The beloved physician Luke wrote how Paul continued to give defense for himself before a hostile Jewish crowd in Hebrew, and after doing so, the multitude, “lifted up their voices, and said, Away with such a fellow from the earth: for it is not fit that he should live. And as they cried out, and cast off their clothes, and threw dust into the air, the chief captain commanded him to be brought into the castle, and bade that he should be examined by scourging; that he might know wherefore they cried so against him. And as they bound him with thongs, Paul said unto the centurion that stood by, Is it lawful for you to scourge a man that is a Roman, and uncondemned? When the centurion heard that, he went and told the chief captain, saying, Take heed what you do: for this man is a Roman. Then the chief captain came, and said unto him, Tell me, are you a Roman? He said, Yes. And the chief captain answered, With a great sum obtained I this freedom. And Paul said, But I was free born. Then straightway they departed from him which should have examined him: and the chief captain also was afraid, after he knew that he was a Roman, and because he had bound him”, and in chapter twenty-two and verse thirty of the book of Acts Luke shared how the chief captain, “loosed him from his bands” where we read:
On the morrow, because he would have known the certainty wherefore he was accused of the Jews, he loosed him from his bands, and commanded the chief priests and all their council to appear, and brought Paul down, and set him before them.
The verse begins, “On the morrow, because he would have known the certainty wherefore he was accused of the Jews, he loosed him from his bands, ...” Luke began with the words, “on the morrow” which means “upon the next day”, “because he would have known the certainty” or “since and on account that the chief captain was purposed, minded and desired to understand, perceive and have knowledge firmly, truly and with reliability” “whereof he was accused of the Jews” which means “the reason and cause that Paul was charged with an offense by the people in the Jewish nation by birth, origin or religion” “he loosed him from his bands” or “the chief captain released and set free Paul from his chains, shackles or restraints”. Luke shared how the day after the “chief captain” discovered Paul was a “Roman”, he freed him from his bonds and desired to know the “offense” of which the “Jews” were “accusing” “Paul”.
The verse continues, “... and commanded the chief priests and all their council to appear, and brought Paul down, and set him before them.” Luke added the words, “and commanded the chief priests” which means “and ordered and charged the high and principal Jewish priests” “and all their council to appear” or “as well as each, every, the whole and everyone of the chief priests' magistrates, judges and ambassadors to arise and come”, “and brought Paul down” which means “and carried or led Paul, whose name means small or little, toward the assembly”, “and set him before them” or “and placed and put Paul in front and in the presence of the chief priests and their council”. Luke shared how the “chief captain” ordered all the “high priests” as well as their magistrates, judges and ambassadors to come to where he was, and he placed “Paul” in front of them.
When we think through Luke's words in this verse, we discover how the “chief captain” called for a tribunal against “Paul” because he wanted to know why the Jews were accusing him. He ordered the “high priests” and their entourage to come to where he was, and he brought “Paul” to stand before them. We can imagine how intense this scene was. “Paul” was purposed to share the gospel of Jesus Christ, and rather than see this as an unfortunate occasion, “Paul” knew it would be an opportunity to share about Jesus again. God loves people, and sometimes He allows diverse circumstances so that His message of salvation through His Son Jesus Christ will be told. Not everyone receives God's Son Jesus, but they are given opportunities to do so. Those who are wise will put themselves in the place of “Paul” and question whether they would be able to stand and witness for Jesus Christ before a hostile crowd and allow this to be an inspiration for sharing Jesus with others every time the occasion arises.
Next time we begin a new chapter and see Luke share how Paul says, “I have lived in all good conscience before God until this day”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until tomorrow…there is more…
See more devotionals on the website "thewordfortodaywithray.com" or look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms Volumes I and II" and the new novel "Elizabeth County" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore. All references are from "Strongs Concordance".
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