Study Notes

ACTS: The Divine Power Unleashed

The Most Dangerous Place to Be (Acts 28:17-31) October 19, 2014

17 After three days he called together the local leaders of the Jews, and when they had gathered, he said to them, "Brothers, though I had done nothing against our people or the customs of our fathers, yet I was delivered as a prisoner from Jerusalem into the hands of the Romans. 18 When they had examined me, they wished to set me at liberty, because there was no reason for the death penalty in my case. 19 But because the Jews objected, I was compelled to appeal to Caesar--though I had no charge to bring against my nation. 20 For this reason, therefore, I have asked to see you and speak with you, since it is because of the hope of Israel that I am wearing this chain." 21 And they said to him, "We have received no letters from Judea about you, and none of the brothers coming here has reported or spoken any evil about you. 22 But we desire to hear from you what your views are, for with regard to this sect we know that everywhere it is spoken against." 23 When they had appointed a day for him, they came to him at his lodging in greater numbers. From morning till evening he expounded to them, testifying to the kingdom of God and trying to convince them about Jesus both from the Law of Moses and from the Prophets. 24 And some were convinced by what he said, but others disbelieved. 25 And disagreeing among themselves, they departed after Paul had made one statement: "The Holy Spirit was right in saying to your fathers through Isaiah the prophet: 26 "'Go to this people, and say, You will indeed hear but never understand, and you will indeed see but never perceive. 27 For this people's heart has grown dull, and with their ears they can barely hear, and their eyes they have closed; lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their heart and turn, and I would heal them.' 28 Therefore let it be known to you that this salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles; they will listen." 30 He lived there two whole years at his own expense, and welcomed all who came to him, 31 proclaiming the kingdom of God and teaching about the Lord Jesus Christ with all boldness and without hindrance.

28:17. The “leaders of the Jews” (NIV) are leaders of different synagogue communities; no single body ruled over the whole Jewish community in Rome. The Jewish congregations in Rome were all autonomous, and Christians could spread their views among the various synagogues with relative freedom. The Jewish community there had also made many Roman converts and sympathizers (to the chagrin of many male Roman aristocrats). Many of these sympathizers would be happy to embrace a version of the Jewish faith that accepted them fully without circumcision. 28:18–20. Imprisonment and chains were not used as punishments but as a means of detention until trial. Paul continues to emphasize the continuity between the Old Testament message and his own; this point would be important to Jewish leaders and also

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to Roman readers, who needed to understand that the Jesus movement was rooted in an ancient religion worthy of toleration (even if, after 70, Judaism was unpopular in some circles). 28:21–22. Unable to win their case in Judea, Paul’s accusers would have even less chance in Rome. By A.D. 62, the Jewish community in Rome had an advocate with the emperor in his wife (former mistress) Poppaea Sabina—until Nero kicked her to death while she was pregnant. It is by no means clear that the Roman Jewish community was uniformly hostile to the Christian movement (28:24), but they naturally had questions, especially if their previous expulsion in 18:2 was due to Christian teachings. 28:23–27. Paul’s citation of Isaiah 6 climaxes a theme throughout Acts: that most of God’s own chosen people reject their Messiah while Gentiles accept him is not amazing but the fulfillment of Scripture. 28:30. At the end of two years, if no accusers had arrived and no charges had been sent against him (28:21), Paul would normally be automatically released. Paul was later arrested again and beheaded, but Luke wishes to end on a note of positive legal precedent, before the corruptions of Roman law introduced by Nero’s tyranny. A number of ancient works had sudden endings; and following the pattern of other Jewish and Christian works (but in contrast to many Greek works), Luke wishes to end happily. 28:31. That Paul could preach under the very nose of the Praetorian Guard suggests that, before Nero instituted his persecution against Christians for political reasons, they were tolerated under Roman law. Luke’s defense of Christianity on legal and philosophical grounds paved the way for second-century defenders of Christianity and points the way 1 for Christian lawyers, statespersons and others to work in society today.

28:25–27. The disagreement among the Jewish leaders in Rome about Paul’s message showed that they were not amenable to the gospel. With prophetic insight Paul applied the words of Isaiah (6:9–10) to his own contemporaries. Obstinate refusal to believe results in calloused hearts, deafened ears, and spiritually blinded eyes. This had happened to Israel both in Isaiah’s day and in Paul’s (cf. Rom. 11:7–10). Interestingly Paul ascribed Isaiah’s words to the inspiration of the Holy Spirit (cf. Acts 4:25). 28:31 “the kingdom of God” This was the subject of Jesus’ preaching. It refers to the reign of God in man’s hearts now that will one day be consummated on earth as it has been in heaven. This passage also shows that the topic is not only for Jews. See Special Topic at 2:35. “the Lord”“Lord” is the translation of the Hebrew term adon, which meant “owner, husband, master, or lord.” The Jews became afraid of pronouncing the sacred name YHWH lest they take it in vain and break one of the Ten Commandments. Whenever they read the Scriptures, they substituted Adon for YHWH. This is why our English translations

1 Keener, C. S. (1993). The IVP Bible background commentary: New Testament (Ac 28:17–31). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.

