Acts 21:27

We have here Paul brought into a captivity which we are not likely to see the end of; for after this he is either hurried from one bar to another, or lies neglected, first in one prison and then in another, and can neither be tried nor bailed. When we see the beginning of a trouble, we know not either how long it will last or how it will issue.

I. We have here Paul seized, and laid hold on.

1. He was seized in the temple, when he was there attending the days of his purifying, and the solemn services of those days, Act 21:27. Formerly he had been well known in the temple, but now he had been so long in his travels abroad that he had become a stranger there; so that it was not till the seven days were almost ended that he was taken notice of by those that had an evil eye towards him. In the temple, where he should have been protected, as in a sanctuary, he was most violently set upon by those who did what they could to have his blood mingled with his sacrifices - in the temple, where he should have been welcomed as one of the greatest ornaments of it that ever had been there since the Lord of the temple left it. The temple, which they themselves pretended such a mighty zeal for, yet did they themselves thus profane. Thus is the church polluted by none more than by popish persecutors, under the colour of the church's name and interest.

2. The informers against him were the Jews of Asia, not those of Jerusalem - the Jews of the dispersion, who knew him best, and who were most exasperated against him. Those who seldom came up to worship at the temple in Jerusalem themselves, but contentedly lived at a distance from it, in pursuit of their private advantages, yet appeared most zealous for the temple, as if thereby they would atone for their habitual neglect of it.

3. The method they took was to raise the mob, and to incense them against him. They did not go to the high priest, or the magistrates of the city, with their charge (probably because they expected not to receive countenance from them), but they stirred up all the people, who were at this time more than ever disposed to any thing that was tumultuous and seditious, riotous and outrageous. Those are fittest to be employed against Christ and Christianity that are governed least by reason and most by passion; therefore Paul described the Jewish persecutors to be not only wicked, but absurd unreasonable men.

4. The arguments wherewith they exasperated the people against him were popular, but very false and unjust. They cried out, "Men of Israel, help. If you are indeed men of Israel, true-born Jews, that have a concern for your church and your country, now is your time to show it, by helping to seize an enemy to both." Thus they cried after him as after a thief (Job 30:5), or after a mad dog. Note, The enemies of Christianity, since they could never prove it to be an ill thing, have been always very industrious, right or wrong, to put it into an ill name, and so run it down by outrage and outcry. It had become men of Israel to help Paul, who preached up him who was so much the glory of his people Israel; yet here the popular fury will not allow them to be men of Israel, unless they will help against him. This was like, Stop thief, or Athaliah's cry, Treason, treason; what is wanting in right is made up in noise.

5. They charge upon him both bad doctrine and bad practice, and both against the Mosaic ritual.

(1.) They charge upon him bad doctrine; not only that he holds corrupt opinions himself, but that he vents and publishes them, though not here at Jerusalem, yet in other places, nay in all places, he teaches all men, every where; so artfully is the crime aggravated, as if, because he was an itinerant, he was a ubiquitary: "He spreads to the utmost of his power certain damnable and heretical positions," [1.] Against the people of the Jews. He had taught that Jews and Gentiles stand on the same level before God, and neither circumcision avails any thing nor uncircumcision; nay, he had taught against the unbelieving Jews that they were rejected (and therefore had separated from them and their synagogues), and this is interpreted to be speaking against the whole nation, as if no doubt but they were the people, and wisdom must die with them (Job 12:2), whereas God, though he had cast them off, yet had not cast away his people, Rom 11:1. They were Lo-ammi, not a people (Hos 1:9), and yet pretended to be the only people. Those commonly seem most jealous for the church's name that belong to it in name only. [2.] Against the law. His teaching men to believe the gospel as the end of the law, and the perfection of it, was interpreted his preaching against the law; whereas it was so far from making void the law that it established it, Rom 3:31. [3.] Against this place, the temple. Because he taught men to pray every where, he was reproached as an enemy to the temple, and perhaps because he sometimes mentioned the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple, and of the Jewish nation, which his Master had foretold. Paul had himself been active in persecuting Stephen, and putting him to death for words spoken against this holy place, and now the same thing is laid to his charge. He that was then made use of as the tool is now set up as the butt of Jewish rage and malice.

(2.) They charge upon him bad practices. To confirm their charge against him, as teaching people against this holy place, they charge it upon him that he had himself polluted it, and by an overt-act showed his contempt of it, and a design to make it common. He has brought Gentiles also into the temple, into the inner court of the temple, which none that were uncircumcised were admitted, under any pretence, to come into; there was written upon the wall that enclosed this inner court, in Greek and Latin, It is a capital crime for strangers to enter. - Josephus Antiq. 15.417. Paul was himself a Jew, and had right to enter into the court of the Jews. And they, seeing some with him there that joined with him in his devotions, concluded that Trophimus an Ephesian, who was a Gentile, was one of them. Why? Did they see him there? Truly no; but they had seen him with Paul in the streets of the city, which was no crime at all, and therefore they affirm that he was with Paul in the inner court of the temple, which was a heinous crime. They had seen him with him in the city, and therefore they supposed that Paul had brought him with him into the temple, which was utterly false. See here, [1.] Innocency is no fence against calumny and false accusation. It is no new thing for those that mean honestly, and act regularly, to have things laid to their charge which they know not, nor ever thought of. [2.] Evil men dig up mischief, and go far to seek proofs of their false accusations, as they did here, who, because they saw a Gentile with Paul in the city, will thence infer that he was with him in the temple. This was a strained innuendo indeed, yet by such unjust and groundless suggestions have wicked men thought to justify themselves in the most barbarous outrages committed upon the excellent ones of the earth. [3.] It is common for malicious people to improve that against those that are wise and good with which they thought to have obliged them and ingratiated themselves with them. Paul thought to recommend himself to their good opinion by going into the temple, he had not been so maligned by them. This is the genius of ill-nature; for my love, they are my adversaries, Psa 109:4; Psa 69:10.

We have Paul in danger of being pulled in pieces by the rabble. They will not be at the pains to have him before the high priest, or the sanhedrim; that is a roundabout way: the execution shall be of a piece with the prosecution, all unjust and irregular. They cannot prove the crime upon him, and therefore dare not bring him upon a fair trial; nay, so greedily do they thirst after his blood that they have not patience to proceed against him by a due course of law, though they were ever so sure to gain their point; and therefore, as those who neither feared God nor regarded man, they resolved to knock him on the head immediately.

1. All the city was in an uproar, Act 21:30. The people, who though they had little holiness themselves, yet had a mighty veneration for the holy place, when they heard a hue-and-cry from the temple, were up in arms presently, being resolved to stand by that with their lives and fortunes. All the city was moved, when they were called to from the temple, Men of Israel, help, with as much violence as if the old complaint were revived (Psa 79:1), O God, the heathen are come into thine inheritance, thy holy temple have they defiled. Just such a zeal the Jews here show for God's temple as the Ephesians did for Diana's temple, when Paul was informed against as an enemy to that (Act 19:29): The whole city was full of confusion. But God does not reckon himself at all honoured by those whose zeal for him transports them to such irregularities, and who, while they pretend to act for him, act in such a brutish barbarous manner.

2. They drew Paul out of the temple, and shut the doors between the outer and inner court of the temple, or perhaps the doors of the outer court. In dragging him furiously out of the temple, (1.) They showed a real detestation of him as one not fit to be suffered in the temple, nor to worship there, nor to be looked upon as a member of the Jewish nation; as if his sacrifice had been an abomination. (2.) They pretended a veneration for the temple; like that of good Jehoiada, who would not have Athaliah to be slain in the house of the Lord, Kg2 11:15. See how absurd these wicked men were; they condemned Paul for drawing people from the temple, and yet, when he himself was very devoutly worshipping in the temple, they drew him out of it. The officers of the temple shut the doors, either, [1.] Lest Paul should find means to get back and take hold of the horns of the altar, and so protect himself by that sanctuary from their rage. Or rather, [2.] Lest the crowd should by the running in of more to them be thrust back into the temple, and some outrage should be committed, to the profanation of that holy place. Those that made no conscience of doing so ill a thing as the murdering of a good man for well-doing, yet would be thought to scruple doing it in a holy place, or at a holy time: Not in the temple, as Not on the feast-day.

3. They went about to kill him (Act 21:31), for they fell a beating him (Act 21:32), resolving to beat him to death by blows without number, a punishment which the Jewish doctors allowed in some cases (not at all to the credit of their nation), and called the beating of the rebels. Now was Paul, like a lamb, thrown into a den of lions, and made an easy prey to them, and, no doubt, he was still of the same mind as when he said, I am ready not only to be bound, but to die at Jerusalem, to die so great a death.

III. We have here Paul rescued out of the hands of his Jewish enemies by a Roman enemy. 1. Tidings were brought of the tumult, and that the mob was up, to the chief captain of the band, the governor of the castle, or, whoever he was, the now commander-in-chief of the Roman forces that were quartered in Jerusalem. Somebody that was concerned not for Paul, but for the public peace and safety, gave this information to the colonel, who had always a jealous and watchful eye upon these tumultuous Jews, and he is the man that must be instrumental to save Paul's life, when never a friend he had was capable of doing him any service. 2. The tribune, or chief captain, got his forces together with all possible expedition, and went to suppress the mob: He took soldiers and centurions, and ran down to them. Now at the feast, as at other such solemn times, the guards were up, and the militia more within call than at other times, and so he had them near at hand, and he ran down unto the multitude; for at such times delays are dangerous. Sedition must be crushed at first, lest it grow headstrong. 3. The very sight of the Roman general frightened them from beating Paul; for they knew they were doing what they could not justify, and were in danger of being called in question for this day's uproar, as the town clerk told the Ephesians. They were deterred from that by the power of the Romans from which they ought to have been restrained by the justice of God and the dread of his wrath. Note, God often makes the earth to help the woman (Rev 12:16), and those to be a protection to his people who yet have no affection for his people; they have only a compassion for sufferers, and are zealous for the public peace. The shepherd makes use even of his dogs for the defence of his sheep. It is Streso's comparison here. See here how these wicked people were frightened away at the very sight of the chief captain; for the king that sitteth on the throne of judgment scattereth away all evil with his eyes. The governor takes him into custody. He rescued him, not out of a concern for him, because he thought him innocent, but out of a concern for justice, because he ought not to be put to death without trial; and because he knew not how dangerous the consequence might be to the Roman government of such tumultuous proceedings were not timely suppressed, nor what such an outrageous people might do if once they knew their own strength: he therefore takes Paul out of the hands of the mob into the hands of the law (v. 33): He took him, and commanded him to be bound with two chains, that the people might be satisfied he did not intend to discharge him, but to examine him, for he demanded of those who were so eager against him who he was, and what he had done. This violent taking of him out of the hands of the multitude, though there was all the reason in the world for it, yet they laid to the charge of the chief captain as his crime (Act 24:7): The chief captain Lysias came with great violence, and took him out of our hands, which refers to this rescue as appears by comparing Act 23:27, Act 23:28, where the chief captain gives an account of it to Felix.

IV. The provision which the chief captain made, with much ado, to bring Paul to speak for himself. One had almost as good enter into a struggle with the winds and the waves, as with such a mob as was here got together; and yet Paul made a shift to get liberty of speech among them.

1. There was no knowing the sense of the people; for when the chief captain enquired concerning Paul, having perhaps never heard of his name before (such strangers were the great ones to the excellent ones of the earth, and affected to be so), some cried one thing, and some another, among the multitude; so that it was impossible for the chief captain to know their mind, when really they knew not either one another's mind or their own, when every one pretended to give the sense of the whole body. Those that will hearken to the clamours of the multitude will know nothing for a certainty, any more than the builders of Babel, when their tongues were confounded.

2. There was no quelling the rage and fury of the people; for when the chief captain commanded that Paul should be carried into the castle, the tower of Antonia, where the Roman soldiers kept garrison, near the temple, the soldiers themselves had much ado to get him safely thither out of the noise, the people were so violent (Act 21:35): When he came upon the stairs, leading up to the castle, the soldiers were forced to take him up in their arms, and carry him (which they might easily do, for he was a little man, and his bodily presence weak), to keep him from the people, who would have pulled him limb from limb if they could. When they could not reach him with their cruel hands, they followed him with their sharp arrows, even bitter words: They followed, crying, Away with him, Act 21:36. See how the most excellent persons and things are often run down by a popular clamour. Christ himself was so, with, Crucify him, crucify him, though they could not say what evil he had done. Take him out of the land of the living (so the ancients expound it), chase him out of the world.

3. Paul at length begged leave of the chief captain to speak to him (Act 21:37): As he was to be led into the castle, with a great deal of calmness and composedness in himself, and a great deal of mildness and deference to those about him, he said unto the chief captain, "May I speak unto thee? Will it be no offence, nor construed as a breach of rule, if I give thee some account of myself, since my persecutors can give no account of me?" What a humble modest question was this! Paul knew how to speak to the greatest of men, and had many a time spoken to his betters, yet he humbly begs to leave to speak to this commander, and will not speak till he has obtained leave: May I speak unto thee?

4. The chief captain tells him what notion he had of him: Canst thou speak Greek? I am surprised to hear thee speak a learned language; for, Art not thou that Egyptian who made an uproar? The Jews made the uproar, and then would have it thought that Paul had given them occasion for it, by beginning first; for probably some of them whispered this in the ear of the chief captain. See what false mistaken notions of good people and good ministers many run away with, and will not be at the pains to have the mistake rectified. It seems, there had lately been an insurrection somewhere in that country, headed by an Egyptian, who took on him to be a prophet. Josephus mentions this story, that "an Egyptian raised a seditious party, promised to show them the fall of the walls of Jerusalem from the mount of Olives, and that they should enter the city upon the ruins." The captain here says that he led out into the wilderness four thousand men that were murderers - desperadoes, banditti, raparees, cut-throats. What a degeneracy was there in the Jewish nation, when there were found there so many that had such a character, and could be drawn into such an attempt upon the public peace! But Josephus says that "Felix the Roman president went out against them, killed four hundred, and took two hundred prisoners, and the rest were dispersed." - Antiq. 20.171; Wars 2.263. And Eusebius speaks of it, Hist. 2:20. It happened in the thirteenth year of Claudius, a little before those days, about three years ago. The ringleader of this rebellion, it seems, had made his escape, and the chief captain concluded that one who lay under so great an odium as Paul seemed to lie under, and against whom there was so great an outcry, could not be a criminal of less figure than this Egyptian. See how good men are exposed to ill-will by mistake.

