Philip The Evangelist

Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament

‘Philip the Evangelist,’ or ‘Philip one of the Seven,’ or ‘Philip the Deacon’-these are the three names by which Philip is called, each of them intended to distinguish him from Philip the Apostle, with whom in both ancient and modern times he has often been confounded. As in Stephen’s case, so in Philip’s-we have no previous mention of him till he was elected to be one of the Seven ( Acts 6:5). In the list of the Seven he comes second, next to Stephen. The same emphatic praise is not accorded to him by the author of the Acts as to Stephen, and probably while Stephen lived Philip was overshadowed by his more striking personality. It seems, however, probable that the account we have of the appointment of the Seven, of the trial of Stephen (though not his speech, which was more probably derived from the reminiscences of St. Paul), and of Philip’s own subsequent doings, was derived from Philip himself, who may well have communicated it to St. Luke during one of his two visits to Caesarea ( Acts 21:8-14;  Acts 27:1). As with respect to Stephen so with respect to Philip we should infer that he was a Hellenist, and therefore a suitable agent for extending the gospel to those who were not strictly Jews; but the inference is not certain in either case. Philip belonged to a band who were scattered from Jerusalem in consequence of the persecution which followed on the death of Stephen ( Acts 8:4). He began his preaching among the Samaritans apparently in the principal city of the district, in Sebaste or Samaria itself. Here he encountered a famous magician resident in the city, named Simon. This Simon subsequently became the founder of one of those religio-philosophical sects, resulting partly from the break-up of the old religions, partly from the contact of the older religious faiths or philosophies with Judaism, which are known by the general name of Gnosticism. The object of all these systems was to suggest some intelligible scheme through which the God of philosophy might be brought into relations with the God of the OT and the God who was active in creation. This they generally effected by imagining some arbitrary hierarchy of emanations, among which, and by the help of which, a place might be found for the God of the OT, the Giver of the Mosaic Law, and for the Creator of the universe, and generally also for our Lord Jesus Christ. In his system he assigned to himself and the prophetess Helena, whom he associated with himself, a high position; he described himself as the power of or emanation from God which is called ‘Great.’ But at the moment he seems to have been completely over-awed by the spiritual energy of Philip, received baptism at his hands, and joined the band of his disciples and associates.

The conversions of Simon and his fellow-Samaritans represented a great step in advance in the widening of the Christian Church. True, our Lord had made converts among the Samaritans partly through the testimony of the Samaritan woman, partly by His own teaching and influence ( John 4:39-42), but it is not clear that they were actually admitted to baptism, and they were directly excluded from those to whom during the continuance of His ministry the disciples were to address themselves ( Matthew 10:5). Though partially akin to the Jews in blood and in religious faith, the Jews would have no dealings with them ( John 4:9) and used the name ‘Samaritan’ as a term of the deepest reproach ( John 8:48), so that to proclaim that they too were to be included within the Kingdom of God was an innovation of the most startling kind. How startling the innovation was we may gather from the fact that St. Peter and St. John were dispatched by the Church of Jerusalem to inquire into the matter, and it was only when, in answer to the apostles’ prayers and the laying on of their hands, the Holy Ghost had descended on them, that Philip’s action was regarded as fully ratified ( Acts 8:17;  Acts 8:25).

The next step was taken under the direct prompting of the Spirit. Philip was moved by the Spirit to take the southern route to Jerusalem, which led to Gaza, then, in consequence of its overthrow by the Maccabees, ‘deserted’ (cf. G. A. Smith, HGHL_, 1897, p. 186 f.). In this neighbourhood he fell in with an Ethiopian eunuch of Queen Candace, whom he converted by explaining to him part of Isaiah 53, and received at once to baptism (perhaps also to confirmation). From Gaza, Philip was snatched away by the Spirit and carried off to Ashdod, from which he passed through the various coast towns and villages till he reached Caesarea, where he settled down, and is found still living some twenty years later.

