Paul Begins His Defense
Paul needed to defend himself against the charge that he had been disloyal to his people, the Mosaic Law, and the temple. His devout Jewish audience was especially skeptical of Paul since he was a Hellenistic Jew who fraternized with Gentiles. This is an excellent example of the Holy Spirit giving the Lord’s servant the words to say on the spur of the moment, as Jesus had promised He would do. CN
1. Where did Jesus speak about this type of defense?
Mark 13:9-11 (ESV)9 “But be on your guard. For they will deliver you over to councils, and you will be beaten in synagogues, and you will stand before governors and kings for my sake, to bear witness before them. 10 And the gospel must first be proclaimed to all nations. 11 And when they bring you to trial and deliver you over, do not be anxious beforehand what you are to say, but say whatever is given you in that hour, for it is not you who speak, but the Holy Spirit.
Matthew 10:16-20 (ESV) 16 “Behold, I am sending you out as sheep in the midst of wolves, so be wise as serpents and innocent as doves. 17 Beware of men, for they will deliver you over to courts and flog you in their synagogues, 18 and you will be dragged before governors and kings for my sake, to bear witness before them and the Gentiles. 19 When they deliver you over, do not be anxious how you are to speak or what you are to say, for what you are to say will be given to you in that hour. 20 For it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.
1 “Brethren and fathers, hear my defense before you now.” 2 And when they heard that he spoke to them in the Hebrew language, they kept all the more silent.
2. What is significant about the language Paul uses?
Speaking to this crowd in Hebrew excluded the Hellenistic Jews, the very ones who had taken the initiative in the arrest and stoning of Stephen years before, and who had also taken the initiative in Paul’s arrest now. The ability to read and speak in Hebrew (or Aramaic) set the “native Hebrew” apart from the “Hellenistic Jew.” If you asked a “native Hebrew” about this (and he were honest) he would tell you this set him above the “Hellenistic Jew.” When Paul spoke to this crowd, then, he spoke only to the native Jerusalemite, but he excluded the Hellenistic Jews.
When Paul gestured, indicating his intention to address the crowd, a hush fell over them. When they realized that he was speaking in Hebrew, an even greater hush resulted.Those who were Hellenistic Jews were perhaps silenced by their lack of knowing this language, which, in the eyes of some, would be a shame and reproach. Those who were native Hebrews must have realized that this message was just for them, and so they listened more intently.
Then he said: 3 “I am indeed a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, taught according to the strictness of our fathers’ law, and was zealous toward
God 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 bears me witness, and all the council of the elders, from whom I also received letters to the brethren, and went to Damascus to bring in chains even those who were there to Jerusalem to be punished.
3. Why bring up all this personal history?
Paul wanted to specifically address the “native Hebrew” Jews of Jerusalem because he had a special understanding of them, and because his past beliefs and behavior was virtually identical with their belief and actions toward him. He could understand them because he was just like them. And his conversion should be pertinent to them because they are like he was, before Jesus saved him. if Paul could convince these Jews, who were the dominant religious leaders in this city, the opposition of the Hellenistic Jews would fizzle and fad away. The Hellenistic Jews had called upon these men, these, “men of Israel” for their aid. Without their aid, Hellenistic opposition would not have enough strength to do away with Paul. RD6 Now it happened, as I journeyed and came near Damascus at about noon, suddenly a great light from heaven shone around me. 7 And I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?’ 8 So I answered, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ And He said to me, ‘I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you are persecuting.’ 9 And those who were with me indeed saw the light and were afraid, but they did not hear the voice of Him who spoke to me. 10 So I said, ‘What shall I do, Lord?’ And the Lord said to me, ‘Arise and go into Damascus, and there you will be told all things which are appointed for you to do.’ 11 And since I could not see for the glory of that light, being led by the hand of those who were with me, I came into Damascus. 12 Then a certain Ananias, a devout man according to the law, having a good testimony with all the Jews who dwelt there, 13 came to me; and he stood and said to me, ‘Brother Saul, receive your sight.’ And at that same hour I looked up at him. 14 Then he said, ‘The God of our fathers has chosen you that you should know His will, and see the Just One, and hear the voice of His mouth. 15 For you will be His witness to all men of what you have seen and heard. 16 And now why are you waiting? Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord.’ 17 Now it happened, when I returned to Jerusalem and was praying in the temple, that I was in a trance 18 and saw Him saying to me, ‘Make haste and get out of Jerusalem quickly, for they will not receive your testimony concerning Me.’ 19 So I said, ‘Lord, they know that in every synagogue I imprisoned and beat those who believe on You. 20 And when the blood of Your martyr Stephen was shed, I also was standing by consenting to his death, and guarding the clothes of those who were killing him.’ 21 Then He said to me, ‘Depart, for I will send you far from here to the Gentiles.’ “