5. Paul rectifies his mistake concerning him, by informing him particularly what he was; not such a vagabond, a scoundrel, a rake, as that Egyptian, who could give no good account of himself. No: I am a man who is a Jew originally, and no Egyptian - a Jew both by nation and religion; I am of Tarsus, a city of Cilicia, of honest parents and a liberal education (Tarsus was a university), and, besides that, a citizen of no mean city. Whether he means Tarsus or Rome is not certain; they were neither of them mean cities, and he was a freeman of both. Though the chief captain had put him under such an invidious suspicion, that he was that Egyptian, he kept his temper, did not break out into any passionate exclamations against the times he lived in or the men he had to do with, did not render railing for railing, but mildly denied the charge, and owned what he was.

6. He humbly desired a permission from the chief captain, whose prisoner he now was, to speak to the people. He does not demand it as a debt, though he might have done so, but sues for it as a favour, which he will be thankful for: I beseech thee, suffer me to speak to the people. The chief captain rescued him with no other design than to give him a fair hearing. Now, to show that his cause needs no art to give it a plausible colour, he desires he may have leave immediately to defend himself; for it needed no more than to be set in a true light; nor did he depend only on the goodness of his cause, but upon the goodness and fidelity of his patron, and that promise of his to all his advocates, that it should be given them in that same hour what they should speak.

7. He obtained leave to plead his own cause, for he needed not to have counsel assigned him, when the Spirit of the Father was ready to dictate to him, Mat 10:20. The chief captain gave him license (Act 21:40), so that now he could speak with a good grace, and with the more courage; he had, I will not say that favour, but that justice, done him by the chief captain, which he could not obtain from his countrymen the Jews; for they would not hear him, but the captain would, though it were but to satisfy his curiosity. This licence being obtained, (1.) The people were attentive to hear: Paul stood on the stairs, which gave a little man like Zaccheus some advantage, and consequently some boldness, in delivering himself. A sorry pulpit it was, and yet better than none; it served the purpose, though it was not, like Ezra's pulpit of wood, made for the purpose. There he beckoned with the hand unto the people, made signs to them to be quiet and to have a little patience, for he had something to say to them; and so far he gained his point that every one cried hush to his neighbour, and there was made a profound silence. Probably the chief captain also intimated his charge to all manner of people to keep silence; if the people were not required to give audience, it was to no purpose at all that Paul was allowed to speak. When the cause of Christ and his gospel is to be pleaded, there ought to be a great silence, that we may give the more earnest heed, and all little enough. (2.) Paul addressed himself to speak, well assured that he was serving the interest of Christ's kingdom as truly and effectually as if he had been preaching in the synagogue: he spoke unto them in the Hebrew tongue, that is, in their own vulgar tongue, which was the language of their country, to which he hereby owned not only an abiding relation, but an abiding respect.

Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Act_21:27-40

And when the seven days were almost ended the Jews which were of Asia … stirred up all the people.

Paul in the temple

1. Unholy zeal is more easily occasioned than good works (Act_21:27-30).

2. Religious accusations are frequently the result of excitement, and thus liable to be unjust. Giving a new, spiritual interpretation to old rites, customs, etc., is by many stamped as desecration and unbelief (Act_21:28).

3. Enthusiastic devotion to duty may entail misapprehension and inconvenience (verse 27-30).

4. By their endorsements of the deeds of the past men show themselves the children of their fathers either for good or for evil (Act_21:36).

5. In the best of causes one may be sometimes mistaken for an agent of the worst (Act_21:38; Mat_12:24).

6. Political indifference may be more equitable than ecclesiastical jealousy and rancour (Act_21:31-40).

7. God overrules all events in the lives of His servants for the highest purposes. (A. F. Muir, M. A.)

Paul in the storm at Jerusalem

The apostle, at a later period, had to encounter a great storm on the open sea; but that was hardly more violent than what now arose against him on dry land, within the secure walls of Jerusalem, among his own people. Yet here, as there, the almighty arm of God protects and rescues him.

I. The outbreak of the storm. Suddenly and not to be reckoned on, as often a storm occurs in nature, this storm breaks out among the people. The tempest which Paul had seen from a distance at Miletus, and which was predicted to him on the way in a more and more threatening manner, discharges itself on a sudden, and in a place least to be expected, in the temple, while Paul sought to satisfy the zealots of the law.

II. The raging of the storm. The storm of the passions increases continually, the popular fury heaves and swells as a raging sea, and threatens to swallow up the servant of God.

III. The stilling of the storm. He who formerly rebuked the wind and waves on the Lake of Gennesareth, so that there was a great calm, speaks to the raging sea--Hitherto shalt thou come, but no farther. The Roman tribune has to open the harbour of refuge to the apostle; and he himself with calm composure beckons to the people so that they become still. (K. Gerok.)

Paul accused of the Jews

I. The accusation brought against Paul.

1. Its nature.

2. The agents.

II. Its reasons.

1. The ostensible.

2. The real.

III. Its resemblance to the charge preferred against Christ--polluting the temple.

IV. Its results. Conclusion:--Learn--

1. That there are always persons ready to attack the servants of God.

2. That these attacks are made on any pretext however slight.

3. That we should Hot be dismayed, but rely on God for protection. (J. H. Tasson.)

Paul assailed

Paul again in trouble! What a magnetism he had to draw to himself distresses. Nature felt the strange attraction, and gave him her perils, storms, and shipwrecks. All kinds of men hastened with all kinds of mischief. This trouble presents some new elements. It came not from preaching Christ, but through conciliating Jews. It took place in the temple, not in some foreign synagogue or market place. The events of this passage are the riot, the rescue, the plea. Looking for practical suggestions, we note--

I. The divisions in the Church. As we get a pitiable sort of comfort in finding that even prophets and apostles were men of like passions with ourselves, so with the failures of the early Church. We have no hindrances which they did not overcome. That fair picture of brotherly love and self-forgetfulness which we saw at Pentecost is spoiled by a clique determined to rule or ruin. The Judaising party are chargeable with Pauls captivity in Cesarea, his shipwrecks, his imprisonment at Rome, and ultimately his death. The dangers of heresy and innovations are understood, but less is said of the mischiefs of an unwise conservatism--a dogged obstinacy in clinging to old methods and resisting those who long to bring the work of the Church to the demands of the times. Usually they are a minority who oppose; they alone have feelings to be considered, convictions to be respected; and usually they have their way, to the injury of the Church and the honour of those who sacrifice feeling and judgment to the desire for peace. Yet even peace can be purchased too dearly.

II. An overruling providence. Since God has chosen to conduct His kingdom on earth through men, He must continually be at hand to wrest some advantage out of their inevitable errors. The nations sin had brought it under the Roman power; but had there been only Jewish authority in Jerusalem that day there had been no rescue for Paul. Heathen Rome is under the King of kings. Its power protects His apostle, gets the gospel a hearing before rulers, and gives the preacher his desired opportunity to visit the worlds capital.

III. The strength of believers. They glory in tribulation. This whole scene rebukes the thought that we can judge Gods feelings toward us, by the ease or painfulness of our life. We want an ungodly world to act in the ways of the millennium. What are we, that when disaster comes we sit down and cry despairingly, God has forgotten me? Have we fared like the chief apostle? Have we been smitten like Christ? We are nearest the Saviour in our sorest need, and rest absolutely on the everlasting arms only when all other help has given way. Then come peace and assurance which we have vainly tried to gain in easier times. Then, too, our own resources get a fresh power. The most beset and helpless man of all here is the apostle; but do what they will to him, he is the one calm, masterful soul there. His knowledge, his experience of mobs, a bearing both courteous and dignified, give him control of the stolid and furious alike. (C. M. Southgate.)

Paul assailed

I. Suffering assault.

1. When religion degenerates into a matter of rites and ceremonies, there is manifested very great zeal for forms, and very little zeal for truth.

2. When the Jews planned to convict Paul of false teaching, they indulged in a great deal of falsehood that they might accomplish their object.

3. When the Jews merely supposed that Paul had brought Trophimus into the temple, they accused the apostle before the people without the least hint that they were basing their charge on a mere supposition.

4. When the people heard, they ran together without further invitation. Meetings called for the worst purposes usually need the least advertising.

5. When Paul was dragged out, the doors Were shut. The murderous bloodthirsty Jews were so afraid that some microscopic temple ordinance might be polluted.

6. When the mob had beaten Paul, and attempted to kill him, the tidings speedily reached the police station that something was the matter. The ancient police officer seems not to have slept as serenely as the modern police officer does.

7. When it is only a poor persecuted apostle, or street preacher, or member of the Salvation Army, who is being assaulted, it is unusual for the worlds police forces to be so quick in learning of the disturbance.

II. Suffering arrest.

1. One may wear chains, and still not be a felon or a slave.

2. One may be compelled to wear chains, not to keep him from escaping, but to help him to escape. Thus Paul wore them.

3. One may enter prison walls, and not be a convict. Paul was never convicted of anything worse than of utter fearlessness in duty doing.

4. One may be protected from two classes of enemies by their mutual hatred of one another. Thus was Paul saved from the hostile Jews by the indifferent Romans.

5. One may be hustled into safety by the very violence of the attacks upon him. Thus the mob crowded Paul, borne in the soldiers arms, within the castle.

6. One and the same evil cry meg the ears of the Divine Master and of His great apostle--Away with him.

III. Suffered to speak.

1. After the worlds police forces do learn of a disturbance, they are prone to rush out and mistake the harmless, defenceless, unresisting apostle as the dangerous leader of four thousand bloodthirsty assassins!

2. After all, the Apostle Paul is not as defenceless as he seems. He has all the resources of Christian bravery, and God is on his side.

3. After he has been roughly treated by the foes of Christ, the true disciple of Christ still shows no disposition to run away, but remains to address the rabble.

4. After a fully consecrated heart, nothing is more desirable in a Christian worker than a clear head and steady nerves.

5. After Paul had done his duty, he let God take care of the consequences, and he evidently cared more for the safety of the cause than he did for his own security. (S. S. Times.)

Pauls arrest

Here we see--

I. The genius of religious intolerance. Three things come out which always characterise this:--

1. Cunning--indicated in the watchword, Men of Israel, help! hereby naively intimating that Paul was an enemy to Israel, and that all should make a common cause in crushing him. Religious bigotry ever works by artifice and insinuation.

2. Falsehood.

(1) It fabricates false allegations (verse 28). This was all a spiteful fiction.

(a) Did Paul teach all men everywhere against the people? It is true he denounced their bigotry, and exclusiveness; but never their race, and their high distinctions.

(b) Did he ever disparage the law? He taught that its ceremonies were not binding upon Gentile disciples, nor of eternal obligation even unto the Jew; but always displayed a profound regard for it as a Divine institution, the glory of the ancient world.

(c) Did he ever speak against this place? He taught that God dwelt not in temples made with hands; but never a word did he utter in dishonour of the temple.

(d) Did he ever bring Greeks into the temple, and pollute the holy place? No; they only supposed that he did--they perhaps saw Paul walking in the streets with Trophimus, and rushed to this conjecture.

(2) But whilst all those charges are groundless, they bear testimony to Pauls--

(a) Notoriety. This is the man; implying that he is well known, and that none require any further particulars. This Paul has in a few years painted his image on the imagination of the Jewish people.

(b) Industry. He taught all men, everywhere. Thus, they unwittingly confirmed the apostles own description of his labours, and also his biographers account of his marvellous activity.

(c) Power. Had he been obscure and of feeble influence, they would have spoken and acted differently. They felt, he was a man of such colossal influence as required the force of a whole nation to confine.

3. Violence. Religious intolerance does not argue, for it lacks an intelligent faith in its own cause. It has, therefore, ever had recourse to fraud and force.

II. The genius of a mob assembly. Men are pretty well the same in all ages. The mob gathered in the streets of Jerusalem evinced just those things which mobs show now in Paris, New York, or London. Here is--

1. Credulousness. The false charges were accepted without any inquiry. All the city was moved. Man is naturally a credulous animal, and this propensity gets intensity in association with numbers. Hence what even a credulous man will not believe when alone, he readily accepts from the lip of a demagogue. Men accept creeds in churches which they repudiate in private discussion. Mobs will swallow whatever is offered.

2. Senselessness. Some cried one thing, and some another. The mob at Ephesus (Act_19:32) acted in the same way. A sad sight this. It is this senselessness that makes the opinions of mobs so worthless, their movements so reckless, and their existence so dangerous.

3. Contagiousness. The people ran together, and when they came together their hearts surged with the same common passions. One mans thought, whether good or bad, may influence a nation. Conclusion. Note--

1. The great mixture of characters in social life. Here are Evangelical Christians, Asiatic Jews, Romans, Paul.

2. The great advantage of civil government.

3. The antagonism of the depraved heart to Christianity. (D. Thomas, D. D.)

Paul at Jerusalem

Pauls fifth and final visit to Jerusalem, a chief scene of which this passage depicts, was in the highest degree dramatic. He now saw the Jewish capital for the last time. He had come with the noble object of carrying a contribution from the Gentile Christians in Macedonia and Achaia to the poor among the Jewish mother Church. One of the three leading Hebrew festivals, Pentecost, was in progress. He now met James the brother of Jesus. He magnanimously took upon himself the Nazaritic vow. He conspicuously showed his remarkable tact in addressing a frenzied mob. In a most picturesque situation he declared his Roman citizenship. The scene with which we particularly have to do was the meeting place of Roman power, of Jewish bigotry, and of Christian consecration. The passage that we are to study introduces us to Paul when he was about completing the seven days of the Nazaritic vow, which he had willingly entered into for the sake of mollifying the prejudice against him of the believing Jews in Jerusalem. The Jews from Asia had, from their point of view, abundant reason for attacking Paul. Asia, in its New Testament use, was a narrow strip of Asia Minor that bordered on the AEgean Sea. Of this district Ephesus was the chief city, and in Ephesus Paul had recently closed a most astonishing three years ministry. He turned the world upside down there. In the best meaning of the word his preaching was sensational. It was no wonder, then, that the Jews from Asia, stung by the recollection of the triumphs of that Ephesian ministry from which their ranks had so seriously suffered, were swift to wreak their vengeance upon the hated offender now that they had opportunity. This experience of Paul at Jerusalem emphasises two or three lessons of permanent value, which we shall now consider.

