1. False Accusations (verses 27-29)
2. Fierce Attacks (verses 30-32)
3. Frivolous Arrest (verses 33-40)

I invite you to open in your Bibles to Acts, chapter 21. Believe it or not, we have been working our way through the book of Acts for the past two years.

In working through the book, We have seen Jesus raised from the dead, and ascended into heaven (chapter 1). We have seen the Spirit come with power on the day of Pentecost, bringing many thousands of people to the point of repentance and faith in Jesus (Acts 2:41; 4:4). We have seen the early church flourish in their love for one another (Acts 2, 4). We have seen the church deal with infighting (Acts 6). We have seen the church face persecution with the martyrdom of Stephen (Acts 7). and then, we saw the church expand, as Philip took the gospel to Judea and Samaria (Acts 8).

We have seen Saul of Tarsus, the greatest enemy of the church, become the greatest advocate for the gospel (Acts 9). We have seen Peter, the great apostle, bring the gospel to the Gentiles (Acts 10). We have seen a great church like Antioch, have a heart and a vision for taking the gospel to the world (Acts 13). We have seen Paul take three missionary journeys, traveling thousands of miles, taking the gospel into southern Galatia and Asia and Macedonia and Achaia.

We have seen much of what God did in the early church. Taking the good news of Jesus Christ risen from the dead, from his few disciples in Jerusalem, to tens of thousands of believers all across the known world.

What a joy has been our journey!

I trust that it has given you a greater heart to share the gospel than ever before. After all, this has been the main point of the book. “Be My Witnesses.” This is what Jesus told the disciples that they would be. they would be his witnesses. This is what Jesus is calling us to be: his witnesses.
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Well we are coming to the final movement of the book, when the apostle Paul is arrested, is tried before a Roman audience on a handful of occasions, and then, is sent to Rome as prisoner to be tried by Caesar.

Now, one of the things that we can easily forget about this book is that it was written by Luke, the same man who wrote the gospel that we call, “Luke.” The similarities between these two books is something that we should take note of, especially this last section, and how the book ends.

With both the gospel of Luke and the book of Acts, we see a climax (of sorts) in Jerusalem. It’s where Jesus was tried in the court of law and crucified. It’s where Paul was tried in the court of law, and sent off as a prisoner to Rome. It’s no accident that the books ended in Jerusalem. In Luke 9:51, we read the following, “When the days drew near for [Jesus] to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem.” And from that point on in Luke’s gospel, we see Jesus heading toward Jerusalem, where he would be “taken up.” The parallel statement in Acts comes in chapter 19 and verse 21, “Now after these events Paul resolved in the Spirit to pass through Macedonia and Achaia and go to Jerusalem.” And from that point on in the book of Acts, we see Paul heading toward Jerusalem, where he was “ready to die” (Acts 21:13) in Jerusalem, like Jesus had done.

Once in the city Jerusalem, we see Paul experience much of the same things that Jesus did.

- When Jesus entered the Jerusalem on Palm Sunday, he had some major conflicts with the Pharisees and Sadducees. So likewise with the apostle Paul. When he will be accused by both the Pharisees and Sadducees (Acts 23).
- When Jesus had been in Jerusalem a few days, he was misunderstood and taken into Roman custody. When Paul had been in Jerusalem a few days, he too, was misunderstood and taken into Roman custody.
- Jesus was physically beaten for his “crimes.” Paul was physically beaten for his “crimes.”
- Jesus stood before Herod Antipas and Pontius Pilate, the Roman authorities of the day. Paul stood before Felix, and Festus, and Herod Agrippa II, Romans authorities as well.
- Neither Herod Antipas nor Pontius Pilate found anything in Jesus that he was guilty of. Neither did Felix, Festus, or Herod Agrippa find anything in Paul that he was guilty of either.
- When the Jewish crowds were presented with Jesus, they shouted out, “Crucify him!” When Paul was before the Jewish crowds, they shouted out, “Away with him!” (Acts 21:36).
- Jesus, of course, was put to death by the Romans. Paul was sent to Rome, where tradition has it, he was beheaded.

Now, in mentioning these similarities, I do not believe that this is an accident. I believe that Luke was intentional, to make a parallel between his gospel account and the book of Acts. Luke could have put this book together any way that he wanted. He could have left out all of Paul’s conflicts in Jerusalem. He could have left out much of what Paul did, and followed the life of Barnabas, or focused on James and the church in Jerusalem. Luke could have spent more of his pages on any of the churches that Paul planted, like the church Corinth or the church in Ephesus. Luke could have included exactly what Paul taught these churches, how they grew, what sort of difficulties they faced. exactly what did Paul teach in Corinth for 18 months? exactly what did Paul teach during his three years there? Instead, under divine inspiration, Luke focused his attention upon Paul and his journeys, and the unjust suffering that he experienced.

