing have professedChristians more to
fear his wrath than on this very subject.
(7) sinners should fear and tremble before God. He holds their breath in his
hands. He cancut them down in an instant. The bold blasphemer, the unjust
man, the liar, the scoffer, he candestroy in a moment, and sink them in all the
woes ofhell. Norhave they any security that he will not do it. The profane
man has no evidence that he will live to finish the curse which he has begun;
nor the drunkard that he will againbecome sober;nor the seducerthat God
will not arrest him in his act of wickednessand send him down to hell! The
sinner walks over the grave, and over hell! In an instant he may die, and be
summoned to the judgment-seatof God! How awful it is to sin in a world like
this; and how fearful the doom which “must” soonovertake the ungodly!
Copyright Statement
Bibliography

Barnes, Albert. "Commentaryon Acts 5:9". "Barnes'Notes onthe New
Testament". https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/bnb/acts-5.html.
1870.
Coffman's Commentaries on the Bible
But Petersaid unto her, How is it that ye have agreedtogetherto try the
Spirit of the Lord? behold, the feet of them that have buried thy husband are
at the door, and they shall carry thee out.
Peterknew that the same penalty of death which befell Ananias would also
fall upon Sapphira; and the timing of the young men's return from the burial
of Ananias further confirmed Peter's certaintyof what would ensue.
Try the Spirit of the Lord ... It is significantthat three different expressions
appear in this narrative as being synonymous:
"Lie to the Holy Spirit" ... Acts 5:3.
"Lied not unto men, but unto God" ... Acts 5:4.
"Try the Spirit of the Lord" ... Acts 5:9.SIZE>
Copyright Statement
James Burton Coffman Commentaries reproduced by permission of Abilene
Christian University Press, Abilene, Texas, USA. All other rights reserved.
Bibliography
Coffman, James Burton. "Commentary on Acts 5:9". "Coffman
Commentaries on the Old and New Testament".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/bcc/acts-5.html. Abilene
Christian University Press, Abilene, Texas, USA. 1983-1999.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible
Then Petersaid unto her, how is it that ye have agreedtogether,.... For
husband and wife to agree togetherin what is good, in things civil, honest, and
lawful, and in religious matters, is very commendable; but to agree in a fraud,
in a lie, is very dreadful:
to tempt the Spirit of the Lord; to try whether the apostles had the Spirit of
the Lord, or not; and whether the Spirit of the Lord that was in them was
omniscient and omnipotent, would take any notice of it, and inflict
punishment for it:
behold, the feet of them which have buried thy husband are at the door; which
Peterknew either by hearing the sound of their feet, as Ahijah the prophet
heard the sound of the feet of Jeroboam's wife, as she came in at the door, 1
Kings 14:6 or by the same spirit as Elisha knew that Gehaziran after
Naaman, and receivedmoney and garments from him, 2 Kings 5:26 and shall
carry thee out; of this house dead, and bury thee, as they have thy husband.
Copyright Statement
The New John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible Modernisedand adapted
for the computer by Larry Pierce of Online Bible. All Rightes Reserved,
Larry Pierce, Winterbourne, Ontario.
A printed copy of this work can be ordered from: The Baptist Standard
Bearer, 1 Iron Oaks Dr, Paris, AR, 72855
Bibliography
Gill, John. "Commentary on Acts 5:9". "The New John Gill Exposition of the
Entire Bible". https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/geb/acts-
5.html. 1999.

Geneva Study Bible
Then Petersaid unto her, How is it that ye have agreedtogetherto e tempt the
Spirit of the Lord? behold, the feet of them which have buried thy husband
[are] at the f door, and shall carry thee out.
(e) Look how often men do things with an evil conscience;and so they
pronounce sentence againstthemselves,and as much as in them lies, they
provoke God to anger, as they do this on purpose, in order to test whether he
is just and almighty or not.
(f) Are at hand.
Copyright Statement
Text Courtesyof BibleSupport.com. Used by Permission.
Bibliography
Beza, Theodore. "Commentaryon Acts 5:9". "The 1599 Geneva Study
Bible". https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/gsb/acts-5.html. 1599-
1645.
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
How is it that ye have agreedtogether — (See on Acts 5:2).
to tempt the Spirit — try whether they could escape detectionby that
omniscient Spirit of whose supernatural presence with the apostles they had
had such full evidence.
feet of them that buried thy husband are at the door — How awfully graphic!

Copyright Statement
These files are a derivative of an electronic edition prepared from text
scannedby Woodside Bible Fellowship.
This expanded edition of the Jameison-Faussett-BrownCommentary is in the
public domain and may be freely used and distributed.
Bibliography
Jamieson, Robert, D.D.;Fausset,A. R.; Brown, David. "Commentary on Acts
5:9". "CommentaryCritical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/jfb/acts-5.html. 1871-8.
Robertson's WordPictures in the New Testament
Ye have agreedtogether (συνεπωνητη υμιν — sunephōnēthē humin). First
aoristpassive indicative of συμπωνεω — sumphōneō (to voice together,
symphony), impersonalwith dative; It was agreedtogetherby you (or for
you). “Your souls were allured togetherrespecting this deceit” (Vincent).
To tempt the Spirit of the Lord (πειρασαι το πνευμα κυριου — peirasaito
pneuma kuriou). Like “Thoushalt not tempt the Lord thy God.” It was close
to the unpardonable sin which was attributing the manifest work of the Holy
Spirit to Beelzebub.
The feet(οι ποδες — hoi podes). Graphic picture by Peteras he heard the
steps of the young men at the door.
Copyright Statement

The Robertson's WordPictures of the New Testament. Copyright �
Broadman Press 1932,33,Renewal1960. All rights reserved. Used by
permission of Broadman Press (Southern BaptistSunday SchoolBoard)
Bibliography
Robertson, A.T. "Commentary on Acts 5:9". "Robertson's WordPictures of
the New Testament".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/rwp/acts-5.html. Broadman
Press 1932,33. Renewal1960.
Vincent's Word Studies
Ye have agreedtogether( συνεφωνήθη ὑμῖν )
The verb is passive. Lit., was it agreedby you. The figure in the word is that of
concordof sounds. Your souls were attuned to eachother respecting this
deceit. See on music, Luke 15:25.
To tempt ( πειράσαι )
To put it to the proof whether the Holy Spirit, ruling in the apostles, couldbe
deceived. See on Acts 5:3.
The feet
Graphic. The steps of the young men returning from the burial are heard at
the door.
Copyright Statement
The text of this work is public domain.
Bibliography
Vincent, Marvin R. DD. "Commentaryon Acts 5:9". "Vincent's Word
Studies in the New Testament".

