Philip went down to the city of Samaria and proclaimed to them the Christ. And the crowds with one accord paid attention to what was being said by Philip, when they heard him and saw the signs that he did.
English Standard Version (ESV)
The verse highlights not just Philip's action, but the preparedness of the Samaritans, a people often at odds with the Jews. Jesus himself had previously laid groundwork there, making the "fields white for harvest" and setting the stage for Philip's proclamation of "the Christ."
Philip went down to the city of Samaria and proclaimed to them the Christ. And the crowds with one accord paid attention to what was being said by Philip, when they heard him and saw the signs that he did.
English Standard Version (ESV)
Following Stephen's martyrdom and the subsequent persecution that scattered believers from Jerusalem, Philip, one of the seven deacons, travels to Samaria. There, he begins proclaiming the message of Jesus Christ to the Samaritan people. This ministry in Samaria is significant because it marks a major step in the gospel's expansion beyond Jewish circles, building on Jesus' own earlier encounter with a Samaritan woman.
Philip, initially appointed to serve tables, becomes a powerful evangelist. What does this transition tell us about God's use of His people?
Philip's journey from a deacon tasked with practical service (Acts 6:5) to a dynamic evangelist (Acts 21:8) is a powerful testament to God's ability to use and elevate believers.
Jesus had already visited Samaria. Why was Philip's message so effective there?
Philip's successful ministry in Samaria wasn't out of the blue. It was a direct continuation of the groundwork laid by Jesus Himself.
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Philip proclaimed 'the Christ.' What does this specific phrasing reveal about his message?
The phrase 'proclaimed to them the Christ' (or 'the Christ' as some translations render it) carries significant weight.
Understand the original words
Christos · Greek Noun/Title
The 'Anointed One' (the Messiah); the title refers to Jesus as the fulfillment of Old Testament prophecy, the King and Savior sent by God to redeem His people.
ochlos · Greek Noun
A large group of people gathered together, often indicating a collective response or movement. In a biblical context, it frequently signifies a body of witnesses to divine actions or preaching.
prosechō · Greek Verb
To give heed or apply one's mind to something. It involves not just hearing, but actively focusing and responding to a message or authority.
sēmeion · Greek Noun
Acts of power that serve as outward evidence of a divine message or mission. In the New Testament, they point to the authority of the message and the presence of God's Kingdom.
Philip's mission to Samaria wasn't out of the blue; Jesus himself had previously sown seeds there. This mission highlights how the early church, spurred by persecution, began to expand its reach beyond Jerusalem, with deacons like Philip playing a crucial role in bringing the message of Christ to new people groups.
c. AD 30
Jesus Preaches in Samaria
Jesus engages in a significant conversation with a Samaritan woman at a well, leading many Samaritans in her city (likely Sychar) to believe in Him.
c. AD 34
Stephen's Martyrdom and Dispersion
The stoning of Stephen, a Hellenistic Jewish deacon, sparks a severe persecution against the Jerusalem church, causing believers, including deacons, to scatter throughout Judea and Samaria.
c. AD 34— this verse
Philip Preaches in Samaria
Philip, another Hellenistic deacon, travels to a city in Samaria and powerfully proclaims Jesus Christ, leading many to believe and be baptized.
c. AD 34
Apostles in Jerusalem Send Peter and John
Upon hearing of the revival in Samaria, the apostles in Jerusalem send Peter and John to the region to pray for the new believers to receive the Holy Spirit.
c. AD 34
Simon Magus's Sorcery and Baptism
Simon, a sorcerer who had greatly influenced Samaria, believes and is baptized alongside the others, but later attempts to buy the power to impart the Holy Spirit from Peter.
c. AD 34-36
Philip Travels South
After the events in Samaria, Philip is led by an angel to travel south to the desert road near Gaza, where he encounters and converts an Ethiopian eunuch.
c. AD 58-60
Paul's Visit to Philip
Years later, the Apostle Paul, accompanied by Luke, stays with Philip the evangelist and his daughters in Caesarea, likely hearing firsthand accounts of these early Samarian conversions.
This passage describes Jesus' own encounter with the Samaritan woman at the well, a pivotal moment where He reveals Himself as the Messiah and declares the fields are 'white for harvest,' setting the stage for Philip's later ministry in Samaria.
Acts 1:8Jesus promised the disciples they would be His witnesses 'in Samaria, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.' Philip's mission to Samaria is a direct fulfillment of this Great Commission.
Matthew 28:19-20Jesus' command to 'go and make disciples of all nations' is the overarching mandate for spreading the gospel, which Philip's preaching in Samaria exemplifies as the message moves beyond Jerusalem.
Isaiah 55:1This prophetic invitation to 'come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters' echoes the spiritual thirst found in Samaria, which Philip's proclamation of Christ aims to satisfy with God's living water.
Acts 21:8Philip is later identified as 'the evangelist,' a title that highlights his giftedness and ongoing role in proclaiming the gospel to diverse groups, confirming his mission in Samaria as part of a larger, Spirit-led ministry.
barnesActs 8:5: "Then Philip went down to the city of Samaria, and preached Christ unto them."
Then Philip - One of the seven deacons, Acts 6:5 . He is afterward called the "evangelist," Acts 21:8 . The city of Samaria - This does not mean a city whose "name" was Samaria, for no such city at that time existed. Samaria was a "region," Matthew 2:22. The ancient city Samaria, the capital of that region, had been destroyed by Hyrcanus, so completely as to leave no vestige of it remaining; and he "took aw…
expositorsActs 8:5: "Then Philip went down to the city of Samaria, and preached Christ unto them."
Chapter 17 SIMON MAGUS AND THE CONVERSION OF SAMARIA. Acts 8:5 ; Acts 8:9-10 THE object of the earlier part of this book of the Acts is to trace the steady, gradual development of the Church among the Jews, the evolution, never ceasing for a moment, of that principle of true catholic and universal life which the Master implanted within her, and which never ceased working till the narrow, prejudiced, illiber…
The verse highlights not just Philip's action, but the preparedness of the Samaritans, a people often at odds with the Jews. Jesus himself had previously laid groundwork there, making the "fields white for harvest" and setting the stage for Philip's proclamation of "the Christ."
Following Stephen's martyrdom and the subsequent persecution that scattered believers from Jerusalem, Philip, one of the seven deacons, travels to Samaria. There, he begins proclaiming the message of Jesus Christ to the Samaritan people. This ministry in Samaria is significant because it marks a major step in the gospel's expansion beyond Jewish circles, building on Jesus' own earlier encounter with a Samaritan woman.
Following Stephen's martyrdom and the subsequent persecution that scattered believers from Jerusalem, Philip, one of the seven deacons, travels to Samaria. There, he begins proclaiming the message of Jesus Christ to the Samaritan people. This ministry in Samaria is significant because it marks a major step in the gospel's expansion beyond Jewish circles, building on Jesus' own earlier encounter with a Samaritan woman.
"Philip went down to the city of Samaria and proclaimed to them the Christ. And the crowds with one accord paid attention to what was being said by Philip, when they heard him and saw the signs that he did." — The verse highlights not just Philip's action, but the preparedness of the Samaritans, a people often at odds with the Jews. Jesus himself had previously laid groundwork there, making the "fields w…
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Last reviewed October 2026