I. An aggressive Christianity encounters afflictions. If Jesus Christ has made anything clear it is surely this, that the loyalty of His disciples to Himself will provoke persecution. With a noble frankness, worthy of all admiration, He warned all would be disciples of this inevitable fact. I came not to send peace but a sword. Behold, I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves. If His precepts were thus writ large and clear in His own example, why should His disciples expect to escape? Paul followed his Lord in both teaching and precept. He wrote, All that would live godly in Christ Jesus shall suffer persecution. Persecution has been the common lot of pronounced ambassadors of Christ, and, with shame be it said, that persecution has in many cases had origin with the so-called people of God themselves. Chrysostom, Savonarola, Huss, Wycliffe, Luther, Wesley, Whitefield, Edwards, Hannington, the Waldenses, the Huguenots, the Covenanters, the Pilgrims: how ample was their heritage of persecution, and with what sublime heroism did they receive it! The suffering of affliction for Christs sake is inevitable. Why it is so Jesus clearly stated to His unbelieving brothers, as He was about to start to Jerusalem to attend the last Feast of Tabernacles in His earthly ministry. The world cannot hate you, but Me it hateth, because I testify of it that its works are evil. This was the real reason of Pauls terrible treatment at Jerusalem at the hands of the unbelieving Jews from Asia, and it has been the spring of all the persecution of Christs followers the Christian ages through. Persecution is as irrational as it is inevitable. Those Asiatic Jews incited the multitude against Paul on wholly false charges. Listen to them. This is the man that teacheth all men everywhere against the people, and the law, and this place; and moreover he brought Greeks also into the temple, and hath defiled this holy place. Every count in this indictment was untrue. At the very moment in which they preferred it Pauls course as to the Nazarite vow proved its utter falsity.

II. Afflictions manifest the depth of Christian happiness. Gods people are a happy people. Christs disciples sing for joy in the night of their tribulations, since Christ Himself, who is their Life, possessed a serene joy that no afflictions could ruffle. So strong was His faith in His Father and His love for Him, that these yielded Him a peace whose tranquil deeps the cruel and unrelenting persecution of Pharisee and Sadducee had no power to disturb. The kingdom of God is joy and peace in the Holy Ghost. Pauls experience of his Lords love was yet so delightful that he yearned to tell the glad tidings to his very murderers, saying to the commander, I beseech thee, give me leave to speak unto the people.

III. Afflictions prove the strength of Christian purpose. They both put it to the test and make it evident. Tribulation worketh patience, and patience approvedness or tried character, and tried character hope. The crowning glory of Jesus was a glory of the will in the face of a relentless persecution that finally sent Him to the Cross. How strikingly this appears in Lukes description of Him, He set His face to go to Jerusalem. Jesus reign over a human soul culminates in the will. Unless He is king there He is no king at all. The history of His influence over men has shown how splendidly He has commanded the will energy of His true disciples in the development of such traits of character as fortitude, endurance, heroism, those virtues which are essentially martial in their temper and make their possessors terrible as an army with banners. These soldierly qualities thrive under persecution. They seem unable to come to their best quality without it. Pauls last journey to Jerusalem and its climax in the scene in the temple were among the most convincing evidences of will triumph in the midst of crushing afflictions that the annals of heroism furnish. The real heroes of the world are not the Alexanders, the Hannibals, the Caesars, the Napoleons, but Jesus, Paul, Ambrose, Augustine, Simeon, Brainerd, Carey, Mackay. These, and such as these, display the most exalted courage, confronting foes more invincible and threatening than any those great military chieftains ever faced on field s of carnage. The lesson for us of our study of Paul at Jerusalem is this: It sounds out a clarion call to the disciples of Jesus in this generation, in all Christian lands, for fidelity. In our time the love of temporal comfort is almost sovereign. Our sense life is in sore peril of becoming insubordinate by the encouraging environment in which it passes its days. Our civilisation is a selfish civilisation. It is very easy to live a luxurious life. It is very hard to live a self-denying life for Jesus Christs sake. The apostle Paul, that good soldier of Jesus Christ, thus owned his loyalty to the Captain of his salvation, I am ready to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus. (J. M. English, D. D.)

Paul at Jerusalem

Pauls attitude towards the Jewish law must be taken into account in order to understand the reason for the tumult at Jerusalem and the injustice of those who led it. Paul spoke as vigorously as one could speak against the law as a means of salvation. At the same time Paul was a Jew with the most intense national feeling. So much did he love his brother Israelites that he could almost have wished himself accursed from God if thereby they might be saved. So far as his fellow Christians were concerned, Paul held that their relation to the law should be determined by their own antecedents. If a man were born a Gentile, Paul would not counsel him to learn Jewish religious habits. If a man was born a Jew, however, there was no harm in his keeping the old law so long as it was understood not to have saving power. When Paul came to Jerusalem in the year 58 A.D., he found he had been preceded by a report that he was utterly opposed to Jewish Christians observing any of the old Jewish habits, and that he tried to turn them from them. The episode suggests study in four directions.

I. Paul.

1. He was truly a lover of his own people. Wherever he went he sought them out first, not only because strategically this was wisest, but because he truly liked to be with them. He was never above feeling satisfaction in the thought that he had been born a Jew. He loved to go to the feasts at the capital. Undoubtedly Paul had more real sympathy with Jewish religious ideas than many of those in the crowd who condemned him.

2. There was a possibility, we might safely say a certainty, that Pauls position would be misunderstood. For while he kept up his Jewish habits it was not because he thought (as the Jews thought) that they had saving power. They were external matters connected chiefly with ways of living and ways of worshipping. They were not really essential to the religious life, but only helpful in it, if one thought them helpful and used them aright. Among Gentiles Paul did not observe them. The Jews looked upon them as necessary for all. In a certain limited sense Paul stood by Jewish habits. And yet his removing them from the class of necessaries to the class of things optional was undoubtedly the first step towards their abolition. Pauls position thus had such complex relations that it was difficult to be understood and pretty certain to be misrepresented.

3. His immediate intention in the matter which brought him into difficulty was good. He had no intention towards the Jews. He was not trying to conciliate them. His mind was upon the thousands of Jews who had become Christians (verse 20) who were still zealous for the law, i.e., kept up faithfully Jewish habits of living. For them Paul held that this was perfectly right (so long, of course, as they did not ascribe saving power to such habits). He bad been reported as taking the position that they were wrong. In order to put himself into cordial relations with them and to reassure them concerning himself, he undertook the open performance of a vow. His design in the matter was wholly honourable and kind.

II. The disturbers.

1. Their motive was hatred towards Paul. They came down from Ephesus full of their experiences of Pauls troubles there. At Ephesus they had been thwarted. It was not a Jewish city. At Ephesus Paul had some chance of justice, and the Jews were hopeless of thwarting him. At Jerusalem the tables were turned. There Jewish sentiment was not only enormously preponderant, it was also intense beyond words.

2. They carried out their purpose by spreading skilful misrepresentations of Pauls position. This charge was a deft combination of truth and falsehood, For the wickedest lie is not that which is downright, for that can easily be disproven, but that which is subtly, insinuatingly exaggerative, where the admission of the innocent element of truth which lies at its foundation puts the man who is repelling it in the attitude of a culprit. Paul had not taught against the Jews by any means; he had honoured them everywhere; he had proclaimed himself a Jew. But of course he had said that being a Jew would not save one. The things alleged against Paul had back of them something which he would have had to admit as true. But it was exaggerated, misinterpreted, and supplemented by an absolute lie.

3. The strength of the attack against Paul lay in its appeal to the religious feelings of the crowd. That which was best in them was used for the lowest ends. Nothing is more awful in human nature than the possibility of crime in the name of religion; and how frequently it has darkened the page of history. And some people are so indiscriminating as to lay the blame of all this upon religion. It is as just to condemn the real coin for the existence of the counterfeit.

III. The crowd.

1. They accepted as true the lies of the Ephesian Jews. They had courts whose business it was to investigate such offences as were alleged against Paul. Without investigation, without so much as a question, they accepted as true what might easily have been shown to be false.

2. Just as readily they accepted the motives of the Ephesian Jews as honourable. What sanctity! What zeal for the temple of the Lord! And all the time the real motive of these scheming Ephesians was nothing more than vile, unscrupulous hatred.

3. They were already prejudiced against him. The words of the Ephesians, This is the man (verse 28), shows that Paul was known by reputation. The people had their minds already made up concerning him. They did not want investigation upon his case. Again, as often before, Jerusalem knew not the day of her visitation. In her sinful prejudice she was ready, consistently with her attitude all through history, to slay the best of her sons.

IV. The outcome.

1. God was a factor at work upon which the Jews were not counting. Those whom neither the majesty of God nor pious respect for the temple could restrain from madness, respect for a profane man now subdues (Calvin). And in the conduct of that man the God whom they so impiously disregarded was at work. Thus far could their madness go and no farther. His word, which can check the mighty ocean, put its restraint upon the wrath of men.

2. An immediate result for good was brought about, in that Paul had an opportunity to address the multitude. Such an opportunity he might have sought long and in vain.

3. The riot in the temple had a bearing far off in the future. The testimony at Rome was made possible by the riot at ,Jerusalem. And so the wrath of man ministered to the praise of God. The Jews sought to kill Paul, and they succeeded in giving him opportunity to hold up the Cross before the Lord of the world.

V. Final lessons.

1. Our failures as well as our successes have their place in Gods plan. Paul was trying to conciliate some of his fellow Christians when he fell into trouble. God not only exchanges our failures for success, He makes them means of success.

2. Inferences from others actions are always dangerous. The Jews imputed to Paul motives that did not belong to him. They were too sure of the accuracy of their own reasoning ability. Let us be careful how we put meanings into others conduct.

3. A multitude is a dangerous leader. It is good advice to keep always out of crowds. Beware of the multitude. Serve thou God and Him only. (D. J. Burtell, D. D.)

Paul at Jerusalem

The Church at Jerusalem sheltered in its bosom a Pharisaic faction which continually strove to turn Christianity into a sect of Judaism. A large proportion of its membership was very weak and imperfect. The law had a strong hold upon them, and they were only beginners in the gospel. They could be easily prejudiced against Paul. Hence Pauls attempt to forestall prejudice by accompanying four Jewish Christians, who were under a Nazaritic vow, to the temple, and paying for them the expenses attendant upon the termination of their vow. As he proceeded with the four Christian Nazarites into the temple, doubtless his course was wholly successful, so far as concerned the great body of the Church at Jerusalem; but the great annual feasts attracted multitudes from every land. Many of these had known Paul as the eloquent preacher of Christ who had successfully met them in many a field of argument and won hundreds to his following. Malice and revenge are swift to find opportunity. They are not careful to learn all the facts. A great soul on an errand for God does not lose self-possession, however great the commotion. Paul at once saw the chief captains command of the situation and the way to his respect. He knew how to avail himself of the resources for safety in his own scholarship, his birth place, and nationality. One moment he stands before the chief captain clothed with dignity, despite his chains; the next, his frenzied murderers are hushed as he calmly looks down upon them from the castle stairs.

I. The unconscious ministry of the powers of this world. Rome knew nothing of Jesus save as a peasant disturber of the peace and something of a fanatic. It knew nothing of Paul, and cared nothing for the heroism and devotion of his splendid apostleship. Rome was bound, hand and foot, by debasing idolatry; but a bodyguard of invisible angels could not have done more to save the great apostle for continued ministry, for those inspired epistles from Neros dungeons, and for an honourable martyrdom which should set its seal of dignity to an unparalleled life. So, in all the years, human schemes, with a horizon wholly confined to earth, are unfailing servitors of Divine plans which span the ages.

II. Force has an indispensable place in the divine economy. What could persuasion have done with those Jewish zealots, fired with murderous purpose? They had doomed Paul to death. They are typical cases of men hurried by one passion or another beyond the pale of conscience or reason. It is well to rely upon persuasion for the most part in dealing with our fellows for their good and our own safety, as individuals and communities; but there are many times when, and persons for whom, nothing is sufficient but brute force--meaning by this a compulsion which shall be inevitable and overpowering. The Roman empire was raised up to give gospel messengers their needed safeguard until their work was done. The Church needs substantially the same safeguard today--not herself using force to bring about spiritual results; but Christs disciples must have civil guardianship and, in free governments, they must act well their part to provide it for themselves. Force must meet force.

III. The easy currency of false charges in time of excitement. Paul had not brought Greeks within the sacred and guarded precincts of the temple; but it was enough for the frenzied Jews that, somewhere in the outside city, they had seen an Ephesian with him. At once they jumped to the conclusion that his associates in the sacred courts were heathen. Doubtless many in the excited mob were strangers to Paul, but they had caught the contagion and unthinkingly condemned him as bitterly as long time enemies could do. How obvious the duty of prudence and deliberation when excitement blinds the populace and hardens the heart! Excitement is almost incapable of justice.

IV. The courage of a divine mission. Paul measured the deadly purpose of his countrymen far more adequately than the Roman captain could have done, and at first view we would think the security of Antonias inner wards would have been eagerly sought by him; but no; he faces the throng and heroically tries to capture their attention, judgment, and esteem. He was steadied in heart and cleared in thought by his conscious apostleship. He was engaged in His Masters work. He could not despair, whatever the crisis or obstacle. The Christian warrior does not believe in mere defensive warfare; he feels the urgency of an imperilled cause, the brevity of his opportunity, and he must be on the aggressive, whatever the opposition.

V. The faith and loving perseverance of Christlike service. Why did not Paul throw over his murderous fellow countrymen as hopeless, upon whom he would not waste another word? Behind him were years of unwearied toil and sacrifice on their behalf. But, like the loving physician dealing with deadly disease, he leaves nothing undone to befriend his worst assailants as long as a fraction of opportunity remains. Here, again, the great missionary to the Gentiles is a pattern for a large following. Pastors may be requited with indifference, or worse, after most unselfish devotion; but in no case must the mission of Christ be abandoned or its continuance enfeebled in plan or spirit.

VI. Everything good in this world is only an approximation. These maddened Jews bent on murder were the outcome of Divine plans and processes for centuries. They represented people who had been in training for the glad star of Bethlehem. How great the apparent failure of prophetic vision and Divine agency! But it was not all a failure. In the early Christian Church were multitudes of Jews born again in Christ. The Christian worker will save himself discouragement and loss of energy, if he keeps in mind the insufficiency of man at his best, and copies the patience of the Divine Master workman when hedged about with difficulties and success seems meagre and imperfect.