A constant theme throughout Acts has been the suffering of the followers of Jesus. Peter and John suffered much at the hands of the religious authorities, arresting them, bringing them into jail, commanding them not to preach any more in the name of Jesus. and even beating them with rods (Acts 5:40). Stephen was stoned to death when he preached Jesus to the Jews in Jerusalem (Acts 7). James, the brother of John, was killed by sword under command of Herod Agrippa I. Paul was often run out of town, being imprisoned in Philippi, and stoned and left for dead outside of Lystra. When Paul described the life of a follower of Christ, he said, "Through many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God" (Acts 14:22).

In this last section of the book of Acts, we see Paul and his own tribulation. We see him taken into captivity and appearing before the Roman authorities of the day. Luke will go into great detail about the trials of Paul. In fact, we will see Paul being tried 5 times. Often, he was declared innocent. Sir William Ramsay in his commentary, said that “It is beyond doubt that on our hypothesis, the amount of space assigned to Paul’s imprisonment and successive examinations marks this as the most important part of the book in the author’s estimation.”^[1]

So, as we come to these final chapters in the book of Acts, realize that this is considered to be “the most important part of the book.” So, let’s read our text.

Acts 21:27-40
When the seven days were almost completed, the Jews from Asia, seeing him in the temple, stirred up the whole crowd and laid hands on him, crying out, “Men of Israel, help! This is the man who is teaching everyone everywhere against the people and the law and this place. Moreover, he even brought Greeks into the temple and has defiled this holy place.” For they had previously seen Trophimus the Ephesian with him in the city, and they supposed that Paul had brought him into the temple. Then all the city was stirred up, and the people ran together. They seized Paul and dragged him out of the temple, and at once the gates were shut. And as they were seeking to kill him, word came to the tribune of the cohort that all Jerusalem was in confusion. He at once took soldiers and centurions and ran down to them. And when they saw the tribune and the soldiers, they stopped beating Paul. Then the tribune came up and arrested him and ordered him to be bound with two chains. He inquired who he was and what he had done. Some in the crowd were shouting one thing, some another. And as he could not learn the facts because of the uproar, he ordered him to be brought into the barracks. And when he came to the steps, he was actually carried by the soldiers because of the violence of the crowd, for the mob of the people followed, crying out, “Away with him!”

As Paul was about to be brought into the barracks, he said to the tribune, “May I say something to you?” And he said, “Do you know Greek? Are you not the Egyptian, then, who recently stirred up a revolt and led the four thousand men of the Assassins out into the wilderness?” Paul replied, “I am a Jew, from Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of no obscure city. I beg you, permit me to speak to the people.” And when he had given him permission, Paul, standing on the steps, motioned with his hand to the people. And when there was a great hush, he addressed them in the Hebrew language, saying:

My message this morning is entitled, “Suffering Like Jesus," because, this is what Paul experienced in Jerusalem. He experienced much of the same things that Jesus did, false accusations, physical assault, and unjust imprisonment. The application for us this morning isn’t so much that we, as believers in Christ, will suffer exactly like Jesus and like Paul. After all, there were many disciples around Paul at this time, who weren’t imprisoned or beaten like Paul was. Namely, Luke the author of the book.

However, the application for us this morning is that we, as believers in Christ, may suffer for our faith. Paul wrote the following to Timothy, "Therefore do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord, nor of me his prisoner, but share in suffering for the gospel by the power of God" (2 Timothy 2:8). The sufferings of Paul in Acts will bring out some application for us.

So, let’s look at our first point this morning. Beginning in verse 27, we see ...

1. False Accusations (verses 27-29)

Acts 21:27
When the seven days were almost completed, ...

These words bring us back to our previous passage, which we looked at last week. If you remember, James had told Paul about four men who had taken a Nazirite vow. During this vow, they had kept away from any alcohol and from any dead bodies and from scissors to cut their hair. They were awaiting the fulfillment of their vow, which meant offering up some sacrifices, a few lambs and a ram. James counseled to Paul, that he, himself, join them in the vow, paying their expenses.

