Acts 21:31-36

Summary retelling of Acts 21:31-36

As the turmoil around Paul grows, the leader of the soldiers assigned to the temple took some men and went down to get Paul.  When the people see the soldiers arriving, they stop rioting.  The military leader orders Paul to be arrested and bound.  The leader asks the crowd who Paul is and what he has done.  The crowd couldn’t agree on the story behind Paul, so the military leader ordered Paul to be brought into the barracks.  Paul actually had to be carried among the soldiers because of the violence of the crowd.

Thoughts for Today

First Thought:

When the Romans occupied a city, they demanded civil order.  They didn’t care about what gods a city worshipped or what living conditions the city chose to keep.  They demanded taxes (or tribute) be paid on time and they demanded civil order.  Remember that it was the fear of riot and how the Romans would respond that was the reason the Jewish leaders convinced each other that Jesus had to die (John18:14).  Also remember when the crowd rioted in Ephesus because of Paul that the town manager calmed the crowd with fear of Roman intervention (Acts 19:21-41).  Unfortunately, Jerusalem was known in the Roman Empire as one of those cities where the people didn’t care about the consequences.  The people rioted often, so the soldiers were quite familiar with having to put down riots – especially in the temple.

What is it about humanity’s relationship with religion that makes people so willing to act uncivilized?  What is it about humanity in general that leads us to forget how to act in society from time to time?

Second Thought:

When the military leader cannot get an answer out of the crowd, he orders Paul to be arrested.  While certainly this is not a favorable move, in many respects this can be seen as the military leader protecting Paul.  The only way to get Paul out of the crowd safely is to arrest him and take custody of him.  Even though it seems like a bad thing, at this time the arrest is largely to Paul’s benefit.

Furthermore, Paul’s arrest fulfills the words of the prophet Agabus.  Agabus had told Paul and his companions that Paul would be bound and led away should he go to Jerusalem.  It was God’s plan for Paul to be arrested for the faith.

How does this story really cause us to ponder the idea that God works in mysterious ways?

Third Thought:

Once again we get to see the same kind of anger with which Jesus had to deal.  The crowd – inspired by the hatred of the Jewish leaders – wanted Jesus dead.  Herod killed James the disciple in order to appease the anger and blood thirst of the Jewish leaders as well as to gain favor with them.  How many times thus far has Paul been thrown in prison over the course of his ministry?  Now we see Paul feeling the wrath of the world once more.  This is a hard reality that we just don’t see in the western church. When we are honestly believing and putting forth our beliefs the world will hate us.  Jesus says as much in John 15:18-19 as well as John 17:14.  To believe that the world will not hate us contradicts the very words of Jesus.

Is it easy to be hated?  Do you know many Christians who are genuinely hated by the world?  If not, what does that say about our faith and our desire to preach compared to Paul, Jesus’ disciples, and Jesus Himself?

Passage for Tomorrow: Acts 21:37-40