https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/vnt/acts-5.html. Charles
Schribner's Sons. New York, USA. 1887.
Calvin's Commentary on the Bible
9.To tempt the Spirit. He uttereth the same thing in other words which he had
said before; to wit, that they did mock God unreverently and contemptibly.
But he said that they tempted the Spirit, because they had cunningly packed
their fraud, as if the Spirit of God were not the knowerof the hearts. For it
was a point of too greatcarelessness, seeingthe one made the other privy to
their wickedness, to make their match betweenthemselves, having, as it were,
excluded God. For the Scripture saith, that God is tempted either when his
poweris takenfrom him, or the knowledge ofall things is denied him.
Furthermore, he meaneth that Spirit which governedthe Church by the
apostles. Forwhen Christ saith, When the Spirit cometh, he shall judge the
world, he noteth no other kind of authority than that which he exercisethby
the ministry of the Church.
Copyright Statement
Bibliography
Calvin, John. "Commentary on Acts 5:9". "Calvin's Commentary on the
Bible". https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/cal/acts-5.html. 1840-
57.
John Trapp Complete Commentary

9 Then Petersaid unto her, How is it that ye have agreedtogetherto tempt the
are at the door, and shall carry thee out.
Ver. 9. To tempt the Spirit] That is, to make trial of him whether he be
omniscient and able to detectand punish your hypocrisy. No man is a gross
hypocrite, but he is first an atheist.
Copyright Statement
Bibliography
Trapp, John. "Commentary on Acts 5:9". John Trapp Complete
Commentary. https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/jtc/acts-5.html.
1865-1868.
Greek TestamentCriticalExegeticalCommentary
9.] To try the omniscience of the Spirit then visibly dwelling in the Apostles
and the church, was, in the highest sense, to tempt the Spirit of God. It was a
saying in their hearts ‘There is no Holy Spirit:’ and certainly approachedvery
closelyto a sin againstthe Holy Ghost. Petercharacterizes the sin more
solemnly this secondtime, because by the wife’s answerit was now proved to
be no individual lie of a bad and covetous man, but a preconcertedscheme to
deceive God.
οἱ πόδες] Not that Peter heard (Olsh.) the tread of the young men outside
(they were probably barefooted), but it is an expressioncommon in the
poeticalor lively description of the Hebrews, and indeed of all nations (see

Isaiah52:7; Nahum 1:15; Romans 10:15;Eurip. Hippol. 656;Soph. Œd. Col.
890, al. freq.), making the member whereby the personacts, the actor. I take
the words to mean, that the time was just at hand for their return: see James
5:9. The space ofthree hours was not too long: they would have to carry the
corpse to the burying-ground, at a considerable distance from the city
(Lightf.), and when there, to dig a grave, and bury it.
ἐξοίσουσιν] This word, spokenbefore her death, decisively proves that death
to have been not a result merely of her detection, but a judicial infliction.
Copyright Statement
Bibliography
Alford, Henry. "Commentary on Acts 5:9". Greek TestamentCritical
ExegeticalCommentary.
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/hac/acts-5.html. 1863-1878.
Matthew Poole's EnglishAnnotations on the Holy Bible
To tempt the Spirit of the Lord; this expression, oftempting God, or the Spirit
of God, is not used amongstprofane writers;and this sin is not (at leastto
such a degree)committed amongst pagans and heathens, and is to be dreaded
by all that profess the gospel. As often as men sin againsttheir conscience, and
their consciencescondemnthem in what they do, so often they dare, tempt, or
try, whether God be omniscient, and knows of, or holy hand powerful, and
will punish, their sins; which they find at last to their cost.
The feetof them which have buried thy husband, are at the door; this the
apostle foretells ere it came to pass, the more to confirm his authority and the
truth of the gospel.

Shall carry thee out, after thou art dead, to thy burial.
Copyright Statement
Bibliography
Poole, Matthew, "Commentaryon Acts 5:9". Matthew Poole's English
Annotations on the Holy Bible.
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/mpc/acts-5.html. 1685.
Justin Edwards' Family Bible New Testament
Tempt the Spirit of the Lord; by trying to deceive him.
Carry thee out; bury thee, as they did thy husband.
Copyright Statement
Bibliography
Edwards, Justin. "Commentary on Acts 5:9". "Family Bible New
Testament". https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/fam/acts-5.html.
American Tract Society. 1851.
Cambridge Greek Testamentfor Schools andColleges

9. τί ὅτι. This form, which occurs also in Acts 5:4, is to be explained by the
ellipsis of ἐστὶ. ‘Why is it that …’
πειράσαι, to tempt. They would make trial whether the Spirit of the Lord
would make their deceptionknown. Nothing could render more manifest their
want of faith, their unfitness to be members of the society, than such an
attempt.
οἱ πόδες. The footsteps ofthe young men as they returned were probably now
audible without.
καὶ ἐξοίσουσίν σε, and they shall carry thee out, i.e. to burial likewise.St
Peter, as before, was prompted by the Holy Ghostin what he said, and was
enabled to predict the punishment of Sapphira for her persistent dissembling.
We are not told that he knew beforehand what would befal Ananias, but as
the Spirit shewedhim what was to come on the wife we may perhaps conclude
that he knew what the fate of the husband would be also.
Copyright Statement
Bibliography
"Commentary on Acts 5:9". "Cambridge Greek Testamentfor Schools and
Colleges".https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/cgt/acts-5.html.
1896.
PeterPett's Commentary on the Bible
‘But Petersaid to her, “How is it that you have agreedtogetherto try the
Spirit of the Lord? Behold, the feetof those who have buried your husband
are at the door, and they will carry you out.” ’

Then Peterchallengedher as to how she and her husband could have thought
of testing the Spirit of the Lord out in this way, and informed her that those
who had just buried her husband were at the door, and would carry her out
as well. Once againthe Spirit of the Lord is spokenof as a person.
We must not see Peteras the one who passes the judgment. He simply passes
on God’s judgment. What happened was not Peter’s doing, it was God’s, a
sacredif awful example, given as a warning to all.
‘You have agreedtogetherto try the Spirit of the Lord.’ The key Old
Testamenttexts which deal with putting God to the test are Exodus 15:25;
Exodus 16:4; Exodus 17:2 and Deuteronomy 16:6. Significantly they all deal
with times when there was a need to satisfyphysical requirements, and all
refer to the fact that they were not prepared to trust God. That was why Jesus
refused to put God to the test (Matthew 4:7; Luke 4:12). He did trust God. So
underlying the sin of Ananias and Sapphira was unbelief and an unwillingness
to trust God. And this at a time when such trust was vital to the continuation
of the newborn church.
Copyright Statement
Bibliography
Pett, Peter. "Commentary on Acts 5:9". "PeterPett's Commentary on the
Bible ". https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/pet/acts-5.html. 2013.
Whedon's Commentary on the Bible
9. Agreedtogether—So that it was a deliberate, contrived, mutual sin.

