Jesus as in their unconverted brethren. He was now approaching a crisis in the
long struggle, and the shadow of it has been made to rest upon his mind
throughout his journey to Jerusalem. He came "ready to die for the name of
the Lord Jesus," but he came expressly to prove himself a faithful Jew and
this purpose is shown at every point of the history. Certain Jews from
"Asia," who had come up for the Pentecostal feast, and who had a
personal knowledge of Paul, saw him in the temple. They set upon him at once,
and stirred up the people against him. There was instantly a great commotion;
Paul was dragged out of the temple, the doors of which were immediately shut,
and the people having him in their hands, were going to kill him. Paul was
rescued from the violence of the multitude by the Roman officer, who made him
his own prisoner, causing him to be chained to two soldiers, and then proceeded
to inquire who he was and what he had done. The inquiry only elicited confused
outcries, and the "chief captain" seems to have imagined that the
apostle might perhaps be a certain Egyptian pretender who recently stirred up a
considerable rising of the people. The account In the tells us with graphic
touches how St. Paul obtained leave and opportunity to address the people in a
discourse which is related at length. Until the hated word of a mission to the
Gentiles had been spoken, the Jews had listened to the speaker. "Away with
such a fellow from the earth," the multitude now shouted; "it is not
fit that he should live." The Roman commander seeing the tumult that arose
might well conclude that St. Paul had committed some heinous offence; and
carrying him off, he gave orders that he should be forced by scourging to
confess his crime. Again the apostle took advantage of his Roman citizenship to
protect himself from such an outrage. The chief captain set him free from bonds,
but on the next day called together the chief priests and the Sanhedrin, and
brought Paul as a prisoner before them. On the next day a conspiracy was formed
which the historian relates with a singular fullness of detail. More than forty
of the Jews bound themselves under a curse neither to eat nor drink until they
had killed Paul. The plot was discovered, and St. Paul was hurried away from
Jerusalem. The chief captain, Claudius Lysias determined to send him to Caesarea
to Felix, the governor or procurator of Judea. He therefor put him in charge of
a strong guard of soldiers, who took him by night as far as Antipatris. From
thence a smaller detachment conveyed him to Caesarea, where they delivered up
their prisoner into the hands of the governor. Imprisonment at Caesarea. A.D.
58-60. –St. Paul was henceforth to the end of the period embraced in the Acts,
if not to the end of his life, in Roman custody. This custody was in fact a
protection to him, without which he would have fallen a victim to the animosity
of the Jews. He seems to have been treated throughout with humanity and
consideration. The governor before whom he was now to be tried, according to
Tacitus and Josephus, was a mean and dissolute tyrant. After hearing St, Paul’s
accusers and the apostle’s defense, Felix made an excuse for putting off the
matter, and gave orders that the prisoner should be treated with indulgence and
that his friends should be allowed free access to him. After a while he heard
him again. St. Paul remained in custody until Felix left the province. The
unprincipled governor had good reason to seek to ingratiate himself with the
Jews; and to please them, be handed over Paul, as an untried prisoner, to his
successor, Festus. Upon his arrival in the province, Festus went up without
delay from Caesarea to Jerusalem, and the leading Jews seized the opportunity of
asking that Paul might be brought up there for trial intending to assassinate
him by the way. But Festus would not comply with their request, He invited them
to follow him on his speedy return to Caesarea, and a trial took place there,
closely resembling that before Felix. "They had certain questions against
him," Festus says to Agrippa, "of their own superstition (or
religion), and of one Jesus, who was dead, whom Paul affirmed to be alive. And
being puzzled for my part as to such inquiries, I asked him whether he would go
to Jerusalem to be tried there." This proposal, not a very likely one to be
accepted, was the occasion of St. Paul’s appeal to Caesar. The appeal having
been allowed, Festus reflected that he must send with the prisoner a report of
"the crimes laid against him." He therefore took advantage of an
opportunity which offered itself in a few days to seek some help in the matter.
The Jewish prince Agrippa arrived with his sister Bernice on a visit to the new
governor. To him Festus communicated his perplexity. Agrippa expressed a desire
to hear Paul himself. Accordingly Paul conducted his defense before the king;
and when it was concluded Festus and Agrippa, and their companions, consulted
together, and came to the conclusion that the accused was guilty of nothing that
deserved death or imprisonment. "Agrippa’s final answer to the inquiry of
Festus was, "This man might have been set at liberty, if he had not
appealed unto Caesar." The voyage to Rome and shipwreck. Autumn, A.D. 60.
