Acts 8:22

Acts 8:22. If perhaps the thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee. The words ‘ if perhaps ‘ were uttered owing to the very grave character of the sin which St. Peter believed the impostor magician to have been guilty of. The apostle was ignorant whether the state of heart which prompted such a request as Simon's was capable of true repentance, but he doubtless spoke these grave, solemn words to stir up any feelings of remorse which might still be lingering in that hard, covetous heart. Alford's comment here is a weighty one: ‘This verse is important taken in connection with John 20:23, “Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them,” etc., as showing how completely the apostles themselves referred the forgiveness of sins to, and left it in the sovereign power of God, and not to their own delegated power of absolution.'