Acts Lesson Fifty

Acts Lesson Fifty: Acts 23:11-35 – The Plot Against Paul

¹¹ The following night, the Lord stood by him and said, “Have courage! For as you have testified about Me in Jerusalem, so you must also testify in Rome.” 

¹² When it was day, the Jews formed a conspiracy and bound themselves under a curse: neither to eat nor to drink until they had killed Paul. ¹³ There were more than 40 who had formed this plot. ¹⁴ These men went to the chief priests and elders and said, “We have bound ourselves under a solemn curse that we won’t eat anything until we have killed Paul. ¹⁵ So now you, along with the Sanhedrin, make a request to the commander that he bring him down to you as if you were going to investigate his case more thoroughly. However, before he gets near, we are ready to kill him.” 

¹⁶ But the son of Paul’s sister, hearing about their ambush, came and entered the barracks and reported it to Paul. ¹⁷ Then Paul called one of the centurions and said, “Take this young man to the commander, because he has something to report to him.” 

¹⁸ So he took him, brought him to the commander, and said, “The prisoner Paul called me and asked me to bring this young man to you, because he has something to tell you.” 

¹⁹ Then the commander took him by the hand, led him aside, and inquired privately, “What is it you have to report to me?” 

²⁰ “The Jews,” he said, “have agreed to ask you to bring Paul down to the Sanhedrin tomorrow, as though they are going to hold a somewhat more careful inquiry about him. ²¹ Don’t let them persuade you, because there are more than 40 of them arranging to ambush him, men who have bound themselves under a curse not to eat or drink until they kill him. Now they are ready, waiting for a commitment from you.” 

²² So the commander dismissed the young man and instructed him, “Don’t tell anyone that you have informed me about this.” 

²³ He summoned two of his centurions and said, “Get 200 soldiers ready with 70 cavalry and 200 spearmen to go to Caesarea at nine tonight. ²⁴ Also provide mounts so they can put Paul on them and bring him safely to Felix the governor.” 

²⁵ He wrote a letter of this kind: 

    ²⁶ Claudius Lysias, 

To the most excellent governor Felix: 

Greetings. 

²⁷ When this man had been seized by the Jews and was about to be killed by them, I arrived with my troops and rescued him because I learned that he is a Roman citizen. ²⁸ Wanting to know the charge they were accusing him of, I brought him down before their Sanhedrin. ²⁹ I found out that the accusations were about disputed matters in their law,  and that there was no charge that merited death or chains.  ³⁰ When I was informed that there was a plot against the man, I sent him to you right away. I also ordered his accusers to state their case against him in your presence. 

³¹ Therefore, the soldiers took Paul during the night and brought him to Antipatris as they were ordered. ³² The next day, they returned to the barracks, allowing the cavalry to go on with him. ³³ When these men entered Caesarea and delivered the letter to the governor, they also presented Paul to him. ³⁴ After he read it, he asked what province he was from. So when he learned he was from Cilicia, ³⁵ he said, “I will give you a hearing whenever your accusers get here too.” And he ordered that he be kept under guard in Herod’s palace. (HCSB)

I’ll be dividing this lesson into two parts.

• The plot against Paul – verses 11-22.
• The escort to Caesarea – verses 23-35.

The Plot Against Paul

After the ruckus that occurred the previous day, Paul receives a reassuring visit from the Lord at night. Paul had several visitations from Jesus during his ministry.

• Although technically, before his ministry began, Jesus appeared to Paul on the road to Damascus.
• When Paul was discouraged by the events in Corinth and was thinking about moving to another location, Jesus appeared and told him to stay – Acts 18:9-10.
• Jesus appears to Paul in this passage, reassuring Paul that he will testify about Jesus in Rome.
• Paul would receive encouragement during the storm on their journey to Rome – Acts 27:22-25.
• During Paul’s trial in Rome – 2 Timothy 4:16-17.

In this section, Jesus doesn’t condemn Paul for going to Jerusalem. Instead, Paul receives a commendation of sorts for the faithful witness he gave, even though the message was rejected. If we look at the results of Paul’s efforts from a human standpoint, it would appear to be an abject failure.

• Paul’s attempts to convince the legalistic Jews resulted in a riot in the temple.
• Paul’s witness before the Sanhedrin led to the two factions fighting.
• However, Jesus was pleased with Paul’s efforts at evangelism.
• We need to remember this point. There are often times we will not be successful in our evangelism efforts, but if we’ve been faithful, Jesus will be pleased.

It was also a message of confidence.

• Paul would go to Rome. Traveling to Rome had been Paul’s desire for months – Acts 19:21.
• The events that transpired in Jerusalem made it initially appear as if Paul would be unable to make the journey.
• However, Jesus confirmed that Paul would make the journey despite the present challenges.
  • The Jewish religious leaders lied about him.
  • Religious fanatics plotted to kill him.
  • Government officials ignored him.