It is on the occasion of St. Paul’s last visit to Jerusalem that Philip is brought before us once more in the Acts. At his house, St. Paul, and apparently St. Luke also, stayed on their way from Ptolemais to the capital ( Acts 21:8). Philip had now ‘four daughters, virgins, which did prophesy,’ and they, along with Agabus, the prophet who came down from Jerusalem, attempted to divert St. Paul from continuing his journey thitherward, but unavailingly ( Acts 21:10-14). St. Luke collected, probably partly during this visit, and partly at a later date, the details of Philip’s earlier life contained in the passage in Acts already considered. At this point Philip disappears from the Acts. What little more we know about him is derived from ecclesiastical tradition; but this tradition is rendered uncertain from a tendency there is among ecclesiastical writers to identify Philip the Apostle with Philip the Evangelist. This was due to their having the same name, to both having daughters, and to both having settled in later years in Asia Minor, possibly both at Hierapolis. Yet there can be no doubt that the author of the Acts distinguishes the two, and the tradition does not really confound them, but distinguishes the three daughters of Philip the Apostle (one of whom was married and settled at Ephesus) from the four daughters of Philip the Evangelist, who were all virgins (see Polycrates, quoted in Eusebius, HE_ iii. 31). And then tradition makes Philip the Evangelist settle not at Hierapolis but at Tralles (AS_, June 6).

Literature.-W. M. Ramsay, St. Paul the Traveller, 1895; R. B. Rackham, Acts of the Apostles, 1901; J. B. Lightfoot, Colossians and Philemon3, 1879; A. Harnack, The Acts of the Apostles, Eng. tr._, 1909.

W. A. Spooner.

Fausset's Bible Dictionary

Acts 6. Out of the seven Grecian (As The Greek Names Of All The Seven Imply) superintendents of the distribution of alms, appointed in consequence of the complaints of partiality to the Hebrew Christian widows, made by the Grecians or Hellenist Christians. (See Deacon .) Philip stands in the list next Stephen, they two being prominent and the only ones noticed subsequently. He like the rest was chosen by the multitude of disciples as "full of the Holy Spirit and wisdom." Philip was among those scattered by the great persecution against the church at Jerusalem (Acts 8). Philip, breaking through Jewish anti-Samaritan prejudice, was the first to follow Jesus' steps (John 4) and His command ( Acts 1:8) to preach the gospel as a witness in Samaria; so he was virtually a forerunner of Paul "the apostle of the Gentiles" in his field of labour, as Stephen was in his doctrine. Jesus had declared cf6 "the fields (In Samaria) are white already to (The Spiritual) harvest." Philip (By An Undesigned Coincidence Marking Genuineness) finds it so.

"The people with one accord gave heed unto those things which Philip spoke ( Acts 8:6) ... they believed Philip preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ ... were baptized, both men and women" ( Acts 8:12). The Samaritans were looking for Messiah ( John 4:25), which paved the way; still more the two days of Jesus' presence and the conversions which He made. John, who had called for fire from heaven to consume them, now joins with Peter in confirming them ( Acts 8:14;  Acts 8:17). Even Simon Magus believed and was baptized, and continued with Philip wondering at the miracles and signs which were done. By the direction of the angel of the Lord Philip went down from Jerusalem to Gaza by the less frequented way, which was the usual one for chariots. In one an Ethiopian eunuch or chamberlain of Candace, a" proselyte of righteousness" (Not As Cornelius, For Whose Admission To Christian Fellowship A Special Revelation Was Needed, A "Proselyte Of The Gate") , was returning from worship at Jerusalem.

By the Spirit's intimation Philip joined him as he read aloud Isaiah 53, and asked "understandest thou what thou reddest?" a question always needed in reading Scripture. The eunuch replied, "how can I, except some man guide me?" (the minister's office secondarily, but the Holy Spirit's mainly:  John 16:13). Jesus, Philip explains, is the Lamb led to the slaughter. "In His humiliation His judgment (i.e. legal trial) was taken away," the virtual sense of  Isaiah 53:8, "He was taken away by oppression (so in  Psalms 107:39) and by judgment" (Not As Kjv "From Prison." For He Was Never Incarcerated) , i.e. by an oppressive judicial sentence; He was treated as one so mean that a fair trial was denied Him ( Matthew 26:59;  Mark 14:55-59). "Who shall declare His generation?" i.e., who can declare the wickedness of His generation?

