The Apostle Paul, Servant of Christ Boiling Springs, NC Overview Study Guide 704 966-6845 Unit II, Chapter 8 [email protected] “Captivity and Death” © All rights reserved by Lorin L Cranford Quick Links to Study Introduction 8.1.2 Imprisonment in Caesarea 8.1.0 Paul’s Final Period of Ministry 8.1.3 The Voyage to Rome 8.1.1 Arrest in Jerusalem 8.1.4 House Arrest in Rome 8.1.1.1 Arrival in Jerusalem 8.1.5 Release and Resumption of Ministry 8.1.1.2 Arrest in the Temple 8.1.6 Subseuent Arrest and Execution Conclusion Chapter 8: Captivity and Death Introduction Once Paul arrived back in Jerusalem he delivered the relief offering from the Diaspora churches in the northern Mediterranean region from the three missionary journeys. He had strong anticipation of facing trouble in the city, and sure enough troubles came his way. These difficulties would change the direction of his life. His plans for the future would be altered drastically from what he had expressed earlier in Romans 15 and else- where. But God remained in control of Paul’s life, and sustained him through these turbulent years at the end of his life. 8.1.0 Paul’s final period of ministry This phase of Paul’s life covers the time of his arrival back in Jerusalem around 57 AD at the end of the third missionary journey to his martyrdom at the hands of Emperor Nero in the mid-sixties. The Acts narrative from chapter twenty-one through twenty-eight provides the greatest description of the first major segment of Jerusalem to Roman house arrest. Depending on how the so-called Captivity Letters of Ephesians, Colossians, Philippians, and Philemon are understood as to their setting, they contribute supplementary glimpses into this period of ministry. The Pastoral Epistles of First and Second Timothy, along with Titus, are our only biblical sourc- es of information for what happens to Paul toward the end of the two plus year period of house arrest in Rome. For more details in reconstructing the chronology of this period from about 61 AD to his death a few years later, we must turn to the church fathers for understanding. The challenge here is going to be a wide variety of differing and sometimes contradictory perspectives. 8.1.1 Arrest in Jerusalem (AD 57), Acts 21:17-23:22 How Luke narrates this last trip of Paul to Jerusalem is interesting. He begins with a signaling of positive reception of Paul by the Christian leaders in Jerusalem, but also indicates considerable nervousness on their part with Paul’s presence in the city because of rumors about his work with non-Jews in the larger Jewish popula- tion in Jerusalem (21:17-26). This leads to a decision by Paul that eventually proves disastrous. He gets involved Page 490 in a Jewish vow that leads to his arrest (21:27-36). He tries in vain to defend himself (21:37-22:29), and ends up being brought before the Sanhedrin (22:30-23:10) where another attempt to defend himself is presented by Luke. A plot by the Jewish leaders to kill Paul (23:12-22) puts his life in jeopardy even though God has assured the apostle of giving testimony in Rome (23:11). This results in Paul being taken in the middle of the night under heavy Roman military escort from the city to the provincial capital at Caesarea (23:23ff). This narration is a combination of narrative episodes and speech material presented by Luke. The domi- nating tone is largely negative with a growing sense of danger and huge apprehension for the life of the apostle Paul. Strangely enough, Luke never mentions the major reason for Paul traveling to Jerusalem: to deliver the massive relief offering collected among the Gentiles churches for the Jewish brothers in Jerusalem and Judea. Some isolated hints suggest he was aware of this, but for some unexplained reason he chose not to inject it into his depiction of this trip by Paul to Jerusalem. What Luke does seem to focus on is the contrasting reception of Paul in this last visit of the apostle to the city. The Christian community now warmly welcomes him, even though somewhat nervous about his presence in the city. On the other hand, the Jewish leadership sees Paul as a great corrupter of Judaism who needs to be executed, and goes about seeking to achieve this goal. When the apostle first left the city for Damascus in the early 30s, he was the hero of the Jewish leaders, and the feared persecutor of Christians. Now on his last visit to the city in the late 50s, less than twenty-years later, the attitudes have completely reversed themselves. The Jewish leaders hate him, while the Christians esteem him as