4. How does this version of the Damascus Road story differ from that one recorded by Luke in Chapter 9.
Acts 9:3-9 (NKJV)3 As he journeyed he came near Damascus, and suddenly a light shone around
him from heaven. 4 Then he fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” 5 And he said, “Who are You, Lord?” Then the Lord said, “I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. It is hard for you to kick against the goads.” 6 So he, trembling and astonished, said, “Lord, what do You want me to do?” Then the Lord said to him, “Arise and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” 7 And the men who journeyed with him stood speechless, hearing a voice but seeing no one. 8 Then Saul arose from the ground, and when his eyes were opened he saw no one. But they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. 9 And he was three days without sight, and neither ate nor drank.
Paul next related his mission from God and included some new things that Luke did not record in chapter 9. Evidently Ananias gave Paul God’s commission to go to the Gentiles (9:15-16)
15 But the Lord said to him, “Go, for he is a chosen vessel of Mine to bear My name before Gentiles, kings, and the children of Israel. 16 For I will show him how many things he must suffer for My name’s sake.”.
In Jerusalem God confirmed this mission to Paul by special revelation as he was praying in the temple following his return from Damascus (9:26-29; Gal. 1:18-19)
In Jerusalem God confirmed this mission to Paul by special revelation as he was praying in the temple following his return from Damascus (9:26-29; Gal. 1:18-19)
26 And when Saul had come to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples; but they were all afraid of him, and did not believe that he was a disciple. 27 But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles. And he declared to them how he had seen the Lord on the road, and that He had spoken to him, and how he had preached boldly at Damascus in the name of Jesus. 28 So he was with them at Jerusalem, coming in and going out. 29 And he spoke boldly in the name of the Lord Jesus and disputed against the Hellenists, but they attempted to kill him.
Galatians 1:18-19 (NKJV)
18 Then after three years I went up to Jerusalem to see Peter, and remained with him fifteen days. 19 But I saw none of the other apostles except James, the Lord’s brother.
This took place in the third year after his conversion. The fact that Paul was praying in the temple when God gave him direction would have positively impressed this Jewish crowd further.
In this vision the risen and exalted Jesus of Nazareth instructed Paul to leave Jerusalem. Luke did not mention this instruction earlier (9:29-30) but emphasized the activity of Paul’s fellow believers in sending him to Tarsus. Their insistence was in harmony with the Lord’s command. Jerusalem
was God’s originally intended place of witness, and the temple had been His place of revelation. The reason Paul needed to leave Jerusalem was that the Jews there would not accept his testimony about Jesus even though Paul had formerly persecuted Jesus’ disciples.
Paul was to go to the Gentiles, the Messiah revealed to him, because the Jews would not accept his witness. Specifically the Lord directed Paul to go to the Gentiles who were far away, namely, Gentiles who had no relationship to Judaism.
F. F. Bruce concluded that in narrating Paul’s speeches Luke followed the precedent of the Greek historian Thucydides. Thucydides wrote that he composed the speeches in his history but tried to reproduce the general meaning of what the speakers said.Under the Holy Spirit’s inspiration Luke received guidance to write exactly what God wanted written. Almost all scholars agree that Luke summarized most if not all of the speeches that he recorded in Acts. CN
22 And they listened to him until this word, and then they raised their voices and said, “Away with such a fellow from the earth, for he is not fit to live!” 23 Then, as they cried out and tore off their clothes and threw dust into the air,
5. Why did the Jews react like this?
What upset them was that Paul was approaching Gentiles directly about the Messiah without first introducing them to Judaism and its institutions. This was equivalent to placing Gentiles on the same footing before God as Jews, and this was the height of apostasy to the traditional Jewish mind. This is why Paul’s hearers reacted so violently and allowed him to say no more. CN
24 the commander ordered him to be brought into the barracks, and said that he should be examined under scourging, so that he might know why they shouted so against him. 25 And as they bound him with thongs, Paul said to the centurion who stood by, “Is it lawful for you to scourge a man who is a Roman, and uncondemned?” 26 When the centurion heard that, he went and told the commander, saying, “Take care what you do, for this man is a Roman.”
