“And as they were going along the road they came to some water, and the eunuch said, ‘See, here is water! What prevents me from being baptized?’” 37. (missing) 38. And he commanded the chariot to stop, and they both went down into the water, Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him” (Acts 8:36-38). Except for the King James translation of the Bible, most others omit verse 37, “And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.” Why would one translation include it while others do not?
The answer is both simple and intriguing at the same time. The reason for the omission is that the oldest manuscripts do not include it. Now, many people are unaware that there are multiple manuscripts. In fact, I know of seasoned Christians who do not even know there are manuscripts from which the words of the modern Bible are taken. Not many Bible classes have ever dealt with that specifically, so the casual student may be under the impression that the first “Bible” was the KJV. I do not have the space in this article to list all the names but suffice it to say there are more than 24970 manuscripts or parts thereof. Yes, that is an overwhelming number, but it also testifies to the authenticity of the Bible.
So, why would I say that the omission of a single verse is intriguing? Let’s read it again before I explain my thoughts on the matter. “And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.” Let’s begin at the beginning and work our way forward. Philip is directed by the Angel of the Lord to “Rise and go south…to the desert place…” Without hesitation, the obedient servant of God makes his way to the road “…that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” There he meets a eunuch who was returning from worshipping in Jerusalem and together they study the words of the prophet Isaiah and the story of Jesus.
At some point, they reach a body of water, and the eunuch utters the famous words, “See, here is water! What prevents me from being baptized.” The Church of Christ uses those words as a testimony for the validity of baptism, while some denominations claim that it is nothing more than a hasty sign of the eunuch identifying with the teachings of Philip. The two viewpoints have been Debated rather vociferously for centuries and I have no doubt my thoughts will not affect a resolution, but here they are, nonetheless. The eagerness to be baptized without the addition of v.37 could be argued all day long but add the words of the missing verse and suddenly clarity ensues.
I won’t argue for its inclusion, but since the early church fathers deemed it worthy of such, it must mean something at least. You see, those later manuscripts appear to have included the words as an emphasis for baptism, not as an outward sign of inward grace, but of something much, much more important. The argument that is often made that there was a sudden urge to identify with the teacher or general acceptance of the teachings seems particularly weak when v.37 is included. Those who argue for that view bring up Simon the Sorcerer in Acts 8:13, but that specifically refers to someone who had no understanding of the message and thought he could buy its benefits.
Moreover, why would there be such an instance of urging, emphasized with the solemnity of the words of v.37 if all it would take was the baptism of the Holy Spirit? And while we are on that point, Simon did not ask for an immersive baptism but rather a laying on of hands, so that does not support their contention. Why they were allowed to pass on the Holy Spirit by the laying on of hands is an article for another time, but Acts 2:38 makes it clear when we receive the Holy Spirit – “And Peter said to them, ‘Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.’” Again, we could discuss the word baptism meaning “immersion”, but that too is a discussion for another day. This morning is only a reflection on my thoughts on v.37 and what it adds to the understanding of the story of the Eunuch.
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