Acts 8:9

“But there was a certain man called Simon, etc.] Who, as Justin Martyr f390 says, was a Samaritan, and of a village called Gitton; and so a Jewish writer f391 calls him Simeon, ynwrmçh, “the Samaritan”, a wizard: here is a but upon this new church, the success of the Gospel in this place, and the joy that was there; a man of great wickedness and sophistry plays the hypocrite, feigns himself a believer, and gets in among them; (See Gill on “<440501>Acts 5:1”), which beforetime in the same city used sorcery; who before Philip came thither, practised magic arts; wherefore he is commonly called “Simon Magus”, for he was a magician, who had learned diabolical arts, and used enchantments and…”

“used sorcery--magical arts. some great one . . . the great power of God--a sort of incarnation of divinity.”

“But there was a certain man called Simon - The fathers have written much respecting this man, and have given strange accounts of him; but nothing more is certainly known of him than is stated in this place. Rosenmuller and Kuinoel suppose him to have been a Simon mentioned by Josephus (Antiq., book 20, chapter 7, section 2), who was born in Cyprus. He was a magician, and was employed by Felix to persuade Drusilla to forsake her husband Azizus, and to marry Felix. But it is not very probable that this was the same person. (See the note in Whiston’s Josephus.) Simon Magus was probably a “Jew” or a “Samaritan,” who had addicted himself to the arts of magic, and who was much celebrated for it.…”

“A certain man - using magic - So there was such a thing as witchcraft once! In Asia at least, if not in Europe or America. Acts 8:12”

“8:9-24 Simon the sorcerer was a showman, dazzling the people of Samaria and making self-exalting claims. Simon’s attempt to obtain spiritual power through payment gave the name simony to the later corrupt practice of buying and selling ordination to church leadership (cp. 1 Tim 6:9-10). Peter strongly rebuked Simon’s wickedness.”

“used: Act 13:6, Act 16:16-18, Act 19:18-20; Exo 7:11, Exo 7:22, Exo 8:18, Exo 8:19, Exo 9:11; Lev 20:6; Deu 18:10-12; Ti2 3:8, Ti2 3:9; Rev 13:13, Rev 13:14, Rev 22:15 giving: Act 5:36; Joh 7:18; Th2 2:4; Ti2 3:2, Ti2 3:5; Pe2 2:18 Acts 8:10”