VII. The mountains of difficulty encountered and levelled by Christianity. Is the gospel ship storm-tossed? Do obstacles tower and the future seem full of deadly peril? We need only to recall those days when, in her infancy, the Church was confronted by the powers of earth and darkness in their greatest might and hate. It comes to our notice, in this lesson, as one of the three mountains of difficulty encountered by Jesus and His followers--Roman force, Greek philosophy, and Jewish ecclesiasticism. The three were to be vanquished, and all by loves compulsion; but, of the three, the last was not the least formidable. The momentum of ages was behind it. But Paul, like his Master, proposed the most difficult of achievements--a reform that was an apparent destruction--a new life perpetuating all that was true and good in the old life--fulfilling, indeed, instead of destroying, but causing so much of abandonment of time-honoured ritual and rich perquisites as to seem like an overwhelming deluge. To human view, how impregnable the entrenchments of Judaism! The unseen was mightier than the seen, however imposing the latter. Let church builders and soul winners take courage today. Difficulties do not cease. They take new form and enlist a strong following; but Christs cause now has a momentum of conquest sweeping through long ages; it has readjusted lifes economy so that worldlings unwittingly give it aid and comfort from general impulses of benevolence and enlightenment; it has so helped governments and science and inventions that they return valuable service from dictates of expediency. (S. Lewis B. Speare.)

True Christian toleration

This was, to all intents and purposes, a council; of course, not exactly what we call a council in our day, because there were no such churches then as we have now, in practice, or in organisation even. This was, however, a body composed of the authoritative men among the Christian people of Jerusalem. The elders were all gathered together. And it will amuse you to hear what the reason was. Paul was on trial for want of orthodoxy! Dr. Dwight, whom we now bow the knee to, was very much suspected, during his lifetime, of want of orthodoxy; Jonathan Edwards, whom all our theologians swear by, in his day suffered a great deal of disrepute for want of orthodoxy; every man, all the way up, who has laid the Church under obligation--Calvin, Luther, Melancthon, Zwinglius, and others--have suffered in their day as being disturbers, unsettling the belief of men. Christianity was not a new religion that came drifting against the wind, as one might say, right up to a battle with Judaism. It was not a new revelation that gradually came up to quench the old one, and take its place; as in growth, the lower stem shoots out another, which surpasses it in organisation; and gradually out of that shoots another, until we come to the blossoming top, and from that to the fruit. Now, if you reflect, you will perceive that where such a state of facts takes place, there will be a great many things in the form of antecedent beliefs and institutions, which will be only relatively important, and that the weak will stick to everything, that the unreasoning will hold on to everything which has existed in the past, simply because it has been useful; but that there will be other intelligent ones who see that the new includes the old, and a good deal besides. And all such persons, while they will tolerate the old, will accept the new. They will say, The old was right, but it was relative. It is not superseded: it is fulfilled, and is carried, in another form, higher. The blossoming of a stem does not destroy the plant, but fulfils it. Jesus Christ did not come to destroy the law, as He Himself said, but to fulfil it, to give it a spiritual form, a full, final growth--a free, glorious development. And when that time comes in which men are beginning go take their first steps away from the old and fixed, and towards the new, the free, and the large, there must of necessity be great division, great diversity. And here is the place where the old and new schools always set in. The old school wants to hold the old things as they were; the new school wants to hold the old things, and wants to hold them just as they ought to be. On the one hand there are influences at work which tend to drive the old school into a kind of superstitious adhesion--into a conservatism which has in it no growth and no respectability. On the other hand, the tendencies are to drive the new school entirely away from the old school into something different--something that shall not resemble it. But in point of fact, the old is the father of the new, and the new should always have filial relations to the old. Conservatism is the stalk out of which the progressive rises; and the progressive should always have a good stem under it to stand on when the wind blows, and its limber branches wave therein: Paul, standing before this council, was obliged to defend himself against the Jewish prejudices, for not believing in Moses; for not believing in the Mosaic customs; for teaching a new doctrine. It was an absolute departure from the religion of the Jews. Now, he had not wholly abandoned the system of his fathers. He believed in it enough to use it when circumstances required it; but he was set free from it in its absolute form. There are two kinds of scepticism; one is measured by the mathematical sign of minus, that doubts and disbelieves, and go back, and back; and the other is designated by the mathematical sign of plus, which disbelieves in old forms, because they are not large enough; because they are not fruitful enough. The scepticism minus is deteriorating; but the scepticism plus is ennobling. If there is to be change and growth, there must be in every generation times when men shall doubt the past in order to build larger. So Paul stood before this council, suspected of irregularity because he insisted on adapting his labour, not according to the old Jewish forms, but according to the exigencies of the work he found to do, in the providence of God, in the field s where he went to preach the gospel. (H. W. Beecher.)

This is the man that … brought Greeks also into the temple, and hath polluted this holy place.

Polluting the holy place

When Professor Vambery came to Meshed, in the course of his Asiatic journeyings, he met, in the street, a Jew whom he had known at Bokhara. To his astonishment the Jew passed him without recognising him. Vambery called out to him; whereupon, says Vambery, he hurriedly came up to me, and said confidentially, in a low voice, For Gods sake, Haji, do not call me a Jew here. Beyond these walls I belong to my nation, but here I must play the Moslem. This Jews fear of persecution well illustrates the Oriental feeling towards those of other faiths. The presence of an unbeliever pollutes the very city whither he comes; much more so the holy place into which he might enter. It is not so very long ago that the discovery of a European in any Mohammedan mosque would have been the signal for his murder; and there are still holy places which Europeans can only visit at the risk of their lives. Vambery, disguised as an Oriental, visited several of these sacred places in Central Asia; but he saved his life only by the boldness with which he denied that he was a Frank, and by the show of indignation with which he denounced those who would call a true believer an infidel. Burtons journey to Mekkeh was accomplished at the risk of his life; and, afterwards, when Mr. Cole, the British vice-consul at Jeddah, made a joking reference there to Buttons exploit, he found that the Mohammedans were so enraged over it, that any further allusion to it would be dangerous. (S. S. Times.)

For … they supposed.--

False suppositions

They did not know, but they supposed, and they wouldnt wait to find out the facts. They were all wrong, but they acted as though there were no doubt about the case. A large share of all the misrepresentation and all the injustice in the world comes from people supposing that this thing, or that thing, or the other thing, has been done, when a little honest inquiry would have shown the charge or the rumour to be baseless. We suppose that if one public official is dishonest, another one is; that if there is an error in giving change to us, when we make a purchase, the dealer meant to cheat us; that if a friend fails to be as cordial as usual, he intends to give us a slight; that if a speaker or writer is inaccurate in any statement, he purposely lies; that if a man with a character for uprightness, or purity, or fairness, comes from any cause under suspicion, he is--no better than he should be. Oh, the wrong which has been done by those who supposed that somebody else had done wrong, and who acted on their supposition! (H. C. Trumbull, D. D.)

And all the city was moved.--

The inconsiderate mob

We see by experience that dogs do always bark at those they know not, and that it is their nature to accompany one another in those clamours; and so it is with the inconsiderate multitude who, wanting that virtue which we call honesty in all men, and that especial gift of God which we call charity in Christian men, condemn without hearing and wound without offence given, led thereunto by uncertain report only, which King James truly acknowledgeth for the father of all lies. (Sir Walter Raleigh.)

Religion as the occasion of evil

By universal consent religion is mans greatest blessing; and water is the greatest boon of the thirsty all the world over. Yet what a confirmation both religion and water afford of the fact that the greatest good may occasion the greatest evil! Take, first of all, the illustration supplied by the water, and in the words of Oliver Goldsmith. In those burning countries where the sun dries up every brook for hundreds of miles round, when what had the appearance of a great river in the rainy season becomes, in the summer, one dreary bed of sand, a lake that is never dry, or a brook that is perennial, is considered by every animal as the greatest convenience of Nature. As to food, the luxuriant landscape supplies that in sufficient abundance; it is the want of water that all animals endeavour to remove, and inwardly parched by the heat of the climate, traverse whole deserts to find out a spring. When they have discovered this, no dangers can deter them from attempting to slake their thirst. Thus the neighbourhood of a rivulet in the heart of the tropical continents is generally the place where all the hostile tribes of Nature draw up for the engagement. On the banks of this little envied spot thousands of animals of various kinds are seen venturing to quench their thirst, or preparing to seize their prey. The elephants are perceived in a long line, marching from the darker parts of the forest; the buffaloes are there, depending on numbers for security; the gazelles, relying solely upon their swiftness; the lion and tiger, waiting a proper opportunity to seize; but chiefly the larger serpents are upon guard there, and defend the accesses of the lake. Not an hour passes without some dreadful combat; but the serpent, defended by its scales, and naturally capable of sustaining a multitude of wounds, is of all others the most formidable. Ever on the watch until their rapacity is satisfied, few other animals will venture to approach their station. Now take the illustration which religion supplies of the fact that the greatest good may occasion the greatest evil. The splendid anthem of Spohr only tells us, in beautiful music, the fact which history in unmusical language proclaims--that as the hart pants after the water, so all souls seek after God. Here, then, is admitted to be the great source of all good. How have men approached that source? Do you find peace, love, charity, and all happiness characterising their proceedings? Look at the religions of the world, with their cruelties and barbarisms; listen to the brayings of cant and the howlings and ravings of sectaries and bigots; and notice the insidious craft and poisonous malice with which some of the smooth zealots do their work! Behold how fiercely they fight among one another; how eagerly they pounce upon any who are not of their number, but whom they descry afar off, eagerly seeking after the source of All-purity; and how desperately they struggle, each with each, for the mastery and capture of the anxious, humble seekers of living water! What brings all these rampant men together, and occasions this hoarse clamour of coarse voices where we anticipated gentle forms and loving sounds? The banks of the river of life have brought them there, and by their presence they occasion the greatest evil where we have a right to expect the greatest good. (Scientific Illustrations.)

Some cried one thing and some another.--

The mob--divided though one

Unity of action does not always indicate unity of purpose. Men often work together when they have little in common. In a mob, there will be some who want to gain concessions from those in power; others who seek revenge for real or fancied injuries; others, again, who would merely overthrow the established order of things; and yet others who look alone for opportunities of plunder. And this confusion of purpose is the weakness of a mob. Men must have a common object of pursuit to be strong in a common effort. They must be united in heart, as well as in endeavour, to carry everything before them. As Bishop Hall quaintly says, The multitude is a beast of many heads; every head hath a several mouth, every mouth a several tongue, and every tongue a several accent; every head hath a several brains, and every brain thoughts of their own; so it is hard to find a multitude without some division.

An angry mob

A man in anger is like a chariot without a driver, or a ship in a storm without a pilot, or a scorpion which stings itself as well as others.

The persecuting spirit

1. It is an intolerant spirit (verses 27, 28). These Jews of Asia had refused to give careful, candid thought to Pauls teachings, but judged them by their own narrow standards.

2. It is a perverting spirit (verses 28, 29). They had seen … and they supposed. These Jews deftly mingled facts with falsehoods, and cast false lights on true statements.

3. It is often a spirit of formalism (verse 30). They were a company of worshippers in the rites of service, yet they were ready to murder an unoffending man.

4. It is a spirit of cruelty (verse 31). They went about to kill him.

5. It is an ignorant spirit (verse 34). They could not tell why the tumult had arisen, nor what was the crime charged upon the victim. Such is the blind, unreasoning hatred in the heart of persecutors.

Notice in contrast with these Jews the traits of the Christian under persecution.

1. While they were law breaking he was law abiding. He was obeying the very laws and conforming to the very usages which they accused him of violating, at the very moment while they were seeking his life.

2. While they were furious he was calm. His perfect faith gave him perfect peace.

3. While they were cowardly he was courageous. He was brave, for only a man with a heart like a lion would have thought to address the crowd clamouring for his blood.

4. While they were full of hate he was full of love. (J. L. Hurlbut, D. D.)

The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

B.—THE JEWS FROM ASIA MINOR MAKE AN ATTACK ON PAUL, IN CONSEQUENCE OF WHICH THE ROMAN TRIBUNE INTERFERES; HE SAVES PAUL’S LIFE

Act_21:27-40

27     And [But] when the seven days were almost ended, the Jews which [who] were of Asia, when they saw [looked at] him in the temple, stirred up all the people, and laid hands on him, 28Crying out, Men of Israel, help: This is the man that teacheth all men every where18 against the people, and the law, and this place: and further brought Greeks [Gentiles (̔́ Ελληνας)] also into the temple, and hath polluted [defiled] this holy place. 29[Om. the parenth. marks]. (For they had seen before [previously seen] with him in the city Trophimus an Ephesian, whom they supposed that Paul had brought into the temple.). 30And all the [the whole] city was moved, and the people ran together [and there was a concourse of the people]: and they took [hold of] Paul, and drew [dragged] him out of the temple: and forthwith the doors [gates] were shut. 31And as [while] they went about [sought] to kill him, tidings came unto the chief captain of the band [came up (ὰνέβη) to the tribune of the cohort], that all Jerusalem was in an uproar19: 32Who immediately took soldiers and centurions20, and ran down unto them: and [but] when they saw the chief captain [tribune] and the soldiers, they left beating of Paul [they ceased to beat Paul]. 33Then the chief captain [tribune] came near, and took [hold of] him, and commanded him to be bound with two chains; and demanded who he was21, and what he had done. 34And some cried [called to him22] one thing, some another, among the multitude: and [but] when he could not23 know the certainty for [on account of] the tumult, he commanded him to be carried [led] into the castle [barracks]. 35And when he came upon [to] the stairs, so it was, that he was borne of the soldiers for [stairs, it became necessary (συνἐβη) that the soldiers should carry him on account of] the violence of the people [populace]. 36For the multitude of the people [ὄχλου· ἠχ. γὰρ τὸ πλῆθος τοῦ λαοῦ] followed after, crying24, Away with him. 37And as Paul was [about] to be led into the castle [barracks], he said unto the chief captain [tribune], May I speak [say something (τι)25] unto thee? Who [But he] said, Canst thou speak Greek? 38Art not thou [Art thou then (ἄρα) not] that [the, (ὁ)] Egyptian, which [who] before these days madest [made] an uproar, and leddest [led] out into the wilderness four thousand men that were murderers [bandits]? 39But Paul said, I am a man which am a Jew [I am a Jewish man], of Tarsus, a city in Cilicia, a citizen of no mean city [Tarsus, a citizen of no inconsiderable city in Cilicia]: and, I beseech thee, suffer [permit] me to speak unto the people. 40And [But] when he had given him license [had permitted him], Paul stood [stepped] on the stairs, and beckoned with the hand unto the people. And when there was made a great silence [But when all had become entirely quiet], he spake unto [addressed] them in the Hebrew tongue [dialect], saying, [:]

EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL

Act_21:27. And when the seven days, etc.—The words αἱ ἑπτὰ ἡμέραι are usually, and, no doubt, very correctly, explained as indicating those days which are called in Act_21:26 ἡμέραι τοῦ ἁγνισμοῦ. They are the days to which that Levitical purification referred which was connected with the sacrifices offered at the completion of the vow. [“In all probability the seven days announced to the priests (Act_21:26) as the limit to which the vow of the Nazarites would extend, and as the period also of the apostle’s partnership in that consecration.” (Hackett).—Tr.]. Wieseler has attempted another interpretation in his “Apostolical Chronology,” p. 109 ff.; viz., that the seven days were the week, or the days of consecration that preceded the festival of Pentecost. But this festival is not mentioned in the context, and, indeed, is never referred to, after Act_20:16; moreover, the assumption that a week of preparation preceded the great festivals of Israel, is by no means sustained by satisfactory evidence.—These seven days were drawing to a close (ἔμελλον συντελ.), but had not yet elapsed, when Paul was seen in the temple, and seized.

