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Q & A: Acts 21-28

Lesson 21

Question: In 21:4, the people, “under the Sprit’s prompting”, tried to tell Paul not to go up to Jerusalem. In 21:11, Agabus says “thus says the Holy Spirit”, and then describes the arrest Paul faces. Is it possible to explain how the Holy Spirit can both inspire Paul to continue on his journey and the people try to stop him and the prophet Agabus describe the arrest? To some, this seems a contradiction on how to know the Holy Spirit is leading someone and other, also believing they are ‘hearing’ the Holy Spirit, try to dissuade.”

Answer: Notice also the passage below:

And now, behold, I am going to Jerusalem, bound in the Spirit, not knowing what shall befall me there; except that the Holy Spirit testifies to me in every city that imprisonment and afflictions await me. But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may accomplish my course and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the gospel of the grace of God.” (Acts 20:22-24, RSVCE)

We see this earlier in Acts 20. The Spirit is compelling Paul to go to Jerusalem. Paul has full conviction that it is the right thing and that he is under the direction of the Spirit to go to Jerusalem even though he knows he will suffer. But he is determined to go so as to finish his course. Agabus is a prophet and tells Paul what is going to happen, but does not “in the Spirit” forbid Paul to go. He is simply letting Paul know what will happen when he arrives. There is no contradiction here. However, in 21:4 there does seem to be a small contradiction in that it says “Through the Spirit they told Paul not to go on to Jerusalem.”

However, “this phrase is not Luke’s usual description of prophecy and probably indicates that they were simply warning him not to go on the basis of their prophecies about what would happen (20:23; 21:11) (Keener, C. S., The IVP Bible Background Commentary : New Testament). It seems they too knew by the Spirit what was going to happen and they were trying to influence Paul by appealing to his natural sense of self-preservation. But Paul was not interested in self-preservation but with laying his life down for Jesus Christ.

We might even see here a similar situation to that of Jesus going up to Jerusalem himself to be killed. He knew by the Spirit what awaited him, yet he still was compelled by the Spirit to go. The ultimate conflict took place in the Garden where God himself (Jesus) said he did and didn’t want to die. If it can pass from me – good – but not my will but yours (Father) be done.

Question: In the text of 21:9, is says Philip had “four unmarried daughters” On line 3 of page 253 of the Study Guide, it says “…Philip the Evangelist who has seven daughters …” Why the difference?

Answer:  This seems to be a mistake in the text. It should read “four daughters.” Please make sure this is corrected in future editions.

Lesson 22

Question: We discussed this lesson tonight and the question came up: do Orthodox Jews still think we Gentiles are filthy dogs, etc.? Can they still not enter a Gentile’s home and all the other things they couldn’t do in Biblical times? Thank you.

Answer: Like the thousands of differing theologies and practices in Protestantism, Jewish religious circles also have their differing teachings and practices. You will find some that do and others that do not intermingle with Gentiles.

I will tell you of one experience I had while filming our DVD on St. Paul. I mentioned the name of Jesus while filming at the Western Wall. Two religious Jews approached me shaking with anger and frustration telling me I could not use that Name at the Wall. They blocked my video camera and a heated argument ensued. In the end I could not get them to move from my camera so I said the religious Jew “I am a Gentile; you are a Jew. If you do not move away from my camera I will TOUCH you!”

He quickly stepped back. Later I tried to shake his hand, which he did. But he would not touch my skin. He reached beyond my hand and grasped the cloth of my sleeve below the elbow and shook my arm. I think this experience will answer your question. By the way, I captured it on film and you can see some of this debate in the Behind the Scenes in my Paul DVD.

Question: In Chapter 22, Paul states (again) that he was a Roman Citizen. How did a person prove citizenship?

Answer: Joseph had to go to Bethlehem to register for the census and pay the tax since he was of the tribe of Judah. The Roman Empire was very careful with its legal proceedings and citizenship. We understand that Romans were given a certificate of some sorts for having offered incense to the Caesar, and it is quite likely that citizens carried a written and sealed document to affirm their citizenship. Writing, documents, sealed decrees, and correspondence were common in Greece so it can be assumed that a citizen carried a document of citizenship much like we carry a passport.

Question: What percentage of Jews became Christians at the time of Peter and Paul? What is the background of Ananias who had such an impact on Paul during his conversion?

