When Philip leaves Samaria, “an angel of the Lord” leads him to the road that runs down from Jerusalem to Gaza (8:26), where he meets an Ethiopian eunuch (8:26–40). The conversion of this Ethiopian is puzzling because Luke makes it clear that Cornelius is the first Gentile to be converted (10:1–48). Nevertheless, Luke’s focus here is not on the ethnic identity of the eunuch. He is designated once as an “Ethiopian” and an “important official” (8:27), but it is his status as a “eunuch” that is emphasized throughout this passage (8:27, 34, 36, 38–39). Luke’s inclusion of the conversion story of this eunuch is best understood in light of the wider restoration program that …