Act_21:28-29. This is the man.—Certain Jews from Asia Minor, particularly those from Ephesus and its vicinity, who had there known Paul, and who hated him, now perceived, and, on a closer inspection (θεᾶσθαι), recognized him. The very circumstance that this supposed despiser of the temple should be seen in the temple [“the inner court which was forbidden to Gentiles” (Alf.).—Tr.], so greatly provoked them, that they stirred up the multitude against him. They seized him, with loud cries for help, as if he were the assailant, and as if it were necessary to protect the sanctuary against him (βοηθεῖτε). This accusation of the apostle on the part of the unconverted Jews, differs from that to which the Judæo-Christians had listened, in one point, which is usually overlooked. The fanatics from Asia Minor here charge him with assailing not only the law and the temple, but also the people of Israel (τοῦ λαοῦ). Now this specific charge had been brought neither by the Judæo-Christians against Paul, nor, at an earlier period, by the Jews against Stephen. It was doubtless connected with his active labors among the Gentiles (πάντας πανταχοῦ διδασκ.), which were maliciously so represented, as if they were intended to excite the latter against Israel. They alleged, moreover (ἔτι τε καὶ), as a second charge, that Paul had introduced pagans into the temple, and thus defiled the sanctuary. [“Greeks, not in the national or local sense, but in the wider one of Gentiles, so called from the general and almost universal use of the Greek language among all known nations. Hence the perpetual antithesis of Jews and Greeks in the New Testament.” (Alexander).—Tr.]. The word ̔́Ελληνας [plural] represents a single occurrence as a common one; the accusers employ it with a hostile purpose, in order the more effectually to excite the people, although only one man, Trophimus, could be meant, and he, moreover, had not entered the temple. They acted on a mere supposition, a groundless suspicion, that Paul had brought the latter with him into the temple, which word here designates the court of Israel.—The words προεωρακότες ῆ̓σαν signify; “they had seen him previously,” although Meyer objects to this interpretation [“προορᾶν never occurs in this sense; the words mean; they had seen before them; comp. Act_2:25, and see Sturz: Lex. Xen. III. p. 690 f.” (Meyer).—Tr.]. The philological correction by Otto (Gesch. Verhaeltnisse der Pastoralbriefe, 1860, p. 285), satisfactorily establishes the correctness of our interpretation.

Act_21:30. And all the city was moved.—The multitude, after having quickly and tumultuously assembled, dragged Paul out of the court of the temple, probably because they were conscious that such acts of violence as they contemplated, would in truth pollute the sanctuary. The act of closing the gates of the temple, which was. performed by the Levites, was certainly not intended to prevent Paul from availing himself of the right of claiming an asylum, and from finding a place of refuge in the temple (Bengel, Baumgarten), for the multitude had already, effectually prevented him from enjoying such an advantage. It is more probable that the gates were closed in order to prevent the courts of the temple from being defiled by the shedding of blood (de Wette, Meyer), and, possibly, too, because it was supposed that the court of the temple had already been polluted by the entrance of a heathen, and needed purificatory rites before it could be reopened.

Act_21:31-33. And as they went about to kill him.—The fact that a disturbance had arisen was soon known at the military posts that were established at various points in the city during the festivals; the intelligence was at once conveyed to the commander of the Roman garrison in the tower of Antonia, which was situated to the north of the temple, and rose above it (ἀνέβη φάσις). [See Joseph. Jewish W. i. 5. 4, and especially v. 5. 8.—Tr.]. The name of the commander—a military tribune of the cohort (σπεῖρα)—was Claudius Lysias, as we learn from Act_23:26. When he received tidings of the tumult, he proceeded without delay to the temple, accompanied by officers and soldiers. As soon as he was seen at a distance, the maltreatment to which the apostle was exposed, ceased. When the Roman reached the spot, he commanded his people to conduct the apostle away, as well as to bind him with chains. [Two chains, “See Act_12:6. He would thus be in the custody of two soldiers. (Alf.).—Tr.]. Claudius assumed that Paul was a criminal, and expected to ascertain at once both his name, and the nature of the crime committed by him. Τί ἂν εἴη, oratio obliqua; τί έστι πεποι., oratio recta. [For ἀν before εἴη, see note 4, above, appended to the text.—“That the accused had committed some crime, was certain, or was at least assumed to be certain by the speaker. Τί ἐστι πεποιηκώς refers to the fact, which is admitted—to the object of πεποι.; but who the man might be, τίς ἂν εἲη, he could not yet clearly perceive.” (Winer, § 41. 4. c).—Tr.]

Act_21:34-36. Commanded him to be carried [led] into the castle [barracks].—The παρεμβολή is not the tower [castle] of Antonia itself, but only a certain part of it, namely, the permanent quarters [“barracks” (Alf., Alex.).—Tr.] of the Roman garrison stationed at the tower of Antonia. The ἀναβαθμοί, Act_21:35; Act_21:40 (Jos. Bell. Jud. v. 5. 3., ἀναβάσεις), are stairs or steps, [leading from the temple-area to the tower.—Tr.]. The fortress communicated with the northern and western porticos of the temple area, and had flights of stairs [“descending into both; by which the garrison could at any time enter the court of the temple and prevent tumults.”] Robinson: Bibl. Res. II. 71 ff. [Germ, ed.; I. 432. Amer. ed.—Away with him!—“The same shouts which, nearly thirty years before, surrounded the prætorium of Pilate. Comp. Luk_23:18; Joh_19:15.” (Conyb. etc. II. 262.).—Tr.]

Act_21:37-38. May I speak [say something] unto thee?—The apostle is desirous of addressing the people before he enters through the gate into the tower, and is withdrawn from their sight, and hence, in courteous terms, asks a question of the commander (εἰ ἔξέστι etc.). The latter, surprised at being addressed in Greek, asks in his turn: Ἑλληνιστὶ γινώσκεις;—he inquires whether his prisoner is not then [ὰρα] the Egyptian insurgent, as he had obviously hitherto supposed; he formed a different opinion on hearing Paul speak Greek. [“It was notorious (it would seem) that the Egyptian was unable to speak that language.” (Hackett).—Tr.]. The Roman commander could the more easily confound Paul with that Egyptian, as those Sicarii (so called from sica, a dagger [or short sword, worn beneath their clothing.—Tr.], and known as professional murderers and insurgents) were accustomed to mingle with the multitude at the festival, as now at Pentecost [Act_20:16], and then commit the crimes with which they were familiar (μάλιστα ἐν ταῖς ἑορταῖς μισγόμενοι τῷ πλήθει, etc. Jos. Jewish War. ΙΙ. 13. 3). That Egyptian was, according to the account given by Josephus (Jew. War. ΙΙ. 13. 5) a sorcerer, who pretended that he was a prophet. He gained many adherents during the reign of Nero, whom he led from the wilderness to the Mount of Olives; he promised his followers that, at his word, the walls of Jerusalem should fall, and that they should enter the city over the ruins (comp. Jos. Antiq. xx. 8. 6). The procurator Felix, however, attacked them with great success; he defeated the insurgents, of whom 400 were slain, and 200 made prisoners; but the Egyptian himself escaped (διαδράσας ἐκ τῆς μάχης ἀφανὴς ἐγένετο, loc. cit.).—The Roman commander here speaks of 4000 Sicarii, whom that insurgent led into the wilderness. Josephus, on the other hand, relates that about 30,000 men, who put faith in his false pretensions, gathered around him. This latter statement, however, obviously refers to the whole number of the adherents of the man; Luke, on the other hand, speaks only of his armed followers, and Josephus himself distinguishes (loc. cit.) between these and the aggregate of the adherents of the Egyptian. Hence the two accounts [of Luke and Josephus] may be easily reconciled, and, in other points, the several statements of Josephus strikingly agree with the passage before us. [Alford, who adopts the view of Meyer, de Wette, and especially of Tholuck (Glaubwuerdigkeit, p. 169), says: “It is obvious that the numerical accounts in Josephus are inconsistent with our text, and with one another (Ant. xx. 8. 6, and Bell. Jud. ii. 13. 5.). This latter being the case, we may well leave them out of the question. At different times of his (the Egyptian’s) rebellion, his number of followers would be variously estimated, etc.”—Tr.].

Act_21:39-40. I beseech thee, suffer me.—The apostle describes himself to the tribune as a totally different person from the criminal with whom he had been confounded, and then asks for permission to address the people. In view of the explanation which he gave, and also of the fact that no person came forward who in the least degree confirmed the original suspicion of the Roman, it is by no means strange that the latter, who possessed full authority to decide, should grant the request; (the opposite opinion of Baur, paulus, p. 208 f., is untenable). It is, further, by no means incredible, that when Paul indicated to the multitude by a gesture that he desired to address them, they should become silent, and listen to him. [“The silence was probably occasioned by the presence of Roman officers and soldiers; by the sight, if not the hearing, of what passed between the Tribune and his prisoner; by Paul’s unexpected presentation of himself upon the stairs and offer to address them; but above all by the circumstance recorded in the last clause, that he spake in Hebrew, etc.” (Alex.).—Tr.]. The Hebrew dialect [τῇ Ἑβραΐδι διαλέκτῳ] of course means here the living language, the Aramæan dialect [Syro-Chaldaic] spoken at that time in Judea.

DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL

1. The counsel of God is executed in a wonderful manner. In order to correct a mistake which the Judæo-Christians had made, Paul resolves to perform a certain Levitical act in the temple. Now it is precisely his appearance in the sanctuary, that exposes him to a new danger, proceeding from an entirely different quarter—from the unconverted Israelites. And thus it is precisely the devout reverence with which he regards the law and the sanctuary, and his love to his people, whom it is his great object to win for Christ, that seem to add weight to the false charges made against him.

2. It is an evidence that Paul possessed a holy disposition, and was filled, with the Spirit of Christ, if, at a time when ho had been most unmercifully treated, by the Jews, and had barely escaped with his life, he still possessed such composure, such moral strength, and such love to his people, that he could address the latter without the least bitterness of feeling. His heart is humbled under a sense of his own guilt, for he had once dealt with others as the Jews now dealt with him, and it was solely the grace of Him, who on the cross prayed for the forgiveness of his murderers, that had changed him (Luk_23:34).

HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL

Act_21:27. And when the seven days were almost ended, etc.—God often punishes foolish counsels by an unhappy issue, but it does not necessarily follow that when the issue is unhappy, the beginning had been unrighteous. When good advice produces unfavorable results, we should not on that account look with anger on him who gave it, for “man proposes, but God disposes.” (Starke).—No doubt Paul now remembered all that the Spirit of God had so often intimated to him concerning the things which awaited him in Jerusalem. (Rieger).

Act_21:28. This is the man.—An upright servant of Christ is made so well known by the blessing which attends his official labors, that the enemies of Jesus can easily distinguish him among a thousand false and unfaithful zealots, and say: “This is he! Seize him !”—And hath polluted this holy place.—Here the apostle had the honor of being assailed, in the same tumultuous manner, by the same false accusation, and with being treated with the same animosity and severity, with which Jesus Christ had formerly been treated. When the servant finds that he thus resembles his Lord, and is walking in His footsteps, how easy and welcome the yoke becomes! (Ap. Past.).—And Paul, no doubt, thought of Stephen, too, who was once exposed to a similar storm.

Act_21:29. For they had seen, etc.—When God has appointed a season of suffering for us, the slightest circumstance may introduce it.—How closely the servants of Christ are watched, and what reason they have to be circumspect in their walk! The world notices also the company which we keep, and even decides respecting the personal merit of the pastor in accordance with the character of his intimate friends. The Lord grant that we may be without blame in all points! (Ap. Past.).

Act_21:30. And all the city was moved.—Men who can scarcely creep forward, when a good cause claims their aid, eagerly hasten forward to defend one that is bad, Jer_4:22. (Starke).—Drew him out of the temple, etc.—They wished to murder him, and yet not pollute the temple; they strained at gnats, and swallowed camels, as they had indeed done in the the case of the Lord Himself, Joh_18:28. (Williger).

Act_21:31. Tidings came unto the chief captain.—When a servant of Jesus is in great distress, he need not seek for patrons, nor need he implore men to be his advocates; God sends him aid at the proper time, without waiting for his prayers. (Ap. Past.).

Act_21:32. And when they saw the chief captain, etc.—It is one of the wonderful ways of God in governing the world, that those who do not belong to His kingdom, are often controlled by opposite interests, views and purposes, and thus either one sword forbids the other to leave its scabbard, or the children of His kingdom obtain aid from one of the parties, which did not design to furnish it. (Rieger).

Act_21:33. Commanded him to be bound with two chains.—Let not the servant of Christ depend with too much confidence on the aid which the world affords. Here the tribune rescues the apostle from the hands of murderous Jews, but nevertheless commands him, without hearing his plea, to be bound with two chains. (Ap. Past.).—But the prophecy of Agabus must needs be fulfilled.

Act_21:34. And when he could not know the certainty.—The man will always be disappointed, who expects to receive any trustworthy and valuable information from false teachers, and, indeed, in general, from the world. (Ap. Past.).

Act_21:35. And when he came upon the stairs … borne of the soldiers.—We have here an illustration of the manner in which God employs even enemies as the means for exalting his servants; the world, by its scorn and contempt, promotes us to honor. Many teachers would have remained in obscurity, if the envy and hatred of the world had not brought them forward, and given them celebrity. (Ap. Past.).