–No formal trial of St. Paul had yet taken place. After a while arrangements
were made to carry "Paul and certain other prisoners," in the custody
of a centurion named Julius, into Italy; and amongst the company, whether by
favor or from any other reason, we find the historian of the Acts, who in
chapters 27 and 28 gives a graphic description of the voyage to Rome and the
shipwreck on the Island of Melita or Malta. After a three-months stay in Malta
the soldiers and their prisoners left in an Alexandria ship for Italy. They
touched at Syracuse, where they stayed three days, and at Rhegium, from which
place they were carried with a fair wind to Puteoli, where they left their ship
and the sea. At Puteoli they found "brethren," for it was an important
place and especially a chief port for the traffic between Alexandria and Rome;
and by these brethren they were exhorted to stay a while with them. Permission
seems to have been granted by the centurion; and whilst they were spending seven
days at Puteoli news of the apostle’s arrival was sent to Rome. (Spring, A.D.
61.) First imprisonment of St. Paul at Rome. A.D. 61-63. –On their arrival at
Rome the centurion delivered up his prisoners into the proper custody that of
the praetorian prefect. Paul was at once treated with special consideration and
was allowed to dwell by himself with the soldier who guarded him. He was now
therefore free "to preach the gospel to them that were at Rome also;"
and proceeded without delay to act upon his rule – -"to the Jews
first," But as of old, the reception of his message by the Jews was not
favorable. He turned, therefore, again to the Gentiles, and for two years he
dwelt in his own hired house. These are the last words of the Acts. But St.
Paul’s career is not abruptly closed. Before he himself fades out of our sight
in the twilight of ecclesiastical tradition, we have letters written by himself
which contribute some particulars to his biography. Period of the later
epistles. –To that imprisonment to which St. Luke has introduced us — the
imprisonment which lasted for such a tedious time, though tempered by much
indulgence –belongs the noble group of letters to Philemon, to the Colossians,
to the Ephesians and to the Philippians. The three former of these were written
at one time, and sent by the same messengers. Whether that to the Philippians
was written before or after these we cannot determine; but the tone of it seems
to imply that a crisis was approaching, and therefore it is commonly regarded us
the latest of the four. In this epistle St. Paul twice expresses a confident
hope that before long he may be able to visit the Philippians in person.
(Philemon 1:25; Philemon 2:24) Whether this hope was fulfilled or not has been
the occasion of much controversy. According to the general opinion the apostle
was liberated from imprisonment at the end of two years, having been acquitted
by Nero A.D. 63, and left Rome soon after writing the letter to the Philippians.
He spent some time in visits to Greece, Asia Minor and Spain, and during the
latter part of this time wrote the letters (first epistles) to Timothy and Titus
from Macedonia, A.D. 65. After these were written he was apprehended again and
sent to Rome. Second imprisonment at Rome. A.D. 65-67. –The apostle appears now
to have been treated not as an honorable state prisoner but as a felon, (2
Timothy) but he was allowed to write the second letter to Timothy, A.D. 67. For
what remains we have the concurrent testimony of ecclesiastical antiquity that
he was beheaded at Rome, by Nero in the great persecutions of the Christians by
that emperor, A.D. 67 (Smith). 46. Simon The persecution of the church in
Jerusalem sent disciples everywhere preaching the word. Phillip went to Samaria
where he preached and performed miracles. Multitudes believed and were baptized.
Simon practiced sorcery or "magic" for a living. He was held in great
esteem by the people. However, at the preaching and miracles of Philip, he
believed and was baptized. Peter and John came so that the new Christians could
receive the Holy Spirit. Simon tried to purchase the gift of God and was rebuked
by Peter (Henneke). 47. Eunuch He was an Ethiopian Nobleman. Philip was sent to
an area of desert outside of Jerusalem by an angel. There he met the Ethiopian
nobleman who had been to Jerusalem to worship. He was reading from Isaiah as he
traveled. Philip was directed by the Spirit to overtake the chariot. He then
proceeded to use the passage in Isaiah to preach Jesus Christ. The Ethiopian
requested to be baptized. Philip heard his confession of faith and then baptized
him. Philip was taken away by the Spirit of the Lord. The nobleman went on his
way rejoicing (Henneke). 48. Ananias A Christian at Damascus. He became Paul’s
instructor; but when or by what means he himself became a Christian we have no
information. He was "a devout man according to the law, having a good
report of all the Jews which dwelt" at Damascus (Lockyer). 49. Aeneas A
paralytic healed by Paul. 50. Cornelius The Centurion-at the time the events in
Acts chapter 10 occurred, the Roman army of occupation in Judea consisted of 5
cohorts, containing a total of approximately 3,400 men. A typical cohort
consisted of 600 men. The Italian cohort of which Cornelius was a centurion was
composed of Romans. The other four cohorts were composed mainly of Samaritans
and Syrian Greeks. In Acts 27:1, it is mentioned that Julius was a centurion in
the Augustan cohort also stationed at Caeserea. In Acts 23:18, Claudius Lysias
is named as the commander of the large cohort (1000 men) stationed at Jerusalem.
Cornelius- His name meant "of a horn" and was that of a distinguished
Roman family. Cornelius may, therefore, have been a man of political importance.
Cornelius was… A. Devout B. Feared God with his household C. Benevolent D.
