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Paul’s Capture in Jerusalem

Last week Paul departed Caesarea for Jerusalem . . . "compelled by the (Holy) Spirit" (Acts 20:22), even though he knew he would be captured and held against his will (Acts 21:11). Paul was so driven in this objective that he rejected the pleas of fellow Christians to flee—and preach another day in another place, as he did many times before.

Paul is carrying a large of amount of money, contributed to the church in Jerusalem by the Jewish-Gentile churches of modern Greece and Turkey. This is the second recorded time churches outside Judea have sent money for operational expenses of the Jerusalem church. The first time—about 15 years ago—was attributed to famine (Acts 11:30). Acts does not tell us why they need money this time; they just always seem to be in need.

Last Friday evening I attended Sabbath services at Beth Messiah in Loveland: a "Messianic synagogue" of Jews who believe Jesus is the Messiah. The rabbi made a comment that ties in with today’s lesson. He said in the 1^st century the issue was: "Can Gentiles be Christian without converting to Judaism?" But in the 21^st century, the issue has reversed: "Can Jews follow Jesus and still be observant Jews?" Let’s be honest: although we say we want Jews to accept Jesus as Messiah, most of us would think it weird if they continued to worship on Friday evening . . . to observe Yom Kippur and Rosh Hashana and Passover and all the Jewish festivals. Yet, if we are true to the beliefs Peter and Paul have expounded through 20 chapters of Acts, we must agree with the rabbi . . . if a Jew accepts Jesus as Messiah—as fulfillment of Jewish prophesy—it’s not necessary to give up Jewish practices (except animal sacrifices—as discussed in the book of Hebrews—which were given up by Jews in 70 AD, anyway.)

In this week’s lesson, the big story is that a Jewish mob tries to kill Paul in the temple—and he is captured by the Roman army (to save his life). But the reason Paul goes into the temple is related to a 1^st century version of the question raised by the messianic rabbi: "If a Jew believes in Jesus, must he continue to follow all the practices of 1^st century Judaism . . . including those no longer required since Jesus the Messiah came and died?"

Acts tells us Paul is "received warmly" by the church when he arrives in Jerusalem (Acts 21:17). Are they glad to see him, or glad to receive or the money he brings? Luke doesn’t say; but when Paul and his companions meet with James and the church elders the next day, it’s clear Paul is an embarrassment to them.

Let’s review what we know about the leadership of the Jerusalem church. The titular leader is Jesus’ brother (or cousin) James. He was not a believer until after Jesus’ resurrection; he was made head of the church because of his family . . . not because of his knowledge. Like Jesus and Peter, James is a rural Galilean with no formal training in the oral law of the Pharisees. Many Pharisees, experts in the oral law, have joined the church and become elders, and these Pharisees seem to be calling the shots on matters of the law; note that the church elders—not James—are the ones speaking to Paul in Acts 21:20-25.

The meeting with James and the church elders starts out well enough. Paul and his Jewish-Gentile companions report successful evangelism in Gentile-majority areas, and they bring living, godly Gentile-Christians as proof. James and the church elders "praised God" for this (Acts 21:18-20).

But the elders may actually see Paul’s success as a threat to them and their control of the Christian movement, because they respond: "Thousands of Jews have believed, and all of them are zealous for the law" (Acts 21:20). Translation: "We are glad many Gentiles have become Christians, and we know they believe salvation comes by faith in Jesus, apart from the oral law (Acts 13:38-39). But here in Jerusalem, we have been very successful evangelizing Jews . . . and these Jewish Christians vigorously strive to follow all the regulations of the oral law and continue to perform animal sacrifices."

Verse 25 makes clear the issue is not whether Gentile believers must be circumcised and obey the oral law; the elders affirm the decision of the Council of Jerusalem, that Gentile-Christians need only follow some very basic rules. The issue is about Jewish believers and the oral law. These Jewish Christians are convinced from scripture that Jesus is Messiah, but otherwise they continue their old Jewish religious practices. Traditions die hard . . . and not just among Jews! But these people still offer animal sacrifices, even though Jesus’ death took away the need for them (cf Hebr 10) . . . and they continue to follow all the petty rules of the oral law, even though Jesus criticized the Pharisees for this and called for emphasis on the "more important matters of the law" (Matt 23:23).