Philip so preached of the fulfillment of prophecy in Jesus that the eunuch believed and was baptized in a stream on the way. The Sinaiticus, Vaticanus, and Alexandrinus manuscripts omit  Acts 8:37, the confession of Jesus required before baptism, an early Christian usage ( 1 Peter 3:21 end). The Spirit then caught away Philip, as Elijah of old. At Azotus (Ashdod) and the cities along the Philistine sea coast he preached all the way to Caesarea. Here Paul was entertained by him 19 years subsequently. His title now was "evangelist" besides being "of the seven." His four daughters had the gift of prophecy or inspired teaching ( Acts 21:8-9). Here Philip, who had preached to the schismatic Samaritans, the dark African, and the hostile Philistine, would hail the apostle of the Gentiles who was carrying out to its world wide consequences the work initiated by the evangelist deacon. Here too Luke during his residence would hear from his own lips the details which he records concerning Philip.

Smith's Bible Dictionary

Phil'ip, The Evangelist. (Lover Of Horses). Philip, the evangelist, is first mentioned in the account of the dispute, between the Hebrew and Hellenistic disciples in Acts 6. He is one of the deacons appointed to superintend the daily distribution of food and alms, and so, to remove all suspicion of partiality.

The persecution of which Saul was the leader must have stopped the "daily ministrations" of the Church. The teachers who had been most prominent were compelled to take flight, and Philip was among them. It is noticeable that the city of Samaria, is the first scene of his activity. Acts 8. He is the precursor of St. Paul in his work, as Stephen had been in his teaching. The scene which brings Philip and Simon the sorcerer into contact with each other,  Acts 8:9-13, which the magician has to acknowledge a power over nature greater than his own, is interesting. This step is followed by another.

On the road from Jerusalem to Gaza, he meets the Ethiopian eunuch.  Acts 8:26; ff. The History that follows is interesting as one of the few records, in the New Testament, of the process of individual conversion. A brief sentence tells us that Philip continued his work as a preacher at Azotus, (Ashdod), and among the other cities that had formerly belonged to the Philistines, and, following the coast-line, came to Caesarea. Then for a long period - not less than eighteen or nineteen years - we lose sight of him.

The last glimpse of him in the New Testament is in the account of St. Paul's journey to Jerusalem. It is to his house as to one well known to them, that St. Paul and his companions turn for shelter. He has four daughters, who possess the gift of prophetic utterance, and who apparently give themselves to the work of teaching, instead of entering on the life of home.  Acts 21:8-9. He is visited by the prophets and elders of Jerusalem. One tradition places the scene of his death at Hierapolis in Phrygia. According to another, he died bishop of Tralles. The house in which he and his daughters had lived was pointed out to travellers in the time of Jerome.

Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature

( Φίλιππος Ὁ Εὐαγγελιστής ), one of the original seven deacons in the Christian Church. A.D. 29. The first mention of this name occurs in the account of the dispute between the Hebrew and Hellenistic disciples in Acts vi. He was one of the seven appointed to superintend the daily distribution of food and alms, and so to remove all suspicion of partiality. The fact that all the seven names are Greek, makes it at least very probable that they were chosen as belonging to the Hellenistic section of the Church, representatives of the class which had appeared before the apostles in the attitude of complaint. The name of Philip stands next to that of Stephen; and this, together with the fact that these are the only two names (unless Nicolas be an exception; comp. NICOLAS) of which we hear again, tends to the conclusion that he was among the most prominent of those so chosen. He was, at ally rate, well reported of as "full of the Holy Ghost, and wisdom," and had so won the affections of the great body of believers as to be among the objects of their free election, possibly (assuming the votes of the congregation to have been taken for the different candidates) gaining all but the highest number of suffrages. Whether the office to which he was thus appointed gave him the position and the title of a deacon of the Church, or was special and extraordinary in its character, must remain uncertain (Goulburn, Acts of the Deacon, Lond. 1866). (See Deacon).

