Analysis of Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 4.32–5:11)

This column continues our discussion from October 2014 of Luke’s language of judgement.

Like many Lukan narratives, the first part of the pericope introduces some key themes of what’s to follow.

With great power the apostles gave their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. (Acts 4. 33).

The pericope emphasizes the centrality of the apostles in the narrative by repeating apostolos five times. It reveals that the apostles have authority both outside of the community (by giving their testimony with power) and within (as believers lay their proceeds at the apostles’ feet). The previous pericope has already confirmed that it is the Lord Jesus who is the source of the apostle’s power (4.10) and that the apostles are filled with his spirit (4.8) and so the first section of this pericope simply reconfirms these elements with the assurance that ‘great grace was upon them all.’

Also, the community are said to be ‘of one heart’ (4.32) which the text demonstrates by matching the description of the communal giving up of possessions with the individual Barnabas’ laying down of proceeds. This background information sets up the reader for a conflict that will provide the drama of the story.

The second part of the narrative deals with the apostles’ reaction to Ananias and Sapphira who have sold a piece of land, ‘kept back some of the proceeds, and brought only a part and laid it at the apostles’ feet.’ (5.2).

3.a       εἶπεν δὲ ὁ Πέτρος· Ἁνανία,
3.b       διὰ τί ἐπλήρωσεν ὁ Σατανᾶς τὴν καρδίαν σου,
ψεύσασθαί σε τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον καὶ νοσφίσασθαι ἀπὸ
τῆς τιμῆς τοῦ χωρίου; [/gk]
4.a       οὐχὶ μένον σοὶ ἔμενεν καὶ πραθὲν ἐν τῇ σῇ ἐξουσίᾳ ὑπῆρχεν;
4.b       τί ὅτι ἔθου ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ σου τὸ πρᾶγμα τοῦτο;
4.c       οὐκ ἐψεύσω ἀνθρώποις ἀλλὰ τῷ θεῷ.

But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back some of the price of the land? While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not under your control? Why is it that you have conceived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to men but to God.” (Acts 5.3-4, NASB)

Peter’s speech to Ananias is notable by his style of direct address. Luke-Act’s Peter begins by addressing Ananias by his name. This naming functions to isolate Peter and Ananias from amongst the onlookers for the readers’ attention. The word ordering that closely positions Peter and Ananias’ names in the first line functions to foreground the two characters. However, the text’s syntax positions Peter in the dominant position. It is Peter who actively names Ananias. Instead of the text describing Peter as speaking to Ananias (which would put the characters in a balanced syntactical position), it reads: ‘Then Peter said “Ananias […]”’, thus establishing Peter in dominance over Ananias.

The structure of Peter’s speech to Ananias lends itself to the drama of Peter’s judgement. Having named his addressee, Peter asks three rhetorical questions, each one shorter than the one before, until he delivers his judgement. These three rhetorical questions heighten the suspense for the audience, with their shortening sentence length altering the rhythm of the speech, causing the speech to become sharper and snappier. The rhetorical questions are then contrasted with the final, shortest sentence, emphasized by its simplicity and balanced syntax:

‘οὐκ ἐψεύσω ἀνθρώποις ἀλλὰ τῷ θεῷ.’

You have lied not to men but to God

The text also employs repetition to further emphasise Peter’s direct address. The second person pronoun is repeated five times in the forms of ‘σου’, ‘σε’, ‘σοι’, ‘σῆ’ͅ and ‘σου’. This repetition further emphasises Peter’s direct form of speech and focuses attention firmly on his opponent.

In regards to the speech’s phonetics, the text also uses consonance and sibilance. Repeated sigmas across ‘σου, ψεύσασθαί σε’ and ‘νοσφίσασθαι ἀπὸ τῆς τιμῆς’ (5.3), as well as the alliteration of ‘τῆς τιμῆς τοῦ χωρίου’ functions to hold the text together as a unit. The repeated sounds in Peter’s speech also help to increase its fluidity as it crescendos towards its climax. If words have power then it is their phonetics that give them elegance.

