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Paul's journey from Miletus to Caesarea (1–9). Stay in Caesarea and prophecy of Paul's bonds in Jerusalem (10–14). The further journey to Jerusalem (15–16). Paul's last stay in Jerusalem, the indignation of the Jews against him and his imprisonment (17–40) Acts 21:1. When we parted with them and sailed, we went straight to Kos, the next day to Rhodes and from there to Patara, “Having parted with them” – stronger Greek – αποσπασθέντας απ ’ αυτῶν – glorified: “having been separated from them” – having broken away from them. “With these words (the writer) expresses a special effort and - not in vain, for otherwise they would not have gone out to sea” (Chrysostom). “Kos” is a small island southwest of Milit, famous for winemaking and the preparation of expensive materials. 15 Roman miles away to the southeast lies the large island of Rhodes. “Patar a” is a large seaside trading city in the Asia Minor province of Lycia, with the oracle of Apollo famous in antiquity. Acts 21:2. and finding a ship going to Phenicia, they boarded it and sailed away. "Finding the ship". From Troas to Patara, Paul and his companions sailed on a special, probably hired ship, which was at his complete disposal (Acts 20:13, 16); now, for a difficult and long journey across the open sea, he transferred to another, larger merchant ship, which was sailing with cargo to Phenicia. Acts 21:3. Having come into sight of Cyprus and leaving it on the left, we sailed to Syria, and landed in Tyre, for here the cargo from the ship had to be laid down. "Tire" is a Phoenician seaside city, famous for its trade. Phenicia, according to the Roman division of provinces, was annexed to Syria (which included Palestine); that is why it is said: “we sailed to Syria and landed in Tyre.” Acts 21:4. And having found the disciples, they stayed there for seven days. They, under the inspiration of the Spirit, told Paul not to go to Jerusalem. "Having found the disciples". The expression suggests Paul's search for Christians here, and it follows that Christians here were few in number and little known (cf. Acts 11:19, 15:3), so they had to be sought in this large city. "Seven Days". Having hastened before, due to the uncertainty of how successful the long and difficult journey across the sea would be, Paul gets the opportunity to spend a whole week in Tire. “They” - that is, probably - some of the Tyrian Christians who possessed the prophetic gift. “By the inspiration of the Spirit they told Paul not to go up to Jerusalem.” Actually, the inspiration of the Spirit was only that the Tyrian prophets learned about the fate that awaited Paul in Jerusalem (as in Acts 20:23). The request not to go there was a matter of their personal loving concern for the fate of the apostle (cf. Theophilus). But the Apostle knew more perfectly the will of the Holy Spirit about this, and not only saw his fate, but also went to it - at the attraction of the same Spirit (Acts 20:22). Acts 21:5. Having spent these days, we went out and went, and everyone with their wives and children saw us off, even out of the city; and on the shore, they knelt down and prayed. “With wives and children” is a special cordiality of the apostle’s farewell, explained by the small number of Christians with whom, over a relatively long stay, it was easier to enter into especially close relationships. Acts 21:6. And, having said goodbye to each other, we entered the ship, and they returned home. Acts 21:7. We, having completed the voyage, arrived from Tire to Ptolemais, where, having greeted the brothers, we stayed with them for one day. “Ptolemais a” is the ancient seaside city of Acre, south of Phenicia, within Palestine proper, according to the ancient division - in the tribe of Asher (Judges 1:31), somewhat north of Mount Carmel. Acts 21:8. And the next day Paul and we who were with him went out and came to Caesarea and, entering the house of Philip the evangelist, one of the seven deacons, remained with him. “Caesarea” - (Stratonov), see note. to Acts 8:40. “You walked” - apparently, no longer by sea, but on foot through the magnificent valley of Ezdrilon, past the majestic Carmel (one day's walk). “House of Philip” - see Acts 6 and Acts 8:40, an evangelist, i.e. a preacher of the Gospel, so called, probably, after his preaching activities in Samaria and other places on the Palestinian coast (Acts 8:5, 40). This is the last mention of Philip. According to church tradition, he was later Bishop of Trallia (in the Asia Minor province of Caria) and died in old age (Ch.