Paul in Jerusalem, Part 2

While Paul spoke the truth, and while his cause was just, he did seem to regret speaking to the high priest in such a way, based on the manner in which he steps back from his statement in verse 5. Many correctly point out that Paul’s initial heated reaction doesn’t reflect the spirit of passages like 1 Corinthians 4:12: “When we are reviled, we bless; when we are persecuted, we endure it” (cf. Matt 5:39). Jesus and Paul both condemned hypocrisy, but at the time of his trial, our Lord responded to his accusers with restraint (see Luke 22:63-71; John 18:19-23). This indicates that while we must speak out against injustice, we must always do so with respect and restraint.

The assembly was definitely provoked by Paul’s words (23:4). Paul responded to their outcry, citing Exodus 22:28 (v. 5). What should we make of this statement?

The first main view is what I call the sincerity view. It could be that Paul genuinely didn’t know he was speaking to the high priest. Maybe (1) Ananias wasn’t dressed with his religious garb since this wasn’t a regular meeting of the Sanhedrin; (2) Paul didn’t know who gave the order because of the commotion in the meeting; (3) Paul’s eyesight caused him to see only a blurry white-robed figure; or (4) because Paul had been away from Jerusalem for so long, he didn’t know Ananias.

Another option is what we may call the sarcasm view. Perhaps in his quip, Paul was using irony, as if to say, “Brothers I see nothing priestly in this man” (Lev 19:15; Deut 25:1; Calvin, “Christ the End of the Law,” 318). If that is the case, Paul is here ministering in a prophetic sense. He first offers the rebuke, and then he makes this strong statement about Ananias’s character.

But I hold (lightly!) to the idea that Paul sincerely didn’t know that the high priest gave the order. He sought to address people respectfully, and when he crossed the line, he admitted it. We too should pursue the proper tone with ruling authorities as we address them (Bock, Acts, 674–75), refusing to mimic the disrespect so rampant in our culture. And should we fail to speak as we ought, we should emulate Paul’s humility.

One thing is for certain, Paul was in need of the Lord’s grace. He had been beaten by a Jewish mob, almost flogged by the Romans, and at his hearing he was punched in the face by religious leaders. In spite of these many challenges, however, he was never alone.

The trial takes a sharp turn when Paul, still in the middle of his speech, brings up the reason for his arrest: “the hope of the resurrection” (v. 6). His words end up “dividing and conquering.”

Was Paul trying to divert attention away from himself in this move? Perhaps. But I don’t think we should jump to that conclusion. Paul did indeed point out the real issue behind his trials. It was a theological dispute. His belief in Jesus’s resurrection separated him from the rest of the Jews, and throughout his defense speeches, he constantly brings up the resurrection (cf. 24:14-16; 26:6-8; 28:20). Further, at the end of this trial Jesus commended Paul for testifying about him here in Jerusalem (23:11). So I think Paul was simply stating the facts. His belief in the risen Christ made him intolerable to many of the Jews. With that said, Paul may have anticipated the division that would follow his statement. And those who hold to the idea that Paul was thinking, This whole trial is going nowhere, let me bring up the resurrection and show them that even they have disagreements, may not be that far off.

Was Paul correct in calling himself a Pharisee and a son of Pharisees? Well, he was in fact educated in the pharisaic tradition (cf. 22:3; Phil 3:5). His assertion doesn’t have to be taken as a claim that his literal father was a Pharisee. And he wasn’t necessarily claiming to endorse everything the Pharisees taught, but with respect to their eschatological hope revealed in Scripture (cf. Ezek 37:1-14; Dan 12:1-3), he still identified with them. Jesus was the fulfillment of that hope.

The Sadducees didn’t believe in the resurrection. Nor did they embrace the existence of angels, nor the spirit—a fact probably referring to the eschatology of the Pharisees. But the Pharisees embraced these ideas (23:8). The Sadducees only recognized the books of Moses as authoritative, and they argued that such ideas weren’t found there. Jesus, however, showed them on one occasion that denying the resurrection contradicted God’s covenant faithfulness to the patriarchs (Luke 20:27-39; Johnson, Let’s Study Acts, 283). The Pharisees believed the resurrection was Israel’s ultimate hope. Paul knew what these groups believed. He identified with the Pharisees, essentially saying that Jesus is the fulfillment of their shared hope.

The effect of the theological controversy was sharp division. The Pharisees actually defended Paul in this case! As the apostle’s story unfolds, others will make the same conclusion about Paul’s innocence (e.g., 23:29; 25:25-27; 26:32). But here the shouting soon turned to violence, and Lysias once again had to intervene and rescue Paul, delivering him back to the barracks. Still the commander lacked the answers he desired.