Peter’s rhetorical questions introduce some key themes that will be repeated in Acts 8.9-25 and 13.6-12. Firstly there is the presence of the Satan in the apostle’s opponent (5.3):

 διὰ τί ἐπλήρωσεν ὁ Σατανᾶς τὴν καρδίαν σου.

The text employs parallelism to compare Ananias, who is filled by the accuser, and Peter who is known from the co-text to be ‘filled with the holy spirit’ (4.8). The parallelism works similarly to the text’s word ordering in Peter’s address, functioning to position Ananias as Peter’s antagonist.

A second theme is the impurity of the opposition’s heart. καρδίαν is repeated three times in the pericope. Ananias’ heart is ‘filled’ by Satan, which contrasts to the apostles who, along with the rest of the believers are ‘of one heart’ (4.32). As previously mentioned, the harmony of the believers in the introduction sets up the narrative for a conflict, inviting readers to question what happens to those in the community who are not of the same heart. Peter’s rhetorical question presupposes that he has insight into peoples’ hearts, a very God-like ability, which places Peter in the tradition of the prophets.^[1]

A third theme that will be repeated in Acts 8.9-25 is ‘μέρος’ (portion). Luke-Acts describes Ananias as laying ‘only a part’ of his proceeds at the apostle’s feet (5.2). Ironically, the text details that Sapphira dies at Peter’s feet (5.10), in the same place as the money was laid. The text uses irony to imply that in bringing ‘only a portion’ to the apostles, Ananias and Sapphira lose their portion in the community of believers.

The final, declarative sentence in Peter’s speech is something of a punch line. However, it does not issue a punitive instruction or threat. This may be a reason why some scholars would be reluctant to label the speech as a curse. Instead, it is a verdict and incrimination: οὐκ ἐψεύσω ἀνθρώποις ἀλλὰ τῷ θεῷ. However, after the crescendo of rhetorical questions, Peter’s verdict functions like a punch line the effect of which suggests it carries an implicit judgment. The two clauses that make up the sentence give the line balance, with θεος mirroring ἀνθρώπος. The assonance of repeated ‘ω’ sounds creates a musical quality as well as binding the clauses into a solid unit. In the statement, Ananias is judged to have committed a crime of both deceit and greed. Through the structure and style of the text, Luke-Acts establishes the potent form of Peter’s words.

Luke-Acts also suggests the potency of Peter’s words by emphasising the immediacy of their effect. The text’s use of participles draws readers’ attention the simultaneous aspect of cause and effect. ἀκούων δὲ ὁ Ἁνανίας τοὺς λόγους τούτους πεσὼν ἐξέψυξεν (5.5) The text positions ‘hearing’ and ‘falling’ in apposition with one another, emphasizing their close relationship. Secondly, the text uses the modifier ‘at once’ in ἔπεσεν δὲ παραχρῆμα (5.10), when describing Sapphria’s reaction to Peter’s words. Thirdly, Peter himself employs the lexicon of immediacy when he uses the order ἰδου (5.9). This emphasis on immediacy by the text’s narrator and protagonist strongly suggests that Peter’s words cause the death of the Ananias and Sapphira.

The reaction of those who hear about Ananias and Sapphira’s demise also testifies to the power of Peter’s words. Their reaction of ‘great fear’ (5.5, 11) and ‘high esteem’ (5.13) strongly suggest that readers are meant to understand Peter as causing the couple’s deaths.

The end of the episode leaves audiences with a vivid visual image. Sapphira is dead at Peter’s feet, an image of submission to the apostles. The text repeats the downwards spatial movement in 5.5 and 5.10, which is juxtaposed with the upwards movement of the young members of the community (5.6). Not only do the community bring their gifts to the apostles’ feet but the rebellious and defeated Ananias and Sapphira also end up there.^[2]

The Coptic and Greek curse spells from late Antiquity provide a helpful insight into how curses were used and understood in the wider Mediterranean world. Whilst they mostly date later than the NT texts, they provide a picture of some of the common emotions, desires, punishments and phrases that made up cursing practices. While they have a different cultural setting, shown in their mix of pagan, Jewish and Christian deities, they also show some intriguing similarities.