6. What’s the big deal about being a Roman?
Roman citizens were exempted (by the Valerian and Porcian laws) from such brutal methods.
Paul now exerted his rights as a Roman citizen. His claim would not have been questioned, because the penalty for falsely claiming Roman citizenship was death. MSBN
According to the Porcian law, Roman citizens were not to be beaten {h}. Hence, says {i} Cicero, “it is a heinous sin to bind a Roman citizen, it is wickedness to beat him, it is next to parricide to kill him, and what shall I say to crucify him?” And, according to the Valerian law, it was not lawful for magistrates to condemn a Roman without hearing the cause, and pleading in it; and such condemned persons might appeal to the populace. Gill
A Roman citizen cannot be scourged unless he had first been
adjudged condemned by the court, guilty by the court. And then before the crucifixion, they would usually scourge him to solve a lot of the unsolved crimes. When the centurion heard that, he told the chief captain, he said, You better be careful what you do; for this man is a Roman citizen. And the chief captain came, and he said to him, Tell me, are you a Roman citizen? And Paul said, Yes. The chief captain answered and he said, With a great sum of money obtained I this freedom. Paul said, I was born free. Then immediately they departed from him those which were going to examine him: and the chief captain was also afraid, after he knew that Paul was a Roman, because he had bound him (Act 22:26-29). Which was contrary to the Roman law to bind a Roman citizen until formal charges had been made. Chuck Smith Thru the Bible Commentary
27 Then the commander came and said to him, “Tell me, are you a Roman?” He said, “Yes.” 28 The commander answered, “With a large sum I obtained this citizenship.” And Paul said, “But I was born a citizen.” 29 Then immediately those who were about to examine him withdrew from him; and the commander was also afraid after he found out that he was a Roman, and because he had bound him. 30 The next day, because he wanted to know for certain why he was accused by the Jews, he released him from his bonds, and commanded the chief priests and all their council to appear, and brought Paul down and set him before them.
7. Why did the Roman commander turn Paul over to the Jewish authorities?
Paul turned to the centurion who was nearby and asked if this were the way Roman citizens were to be treated, without yet having been tried or convicted. The centurion was stopped short, and he quickly went to the commander to inform him of this new development. He gently rebuked the commander and urged him to stop the scourging. The commander then approached Paul to verify
the fact that he was, indeed, a Roman. He learned that Paul, unlike himself (who had to buy his citizenship at a high price), was born a Roman citizen. The centurions who were nearby almost automatically let go of Paul, fearful of what might befall them for treating a Roman harshly. If the commander was angry with Paul before, he was now fearful. Paul could make a lot of trouble for him if he wanted to do so. He was eager to make things right, and to appease Paul.
Instead of beating Paul, and holding him in custody, the commander released him, and set a hearing on the following day, so that Paul could stand trial before the Sanhedrin. It was through this legal means that he hoped the truth would become known. Such was not to be the case, as we will see in the next lesson. RD
The captain finds that he has a remarkable man on his hands. He is a learned man who speaks Greek. He is not a common crook by any means. He is a Jew, but he is also a Roman citizen. The captain says, “I am not going to treat Paul like a common criminal. We will have a hearing to find out what the charges are against him.” So the captain arranged a hearing before the chief priests and all their council.
Notice that Paul had many assets which made him suitable to be the missionary to the Roman Empire. He had a world view. Greek training had prepared him as the cosmic Christian. He was trained in the Mosaic system, which prepared him to interpret it in the light of the coming of Christ and His redemptive death and resurrection. Not the least of his assets was his Roman citizenship which finally opened the door for him to visit Rome. JVM
ESV………….ESV Study Bible Notes
· MSN…….MacArthur NASB Study Notes
· NIVSN…..NIV Study Notes.
· JVM ….J Vernon McGee,
· ACC …. Adam Clarke’s Commentary
· BN …..Barnes Notes
· WBC…… Wycliffe Bible Commentary
· CN …… Constables Notes
· IC……….Ironside Commentary
· NET………Net Bible Study Notes.
· JFB…………..Jamieson Fausset Brown Commentary
· VWS……………..Vincent Word Studies
· CMM………….Commentary on Matthew and Mark
· BDSN…………..Barclay’s Daily Study Bible (NT)
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