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use all capitals LORD for YHWH in the OT. By transferring this title (kurios in Greek) to 2 Jesus, the NT authors assert His deity and equality with the Father.

17–20 Another limit to Paul’s freedom is perhaps seen by the way that the Jewish leaders visited him rather than his visiting the synagogue. The claim made by Paul that the Romans wanted to release him (18) was a bit of a simplification, although it is true that except for hopes of a bribe (24:25) and a desire to please the Jerusalem Jewish leaders (24:26), Paul probably would have been freed. Agrippa, too, felt that Paul could have been freed had he not appealed to Rome (see 26:32). Paul’s desire to speak to the Jews in Rome concerns this certainty on his part that Jesus was the hope of Israel. Despite the fact that in city after city, preaching to the Jewish communities led to some conversions from the people but also much opposition, Paul was aware that his was a Jewish message in the first instance, and each new Jewish community was given a fresh opportunity to respond. 21 Some are surprised that the Roman Jews would not have heard from Jerusalem regarding this trouble-maker. But the Jerusalem Jews may have decided not to press their case in Rome. The case against Paul might have been strong in Palestine before officials who felt they had to pacify the Jews, but in Rome the religious accusations of a bunch of provincials against a cosmopolitan Roman citizen were almost certain to fail. 22 It is even more difficult, however, to understand the Jews’ protestations of ignorance about Paul’s views. The implication is that, despite the presence of a Christian community at Rome (as evidenced by Paul’s letter and 28:14–15), these people had only heard rumours. But the Jewish community had been expelled from Rome for a time by Claudius (see 18:2). In the interim, the church would have become predominantly Gentile in make-up, and the recently returned Jewish community may have had no contact with them in this big city. 23–24 Paul and the Jewish leaders arranged a time to get together, at which Paul’s attempts to evangelize them met with only mixed success. 25–27 Paul expressed his frustration and disappointment by quoting from Is. 6:9–10 (cf. Mk. 4:12 and parallels), part of which he had previously referred to in his letter to the Roman Christians (Rom. 11:8). 28 His conclusion—I want you to know that God’s salvation has been sent to the Gentiles, and they will listen!—is, due to its placement so near to the end of the book, easily misread as closing the possibility of further mission to the Jews. But this passage must be read in the same spirit as the similar declaration in 13:46. Throughout Acts, Paul may turn his back on specific Jewish congregations, but not on the whole Jewish race (see also Rom. 11:25–32). 30–31 The situation remained as in 28:16, with Paul under ‘house arrest’ but free to witness to anyone who came within earshot. The phrase for two whole years prompts the reader to wonder what might have happened after that. It is likely that Paul was eventually executed by the Romans, but probably not at this point. What seems most

2 Utley, R. J. (2003). Vol. Volume 3B: Luke the Historian: The Book of Acts. Study Guide Commentary Series (290–291). Marshall, TX: Bible Lessons International.

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likely is that the present case against Paul failed, he was released and travelled and wrote some more letters (1 and 2 Timothy and Titus) before being rearrested and executed in AD 64. Why then did Luke end the account here? We may never know the answer to this, but the simplest answer remains a strong possibility. Luke finished the way that he did because he had brought the reader up to date. He was writing the book during Paul’s imprisonment and did not write about his trial or further adventures because they had not happened yet. The long road over Luke’s two books had brought the Christian story from its very beginnings, in the mysterious eastern capital Jerusalem, right up to what were to him and his readers ‘modern times’ and the centre of the world 3 empire, Rome.

17-20. There were a number of Jewish synagogues in Rome, but since Paul was a prisoner, even though he enjoyed some freedom, it was not convenient for him to visit them. Therefore he called the leaders of the Jews together that he might present his case to them. He claimed that he had violated none of the Jewish customs and as an innocent man was delivered prisoner into the hands of the Romans. In spite of the fact that the Romans had wished to released him, the Jews had opposed their decision, and so Paul had felt that his only way of escape was to appeal to Caesar. However, Paul did not desire to make any accusation against the Jews for their treatment of him. He was a prisoner only because of the hope of Israel. By this, he meant that his Christian faith was the true fulfillment of the hope of God’s people. 21, 22. The Jewish leaders declared that they had received neither letters nor emissaries from Jerusalem charging Paul with any evil. Furthermore, they implied that they were not familiar with the sect to which Paul belonged but had only heard that it was strongly criticized everywhere. F. F. Bruce (Commentary on Acts) logically suggests that at this point the Jewish leaders were telling less than the whole truth. It would have been impossible for them to have been unfamiliar with the Christian church in Rome, since we know from Paul’s letter to the Romans that a vigorous church existed there (see also 18:2 ). Furthermore, it was highly unlikely that word would not have reached the Roman Jews from Jerusalem, because constant communication was sustained. However, it was apparent that no sound case could be registered against Paul, and the Jews therefore felt it the better part of wisdom to dissociate themselves entirely from Paul’s case and thus avoid incurring the wrath of the Roman government. 23. Some time later, the Jews came together again in the house where Paul was staying to listen to his opinions. Paul’s message consisted of testifying the kingdom of God, persuading concerning Jesus. The things concerning Jesus and the kingdom of God are clearly synonymous concepts. Paul undertook to show that the things about Jesus and the kingdom of God were the true fulfillment of the law of Moses and the prophets and that the ancestral faith of Israel had found its fulfillment in the Christian