The after-history of Philip warrants the belief, in any case, that his office was not simply that of the later Diaconate. It is no great presumption to think of him as contributing hardly less than Stephen to the great increase of disciples which followed on this fresh organization, as sharing in that wider, more expansive teaching which shows itself for the first time in the oration of the protomartyr, and in which he was the forerunner of Paul. We should expect the man who had been his companion and fellow-worker to go on with the work which he had left unfinished, and to break through the barriers of a simply national Judaism. So accordingly we find him in the next stage of his history. The persecution of which Saul was the leader must have stopped the "daily ministrations" of the Church. The teachers who had been most prominent were compelled to take to flight, and Philip was among them. The cessation of one form of activity, however, only threw him forward into another. It is noticeable that the city of Samaria is the first scene of his activity (Acts 8). He is the precursor of Paul in his work, as Stephen had been in his teaching. It falls to his lot, rather than to that of an apostle, to take that first step in the victory over Jewish prejudice and the expansion of the Church, according to its Lord's command. As a preparation for that work there may have been the Messianic hopes which were cherished by the Samaritans no less than by the Jews ( John 4:25), the recollection of the two days which had witnessed the presence there of Christ and his disciples ( John 4:40), even perhaps the craving for spiritual powers which had been roused by the strange influence of Simon the Sorcerer. The scene which brings the two into contact with each other, in which the magician has to acknowledge a power over nature greater than his own, is interesting rather as belonging to the life of the heresiarch than to that of the evangelist. (See Simon Magus). It suggests the inquiry whether we can trace through the distortions and perversions of the "hero of the romance of heresy," the influence of that phase of Christian truth which was likely to be presented by the preaching of the Hellenistic evangelist.

This step is followed by another. He is directed by an angel of the Lord to take the road that led down from Jerusalem to Gaza on the way to Egypt. (See Gaza). A chariot passes by in which there is a man of another race, whose complexion or whose dress showed him to be a native of Ethiopia. From the time of Psammetichus there had been a large body of Jews settled in that region, and the eunuch or chamberlain at the court of Candace might easily have come across them and their sacred books, might have embraced their faith, and become by circumcision a proselyte of righteousness. He had been on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. He may have heard there of the new sect. The history that follows is interesting as one of the few records in the N.T. of the process of individual conversion, and orie which we may believe Luke obtained, during his residence at Coesarea, from the evangelist himself. The devout proselyte reciting the prophecy which he does not understand — the evangelist-preacher running at full speed till he overtakes the chariot — the abrupt question — the simple-hearted answer — the unfolding, from the starting-point of the prophecy, of the glad tidings of Jesus — the craving for the means of admission to the blessing of fellowship with the new society — the simple baptism in the first stream or spring — the instantaneous, abrupt departure of the missionary-preacher, as of one carried away by a divine impulse — these help us to represent to ourselves much of the life and work of that remote past. On the hypothesis which has just been suggested, we may think of it as being the incident to which the mind of Philip himself recurred with most satisfaction. A brief sentence tells us that he continued his work as a preacher at Azotus (Ashdod), and among the other cities which had formerly belonged to the Philistines, and, following the coast-line, came to Caesarea.

