Acts 23:1-35

Good News for Everyone

Acts

Marion Adams

Chapter 23

Paul speaks to the *Sanhedrin, 23:1-11

v1 Paul looked straight at the *Sanhedrin. He said, ‘My brothers, my conscience feels good about how I have served God to this day.’ v2 Some men were standing near Paul. Ananias, the *high priest, ordered them to hit Paul on the mouth. v3 Then Paul said to Ananias, ‘You are like a wall that someone has painted white! God will hit you! You are sitting there as a judge over me. You intend to decide whether I obey Moses’ *Law. But you yourself are acting against that *Law because you are ordering people to hit me. And that is against the *Law!’ v4 Then the men who stood near Paul said, ‘Do you dare to insult God’s *high priest?’ v5 Paul replied, ‘Brothers, I did not know that he was the *high priest. We must not say evil things about a leader of our people. It says that in the *scriptures.’

v6 Some of the men in the *Sanhedrin were *Sadducees. The other men in it were *Pharisees. Paul knew that. So, he shouted, ‘My brothers, I am a *Pharisee. My father was a *Pharisee. I am having a *trial just because I believe in the *resurrection of dead people.’ v7 When he said that, an argument started between the *Pharisees and the *Sadducees. The argument divided the people. v8 The *Sadducees did not believe that dead people will come back to life. They did not believe in *angels or *spirits. But the *Pharisees believed in all those things. v9 So, there was a lot of noise. Some of the teachers of Moses’ *Law were *Pharisees. They stood up and they argued strongly. They said, ‘We do not find anything wrong with this man. Perhaps an *angel or a *spirit really did speak to him!’

v10 The argument became fierce and the soldiers’ leader was afraid. He thought that they would tear Paul apart. So, he ordered the soldiers to go in. He told them to rescue Paul. Then the soldiers took Paul back into the *fort.

v11 That night, the *Lord stood near Paul. The *Lord said, ‘Do not worry! You have told people about me in *Jerusalem. You must also tell people about me in Rome.’

Verses 1-3 Paul called the men in the *Sanhedrin his ‘brothers’. That was not the usual way to talk to them. People called them ‘rulers of the people’. People called them ‘leaders of *Israel’. But people did not call them ‘brothers’! When Paul called them ‘brothers’, he made himself equal with them.

Then Paul said that he was innocent. He did not believe that he had done anything wrong. This annoyed the *high priest. He ordered some men to hit Paul. That was against the *Jewish *Law. People had to prove that a person was guilty. Paul had not even had a *trial.

This made Paul very angry. He said that the *high priest was ‘like a wall that someone has painted white’ (verse 3). That was a common insult. It meant that Ananias was a *hypocrite. He was like stones that someone had put in a pile. Then the person had painted the pile of stones white, so that it seemed like a wall. But it was not a wall. (See also Ezekiel 13:10-16.) Or Ananias was like a building where dead bodies lay. Someone had painted the walls white so that it looked good. But inside there were dead bodies. This reminds us of what Jesus said about the *Pharisees. He said that they were *hypocrites (Matthew 23:27; Luke 11:44). Ananias was a *hypocrite. He said that Paul had not obeyed the *Law. But then Ananias did something himself that was against the *Law! He did it in front of everyone.

Verses 4-5 However, Paul apologised quickly. It was a crime to say evil things about a leader. Paul knew that. He said words from the *scriptures (Exodus 22:28). He did not know that Ananias was the *high priest.

Some students say that Paul did not recognise Ananias. That would be because Paul could not see very well. But it was a long time since Paul had been in *Jerusalem. So some students think that Paul had never seen Ananias before.

Ananias certainly did not behave like a *high priest. He was a cruel man. He was on the *Romans’ side against his own people. He was greedy and he stole from the priests.

Verses 6-9 There were both *Pharisees and *Sadducees in the *Sanhedrin. They were all *Jews but they had very different beliefs. The *Pharisees believed in fate. But the *Sadducees believed that people can choose what happens to them. The *Pharisees believed in *angels and *spirits. But the *Sadducees did not. The *Pharisees believed in the *resurrection of dead people. But the *Sadducees did not believe in *resurrection. Paul had already said that he was a *Pharisee. Then, he said that his ‘crime’ was to believe in *resurrection. Probably, Paul realised that he would not have a fair *trial. So, in this way, he made the *Pharisees come onto his side. Paul did not agree with the *Sadducees about the *resurrection. But the *Pharisees agreed with him, so they supported him against the *Sadducees.

Verse 10 Everyone argued. Paul was not safe there. So, the soldiers’ leader ordered his men to take Paul into the *fort.

Verse 11 Again, the *Lord Jesus appeared in front of Paul. Paul had nearly died. He was alone and afraid. But Jesus told him not to worry. The *Greek word here means ‘be brave’. Jesus promised that Paul would go to Rome. Paul would tell the good news there. Paul really wanted to do that. (See Acts 19:21.) Jesus brought comfort and hope to Paul.

A plot to kill Paul, 23:12-22

v12 The next morning, some *Jews met together. They made a plan. They made a special promise. They promised not to eat anything. And they promised not to drink anything. They would not do those things until they had killed Paul. v13 More than 40 men made that plan. v14 They went to the chief priests and leaders. They said, ‘We have made a special promise together. We shall not eat anything until we have killed Paul. v15 Now, you and the *Sanhedrin must go to the soldiers’ leader. You must ask him to bring Paul to you. Pretend that you want more information about Paul. You want exact information about what he has done. We will be ready. We will kill him before he gets here.’ v16 But the son of Paul’s sister heard about this plot. He went to the *fort and he told Paul about the plot. v17 Then Paul spoke to one of the captains. Paul said, ‘Take this young man to the soldiers’ leader. The young man has something to tell him.’ v18 So, the captain took the young man to the soldiers’ leader. The captain said, ‘Paul, the prisoner, sent for me. He asked me to bring this young man to you. The young man has something to tell you.’ v19 The soldiers’ leader took the young man aside. The leader asked, ‘What is it that you want to tell me?’ v20 The young man said, ‘Some *Jews have agreed to ask you something tomorrow. They will ask you to bring Paul in front of the *Sanhedrin. They will say that they want more information about him. v21 Do not do what they want. More than 40 men are waiting to attack Paul. They have made a special promise. They will not eat anything and they will not drink anything. They will not do those things until they have killed Paul. They are ready now and they are waiting for your decision.’

v22 The soldiers’ leader replied, ‘Do not tell anyone that you have told this to me.’

Verses 12-13 More than 40 *Jews wanted to kill Paul! They made a special promise. In that way, they intended to show that they were sincere. They told the chief priests and leaders about the promise. Some students think that these men were ‘sicarii’. (The note about Acts 21:38 shows what ‘sicarii’ were.) Perhaps the *high priest, Ananias, had hired them to murder Paul.

Verses 14-15 It was too difficult to kill Paul in the *fort. So those *Jews planned that the *chief priests and leaders would go to the soldiers’ leader. (The soldiers’ leader was called the commander.) They would persuade the commander to bring Paul to them again. When Paul was outside, the *Jews would kill him. That was their plan. So Paul was in great danger. Many people now wanted him to die.

Verses 16-17 But God had promised that Paul would go to Rome. If God promises something, that thing will happen. No human plan can stop God’s plan.

Paul was ‘under house arrest’. It means that the commander did not let Paul go free. But he allowed Paul to have visitors. Paul’s nephew (the son of Paul’s sister) came. He had heard about the plot and he told Paul about it.

We do not know anything about Paul’s sister or about his nephew. We do not know whether they were *Christians. We know only that Paul’s nephew was young. He was probably about 13 or 14 years old. The *Greek word for ‘young man’ (verse 17) has that meaning.

Paul sent for a captain. He asked the captain to take the young man to the commander.

Verses 18-19 The captain did what Paul asked him to do. The captain realised that it was urgent. This is the first time that Luke uses the words ‘Paul, the prisoner’ in Acts. Paul uses similar words 5 times in his letters (Ephesians 3:1; Ephesians 4:1; Philippians 1:13; Philemon verses 1, 9).

