Ananias and Sapphira

Ananias and his wife, Sapphira, sold some land, gave some of the money to the apostles, and kept the rest.

Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession, And kept back part of the price, his wife also being privy to it, and brought a certain part, and laid it at the apostles’ feet. Acts 5:1-2

The Bible doesn't say how much the land sold for or what percentage they kept or gave away.

But whatever the selling price may have been, the percentage of the donation wasn’t enough to satisfy Pe-ter. Or God.

Peter accused Ananias of getting his heart filled up with Satan and lying to the Holy Ghost. Why? Because Ananias didn’t give Peter all of the money from the sale of his property.

But Peter said, Ananias, why hath Satan filled thine heart to lie to the Holy Ghost, and to keep back part of the price of the land? … Why hast thou conceived this thing in thine heart? thou hast not lied unto men, but unto God. 5:3-4

I don’t know how Peter would know that Satan was involved in any of this. God must have told him. But what about this “lie to the Holy Ghost” thing? So far, Ananias hasn’t said a thing. Don’t your lips have to move when you lie?

Maybe not. Maybe you lie to the Holy Ghost every time you don’t give all of your money to the church.

In any case, Ananias fell over dead before getting to say a single word in his own defense.

Ananias hearing these words fell down, and gave up the ghost. 5:5

A few hours later, they brought in Sapphira, who didn’t yet know what had happened to her husband.

It was about the space of three hours after, when his wife, not knowing what was done, came in. 5:7

Peter asked her if the land sold for a certain price, and she said, yes, that was what the land sold for.

Peter answered unto her, Tell me whether ye sold the land for so much? And she said, Yea, for so much. 5:8

Then Peter asked her why she and her husband had tempted the Spirit of the Lord. And then, before she could answer, Peter told her that the guys who had just buried her husband were going to do the same to her.

Then Peter said unto her, How is it that ye have agreed together to tempt the Spirit of the Lord? behold, the feet of them which have buried thy husband are at the door, and shall carry thee out. 5:9

After hearing Peter’s words, she fell down dead. And the "young men" came in to bury her.

Then fell she down straightway at his feet, and yielded up the ghost: and the young men came in, and found her dead, and, carrying her forth, buried her by her husband. 5:10

And it scared the shekels out of everyone in the church.

And great fear came upon all the church, and upon as many as heard these things. 5:11