The resurrection remains central to the Christian faith. Paul said, “If Christ has not been raised, then our proclamation is in vain, and so is your faith” (1 Cor 15:14). We must keep heralding the good news of the empty tomb, and we should expect various responses to it.

Once Paul is back in the barracks, left to nurse his wounds and ponder what just happened, the Lord Jesus appears to the discouraged apostle. Having appeared to him in Corinth previously, he now shows up in Jerusalem to comfort and energize Paul for his upcoming trip to Rome.

Acts 23:11

We can only speculate what was going on in the apostle’s mind before Jesus comforted him, but surely we can assume Paul was at a low point in his life. The Lord often appeared to Paul with encouragement and guidance in important moments in his career (cf. 16:9; 18:9-10; 22:17,21; 27:23-24). Paul had found an unsupportive church in Jerusalem. He had suffered physically and emotionally before rulers and crowds. And he may have questioned or regretted some of his actions. He was in need of the Lord’s grace. That’s just what he received.

While Jesus’s words here were specifically for Paul in this moment, we still find in them reassuring application for our lives. Jesus told Paul that he must go on to testify about him in Rome as he did in Jerusalem. That was a reminder that Paul’s task wasn’t mainly to defend himself; he was to testify about Jesus. We too are commanded to testify to the gospel in front of unbelieving and sometimes unfriendly audiences. Here, then, are four encouragements.

Jesus knew Paul’s situation and condition, and he knows what we face, too. We are never outside his gaze. Jesus knows his sheep by name and by need (John 10:14).

Charles Spurgeon commented on this passage:

One is reminded of the Quaker who came to see John Bunyan in prison and said to him, “Friend, the Lord sent me to you and I have been seeking you in half the prisons in England.” “No, verily,” said John, “that cannot be! For if the Lord had sent you to me, you would have come here at once, for He knows I have been here for years!” (“Paul Cheered in Prison”)

Indeed, the Lord knew Paul’s condition, and he knows ours.

Jesus’s presence comforted Paul (cf. 18:9-10). While Paul felt alone, the reality is that Jesus was with him (cf. 2 Tim 4:17-18). Jesus stood for Paul at the cross; here he stands with Paul in the barracks. Be encouraged: the Lord will never leave you or forsake you (Heb 13:5).

The Lord displays his support of Paul in two ways. First, the Lord gave him an exhortation: “Have courage!” If you have ever coached young kids in baseball, you know some tend to back away from the baseball out of fear of being hit. To these kids I often say, “Don’t bail out! Stay in the box!” In similar fashion the Lord Jesus exhorted Paul to endure courageously against the wild pitches of the opponents. He gave Paul the same exhortation in Corinth (Acts 18:9). Jesus gives his followers this wonderful word of comfort and challenge: “Have courage!” (cf. Matt 9:2,22; 14:27; John 16:33). He is with us, and he is for us, as we do his will.

Second, the Lord gave Paul a commendation: “You have testified about me in Jerusalem.” What an encouragement to hear the Lord, your Savior and hero, say, “You did it. You told people about Me!” Charles Spurgeon said that Paul was “too humble to console himself with that fact till his Lord gave him leave to do so by acknowledging the brave deed!” (“Paul Cheered in Prison”).

Paul asked the Romans, “If God is for us, who is against us?” (Rom 8:31). That’s a great question with a fabulous answer. We can press on, in view of this reality.

Paul may have wondered if he would make it to Rome. But in telling Paul it was “necessary” that he testify there, the sovereign Lord let the apostle know that he would make sure he arrived. Though Paul would encounter many trials en route, he could face everything that happened to him over the course of the next weeks knowing that the Lord’s purposes would prevail.

Jesus wasn’t finished with Paul. The prospect of future service must have been a great encouragement to the war-weary apostle. The psalmist said, “The course of my life is in your power” (Ps 31:15). While we still have breath, we should believe that Jesus has work for us to do.

All this good news—that Jesus knows us, is with us, is for us, and isn’t finished with us—leads me to ask a question: How should we expect to experience the reassuring comfort of Jesus if we don’t experience visions like Paul’s? Let me remind you that the Lord still speaks to us by his Spirit, through the Christ-centered Scriptures. Jesus meets us in his Word. By marinating our thoughts and hearts in the gospel, we find great strength. So don’t neglect the Scriptures. John Calvin wrote, “This is the whole of what we should seek in the Scriptures: to be well acquainted with Jesus Christ, and the infinite riches which are contained in Him; and which are, by Him, offered to us from God His Father” (“Christ the End”).

The Pharisees had a category for resurrection but failed to rely on Jesus, who is himself the “resurrection and the life” (John 11:25). Let your study of Scripture lead you to the hero of Scripture (John 5:39-40,46).