To tempt the Spirit—That is, to try and put to the testthe present Holy Ghost.
The Romanistcommentator to the Rhemish Testamentdeduces a strong case
here for the hierarchy: “To take from the Church, or from the governors
thereof, things dedicatedto their use and the service of God, or to lie unto
God’s ministers, is so judged before God as if the lie were made and the fraud
done to the Holy Ghosthimself.”
Copyright Statement
Bibliography
Whedon, Daniel. "Commentary on Acts 5:9". "Whedon's Commentary on the
Bible". https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/whe/acts-5.html. 1874-
1909.
Schaff's Popular Commentary on the New Testament
Acts 5:9. How is it that ye have agreedtogetherto tempt the Spirit of the
Lord? This evidently in the apostle’s mind is a serious aggravationoftheir
guilt. They had agreedtogetherto do this thing. It was no sin committed
hastily, but one thought overand planned—a preconcertedscheme to deceive
that loving Masterwhom they professedto serve as their God. It was as
though they wishedto testthe omniscience ofthe Holy Spirit. Could, then,
that God who ruled so visibly in His chosenservants be tricked?
Behold, the feet of them which have buried thy husband are at the door.
‘Behold.’ The voice and gesture calling attention to the sound of the entering
in at the door of the room or hall where they were sitting, of the young men
who had just returned, having completed their sadoffice. The apostle’s words
told the whole story to the unhappy woman. In a moment she saw the Spirit
who ruled in that Church could not be mocked. It was all real and true.

Copyright Statement
Bibliography
Schaff, Philip. "Commentary on Acts 5:9". "Schaff's PopularCommentary
on the New Testament".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/scn/acts-5.html. 1879-90.
The Expositor's Greek Testament
Acts 5:9. τὶ ὅτι, Acts 5:4. συνεφωνήθη: only here in the N.T. in the passive, for
its use in the active, Acts 15:15. Blass maintains that this passive usage
συμφωνεῖταί τισι is Latin rather than Greek (convenit inter aliquos), and that
it may have arisenfrom the intercourse betweenGreeks andRomans, see in
loco, and Grammatik des N. G., pp. 112, 235;in LXX only in the active. Cf.
also Viteau, Le Grec du N. T., p. 155 (1893). “The aggravationwas that they
committed the deed as with one soul, just as upon a settledcompact between
them,” Chrys., Hom., xii.; cf. the plural ἀπέδοσθε.— πειράσαι: the rendering
“to tempt,” does not seem to express the idea so well as “to try,” to make trial
whether the Holy Ghostwould discovertheir deception, whether He knew all
things: cf. Acts 15:10, and in LXX, Exodus 17:2; Exodus 17:7, Psalms
77(78):41, 56, etc. (in Revelation2:2 the same verb as here = “try,” A. and
R.V.).— ἰδοὺ, see onActs 1:10. οἱ πόδες, cf. Luke 1:79, Romans 3:15; Romans
10:15. A Hebraistic expression—the whole descriptionis full of dramatic
intensity—the returning steps of the νεώτεροι are heard ἐπὶ τῇ θύρᾳ. But
Alford thinks that they were probably bare-footed, and that the words mean
that the time was just at hand for their return, cf. James 5:9.— ἐξοίσουσίν σε,
see on Acts 5:6.

Copyright Statement
Bibliography
Nicol, W. Robertson, M.A., L.L.D. "Commentary on Acts 5:9". The
Expositor's Greek Testament.
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/egt/acts-5.html. 1897-1910.
Mark Dunagan Commentary on the Bible
Acts 5:9 But Peter{said} unto her, How is it that ye have agreedtogetherto
try the Spirit of the Lord? behold, the feetof them that have buried thy
husband are at the door, and they shall carry thee out.
"TRYTHE SPIRIT OF THE LORD?"-"putthe Spirit of the Lord to the
test" (Wey). 3985. peirazo {pi-rad"-zo}; from 3984;to test (objectively), i.e.
endeavor, scrutinize, entice, discipline: -assay, examine, go about, prove,
tempt(-er), try.
-"To put it to the proof whether the Holy Spirit, ruling in the apostles, could
be deceived" (Vincent p. 468)"thus daringly to put the Holy Ghoston trial,
whether or not he is able to discern the thoughts of your evil hearts." (P.P.
Comm. p. 158)"to see if they could get by without being challengedby the
Spirit." (Reese p. 207)
Point to Note:
If this couple had been asked, "CanGodbe fooled", they probably would
have said no. For they were believers. But they, like some today, do things
without really thinking about what they are doing. Every time we act
hypocritically, we are "trying God", i.e. we are daring Him to act.

"BEHOLD, THE FEET OF THEM THAT HAVE BURIED THY HUSBAND
ARE AT THE DOOR"-possiblyjust returning from finishing the task of
burying her husband.
Copyright Statement
Bibliography
Dunagan, Mark. "Commentary on Acts 5:9". "Mark DunaganCommentaries
on the Bible". https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/dun/acts-
5.html. 1999-2014.
E.W. Bullinger's Companion Bible Notes
unto. Greek. pros. App-104. How = Why.
have agreedtogether= were agreedtogether. Greek. sumphoneo. Here, Acts
15:15, and four times in the Gospels. Compare Engl, "symphony".
Spirit. App-101.
behold. App-133. Figure of speechAsterismos. App-6.
husband. App-123.
at. App-104.
shall = they shall.
Copyright Statement

Bibliography
Bullinger, Ethelbert William. "Commentary on Acts 5:9". "E.W. Bullinger's
Companion bible Notes".
https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/bul/acts-5.html. 1909-1922.
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - Unabridged
Then Petersaid unto her, How is it that ye have agreedtogetherto tempt the
are at the door, and shall carry thee out.
Then Petersaid unto her, How is it that ye have agreedtogether(see the note
at Acts 5:2) to tempt the Spirit of the Lord? - of the Lord Jesus, as the usual
style of this book would incline us to understand "the Lord" here. They thus
virtually agreedto tempt or try the Spirit of the Lord whether they could not
escape detectionby that Omniscient Spirit, of whose supernatural presence
with the apostles theyhad had such abundant evidence.
Behold, the feet of them which have buried thy husband are at the door, and
shall carry thee out. How awfully graphic is this!
Copyright Statement
Bibliography
Jamieson, Robert, D.D.;Fausset,A. R.; Brown, David. "Commentary on Acts
5:9". "CommentaryCritical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible -
Unabridged". https:https://www.studylight.org/commentaries/jfu/acts-5.html.
1871-8.

