Acts 21

Chap. XXI. Ver. 1—20. Paul resolutely pursues his journey to Jerusalem, notwithstanding the predicted consequences. It was with no small difficulty that St. Paul ‘‘got” from the brethren. The original implies that he was obliged to tear or wrest himself from them, to pursue his voyage. He next there, finding disciples endowed with gifts of prophecy, they warned him by the Spirit, that he had better not go up to Jerusalem. So Beza explains the passage: ‘‘They, understanding by the revelation of the Spirit, what dangers awaited Paul, out of affection, and not by any special divine command, entreated him not to go up to Jerusalem, being ignorant of what the same Spirit had commanded Paul.” The warning was afterwards repeated at Cesarea, by Agabus, who predicted by a sign, in the manner of the old prophets, that he should be there imprisoned.

‘“‘And when we heard these things, (saith Luke,) both we, and they of that place, besought him not to go up to Jerusalem.” At this it is evident that Paul’s mind was stirred and agitated, and he broke out into this impassioned exclamation—‘‘What, mean ye to weep and break my heart? for I am ready, not to be bound only, but also to pre at Jerusalem, for the name of the Lord Jesus.” Thus “none of these things moved him;” and therefore, adds the inspired historian, when (we found) he would not be persuaded, we ceased, saying, “The will of the Lord be done.” It would afford but little edification to our readers to examine the progress of Paul’s journey, (which is best done upon the map;) we shall only remark the general opinion, that Paul did not fulfil his whole voyage in one ship, but in two or three, (as was common in those coasting voyages,) as circumstances might require.

The chief fact we here wish to remark is, the strong bond of affection that united Christians with their common Lord. Wherever they went, the first inquiry seems to have been, Are there here any that love our Lord Jesus? and that circumstance, independent of all others, was a bond “strong as death.” Fellow Christians were brothers and sisters in the same family; they were children of the same heavenly Father, bought in the same blood, actuated by the same Spirit; so that they were indeed ONE, not in name and opinion only, but in heart. They also paid a particular attention to the heralds of salvation: when any one came preaching the Lord Jesus, they were attracted to him as by magnetism: they clung together as grapes upon the true vine; and we may believe they seldom parted without kneeling together in prayer, whether it were in the church, or in the house, or “on the sea shore,”

as at Tyre: and it was this invincible attachment which occasioned the heathen to say proverbially, ‘See how these Christians love!” But we must not generalize.—When Paul came to Jerusalem en a ne SSSR) needs come * together: for they will hear that thou art come. shave t their heads: and all may know that he was introduced to the apostle James, and the elders of that church: and when he related “what (wonderful) things God had wrought among the Gentiles by his ministry, they glorified the Lord,” and, in return, directed him to observe what, also, the Lord had done among his countrymen, the Jews: “Thou athe brother, how many thousands of Jews there are which believe! Say. 21—40. Paul, conforming to the customs of the Mosaic law, is set upon by the Jews, but rescued by the chief captain.

—Our last section introduced Paul to his es at Jerusalem. At the same time, as they joyfully state the number of converted Jews now in Jerusalem, they use this as an argument with him to conform to the Jewish rites, for they were “all zealous of the law.” On this account they had been strongly prejudiced against Paul, because they had heard it reported that he had encouraged the Jewish converts, residing among the Gentiles, to neglect circumcision, and other rites of the Mosaic law. This his brethren did not believe; but in order to counteract a report so likely to impede his usefulness, they wish him to unite with four brethren that were then under the vow of the Nazarite, and defray (in part or in whole) the charge of their joint sacrifices, the price of which must have been enormous.

(See Numbers vi. 14, 15.) If it were Paul who took the vow at Cenchrea, (ch. xviii. 18, and he was now come to Jerusalem to offer the appointed sacrifices, this proposal was very opportune: but to that no reference is here made. It was, also, according to Josephus, an ancient custom among the Jews, for others who had not taken the Nazarite’s vow themselves, to contribute toward, or to defray wholly, the expenses of sacrifice for others, especially those who were not well able to afford the charge. This some thought a work of great merit; but it is not to be supposed our apostle, who was a great opponent of the doctrine of human merit, undertook it with such views, but merely to abate the prejudices of his Jewish brethren.

Paul’s sentiments on the Jewish dispensation are fully explained in his Epistles. He considered the Jewish ritual as no longer obligatory; yet he did not wish to treat it with contempt, nor to offend his Jewish brethren, who did not yet see its abrogation. Infidel writers have abused his conduct in this respect, as trimming and time-serving; but as his object was not worldly interest, but to subserve the cause of Christ, we see not with what propriety it can be condemned. He became “all things to all men,” that by any means, “he might save some.” ((1 Corinthians 9:22).) This conciliatory measure, however, had an effect far different from what had been intended. It was not to be supposed that Paul would, or could, refrain from speaking to a Gentile convert in the city; but his being seen to do this was sufficient to raise an alarm, when his old enemies were on the watch.

He had been seen with one ‘‘Trophimus, an Ephesian,” whom “they supposed he had brought into the temple,” probably from seeing there a person somewhat like him. On this ground (whether real or pretended) an alarm was raised: Paul was seized and dragged out of the temple, and the door closed, to prevent other Gentiles from going in. The whole city was immediately in an uproar, and they fell to beating Paul, and would doubtless have killed him, if the Roman power had not interfered. But notice of the riot being given to the chief officer of the Roman band, which kept guard at the outer gates of the temple, to prevent any riot during the public festivals he came immediately, with soldiers, to his rescue; and, supposing him some great criminal, (particularly the Egyptian, who had made a riot some time before,) he ordered him to be bound with two chains, and inquired into the charges against him; but obtaining no satisfaction from his accusers, he commanded him to be brought immediately to the castle of Antonia, on the stairs (or steps) of which he obtained leave to speak in his own defence.

Notes on the verses

Chap. XXI. Ver. 1. Gotten from them.—Hammond, “plucked or snatched.” Wesley, “torn away from them.” It implies a reluctancy on both sides to part.—Coos.—[Coos, Cos, or Co. now Z7a, is an island in the Ægean sea, one of those called Cyclades, near the south-west point of Asia Minor, and about 15 miles from Halicarnassus.—Rhodes—Is a celebrated island in the same sea, southward of Caria, from which it is distant about 20 miles, next to Cyprus and Lesbos in extent, being 120 miles in circumference. It was celebrated for the clearness of the air, and its — and healthy climate, and chiefly for its Colossus of brass 70 cubits high, with each finger as large as an ordinary man, standing astride over the mouth of the harbour, so that ships in full sail passed between its legs.—Patara—Was a maritime town of Lysia in Asia Minor, situated on the eastern side of the river Xanthus, with a capacious harbour, and a temple and oracle of Apollo.]—Bagster Ver.

2. And finding a ship, &c.—This was the second vessel, the first carried them only to Patara.—Set forth—i.e. set sail. Ver. 4. And finding disciples, &c.—Doddridge, ‘‘We continued there seven days, finding disciples, who told Paul, by the Spirit, not to go,”’ &c. Ver. 6. We took ship.—This was the third vessel; the second stopped at Tyre; the third carried them on to Ptolemais. Here they left this vessel, and travelled by land to Cesarea, and so on to Jerusalem. Ver. 7. Ptolemais.—An ancient city called Accho, ((Judges 1:31),) but rebuilt by Ptolemy, who gave it his name, and now known as Acra. Ver. 8. Philip the evangelist.—See (Acts 6:5); viii. 26, &c. Ver. 13. What mean ye?—Compare (Acts 20:24). When Luther was summoned to attend the diet at Worms, his friends, notwithstanding the safe conduct granted to him by the emperor, Charles V., apprehending danger to his person, would have dissuaded him from going thither. Luther replied, “I am determined to enter the city in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, though as many devils should oppose me as there are tiles upon all the houses at Worms.” He was accompanied from Wittemburg by some —— and one hundred horse: but he took only eight horsemen into Worms. When he stepped out of the carriage, he said, in presence of a great number of persons, ‘God shall be on my side.” Ver. 15. Carriages.—[The word carriages here denotes any thing that is carried, luggage or baggage.

