Acts 21:17-25
You may recall from Acts 20:4 that Paul had eight traveling companions (including Luke) who accompanied him to Jerusalem. Presumably they traveled with him as a “safeguard” over the funds that Paul had collected for the relief of the suffering Christians in Jerusalem. (It’s surprising that Luke did not mention this monetary gift when Paul and his companions appeared before James and the Jewish Christian leaders in today’s reading.) However, Paul’s traveling companions also offered a second benefit – they were from Achaia, Macedonia, Asia, and Galatia and could corroborate Paul’s stories about his missionary work with the Gentiles. Paul could tell the stories and they could confirm him and bring other anecdotal evidence to bear, especially those instances where Paul was deserving of more credit than he was willing to claim.
…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 thousands (literally, tens of thousands) among the Jews in and around Jerusalem who are now counted as believers. So the Lord was working throughout the entire known world!! GLORY!!
Slava Bohu!