Acts of the Apostles

Acts 21:1-40

We last left Paul in Miletus, where he was with the Ephesian elders.

Ac 21:1 (NASB) When we had parted from them and had set sail, we ran a straight course to Cos and the next day to Rhodes and from there to Patara;

2 and having found a ship crossing over to Phoenicia, we went aboard and set sail.

Paul, Luke, and company parted from the elders from Ephesus that Paul met with to say goodbye, to encourage them, and to warn them of future attacks on the members of their congregations. He also told them that they would probably never see him again.

So, they boarded a ship going to Phoenicia, which was just north of Judea.

Ac 21:3 (NASB) When we came in sight of Cyprus, leaving it on the left, we kept sailing to Syria and landed at Tyre; for there the ship was to unload its cargo.

4 After looking up the disciples, we stayed there seven days and they kept telling Paul through the Spirit not to set foot in Jerusalem.

There are two parts to verse 4……….looking up disciples, and a warning to Paul.

They “looked” up some disciples. Where did these disciples come from?

After Stephen’s stoning, the Christians in Jerusalem were forced to leave there and as a result, the Gospel was spread to other areas. The church at Tyre was one such church that was formed as a result of the diaspora. On this trip, Paul and his companions looked these Christians up and stayed with them for a week. (It probably took a week for Paul to tell them all that had happened.)

Next, Paul was warned not to go to Jerusalem……….Paul received more than one warning about going to Jerusalem.

Acts 20:22-23 (KJV) 22  And now, behold, I go bound in the spirit unto Jerusalem, not knowing the things that shall befall me there: 23  Save that the Holy Ghost witnesseth in every city, saying that bonds and afflictions abide me.

These warnings, some through the Holy Spirit, weren’t forbidding him to go……….just warning him of what would happen to him if he went.

5 When our days there were ended, we left and started on our journey, while they all, with wives and children, escorted us until we were out of the city. After kneeling down on the beach and praying, we said farewell to one another.

6 Then we went on board the ship, and they returned home again. 

As you can see on the map………they made a few short jaunts on their way to Jerusalem.

Ac 21:7 (NASB) When we had finished the voyage from Tyre, we arrived at Ptolemais, and after greeting the brethren, we stayed with them for a day.

Leave map up

Verse 4 says they “looked up the brethren when they were in Tyre.” Verse 7 just says they greeted the brethren. You can see on the map that Ptolemais was a very short distance from Tyre, so it is natural that word would have spread that Paul and his companions were in the area. As a result, the Christians may have come looking for Paul. After all, he was pretty famous by this time.

8 On the next day we left and came to Caesarea, and entering the house of Philip the evangelist, who was one of the seven, we stayed with him.

This Philip is one of the seven “deacons,” back in chapter 6.

Ac 6:3 (NASB) "Therefore, brethren, select from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may put in charge of this task. ……………………….

5 The statement found approval with the whole congregation; and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, and Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas and Nicolas, a proselyte from Antioch.

And we read about Phillip again in chapter 8, when he meets the Ethiopian Eunuch and he is still where he stopped after baptizing the eunuch.

Ac 8:26 (NASB) But an angel of the Lord spoke to Philip saying, "Get up and go south to the road that descends from Jerusalem to Gaza." (This is a desert road.)

Ac 8:27 (NASB) So he got up and went; and there was an Ethiopian eunuch, a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure; and he had come to Jerusalem to worship………………………………..

Ac 8:40 (NASB)  But Philip found himself at Azotus, and as he passed through he kept preaching the gospel to all the cities until he came to Caesarea.

It is interesting to note that it appears that Phillip has stayed in this same general area since Stephen’s death……….about 20 years. In verse 8, he is called an “evangelist.” The Greek word was transliterated, not translated, as euangelistēs,. It means, “one who announces glad tidings; a preacher of the Gospel, a teacher. It should have been translated “preacher of the Gospel.” Today, the term is used as a “position.” But it means teacher or preacher of the Gospel.

Acts 21:9 (KJV) 9  And the same man had four daughters, virgins, which did prophesy.

Phillip had four daughters. Several translations say, “four unmarried daughters.” Commentaries seem to connect their ability to prophesy to their being maidens.

Here comes another warning for Paul………….