The idea behind this counsel was that the Jewish believers in Jerusalem would see this and see that Paul didn’t deny the law of Moses, but was willing to engage with the law. He was willing to join in this Nazirite vow. From best we can tell, it did help pacify the Jewish believers. However, it didn’t help pacify the unbelieving Jews. For they stirred up the whole crowds against Paul.

Acts 21:27-29
When the seven days were almost completed, the Jews from Asia, seeing him in the temple, stirred up the whole crowd and laid hands on him, crying out, “Men of Israel, help! This is the man who is teaching everyone everywhere against the people and the law and this place. Moreover, he even brought Greeks into the temple and has defiled this holy place.” For they had previously seen Trophimus the Ephesian with him in the city, and they supposed that Paul had brought him into the temple.

Two accusations were made against Paul: (1) He taught against Moses and the temple; (2) He defiled the temple by bringing a Gentile into the temple area.

These were patently false accusations. Think about it, Paul was in the temple bringing this Nazirite sacrifice, and at the very same time, he was being accused of speaking against the law! Here he was, submitting himself to the law in the temple, at the very same time being accused of denying the law and the temple. As they say today, “You can’t make this stuff up!” Howard Marshall wrote, “It is ironical, that this should have been the charge against Paul at a time when he himself was undergoing purification so that he would not defile the temple.”^[2] It is blatantly false.

Now, to be fair, there was a kernel of truth to the first accusation. For Paul had preached and taught that one doesn’t become righteous through keeping of the law. We can go to his other writings to see this. In Romans 3:20, Paul spoke clearly against the uselessness of law-keeping. "By the works of the law no human being will be justified in [God’s] sight, since through the law comes the knowledge of sin." Further, he taught in 1 Corinthians 3:16-7 that the real temple isn’t the physical stones in Jerusalem. Rather, it’s the church. "Do you not know that you are God's temple and that God's Spirit dwells in you? If anyone destroys God's temple, God will destroy him. For God's temple is holy, and you are that temple." So, there was a kernel of truth in the accusation against Paul. But the context of this first accusation made this accusation so clearly false.

Now, regarding the second accusation, there was no truth to this at all! Paul had been accused of bringing a Gentile man into the temple area. All of this came about because they had formerly seen Paul with Trophimus, a Gentile from Ephesus. "They supposed that Paul had brought him into the temple (verse 29).

Paul would never have done such a thing. He knew what a stench such an action would have been to the Jews, to the very people he was trying to pacify by being in the temple in the first place. Also, “No Gentile would think of entering the sacred temple courts.”^[3] There was the outer court, “The Court of the Gentiles” where Gentiles were allowed to go. But they were not permitted to go beyond.

Josephus, who lived during these days, wrote of the “stone wall” that formed the partition between the Court of the Gentiles and the Court of Israel. Josephus said that there were many signs written in Greek and in Latin, “which forbade any foreigner to go in under the pain of death.”^[4]

Archaeology has affirmed this. Several signs have been found in the temple area (one in 1871 and one in 1934). Listen to what one of these signs said in Greek: “No foreigner may enter within the barricade which surrounds the temple and enclosure. Anyone who is caught doing so will have himself to blame for his ensuing death.”^[5]With such a warning, no Gentile would have stepped foot in the temple area.

It would be similar to you or me climbing over a fence to walk in a field, crossing over a sign that says, "Danger Mines.” There are some signs like this in the Golan Heights in Israel. They are saying, “Don’t go there! There are mines in that region that will maim you or kill you!” Yet, we see the apostle Paul being accused of this very same thing. totally false.

But this is what suffering like Jesus means. It means facing "False Accusations."

Jesus faced this. At one of his trials, "the chief priests and the whole council were seeking false testimony against Jesus that they might put him to death" (Matthew 26:59). Many false witnesses came forward to testify against Jesus (verse 60). But none of their accusations stuck until two came up and said, “This man said, ‘I am able to destroy the temple of God, and to rebuild it in three days’” (Matthew 26:61). They sought to stick this to Jesus. “What do you say about this?”

Again, there was a kernel of truth in this, as Jesus had said this. but he wasn’t talking about the physical temple. Jesus was talking about the temple of his body! His body, of course, did raise after three days. which, of course, is our hope as Christians, because Jesus raised from the dead, we too will rise on that last day! But such words were deemed too blasphemous for the religious leaders of the day. That you could destroy the temple and rebuild it! Hah!