The church elders continue: "(These Jewish-Christians) have been informed that you teach all the Jews who live among the Gentiles to turn away from Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children or live according to our customs" (Acts 21:21). Just who is telling this to the Jewish-Christians? And aren’t the Jerusalem church elders defending Paul? Paul had Timothy circumcised—painful surgery as an adult—to prove he believes in circumcision of Jewish-Christians. And if Paul teaches Jews to follow Jesus when His teachings differ from the oral law . . . is that wrong? What’s wrong is to insist that Jewish Christians follow the oral law without regard to the teachings of Jesus!

Perhaps we should cut them a break; as we’ve discussed before, the New Testament doesn’t exist at this time . . . maybe one of the gospels has been written (and half the letters of Paul). But the Jerusalem church has claimed the authority to set worldwide standards of Christian faith and practice; this is something they ought to know. In less than years the temple will be destroyed and animal sacrifices will cease; the Jerusalem church elders really ought to begin de-emphasizing sacrifices now!

The elders continue: "What shall we do? They will certainly hear that you have come" (Acts 21: 22). This is an incredible statement: "The people of our church have heard such bad things about you, and we don’t know how they will react when they hear you are in town . . . !" Can’t the elders keep their members under control? This sounds like a cop-out: "We think you’re great, Paul . . . but it’s those other guys . . . !"

The church elders have a ready solution to the problem they just created . . . and it’s another shakedown: "Show these Jewish-Christians that you really are an observant Jew by joining in the purification rites of four of our members . . . and pay their expenses!" By this seemingly innocent—though self-serving—request, the elders of the church of Jerusalem send Paul into the lions’ den: he must go into the temple to purchase animal sacrifices, and there he must present himself to priests as part of purification rites.

Why do I call the temple a "lions’ den"? Let’s remember . . . Paul was a rising Pharisee in Jerusalem (Gal 1:14), who participated in Stephen’s stoning. He became an agent for the chief priests to track down Christians and put them in jail (Acts 9:1-2). And when he became a Christian, he returned to Jerusalem and publicly debated his former associates . . . until they plotted to kill him, and he had to leave town quickly (Acts 9:29-30). Then Paul proclaimed Jesus as Messiah in the synagogues of Turkey and Greece . . . and made some Jews there mad enough to try to kill him. Paul has lots of enemies in the temple.

Last Wednesday evening, 100 people died in a tragic fire in Rhode Island, when the band "Great White" set off pyrotechnics in a night club. The band and the night club each try to blame the other in what will surely become multi-billion dollar lawsuits. The issue is if the night club knew "Great White" would use pyrotechnics . . . but someone made a very apt comment: "Duh . . . everyone knows ‘Great White’ always uses pyrotechnics."

So it was when the Jerusalem church sent Paul into the temple. We believe the church elders acted in naive innocence . . . yet with all the enemies Paul had among Jewish religious leaders, isn’t it logical Paul would be recognized if he ventured back into the temple . . . and if recognized, wouldn’t someone try to kill him. Hence by sending Paul to the temple as part of purification rites, the elders of the Jerusalem church should know they are may be sending him to his death.

Why does Paul go along with this idea? Why does he agree to animal sacrifices? The reason is found in his 1^st letter to the Corinthians, written not long before this incident:

Paul agrees to participate in ritualistic Jewish practices—not necessarily because he agrees with them—but to avoid undercutting the faith of those who do believe (cf 1 Cor 8:9-13). Hence, in the name of church unity, Paul voluntarily faces death.

Paul isn’t recognized immediately when he enters the temple . . . but sure enough, it happens before his 7 days of purification are completed. It’s Pentecost, and Jews from all over the world are in the temple for the festival. Paul is recognized by Jews from the Ephesus area. They shout to the crowd: "Men of Israel, help us! This is the man who teaches all men everywhere against our people and our law and this place" (Acts 21:28a). And to further incite the crowd, they claim Paul took a Ephesian Gentile, Trophimus, into the temple—through the Gate Beautiful, past the sign (posted on the web site) that threatened Gentiles with immediate death if they entered. This charge is obviously spurious, because if it were true, they would have captured Trophimus as well.