10 As we were staying there for some days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea.

11 And coming to us, he took Paul's belt and bound his own feet and hands, and said, "This is what the Holy Spirit says: 'In this way the Jews at Jerusalem will bind the man who owns this belt and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.'"

12 When we had heard this, we as well as the local residents began begging him not to go up to Jerusalem.

13 Then Paul answered, "What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be bound, but even to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus."

Agabus was mentioned in chapter 11. He prophesied that there would be a famine over the earth…….and there was. This time, he tells Paul that Jews will bind him and hand him over to the Romans, which was something that Jews would never do………….but they did. It was important to Paul that he go to Jerusalem, regardless of what might be waiting for him there. God was not telling him not to go. He was just letting Paul know that it would be a rocky road.

14 And since he would not be persuaded, we fell silent, remarking, "The will of the Lord be done!"

15 After these days we got ready and started on our way up to Jerusalem.

Here again, we see they say, “up to Jerusalem,” when Jerusalem is clearly south of Caesarea. Remember that because of the elevation of Jerusalem in relation to the rest of the area, a trip to Jerusalem is usually noted as “up.”

16 Some of the disciples from Caesarea also came with us, taking us to Mnason of Cyprus, a disciple of long standing with whom we were to lodge.

17 After we arrived in Jerusalem, the brethren received us gladly.

18 And the following day Paul went in with us to James, and all the elders were present.

James is still considered to be the leader or pastor of the Jerusalem church. He was also the leader when the dispute about Gentile circumcision had occurred, and is still the leader.

19 After he had greeted them, he began to relate one by one the things which God had done among the Gentiles through his ministry.

Paul has the collections that the Gentiles in Corinth and Galatia have sent to the poor in Jerusalem. We don’t read about him giving it to them, but this might have been an excellent time. He is telling them how the Gentiles have reacted (in a good way) to his teachings.

20 And when they heard it they began glorifying God; and they said to him, "You see, brother, how many thousands there are among the Jews of those who have believed, and they are all zealous for the Law;

Paul is told of Jewish believers who are zealous for the Law……..Still confused 20 years after Jesus Christ nailed the Law to the Cross. They weren’t doubtful. They were zealous.

21 and they have been told about you, that you are teaching all the Jews who are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children nor to walk according to the customs.

This is almost laughable. It would be if it weren’t so sad. These people, “HAVE BEEN TOLD” that Paul is teaching Jews who live among Gentiles to not circumcise their sons. None of that is true, but where do you think that has come from? It came out of the Jerusalem Conference when they discussed Gentile circumcision. The issue wasn’t whether a Gentile needed to be circumcised. It was, “Is a Gentile required to be circumcised in order to be saved? Not only was the issue not about circumcision per se, it wasn’t even about Jews. Paul and Barnabas never even mentioned Jews.

So, the men with Paul came up with a plan to help Paul get accepted……….

22 "What, then, is to be done? They will certainly hear that you have come.

23 "Therefore do this that we tell you. We have four men who are under a vow;

24 take them and purify yourself along with them, and pay their expenses so that they may shave their heads; and all will know that there is nothing to the things which they have been told about you, but that you yourself also walk orderly, keeping the Law.

It was suggested to Paul, that in order to prove that he wasn’t against the Law, that he should go with four men, pay their fees, and make the necessary sacrifices at the Temple to be released from the vow…………possibly a Nazarite vow. They said that if he will do this, all will know that there is no truth to the rumors which they have been told about you, but that you yourself also walk orderly, keeping the Law.

25 "But concerning the Gentiles who have believed, we wrote, having decided that they should abstain from meat sacrificed to idols and from blood and from what is strangled and from fornication."

You will remember that these are some of the rituals pagans in Asia Minor were performing for their gods in their temples. Paul and Barnabas were dealing with these things on a regular basis.

26 Then Paul took the men, and the next day, purifying himself along with them, went into the temple giving notice of the completion of the days of purification, until the sacrifice was offered for each one of them.

Paul courteously goes to the Temple and tells the Priests that sacrifices will be made when these men complete their vow, so the Priests can be ready for them. Also of note…………These are Jewish Christians making offerings in the temple 20 years after Jesus Christ’s death and resurrection.