-Min. Oct. 11). Acts 21:9. He had four virgin daughters who prophesied. The fragmentary note about Philip's daughters prophesying is intended simply to point out the wonderfulness of this family of Philip (on the gift of prophecy, see Acts 11 et al.). Ev. Luke adds that these prophesying daughters of Philip were “maidens,” that is, they were in a state of virginity, devoting themselves to the service of God. They were the first, after the Mother of the Lord, to set an example of virgins in Christianity and, with their immaculate behavior, acquired such respect that, according to the testimony of the blessed one. Jerome, for a long time believers reverently visited 4 churches - cells in which these virgins lived. Two of them subsequently settled in Hierapolis, and one, according to the legend of Clement of Alexandria, lived in Ephesus, where she performed miracles and was distinguished by the holiness of her life. This was the eldest - Hermione. Having the gift of healing, she provided healing to weak Christians, and subsequently established a special hotel in Ephesus, where she provided free benefits to those who suffered physically and mentally. During the reign of Emperor Hadrian, for her confession of the faith of Christ, already in her advanced years, she was subjected to torture, enduring terrible torment from the pagans. Finally, when, through her prayer, the idols in one church fell and were crushed, the tormentors cut off her head with a sword. The believers took St. her relics were buried with due honor in Ephesus (her memory is September 4). Acts 21:10. While we were staying with them for many days, a certain prophet named Agabus came from Judea, “They stayed for many days,” which was allowed by the successful early arrival of Paul, who was in a hurry to cross the sea. “He came from Judea”, probably from Jerusalem (cf. Acts 11:27). Acts 21:11. and coming in to us, he took Paul's belt and, having bound his hands and feet, said: Thus says the Holy Spirit: The man whose belt is this will be bound by the Jews in Jerusalem and delivered into the hands of the Gentiles. Completely in the spirit and likeness of the ancient prophets, Agabus accompanies his prophecy with expressive action (cf. Is. 10; Jer. 13; Eze. 4, etc.). "The Jews will bind". Although it was the Roman commander himself who imprisoned the apostle, and not the Jews (Acts 21:33), the motivation for this was the indignation of the Jews (Acts 21:27), who were the main perpetrators of Paul’s bonds. Acts 21:12. When we heard this, both we and those there asked that he not go to Jerusalem. The request of Paul's companions and admirers, both here and above (Acts 21:4), was a voice of natural love for the Apostle, and was not a revelation of the Spirit, which directed Paul to do the exact opposite of these advice and requests. Acts 21:13. But Paul answered and said, What are you doing? Why are you crying and breaking my heart? I not only want to be a prisoner, but I am ready to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus. “No one was more loving than Paul: he was upset when he saw them cry, but did not grieve over his own suffering. You, he says, offend me by doing this: am I really grieving? It is for you, he says, that I cry, and not for my suffering; and as for them, I am ready to die” (Chrysostom). Acts 21:14. When we could not persuade him, we calmed down, saying: the will of the Lord be done! Acts 21:15. After these days, having prepared ourselves, we went to Jerusalem. “Having prepared...” both in spirit for a courageous meeting of the upcoming dangers, and with a supply of everything needed for the journey and stay at the Jerusalem festivals. Acts 21:16. Some students from Caesarea also walked with us, escorting us to a certain long-time student, Mnason Cyprianin, with whom we could live. “Mnason the Cyprian”, judging by the Greek name, if not from the blood of the Greeks, then from the Hellenists. Staying with this “ancient” disciple, who believed long ago, perhaps at the time of the first Pentecost, and was not bound in his beliefs by the traditions of the zealots of the Jewish law, promised to be the most suitable and safe for the apostle, who had so many enemies among the Jews. This disciple showed Paul hospitality, as hoped, quite cordially. Acts 21:17. Upon our arrival in Jerusalem, the brethren warmly received us. Acts 21:18. The next day Paul came with us to James; All the elders also came. “With us,” - that is, with companions, among whom was the writer. “To James” - the brother of the Lord, the bishop of Jerusalem (Acts 12:17, 