Act_21:36. Away with him!—Christ had heard the same cry, Luk_23:18; Joh_19:15.

Act_21:38. Art not thou that Egyptian …?—A striking instance of the false and absurd views which the deluded world entertains respecting the children and servants of God. We are regarded as idiots, madmen, deceivers, enemies of mankind, and, as if we were such, we are exposed to contempt and hatred. So, too, Christ was numbered with the transgressors [Isa_53:12]. “Father, forgive them; for they know not what they do.” [Luk_23:34]. (Ap. Past.).—Paul sustains the same relation to that Egyptian, which Luther does to Thomas Münzer [one of the “prophets of Zwickau.”—Tr.]. (Besser).

Act_21:40. And when he had given him license, Paul stood on the stairs, etc.—How little it was once thought that the steps which led to the Roman quarters would be the pulpit from which God would cause the Gospel of His Son to be proclaimed! (Rieger).—Beckoned with the hand unto the people. And when there was made a great silence, be spake, etc.—What a man he was! Able to beckon with calmness to this excited multitude! And, behold, there was a great calm, as when Jesus rebuked the stormy sea (Mat_8:26). We are never better prepared to proclaim the word of God, than when we bear in our bodies the marks of the cross and sufferings of the Lord Jesus [Gal_6:17], for then only does the Spirit of God supply us both with boldness to speak, and with words suited to the occasion. (Gossner).

ON THE WHOLE SECTION, Act_21:27-40.—The Lord delivers his servants from death: I. Paul is unjustly accused (a) as an enemy of the law, Act_21:27-28; (b) as a man who polluted the temple, Act_21:28-29. II. His own people reject him; (a) they cast him out of the temple, Act_21:30; (b) intend to slay him, Act_21:31. III. Heathens are obliged to protect him; (a) the tribune quells the tumult, Act_21:31-32; (b) saves the apostle’s life, Act_21:33. IV. The innocence of the persecuted man becomes apparent; (a) the charges against him are shown to be unfounded, Act_21:34-39; (b) he is allowed to defend himself, Act_21:40. (Lisco.)

The advantages of a well organized government, illustrated in the narrative of the arrest of the apostle Paul at Jerusalem.

The arrest of Paul at Jerusalem: I. A dark picture of human passions; (a) of folly and self-delusion; (b) of malice and hatred—on the part of the Jews, Act_21:28; Act_21:30-31; Act_21:36. II. A bright picture of Christian heroism; (a) of calmness and self-command; (b) of gentleness and patience—on the part of the apostle, Act_21:37; Act_21:39-40. III. An impressive illustration of the guidance of God; (a) of that omnipotence which protects His servants; (b) of the wisdom which employs even enemies as means of executing His counsels, Act_21:32-35; Act_21:37-40.

Paul in the temple of Jerusalem, or, Man proposes, but God disposes: I. God often conducts the well-meant counsels of his servants to an issue which differs from that which they had proposed, Act_21:27 ff., and comp. Act_21:22 ff. II. He also often conducts the malicious counsels of His enemies to an issue which differs from that which they had proposed, Act_21:30-40.

Paul, in the storm which raged at Jerusalem. It was so ordered that the apostle should subsequently encounter a fierce storm at sea, Acts 27, but it was scarcely more dangerous than the one which he here experiences on land, within the strong walls of Jerusalem, in the midst of his own people. But in each case the mighty hand of God protects and rescues him. Let us consider, I. The outbreak of the storm. Like many a storm in nature, this storm suddenly arises in the minds of men. Paul had apprehended such a tempest, when he was at Miletus (Act_20:22 ff.); on his way, its approach was announced to him with increasing solemnity (Act_21:4-11); it burst forth at a time when it might have been least expected, and in a spot where none would have looked for it

in the sacred enclosure of the temple, while Paul was seeking to satisfy the zealots of the law (Act_21:27). II. The raging of the storm. The madness of this storm of human passions increases every moment; the popular fury rages like the stormy ocean, and threatens to ingulf the servant of God (Act_21:28-31; Act_21:36). III. The calming of the storm. He who on the lake of Gennesaret rebuked the winds and the sea, so that there was a great calm, now says to this raging sea: “Hitherto shalt thou come, but no further” [Job_38:11]. The Roman tribune is the agent who guides the apostle to a harbour, in which he is saved, and he himself, with great calmness beckons to the people, and they listen in silence (Act_21:31-40).

Paul’s memorable sermon at Jerusalem: I. The preacher—in chains, Act_21:33. II. The pulpit—the stairs conducting to the Roman quarters, Act_21:40. III. The deacons who attend him—soldiers, Act_21:35. IV. The psalms which precede his sermon—malignant cries for his death, Act_21:36. V. The congregation which he addresses—an infuriated multitude, Act_21:30-34. VI. The unction with which he nevertheless speaks—the Spirit of the Lord, as a Spirit of faith, of love, of wisdom, and of power, Act_21:13; Act_21:37; Act_21:39-40.

The weapons of the man of God in perilous times: I. Justice and the law, which should protect him, as long as they have power themselves, Act_21:32-33. II. The peace of a good conscience, which remains undisturbed amid the storm of passions, Act_21:37-39. III. The power of a sanctified character, which never fails to make an impression even on a rude multitude, Act_21:40. IV. The presence of God, to whom he belongs, whether he labors or suffers, whether he lives or dies, Act_21:13.

Footnotes:

[18]Act_21:28. [πανταχοῦ, of text. rec., occurs in G. H.; the less usual form, πανταχῆ, in A. B. C. D. E. Cod. Sin., is adopted by Lach., Tisch., and Alf.—Tr.]

[19]Act_21:31. [συγκέχυται, of text. rec. in E. (συνκέχ.) G. H.; συνχύννεται in A. D. and Cod. Sin.; in the last, a later hand (C) corrected to συνκεχυται; συγχύνεται in B. The first is adopted by Alf.; the third by Lach., Tisch. and Born.—C. omits Act_21:31—Act_22:20. Vulg. confunditur.—Tr.]

[20]Act_21:32. [ἑκατοντάρχους. of text. rec., in G. H.; ἑκατοντάρχας (from the nom.—ης), in A. B. D (orig.). E. Cod. Sin. The latter form is adopted by Lach., Tisch., and Alf.—Tr.]

[21]Act_21:33. [ἂν before εἴη, of text. rec., with E. G. H., is retained by Alf., but dropped by Lach. and Tisch., in accordance with A. B. D., and also Cod. Sin.—Tr.]

[22]Act_21:34. a. Four uncial manuscripts [A. B. D. E., and also Cod. Sin.] exhibit ἐπέφώνουν, while ἐβόων [of text. rec.] is more feebly supported [by G. H. The former is adopted by Lach., Tisch., Born., and Alf.—Tr.]

[23]Act_21:34. b. [μὴ δυνάμενος δέ γ. of text. rec., is the reading of G. H.; that of A. B. D., adopted by Lach., Tisch., and Alf., is: μὴ δυναμένου δὲ αὐτοῦ γ. The latter is found also in Cod. Sin.—Tr.]

[24]Act_21:36. [κρᾶζον, the reading of text. rec., is found in D. G. H. “It is a grammatical correction.” (Alf.). Κράζοντες, in A. B. E., is adopted by Lach., Tisch., and Alf., and is found also in Cod. Sin.—Tr.]

[25]Act_21:37. [τι after εἰπεῖν, of text. rec., is found in A. B. E. Cod. Sin. and Vulg. (aliquid); it is omitted in D. G. H. Syr.—Lach. retains it.—Tr.]

Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures (Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical), ed. John Peter Lange, English translation edited by Philip Schaff (1864–1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Acts

PAUL IN THE TEMPLE

Act 21:27 - Act 21:39.

The stronger a man’s faith, the greater will and should be his disposition to conciliate. Paul may seem to have stretched consideration for weak brethren to its utmost, when he consented to the proposal of the Jerusalem elders to join in performing the vow of a Nazarite, and to appear in the Temple for that purpose. But he was quite consistent in so doing; for it was not Jewish ceremonial to which he objected, but the insisting on it as necessary. For himself, he lived as a Jew, except in his freedom of intercourse with Gentiles. No doubt he knew that the death-warrant of Jewish ceremonial had been signed, but he could leave it to time to carry out the sentence. The one thing which he was resolved should not be was its imposition on Gentile Christians. Their road to Jesus was not through Temple or synagogue. As for Jewish Christians, let them keep to the ritual if they chose. The conciliatory plan recommended by the elders, though perfectly consistent with Paul’s views and successful with the Jewish Christians, roused non-Christian Jews as might have been expected.

This incident brings out very strikingly the part played by each of the two factors in carrying out God’s purposes for Paul. They are unconscious instruments, and co-operation is the last thing dreamed of on either side; but Jew and Roman together work out a design of which they had not a glimpse.

I. Note the charge against Paul.

The ‘Jews from Asia’ knew him by sight, as they had seen him in Ephesus and elsewhere; and possibly some of them had been fellow-passengers with him from Miletus. No wonder that they construed his presence in the Temple into an insult to it. If Luther or John Knox had appeared in St. Peter’s, he would not have been thought to have come as a worshipper. Paul’s teaching may very naturally have created the impression in hot-tempered partisans, who could not draw distinctions, that he was the enemy of Temple and sacrifice.

It has always been the vice of religious controversy to treat inferences from heretical teaching, which appear plain to the critics, as if they were articles of the heretic’s belief. These Jewish zealots practised a very common method when they fathered on Paul all which they supposed to be involved in his position. Their charges against him are partly flat lies, partly conclusions drawn from misapprehension of his position, partly exaggeration, and partly hasty assumptions. He had never said a word which could be construed as ‘against the people.’ He had indeed preached that the law was not for Gentiles, and was not the perfect revelation which brought salvation, and he had pointed to Jesus as in Himself realising all that the Temple shadowed; but such teaching was not ‘against’ either, but rather for both, as setting both in their true relation to the whole process of revelation. He had not brought ‘Greeks’ into the Temple, not even the one Greek whom malice multiplied into many. When passion is roused, exaggerations and assumptions soon become definite assertions. The charges are a complete object-lesson in the baser arts of religious {!} partisans; and they have been but too faithfully reproduced in all ages. Did Paul remember how he had been ‘consenting’ to the death of Stephen on the very same charges? How far he has travelled since that day!

II. Note the immediately kindled flame of popular bigotry.

The always inflammable population of Jerusalem was more than usually excitable at the times of the Feasts, when it was largely increased by zealous worshippers from a distance. Noble teaching would have left the mob as stolid as it found them; but an appeal to the narrow prejudices which they thought were religion was a spark in gunpowder, and an explosion was immediate. It is always easier to rouse men to fight for their ‘religion’ than to live by it. Jehu was proud of what he calls his ‘zeal for the Lord,’ which was really only ferocity with a mask on. The yelling crowd did not stop to have the charges proved. That they were made was enough. In Scotland people used to talk of ‘Jeddart justice,’ which consisted in hanging a man first, and trying him leisurely afterwards. It was usually substantially just when applied to moss-troopers, but does not do so well when administered to Apostles.

Notice the carefulness to save the Temple from pollution, which is shown by the furious crowds dragging Paul outside before they kill him. They were not afraid to commit murder, but they were horror-struck at the thought of a breach of ceremonial etiquette. Of course! for when religion is conceived of as mainly a matter of outward observances, sin is reduced to a breach of these. We are all tempted to shift the centre of gravity in our religion, and to make too much of ritual etiquette. Kill Paul if you will, but get him outside the sacred precincts first. The priests shut the doors to make sure that there should be no profanation, and stopped inside the Temple, well pleased that murder should go on at its threshold. They had better have rescued the victim. Time was when the altar was a sanctuary for the criminal who could grasp its horns, but now its ministers wink at bloodshed with secret approval. Paul could easily have been killed in the crowd, and no responsibility for his death have clung to any single hand. No doubt that was the cowardly calculation which they made, and they were well on the way to carry it out when the other factor comes into operation.

III. Note the source of deliverance.

The Roman garrison was posted in the fortress of Antonia, which commanded the Temple from a higher level at the north-west angle of the enclosure. Tidings ‘came up’ to the officer in command, Claudius Lysias by name {Act 23:26}, that all Jerusalem was in confusion. With disciplined promptitude he turned out a detachment and ‘ran down upon them.’ The contrast between the quiet power of the legionaries and the noisy feebleness of the mob is striking. The best qualities of Roman sway are seen in this tribune’s unhesitating action, before which the excited mob cowers in fright. They ‘left beating of Paul,’ as knowing that a heavier hand would fall on them for rioting. With swift decision Lysias acts first and talks afterwards, securing the man who was plainly the centre of disturbance, and then having got him fast with two chains on him, inquiring who he was, and what he had been doing.

Then the crowd breaks loose again in noisy and contradictory explanations, all at the top of their voices, and each drowning the other. Clearly the bulk of them could not answer either of Lysias’ questions, though they could all bellow ‘Away with him!’ till their throats were sore. It is a perfect picture of a mob, which is always ferocious and volubly explanatory in proportion to its ignorance. One man kept his head in the hubbub, and that was Lysias, who determined to hold his prisoner till he did know something about him. So he ordered him to be taken up into the castle; and as the crowd saw their prey escaping they made one last fierce rush, and almost swept away the soldiers, who had to pick Paul up and carry him. Once on the stairs leading to the castle they were clear of the crowd, which could only send a roar of baffled rage after them, and to this the stolid legionaries were as deaf as were their own helmets.

The part here played by the Roman authority is that which it performs throughout the Acts. It shields infant Christianity from Jewish assailants, like the wolf which, according to legend, suckled Romulus. The good and the bad features of Roman rule were both valuable for that purpose. Its contempt for ideas, and above all for speculative differences in a religion which it regarded as a hurtful superstition, its unsympathetic incapacity for understanding its subject nations, its military discipline, its justice, which though often tainted was yet better than the partisan violence which it coerced, all helped to make it the defender of the first Christians. Strange that Rome should shelter and Jerusalem persecute!

Mark, too, how blindly men fulfil God’s purposes. The two bitter antagonists, Jew and Roman, seem to themselves to be working in direct opposition; but God is using them both to carry out His design. Paul has to be got to Rome, and these two forces are combined by a wisdom beyond their ken, to carry him thither. Two cogged wheels turning in opposite directions fit into each other, and grind out a resultant motion, different from either of theirs. These soldiers and that mob were like pawns on a chessboard, ignorant of the intentions of the hand which moves them.

