Acts 8:20
But Peter said unto him, Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money. But Peter said unto him, Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money.
Peter rebuked Simon Magus when he offered money to buy the power to give the Holy Spirit by the laying on of hands. The gift he sought to purchase is the baptism of the Holy Ghost with power to work miracles, which cannot be bought but is given freely by God. That power was obtained by Christ at the infinite price of Himself and is given only to truly converted men and women who give themselves wholly to God and live free from selfishness and sin. No amount of money or generosity can purchase salvation, forgiveness, a place in the church, or entrance to heaven, which require repentance, faith, and thorough conversion and transformation. The rebuke exposed that Simon's heart was not right before God but in the gall of bitterness and bond of iniquity, and called him to repent and pray for forgiveness of the thought of his heart.
Simon's Offer and Rebuke
The account is that of Simon Magus, who had joined the disciples and was baptized, yet remained a false and unworthy believer among the early believers. His presence does not make Christianity untrue, nor does it justify discouragement over false brethren in the church. He illustrates tares growing with the wheat, professed believers who come to the banquet but do not eat the Word of life. He offered money to purchase miraculous power from the apostles, specifically power to confer the Spirit by laying on of hands. He sought supernatural power through money rather than receiving God's gift.
In seeking such power he belonged to the class who welcomed satanic influence to obtain it. Unlike demon-possessed sufferers, people of this kind had no conflict with the demons. His offer showed he treated God's sacred power as something to acquire for fame and wealth and worldly advantage. He valued God's gift as a way to gain material benefit, just as the man seeking his inheritance focused on temporal gain rather than spiritual truth.
Peter answered with holy indignation, condemning the thought that God's gift could be bought and declaring that Simon's money should perish with him. Peter's opposition exposed Simon's deceptions and thwarted his efforts against the gospel. The rebuke exposed that Simon's heart was not right in the sight of God and untouched by grace, being in the gall of bitterness and in the bond of iniquity. It called for repentance and prayer for forgiveness of the thought of the heart.
God's Gift Not For Sale
The gift of God in this verse is the baptism of the Holy Ghost, the Holy Spirit Himself and the power to work miracles, and it cannot be purchased with money. To think that what God gives freely can be bought is grave error and presumption, facing ruin and perishing with the money offered. Christ obtained the power of the Holy Spirit at the infinite price of Himself. It is given only to truly converted men and women who give themselves wholly to God, to chosen servants whose lives are free from selfishness and sin, and the Spirit then cooperates with them.
Money and generosity cannot purchase salvation, forgiveness, a position in the church, or entrance to heaven. Salvation requires repentance, faith, and diligent effort to resist and overcome sin. What is needed is conversion and transformation through a renewed mind and thorough change, without which one who relies on money cannot enter heaven. The same truth condemns the sale of papal pardons, for God's gift of forgiveness cannot be bought with money. Those confronted with that traffic were led to question whether they should seek pardon from God rather than try to purchase it from the pope.
The verse also warns against treating a spiritual gift as a means of material gain. It proves that some treat sacred eternal interests as common merchandise, valuing God's gift as a way to gain worldly wealth. Such sin calls for sharp testimonies that reveal it. Applied to the unworked cities, the verse means the work does not advance by money invested in large schools and extravagant buildings in a few centered places. It advances by Spirit-baptized workers, including men and women physicians, dividing and subdividing and spreading out into new cities to preach, educate other workers, and win souls.