For I see that you are poisoned by bitterness and bound by iniquity” (Acts 8:20-23). Repent therefore of this your wickedness, and pray God if perhaps the thought of your heart may be forgiven you. Realizing that his motive was wrong, Peter strongly corrected Simon the Sorcerer, saying, “Your money perish with you, because you thought that the gift of God could be purchased with money! You have neither part nor portion in this matter, for your heart is not right in the sight of God. It was common for magicians to purchase tricks from one another, so Simon may have viewed the apostles as religious “magicians” or hucksters and was trying to purchase their “trick.” Perhaps he saw this as an opportunity to make more money or enhance his own reputation. Sadly, Simon’s request was based upon impure motives. Historically, this is the origin of the word “simony”-the buying or selling of a church office or an ecclesiastical power. Seeing that people received the Holy Spirit through “the laying on of the apostles’ hands,” Simon offered them money if they would give him power to give people the Holy Spirit ( verses 17-19). Since the people Philip baptized had not yet had hands laid on them for the receiving of the Holy Spirit, Peter and John came from Jerusalem to perform this important part of baptism ( verses 14-16). He “was amazed, seeing the miracles and signs which were done” through the power of God (verse 13). Simon was among those who believed and was also baptized. When people “believed Philip as he preached the things concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, both men and women were baptized” (verse 12). Simon the Sorcerer’s status was apparently threatened when Philip entered the city and preached the gospel of the Kingdom of God. The Samaritans viewed angels as “powers.”
Simon the Sorcerer may have claimed to be a revealing angel from God, or this could have been the origin of the gnostic doctrine of emanations or various spirit beings “emanating” from the Godhead. Vincent, Word Studies in the New Testament, commentary on Acts 8:10). “They believed Simon was an impersonated power of God” (M.R. Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament, commentary on Acts 8:10). “This ‘power’ was considered a spark of God himself” (A.T. The people of that city mistakenly assumed that he was “the great power of God” ( verse 10). Simon the Sorcerer had “bewitched” ( Acts 8:9, 11, King James Version) the people of Samaria “with his sorceries for a long time” ( verse 11). For all who do these things are an abomination to the LORD” (Deuteronomy 18:10-12). God told the ancient Israelites: “There shall not be found among you anyone who makes his son or his daughter pass through the fire, or one who practices witchcraft, or a soothsayer, or one who interprets omens, or a sorcerer, or one who conjures spells, or a medium, or a spiritist, or one who calls up the dead. This practice is specifically forbidden by God. It is a means of working magic with the assistance of the devil or evil spirits. Although the term “Magus” is not found in this passage, it is also an appropriate description since in Act 8:9 “the present participle mageúōn is used, and is translated … ‘used sorcery’” ( The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, 1947, “Simon Magus”). This story was updated to clarify that while the new policy is to take effect July 1, the practice's website continued to display an earlier message that patients would be admitted to Wilson.The Simon mentioned in Acts 8:9-24 is commonly called Simon the Sorcerer or Simon Magus. A United Health Services spokesperson could not be reached for comment. The message emailed to patients on Wednesday said "staying at the forefront of modern and effective health care requires us to make bold moves sometimes."Īn Endwell Family Physicians representative was unable to immediately answer detailed questions about the change. The website on Wednesday afternoon had not been updated to reflect the policy change coming this summer.Ī prominent post on the website continued to note "if hospitalization is required, our doctors will admit their patients exclusively to UHS -Wilson Memorial Regional Medical Center." It adds that "during your stay, one of our doctors will see you most days of your hospitalization." The Endwell Family Physicians website lists 15 doctors on the group's staff. The note said it was "not a decision we are making lightly." The move was made in light of "the local landscape of healthcare delivery, as well as new national standards of care." The letter indicated doctors with the practice have been seeing patients at Wilson since the group was formed in 1977.
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