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers
(9) To tempt the Spirit of the Lord—i.e., to try, or test, whether the Spirit that
dwelt in the Apostles was really a discerner of the secrets ofmen’s hearts. The
“Spirit of the Lord” is probably used in its Old Testamentsense, as the Spirit
of Jehovah. The combination is rare in the New Testament, occurring only in
2 Corinthians 3:17, but is common in the Old, as in Isaiah 61:1 (quoted in
Luke 4:18); 1 Kings 22:24;2 Kings 2:16.
Behold, the feet of them. . . .—In this instance the coming judgment is
foretold, and the announcement tended to work out its own completion. Here,
to all the shame and agony that had fallen on Ananias, there was now added
the bitter thought of her husband’s death as in some sense causedby her,
inasmuch as she might have prevented the crime that led to it. The prophetic
insight given to St. Petertaught him that the messengers, whosefootsteps he
already heard, had another task of a like nature before them."
PRECEPTAUSTIN RESOURCES
ACTS 5:1-11 THE WHOLE CONTEXT
SHARING OF THE SAINTS
VS SINS OF THE SAINTS
Recallthat the Chapter breaks (and versification)are not inspired and here
we encounter another example of a poor chapter break. The fact that this
verse begins with a "but" should have been a clue that this is continuation of
the story begun in Acts 4. In Acts 4 we see Satanuse the Sanhedrin in an
attempt to disrupt the work of the Church. But when he found that outside
persecutiondid not work, but even fanned the flames of prayer and bold
proclamation, he turned to inside perversionof the practice of giving.
External assaulton the apostles failed, so Satansimply shifted his strategyto

internal adulteration of the saints. And while Satanstill uses both external
persecutionand internal perversion, in America the latter strategyis by far
the most common and sadly also the most successful.
As Warren Wiersbe says "We must face the fact that Satan is a cleverfoe. If
he does not succeedas the "devouring lion" (1 Peter5:8+), then he attacks
againas the "deceiving serpent" or an "angeloflight" (2 Cor. 11:3, 13-14).
Satanis both a murderer and a liar (John 8:44), and the church must be
prepared for both attacks. (Bible ExpositionCommentary – Be Dynamic).
But (de) - This striking term of contrastbegs the question, what is Luke
contrasting? To answerthis question we are almost always forcedto examine
the preceding context (context is king for accurate interpretation). In this case
we find Luke's description of Barnabas is the relevant context...
Now Joseph, a Levite of Cyprian birth, who was also calledBarnabas by the
apostles (which translatedmeans Sonof Encouragement), 37 and who owned
a tract of land, sold it and brought the money and laid it at the apostles’feet.
(Acts 4:36-37).
So the clearand dramatic contrastis betweentwo men who are "polar
opposites," the positive example of Barnabas (Son of Encouragement)and the
negative example of Ananias (Jehovah is Gracious). Barnabas lived up to his
name, while Ananias did not live up to his name and died as a result!
Barnabas is an example of sharing of the saints and Ananias and Sapphira an
example of the sins of the saints. We see a stark contrastbetweena man filled
with the Holy Spirit (Barnabas)and a couple filled with the unholy spirit. This
deceptive duo desired the praise accordedBarnabas but were unwilling to pay
the price he paid. Barnabas was guided by his generous spirit, while A&S
were guided by selfish motives.
A T Robertsonsuggestsa reasonfor the actions of Ananias and Sapphira -
The praise of Josephwas too much for Ananias, but he was not willing to turn
over all. He wanted praise for giving all and yet he took care of himself by
keeping some. Thus he started the Ananias Club that gave a new meaning to
his lovely name (God is gracious). (Word Pictures in the New Testament)

A man named Ananias, with his wife Sapphira - Names in Scripture often
convey something about the characterof the person, but in this case, the
names fail to do so. As noted Ananias means "Jehovahis Gracious" or"The
Lord has favored" (cf Hebrew - ; In the Septugaint "Ananias" translates
chananyah = "Lord is gracious" andalso Ananiah [Neh 8:4] = "Lord
protects"). Sapphira means beautiful. Perhaps to others Ananias appeared
gracious and generous, but he would soonfind out that Godwas holy! And
Sapphira may have been beautiful on the exterior, but not on the interior for
she was ugly with sin. Their names were "too good" for them! Constable adds
that "Theirnames proved as ironic as their behavior was hypocritical!"
Warren Wiersbe - George MacDonaldwrote, "Half of the misery in the world
comes from trying to look, insteadof trying to be, what one is not." The name
that Jesus gave to this practice is "hypocrisy," which simply means "wearing
a mask, playing the actor." We must not think that failure to reachour ideals
is hypocrisy, because no believer lives up to all that he or she knows orhas in
the Lord. Hypocrisy is deliberate deception, trying to make people think we
are more spiritual than we really are. (Bible Exposition Commentary – Be
Dynamic).
The greatsin of Ananias and Sapphira (A&S) was hypocrisy, which is a
variation of lying. The hypocrite is a play-actor, pretending to be someone he
is not.
Hypocrisy (Greek hupokrisis)describes a kind of deceitin which persons
pretend to be different from what they really are, and especiallylike A&S that
they are acting from goodmotives when in reality they were motivated by
selfishdesire for man's praise (like Barnabas). Jesus warnedhypocrites, and
in fact severelywarned them (See Mt. 23:13, 14, 15, 23, 25, 27, 28, 29).
Believers must strip off any semblance ofhypocrisy. Hypocrisy is one of the
sins that God hates above all others. A hypocrite has God on his tongue and
the world in his heart.
The word hypocrisy comes from the Greek theaterand referred to the
practice of putting on a mask and playing a part on stage. Itoriginally
conveyedthe idea of playing the playing a part on the stage and describedthe

actor's art. The NT gives hupokrisis only a negative connotationreferring to
hypocrisy, duplicity (the quality of being double - belying of one’s true
intentions by deceptive words or action), insincerity, dissimulation (hiding
under a false appearance;hiding or disguising one's thoughts or feelings -
don't we all do this from time to time?!). The idea is to pretend, to actas
something one is not and so to act deceitfully, pretending to manifest traits
like piety and love. It means to create a public impression that is at odds with
one’s real purposes or motivations, and thus is characterizedby play-acting,
pretense or outward show. It means to give an impression of having certain
purposes or motivations, while in reality having quite different ones.
Wuest adds that the Greek word "is made up of hupo under, and krinō “to
judge” and referred originally to “one who judged from under the coverof a
mask,” thus, assuming an identity and a characterwhich he was not. This
person was the actoron the Greek stage, one who took the part of another.
The Pharisees were religious actors, so to speak, in that they pretended to be
on the outside, what they were not on the inside… Our word hypocrite to the
act of concealing wrong feelings orcharacterunder the pretence of better
ones. The true identity of the person is coveredup. It refers to acts of
impersonation or deception. Christianity requires that believers should be
open and above-board. They should be themselves. Their lives should be like
an open book, easily read."
Steven Cole - Hypocrisy is always motivated by self-love. We want to impress
others, to make them think that we are something that we know in our hearts
we are not.
Kent Hughes - Dante portrayed hypocrites in the Eighth Circle of Hell
wearing gilded capes that were beautiful to the eye but were actually made of
lead, producing the burdened cry, “O wearymantle of eternity.” Beautiful as
hypocrites may be in appearance, they carry debilitating weightthroughout
life, suppressing the life of the church....PeterconfrontedAnanias and
Sapphira about their heart deception. Their story is a callto confront
ourselves. Do I practice spiritual deceit? Do I attempt to make others think I
am more committed than I am? These are serious questions. In the larger
picture, it is a matter of life and death—maybe not our own, but someone

