Bible Study: Acts 23-24-25

The end of Ch. 22 begins Paul’s trial. He has been arrested because the religious leaders are out to get him—much as he set out for Damascus in ch. 9 to “arrest any followers of the Way, men or women, and bring them bound to Jerusalem”. Now, as a follower of the Way himself, Paul is the target.

This trial will take up the rest of Acts, as Paul is bounced between governors, kings, and even the Emperor, Nero. God promises that Paul will get to Rome, to the center of power in the Roman Empire, to proclaim Jesus, as Paul did in the center of the Jewish power, Jerusalem. It’s under arrest and on his way to trial, but Paul does indeed get to Rome.

Some parallels with Jesus’ arrest and trial continue: it is the Jewish leaders who are bringing charges, and who conspire against Paul. When one leader doesn’t know how to proceed, he consults with others. Pilate and Herod sent Jesus back and forth between them; here Ananias the high priest and Felix the governor debate about the appropriate venue for Paul to be tried, and later Festus consults with King Herod Agrippa about the case.

But there are noticeable distinctions about Paul’s case.

--The Jewish religious leaders here are involved in a plot to kill Paul, whereas when it was Jesus, they claimed their law forbade them to kill anyone.

--The plot to kill him is discovered by a random nephew who appears in the story and is granted an audience with the military commander who oversees Paul’s custody. Prison in this time was merely a holding cell, with no accommodations, but families and friends were charged with caring for their own prisoner, bringing them food and clothing; perhaps this is why the nephew is present and learns about the plot.

--Paul is protected, ironically, within a system that usually does not work in favor of the Jews, because he is a Roman citizen. His secret transfer from Jerusalem to Caesarea is accomplished with a guard of 470 armed men!

--His appeal to a higher court—he asks to be tried not in a religious court in Jerusalem, but in the Supreme Court in Rome—is granted.

Hopefully by now, in your practice of reading regularly and through a whole book, you are noticing some patterns and “hooks” in the writing. This is the third character named Ananias we encounter in Acts: the first was smitten by God for lying to the apostles; the second laid hands on Saul to heal him of his blindness; and the third is the high priest during Paul’s trial. Ananias (Heb. Hananiah) is a popular Hebrew name, meaning “YHWH has been gracious”.

Another recurring name in our memory is Herod, here called King Agrippa. In the gospels and Acts, this is the third Herod. The first, Herod the Great, shows up in Matthew, trying to kill his infant rival, the newborn Jesus. The second, Herod Antipas, his son, is king when Jesus and John the Baptizer are executed. This Herod, Agrippa, is the Great’s grandson and Antipas’ nephew, and is curious about Paul, so takes the opportunity to interview him in prison in Caesarea. 

The scene in which Paul faces down (and sets up) the Pharisees and Sadducees is reminiscent of Jesus’ disputes with them in the gospels. In setting them against each other by introducing a debate about resurrection, Paul moves the focus off himself and divides his accusers.

Our guiding questions:

1.     What is God doing?

2.     What are the people doing?

3.     What do we learn as church?