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"And now I stand and am judged for the hope of the promise made of God unto our
fathers: unto which our twelve tribes, instantly serving God day and night, hope to
come" (Acts 26: 6, 7).
This was none other than the promise which formed the burden of the Apostle's question
in Acts 1:
"When they therefore were come together, they asked of Him, saying, Lord, wilt Thou
at this time restore again the kingdom of Israel?" (Acts 1: 6).
It was to this Peter referred when he said that the times of restitution of all things,
which God by the mouth of all his holy prophets had spoken, would commence upon the
repentance of Israel (Acts 3: 19-26). Moreover, the Apostle could have shown these
Jews his own written statement in the letter he had sent to the church at Rome touching
their hope, that it was the hope of Israel.
"There shall be a root of Jesse; and He that shall rise to reign over the Gentiles; in
Him shall the Gentiles hope (elpizo), now the God of that hope (elpis) fill you with all joy
and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy
Ghost" (Rom. 15: 12, 13).
Once we admit that these are the words of truth and soberness, we must also admit
that the hope of the church up till the writing of the epistle to the Romans was the hope of
the Kingdom, for what other meaning can attach to the words "reign over the Gentiles"?
It is, moreover, the hope of Israel, for if not, why introduce the title "The root of Jesse"?
and why say "reign over" the Gentiles? If any one should object to this translation of
archo, let him turn to Mark 10: 42. Moreover, this hope was associated with the power
of the Holy Ghost.
It is therefore impossible to dissociate the hope of the early church from the hope of
Israel, without impugning the veracity of the apostle Paul, or denying the inspiration of
Rom. 15:
From the first chapter of the Acts one hope is before the church right on to the
moment when Israel were set aside. But then, for the very sufficient reason that a new
calling had been revealed, it became necessary to pray that the church might perceive
"what is the hope of His calling".
"This sect" (Acts 28: 22).
There are three sects mentioned in the Acts:
(1:) The sect of the SADDUCEES (Acts 5: 17).
(2:) The sect of the PHARISEES (Acts 15: 5).
(3:) The sect of the NAZARENES (Acts 24: 5).
The Apostle refers to this sect of the Nazarenes, saying: