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NOTES for Act 21:1-26

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1 And it came to pass, that after we were gotten from them, and had launched, we came with a straight course unto Coos, and the day following unto Rhodes, and from thence unto Patara:
2 And finding a ship sailing over unto Phenicia, we went aboard, and set forth.
3 Now when we had discovered Cyprus, we left it on the left hand, and sailed into Syria, and landed at Tyre: for there the ship was to unlade her burden.
4 And finding disciples, we tarried there seven days: who said to Paul through the Spirit, that he should not go up to Jerusalem.
5 And when we had accomplished those days, we departed and went our way; and they all brought us on our way, with wives and children, till we were out of the city: and we kneeled down on the shore, and prayed.
6 And when we had taken our leave one of another, we took ship; and they returned home again.
7 And when we had finished our course from Tyre, we came to Ptolemais, and saluted the brethren, and abode with them one day.
8 And the next day we that were of Paul's company departed, and came unto Caesarea: and we entered into the house of Philip the evangelist, which was one of the seven; and abode with him.
9 And the same man had four daughters, virgins, which did prophesy.
10 And as we tarried there many days, there came down from Judaea a certain prophet, named Agabus.
11 And when he was come unto us, he took Paul's girdle, and bound his own hands and feet, and said, Thus saith the Holy Ghost, So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man that owneth this girdle, and shall deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.
12 And when we heard these things, both we, and they of that place, besought him not to go up to Jerusalem.
13 Then Paul answered, What mean ye to weep and to break mine heart? for I am ready not to be bound only, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.
14 And when he would not be persuaded, we ceased, saying, The will of the Lord be done.
15 And after those days we took up our carriages, and went up to Jerusalem.
16 There went with us also certain of the disciples of Caesarea, and brought with them one Mnason of Cyprus, an old disciple, with whom we should lodge.
17 And when we were come to Jerusalem, the brethren received us gladly.
18 And the day following Paul went in with us unto James; and all the elders were present.
19 And when he had saluted them, he declared particularly what things God had wrought among the Gentiles by his ministry.
20 And when they heard it, they glorified the Lord, and said unto him, Thou seest, brother, how many thousands of Jews there are which believe; and they are all zealous of the law:
21 And they are informed of thee, that thou teachest all the Jews which are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, saying that they ought not to circumcise their children, neither to walk after the customs.
22 What is it therefore? the multitude must needs come together: for they will hear that thou art come.
23 Do therefore this that we say to thee: We have four men which have a vow on them;
24 Them take, and purify thyself with them, and be at charges with them, that they may shave their heads: and all may know that those things, whereof they were informed concerning thee, are nothing; but that thou thyself also walkest orderly, and keepest the law.
25 As touching the Gentiles which believe, we have written and concluded that they observe no such thing, save only that they keep themselves from things offered to idols, and from blood, and from strangled, and from fornication.
26 Then Paul took the men, and the next day purifying himself with them entered into the temple, to signify the accomplishment of the days of purifcation, until that an offering should be offered for every one of them.
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Today's reading once again makes us reflect on the place of religion and religious tradition in the life of the Church. Apparently, despite the decisions of the Apostolic Council, concern was growing in the Jerusalem church about the Torah (the Law) and its observance by Jewish Christians—Christians from a traditional Jewish background (vv. 18–21). This is hardly surprising: for these people, the Torah was an unquestioned and indisputable authority, and Jewish religious practice was a way of life familiar since childhood. They may have understood the Council's decisions as diminishing the importance of the Torah and Jewish religious tradition. The question was extremely serious, and not only because the Jerusalem church apparently consisted entirely of Jewish Christians (v. 20). The question was this: is there room for religion in the Kingdom? By performing the rites prescribed by the Torah, Paul bore witness that there is room in the Kingdom both for the Torah and for religion (vv. 23–26). This was not merely a matter of avoiding disagreement with a church that kept its own customs. It concerned how a person enters the Church and the Kingdom, and what they bring with them. For a Jew, bringing their religion into the Kingdom was entirely natural: it was the only form of inner, including spiritual, self-organization wholly natural to them. Of course, one could enter the Kingdom with another religion, or even without any religion at all. But for a Jew raised in a traditional Jewish setting, any other option would have been a kind of violence, forcing them to give up something they did not need to abandon. The situation was different for Gentile converts to Christ: requiring them to adopt this religious way of life as a necessary condition for entering the Kingdom would indeed have placed upon them a “burden hard to bear.” Yet for most members of the Jerusalem church, paradoxical as it may sound, an obligatory renunciation of Judaism would have been just such a burden. By his action, Paul bore witness that in the Kingdom, and therefore in the Church, everyone can truly remain themselves: a Jew, a Jew; a Greek, a Greek. The one condition that had to be observed without fail was that no one's traditions or religion should hinder others, conceal the Kingdom from them, or erect insurmountable barriers on the way to it. On that condition, one can bring everything into the Kingdom. Except, of course, sin, which has no place there.

