Acts 22

Acts 22:2

And these enemies of Paul’s being averse to the Hellenists, (see note [a] ch. vi.), and so to him, as using the Greek language, when they heard him speak Hebrew, were a little pacified, and so gave him the hearing. Thus therefore he began his oration: I am verily a man— “a scholar of Gamaliel’s, a doctor of the Pharisees, and accordingly was imbued with the strictest Judaical principles, and so became as zealous a propugner of the law of Moses and religion of the Jews as that is opposed to the reformation wrought by Christ, as any of you are at this time, being of that sort of men among the Jews that are called zelots, and are very punctual and strict in the observances of the law, and think themselves obliged to put all men to death that teach any thing against it. And so did I to the Christians, binding and delivering—

[a] spake in the Hebrew tongue] What the reason was of Paul’s speaking Hebrew at this time, and the Jews giving him audience thereupon, may here briefly be noted. Two sorts of Jews there were at this time, some called by St. Chrysostom οἱ βαθεῖς Ἑβραῖοι, “profound Hebrews,” such as used no other language but the Hebrew, admitted not the Greek Bible into their assemblies, but only the Hebrew, and the Jerusalem Targum or Paraphrase. Others that spake Greek, and used the Greek translation of the Bible, and these were called Hellenists (see note [a] on ch. vi.) Now these several uses bred some unkindness betwixt these two sorts, as may in part be discerned, even after their receiving Christianity, ch. vi. 1. And of this latter sort Paul sure was one, and accordingly in his writings makes use constantly of the Greek translation of the Old Testament, and in that respect (among others) was much disliked by the other sort. Those of them that were converted had great prejudices to him, ch. xxi. 21, and that is said to be the reason why he concealed his name in the Epistle written to the Hebrews. But for those of them that were not converted they would not endure to hear him, or hear of him; which is the account St. Chrysostom gives of his discoursing and preaching to the Hellenists only, ch. ix. 28, because the other would not endure or admit him. Hereupon to avert this great displeasure conceived by them, he here speaks to them in the Hebrew language, and they were in some degree pacified thereby, so far as to give him audience.

Acts 22:3

[b] feet of Gamaliel] It was the manner of disciples to sit at the feet of their masters, which in Pirke Avoth is called “to dust themselves in the dust of their feet;” for so saith Jose there, “Let thy house be the house of assembly for wise men,” that is, be thou ever conversant in the schools of the doctors, והוי מתאבק בעפר רגליהם, “and do thou roll, or dust, or tumble thyself in the dust of their feet.”

Acts 22:5

As all the sanhedrim, especially the high priest, knows, from whom I had writs or commissions to apprehend the Christians, (see ch. ix. 2, and xxvi. 10, 12,) all that I found in Syria, and bring them bound to the sanhedrim, by them to be scourged, or perhaps put to death by the Roman powers.

Acts 22:6

And when I had that commission from the sanhedrim, and went into Syria to execute it, and was come nigh unto Damascus— ‘a thunder, and out of it these words articulately spoken (ch. ix. 4.) unto me, Saul, Saul—

Acts 22:9

And they of my company heard the thunder and saw the lightning round about me, though they heard not (see note [b] ch. ix.) the speech that out of the thunder was delivered to me. ‘I have provided and appointed one Ananias to come unto thee, and declare to thee what I have designed for thee to do and suffer for me.

Acts 22:11

And being blind, and not able to see, by reason of this shining appearance, ver. 6, I was fain to be led by those that were with me; and so I was conducted to Damascus. ‘a Christian Jew, that lived according to the Mosaical law, having a good—

Acts 22:15

For of thee it is appointed that thou shalt preach and make known to all men the things which Christ hath made known unto thee.

Acts 22:16

To what purpose therefore should any delay be made of baptizing thee, and admitting thee into the church by that seal of the covenant whereby thou art engaged to forsake, and God to pardon, all thy former sins, (upon condition of a sincere change on thy part,) upon which thou mayest join with the church in performance of all Christian duties of devotion to God?

Acts 22:17

And at my first coming to Jerusalem after this, ch. ix. 26, as I was in the temple a praying, I fell into an ecstasy or trance: (see note [d] ch. x.)

Acts 22:18

And in a vision methought I saw Christ, and he commanded me to go speedily out of this city, because my former zeal against the gospel would hinder my preaching of it now from being believed or heeded by those of Jerusalem.

19, 20. Against this, methought, I argued, that my former zeal against Christianity being so remarkable among all the Jews, as it must needs be by my imprisoning and scourging the professors of it in the consistories of many cities, ch. ix. 2, by my joining and assisting in the stoning of Stephen, and keeping the accusers’ garments whilst they threw stones at him, ch. vii. 58. and viii. 1; this might be an argument to assure the Jews at Jerusalem that it is on right grounds that I now teach the contrary; and this may give them a greater willingness to inquire into the grounds of my change, and so may render me a more competent attester of the doctrine of Christ now, by how much the more I opposed it formerly.

Acts 22:21

But this, methought, did not prevail with

a voice from, φωνὴν ἕκ. and prayed, καὶ προσευχ. τὰς συνεργασίας: see note [d] Matt. vi.

the consistories, κατὰ

Acts 22:22

Thus far the Jews had patience to suffer him to speak; but then, when he mentioned the Gentiles, and his appointment to go to them, they cried out, he was a villain, and unworthy to live.

Acts 22:23

And while they were thus violent, making as if they would presently stone him, (see ch. vii. 57, 58,) and giving other expressions of their fury,

Acts 22:24

The colonel or chief commander of the guard bid the soldiers carry him into the tower, and commanded that he should be sorely scourged till he would confess what it was that he had done with which they were so enraged: (see ver. 30.)

[c] be examined by scourging] The notion of ἀνετάζεσθαι among the sacred writers will be discerned by two places in the Book of Wisdom, ch. ii. 19. Βασάνῳ ἐτάξωμεν αὐτόν, Let us torment him with the rack, and ch. vi. 6, δυνατοὶ δυνατῶς ἐτασθήσονται, the mighty shall be mightily tormented: in both which it is clearly used for tormenting or cruciating. And St. Chrysostom, Hom. 26. in Matt. p. 180, citing the latter of these places, applies it to the words of Christ, that he that knows his Master’s will, and doth it not, δαρήσεται πολλὰς, shall be beaten with many stripes, ὥστε ἡ πλείων γνῶσις πλείονος κολάσεώς ἐστιν ὑπόθεσις, “the greater knowledge is the cause of greater punishment,” thus interpreting ἐτασθήσονται by beating and punishment. So Gen. xii. 17, ἤτασεν ὁ Θεὸς τὸν Φαραὼ ἐτασμοῖς μεγάλους καὶ πονηροῖς, God scourged or cruciated Pharaoh with great and sore plagues.

Acts 22:25

And as the captain which was appointed to scourge him brought him to the block, and fastened him to it, in order to the scourging of him, Paul spake to the captain that had the execution of that command committed to him, saying, Will the Roman laws permit you to deal thus with a free denizen of Rome before any sentence is legally passed upon him?

[d] bound him with thongs] That ἱμάντες are here the same that μάστιγες, scourges, ver. 24, there is no doubt to be made, ἱμάντες, λῶροι, they signify “whips or scourges,” saith Hesychius; and ἱμὰς, λῶρος, οἱ δὲ νέρθεν ὑποσείουσιν ἱμάντι, “they whip him with a scourge or cord,” adding καὶ ἐπὶ τοῦ κανονίου, (it should sure be σχοινίου) “it is also used for a rope.” And so Ἰμᾶσιν ἐμάστιξεν, Ἰμάθλος, μάστιγας, ἀπὸ τοῦ ἱμᾶσ

c Tom. 4. p. 731. 12. HAMMOND ANNOTT. F f

[e] a Roman] That Paul was free of Rome by being born in a city that had the Roman privileges, is sufficiently known; so saith Philo of Agrippa. Φίλων ἰνίων πατρίδας ὅλας τῆς Ῥωμαϊκῆς ἠξίωσε πολιτείας, “he gave the privileges of the Roman citizenship to whole countries of some of his friends.” So the Philippians call themselves Romans, Acts xvi. 21, “Philippians ἐκ πατρίδος, by country, Romans ἐκ ψηφισμάτων, by decrees,” saith Photius, Ep. ρβ. p. 146, and Ep. σμζ’. And that Tarsus the metropolis of Cilicia was such, is intimated by Diodorus Siculus, l. 47, where, speaking of the emperors Julius and Augustus, he saith, οὕτω γὰρ προσφιλῶς τῷ Καίσαρι τῷ προτέρῳ καὶ δι’ ἐκείνον καὶ τῷ δευτέρῳ οἱ Ταρσεῖς εἶχον, ὥστε καὶ Ἰουλιόπολιν σφᾶς ἀπ’ αὐτοῦ μετονομάσαι, “Those of Tarsus were so kind to Julius, and after for his sake to Augustus Cæsar, that from his own name he called them Juliopolis.” That it was unlawful for any such person to be bound or scourged, is apparent by Cicero Or. 5. in Verr. Facinus est vincire civem Romanum, scelus verberare, prope parricidium necare, quid dicam in crucem tollere? “It is a foul fault for any prætor, &c. to bind a citizen of Rome, a piacular offence to scourge him, a kind of parricide to kill him—what shall I call the crucifying of such an one?” And for that that follows of his being “scourged before condemnation,” (as, being by way of examination, or ἀνετασμὸς, ver. 24, it is here supposed to be,) it is that which Cujacius hath observed out of Salvian to be distinctly against law; and

Acts 22:26

This a captain of a troop told to the colonel, and withal admonished him what danger he might incur by doing thus to a free denizen of Rome. h a free denizen of Rome? He said, Yea. i I am not so by birth, but purchased the privilege at a great charge. But Paul said, The city where I was born, and my parents before me, though of a Jewish stock, had by living there this privilege.