*Acts 21:37-22:29
Mistaken for a rebel, Paul is arrested but addresses the Jerusalem crowd, explaining his conversion and mission to the Gentiles.
- Paul’s Request to Address the Crowd:
- As Paul is being led into the barracks, he asks the commander for permission to speak to the people. Surprised to learn that Paul speaks Greek, the commander agrees.
- Paul’s Defense to the People:
- Paul addresses the crowd in Hebrew (Aramaic), which quiets them down. He shares his background as a Jew born in Tarsus, educated in Jerusalem under Gamaliel, and zealous for God’s law.
- He recounts his persecution of Christians, his journey to Damascus to arrest more followers of the Way, and his dramatic conversion experience on the road where Jesus himself spoke to him.
- Paul describes his baptism and calling in Damascus, his return to Jerusalem, and a trance in which Jesus directed him to leave Jerusalem because his testimony would not be accepted.
- Revelation of Paul’s Mission to the Gentiles:
- Paul explains that Jesus sent him far away to the Gentiles.
- This statement causes uproar among the Jewish listeners, who shout that such a man should not be allowed to live.
- Roman Intervention:
- The Roman commander, misunderstanding the cause of the uproar, orders Paul to be taken into the barracks and examined under scourging to find out why the crowd is shouting against him.
- As they prepare to flog him, Paul reveals his Roman citizenship, surprising the centurion, who then informs the commander. The commander verifies Paul’s citizenship and expresses concern about having bound a Roman citizen without trial.
- Commander’s Inquiry:
- Realizing the gravity of the situation, the commander decides to bring Paul before the Sanhedrin to clarify the charges against him, thus avoiding any illegal treatment of a Roman citizen.
Acts 21:37–22:29 teaches us the power of sharing our story. When Paul was arrested, he didn’t respond with anger—he used the moment to share how Jesus changed his life. Some listened, while others rejected his message, but he remained faithful. This reminds us that our personal experiences with God can be a powerful way to encourage others. We can apply this by being ready to share our faith story with kindness and courage, trusting that God can use it to touch hearts, even if not everyone accepts it.
Acts 21:37-22:29 (WEB)
21:37 As Paul was about to be brought into the barracks, he asked the commanding officer, “May I speak to you?”He said, “Do you know Greek? 38 Aren’t you then the Egyptian who before these days stirred up to sedition and led out into the wilderness the four thousand men of the Assassins?”39 But Paul said, “I am a Jew from Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of no insignificant city. I beg you, allow me to speak to the people.”40 When he had given him permission, Paul, standing on the stairs, beckoned with his hand to the people. When there was a great silence, he spoke to them in the Hebrew language, saying,22:1 “Brothers and fathers, listen to the defense which I now make to you.”2 When they heard that he spoke to them in the Hebrew language, they were even more quiet.He said, 3 “I am indeed a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, instructed according to the strict tradition of the law of our fathers, being zealous for God, even as you all are today. 4 I persecuted this Way to the death, binding and delivering into prisons both men and women, 5 as also the high priest and all the council of the elders testify, from whom also I received letters to the brothers, and traveled to Damascus to bring them also who were there to Jerusalem in bonds to be punished.6 “As I made my journey and came close to Damascus, about noon suddenly a great light shone around me from the sky. 7 I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?’ 8 I answered, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ He said to me, ‘I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you persecute.’9 “Those who were with me indeed saw the light and were afraid, but they didn’t understand the voice of him who spoke to me. 10 I said, ‘What shall I do, Lord?’ The Lord said to me, ‘Arise, and go into Damascus. There you will be told about all things which are appointed for you to do.’ 11 When I couldn’t see for the glory of that light, being led by the hand of those who were with me, I came into Damascus.12 “One Ananias, a devout man according to the law, well reported of by all the Jews who lived in Damascus, 13 came to me, and standing by me said to me, ‘Brother Saul, receive your sight!’ In that very hour I looked up at him. 14 He said, ‘The God of our fathers has appointed you to know his will, and to see the Righteous One, and to hear a voice from his mouth. 15 For you will be a witness for him to all men of what you have seen and heard. 16 Now why do you wait? Arise, be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord.’17 “When I had returned to Jerusalem and while I prayed in the temple, I fell into a trance 18 and saw him saying to me, ‘Hurry and get out of Jerusalem quickly, because they will not receive testimony concerning me from you.’ 19 I said, ‘Lord, they themselves know that I imprisoned and beat in every synagogue those who believed in you. 20 When the blood of Stephen, your witness, was shed, I also was standing by, consenting to his death, and guarding the cloaks of those who killed him.’21 “He said to me, ‘Depart, for I will send you out far from here to the Gentiles.’ ”22 They listened to him until he said that; then they lifted up their voice and said, “Rid the earth of this fellow, for he isn’t fit to live!”23 As they cried out, threw off their cloaks, and threw dust into the air, 24 the commanding officer commanded him to be brought into the barracks, ordering him to be examined by scourging, that he might know for what crime they shouted against him like that. 25 When they had tied him up with straps, Paul asked the centurion who stood by, “Is it lawful for you to scourge a man who is a Roman, and not found guilty?”26 When the centurion heard it, he went to the commanding officer and told him, “Watch what you are about to do, for this man is a Roman!”27 The commanding officer came and asked him, “Tell me, are you a Roman?”He said, “Yes.”28 The commanding officer answered, “I bought my citizenship for a great price.”Paul said, “But I was born a Roman.”29 Immediately those who were about to examine him departed from him, and the commanding officer also was afraid when he realized that he was a Roman, because he had bound him.