Other notes

 
For Act 21:1-26
1 And it came to pass, that after we were gotten from them, and had launched, we came with a straight course unto Coos, and the day following unto Rhodes, and from thence unto Patara:
2 And finding a ship sailing over unto Phenicia, we went aboard, and set forth.
3 Now when we had discovered Cyprus, we left it on the left hand, and sailed into Syria, and landed at Tyre: for there the ship was to unlade her burden.
4 And finding disciples, we tarried there seven days: who said to Paul through the Spirit, that he should not go up to Jerusalem.
5 And when we had accomplished those days, we departed and went our way; and they all brought us on our way, with wives and children, till we were out of the city: and we kneeled down on the shore, and prayed.
6 And when we had taken our leave one of another, we took ship; and they returned home again.
7 And when we had finished our course from Tyre, we came to Ptolemais, and saluted the brethren, and abode with them one day.
8 And the next day we that were of Paul's company departed, and came unto Caesarea: and we entered into the house of Philip the evangelist, which was one of the seven; and abode with him.
9 And the same man had four daughters, virgins, which did prophesy.
10 And as we tarried there many days, there came down from Judaea a certain prophet, named Agabus.
11 And when he was come unto us, he took Paul's girdle, and bound his own hands and feet, and said, Thus saith the Holy Ghost, So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man that owneth this girdle, and shall deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.
12 And when we heard these things, both we, and they of that place, besought him not to go up to Jerusalem.
13 Then Paul answered, What mean ye to weep and to break mine heart? for I am ready not to be bound only, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.
14 And when he would not be persuaded, we ceased, saying, The will of the Lord be done.
15 And after those days we took up our carriages, and went up to Jerusalem.
16 There went with us also certain of the disciples of Caesarea, and brought with them one Mnason of Cyprus, an old disciple, with whom we should lodge.
17 And when we were come to Jerusalem, the brethren received us gladly.
18 And the day following Paul went in with us unto James; and all the elders were present.
19 And when he had saluted them, he declared particularly what things God had wrought among the Gentiles by his ministry.
20 And when they heard it, they glorified the Lord, and said unto him, Thou seest, brother, how many thousands of Jews there are which believe; and they are all zealous of the law:
21 And they are informed of thee, that thou teachest all the Jews which are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, saying that they ought not to circumcise their children, neither to walk after the customs.
22 What is it therefore? the multitude must needs come together: for they will hear that thou art come.
23 Do therefore this that we say to thee: We have four men which have a vow on them;
24 Them take, and purify thyself with them, and be at charges with them, that they may shave their heads: and all may know that those things, whereof they were informed concerning thee, are nothing; but that thou thyself also walkest orderly, and keepest the law.
25 As touching the Gentiles which believe, we have written and concluded that they observe no such thing, save only that they keep themselves from things offered to idols, and from blood, and from strangled, and from fornication.
26 Then Paul took the men, and the next day purifying himself with them entered into the temple, to signify the accomplishment of the days of purifcation, until that an offering should be offered for every one of them.
Hide
Paul has no doubts about what will cause the persecutions and sufferings awaiting him in Jerusalem. He knows that...  Read more

Paul has no doubts about what will cause the persecutions and sufferings awaiting him in Jerusalem. He knows that he will have to endure all this for the name of Jesus, since the Jews had long been indignant at his preaching of freedom in Christ, beside which devotion to the Mosaic law ceased to be the most important matter. In addition, he associated openly with Gentiles, entered their homes, and spoke to them about salvation in Christ without requiring them to live according to the law.

Hatred of Paul in Jerusalem had reached such intensity that even the Jerusalem Christians who continued to observe the law treated him with distrust and suspicion. Yet Paul not only declares his readiness to die for Christ; he also shows us a most important example of evangelical peacemaking. For the sake of peace among Christians and Jews he is ready to submit to the law, complete the required days of purification according to the law, and offer sacrifice in the Temple. Truly, in our age of indifference on the part of some and fanaticism on the part of others, this example of faithfulness to Christ, even unto death, is extremely important for us, and at the same time an example of love for brothers by blood and by spirit, and of consent to the existence of other patterns of life and religion.