Prayerful E. Well spoken of by the entire Jewish nation F. A soldier (Henneke)
51. Agabus Agabus was a New Testament Prophet. This was the first mention of the
gift of prophecy among the disciples. He foretold a famine which would occur
throughout the world. The brethren in Antioch believed Agabus and prepared for
the famine. They even sent relief to Judea even though the famine was to include
them. The famine occurred during the time of Claudius Caesar. He foretold Paul’s
arrest in Jerusalem. The brethren did not want Paul to go to Jerusalem. Paul was
determined to go anyway. "The will of the Lord be done." (Henneke) 52.
Claudius The fourth Roman emperor. He succeeded Caligula (A.D. 41). Though in
general he treated the Jews, especially those in Asia and Egypt, with great
indulgence, yet about the middle of his reign (A.D. 49) he banished them all
from Rome (Acts 18:2). In this edict the Christians were included, as being, as
was supposed, a sect of Jews. The Jews, however soon again returned to Rome.
During the reign of this emperor, several persecutions of the Christians by the
Jews took place in the dominions of Herod Agrippa, in one of which the apostle
James was "killed" (12:2). He died A.D. 54 (Smith). 53. King Herod
Herod Agrippa I was the grandson of Herod the Great. Secular history records
that while living in Rome, he became a favorite of Emperor Caligula who gave him
a kingdom subsequently enlarged by Claudius to include all of Palestine.
Apparently, to please the Jews, he joined his government to the persecution of
the church. Herod the persecutor. He had the apostle James beheaded. This
occurred about ten years after the death of Jesus. He then arrested and
imprisoned Peter under heavy guard. The church prayed fervently for Peter.
Unknown to the soldiers, an angel led Peter from the prison. This caused no
small disturbance among the soldiers. Peter presented himself to the brethren
and departed to another place. Herod ordered the execution of the soldiers. The
death of Herod. At Caesarea, Herod celebrated a festival in honor of Emperor
Claudius. He addressed the people (clad in a garment fashioned of
silver-Josephus). The people exclaimed that "he is a god." An angel
struck him because he did not give God the glory. He was eaten by worms and
died. Josephus wrote that this death took five days (Henneke). 54. John (Mark)
First mentioned in Acts 12:12 where saints had gathered in the home of John
Mark’s mother. They were praying for Peter who had been imprisoned by Herod.
Peter was released miraculously and Herod died soon thereafter. John Mark saw
the power of God in the defeat of Herod and the spread of the Church. He Joined
Barnabas and Saul in their ministry. He was present at the conversion of the
proconsul in Salamis and the defeat of Elymas the sorcerer. John went with Paul
as far as Pamphylia, but then left the group to return to Jerusalem. Later, Paul
and Barnabas disagreed over whether to take John Mark with them. Mark went with
Barnabas to Cyprus. However, Paul tells the Church at Colossae to welcome John
Mark (Col. 4:10). John Mark became a useful worker for the Lord (2 Tim. 4:11;
Phil. 24; 1 Pet. 5:13). He is the author of the book of Mark. He was Barnabas?
cousin (Henneke). 55. Barnabas the Prophet Same as Barnabas whom traveled with
Paul. He was also seen as a prophet. 56. Simeon (Niger) A devout Jew, inspired
by the Holy Ghost, who met the parents of our Lord in the temple, took him in
his arms, and gave thanks for what he saw and knew of Jesus. (Luke 2:25-35;)
There was a Simeon who succeeded his father Hillel as president of the Sanhedrin
about A.D. 13, and whose son Gamaliel was the Pharisee at whose feet St. Paul
was brought up. It has been conjectured that he may be the Simeon of St. Luke
(Smith). 57. Lucius A Christian teacher at Antioch (Acts 13:1), and Paul’s
kinsman (Rom. 16:21). His name is Latin, but his birthplace seems to indicate
that he was one of the Jews of Cyrene, in North Africa (Smith). 58. Manaen He
was one of the teachers and prophets in the church at Antioch at the time of the
appointment of Saul and Barnabas as missionaries to the heathen. He is said to
have been brought up with Herod Antipas. He was probably his foster-brother
(Smith). 59. Saul the prophet *See Saul above, different name. 60. Bar-Jesus
Also known as Elymas was a magician, a Jewish false prophet, whose name was
Bar-Jesus. Elymas opposed Barnabas and Saul seeking to turn Sergius Paulus from
the faith. Paul rebuked him and struck him with temporary blindness. This is the
only recorded miracle wrought by an apostle to the injury of a person. Paul said
that he was: Full of guile and fraud. A son of the devil. An enemy of
righteousness. A perverter of the right ways of the Lord (Henneke). 61. Sergius
Paulus. Roman proconsul of Cyprus at Paphos. A man of understanding. Sought to
hear the word of God from Barnabas and Saul. Believed after Paul struck Elymas
with blindness for hindering the gospel. Saul now called Paul (a name which he
used thereafter) Paul now recognized as the dominant member of his company (Henneke).