Verses 20-21 Paul’s nephew told the commander (the soldiers’ leader) about the plot. The men were planning to kill Paul ‘tomorrow’. Probably, they had already spoken to the commander about Paul. Paul’s nephew said that they were waiting for the commander’s decision (verse 21). The young man urged the commander not to help those men in their plan. He asked the commander not to do what those men would ask him.

Verse 22 The commander knew that Paul was a *Roman citizen. So the commander needed to do something quickly. He told the young man to keep their conversation secret.

The commander makes arrangements, 23:23-25

v23 Then the commander sent for two of his captains. He told them, ‘Get 200 soldiers ready to go to Caesarea. Also, get 70 men on horses and get 200 soldiers with spears (sharp knives on poles). Get the men ready to go at 9 o’clock tonight. v24 Get a horse ready for Paul. Make sure that he goes safely to Felix the *governor.’ v25 The commander wrote a letter.

Verses 23-25 The commander (the soldiers’ leader) ordered 470 soldiers to prepare themselves. That large group had to go with Paul so that they could guard him. In total, there were very many soldiers in the *fort. That group was about half of the total.

The letter to Felix the *governor, 23:26-30

v26 This is what was in the letter:

‘From Claudius Lysias, to the most excellent *Governor Felix, greetings.

v27 Some *Jews seized this man. They would have killed him. But I discovered that he was a *Roman citizen. I came with some soldiers and I rescued him. v28 I wanted to know why they were accusing him. So, I brought him to their *Sanhedrin. v29 I discovered this. He had done nothing to deserve death. He had done nothing to deserve prison. The *Jews were accusing him of crimes against their *Jewish *Law. v30 Someone told me that there was a plot against him. So, I have sent him to you immediately. I have told the *Jewish leaders that they must accuse him in front of you.’

Verse 26 At the time when Paul lived, all letters began in this way. The writer wrote his or her own name first. Then the writer wrote the name of the person that he or she was writing to. Then the writer wrote his or her greetings to that person.

Here, we discover the commander’s name. (See also note on Acts 22:28.) Lysias calls Felix ‘most excellent’. In that way, he shows that Felix is a very important man. (See note on Acts 1:1.) Felix was the *governor of *Judea.

Verse 27 Lysias said, ‘I discovered that he was a *Roman citizen.’ That was why he rescued Paul. But actually, Lysias did not discover that Paul was a *Roman citizen until later.

Verse 28 Lysias did not mention that his men nearly whipped Paul. Nor did Lysias mention that he put Paul in chains. Lysias did not want to get into trouble! He just said that he brought Paul to the *Sanhedrin. Lysias wanted to show that he did everything right.

Verse 29 Paul had done nothing that was against *Roman law. The *Jews had said that Paul taught bad things about the *Jewish *Law, *Temple and people. (See Acts 21:28.) That was a matter for the *Sanhedrin. It was not something for the *Roman rulers to decide.

Verse 30 But Paul’s life was now in danger. Lysias did not want to be responsible for Paul’s death. So, he had sent Paul to the *governor. That was the right thing to do.

Paul goes to Caesarea, 23:31-35

v31 The soldiers obeyed the commander’s orders. That night, they took Paul with them. They took him to the city called Antipatris. v32 The next day, the soldiers that were walking returned to the *fort. The men on horses went with Paul. v33 They arrived in Caesarea and they delivered the letter to the *governor. They handed Paul over to him. v34 The *governor read the letter. He asked Paul, ‘Which *province are you from?’ The *governor discovered that Paul was from Cilicia. v35 The *governor said, ‘I will listen to you later. The people that accuse you are coming here. As soon as they arrive, I will listen to you.’ Then he ordered men to guard Paul in Herod’s palace.

Verses 31-34 The first part of the journey was the most dangerous part. Antipatris was nearly 64 kilometres (40 miles) away from Jerusalem. All the soldiers arrived in Antipatris with Paul. Then the soldiers that were walking returned to *Jerusalem.

Paul and the other soldiers continued their journey to Caesarea. The distance from Antipatris to Caesarea was about 40 kilometres (25 miles).