15ff.). The other apostles are not mentioned, obviously because they were preaching in other countries. But all the “elders” come (see note to Acts 11 and parallels), forming a special solemn meeting of representatives of the Church, on the occasion of the arrival in Jerusalem of the great “apostle of tongues.” Acts 21:19. Having greeted them, Paul told in detail what God had done among the Gentiles through his ministry. “Again he tells them about what happened among the pagans, not out of vanity (let it not be!), but in order to show God’s love for mankind and fill them with great joy” (Chrysostom). “By his ministry” is a deliberate indication of Paul’s special calling to the work of the apostle specifically among the pagans. At the same time, having simultaneously “welcomed” the Jerusalem Church on behalf of not only himself, but also the numerous pagan churches he had established, the apostle handed over the allowance collected by him and his collaborators for the needs of the Jerusalem Church (see Acts 19:21, 20:1–4). Acts 21:20. Having heard it, they glorified God and said to him: You see, brother, how many thousands of Jews have believed, and all of them are zealots of the law. “They glorified God,” which also recognized the great dignity of Paul’s work among the pagans. But at the same time, James and the elders do not hide from him the unfavorable opinion of Jewish Christians about him, who believed that turning to the Gospel did not oblige them to abolish the formalities and rituals prescribed by law. These convictions of “zealots of the law,” which required special caution and gradual introduction into the kingdom of Christian freedom of spirit, aroused considerable prejudice against Paul, who considered the kingdom of the law to be over, and advised those of the Jews who were capable and inclined to rise to the same understanding to live completely according to the Gospel. This “warning” of the historical development of the ideas of Christianity, which had so many good fruits among paganism, could not help but become a subject of contention in Judaism, in which it was necessary to overcome the inertia of the recent attraction to the primordial shrines, customs and rules of the Mosaic Law. “You see, brother” is an expression of love and friendly good wishes. “How many thousands of Jews believed” - not only from Jerusalem, but also from other cities, of whom, according to custom, probably a lot of people flocked to Jerusalem at that time. Already more than 20 years ago there were up to 8,000 people (Acts 2:41, 4:4). Now their number even more gave the right to say about their multiple uncertainty - “how many thousands!” "They are all zealots of the law." Although the Apostolic Council developed strictly defined minimum requirements for pagan Christians, however, the apostles, apparently, for a long time still allowed the habitual adherence of Jewish Christians to the Old Testament Divine service, guided by wise caution, which the Apostle of the Gentiles himself recognized when, condescending to the “weak,” he recognized their right to observe certain rituals, and convinced the “strong” not to tempt the weak with an indifferent violation of the requirements law. Bishop Jacob himself of Jerusalem was, according to legend, a strict lawyer, which greatly contributed to the reconciliation of the Jews with other new phenomena and beliefs of Christianity. Acts 21:21. And they have heard about you that you teach all the Jews who live among the pagans to deviate from Moses, saying that they should not circumcise their children and should not act according to the customs. “They have heard a lot about you” - more precisely - taught, Greek κατηχήθησαν, received - by Judaizing teachers who were especially hostile to Paul (Acts 25:1-2, 4), with a distortion of the facts and essence of the matter, as can be seen from what follows. In the form in which Paul's accusation was launched among the people, it was an obvious slander. The essence of his teaching was not at all merely to teach “apostasy as apostasy” from the law of Moses and its customs, arousing towards them the humiliation and contempt inherent in apostasy. Paul's teaching insisted only that the main thing was faith in Christ, and the law of Moses was an unimportant matter for a Christian. This was recognized, although more cautiously, at the Apostolic Council, which freed the believers from the yoke of the Law of Moses; from here it was more than natural to conclude that if the pagans, freed from this yoke, are saved, then the Jew, who has laid aside the same