Now we might ask: "Where are the Jewish-Christians of Jerusalem, who sent Paul into the temple? Where are the four other guys undergoing purification rites—at Paul’s expense? Do none of these come forward in Paul’s defense? Apparently not!

But Jews come running from everywhere. A mob forms, and drags Paul outside the temple to kill him. (The temple is a holy place, so they can’t kill him there.) Fortunately, extra Roman troops are in Jerusalem for Pentecost. As the picture on the web site shows, the Roman Fortress Antonio is in the Northeast corner of the temple, and the Romans hear the mob activity at the same time the Jews do. Their job is to control riots, so they rush in and rescue Paul from certain death!

The commander binds Paul, and tries to ascertain what he has done to cause this riot. But the mob is in such an "uproar" he can’t get a straight answer. Hence, for mutual safety, he takes Paul to the fortress . . . not far from where all this is happening. This turns out to be a good choice, because the mob becomes unruly as the soldiers approach the fortress, and Paul must be carried up the steps from the temple area.

At the top of the steps—safely in Fortress Antonio—Paul asks to speak to the commander. Remember the languages involved. Romans speak Latin and Greek (the universal language). Hebraic Jews speak Aramaic and some Greek; Hellenized Jews speak Greek and maybe some Aramaic; all Jews use Hebrew for religious purposes. The commander seems surprised to find Paul fluent in Greek; somehow confuses him with a Jew called "the Egyptian" who led a revolt with dagger-wielding "sicarii" less than 5 years before (Josephus Antiq 20:169-172). Paul sets him straight: "I am a Jew from Tarsus. May I speak to the people?" The commander realizes Paul is a Hellenized Jew; if Paul speaks to the mob in Greek, he might learn the charges against him. So he agrees.

Paul strategically switches from Greek to Aramaic as he addresses the mob. Since Paul’s accusers are Jews from the Ephesus area, the mob assumes he’s Greek-speaking; so by speaking Aramaic, Paul identifies with the mob as "one of them." This peaks their curiosity . . . they become very quiet.

Paul establishes his credentials as a "Jew’s Jew": a Pharisee tutored by Gamaliel, the acknowledged spiritual leader of his time. He tells them how he persecuted Christians . . . and challenges the chief priests to confirm his story. They are probably impressed!

Then Paul talks about his conversion—the story in Acts 9 . . . how on the road to Damascus a bright light flashed from heaven and Paul heard the voice of Jesus . . . how he was made blind, but a visit from a Christian named Ananias restored his sight . . . and how he was baptized in the name of Jesus. Paul adds a part of the story we haven’t heard before . . . that when he came to Jerusalem after his conversion, he had a vision from God . . . that the Jews would reject his message of Jesus as Messiah, and God would send him to preach to the Gentiles.

The mob listens intently to Paul’s testimony . . . even about the light and voice from heaven on the road to Damascus. But when Paul tells these Hebraic Jews God sent him to minister to Gentiles, they shout: "Rid the earth of him! He's not fit to live!" (Acts 22:22). They think Gentiles are unclean and evil; and don’t deserve to be saved!

With the mob restless again, the Romans take Paul and retreat into the Fortress Antonio. The commander orders Paul to be flogged, the brutal punishment inflicted on Paul and Silas in Philippi (Acts 16:23). Probably remembering that horrible experience, Paul plays the "Roman citizen card" right away. Innocently his asks the centurion, "Is it legal for you to flog a Roman citizen who hasn't even been found guilty?" (Acts 22:25). This is immediately reported to the commander, who promptly verifies it. As in Philippi, the Roman authorities assumed Paul was just another Jew, but now they are fearful, because they can get in big trouble . . . for just putting a Roman citizen in chains.

Nevertheless, Paul remains in jail, where he will stay for a long time. All this is part of God’s plan . . . yet the role played by the Jerusalem church is troubling. They sent Paul into the temple to do something a Christian shouldn’t be asked to do, promising him if he did what they said, the Jewish Christians of the Jerusalem church would be his friends (Acts 21:23). But where were these friends when the going got rough?

Next week we’ll discuss Paul’s defense before the Sanhedrin . . . including many of the people who—20 years or so before—commissioned Paul to persecute Christians. It’s not a pretty scene. The Jews plot to kill Paul while in custody—like Lee Harvey Oswald—so the Romans transfer him to the safety of the provincial capital of Caesarea.