else’s—perhaps ourchildren, our grandchildren, our relatives, our neighbors.
PossiblyGod is calling us to confront another believer, as Peterdid. Nathan
did the same to King David: “You are the man!” (2 Samuel 12:7). We must
help eachother remain honestand obedient to God....weshould take an
honest look at our lives regarding deceit. Are we truthful people? Do we
engage in exaggerationand coloring? Are we promoting spiritual deception
about our own commitments. Are we trying outwardly or subtly to make
ourselves appearto be what we are not? Perhaps, to acquire objectivity, it
would be helpful to seek the perspective of another person—your spouse, if
you are married, or perhaps a trusted, honestfriend. (Preaching the Word -
Acts)
Samuel Johnsonwrote "Accustomyour children constantly to this [the telling
of the truth]; if a thing happened at one window, and they, when relating it,
say that it happened at another, do not let it pass, but instantly check them;
you do not know where deviation from truth will end.… It is more from
carelessnessabouttruth than from intentional lying, that there is so much
falsehoodin the world."
A hypocrite has God on his tongue and the world in his heart.
A hypocrite is a personwho isn't himself on Sunday.
Hypocrites are like pictures on canvas, they show fairestat farthest.
A cleanglove often hides a dirty hand.
A hypocrite is a man who lets his light so shine before men that they can't tell
what is going on behind!
When reputation becomes more important than character, we have become
hypocrites.
Hypocrites are not those who live worse than they profess-that’s all of us.
Hypocrites are those who cannot see, or are not honestabout the gap between
their talk and their walk. Jerry Bridges
A hypocrite is not a person who fails to reachhis desiredspiritual goals,
because allof us fail in one way or another. A hypocrite is a personwho

doesn’t even try to reach any goals, but he makes people think that he has. His
professionand his practice never meet. WarrenWiersbe
If we are living in sin (“walking in darkness”), thenour lives will contradict
what our lips are saying, making us hypocrites. Warren Wiersbe
The tragedy of hypocrisy is not only that God sends judgment, but that
hypocrisy brings its own judgment. It destroys character;and when character
is gone, when the salthas lost its flavor (see Matt. 5:13), what does a person
have left? Warren Wiersbe
RelatedResources:
See multiple Quotes, Illustrations, Devotionals onHypocrisy-Hypocrites
What does the Bible say about hypocrisy?
Why did God kill Ananias and Sapphira for lying?
Why are all Christians hypocrites? Are all Christians hypocrites?
Matthew 6:1 Beware ofHypocrisy - John MacArthur
BridgewayBible Dictionary Hypocrisy
BakerEvangelicalDictionaryHypocrisy
Charles Buck Dictionary Hypocrisy
Spurgeon's Illustration CollectionHypocrisy Hypocrisy (2) Hypocrisy (2)
Holman Bible Dictionary Hypocrisy
Hastings'Dictionary of the NT Hypocrisy Hypocrisy
1911 Encyclopedia Britannica Hypocrisy
McClintock and Strong's Bible Encyclopedia Hypocrisy
The JewishEncyclopedia Hypocrisy
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia Hypocrisy

H A Ironside once said "I am a preacherof the Word-a glorious privilege-and
if I have prayed once I have prayed a thousand times and said, 'Don't let me
be able to preach unless in the power of the Holy Ghost.'I would rather be
struck dumb than pretend it is in the powerof the Spirit if it isn't; and yet it is
so easyto pretend. It is so easyto come before men and take the place of an
ambassadorfor God, and still want people to praise the preacherinstead of
giving the messageonly for the Lord Jesus."
Sold a piece of property - Recallfrom the previous chapter that members of
the Body would sell property to provide support for those in need with the
wonderful result that "there was a not a needy person among them." (Acts
4:34+). This practice was not mandatory, but reflecteda freewill offering by
those who were led to sellproperty.
James Anderson makes an interesting comment - We must not think that the
first church was perfect;it was composedof humans like ourselves with all
their failings, and they had a lot to learn from the apostles. Two successive
chapters tell of problems in the church, and both were causedby money (Acts
6:1-2). (What the Bible teaches – Acts)
Piece ofproperty (2933)(ktema from ktaomai= to possess,obtain) means any
kind of acquired property or possessions. Thatwhich is ownedor possessed.
Something that a personhas come into the possessionof, usually property
such as lands or houses.
In the Septuagint of Pr 12:27 ktema describes "the precious possessionofa
man" as "diligence." Ktema is used in the Lxx to translate vineyard (Pr 31:16,
Hos 2:15).
Ktema - 4x in 4v - piece of property(1), property(3). - Matt. 19:22;Mk. 10:22;
Acts 2:45; Acts 5:1.
There are 7 uses in the Septuagint - Job 20:29; Job27:13; Prov. 12:27; Prov.
23:10;Prov. 31:16; Hos. 2:15; Joel1:11
Satan’s Devices

GeneralGeorge Pattonof World War II fame was seldom at a loss for words.
What he saidduring a battle in North Africa may be legend, but it typifies the
man. Patton’s troops and tanks were engagedin a successfulcounterattackof
German forces under GeneralErwin Rommel. Patton is reported to have
shouted in the thick of the battle, “I read your book, Rommel! I read your
book!” And that he did. In Rommel’s book Infantry Attacks, the famed
“DesertFox” carefullydetailed his military strategy. And Patton, having read
it and knowing what to expect, planned his moves accordingly. Satanhas
authored no book. God, however, has exposedour enemy’s tactics in His Holy
Word. Here are but a few of his subtle strategies:Quote Scripture to lead us
astray(Matt. 4:6). Afflict the body (2 Cor. 12:7). Pluck awaythe seedof the
Word (Mark 4:15). Tempt by impure thoughts (1 Cor. 7:5). Tempt by pride (1
Tim. 3:6). Hinder through circumstances (1 Thess. 2:18). Seduce by pleasure
(1 Tim. 5:11, 15). Severelybuffet in a crisis (Luke 22:31). Tempt to hypocrisy
and lying (Acts 5:3). The name Satan means adversary. He is also described
as “the accuserofour brethren” (Rev. 12:10) and “a murderer from the
beginning” and a liar (John 8:44). Study these passagesand plan your
defense. Be always on the alert. Submit to God and resistthe devil. Victory
can be yours, but first you must know your enemy so you can recognize his
strategy. D.J.D.,Our Daily Bread,
Steven Cole - A 12-year-oldboy was waiting for his first orthodontist
appointment and was a bit nervous. Apparently he wanted to impress the
dentist. On the patient questionnaire, in the space marked“Hobbies,” he had
written, “Swimming and flossing” (Reader’s Digest[8/94], p. 112). That’s a
humorous example of how we’re all prone to hypocrisy. But spiritual
hypocrisy is not humorous; it’s a dangerous and deadly sin. The hypocrisy of
professing Christians has served as an excuse for many to disregardthe
claims of Christ, saying, “The church is full of hypocrites.” The hypocrisy of
Christian leaders has causedmany believers to stumble. While Jesus was
tender with many notorious sinners, He used scathing language to denounce
those guilty of religious hypocrisy. The story of Ananias and Sapphira warns
us of the danger of the sin of hypocrisy. It was literally deadly for this couple.
Someone has said that if God dealt with all hypocrites in the church as He