yoke, will be saved. The law is not important here: both by observing it you can be saved, and by not observing it you can just as well be saved; That means, if you want, comply, if you want, don’t. In particular, using the example of Timothy, who was circumcised by Paul, the latter gave the most convincing evidence of both attitudes towards the law in himself, which clearly refutes the crafty slander and slander that Paul is an apostate from the law and teaches others to apostate. Acts 21:22. So what? The people will surely gather; for they will hear that you have come. Acts 21:23. Do what we tell you: we have four people who have a vow. Acts 21:24. Having taken them, purify yourself with them, and bear the cost of the sacrifice for them, so that they shave your head, and everyone will know that what they have heard about you is unjust, but that you yourself continue to keep the law. Knowing this, in case of need, Paul’s dual attitude towards the law, James and the elders invite him to again give assurances in front of the whole people of his respect for the law - through performing a rite of “purification” on himself, with the customs established for this case, which Paul willingly performed, not in the least contrary to his convictions. “We have” - in our midst, among Jewish Christians. “Having a vow” - from what follows (the shaven head) it is clear that this was a vow of voluntary Naziriteship (Num. 6; cf. Acts 18:18). Usually it was given for 30 days, but its period could be reduced to seven days. The essence of the vow is abstinence from wine and everything made from grapes; outward expression - not cutting hair until the end of the vow days. All this is completely consistent with the Christian spirit and Christian life, with faith in Jesus Christ. “Take them and be clean with them.” Take part with them in the purification rites established by law, which consisted of washing, prayer and a special offering (John 11:55), performed by the Jews before major holidays. It is not clear whether Paul should have first taken upon himself at least a one-day vow of Naziritehood, or whether it was meant to simply give evidence of zealous respect for the law - by taking upon himself the costs of the poor Nazirites, which was quite sufficient for such testimony, according to the Jews (Flav. Archaeol. XIX, 6, 1; “On the War of Jude.” II, 15, 1). “To shave your head” - as a sign of the end of the vow, the hair was cut off and burned in sacrificial fire (Num. 6:13–20). “You continue to obey the law.” This does not at all give advice to hypocritical compliance with all the prescriptions of the Mosaic Law. Even a small participation in the fulfillment of a small part of it is enough, as far as the refutation of the slander that Paul teaches apostasy and humiliates the entire law of Moses was required. The spirit of Christian freedom was not violated by the voluntary fulfillment of the prescriptions of the former God-given law that were not contrary to it, as long as this was necessary out of condescension towards the weak and for their salvation (1 Cor. 9:20). Acts 21:25. And we wrote about the pagans who believed, stipulating that they should not observe anything of the kind, but only keep themselves from things sacrificed to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from fornication. “And we wrote about the pagans who believed.” The letter with the determination of the Apostolic Council is recalled - to ensure that this decree remains unshakably in force, and that the advice offered to Paul is only a matter of wise foresight and condescension to the weak conscience of the Jewish brethren. “As we commanded them (pagan Christians) to do this, although we preach to the Jews, so you, although you preach to the pagans, act here in accordance with us. Don't be afraid!" (Zlat., Theophilus.). Acts 21:26. Then Paul, having taken those men and purified himself with them, entered the church the next day and declared the end of the days of purification, when an offering was to be made for each of them. “Announced,” that is, to the priests, about the end of the days of the vow, so that they would perform the established rituals. “Paul, look, he obeyed them and did everything (suggested) and does not hesitate, but, showing his obedience in action, immediately takes those with whom he intended to perform the cleansing - so ardently did he share this foresight!” (Chrysostom). Acts 21:27. When the seven days were ended, the Jews of Asia, seeing him in the church, stirred up all the people and laid hands on him, “Seven days were