A querist asks, “In Acts 8:26, it says that the area where Philip met the Ethiopian eunuch was desert. My question is, If the area was desert, how could there have been enough water available for Philip to have baptized the eunuch?”
Acts 8:26 states:
“Now an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip, saying, ‘Arise and go toward the south along the road which goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.’ This is desert.“
The term “desert” in the above passage signifies an empty or desolate place or uninhabited area. It does not refer to either a lack or an abundance of a water supply.
Compare Mark 6:35 ASV regarding the place where Jesus miraculously fed 5,000 folks and note the phrase, “The place is desert.” In a parallel account in John 6:10 NKJV, John documents that “there was much grass in the place.” This was obviously an area where there was enough rainfall for grass to grow.
Thus in Acts 8:26, there was enough water in that area for Philip to baptize the eunuch (Acts 8:36-38).
—Mike Riley, Gospel Snippets
Acts 8:26 states:“Now an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip, saying, ‘Arise and go toward the south along the road which goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.’ This is desert.“
The term “desert” in the above passage signifies an empty or desolate place or uninhabited area. It does not refer to either a lack or an abundance of a water supply.
Compare Mark 6:35 ASV regarding the place where Jesus miraculously fed 5,000 folks and note the phrase, “The place is desert.” In a parallel account in John 6:10 NKJV, John documents that “there was much grass in the place.” This was obviously an area where there was enough rainfall for grass to grow.
Thus in Acts 8:26, there was enough water in that area for Philip to baptize the eunuch (Acts 8:36-38).
—Mike Riley, Gospel Snippets
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