IV. Note the calm courage of Paul.

He too had kept his head, and though bruised and hustled, and having but a minute or two beforehand looked death in the face, he is ready to seize the opportunity to speak a word for his Master. Observe the quiet courtesy of his address, and his calm remembrance of the tribune’s right to prevent his speaking. There is nothing more striking in Paul’s character than his self-command and composure in all circumstances. This ship could rise to any wave, and ride in any storm. It was not by virtue of happy temperament but of a fixed faith that his heart and mind were kept in perfect peace. It is not easy to disturb a man who counts not his life dear if only he may complete his course. So these two men front each other, and it is hard to tell which has the quieter pulse and the steadier hand. The same sources of tranquil self-control and calm superiority to fortune which stood Paul in such good stead are open to us. If God is our rock and our high tower we shall not be moved.

The tribune had for some unknown reason settled in his mind that the Apostle was a well-known ‘Egyptian,’ who had headed a band of ‘Sicarii’ or ‘dagger-men,’ of whose bloody doings Josephus tells us. How the Jews should have been trying to murder such a man Lysias does not seem to have considered. But when he heard the courteous, respectful Greek speech of the Apostle he saw at once that he had got no uncultured ruffian to deal with, and in answer to Paul’s request and explanation gave him leave to speak. That has been thought an improbability. But strong men recognise each other, and the brave Roman was struck with something in the tone and bearing of the brave Jew which made him instinctively sure that no harm would come of the permission. There ought to be that in the demeanour of a Christian which is as a testimonial of character for him, and sways observers to favourable constructions.

Alexander MacLaren, Expositions of Holy Scripture (1904–1910) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Act 21:27. Αἱ ἑπτὰ) The αἱ has a relative force in relation to those days of which Act 21:26 treats.

Bengel's Gnomon of the New Testament — English translation (T&T Clark, Edinburgh, 1860) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Act 21:27 . αἱ ἑπτὰ ἡμέραι : it does not appear that the seven days were enjoined by the law not even in Num 6:9 ; indeed it would appear from Jos., B.J. , ii., 15, that a period of thirty days was customary before the sacrifice could be offered. The seven days cannot therefore include the whole period of the vow, although they might well include the period of the Apostle’s partnership with the four men. Wendt and Weiss suppose that a reference is here made to a rule that the interval between the announcement to the priest and the conclusion of the Nazirite vow should include a period of seven days, but as there is admittedly no reference to any such ordinance elsewhere, it is precarious to depend too much upon it. It seems impossible to refer the expression to the seven days observed as the Feast of Pentecost; the article before ἑπτὰ ἡμ . refers to the “days of purification” just mentioned, see further critical note and Knabenbauer for summary of different views. οἱ ἀπὸ τῆς Ἀ . Ἰ .: “the Jews from Asia,” R.V., cf. Act 6:9 , where we read of the Jews of Cilicia, etc., who disputed with Stephen. θεασάμ ., cf. Act 24:18 , where St. Paul tells us how these Jews had found him in the Temple purified, i.e. , with the Nazirite vow upon him, and in the act of presenting offerings not of creating a disturbance, as his enemies alleged. These Jews, who were of course not believers, may have come from Ephesus, and were full of enmity against the Apostle for escaping them there, cf. Act 20:3 they had come up to worship at Pentecost. συνέχεον , see on Act 9:22 . ἐπέβ . τὰς χ ., cf. Act 12:1 .

The Expositor's Greek Testament, edited by W. Robertson Nicoll (1897–1910) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

A preposterous zeal is the cause of great confusion, and great mischiefs.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

the Jews . . . of Asia--in all likelihood those of Ephesus (since they recognized Trophimus apparently as a townsman, Act 21:29), embittered by their discomfiture (Act 19:9, &c.).

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 27. The Jews which were of Asia] These pursued him with the most deliberate and persevering malice in every place; and it appears that it was through them that the false reports were sent to and circulated through Jerusalem.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

27. The Jews which came from Asia. It is certain that these men were enemies to the name of Christ and of Christians, so that whilst Paul is bent to pacify the faithful, he incurreth the rage of the enemies. Those of Asia are, indeed, the raisers of the tumult; but the minds of all the people were so corrupt with the hatred of him that they all became partners in the fury. But this place teacheth, that we must not take it impatiently if at any time our hope be frustrate, and our counsels, which we have taken with a right and holy affection, fall not out well, that our actions may have an happy end. We must attempt nothing but with a good conscience, and according to the Spirit of God. But and if things come not to pass as we would, even then, let that inward feeling uphold us, that we know that God alloweth [approveth] our desire, though it be laid open to the reproaches and mocks of men; neither let it repent us of our gentleness, if at any time the wicked reward us otherwise than we deserve.

John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.

(27) When the seven days were almost ended.—Literally, were on the point to be completed. St. Luke speaks of “the seven days” as a definite or known period. They cannot refer, as some have thought, either to the duration of the vow, which was never less than thirty days, or to that of the Feast of Pentecost, which at this time was never extended beyond one, and must therefore be understood of the period of special purification which came at the final stage of the fulfilment of the vow.

The Jews which were of Asia . . .—Better, from Asia—those who had come up to keep the Feast at Jerusalem. They, we may well believe, had been watching the Apostle eagerly as he passed in and out of the courts of the Temple. As it was, they seized him, with all the tokens of his purification still upon him (comp. Act_24:18), about to offer sacrifices, and raised a cry which was sure to throw the whole city into an uproar. They first reiterate the general charge, and in doing so bring against St. Paul, in almost identical terms, the very accusation which he had brought against Stephen (Act_6:11-13), of which they thus make themselves the witnesses. This was backed up by a more specific indictment (Act_21:28). He had brought Greeks—i.e., uncircumcised Gentiles—into the Holy Place—i.e., beyond the middle wall of partition (Eph_2:14) which divided the court that was open to strangers from that which none but Jews might enter (Jos. Ant. xv. 11, § 5). The recent excavations of the Palestine Exploration Society (Report for 1871, p. 132) have brought to light a slab with an inscription, discovered and deciphered by M. Clermont Ganneau, which illustrates the horror with which the Jews looked on such a profanation. Its contents show that it must have formed part of the low wall just mentioned:—“NO MAN OF ALIEN RACE IS TO ENTER WITHIN THE BALUSTRADE AND FENCE THAT GOES ROUND THE TEMPLE. IF ANY ONE IS TAKEN IN THE ACT, LET HIM KNOW THAT HE HAS HIMSELF TO BLAME FOR THE PENALTY OF DEATH THAT FOLLOWS.” This, accordingly, was the punishment which the Jews of Asia were now seeking to bring on St. Paul and on his friends.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

27. And when the seven days were almost ended] Rev. Ver. “completed.” This seems to have been the period devoted to the more secluded residence in the Temple.

the Jews which were of Asia] Lit. (with Rev. Ver.) “the Jews from Asia.” So that it would seem that a portion of the visitors to Jerusalem had known the Apostle in his missionary labours, and may have come after him, in their enmity, to damage his reputation, by calumnious reports of his teaching, reports which had as much ground in truth as the story about Trophimus from which the tumult arose at this time in Jerusalem.

when … stirred up all the people, &c.] Rev. Ver. “multitude.” These Asian Jews were coming up to the Temple for their worship, and may even have been of the company in the ship by which the Apostle and his companions came from Patara. They certainly had known, or found out, that Trophimus was an Ephesian and a Gentile. If they had seen the Apostle in familiar converse with him, this would be enough to rouse their indignation, especially as Paul and his companion would be living together in the same house and at the same board (cp. Act_11:3).

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And when the seven days were almost ended,.... The Syriac version renders it, "when the seventh day was come"; from the time that Paul came to Jerusalem: some understand this of the seven weeks from the passover to Pentecost, and that it was when they were almost ended, and the day of Pentecost was at hand, for which Paul came up to Jerusalem; but rather, the seven days of purification of the Nazarites are meant:

the Jews which were of Asia; and it may be chiefly of Ephesus, the metropolis of Asia; who knew Paul there, and were his implacable enemies; for this is to be understood of the unbelieving Jews, who were come up to the feast of Pentecost:

when they saw him in the temple; where he was come to bring his offering, on account of his vow:

stirred up all the people; against the apostle; incensed them with stories about him, how that he was an opposer of Moses and his laws, and was now defiling the temple, by bringing in Heathens into it:

and laid hands on him; in a violent manner, and dragged him out of the temple.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

27 And when the seven days were almost ended, the Jews which were of Asia, when they saw him in the temple, stirred up all the people, and laid hands on him,

Ver. 27. The Jews which were of Asia] St Paul’s good intent had but evil success; but his conscience was his comfort, as 2Co 1:9; 2Co 1:12. So was holy Melancthon’s; when but coarsely dealt with, and threatened with banishment, {a} this he could say for himself, I have not sought for myself wealth, honour, pleasure, or victory over mine adversaries. This conscience I take with me, withersoever they shall drive me.

{a} Dixerunt adversarii se mihi non relicturos esse vestigium pedis in Germ.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And when the seven days were almost ended - Greek: as the seven days were about to be fulfilled - ἔμελλον συντελεῖσθαι emellon sunteleisthai. The seven days which were to complete the observance of the vow, Act 21:26. Perhaps the whole observance in this case was intended to be but seven days, as the time of such a vow was voluntary. The translation, “were almost ended,” is not quite correct. The Greek implies no more than that the period of the seven days was about to be accomplished, without implying that it was near the close of them when he was seized. By comparing the following places, Act 21:18, Act 21:26; Act 22:30; Act 23:12, Act 23:32; Act 24:1, Act 24:11, it appears that the time of his seizure must have been near the beginning of those days (Doddridge).

The Jews which were of Asia - Who resided in Asia Minor, but who had come up to Jerusalem for purposes of worship. Compare the notes on Acts 2.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

The seven days; either,

1. After his coming to Jerusalem; or rather,

2. Of his vow; for it is thought that his vow of separation was but for seven days; or:

3. The seven days of that feast of Pentecost which he came unto.

The Jews which were of Asia; who were implacably set against him wheresoever he went, as Act 14:19; 17:5. These Jews dwelt at Ephesus and elsewhere, but were come to observe the feast at Jerusalem.

Laid hands on him; by violence, and against law.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

27. The seven days—During this period Paul either stays in the temple or daily visits it; probably the latter, as he in seen meantime walking the streets with Trophimus, Act_21:29.

Of Asia—And especially of Ephesus, (Act_21:29,) where for three years Paul had thinned the synagogue, and depreciated the commerce of the great temple. Gentiles had endeavoured then to destroy Paul in their theatre; Jews have him now in the temple.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Completed for ended, A.V.; from for which were of, A.V.; multitude for people, A.V. The seven days; showing clearly that some customary term of preparation for the offerings and shaving of the head is meant. This shows also that "the days" in the preceding verse meant the "seven days" of preparation rather than "the days" of the whole Nazaritic vow. The Jews from Asia; come up for Pentecost. How hostile the Asiatic Jews were appears from Act_19:9. When they saw him in the temple, whither he had come to complete the seven days of preparation. It was apparently the fifth day. (see Act_24:11, note) How often the best meant attempts at conciliation fail through the uncharitable suspicions of a man"s opponents! The temple. It must be remembered throughout that it is ton that is spoken of, which embraces the temple courts, not the naov, or house. (see Act_3:2, note) Stirred up. Sugcew is found only here in the New Testament. Properly "to confuse," like the kindred sugcunw; (Act_2:6 Act_19:32 Act_21:31) and sugcusiv, confusion; (Act_19:29) hence "to stir up." It is of frequent use in medical writers (Hobart, 79.).

Vers. 27-40. Fanaticism and devotedness.

It is impossible not to read these verses with a smile of contempt in view of the folly and guilt of fanaticism, and, at the same time, with a smile of satisfaction in view of the calmness and nobility of Christian zeal.

I THE FOLLY AND THE GUILT OF FANATICISM.

1. Its folly.

(1) In the first place, it employs a weapon with which it is easily matched. It has recourse to violence (ver. 31); but violence is a usage which others can easily adopt, and it may be with more effect (ver. 32). If religion calls in the aid of the sword, it is likely enough to find the sword directed, at the next turn of events, against itself.

(2) It uses a weapon which is not at all fitted to its hand. Physical force is not the appointed method for regenerating the world; "the weapons of our warfare are not carnal," but spiritual. The "kingdom not of this world" does not want its servants to "fight" with steel and gunpowder.

(3) It assails those who, if it would but consider, are its truest friends. Out of regard for the Law, these fanatical Jews "went about to kill" Paul. The multitude shouted "Away with him!" (ver. 36). But if they had known better they would, out of regard for the Law, have speeded Paul on his mission. For Judaism, pure and simple, would inevitably have perished; but Judaism, as surviving in the truths and institutions of Christianity, is destined to last as long as time itself, and to he universal in its range. Had they thought more and looked further, they would have honored him whom they were in such haste to kill.

2. Its guilt.

(1) It charges a man with a crime of which he is absolutely innocent (vers. 28, 29).

(2) It proceeds to punish without giving a chance of defending (vers. 30, 31).

(3) It denies to a man that which God has bestowed, and which it claims for itself a right to his convictions.

(4) It dashes itself blindly and vehemently against the purposes of God. At this time it was striking at Christ"s chosen ambassador, and, without exception, the most useful servant of God then living. At many times since then, it has stricken the men who represented the truth of Christ, and has done sore evil to the Church, and so to the world.

II THE EXCELLENCY OF CHRISTIAN DEVOTEDNESS. How admirably the attitude of Paul contrasts with the movements of this excited, tumultuous, sanguinary mob! We admire

(1) his courage in placing himself in the position;

(2) his calmness throughout (vers. 37-39);

(3) his readiness (ver. 40) he was prepared at any emergency to speak the needful word. We admire it because we are sure that it all rested upon

(4) his consecration to the cause, and his assurance of the presence of his Divine Master. C.

Vers. 27-40. Danger and deliverance at Jerusalem.

I THE ACCUSATION AGAINST PAUL.

1. He is represented as an enemy of the Law, like Stephen before him. He has to confront the blind and murderous storm of human passion, more dreadful than the waves of the sea, presently to be encountered. Now is the warning concerning the things to be expected in Jerusalem about to be fulfilled. The sincerest friends of religion have often to incur the charge of being its enemies, the truest worshippers of God are denounced as atheists.

2. As a violator of the temple, he was said to have "made the holy place common." There is a close parallel between this mode of attack and that on Jesus. Great must have been his consolation to find himself treading in the footsteps of his Lord, as his great desire was to be conformable to him.

