Acts 4:37 - Ellicott's Commentary On The Whole Bible

Having land, sold it. — Better, perhaps, having a farm. (See Notes on Mark 5:14; Mark 6:36; Mark 6:56.) In the original polity of Israel the Levites had cities and land in common, but no private property (Numbers 18:20-21; Deuteronomy 10:8-9, et al.), and depended for their support upon the tithes paid by the people. The case of Jeremiah, however (Jeremiah 32:7-12), shows that there was nothing to hinder priest or Levite from becoming the possessor of land by purchase or inheritance. The position of Barnabas’s sister Mary shows that she, also, was wealthy, and, though she did not sell her house, she, too, did not call it her own, but gave it up for the public use of the community. The self-chosen poverty of Barnabas led him afterwards to act as St. Paul did in working for his livelihood (1 Corinthians 9:6). It will not be out of place on this first mention of the name of a new disciple to note a few others whose membership of the Church dated probably from this period; Mnason, the “old disciple” of Acts 21:16, of Cyprus, and probably, therefore, a friend of Barnabas; Andronicus and Junia (or, more probably, Junias, as a man’s name), in some sense kinsmen of St. Paul, who were “in Christ” before him (Romans 16:7), and whom we find afterwards at Rome; the seven who in Acts 6:5 are prominent enough to be chosen as representatives of the Hellenistic members of the Church; Agabus (Acts 11:28), Judas, and Silas (Acts 15:32). The last three, however, as being “prophets,” may have been among the number of the Seventy; and, possibly, if we follow a fairly early tradition, Stephen and Philip among the Seven. (See Note on Luke 10:1.) We again note the absence of any measure of the interval between the events of this chapter and the history that follows. The picture of the peaceful expansion of the Church’s life implies, probably, as in Acts 2:41-47, one of several months.