3 New Bible commentary: 21st century edition. 1994 (D. A. Carson, R. T. France, J. A. Motyer & G. J. Wenham, Ed.) (4th ed.) (1106–1107). Leicester, England; Downers Grove, IL: Inter­Varsity Press.

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faith. 24-27. The reaction of the Jewish leaders at Rome to Paul’s message was the same as he had everywhere met. Some believed, but the majority rejected his message. Seeing this, Paul quoted from Isa 6:9, 10, which describes the dullness and the spiritual hardness of God’s people. Their plight is hopeless, and they are unable to turn to God to be healed. 28. The book of Acts comes to a climax with this statement: The salvation of God is now sent to the Gentiles, who will listen to the message. The last eight chapters of the book of Acts—over a quarter of the book—are devoted to a record of Paul’s experiences in Jerusalem and of his journey to Rome. The question rises: Why did Luke devote so much space to these events when his earlier narrative passed over other equally important events with the barest summary? The answer must be that one of Luke’s major purposes was to show that just as the Jewish nation rejected Jesus as her Messiah and sent him to a cross, so the leaders of the Jews, both in Jerusalem and in Rome, confirmed their apostate character by rejecting the greatest figure of the apostolic church and his gospel. On the other hand, everywhere Paul went, he was received by the Gentile worshipers in the synagogues and was extended the protection of the Roman authorities. This keynote of the obdurate character of Israel and the responsiveness of the Gentiles is summarized in Acts 28:25-28. These words stand as a formal pronouncement of the divine displeasure for the rebeliousness of Israel. Henceforth the Gospel was to find lodging among the Gentiles. Israel’s rebellion was complete. 30, 31. The ending of The Acts leaves the thoughtful reader with many unanswered questions in his mind. Paul lived in Rome for two whole years, not confined in prison but permitted to maintain his own hired dwelling under the custody of a Roman soldier. This did not permit him complete freedom of activity but did enable him to receive all who wished to converse with him and hear his message. Luke again summarizes Paul’s ministry in Rome with the two phrases preaching the kingdom of God, and teaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ. The obvious conclusion is that the good news about the kingdom of God is synonymous with the things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ. This is the same message he had preached to the Jewish leaders when they came to him upon his arrival in Rome (v. 23 ). We are left with the questions: How did Paul’s imprisonment end? What was the outcome of his appeal to Caesar? Was he found guilty and executed, or was he found innocent and dismissed; or was the case dismissed by default? The natural implication of 28:30 is that after the two years, the apostle was released from detention. Tradition tells us that he was executed in Rome about or shortly after A.D. 64. This leaves an interval of some two or three years between the end of Acts and Paul’s death. The three Pastoral Epistles which claim to have been written by Paul reflect a ministry of traveling and preaching that cannot be fitted into the narrative of the book of Acts. In spite of arguments against the authenticity of the Pastoral Epistles, the most likely conclusion is that Paul was released after the two years of imprisonment, engaged in a further ministry, which is reflected in these letters, and finally suffered a second imprisonment

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in Rome, which is reflected in II Timothy . The rather abrupt ending of the book of Acts has been variously explained. Some have maintained that Luke had intended to write a third volume to record the trial and release of Paul and his subsequent missionary travels, but for some reason was prevented from carrying out his purpose. Another possible explanation is that Acts was written during the two-year imprisonment, for we know from Phm 24 and Col 4:14 that Luke was with Paul during this interval in Rome. It is likely that Luke had gathered material for his narrative about the early church during the two years of Paul’s detention in Caesarea and composed the book of Acts during these two years in Rome. In this case, the narrative ends as it does because it had caught up with history, and at the moment there was nothing more to record. It is probable that the letters to the Philippians, Ephesians, and Colossians, and that to Philemon were written by Paul during his Roman detention. However, some scholars have felt that these “Prison Epistles” were written either from an imprisonment in Ephesus which is not mentioned in Acts, or possibly from the Caesarean imprisonment. 4

4 The Wycliffe Bible Commentary: New Testament. 1962 (C. F. Pfeiffer & E. F. Harrison, Ed.) (Ac 28:17–30). Chicago: Moody Press.

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