27 When the seven days were almost over, the Jews from Asia, upon seeing him in the temple, began to stir up all the crowd and laid hands on him,

28 crying out, "Men of Israel, come to our aid! This is the man who preaches to all men everywhere against our people and the Law and this place; and besides he has even brought Greeks into the temple and has defiled this holy place."

When some Jews from Asia Minor saw Paul in the Temple with four men, they assumed that he had brought Gentiles into the part of the Temple Gentiles were not allowed. It could be, of course, that they knew he hadn’t, but they hated him so much, they wanted him killed. You can bet that these men were some that Paul disputed with on one of his journeys through Asia Minor.

It actually was a crime punishable by death to do what these men were accusing Paul of………..

From the Bible Exposition Commentary-In the temple, separating the court of the Gentiles from the other courts, stood a wall beyond which no Gentile was allowed to go (note Eph. 2:14). On the wall was this solemn inscription: "No foreigner may enter within the barricade which surrounds the sanctuary and enclosure. Anyone who is caught so doing will have himself to blame for his ensuing death." The Romans had granted the Jewish religious leaders authority to deal with anybody who broke this law, and this included the right of execution. This law plays an important role in what happened to Paul a week after he and the four Nazarites began their purification ceremonies.

Here is the scripture in Numbers for the Levites to keep non-Israelites away from the tabernacle:

Nu 1:51 (KJV)  And when the tabernacle setteth forward, the Levites shall take it down: and when the tabernacle is to be pitched, the Levites shall set it up: and the stranger that cometh nigh shall be put to death.

Crossing this wall was the issue of the dispute with Paul that he had brought gentiles into the very sacred area of the temple itself.

Acts 21:29-30 (KJV) 29 (For they had seen before with him in the city Trophimus an Ephesian, whom they supposed that Paul had brought into the temple.)

30 And all the city was moved, and the people ran together: and they took Paul, and drew him out of the temple: and forthwith the doors were shut.

No questions were asked. They riled the crowd up, and thrust Paul and the men out of the Temple. There was such a ruckus created that the Roman guard came and arrested Paul. They wanted to question him, so as their custom was, they proceeded to beat him. The Roman way to get the truth was to beat a man until he said what they wanted him to say.

31 While they were seeking to kill him, a report came up to the commander of the Roman cohort that all Jerusalem was in confusion.

This man commanded about 250 soldiers, and had over 100 with him to quell this riot.

32 At once he took along some soldiers and centurions and ran down to them; and when they saw the commander and the soldiers, they stopped beating Paul.

Finally, one of the Roman commanders stopped them and started to question Paul.

33 Then the commander came up and took hold of him, and ordered him to be bound with two chains; and he began asking who he was and what he had done.

The crowd was so boisterous, the commander couldn’t hear Paul’s answers, so he took him into the barracks for some quiet.

34 But among the crowd some were shouting one thing and some another, and when he could not find out the facts because of the uproar, he ordered him to be brought into the barracks.

35 When he got to the stairs, he was carried by the soldiers because of the violence of the mob;

The mob wanted Paul dead.

36 for the multitude of the people kept following them, shouting, "Away with him!"

37 As Paul was about to be brought into the barracks, he said to the commander, "May I say something to you?" And he *said, "Do you know Greek?

38 "Then you are not the Egyptian who some time ago stirred up a revolt and led the four thousand men of the Assassins out into the wilderness?"

From Expositor’s Bible Commentary-The commander was startled to hear Paul speaking in fluent Greek and surmised that perhaps the prisoner was the Egyptian Jew who three years earlier had appeared in Jerusalem claiming to be a prophet and had led a large band of followers into the wilderness and then to the Mount of Olives in preparation for the messianic overthrow of Jerusalem. Most people had considered him a charlatan, and Felix and his soldiers had driven him off.

39 But Paul said, "I am a Jew of Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of no insignificant city; and I beg you, allow me to speak to the people."

When he found that Paul was a Roman citizen, everything changed.

40 When he had given him permission, Paul, standing on the stairs, motioned to the people with his hand; and when there was a great hush, he spoke to them in the Hebrew dialect, saying,

Why in the world would anyone break a chapter in the middle of a sentence?

Ac 22:1 (KJV)  Men, brethren, and fathers, hear ye my defense which I make now unto you.

And we will hear Paul’s defense next week.

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