Despite the visit from Jesus, Paul’s situation was still challenging and fraught with danger. From the very beginning of Paul’s ministry, he faced recurring personal danger.

• Then Paul witnessed for Christ in Damascus – Acts 9:22-25.
• During Paul’s first visit to Jerusalem after his conversion – Acts 9:29.
• The Jews drove him out of Antioch Pisidia – Acts 13:50-51.
• Paul was threatened with being stoned in Iconium – Acts 14:5.
• Paul was stoned in Lystra – Acts 14:19-20.
• The Jews attempted to have Paul arrested in Corinth – Acts 18:12-17.
• In Ephesus, the Jews devised a plot to kill him – Acts 20:19.
• The Jews had a plan to kill Paul at sea – Acts 20:3.

In spite of all the danger which Paul faced, his life was the embodiment of the phrase, “Will never leave you or forsake you.” (Hebrews 3:15)

Let’s take a closer look at the section from verses twelve to fifteen.

• Although Luke doesn’t specify, it was probably the Asian Jews who hatched the conspiracy to kill Paul.
• The Greek word used to denote their vow, anathematizo, is particularly strong. 
  • If they failed to keep their vow, they would be cursed or eternally damned.
  • However, there is a loophole in Jewish law that allowed a person to be released from a vow if it became unfulfillable due to unforeseen circumstances. Paul’s transport under heavy Roman protection would likely qualify as “unforeseen circumstances.”
• The leaders of the conspiracy then went to the chief priest and elders to enlist their aid.
  • If we remember back to the previous lesson, the Pharisees would not have been included in this plot as they attempted to defend Paul.
  • In their misguided zeal to protect the Law, they were willing to break one of the Ten Commandments to achieve their religious goal.
  • The conspirators wanted them to contact Claudius to bring Paul before the Sanhedrin again.
  • It is safe to assume the chief priest would add a bribe to the request.
  • The high priest may have also told Claudius that he would protect him from his superiors. The Romans and Jews had cooperated in this manner before – Matthew 28:11-15.
• The ambush would have occurred as Paul was transported from Antonia to the council chamber.

Luke now continues with reference to Paul’s sister and nephew.

• Outside of this one verse, nothing else is known about these two people.
• It is possible that Paul’s family initially abandoned him after his conversion to Christianity. Paul could be implying this in Philippians 3:8 when he said that he had suffered the loss of all things.
• In the intervening years, some of those family members may have converted to Christianity.
• Since Paul’s family had a lengthy connection with the Pharisees, his sister would have been privy to information in the inner circle. 
• It is unlikely that either of these two were believers at this point, as that would have excluded them from the official Jewish religious circle in Jerusalem.
• However, if they were devout Jews, they would see the conspiracy as nothing short of evil.
• How the nephew found out about the conspiracy is anyone’s guess. Maybe in passing, he heard a conversation among the Sadducees. Regardless of how it happened, God was protecting Paul.
• It was not unusual for prisoners of high standing, such as Paul, to have visits from family or friends. It’s even possible that Paul was given an extra measure of liberty because of the soldiers’ previous mistake of attempting to scourge him. 
• The respect the Roman soldiers extended to Paul is evident in the actions of the centurion. Paul only had to request his nephew be taken to Claudius; he didn’t need to provide any further information beyond “he has something to report to him.”

The scene now shifts to the meeting between Paul’s nephew and Claudius.

• The first striking fact about this discussion is that Claudius believed what Paul’s nephew told him.
  • It could be because Paul was a Roman citizen, and up to this point, he had been straightforward with Claudius.
  • It could be because the plot aligns with the actions the Jews had demonstrated so far.
• In any case, Claudius believed Paul’s nephew and instructed him to be silent about their discussion.
• At this point, we need to stop and consider how Luke paints the actions of the Roman military in Acts.
  • There is no record of official persecution by the Romans against the church.
  • The opposition was stirred up by unbelieving Jews.
  • While the Roman political officials often left quite a bit to be desired, it seemed that the military leaders were men who respected and followed Roman law.

The Escort to Caesarea

Now that the plot has been relayed to Claudius, he makes a decision on how to handle the situation.

