Barnabas: Ananias and Sapphira

After we are introduced to Barnabas in Acts 4, we then meet Ananias and Sapphira. They are infamously known as the couple who tried to defraud God and the Apostles.

Because the way the chapters are structured, we may miss how the story of Ananias and Sapphira follows directly on from the previous chapter.

Originally, the books of the Bible were not written with chapters and verses, but as a continuous text. So to the early Christians, the stories of Ananias and Sapphira and Barnabas were linked.

One in Heart and Mind

Earlier in Acts 4, we see the early Church were ‘one in heart and mind’ and had all things in common. They shared everything they had.

There was a practice where some Christians who owned houses and land sold them and brought the money to the Apostles. It could then be redistributed to those in need.

Barnabas is mentioned as one who did this. He sold some land and gave the money to the Apostles.

Symbolically speaking, Barnabas (a Levite Jew) was acting as a priest, offering a gift to God. Luke, the writer of the Acts of the Apostles, seems to be showing how Christian should act. As a royal priesthood, Christians must act in the same manner when giving gifts to the God. Give in honesty, transparently and offering the gift freely.

What’s in a Name?

Ananias, or Hananiah (the Hebrew spelling), was a very common name amongst the Jews. We not only see a few Ananias mentioned in the New Testament, but many more in the Old Testament.

In the Book of Jeremiah (Ch 28), we see another Ananias. He was a false prophet who prophesied, lied and then died.

Another Ananias was one who ended up in the fiery furnace in the Book of Daniel. This Ananias had his name changed to Shadrach in Daniel 1 v 7. Because Shadrach would not bow to the Golden Statue, he was thrown into a furnace. He resisted the temptation to compromise, God protected him through the test and he survived the flames.

I wonder whether Luke not only compared Barnabas to Ananias, but also to these other Ananias in the Old Testament.

Ananias lied and died like the false prophet in the Book of Jeremiah.

Ananias succumbed to temptation and died, while Shadrach survived his trial.

Unlike Barnabas, who made the right choice and held nothing back when gave all the money to the Apostles, Ananias and his wife allowed themselves to follow temptation and suffer the consequences of their sin.

Adam and Eve All Over Again

Another symbolic thread is the connection with Adam and Eve.

We are told that Satan tempted Ananias and his wife, and they kept some money back for themselves.

The Devil tempted Adam and Eve to eat the Fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. Adam and Eve succumbed and through this, Adam brought death into the World by his actions.

Likewise, Ananias and Sapphira fell for the temptation, hid money from the Apostles and they died.

Adam and Eve were then covered in garments of skin and expelled from the Garden of Eden. The bodies of Ananias and Sapphira were covered in grave clothes and removed from the presence of the Apostles.

The garments of skin are associated with the coming of death. They are spiritual grave clothes, so to speak.

Maybe the shock from the community wasn’t just that the couple instantly died, but they also saw a connection to Adam and Eve.

Repeating Pattern

The pattern of Adam and Eve’s failure is repeated over and over throughout the Bible. When God sets up a new order, were it after the Flood, the giving of the Law at Mount Sinai or the establishment of the early Church, corruption occurs soon after. Human failure and frailty is always with us, in this Age of Decay.