The original, aposkewasmenoi, from apo, from, and skeuē, furniture, baggage, signifies, having packed up one’s baggage.] Ver. 16. Brought with them one Mnason.—(Pronounced Nason.) [Or, “conducting us to one Mnason with whom we might lodge.” Mnason, a native of Cyprus, probably then lived at Jerusalem; though he might have been down at Cesarea, met the apostles, and invited them to lodge with him.]—Bagster. Ver. 20. How many thousands.—Doddridge, ‘Myriads,” (so the Greek;) but he thinks the word may here rather be taken for a large, than a precise number; perhaps, he says, twenty or thirty thousand were present at Jerusalem to keep the feast: but we believe there were often many more. Ver. 21.

That they ought not to circumcise, &c.—St. Paul’s conduct, with regard to Timothy, might have been a sufficient answer to this part of the charge. See ch. xvi. 3. Ver. 24. Be at charges with them—{That is, in furnishing sacrifices; which was a common and very popular act among the Jews. ‘Thus Josephus observes, that Agrippa, among other acts of thankfulness for being advanced from a prison to a throne, ordered very many Nazarites to be shaven, furnishing them with money for their expenses.}—Bagster. Ver. 25. As touching the Gentiles which believe.—(James and the elders here avow, that they intend nothing contrary to their former determination respecting the Gentile converts. It is doubtful whether on this occasion Paul and his advisers acted in strict consistency with Christian simplicity; and it seems very difficult wholly to defend them from the charge of temporizing, accommodating, and refining too much in this matter.

Though the apostles were infallibly preserved from mistaking, corrupting, or mutilating the doctrine which they communicated to the church, yet it is evident, they were not rendered infallible in their personal conduct.)—Bagster. Ver. 26. Then Paul took the men.—This has been censured by Voltaire and others, as a weak act of temporizing to please the people: but see Findlay’s Answer to Voltaire. Ver. 27. When the seven days—Namely, of purification; see verse 24.—Were almost ended.—Doddridge, ‘‘Were about to be accomplished.”—— The Jews which were of Asia.—From whom he had before met with much opposition. (Acts 19:9); xx. 3, &c. Ver. 31. The chief captain.—Lysias, tribune of the cohort and chiliarch, or commander of 1000 men. Ver.

34. The castle.—(This was the castle built by John Hyrcanus, the high priest, at the angle formed by the northern and western porticoes of the outer court of the temple. It was anciently called Baris; but Herod having repaired and beautified it, called it Antonia, in honour of his friend Mark Antony. Josephus describes it as having four towers, from one of which the whole temple was overlooked; and that one of the towers was joined to the porticoes of the temple, and had a double pair of stairs from it, by which the soldiers in the garrison were used to come down with their arms to the porticoes, on the festival days, to keep the people quiet.)—Bagster. Ver. 38, That Egyptian, &c.—(This Egyptian is mentioned by Josephus, who says, that he pretended to be a prophet, and persuaded a multitude of people to follow him to the top of mount Olivet, telling them that they should see the walls of the city fall down before them; but Felix attacked them with horse and foot, killed 400 on the spot, took 200 prisoners, and put the Egyptian himself to flight.)—Bagster.

Ver. 39. Tarsus.—{Tarsus, now called Tarsous and Tarasso, was an ancient and celebrated city of Cilicia, situated in a plain on the banks of the Cydnus. It was made the metropolis of Cilicia; and from its adherence to the Romans, it was made a free city, and probably endowed with the citizenship of Rome, by Julius Caesar. It was a rich and populous city; and was once the rival of Alexandria and Athens in literature and the polite arts. Josephus.}—Bagster.—A citizen of no mean city.—The people of Tarsus boasted their high antiquity from Tarshish, the son of Javan, (Genesis 10:4). They also aspired to literary fame, (compare note on ch. ix. 11.) and were rendered eminent by wealth and commerce. See note on (Acts 22:28).