Hide
 
For Act 21:1-16
1 And it came to pass, that after we were gotten from them, and had launched, we came with a straight course unto Coos, and the day following unto Rhodes, and from thence unto Patara:
2 And finding a ship sailing over unto Phenicia, we went aboard, and set forth.
3 Now when we had discovered Cyprus, we left it on the left hand, and sailed into Syria, and landed at Tyre: for there the ship was to unlade her burden.
4 And finding disciples, we tarried there seven days: who said to Paul through the Spirit, that he should not go up to Jerusalem.
5 And when we had accomplished those days, we departed and went our way; and they all brought us on our way, with wives and children, till we were out of the city: and we kneeled down on the shore, and prayed.
6 And when we had taken our leave one of another, we took ship; and they returned home again.
7 And when we had finished our course from Tyre, we came to Ptolemais, and saluted the brethren, and abode with them one day.
8 And the next day we that were of Paul's company departed, and came unto Caesarea: and we entered into the house of Philip the evangelist, which was one of the seven; and abode with him.
9 And the same man had four daughters, virgins, which did prophesy.
10 And as we tarried there many days, there came down from Judaea a certain prophet, named Agabus.
11 And when he was come unto us, he took Paul's girdle, and bound his own hands and feet, and said, Thus saith the Holy Ghost, So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man that owneth this girdle, and shall deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.
12 And when we heard these things, both we, and they of that place, besought him not to go up to Jerusalem.
13 Then Paul answered, What mean ye to weep and to break mine heart? for I am ready not to be bound only, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.
14 And when he would not be persuaded, we ceased, saying, The will of the Lord be done.
15 And after those days we took up our carriages, and went up to Jerusalem.
16 There went with us also certain of the disciples of Caesarea, and brought with them one Mnason of Cyprus, an old disciple, with whom we should lodge.
Hide
On the way to Jerusalem, Paul and his companions keep meeting people who warn them of what awaits the apostle. Some of his companions and people he meets along the way urge him not to go to Jerusalem...  Read more

On the way to Jerusalem, Paul and his companions keep meeting people who warn them of what awaits the apostle. Some of his companions and people he meets along the way urge him not to go to Jerusalem. In human terms, their concern is understandable: no one is asking him to renounce Christ or even to give up his apostleship. He could, after all, continue preaching in the cities of Asia Minor or other provinces of the far from small Roman Empire.

Why go precisely where the danger is not merely real, but clearly unavoidable? All this would make sense if someone entrusted with God's service could choose their own path. But the point is that God's servant has no such choice. More precisely, they gave it up themselves when they chose the path of serving God. It does not matter what particular ministry a person has. Once they accept the ministry God entrusts to them, they no longer belong to themselves. Paul, too, no longer belonged to himself and could no longer choose where to preach. At first sight, such a position may seem to be a complete absence of freedom.

It would seem that God's servant must give up freedom. In reality, however, things are not so simple or unambiguous. Having given themselves to God, a person can thereafter be at peace about their fate. From that moment on, there is no longer any need to think about what will happen to you next. You can concentrate entirely on what needs to be done and not think about the rest. You need not think about your own life and death: if your life no longer belongs to you, why worry about what is not yours to decide anyway? Yet, if we think about it, all of us Christians are in this position. We do not belong to ourselves.

Of course, when it comes to life and death, this is true of every person, whatever they believe and however they live. The only question is how fully a person realizes this: whether they live with their eyes open or squeeze them shut and bury their head in the sand. We must admit that today the overwhelming majority live with their eyes shut: they do everything they can to forget their own mortality and are shocked when they come face to face with death.

But even when this is not the case, many still think that a person has some power over their own life and death. Only awareness of the reality of God's presence, of the reality of the Kingdom, frees us from the illusion of such power. The clearer and fuller that awareness, the less desire there is to direct one's life oneself, and the fewer illusions about the possibilities of doing so. Paul, for whom the Kingdom is an absolute reality, has no such illusions at all. He knows he will go where his earthly journey must end—first to Jerusalem, then to Rome. He also knows that this path is not only the sole possible one for him, but the best: the path God has chosen for him.