Significant differences between the two types of text include their narrative perspective and performance setting. The curse spells are all written from the first person perspective, addressed to a deity or spirit of a dead person, and can be presumed to have been performed in private. In contrast the curse-like judgements of Luke-Acts are all delivered in public, addressed to the accused, and are described by a third person narrator.

One of the immediately apparent parallels between the curse spells and Peter’s words is the desire for the deity to ‘strike’ the spell caster’s target. Spell texts such as text 29 instructs the deity: ‘[…] strike Philadelphe and her children’.^[3]  Text 89 commands: ‘You must strike him […]’ (189). Other spells implore: ‘Father strike them […]’, and ‘You must strike Prestasia and Tnounte and Eboneh, quickly, deservedly.’ ^[4]  Whilst Peter’s speech does not include any threat or instruction to God to strike his opponents, the effect is one that suggests they have been struck by the invisible hand of God. The text emphasises this effect through repetition of πίπτω in the description of Ananias and Sapphira immediately falling down (5.5, 10). The spatial movement of descent can be further compared to some of the curse texts that repeatedly urge the deity to bring their opponents down, in social standing and in health. Spell text 101 pleas: ‘You must bring him down’ (208). Text 88 commands: ‘You must bring [them] down from their heights […]’ (188). This shared spatial dynamic reveals a desire for the spell-caster, or the power that they represent to be shown as of a higher, superior status.

Many of curse spells are characterised by the spell caster’s impression that their intended target has wronged him or herself. They frequently identify themselves as the victim in their opening passages. Text 28 begins: ‘[…] avenge me on the one who opposes me and on the one who has driven me from my place’ (51). Text 89 introduces its speaker with: ‘I am a poor widow [with] orphaned children and a burned… in my hand’ (189). Text 91 starts: ‘I am Jacob, a miserable, wretched person’ (192). Peter’s ‘curse’ contrasts to this sense of victimisation as he explicitly pronounces God to be the victim of the Ananias and Sapphira’s crime (5.4c). This conviction that God is the injured party affirms the text’s earlier description of God who, by his spirit, dwells in the community of believers (4.33). Thus, a sin against the community is ultimately against God.

An intriguing similarity between certain curse spells and Peter’s ‘curse’ is the belief that the spell-caster’s opponent is possessed by a demon. Text 88 says of its victim: ‘He is acting like a demon’ (187). Text 92 also suggests his opponent is behaving in a demonic manner by its instruction to, ‘[…] quickly afflict him with what a demon deserves’ (195). Whilst the Satan figure is not quite the same as a demon in the NT, Peter shares the concept that his opponent is filled by a malevolent force.

The two types of text also share a sense of urgency and desire for immediate action from the deity. The curse spells are almost all characterised by their demands to act quickly. Text 89 urges: ‘Bring judgement on our behalf, quickly’ (189). Text 90 (191), 91 (192), 108 (219) all echo this instruction with the adverb ‘quickly!’ Another common phrase is ‘At once, at once!’^[5] In Acts 4.32-5.11, as previously discussed, the text uses specific lexicon and participle moods to emphasise the immediate effect of Peter’s words. This shared emphasis on instant effect suggests that people in the ancient Mediterranean identified successful curses through their immediate impact, and that Luke-Acts depicts Ananias and Sapphira’s deaths as the direct effect of Peter’s words.

Through literary analysis of the Ananias and Sapphira pericope, considerations of the co-text of Acts and comparison with Greek and Coptic curse texts, we have explored what the language of judgement in Luke-Acts tell us about the text’s attitude towards opposition, and matters of deceit, money and ‘magic’.