Ananias and Sapphira lie to God
Early Church · Draft · BSB
Content revision: 505ae75dd426c690 · No editorial review date recorded
Date: c. AD 30–35. Between Pentecost and the conversion of Saul; Acts gives no exact dates.
Ananias and his wife Sapphira sell a property but secretly keep part of the price while presenting the rest as the whole. Confronted by Peter for lying to the Holy Spirit, each falls dead, and great fear comes over the whole church.
Primary Scripture
5:1 Now a man named Ananias, together with his wife Sapphira, also sold a piece of property.
5:2 With his wife’s full knowledge, he kept back some of the proceeds for himself, but brought a portion and laid it at the apostles’ feet.
5:3 Then Peter said, “Ananias, how is it that Satan has filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and withhold some of the proceeds from the land?
5:4 Did it not belong to you before it was sold? And after it was sold, was it not at your disposal? How could you conceive such a deed in your heart? You have not lied to men, but to God!”
5:5 On hearing these words, Ananias fell down and died. And great fear came over all who heard what had happened.
5:6 Then the young men stepped forward, wrapped up his body, and carried him out and buried him.
5:7 About three hours later his wife also came in, unaware of what had happened.
5:8 “Tell me,” said Peter, “is this the price you and your husband got for the land?” “Yes,” she answered, “that is the price.”
5:9 “How could you agree to test the Spirit of the Lord?” Peter replied. “Look, the feet of the men who buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out also.”
5:10 At that instant she fell down at his feet and died. Then the young men came in and, finding her dead, carried her out and buried her beside her husband.
5:11 And great fear came over the whole church and all who heard about these events.
Location evidence
Event map marker: Identified site; [longitude, latitude] = [35.23494, 31.77744]. This is a teaching marker, not an exact event venue.
Jerusalem: Identified site. Coordinates [longitude, latitude]: [35.23494, 31.77744]. Classification source: rule.
Digital Atlas of the Roman Empire
Digital Atlas of the Roman Empire
Interpretation and reuse
Narrative order is a reading arrangement, not a proven chronology. Dates retain their stated uncertainty. An identified locality does not establish the exact venue or prove an event. Region extents and routes are illustrative, not surveyed boundaries or ancient roads. Draft material has not completed editorial review.
Record source: theographic (315)
Record source: editorial
Events and places adapted from Theographic Bible Metadata (github.com/robertrouse/theographic-bible-metadata), CC BY-SA 4.0. This adapted data is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Place coordinates from OpenBible.info Bible Geocoding Data, CC BY 4.0.
Berean Standard Bible (BSB), public domain. https://berean.bible/licensing.htm