ended” - the seven days of the vow had not yet ended, and Paul, apparently, did not have time to complete the proposed cleansing, unexpectedly warned by the violent indignation against him of the Jews, who saw and recognized him in the church. The disturbance was caused or started by the “Jews of Asia,” that is, those who lived in Proconsular Asia (see Acts 16, etc.), and specifically in Ephesus and its environs (cf. Acts 21:29). These were not Jewish Christians, but unbelieving Jews, from whom he suffered so much everywhere in the places of his preaching, being pursued on their heels (Acts 19:9; 1 Cor. 16:9; cf. Acts 14, etc.). Acts 21:28. shouting: Men of Israel, help! this man teaches everyone everywhere against the people and the law and this place; Moreover, he brought the Greeks into the church and desecrated this holy place. Paul's "blatant" accusation has the character of the same slander as in Acts 21:21. “He teaches against the people and the law and this place” (i.e. the church cp. Acts 6:13–14). The accusation is exaggerated, distorting the very essence of the apostolic preaching, which had completely different lofty goals, not at all limited to such negative aspects as preaching against the people, the law and the church. But it was the most effective and powerful means to excite the crowd. Terrible and sufficient in itself, this accusation is supported by a new one, which represents, so to speak, factual evidence and is designed to excite. This is the introduction of Greeks, that is, pagans, into the temple, and the plural is taken instead of the singular (Acts 21:29) to strengthen the accusation and indignation. “He brought him into the temple” - that is, into the courtyard of the Israelites, where pagans were forbidden to enter, for fear of desecrating the temple. Acts 21:29. For before that they had seen Trophimus the Ephesian with him in the city and thought that Paul had brought him into the church. This last accusation was a clear slander, based only on the fact that it seemed to the accusers that Paul was leading his companion Trophimus into the church (Acts 20:4), with whom they had seen him in the city. Acts 21:30. The whole city began to move, and there was a crowd of people; and, seizing Paul, they dragged him out of the church, and immediately the doors were locked. A false accusation based on false suspicion, which fully achieved its goal of raising the excitement of the people to the extreme, threatened with mortal danger for Paul, since the Jews claimed that they had the right to kill any pagan, even a Roman, who violated the absolute prohibition of entering the temple. It seems that the Roman authorities, who generally did not dare to offend the religious feelings of the conquered peoples, were ready to seriously defend the inviolability of the church. Paul was on the verge of death: “they dragged him out of the church” to commit murder. The latter was to take place outside the city through stoning (Acts 7:58). But due to the fact that the crowd was extremely excited and could immediately tear Paul to pieces, “the doors were immediately locked” in order to protect the church from desecration by murder, and to free the hands of the crowd rushing to tear Paul to pieces (Acts 21:31). Thus, one can see here the precautionary sympathy for the crowd on the part of the church servants themselves and complete permission for immediate reprisal against a person hated by all of them. Acts 21:31. When they wanted to kill him, news reached the commander of the regiment that all of Jerusalem was indignant. “The commander of a thousand regiment” is the main commander of the Roman detachment of troops stationed in the Antonian fortress, which adjoined the outer wall of the church on the north-western side, connecting with its galleries through stairs (Acts 21:35). The name of this thousand-leader is Claudius Lysias (Acts 23:26). Acts 21:32. He immediately took the soldiers and centurions and rushed at them; When they saw the captain and the soldiers, they stopped beating Paul. “They stopped beating Pavel.” Apparently, the commander was not late with his help only due to the fact that the crowd was in no hurry to finish off Paul and so far sated its rage only with tormenting beatings. Acts 21:33. Then the captain, approaching, took him and ordered him to be bound with two chains, and asked who he was and what he had done. “He ordered to be bound with two chains,” considering him guilty because the people were so indignant against him, and harboring a vague guess that it was the famous recent Egyptian rebel