Acts 21:17-36
Dear RTB’ers,
Paul in Jerusalem. If you are reading Acts for the first time, I daresay that you have read beyond verse 36, to see how this incident ends. That’s how good a storyteller Luke, our historian is!
On the following day Paul went in with us to James, and all the elders were present. (v. 18) Who is James? My Study Bible noted three things about him, that he was Jesus’ brother, that he wrote the book of James, and that he was the acknowledged leader of the Jerusalem Christians, all of this in spite of the fact that he was not one of the original twelve apostles. We also have Paul’s own testimony, “Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to visit Cephas and remained with him fifteen days. But I saw none of the other apostles except James the Lord’s brother.” (Galatians 1:18-19) That’s James!
…how many thousands there are among the Jews of those who have believed. (v. 20b) We typically think of the last half of the book of Acts with a focus on Paul and his missionary activities among the Gentiles. But those apostles who stayed behind in Jerusalem were having their own ministry. Thousands of those who believed and were baptized on Pentecost Day were probably visitors from Judea, Galilee, and parts beyond. But many were probably from Jerusalem, especially those who were not among the ruling elite, and now some 20-30 years after Jesus’ Ascension we have many thousands among the Jews in and around Jerusalem who are now counted as believers. So the Lord was working throughout the entire known world!!
But not all Jews were happy: …the Jews from Asia, seeing him in the temple, stirred up the whole crowd and laid hands on him… (v. 27b). Here we have the Jews from Asia again. Paul had cited them in the last chapter (Paul speaking): “You yourselves know how I lived among you the whole time from the first day that I set foot in Asia, … with tears and with trials that happened to me through the plots of the Jews…” (Acts 20:18-19) Paul is remembering the Jews from Antioch, Iconium, Lystra, and Derbe from his first missionary journey. (Acts 13:45, ff.) Recall further that Paul was also hassled by the Jews in Philippi (Acts 16:22, ff.) and in Thessalonica (Acts 17:5, ff.) and in Corinth (Acts 18:12, ff.) and in Ephesus (Acts 19:23,ff.). Seemingly, wherever he went he was hassled by the Jews! Yet he kept on. That’s perseverance!!
We’ll continue this incident tomorrow – if you haven’t already read ahead!
Blessings!