dealt with this couple, our churches would become morgues! (Acts 4-36-5-11
The DeadlySin of Hypocrisy)
Kent Hughes on Acts 5:1-11 - This is an important but for some reason
neglectedtext. Spurgeonin his sixty volumes of the MetropolitanTabernacle
Pulpit anthology Twenty Centuries of GreatPreaching has no sermon on this
text. Yet, it remains an immensely important passage ofScripture. Dr.
Barnhouse, on the basis of this text, would never let his congregationsing the
third stanza of “At Calvary:” “Now I have giv’n to Jesus everything; now I
gladly own him as my King.” “You see,” he said, “if God actedin the same
way today that he did in the fifth chapter of Acts, you’d have to have a
morgue in the basementof every church and a mortician on the pastoral
staff.” The truth is, we would not have a pastoralstaff either! (Preaching the
Word - Acts)
J Vernon McGee -It is obvious that they were imitating Barnabas. Theysaw
that he got a certainamount of publicity, and they thought it would be nice if
they could get that kind of publicity, too. They wanted it.
I have found that there are people who will give in order to be noticed. I recall
a meeting with businessmenin Pasadena whenI was a pastorthere. We were
planning to start a youth organization, and we were aslang these men to give
donations for the founding of this movement. It was decided that donations
would not be made public.
I was informed that one of these men would contribute very little if he were
not given the opportunity to speak out publicly to let everybody know how
much he was giving. It is quite interesting that he contributed a small amount.
After the meeting he confided in one of the men that he had intended to give
about ten times that amount, but he had expectedto be able to stand up or at
leastraise his hand to indicate how much he had given. You see)pride is still
in human nature today. That was the condition of Ananias and Sapphira....I
don’t like to have people sing the song that talks about putting “my all” on the

altar. Unfortunately, that makes liars out of the people who are singing. We
need to be very carefulabout the songs we sing. A vow to the Lord should
never be made lightly.
Illustration: A rather pompous-looking deaconwas endeavoring to impress
upon a class ofboys the importance of living the Christian life. "Why do
people callme a Christian?" the man asked. After a moment's pause, one
youngster said, "Maybe it's because theydon't know you."
Illustration: One blistering hot day when they had guests for dinner, Mother
asked4-yearold Johnny to return thanks. "But I don't know what to say!"
the boy complained. "Oh, just say what you hear me say" his mother replied.
Obediently the boy bowed his head and mumbled, "Oh Lord, why did I invite
these people over on a hot day like this?"
Strategies ofSatanwith Believers
1. Annihilate the church or neutralize its witness from within (Acts 5:1–6).
2. Virulent persecutionfrom without.
3. Smother its witness by according it greatpopularity.
4. Disturb the unity of the church by creating discordand division
5. Subversion of the church through apostasyand heresy (2 Peter2:1–2).
Satan is No Myth, J. O. Sanders,
Acts 5:2 and kept back some of the price for himself, with his wife's full
knowledge, andbringing a portion of it, he laid it at the apostles'feet.
KJV Acts 5:2 And kept back part of the price, his wife also being privy to it,
and brought a certainpart, and laid it at the apostles'feet.

and kept back some of the price for himself Joshua 7:11,12;2 Kings 5:21-25;
Malachi1:14; 3:8,9; John 12:6; 1 Timothy 6:10; 2 Peter 2:14,15
with his wife's full knowledge Acts 5:9
he laid it at the apostles'feetActs 4:34,35,37;Mt 6:2,3; 23:5; Php 2:3
Acts 5 Resources -Multiple Sermons and Commentaries
ANANIAS IN EFFECT WAS
"SOUNDING A TRUMPET"
One is reminded of Jesus'clearwarning in Matthew regarding our attitude
when we give...
“So when you give to the poor, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the
hypocrites (hupokrites) do in the synagoguesand in the streets, so that they
may be honored by men (PROBABLYA KEY MOTIVATOR FOR A&S).
Truly I say to you, they have their reward in full (A&S HAD THE REWARD
FOR ONLY A FEW SECONDSOR MINUTES AT MOST!). “But when you
give to the poor, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing,
(Mt 6:2,3+)
In addressing the hypocritical religious leaders Jesus said
“But they do all their deeds to be noticedby men; for they broaden their
phylacteries and lengthen the tasselsoftheir garments. (Mt 23:5)
This was the problem with Ananias and Sapphira who contrived their
deceptive scheme to be noticedby men! The gave the impression they gave all
the proceeds to the Church.
Rackham- Like Judas, Ananias was covetous;and just as greed of gain lay at
the bottom of most of the sins and failures (of many) in Acts (e.g., the sin of
Simon Magus, the opposition of Elymas, of the Philippian 'masters' and the
Ephesiansilversmiths, the shortcomings ofthe Ephesianconverts and the
injustice of Felix) so Ananias kept back part of the price."

The ultimate root of their sin of greedwas pride, and remember the middle
letter of "prIde" is the "big I!" The praise of Barnabas incited their prIde to
seek similar adulation. Satanwhispered in their ears "You are as spiritual as
Barnabas. Justgive a big offering, but make sure to keepenough for
yourselves." Solomondescribes God's attitude towardpride...
“The fear of the LORD is to hate evil; Pride and arroganceand the evil way
and the perverted mouth, I hate. (Pr 8:13).
Comment - Note that here the "antidote" for pride is to cultivate a
reverential, holy fear of the LORD God. As John said (speaking ofJesus)"He
must increase, but I must decrease."(Jn3:30+)
Warren Wiersbe - DanielDefoe calledpride "the first peer and president of
hell." Indeed, it was pride that transformed Lucifer into Satan(Isa. 14:12-
15+), and it was pride ("Ye shall be as God!") that causedour first parents to
sin (Gen. 3:1-4+). Pride opens the door to every other sin, for once we are
more concernedwith our reputation than our character, there is no end to the
things we will do just to make ourselves "look good" before others. (Bible
Exposition Commentary – Be Dynamic).
And kept back some of the price for himself - This would have been no
problem had they not pretended to give the entire sum from the sale. But
when they pretended to give the apostles the total selling price, they proved
themselves to be hypocrites who were boasting in their gift, even though they
had deceptively withheld some of the sale proceeds. So A&S were not just
lying and deceiving but were in effectrobbing from God!
Ananias and Sapphira clearly did not know (or did not heed) the OT
teachings on giving, for Solomon was very clearwhen he stated
The sacrifice ofthe wickedis an abomination (Heb = toebah;Lxx =
bdelugma) to the LORD, But the prayer of the upright is His delight. (Pr
15:8).
Comment - The word bdelugma gives us vivid picture of God's "opinion"
regarding the offerings of the wicked. Bdelugma is derived from bdelusso
which means to emit a foul odor, or to turn awayfrom someone on accountof