• Claudius realized that leaving Paul in Jerusalem, even though he was currently in protective custody in their barracks, was not the ideal long-term solution.
  • Paul would be in danger as long as he remained in Jerusalem.
  • In addition, there was the ever-present threat to the peace and order of the city while Paul remained there.
• Claudius also realized he needed to determine under what charge Paul was being detained or he would be guilty of illegally holding a Roman citizen. 
• Sending Paul to Caesarea and placing him under the authority of Felix would address both issues.
• Claudius tells two of his centurions to gather 470 of their troops as an escort to move Paul from Jerusalem to Caesarea.
  • This force is almost half of the 1,000 men who were garrisoned in the city.
  • The urgency of the situation is evident in the fact they were told to leave at nine o’clock. 
  • The need to try and keep the transport out of the eyes and ears of the Jews is evident by traveling under cover of darkness.
• Claudius writes a letter for the military contingent to take and deliver to Felix.
  • The letter begins with the customary three-part salutation of a Greek letter.
    • The first is the identity of the sender.
    • Second, the recipient of the letter.
    • The third is the customary word of greeting.
  • After the formal greeting section of the letter, Claudius provides the details regarding Paul’s detention.
    • While it is true that Paul had been seized and was being beaten by the Jews, Claudius stretches the truth by saying he rescued him because he learned Paul was a Roman citizen.
      • It’s true that Claudius saved Paul from being beaten to death.
      • However, it wasn’t until later that he learned Paul was a Roman citizen.
    • The letter then relates the proceedings before the Sanhedrin. 
    • Since the preceding was undoubtedly conducted in Aramaic, Claudius must have had a translator present to know what was being discussed.
    • The issue between Paul and the Jews was regarding matters of Jewish religious law.
    • Paul was not guilty of breaking any Roman law.
    • Claudius clearly stated that there was nothing Paul had done that merited death or imprisonment.
    • Claudius then relates the plot against Paul’s life, which is why Paul was sent to Felix.
    • Felix is also told that Paul’s accusers were to bring their charges against Paul before him.
  • Luke then gives some further details regarding the transport of Paul to Caesarea.
    • This is the third time Paul was sneaked out of the city during the hours of darkness.
    • The entire force of 470 soldiers left and traveled to Antipatris.
      • Antipatris was a military station fortified by Herod the Great and named after his father, Antimatter.
      • It was on the border between Judea and Samaria.
      • It was about thirty-five miles from Jerusalem, which was just over half of the sixty- mile journey between Jerusalem and Caesarea.
      • It was a perfect place for troops to stop during the normal two-day journey between the cities.
    • The foot soldiers returned to Jerusalem, while Paul and the cavalry continued on to Caesarea.
• The Roman soldiers, escorting Paul, arrive in Caesarea and give Felix both the letter from Claudius and Paul.
• Before we conclude, let’s take a closer look at Felix.
  • Claudius Felix was the procurator of Judea from a.d. 52-59 and played a major role in the next chapter of Acts.
  • Felix acquired this position because of his brother, Pallas, who at one point was the head of the imperial civil service and wielded considerable influence in the court of emperor Claudius.
    • Both were former slaves, freedmen of the imperial family.
    • Felix’s high position was extremely rare; given his background as a former slave, it is unlikely he would have occupied the position without the help of his brother.
    • Roman history said Felix “wielded royal power with the instincts of a slave.”
      • Royal power could refer to his administration or his family.
      • His time as procurator was marked by rising Jewish nationalism, displayed by both political and religious insurrections.
        • All were brutally suppressed.
        • He was severely lacking in understanding or sympathy for the Jews.
        • His actions only served to inflame Jewish anti-Roman sentiments and freedom movements.
  • Felix also had a checkered history regarding his marriages.
    • He had three wives.
    • All were princesses.
    • The first was the granddaughter of Antony and Cleopatra.
    • The third was Drusilla, the daughter of Agrippa I. 
  • His ineptitude finally caught up with him as he was removed from office for mismanaging a dispute between Jews and Gentiles in Caesarea.
• Felix’s question about Paul’s native province was to determine whether or not he had jurisdiction over Paul as the Judean procurator.
  • During the reign of emperor Claudius, both Judea and Cilicia were under the provincial administration of the imperial legate in Syria.
  • Since Felix was over that area administratively, he determined he had the authority to hear the complaint against Paul.
• Paul was then placed in the praetorium, a former palace constructed by Herod the Great, which was now the Roman headquarters.

Applications

• The central theme to remember from this passage is trust. When Jesus appeared to Paul and told him that he must testify about Him in Rome, Paul had two choices. First, trust Jesus. Second, doubt and fall into dismay. 
  • When we face challenges which path do we choose? Do we trust, or do we fall into dismay? The answer to that question is a telling statement on the strength of your walk with Christ.
  • God can use unbelievers to aid us as we live our lives for Jesus. Although we shouldn’t blindly trust unbelievers, God’s power and promise to protect us can and will overcome to accomplish His will.
  • Through the entire section of Scripture that recounts Paul’s appearance in the temple until his transport to Rome, he is a picture of calmness and trust. As we look ahead, Paul spent at least a couple of years in this situation. Do our lives exhibit the same level of trust and calmness? It only happens when we place our lives in Jesus’ hands and let the Holy Spirit lead us.