Hide
 
For Act 21:1-16
1 And it came to pass, that after we were gotten from them, and had launched, we came with a straight course unto Coos, and the day following unto Rhodes, and from thence unto Patara:
2 And finding a ship sailing over unto Phenicia, we went aboard, and set forth.
3 Now when we had discovered Cyprus, we left it on the left hand, and sailed into Syria, and landed at Tyre: for there the ship was to unlade her burden.
4 And finding disciples, we tarried there seven days: who said to Paul through the Spirit, that he should not go up to Jerusalem.
5 And when we had accomplished those days, we departed and went our way; and they all brought us on our way, with wives and children, till we were out of the city: and we kneeled down on the shore, and prayed.
6 And when we had taken our leave one of another, we took ship; and they returned home again.
7 And when we had finished our course from Tyre, we came to Ptolemais, and saluted the brethren, and abode with them one day.
8 And the next day we that were of Paul's company departed, and came unto Caesarea: and we entered into the house of Philip the evangelist, which was one of the seven; and abode with him.
9 And the same man had four daughters, virgins, which did prophesy.
10 And as we tarried there many days, there came down from Judaea a certain prophet, named Agabus.
11 And when he was come unto us, he took Paul's girdle, and bound his own hands and feet, and said, Thus saith the Holy Ghost, So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man that owneth this girdle, and shall deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.
12 And when we heard these things, both we, and they of that place, besought him not to go up to Jerusalem.
13 Then Paul answered, What mean ye to weep and to break mine heart? for I am ready not to be bound only, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.
14 And when he would not be persuaded, we ceased, saying, The will of the Lord be done.
15 And after those days we took up our carriages, and went up to Jerusalem.
16 There went with us also certain of the disciples of Caesarea, and brought with them one Mnason of Cyprus, an old disciple, with whom we should lodge.
Hide
Paul’s journey to Jerusalem is described by someone who took part in it. The word “we” appears ever more often in the text, and...  Read more

Paul’s journey to Jerusalem is described by someone who took part in it. The word “we” appears ever more often in the text, making this direct testimony to the repeated prophecies addressed to Paul all the more significant: they continually confirmed that new persecutions awaited him. Paul accepts the prophetic warnings without changing his course; his actions reveal a deliberate choice.

It may seem that Paul has resigned himself to circumstances and refuses to resist the inevitable, but his resolve reveals the steadfastness of a fighter advancing toward an unavoidable battle. This is not fatalism or submission to inexorable fate, but trust in God, who does not abandon us in trials and enables us, even in difficult circumstances, to remain in accord with His will and fulfill it. Imitating Christ, Paul is ready, like Him, to undergo suffering and death. At this point the word “imitation” itself begins to sound inadequate...

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For Act 21:12-13
12 And when we heard these things, both we, and they of that place, besought him not to go up to Jerusalem.
13 Then Paul answered, What mean ye to weep and to break mine heart? for I am ready not to be bound only, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.
Hide
The Christian history knows many examples of martyrdoms. It can seem at first sight that Christians are not original in this regard: the martyrdom for an idea or for convictions is known to many. And there is all the same an essential difference between the martyrdom of the Christian and of any other one...  Read more

The Christian history knows many examples of martyrdoms. It can seem at first sight that Christians are not original in this regard: the martyrdom for an idea or for convictions is known to many. And there is all the same an essential difference between the martyrdom of the Christian and of any other one. It is necessary to be a hero to suffer or, even give his life for an idea or for convictions. Poverty is necessary in order to suffer and even give his life for Christ. The same biblical or evangelic poverty, about which had already spoken Isaiah of Jerusalem, but which also mentions Jesus in the sermon on the Mountain, proclaiming the bliss of the poor. It is not of course about the material poverty, although in itself, it can’t be of course an obstacle neither to the martyrdom, nor to confession. It is about the spiritual state, which is indicated in the biblical books by this word.

Of this state that puts hope only on God and on none more or on nothing more. And the understanding of this simple fact that in the fallen world there is not and can’t be a reliable support for man, even if something seems to be such. Actually, only such a relation to the world makes man a real poor: because having nothing and wishing fervently to obtain what you do not have, you will not become a poor man in the biblical sense. And Christianity can be considered as a perfect expression and realization of this biblical poverty: because Christianity is the life in the Kingdom and according to the laws of the Kingdom, and not according to the laws of the fallen world.

