This is week 8 of the series “Bound and Determined! – Paul’s Farewell Tour”
Introduction
Last week we spent our morning examining Paul’s defense when he was put on trial by the Sanhedrin. This week zeros in on the plot to kill Paul and his escape.
Message
Read Acts 23:11-35 New International Version (NIV)
11 “The following night the Lord stood near Paul and said, “Take courage! As you have testified about me in Jerusalem, so you must also testify in Rome.”
The Plot to Kill Paul
12 The next morning some Jews formed a conspiracy and bound themselves with an oath not to eat or drink until they had killed Paul. 13 More than forty men were involved in this plot. 14 They went to the chief priests and the elders and said, “We have taken a solemn oath not to eat anything until we have killed Paul. 15 Now then, you and the Sanhedrin petition the commander to bring him before you on the pretext of wanting more accurate information about his case. We are ready to kill him before he gets here.”
16 But when the son of Paul’s sister heard of this plot, he went into the barracks and told Paul.
17 Then Paul called one of the centurions and said, “Take this young man to the commander; he has something to tell him.” 18 So he took him to the commander.
The centurion said, “Paul, the prisoner, sent for me and asked me to bring this young man to you because he has something to tell you.”
19 The commander took the young man by the hand, drew him aside and asked, “What is it you want to tell me?”
20 He said: “Some Jews have agreed to ask you to bring Paul before the Sanhedrin tomorrow on the pretext of wanting more accurate information about him. 21 Don’t give in to them, because more than forty of them are waiting in ambush for him. They have taken an oath not to eat or drink until they have killed him. They are ready now, waiting for your consent to their request.”
22 The commander dismissed the young man with this warning: “Don’t tell anyone that you have reported this to me.”
Paul Transferred to Caesarea
23 Then he called two of his centurions and ordered them, “Get ready a detachment of two hundred soldiers, seventy horsemen and two hundred spearmen to go to Caesarea at nine tonight. 24 Provide horses for Paul so that he may be taken safely to Governor Felix.”
25 He wrote a letter as follows:
26 Claudius Lysias,
To His Excellency, Governor Felix:
Greetings.
27 This man was seized by the Jews and they were about to kill him, but I came with my troops and rescued him, for I had learned that he is a Roman citizen. 28 I wanted to know why they were accusing him, so I brought him to their Sanhedrin. 29 I found that the accusation had to do with questions about their law, but there was no charge against him that deserved death or imprisonment. 30 When I was informed of a plot to be carried out against the man, I sent him to you at once. I also ordered his accusers to present to you their case against him.
31 So the soldiers, carrying out their orders, took Paul with them during the night and brought him as far as Antipatris. 32 The next day they let the cavalry go on with him, while they returned to the barracks. 33 When the cavalry arrived in Caesarea, they delivered the letter to the governor and handed Paul over to him. 34 The governor read the letter and asked what province he was from. Learning that he was from Cilicia, 35 he said, “I will hear your case when your accusers get here.” Then he ordered that Paul be kept under guard in Herod’s palace.
Last week, the message ended with Paul being visited by Jesus whereby he was told that he was still on track to go to Rome. This visit was very important because Paul most likely thought that he was going to ‘stuck’ in Jerusalem and that it was probably the ‘end of the trail’ for him.
As we read on, we come to the plot to assassinate Paul. The 40 plus men plotted to kill him with the approval of the high priest. But as the plan unfolded, we find that God thwarted their plans thereby making good on the promise of Paul going to Rome.
A side note: It is interesting that Paul’s nephew just happened to get wind of the plot and was able to alert Paul who was then able to inform the commander who put together a contingent of 470 soldiers (10 times the number of those who intended to assassinate him.)
Notice that the commander makes no mention of the fact that he had bound Paul and was about to scourge him (a violation of Roman citizenship). Instead, he omits those details in his letter to Claudius.
One could wonder why the Roman commander did not let the plot be successful…….after all wouldn’t that have made life much more simple for him?
Why did the governor want to know what province Paul was from? Perhaps, he was hoping that he was not from the province that he governed. So, when he learned that Paul was from Cilicia, he then agreed to hear the case because it was under his jurisdiction.
Concluding Remarks and Application
Once again, we see God’s protection of Paul and that the plan for him to go to Rome was still on track. This has all the earmarks of supernatural intervention. When we stop and think about it, there were numerous times when Paul could have or should have been prevented from his mission to speak to the Jews and then ultimately to the Roman authorities. God along with Paul was bound and determined that this mission would be fulfilled one way or another.
And for us, we can depend on God’s protection for the mission that he has for each of us. So, who can be against us if God is for us!