a great servant of God. Paul, the Pharisee, in years gone by, despised the Romans who controlled Jerusalem. Now these very Romans are his source of protection against assassination by the Jewish leaders. What a huge difference Christ has made in Paul’s life! Friends have become enemies, and enemies have become friends. A completely new, and totally different, lifestyle has emerged. Instead of becoming a settled, well to do Pharisaical teacher and leader of Judaism in the city, Paul has lived a rather bag a von life style as a Christian missionary. Totally dependent on the generosity of others for food and shelter, he has seldom lived in one place for more than a few months. He has been persecuted and opposed almost every place he traveled. His friendships have been largely with non-Jews, the kind of people he hated as a Pharisee. From a modern mate- rialistic perspective, Christianity has not brought Paul success in life. Just the opposite. It has ruined his life. But spiritually, Christ has brought to this Jewish man, a richness of life and a contentment about life not even imagin- able in the Judaism of his childhood and youth. It has pushed him to see beyond the ‘tip of his noise’ in unselfish service to a sinful world desperately needing a different kind of life. It has lifted his eyes above the intense and destructive racial prejudice that dominated the Jewish people of his day. This last trip to Jerusalem would be remarkable in its contrastive reception of the apostle. It would dra- matically change the direction of his life in the few remaining years before martyrdom in Rome. 8.1.1.1 Paul’s Arrival in Jerusalem, Acts 21:17-26 17 Γενομένων δὲ ἡμῶν εἰς Ἱεροσόλυμα ἀσμένως ἀπεδέξαντο ἡμᾶς οἱ ἀδελφοί. 18 Τῇ δὲ ἐπιούσῃ εἰσῄει ὁ Παῦλος σὺν ἡμῖν πρὸς Ἰάκωβον, πάντες τε παρεγένοντο οἱ πρεσβύτεροι. 19 καὶ ἀσπασάμενος αὐτοὺς ἐξηγεῖτο καθʼ ἓν ἕκαστον, ὧν ἐποίησεν ὁ θεὸς ἐν τοῖς ἔθνεσιν διὰ τῆς διακονίας αὐτοῦ. 20 Οἱ δὲ ἀκούσαντες ἐδόξαζον τὸν θεὸν εἶπόν τε αὐτῷ· θεωρεῖς, ἀδελφέ, πόσαι μυριάδες εἰσὶν ἐν τοῖς Ἰουδαίοις τῶν πεπιστευκότων καὶ πάντες ζηλωταὶ τοῦ νόμου ὑπάρχουσιν· 21 κατηχήθησαν δὲ περὶ σοῦ ὅτι ἀποστασίαν διδάσκεις ἀπὸ Μωϋσέως τοὺς κατὰ τὰ ἔθνη πάντας Ἰουδαίους λέγων μὴ περιτέμνειν αὐτοὺς τὰ τέκνα μηδὲ τοῖς ἔθεσιν περιπατεῖν. 22 τί οὖν ἐστιν; πάντως ἀκούσονται ὅτι ἐλήλυθας. 23 τοῦτο οὖν ποίησον ὅ σοι λέγομεν· εἰσὶν ἡμῖν ἄνδρες τέσσαρες εὐχὴν ἔχοντες ἐφʼ ἑαυτῶν. 24 τούτους παραλαβὼν ἁγνίσθητι σὺν αὐτοῖς καὶ δαπάνησον ἐπʼ αὐτοῖς ἵνα ξυρήσονται τὴν κεφαλήν, καὶ γνώσονται πάντες ὅτι ὧν κατήχηνται περὶ σοῦ οὐδέν ἐστιν ἀλλὰ στοιχεῖς καὶ αὐτὸς φυλάσσων τὸν νόμον. 25 περὶ δὲ τῶν πεπιστευκότων ἐθνῶν ἡμεῖς ἐπεστείλαμεν κρίναντες φυλάσσεσθαι αὐτοὺς τό τε εἰδωλόθυτον καὶ αἷμα καὶ πνικτὸν καὶ πορνείαν. 26 Τότε ὁ Παῦλος παραλαβὼν τοὺς ἄνδρας τῇ ἐχομένῃ ἡμέρᾳ σὺν αὐτοῖς ἁγνισθείς, εἰσῄει εἰς τὸ ἱερὸν διαγγέλλων τὴν ἐκπλήρωσιν τῶν ἡμερῶν τοῦ ἁγνισμοῦ ἕως οὗ προσηνέχθη ὑπὲρ ἑνὸς ἑκάστου αὐτῶν ἡ προσφορά. 17 When we arrived in Jerusalem, the brothers welcomed us warmly. 18 The next day Paul went with us to visit James; and all the elders were present. 19 After greeting them, he re- lated one by one the things that God had done among the Gentiles through his ministry. 20 When they heard it, they praised God. Then they said to him, “You see, brother, how many thousands of believers there are among the Jews, and they are all zealous for the law. 21 They have been told about you that you teach all the Jews living among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, and that you tell them not to circumcise their children or observe the customs. 22 What then is to be done? They will certainly hear that you have come. 23 So do what we tell you. We have four men who Page 491 are under a vow. 24 Join these men, go through the rite of purification with them, and pay for the shaving of their heads. Thus all will know that there is nothing in what they have been told about you, but that you yourself observe and guard the law. 25 But as for the Gentiles who have become believers, we have sent a letter with our judgment that they should abstain from what has been sacrificed to idols and from blood and from what is strangled and from fornication.” 26 Then Paul took the men, and the next day, having purified himself, he entered the temple with them, making public the completion of the days of purification when the sacrifice would be made for each of them. The first thing Luke stresses is the warm welcome that Paul and his group received when they arrived in Jerusalem at the end of the third missionary journey.