Because Felix was the *governor of *Judea, he was now responsible for Paul. Felix was Lysias’ boss. So Lysias had to explain the situation to him. Lysias explained it in a letter.

Usually, a prisoner had his *trial in the *province where the crime had possibly happened. But sometimes the *governor could send the prisoner to that prisoner’s own *province. However, Felix decided to have Paul’s *trial in *Judea. Paul had to wait until the *Jewish leaders arrived.

Verse 35 The *governor lived in a magnificent palace. Herod the Great, a previous king of Judea, had built it for himself. Paul stayed there while he was waiting. He was still a prisoner. But he was safe and comfortable.

Sanhedrin ~ a special group in Israel that met together to be judges over the people. The priests’ leaders were in it. The important Jews were also in it. And the men that taught about the Law were in it. The high priest led the group.
Jew ~ a person that is a member of Abraham’s, Isaac’s and Jacob’s big family; a person that believes the Jews’ religion, which is called Judaism.
Law ~ the rules that God gave to Moses for the Jews.

high priest ~ the most important priest in the Jewish Temple.
Judaism ~ the Jews’ religion.
Jewish ~ a word that describes a Jew; or it describes anything that belongs to a Jew.
temple ~ a building where people worship God (or a false god).
Temple ~ the Temple was the special building in Jerusalem where the Jews worshipped God.
worship ~ to give honour to God with praise and thanks.
Jerusalem ~ the capital city in Israel.
praise ~ to tell God how great he is. We can do this when we are praying to him. Or we can do it when we are singing to him.
Israel ~ the country that is the Jews’ home.

'high priest ~ the most important priest in the Jewish Temple.
Jewish ~ a word that describes a Jew; or it describes anything that belongs to a Jew.
temple ~ a building where people worship God (or a false god).
Temple ~ the Temple was the special building in Jerusalem where the Jews worshipped God.
Jew ~ a person that is a member of Abraham’s, Isaac’s and Jacob’s big family; a person that believes the Jews’ religion, which is called Judaism.
worship ~ to give honour to God with praise and thanks.
Jerusalem ~ the capital city in Israel.
Judaism ~ the Jews’ religion.
praise ~ to tell God how great he is. We can do this when we are praying to him. Or we can do it when we are singing to him.
Israel ~ the country that is the Jews’ home.
Law ~ the rules that God gave to Moses for the Jews.
Jew ~ a person that is a member of Abraham’s, Isaac’s and Jacob’s big family; a person that believes the Jews’ religion, which is called Judaism.
Judaism ~ the Jews’ religion.
scripture ~ the Bible, the book that contains God’s holy messages; the Old Testament.
holy ~ very, very good; separate from sin. Only God is really holy.

Old Testament ~ the Bible’s first part, which the writers wrote before Jesus lived on earth; the holy things that the writers wrote before *Christ’s birth.
sin ~ to sin is to do wrong, bad or evil things; not to obey God. Sins are the wrong things that we do. We do them against God or against other people.
Sadducees ~ a certain group of Jews that did not believe in heaven and resurrection. This group was important when Jesus lived on earth. They used only the 5 books at the beginning of the Old Testament.
Jew ~ a person that is a member of Abraham’s, Isaac’s and Jacob’s big family; a person that believes the Jews’ religion, which is called Judaism.
resurrection ~ when someone comes back to life after death; when someone rises from death to life.