But it is possible to live according to the laws of the Kingdom in the fallen world only by refusing completely inside any attempts to retain at least a part of what this fallen world calls life. Indeed, the Kingdom occupies entirely the living space of man, without rest. And the martyrdom turns out for the inhabitant of the Kingdom not the loss of life for an idea, as for the inhabitant of the fallen world, but the preservation of that fullness of the life of the Kingdom, for which it is not regrettable parting with what this world calls life.

It is difficult and painful to part from his. It is not regrettable parting with what is strange. The more man considers this fallen world as his, the more it is difficult to part from it. The poor has nothing to lose: because he gave everything to God, he has nothing in the genuine sense of the word his. And the inhabitant of the Kingdom by his life is not at all connected to the fallen world, although he dwells there, testifying of the Kingdom. And he has nothing which would hold him in this world.

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For Act 21:17-36
17 And when we were come to Jerusalem, the brethren received us gladly.
18 And the day following Paul went in with us unto James; and all the elders were present.
19 And when he had saluted them, he declared particularly what things God had wrought among the Gentiles by his ministry.
20 And when they heard it, they glorified the Lord, and said unto him, Thou seest, brother, how many thousands of Jews there are which believe; and they are all zealous of the law:
21 And they are informed of thee, that thou teachest all the Jews which are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, saying that they ought not to circumcise their children, neither to walk after the customs.
22 What is it therefore? the multitude must needs come together: for they will hear that thou art come.
23 Do therefore this that we say to thee: We have four men which have a vow on them;
24 Them take, and purify thyself with them, and be at charges with them, that they may shave their heads: and all may know that those things, whereof they were informed concerning thee, are nothing; but that thou thyself also walkest orderly, and keepest the law.
25 As touching the Gentiles which believe, we have written and concluded that they observe no such thing, save only that they keep themselves from things offered to idols, and from blood, and from strangled, and from fornication.
26 Then Paul took the men, and the next day purifying himself with them entered into the temple, to signify the accomplishment of the days of purifcation, until that an offering should be offered for every one of them.
27 And when the seven days were almost ended, the Jews which were of Asia, when they saw him in the temple, stirred up all the people, and laid hands on him,
28 Crying out, Men of Israel, help: This is the man, that teacheth all men every where against the people, and the law, and this place: and further brought Greeks also into the temple, and hath polluted this holy place.
29 (For they had seen before with him in the city Trophimus an Ephesian, whom they supposed that Paul had brought into the temple.)
30 And all the city was moved, and the people ran together: and they took Paul, and drew him out of the temple: and forthwith the doors were shut.
31 And as they went about to kill him, tidings came unto the chief captain of the band, that all Jerusalem was in an uproar.
32 Who immediately took soldiers and centurions, and ran down unto them: and when they saw the chief captain and the soldiers, they left beating of Paul.
33 Then the chief captain came near, and took him, and commanded him to be bound with two chains; and demanded who he was, and what he had done.
34 And some cried one thing, some another, among the multitude: and when he could not know the certainty for the tumult, he commanded him to be carried into the castle.
35 And when he came upon the stairs, so it was, that he was borne of the soldiers for the violence of the people.
36 For the multitude of the people followed after, crying, Away with him.
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Paul readily complies with the apostles' request to observe the rules of purification; indeed, he himself has no objection to observing them, but...  Read more

Paul readily complies with the apostles' request to observe the rules of purification; indeed, he himself has no objection to observing them, but a misunderstanding occurs. Yet can an entirely predictable expression of hatred really be called a misunderstanding? There was nothing accidental about Paul's being noticed by people hostile not only to him but to the other Christians as well. By then Paul was already widely known, and even if the Jews from Asia had not mistaken his companions in the Temple for pagans, either they or someone else would still have found something to complain about. Those driven by prejudice can see something improper anywhere and at any time. And once a crowd's fury has been aroused, it has no intention of reasoning at all, as long as there is someone to beat to a pulp.

The Romans rescue Paul, and he consequently finds himself in an ambiguous position: he is under the protection of a law brought by the occupiers, so he can no longer escape accusations of betrayal. Indeed, people who tell their compatriots bitter truths are often forced to endure not only abuse but accusations of being unpatriotic; here Paul's path through life in some measure resembles Jeremiah's fate. But time passes, and if not the fellow countrymen who were rebuked themselves, then their children or grandchildren have to acknowledge that those who rebuked them loved their people more than those who praised them.

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