Answer: We do not have any statistics about the number of Jews that converted. We know a great number did convert to the Christian truth. Only Jews converted on the day of Pentecost, actually three thousand Jews believed on the day of Pentecost. We read in Acts 6:7: “And the word of God increased; and the number of the disciples multiplied greatly in Jerusalem, and a great many of the priests were obedient to the faith.” We are not told exact numbers.

Paul said to those in Jerusalem many years later: “And when they heard it, they glorified God. And they said to him, “You see, brother, how many thousands there are among the Jews of those who have believed; they are all zealous for the law (Acts 21:20).

But we are never told the numbers of Jews and I suspect any estimates would be rather speculative.

Lesson 23

Question: When talking about wedding vows, do we not “swear” to keep the vows between God and our spouse in our marital covenant?

Answer: I am not sure of the context of this question nor what it has to do with Acts, but marriage is a covenant between a man and a woman and a covenant is an oath that is basically a “swearing” or covenanting of ourselves with our spouse. We do not swear a vow between God and our spouse but between us and our spouse in the presence of God. A covenant is to be kept since by its very nature it is a swearing or an oath

Lesson 24

Question: On page 290, last sentence, statement is made that “Drusilla would have been about 19 years old”. What is the source for this statement?

Answer: We know from history when Drusilla was born and when Paul was imprisoned in Caesarea. Putting the two together we can surmise her age. From the New Bible Dictionary, “[Drusilla was] born in ad 38 (Josephus, Antiquities, 19.354), the youngest daughter of Herod Agrippa I, and sister of Agrippa II, who gave her in marriage to a Syrian petty king, Azizus of Emesa. … The Western Text records that it was Drusilla, not her husband, who wanted to meet Paul (ad 57), but it seems doubtful whether in this sophisticated Jewish teenager the apostle would find a receptive listener to his discourse on ‘justice and self-control and future judgment’ (Acts 24:24–25).

Question: In Question #5 regarding belief in the resurrection of the dead, we’re referred to Daniel Ch. 12:1-2. … “and many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.” Since “many” doesn’t seem to include all, what happens to the others?

Answer: This passage in Daniel is not a fully developed theology of the resurrection. The theology of resurrection was just emerging in Jewish thought—the revelation of God was slowly being revealed. One good commentary on Daniel comments:

The reference to the exposure of the wicked brings out how vv 1–3 as a whole are concerned with restoration to life not for its own sake or for the sake of communion with God, but as part of and as a means to vindication (Charles,Eschatology, 137–38; 211–13; Nickelsburg; Kleinknecht [see Bibliography]). It is for this reason that the seer speaks of many being awakened, not all: those who were faithful but who lost their lives awake for vindication, those who were wicked but who seemed to triumph awake for condemnation—the regular mass of faithful Israel apparently remaining in Sheol. Or it may be that the groups raised are the faithful in general and the unpunished wicked, only the already punished wicked remaining in Sheol (Kaiser, Tod); while the people of God as a whole is outside the focus of v 2 just as the gentile world is, v 13 points to a resurrection of more than the martyrs. But we need to keep in mind that the passage is handling a specific problem. The threefold division suggested by the metaphor must not be pressed to yield a coherent total doctrine of the afterlife” (Goldingay, J. E. (2002). Vol. 30: Word Biblical Commentary : Daniel. Word Biblical Commentary (308). Dallas: Word, Incorporated.).

Lesson 25

Question: If I were to have a dinner party and invite both Festus and King Agrippa, which should I seat at the place of highest honor?

Answer: The one with the biggest sword J

Actually, Agrippa was a king; Festus was governor. The king trumps a governor. However, King Agrippa was not the king of Judea but was visiting from the north. Therefore he would be given the seat of honor as a visiting king and guest, but Festus was governor of Judea and therefore he would have the seat of honor as the local, de facto ruler appointed by Caesar.

Secondly, were the Jews allowed an army? I am not aware of any large involvement of Jews in the army. It would have been against their religion to serve in the military under a foreign king.

Question: Who was the king of Judea?

Answer: At the time of Christ’s birth it was King Herod. We read this in Luke 3:  In the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea, and Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene, in the high-priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John the son of Zechariah in the wilderness” Luke 3:1-2). During the ministry of Paul there was no king but there were Tetrarch’s. King Herod’s kingdom had been divided into provinces each of which was called a “tetrarchy.”