Old Testament ~ the Bible’s first part, which the writers wrote before Jesus lived on earth; the holy things that the writers wrote before *Christ’s birth.
Judaism ~ the Jews’ religion.
holy ~ very, very good; separate from sin. Only God is really holy.
sin ~ to sin is to do wrong, bad or evil things; not to obey God. Sins are the wrong things that we do. We do them against God or against other people.
Pharisee ~ a member in a certain group of Jews. These Jews thought that they obeyed all God’s rules. They did not like the things that Jesus taught. They thought that they did not do any wrong things. So, they became very proud.
Jew ~ a person that is a member of Abraham’s, Isaac’s and Jacob’s big family; a person that believes the Jews’ religion, which is called Judaism.
Judaism ~ the Jews’ religion.
trial ~ a legal examination in which a person answers questions. Then the judge decides whether the person is guilty of a crime.
resurrection ~ when someone comes back to life after death; when someone rises from death to life.
angel ~ a servant of God. He brings messages from God to people that live on earth.
spirit ~ a person’s spirit is the part in them that will always be alive. It will be alive even after his or her body is dead. There are good spirits. Those include God’s Spirit and his angels. There are also evil spirits. These include Satan and his angels.
angel ~ a servant of God. He brings messages from God to people that live on earth.
Satan ~ the name for the worst spirit among the evil spirits, who are against God. He has another name, which is the Devil. He is God’s enemy.
fort ~ a strong building. Soldiers can go inside a fort to guard a city.
Lord ~ the name for God or Jesus in the Bible; the name means that he is above all other things; a name that we use for Jesus when we obey him; someone with authority.
Jerusalem ~ the capital city in Israel.
Israel ~ the country that is the Jews’ home.
Jew ~ a person that is a member of Abraham’s, Isaac’s and Jacob’s big family; a person that believes the Jews’ religion, which is called Judaism.
Judaism ~ the Jews’ religion.
Israel ~ the country that is the Jews’ home.
Jew ~ a person that is a member of Abraham’s, Isaac’s and Jacob’s big family; a person that believes the Jews’ religion, which is called Judaism.
Judaism ~ the Jews’ religion.
Jewish ~ a word that describes a Jew; or it describes anything that belongs to a Jew.
Jew ~ a person that is a member of Abraham’s, Isaac’s and Jacob’s big family; a person that believes the Jews’ religion, which is called Judaism.
Judaism ~ the Jews’ religion.
hypocrite ~ a person who pretends to be good or holy, but he or she is not.
holy ~ very, very good; separate from sin. Only God is really holy.
sin ~ to sin is to do wrong, bad or evil things; not to obey God. Sins are the wrong things that we do. We do them against God or against other people.
Roman ~ a person from Rome; a word that describes someone from Rome; or it describes something from Rome. The Roman soldiers fought against people in many countries. And they defeated them. They made the people obey the rules that officials in Rome made. They made the people pay taxes to Rome.
Rome ~ the most famous city in the world when Jesus lived on earth.
Jew ~ a person that is a member of Abraham’s, Isaac’s and Jacob’s big family; a person that believes the Jews’ religion, which is called Judaism.
Judaism ~ the Jews’ religion.
Greek ~ the language that the people from Greece spoke; the language in which authors wrote the New Testament; a person from Greece.

New Testament ~ the Bible’s last part, which the writers wrote after Jesus lived on earth. It is about the things that Jesus did. And it is about the things that he taught. It is also about the church. It is about what Christians believe. And it is about what they do.
church ~ a group of Christians that meet together. (A church is not just the building that they meet in.) It can also mean all the Christians in the world.
Christian ~ a person who obeys Jesus *Christ; a person who believes in him.
Christian ~ a person who obeys Jesus *Christ; a person who believes in him.
governor ~ an important ruler.
governor ~ an important ruler.
Judea ~ a region in the country where the Jews lived.
Jew ~ a person that is a member of Abraham’s, Isaac’s and Jacob’s big family; a person that believes the Jews’ religion, which is called Judaism.
Judaism ~ the Jews’ religion.
temple ~ a building where people worship God (or a false god).
Temple ~ the Temple was the special building in Jerusalem where the Jews worshipped God.
worship ~ to give honour to God with praise and thanks.
Jerusalem ~ the capital city in Israel.
Jew ~ a person that is a member of Abraham’s, Isaac’s and Jacob’s big family; a person that believes the Jews’ religion, which is called Judaism.
praise ~ to tell God how great he is. We can do this when we are praying to him. Or we can do it when we are singing to him.
Israel ~ the country that is the Jews’ home.
Judaism ~ the Jews’ religion.
province ~ a principal division of a country that people govern from another country. Rome ruled the provinces that Luke mentions in the book called ‘Acts’.
Rome ~ the most famous city in the world when Jesus lived on earth.