the "stench". It describes a divine loathing or disgust. The root word is bdeo
which means to stink. In sum, sacrificeslike that of Ananias and Sapphira
were foul, and were extremely disgusting and abhorrent to God! This is strong
language but it shows what Godthinks of the horrible sin of hypocrisy!
Kept back (3557)(nosphizo from nósphi = apart, separated)means to setapart
or separate for oneself. In Titus 2:10 it conveys the idea is stealing in small
quantities or practicing petty theft. Nosphizo means to keepback or
misappropriate something for one's self that which should or does belong to
someone else. Nosphizo was found in secularGreek writings in reference to
embezzlement of public treasures. It speaksofsecretlyappropriating and
setting apart for one’s selfthe property of another. In this case, this couple
pretended to give it all to God and His needy people, but it was a lie.
This verb is very interesting and while only used 3 times in the NT (Acts 5:2,3,
Titus 2:10+) it is used one time in the Septuagint. In Joshua 7:1 we read
But the sons of Israel actedunfaithfully in regard to the things under the ban
(a vow or pledge under which property or persons devoted to pagan worship
were destroyed), for Achan, the sonof Carmi, the son of Zabdi, the son of
Zerah, from the tribe of Judah, took some of the things (Lxx = nosphizo)
under the ban, therefore the anger of the LORD burned againstthe sons of
Israel.
Comment - So just as Ananias and Sapphira had made a vow to give all of the
sales proceeds to God, they, like Achan, broke their vow. And nothing like
SIN IN THE CAMP (of CONGREGATION)will sapspiritual powerfrom
God's congregatedpeople, be it an army like Joshua or an "army" like the
Church! Little wonder the church in American lacks spiritual power in a
societygone bonkers!
Keep in mind that Israel had just crossedinto the promised land and defeated
Jericho, which suggestedthey would easilyconquer the pagantribes in the
land God had promised they would possess. And so just as the birth of the
Church in Acts marked God's doing a "new thing," the nation of Israel also
was beginning anew (after 40 years of wilderness wandering), but sin crept
into Israelthrough the covetousnessofone man named Achan. And what was

the impact of this one man's sin on the entire nation? It resulted in a
devastating, unexpected defeatfor Israel
So about three thousand men from the people went up there, but they fled
from the men of Ai. 5 The men of Ai struck down about thirty-six of their
men, and pursued them from the gate as far as Shebarim and struck them
down on the descent, so the hearts of the people melted and became as water.
(Joshua 7:4-5) (Read the full story in Joshua 7:10-26)
F F Bruce - “The story of Ananias is to the Book ofActs what the story of
Achan is to the book of Joshua. In both narratives an actof deceit interrupts
the victorious progress ofthe people of God.”
The sin of one man affectedthe powerof the entire nation. Satan (although his
name is not mentioned in Joshua 7, the event has all the earmarks ofhis
handiwork) had used the covetousnessofone man (Achan) to bring about
defeatof the entire nation. Similarly here in Acts 5 Satan soughtto do the
same with this infant church. But this time God's Spirit thwarted Satan's
attempts to corrupt the Body of Christ and also to give a strong warning to
any who might be tempted to carry out a similar deception.
RelatedResources:
Who was Achan in the Bible?
Why did God judge the sin of Achan so severely?
With his wife's full knowledge -Literally "his wife also knowing it together
with him." She was complicit. They were partners in this deception. They
desire the praise of men for their generosity, without actually being
remarkably generous. We callthat hypocrisy.
Horton sadly nails us all (at leastfrom time to time) with his comment that
"“Once the love of money takes possessionofa person, there is no evil that he
cannot or will not do.” (Acts: A Logion Press Commentary)
I agree with F F Bruce who suggests "There mayindeed be the further
implication that Ananias and Sapphira had vowedto give the whole proceeds
of the sale to God, but then changedtheir mind and handed over only part.”

And bringing a portion of it, he laid it at the apostles'feet - The early church
brought their gifts and laid them at the apostles'feet(Acts 4:35, 36, 5:2). This
is interesting because presumably this would be done in front of the other
believers and would be noticed by them. Todaygiving is done less publicly
and many pastors have no idea who gives what or how much (which I think is
a greatpractice).
Portion is meros which has the basic meaning of a part in contrastto the
whole. In mathematics meros describes fractions (they gave a "faction" ofthe
proceeds). Meros describesthe prodigal sonwho said to his father "Father
give me the share (meros) of the estate that falls to me." (Lk 15:12) In Lk
24:42 the disciples gave the resurrectedJesus "a piece of broiled fish."
Acts 5:3 But Petersaid, "Ananias, why has Satanfilled your heart to lie to the
Holy Spirit and to keepback some of the price of the land?
KJV Acts 5:3 But Petersaid, Ananias, why hath Satanfilled thine heart to lie
to the Holy Ghost, and to keepback part of the price of the land?
why has Satanfilled your heart Ge 3:13-17;1 Kings 22:21,22;1 Chr 21:1-3;
Mt 4:3-11;13:19; Luke 22:3; John 13:2,27;Eph 6:11-16;James 4:7; 1 Peter
5:8; Rev 12:9-11
to lie to the Holy Spirit. Acts 5:9; Job 22:13;Ps 94:7-9;Isa 29:15;Jer 23:24;
Hosea 11:12
to keepback some of the price of the land Nu 30:2; Dt 23:21; Pr 20:25;Eccl
5:4; Ro 2:21,22
Acts 5 Resources -Multiple Sermons and Commentaries
FILLED WITH
AN EVIL SPIRIT
Satanis a great counterfeiterand here seeksto contaminate and corrupt the
church by causing Ananias to pretend to give the entire sum from the sale of
their property. Satanwas behind the hypocritical action and words (lies) of
A&S.

This results in a most dramatic contrastbetweenAnanias and Barnabas, Son
of Encouragement, who Luke later describes as "a goodman, and full of the
Holy Spirit and of faith. And considerable numbers were brought to the
Lord." (Acts 11:24) One man controlledby the Holy Spirit and the other man
controlled by the unholy spirit. One might question whether Ananias and
Sapphira were genuine believers, but most commentators agree that they were
indeed born again(see comment below by MacArthur). How cana couple
whose bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit (cf Ro 8:9-11; 1 Cor 3:16; 6:19),
make room for an evil spirit? John writes "You are from God, little children,
and have overcome them; because greateris He Who is in you (THE SPIRIT
OF JESUS CHRIST)than he who is in the world." (1 John 4:4) So while I
believe that Scripture does not support the premise that a true believercan be
possessedby a demon, it is clearfrom this passagein Acts that a believer can
be controlled by a demonic spirit. I believe that this occurred with Ananias
and Sapphira. They became jealous or envious of Barnabas, but they did not
want to give all their money to God. In order to "look good" before the saints
they pretended to give all their money to God. They may have even initially
vowed to give all the proceeds from their sale to God. We cannot be certain of
what went on in their mind.
MacArthur on whether A&S were genuine believers (I agree with
MacArthur) - It is best to see them as genuine Christians for severalreasons.
First, they were included in the "congregationof those who believed" in Acts
4:32. Second, they were involved with the Holy Spirit, thus indicating a
relationship to Him. Third, if they were not Christians, what lessonabout sin
did this give to teach all the restwho were true believers? Fourth, Satancan
become personallyinvolved with believers (cf. Mt. 16:21-23;Eph 6:12; 1 Pe
5:8-9). Finally, death canbe divine chastening for a believer (1 Cor11:30-32;
1 Jn 5:16). (MacArthur New TestamentCommentary – Acts)
Constable - Rather than allowing the Holy Spirit to fill him (cf. Acts 2:4; 4:8,
31), Ananias had allowedSatanto controlhis heart. Ananias' sin was lying.
He sought to deceive the Christians by trying to gain a reputation for greater
generositythan he deserved. By deceiving the church, Ananias was also trying
to deceive the Holy Spirit who indwelt the church. In attempting to deceive
the Holy Spirit, he was trying to deceive God.