who was detained (Acts 21:38). Acts 21:34. Among the people, some shouted one thing, and others another. He, unable to find out anything true due to confusion, ordered him to be led to the fortress. As above (Acts 19:32), the indignant people themselves do not know against whom and why exactly they were indignant, and cannot give a proper explanation to the authorities. Acts 21:35. When he was on the stairs, the soldiers had to carry him because of embarrassment from the people, Acts 21:36. for a multitude of people followed and shouted: Death to him! When the captain ordered Paul to be led to the fortress, where he had better hope of receiving all the testimony from him, the crowd, naturally, might have thought that he could be released, and therefore rushed after the soldiers along the steps of the fortress stairs. Murmurs and cries were heard demanding death. The soldiers leading Paul had to carry him, either because the chains prevented him from walking quickly, or because he did not want to speed up his steps due to indignation. Acts 21:37. At the entrance to the fortress, Paul said to the commander of a thousand: can I tell you something? And he said: do you know Greek? “At the entrance to the fortress” - where, probably, there was a particularly convenient place for public preaching and where, in the presence of the authorities, ready to deprive him of his freedom immediately, the people could listen to Paul more calmly. For permission to speak to the people, Paul turned to the commander “in Greek,” which surprised him and convinced him of the fallacy of his assumption that Paul was the same person as the former Egyptian rebel. The commander expresses this disbelief in Art. 38. Acts 21:38. So, are you not the Egyptian who, just before these days, caused an indignation and led four thousand robbers into the desert? Russian, as well as Slavic texts of this passage distort the shade of thought of the original, thanks to an incorrect reading of the Greek άρα. This άρα with an acute accent, in contrast to ᾶρα (li - with a vested accent), means therefore, so, indeed, in fact, means. Therefore, the Greek - ουκ άρα σύ εῖ ο Αιγύπτιος - should be translated, with a tinge of surprise - “so you are not, then, the Egyptian who?” etc. This assumes that that Egyptian did not speak Greek, which the captain knew about. According to Josephus (“On the War of Judas.” II, 13, 25; Archaeol. XX, 8. 6), this Egyptian was a sorcerer who posed as a prophet and had many followers. With his false prophecies, he attracted the Jews to the Mount of Olives, from where he promised to show them a wonderful sight - the fall of the city wall. From here, with four thousand Jews (according to Josephus - all his adherents numbered up to 30,000), he walked through the entire country, everywhere bringing his fanaticism to robbery. The ruler of the country, Felix, managed to capture them, but their leader himself managed to escape. “Robbers” - actually sicari (from the Latin sica - dagger), cutlers. Unlike ordinary robbers, this was a party of thugs, terrorists, whose goal was not to rob and kill everyone indiscriminately, but only the most harmful, from a Jewish point of view, servants of Rome, and subsequently, in general, everyone suspected of Roman sympathies. Of course, as always, inveterate robbers also crept into the ranks of these “ideological” sword bearers, pursuing their own special personal goals of a purely thieves’ nature. Felix especially multiplied such robbers throughout the country (Flav. Archaeol. XX, 6 etc.; “On the War of Jude.” IX, 13, 3). Acts 21:39. Paul said: I am a Jew, a Tarsian, a citizen of the well-known city of Cilicia; I ask you, let me speak to the people. “Please, let me.” This is proof of the truth of his words, that he brings everyone as witnesses, that he is so ready to justify himself and decides to confront the crowd of Jews with words” (Chrysostom). Acts 21:40. When he allowed, Paul, standing on the stairs, gave a sign with his hand to the people; and when there was deep silence, he began to speak in Hebrew like this: "Standing on the stairs". The location was very favorable to him, since he spoke from on high, and the fact that he was tied up. What can compare with this spectacle, when Paul spoke, bound with two chains...” (Chrysostom). “In the Hebrew language” - that is, in the then Syrochaldean dialect. “First of all, he wins them over with his native language” (Chrysostom). This actually aroused greater attention and contributed to the establishment of deep silence (Acts 22:2). You might be interested in: