Acts 8:32-40 32Now the passage of the Scripture that he was reading was this: “Like a sheep he was led to the slaughter and like a lamb before its shearer is silent, so he des not open his mouth. 33In his humiliation justice was taken away from him. Who can describe his generation? For his life is taken away from the earth.” 34And the eunuch said to Philip, “I ask you, about whom does the prophet say this, about himself or about someone else?” 35Then Philip, opening his mouth and beginning with this Scripture, told him the good news about Jesus.
Luke notes the passage the eunuch was reading. The Old Testament did not have chapter and verse numbering at that time (an invention of the Middle Ages), so there was no way to give a detailed description of what part of the scroll the eunuch was at. However, our modern Bibles note the references as Isaiah 53:7-8. The eunuch must have been studying that chapter, either on purpose or as he read through the scroll. The chapter he stopped at is highly significant in reference to the Servant of Yahweh who would take about the sins of the people by dying for them. Once again, this situation was not accidental. God’s prevenient grace stands in the background, orchestrating each part of the encounter. However, the two people involved also had their input through curiosity and obedience.
The two verses need a historical context to be clear. By themselves, along with other parts of the Servant Songs of Isaiah, are difficult to understand without knowing their fulfillment. Once the key to the mystery is revealed, these verses make perfect sense. The eunuch did not have the historical key to unlock their meaning, but Philip did. He was able to explain how these verses were fulfilled through Jesus. Isaiah 53:7 is vivid with the slaughter of a lamb. Jesus was the Lamb of God who was killed for the sins of the world. Jesus did not open his mouth in defense at his trial when he was falsely accused by the Jews and interrogated by Pilate. His trial was rigged, done at night and in secret, and he was denied justice. He was humiliated before people by being beaten, stripped, and then hung on a Roman cross. That generation of Jews had missed out on their Messiah. But all of this was God’s plan for the salvation of the world, and that included the Ethiopian eunuch, his queen, and all his people. The Messiah died for all people.
The Ethiopian’s question in verse 34 provided Philip a launching point to explain in more detail about who Jesus was. He knew exactly who was being mentioned in these verses. As he explained this verse, he could have also woven in the gospel and why Jesus died. This was good news for the Ethiopian, who saw himself in the story as one who was in desperate need of what Philip was talking about. Several points appear behind this story. One is how Philip was prepared spiritually to listen to the Holy Spirit and be sensitive to the spiritual search of the Ethiopian. Another is how Philip knew his Old Testament well and could explain the gospel from it. Related to this is how early Christianity had already connected the Old Testament prophecies about the Messiah and the historical Jesus of their experience. From the Ethiopian’s side, we see an honest seeker, curious, inquiring, and studying God’s word, though not understanding it. When the two people came together, the Holy Spirit brought a spiritual miracle.
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