But Petersaid - Another striking contrast. Ananias' offering which should
have been a sweetaroma to God, is discernedby Spirit filled Peterto be an
abomination to God. Petersaw through the lie and the attempt to deceive and
thus he issues this strong rebuke. Can you imagine Ananias' shock at hearing
Peter's words?
Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit - As
discussedabove, Satanclearlyexerted control over this couple. Satanis the
"father of lies" (Jn 8:44), and he shot"fiery missiles" ofthoughts like "keep
some of the money for yourselves" into the heart and mind of A&S. Sadly
when these fiery missiles of temptation came flying in, A&S failed to take up
the shield of faith to repel the tempting thoughts (cf Eph 6:16+). And so while
Satantempted them to sin, A&S carried out the sin againstthe Spirit. They
were fully responsible. Beloved, don't ever use the old cliche "The devil made
me do it!" He may tempt you but there is no Scripture that places the blame
of a believer's sin on Satan!And remember what Oliver Wendell Holmes once
said, "Sin has many tools, but a lie is the handle which fits them all."
We see similar "handiwork" of Satanin the Gospels in the sonof perdition,
Judas Iscariot...
John 13:2; 27 During supper, the devil having alreadyput into the heart of
Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, to betray Him...(13:27) After the morsel,
Satanthen entered into him (OF COURSE HERE JUDAS HAD NO
RESIDENTHOLY SPIRIT SO IN EFFECTWAS DEMON POSSESSED
WHICH IS DIFFERENTTHAN WHAT HAPPENED HERE IN ACTS).
Therefore Jesus saidto him, “What you do, do quickly.”
Luke 22:3+ And Satanentered into Judas who was calledIscariot, belonging
to the number of the twelve.
Satan(4567)(satanas transliteratedfrom Hebrew Satan - see 07854and
Aramaic sātānâ)literally means Adversary, the evil antagonistwho offers
opposition, hostility, resentment, etc. An enemy who that contends with,
opposes, resists. An adversary is one who hates or opposes anotherpersonand
tries to harm them or stop them from doing something because ofhatred and
malice. Satan is the inveterate, implacable, relentless, ruthless, remorseless,

merciless,heartless, pitiless, cruel,hard, harsh, hardened, incorrigible,
dedicatedenemy of God and His Church, the Body of Christ. John Stott
points out that Satan's activity was behind all the opposition in Acts 3-6
(Message ofActs).
Horton on why has Satanfilled your heart - The question "Why?" draws
attention to the fact that their actionwas voluntary; there was no excuse for
what they did. Before they sold it, it remained theirs, and they were under no
compulsion to sell it. After they soldit, it was still "at[their] disposal" (in
their power or authority). There was nothing compelling them to give it all (cf.
2 Cor. 9:7, "Godloves a cheerful giver"—one who is glad to give, delights to
give). What Ananias had conceivedin his heart was a lie, "not... to men but to
God." (Acts: A Logion Press Commentary)
NET Note - This is a goodexample of the Greek verb fill (pleroo) meaning "to
exercise controlover someone'sthought and action" (cf. Eph 5:18+).
Filled (4137)(pleroo) literally describes something as filled to the brim, but
figuratively as in this passage, describesthat which controls the one who is
filled. In other words, what fills a person, controls that individual. In this case
an evil spirit (Satan) filled and controlled Ananias (and Sapphira). This same
verb is used in Acts 13:52 to describe the disciples as "continually filled with
joy and with the Holy Spirit." In Ephesians 5:18+ Paul commands believers to
be continually filled with (controlled by) the Holy Spirit. The related verb
(pimplemi) was used by Luke in the previous chapter to describe the filling of
all the believers, this filling by the Spirit, a filling which resulted in boldness to
speak the Word of God (Acts 4:31+). In Acts 4:8+ Peter was filled (pimplemi)
with the Holy Spirit and empoweredto boldly speak out to the antagonistic
Sanhedrin.
Constable - Lying to the Holy Spirit is a sin that Christians commit frequently
today. When Christians act hypocritically by pretending a devotion that is not
theirs, or a surrender of life they have not really made, they lie to the Holy
Spirit. If God actedtoday as He did in the early Jerusalemchurch,
undertakers would have much more work than they do. (Bolding added)

To lie (5574)(pseudomaifrom pseudo = to cheat, defraud, falsify) means to
communicate what is false, with the evident purpose of misleading. The Greek
term and the English equivalent ‘to lie’ involve more than simply telling what
is not true, for this could occurwithout an intent to deceive or mislead. It
means means to tell a falsehood, attempt to deceive by lying, to speak falsely
or deceitfully. Pseúdomaitherefore indicates that Ananias not only
communicated a falsehoodbut did so with the intent to deceive the apostles
and the believers.
To the Holy Spirit - Note that clearly the Holy Spirit is a Person, becauseyou
can't lie to an "it." The irony of this is that the Spirit was the Spirit of Truth
Who Jesus had given to guide the disciples in truth...
“But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth;
for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whateverHe hears, He will
speak;and He will disclose to you what is to come." (Jn 16:13)
And to keepback (see nosphizo above) some of the price of the land? -
Ananias pretended to give all of the proceeds from the sale and the Holy Spirit
revealedthat fact to Peter. This statement by Peterindicates that he knew
(presumably the Spirit revealedthis information) what the total price of the
land was and that Ananias had only brought a portion.
Horton - They could have submitted to God and resistedSatan(James 4:7; 1
Pet. 5:8-9). But they let pride, self, and the love of money possessthem. The
love of money is "a root of all kinds of evil" (1 Tim. 6:10; cf. Heb. 13:5). That
is, once the love of money takes possessionofa person, there is no evil that he
cannot or will not do. With the love of money in control, a person will do
things he never would do otherwise, including murder and every other sin. It
is clearalso that if a person is filled with the love of money he cannot love God
(Matt. 6:24). (Acts: A Logion Press Commentary)
Paul warns the church at Ephesus of this same satanic strategy later in Acts...
“Be on guard (present imperative = continually guard - the only way to obey
is to be continually filled with the Spirit) for yourselves and for all the flock,
among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church

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