Here for a long period we lose sight of him. He may have been there when the new convert Saul passed through on his way to Tarsus ( Acts 9:30). He may have contributed by his labors to the eager desire to be guided farther into the Truth which led to the conversion of Cornelius. We can hardly think of him as giving utp all at once the missionary habits of his life. Csesarea, however, appears to have been the centre of his activity. The last glimpse of him in the N.T. is in the account of Paul's journey to Jerusalem. It is to his house, as to one well known to them, that Paul and his companions turn for shelter. He is still known as "one of the Seven." His work has gained for him the yet higher title of Evangelist. (See Evangelist). He has four daughters, who possess the gift of prophetic utterance. and who apparently give themselves to the work of teaching instead of entering on the life of home ( Acts 21:8-9). He is visited by the prophets and elders of Jerusalem. At such a place as Ciesarea the work of such a man must have helped to bridge over the everwidening gap which threatened to separate the Jewish and the Gentile churches. One who had preached Christ to the hated Samaritan, the swarthy African, the despised Philistine. the men of all nations who passed through the seaport of Palestine. mnight well welcome the arrival of the apostle of the Gentiles. A.D. 55.

The traditions in which the evangelist and the apostle who bore the same name are more or less confounded have been given under Philip The Apostle According to another, relating more distinctly to him, he died bishop of Tralles (Acta Sunc. June 6). The house in which he and his daughters had lived was pointed out to travellers in the time of Jerome (Epit. Paulce, § 8). (Comp. Ewald, Geschichte, 6:175, 208-214; Baumgarten, Apostelgeschichte, § 15, 16.) The later martvrologies, on the contrary, make him end his days in Caesarea (Acta Sanct. June 6).

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

One of "the seven" chosen to have the oversight of "the daily ministration" of the poor of the Christian community in Jerusalem ( Acts 6:5 ). Whether Philip, bearing a Greek name, was a Hellenist, is not known, but his missionary work reveals to us one free from the religious prejudices of the strict Hebrew.

The martyrdom of Stephen was the beginning of a systematic persecution of the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered over Judea and Samaria ( Acts 8:1 ), and even as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch ( Acts 11:19 ). Thus, the influence of the new teaching was extended, and a beginning made to the missionary movement. The story of Philip's missionary labors is told in  Acts 8:5 ff. He went to the chief city of Samaria, called Sebaste in honor of Augustus (Greek Sebastós ). The Samaritans, of mixed Israelite and Gentile blood, had, in consequence of their being rigidly excluded from the Jewish church since the return from exile, built on Mt. Gerizim a rival sanctuary to the temple. To them Philip proclaimed the Christ and wrought signs, with the result that multitudes gave heed, and "were baptized, both men and women." They had been under the influence of a certain sorcerer, Simon, who himself also believed and was baptized, moved, as the sequel proved, by the desire to learn the secret of Philip's ability to perform miracles (see Simon Magus ). The apostles ( Acts 8:14 ) at Jerusalem sanctioned the admission of Samaritans into the church by sending Peter and John, who not only confirmed the work of Philip, but also themselves preached in many Samaritan villages.

The next incident recorded is the conversion of a Gentile, who was, however, a worshipper of the God of Israel, a eunuch under Candace, queen of the Ethiopians. As he was returning from worshipping in the temple at Jerusalem, he was met by Philip on the road to Gaza. Philip expounded to him that portion of  Isaiah 53:1-12 which he had been reading aloud as he sat in his chariot, and preached unto him Jesus. It is another sign of Philip's insight into the universality of Christianity that he baptized this eunuch who could not have been admitted into full membership in the Jewish church (  Deuteronomy 23:1 ). See Ethiopian Eunuch .

After this incident, Philip went to Azotus (Ashdod), and then traveled north to Caesarea, preaching in the cities on his way. There he settled, for Luke records that Paul and his company abode in the house of Philip, "the evangelist," "one of the seven," for some days ( Acts 21:8 ff). This occurred more than 20 years after the incidents recorded in Acts 8. Both at this time and during Paul's imprisonment at Caesarea, Luke had the opportunity of hearing about Philip's work from his own lips. Luke records that Philip had 4 daughters who were preachers (  Acts 21:9 ).

The Jewish rebellion, which finally resulted in the fall of Jerusalem, drove many Christians out of Palestine, and among them Philip and his daughters. One tradition connects Philip and his daughters with Hierapolis in Asia, but in all probability the evangelist is confounded with the apostle. Another tradition represents them as dwelling at Tralles, Philip being the first bishop of the Christian community.