The greatest honor lies in bearing the cross of Jesus, becoming partaker of his sufferings, being "as he was in the world.

II FURTHER PARALLELS BETWEEN THE TREATMENT OF HIM AND THAT OF THE SAVIOR. The whole city was in an uproar. He was rejected by his own countrymen cast out of the temple. They desired to slay him, and yet not stain the sacred place; straining at gnats and swallowing camels. They thought they would do God service in slaying him. At Ephesus, pagan superstition and the love of gain were against him; here, Jewish bigotry and fanaticism. Both scenes are warnings against the misdirection of religious feeling. We need reflection and knowledge to purify the religious instinct, which is like fire, pernicious if not watched and kept under control. The murder of Jesus, and all judicial murders of teachers and leaders, are, considered from the human side, both crimes and blunders.

III THE IMPRISONMENT OF PAUL. The light and shade mingle in the deed. On the one hand we see human passion, blind folly, wicked hatred, on the part of the Jews; on the other, a bright picture of Christian heroic courage, self-possession, and sweet patience on the part of the apostle. And over and above all the light of Divine leading.shines, like a pillar of fire by night. There is the power which protects the servants of God, the wisdom which employs even its adversaries to carry out its designs, the love which makes a center of light and warmth within the man"s "own clear breast." Man proposes, and God disposes. He guides the well-meant counsels of his friends to other ends than they supposed, and the designs of foes to other issues than they had calculated.

IV THE DELIVERANCE. Rejected by his own people, a friend is raised up for Paul in the person of a heathen. The Roman tribune stills the uproar, saves the apostle"s life, gives him the opportunity of clearing himself from the charge against him, affords him liberty of speech. How impressive is the scene with which this chapter closes! There stands the preacher in chains. His pulpit the stairs of the Roman fortress; instead of deacons surrounding and supporting him, rough Roman soldiers. Murderous cries instead of psalms precede his discourse. Instead of a calm audience before him, an enraged mob. But let us draw the veil and look within his heart. There is the spirit of faith and of love, of wisdom and of strength. There is that courage which the consciousness of right and truth inspires, a "good conscience toward God." There was that whole devotion which ever makes its impression on the rudest hearts, and alone gives freedom and joy.

Above all, the knowledge of a Savior and a God, to whom in life or death he belongs, from whom neither life nor death can separate. J.

Vers. 27-36. The prophecy fulfilled.

"Bonds and imprisonment,

I THE TUMULT EXCITED BY ASIATIC JEWS, probably seeking for Paul, with predetermination to destroy him. It was his faithful missionary labors, therefore, which lay at the root of the trouble; he knew it, and it helped him to be strong in faith. Christ would protect his own ambassador.

II THE CHARGES AGAINST HIM WERE UTTERLY FALSE. He raised no opposition to the Law. He never defiled the temple. Trophimus the Gentile had not been brought there. The enemies of truth always depend on lies. False accusation has been always the resort of fanaticism and bigotry when it is afraid for itself.

III ROMAN DISCIPLINE, as before, is called in to suppress MOB VIOLENCE, and thus help the gospel. So in after times Roman law prepared the way for the spread of Christianity. (See Maurice"s "Lectures on the Religion of Rome," delivered at Edinburgh 1854, published 1855.)

IV THE SPEEDY RESULT OF THE WEAK ADVICE of the Jewish believers is seen in the apostle within seven days, in imprisonment. The brave policy always the safest. Compromise is danger. R.

Vers. 27-30. Party prejudices.

Explain the points of view of the Judaizing party. Zeal for the purity of Mosaism can be commended. The binding character of Mosaic Law on all born Jews may be recognized. We cannot wonder that many of the Jews should regard Christianity as a reform of Judaism, rather than what such men as St. Paul saw it to be the completion and perfection of Judaism. Regarding it as reformed Judaism, they would plead that its claims rested on all Gentiles who became Christian Jews. The first indications of the existence of this Judaizing party within the Christian community we find in Act_15:1. Then the matter occasioned so much dispute that the advice of the apostolic council had to be sought. Their judgment was virtually against the Judaizing party, and this intensified their opposition, made them cling even more closely to their party prejudices, and led them to regard St. Paul more distinctly as the leader of the more liberal views which they hated. They followed the apostle everywhere; they tried to undermine his influence and destroy his work; and it even seems that they resolved not to rest until they had secured his death. They are striking examples of the worst phases of the sectarian spirit, which blinds to truth, hardens from conviction, destroys a man"s tenderness, and makes cruelty and crime possible to him. Scarcely any evil force has exerted in history so baneful an influence as that of the party spirit. It was an ideal time which the poetical historian describes, "when none was for a party, but all were for the state." Still the sectarian and party spirit is the gravest trouble afflicting Christ"s Church, and the most serious hindrance to the perfecting of Christ"s kingdom. But we need to make a careful distinction between party spirit and party action. Sectional action may be an important element in working. More can be accomplished by sections devoting their attention to parts. But party spirit, which means jealous feeling separating the sections, is always bad, for those who feel the jealousy and for those who suffer from its schemes. Taking illustration from what is narrated of these Judaizing teachers, we notice that party prejudice

I BLINDS TO FACT AND TRUTH. If the party has a piece of truth, it is but a piece, and yet it often prevents the apprehension of any other related or higher truth. And even worse is its power to distort or deny facts. The party man will see or admit nothing that does not tell for his party. Show that St. Paul had facts and truths, but these opponents would give him no calm consideration. They really shouted him down, as did the excited Ephesians, who cried all day, "Great is Diana of the Ephesians." If we find an unwillingness to admit facts or to calmly consider phases of truth presented for our consideration, then we may gravely fear lest we be giving place to party prejudices.

II INVOLVES INJUSTICE. In dealing with individuals. For the partisan associates the holder of an objectionable theory with the theory, and is easily led to vent his annoyance at the theory upon the holder and propounder of it. The sectional and party spirit is at the root of all religious persecution. Men are not unjust when they contend for God"s truth, but only when they contend for some ism of their own, which they persuade themselves is God"s truth. Christ says to all who think of using external forces for him, "Pat up thy sword into its sheath.

III PARTY PREJUDICES ARE MOST DIFFICULT TO REMOVE. Seen in the difficulty of correcting the mistakes on which sects now divide from each other. The "common ground" is little regarded, and the points of difference are unduly exaggerated, and men stand to their little peculiarities and special points as if the whole gospel gathered up into their side and piece of doctrine. And if any try to free them from their prejudice, and let in on them a little generous light, they only retire further in and hold their party sentiment tighter than ever. Surely the full warning of these Judaizers in St. Paul"s time has not been sufficiently recognized in these days of a divided Church and unduly magnified theological and ecclesiastical differences. B. T.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And when the seven days were about to be accomplished - When after giving notice to the priests, they were entering upon the accomplishment of those days. It was toward the beginning of them that Paul was seized. The Jews that were from Asia - Some of those Jews who came from Asia to the feast.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

PAUL ARRESTED

27-30. You see plainly that this affair was diabolical, mobocratic and unapologizable from the beginning, as even the most radical Jews fully approved what Paul was doing. The whole affair was a falsification and a downright violation of all law, Jewish and Roman.

William B. Godbey, Commentary on the New Testament (1896–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

27-30. (27) " Now when the seven days were about to be completed, the Jews from Asia, seeing him in the temple, aroused the whole multitude, and laid hands on him, (28) crying out, Men of Israel, help! This is the man who teaches all men everywhere against the people, and the law and this place, and has even brought Greeks into the temple, and polluted this holy place. (29) For they had previously seen Trophimus the Ephesian in the city with him, whom they thought Paul had brought into the temple. (30) And the whole city was moved, and the people ran together, and seizing Paul, dragged him out of the temple; and the doors were immediately closed. " If Paul's own brethren in Jerusalem has become prejudiced against him on account of his teaching in reference to the law, it is not surprising that the hatred of the unbelieving Jews toward him should be intense. Their treasured wrath was like a magazine, ready to explode the moment a match should be applied; and to charge him with defiling the holy place, which they believed that he had already reviled in every nation, was enough to produce the explosion. It is not the custom of mobs to investigate the charges heaped upon their victims; hence, without knowing or caring to know, whether he had really brought Trophimus into the temple, they seized him and dragged him out into the court of the Gentiles. The doors of the inner court were closed, to prevent the defilement of that holy place by the blood which was likely to be shed.

J. W. McGarvey (with Philip Y. Pendleton), Commentaries on the New Testament (The Fourfold Gospel, 1914; Acts; and the epistles) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

27–40. The Jews … of Asia. From the Roman province called Asia, of which Ephesus was the capital. As Paul had spent three years in that city, they knew him well. These Jews were watching Paul, had seen him in company with Trophimus, an Ephesian Greek, and when they saw Paul in the temple keeping the Nazarite vow, seized him and raised an outcry.

Hath polluted this holy place. They not only charge him with teaching against Judaism, but with bringing Greeks into the part of the temple where all Gentiles were forbidden to come. The Palestine Exploration Society found in their excavations an inscription that must have been over the passage between the court of the Gentiles and the interior court, where the chambers for Nazarites were, forbidding aliens to pass the balustrade on the penalty of death. Nothing could arouse a greater outburst of fanaticism than the belief that Paul had taken Gentiles within the sacred precincts.

They took Paul, and drew him out of the temple. He was, no doubt, within the inner courts, and was hurried without, and the gates shut, to prevent the pollution of the sacred courts by the shedding of blood. They proposed to slay him when they had dragged him where it could be done without profanation. They were willing to murder, but not to profane the temple.

They went about to kill him. Had Trophimus been within, their customs might have permitted them to kill him, but to slay Paul could only be a murder. Tidings came unto the chief captain. The commander of the garrison in the castle of Antonia, overlooking the temple. The watch could see the uproar from their elevated outlook, and the soldiers in a moment would rush down the staircase that led into the temple area, and appear upon the scene. The fortress joined the temple wall and had two flights of stairs leading into the temple courts.

Took him, and commanded him to be bound. The first thought of the commander was that the man seized was some great criminal. From verse 38 we learn that he supposed Paul was an Egyptian rebel. Hence he ordered him bound.

Canst thou speak Greek? When Paul reached the head of the stairs, as he was carried by the soldiers into the fortress, he addressed the officer in Greek. Surprised that he should use that language, the chief captain asked if he was not

that Egyptian. Josephus twice mentions this notorious Egyptian, a pretended prophet, and leader of the Sicarii, or “Assassins.” This “Egyptian” brigand was probably illiterate and did not speak Greek.

I am a Jew of Tarsus. As Tarsus was “no mean city,” a free city, he was entitled to some consideration.

When he had given him license. To address the people. He stood at the head of the stairs, with the vast throng in the court below. Beckoning with the hand to call attention, he addressed them in their beloved Hebrew tongue. There is no excitement, no resentment, but an earnest purpose to benefit them by preaching Christ.

B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.

Connecting Statement:

This begins the story of Paul's arrest.

General Information:

Verse 29 gives background information about the Jews from Asia.

the seven days

These are the seven days for purification.

in the temple

Paul was not in the temple itself. He was in the temple courtyard. AT: "in the temple courtyard" (See: Synecdoche)

stirred up the whole crowd

Inciting people to become very angry at Paul is spoken of as if they stirred up the crowd's emotions. AT: "caused a large number of people to be very angry at Paul" (See: Metaphor)

laid hands on him

Here "laid hands on" means to "seize" or to "grab." See how you translated "laid hands on" in Acts 5:18. AT: "grabbed Paul" (See: Idiom)

the people, the law, and this place

"the people of Israel, the law of Moses, and the temple"

Besides, he has also brought Greeks into the temple

Only Jewish males were allowed in certain areas of the courtyard of the Jerusalem temple. (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)

For they had previously ... into the temple

This is background information. Luke is explaining why the Jews from Asia thought Paul brought a Greek into the temple. (See: Background Information)

Trophimus

This was a Greek man that they accused Paul of having brought into the inner temple area that was only for Jews. See how you translated his name in Acts 20:4.

translationWords

Jew

Asia

Paul

temple

Israel

law

Greek

defile

holy place

Ephesus

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

27. ἔμελλον … συντελεῖσθαι, were almost completed. Seven days appear to have been the period devoted to the more secluded residence in the Temple. For συντελεῖσθαι, of the completion of a portion of time (which is not very common), cf. Job 1:5, καὶ ὡς ἂν συνετελέσθησαν αἱ ἡμέραι τοῦ πότου.

οἱ ἀπὸ τῆς Ἀσίας Ἰουδαῖοι, the Jews from Asia. It seems from this that a portion of the visitors to Jerusalem had known the Apostle in his missionary labours, and may have come after him, in their enmity, to damage his reputation by calumnious reports of his teaching, reports which had as much ground in truth as the story about Trophimus from which the tumult arose at this time in Jerusalem.

συνέχεον πάντα τὸν ὄχλον, stirred up all the multitude. These Asian Jews were coming up to the Temple for their worship, and may even have been of the company in the ship by which the Apostle and his companions came from Patara. They certainly had known, or found out, that Trophimus was an Ephesian and a Gentile. If they had seen the Apostle in familiar converse with him, this would be enough to rouse their indignation, especially as Paul and his companion would probably be living together in the same house and at the same board (cf. Act 11:3).

Cambridge Greek Testament for Schools and Colleges (Cambridge University Press, 1896; 21 vols, various authors incl. Carr, Maclear, Plummer, Farrar, Lumby, Moule, M. R. James, Simcox) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

27. αἱ ἑπτ. ἡμ.] Of the votive period: not (as Chrys. and ) since Paul’s arrival in Jerusalem. Five days of the seven had passed: see on ch. 24:11. Cf. on the whole, Bp. Wordsworth’s note.

ἀπὸ τ. Ἀς.] From Ephesus and the neighbourhood, where Paul had so long taught. ‘Paulus, dum fidelibus placandis intentus est (viz. the believing Jews), in hostium furorem incurrit (viz. of the unbelieving Asiatic Jews).’ Calv., in Meyer, who adds, ‘In how many ways had those who were at Jerusalem this Pentecost, already persecuted Paul in Asia?’

Notice the similarity of the charge against him to that against Stephen, ch. 6:13.

Henry Alford, The Greek Testament (1849–1861) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Asia. See on ch. Act 2:9.

Stirred up [συνεχεον] . Only here in New Testament. Lit., poured together, threw into confusion. See on confounded, ch. 2 6; and confusion, ch. 19 29.

Marvin R. Vincent, Word Studies in the New Testament (1887–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.