According to the New Bible Dictionary, “When Herod the Great, who ruled Palestine as a client-king under the Romans, died in 4 BC, his sons disputed their father’s will. Appeal on their part to Augustus Caesar led to the division of the territory among three sons: Archelaus being appointed ethnarch of Judaea, Samaria and Idumaea; Antipas tetrarch of Galilee and Peraea; and Philip tetrarch of Batanea, Trachonitis, Ituraea, Gaulanitis and Auranitis, areas NE of the Sea of Galilee. In the NT the noun is used solely in reference to Herod Antipas (Mt. 14:1; Lk. 3:19; 9:7; Acts 13:1), though in Lk. 3:1 the cognate verb is applied to Antipas, Philip and Lysanias, tetrarch of Abilene.”

Question: I’m sorry not to have been clear with my second question. I wonder if the Jews were allowed their own army.

Answer: No during the Roman times they would not be allowed their own army but they did have Temple guards. The Temple had its own police department known as the Temple Guard, who were mostly Levites and whose task, among other things, was to keep out the forbidden Gentiles (cf. Mt. 27:65). There were Zealots and rebels who would form militias to resist Rome, but they were usually squashed as soon as they rose up.

Lesson 26

Question: Was there significance to Luke pointing out that the Lord spoke to Paul on the road to Damascus in Hebrew?

Answer: Yes, Hebrew was the language of the area. And if it was in Hebrew and not Aramaic it means the voice is speaking in the religious language of the Jews. The Jews Israel spoke Aramaic on a daily basis and Hebrew for religious purposes. Had Jesus spoke in Greek or Latin it would not have been as profound. His speaking in Hebrew meant that it was really Jesus and Jesus was a Jew who understood the Hebrew language of the Temple.

Paul wanted to communicate to Agrippa that the heavenly voice spoke to him in the language of the sacred Scriptures of the Old Testament. The Greek text shows that Jesus called Paul by his Hebrew name (Saoul) and not by the Greek form (Saulos).

More on speaking Hebrew follows, related to Paul using Hebrew:

Paul probably spoke in Aramaic, which was the common language of the time. Jerome Biblical Commentary states:  “in Hebrew: As in 22:2 and 26:14, this phrase apparently means “in Aramaic,” the more commonly used Semitic language in Palestine at this time. Aramaic may even have been Paul’s first language (2 Cor 11:22; Phil 3:5). Some commentators try to make a case for Paul’s discourse being actually addressed to the crowd in Hebrew.”

However, since they thought of Paul as one opposed to them they would expect him to speak Greek, but when he began speaking Hebrew, if indeed it was Hebrew and not Aramaic, they would have been shocked that he spoke the religious language of the Jews and it would give him tremendous credibility.

One commentary writes, “Language. Paul wisely addresses the crowd in Aramaic, the vernacular in Israel. He seeks to establish rapport with the people and, when they hear Aramaic words coming from his lips, they listen. They believe that a Jew from the Dispersion who speaks fluent Aramaic deserves their attention.” (Kistemaker, S. J., & Hendriksen, W. (1953-2001). Vol. 17: New Testament commentary : Exposition of the Acts of the Apostles. Grand Rapids: Baker Book House).

In the several translations present in our class, none clearly explained that Anna saw the Baby Jesus at His presentation. Is there a clearer translation?

This does not relate to the Acts study, but I will answer. The text assumes that Anna saw Jesus, but it does not say explicitly that she did see him. The text says, “And there was a prophetess, Anna, the daughter of Phanu-el, of the tribe of Asher; she was of a great age, having lived with her husband seven years from her virginity, and as a widow till she was eighty-four. She did not depart from the temple, worshiping with fasting and prayer night and day. And coming up at that very hour she gave thanks to God, and spoke of him to all who were looking for the redemption of Jerusalem” (Acts 2:36-38).

What language would be in use during Paul’s trial before Agrippa and Festus? In what year would this trial have taken place?

In another of Paul’s speeches in Jerusalem the crowds were surprised to hear Paul speak in Hebrew, probably Aramaic. But here he spoke to King Agrippa in Greek. Paul was imprisoned in Caesarea for two years between 57-60 AD.