Furthermore, when suffering upon the cross, Jesus faced many false accusations. The religious rulers scoffed at Jesus saying, “He saved others, let him salve himself, if he is the Christ of God, his Chosen One” (Luke 23:35). The soldiers mocked him, saying, "If you are the King of the Jews, save yourself" (Luke 23:37).

Misunderstood and mocked. This is the lot of all Christians. If you are a follower of Jesus, you will be misunderstood. You will be mocked. You will be accused falsely. That’s just how it is.

This is the nature of the gospel. The world sees our belief in the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus to be a foolish belief. It’s no wonder they mock us and misunderstand us.

I remember when I was working in the computer world, a man would mock me as he compared me to the tele-evangelists, always seeking money from people. Even last week I was called, “a man of the cloth.” People who know that I am a pastor don’t understand what it means to be a pastor. I think that they often picture me wearing a robe and spreading incense around the auditorium, talking religious mumbo-jumbo, sitting on my high and lofty status as a pastor.

So, embrace it. You will be misunderstood. Suffering like Jesus means that we will be suffer "False Accusations." Let’s look further at how Paul suffered like Jesus. In verses 30-32, we see ...

2. Fierce Attacks (verses 30-32)

Acts 21:30-32
Then all the city was stirred up, and the people ran together. They seized Paul and dragged him out of the temple, and at once the gates were shut. And as they were seeking to kill him, word came to the tribune of the cohort that all Jerusalem was in confusion. He at once took soldiers and centurions and ran down to them. And when they saw the tribune and the soldiers, they stopped beating Paul.

The “false accusation” stirred up the people to inflict “fierce attacks” upon Paul. Notice the words of violence in these verses. Verse 30 they “seized Paul.” Verse 30 they “dragged him out.” Verse 31 they were “seeking to kill him” Verse 32 they “stopped beating Paul.” That is, they were beating him, until the authorities came and stopped them from attacking.

But realize this: they were seeking to kill Paul! They had “seized him” and “dragged him out of the temple.” Picture the scene. Paul was physically and forcefully removed from the temple area against his will. It was futile for him to resist, because it was mob violence. and they were beating him, seeking to kill him!

I can picture Paul on the ground wrapped in the fetal position, covering his head and wrapped up small, in self-protection. They wanted Paul dead, not alive! They were doing all that they could do, as they were beating him. The only problem here is that they ran out of time. The police were upon them too quickly for them to carry out their plans (verses 31-32).

It’s no accident that the soldiers were there so quickly. High above the temple mount, on the northwest side, sat Antonia’s fortress. This is where the soldiers and centurions were housed. Police headquarters, if you will. Josephus describes this fortress with these words: "The general appearance of the whole was that of a tower with other towers at each of the four corners; three of these turrets were fifty cubits high, while that at the south-east angle rose to seventy cubits and so commanded a view of the whole area of the temple."^[6]

The Antonia fortress was like the guard tower of a prison. It was there, close by, because the temple mount was a volatile area. The Roman commanders knew that violence could easily break out there. The towers were high, so that they could constantly monitor what was happening in the moment. If you note in the text, it says that they, “ran down to them.” That is, they descended the stairs and were quickly upon the mob.

I believe that the soldiers in the tower sensed the brewing danger, as the city was stirring. as the mob was forming. They were ready. And when the mob was heating up, they came quickly enough to prevent the death of Paul.

The suffering of Paul is similar to the suffering of Jesus. He too faced, "Fierce Attacks."

There were several times in his ministry when the crowds rebelled against him. In Nazareth, they sought to throw him down off the cliff, where they would be able to pelt him with stones (Luke 4:29). Several times at the preaching of Jesus, the Jews picked up stones to stone him to death, but Jesus escaped their grasp (John 8:59; 10:31).

Yet, when Jesus was arrested by the Jews, he faced some fierce attacks. "[They] were mocking him as they beat him. They also blindfolded him and kept asking him, 'Prophesy! Who is it that struck you?'” (Luke 22:63-64). When finally brought before Pilate, and delivered over for crucifixion, Jesus faced the fierce attacks of the Roman soldiers as well. He was beaten to a pulp. We read in Matthew 27:28-31, "And they stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, and twisting together a crown of thorns, they put it on his head and put a reed in his right hand. And kneeling before him, they mocked him, saying, 'Hail, King of the Jews!' And they spit on him and took the reed and struck him on the head. [Then they] led him away to crucify him."

His crucifixion was a fierce attack as well. Crucifixion was invented by the Romans as the cruelest way that they could think of to die. Hung on a tree, supported by nails driven into the flesh, The victim was exposed to die. He would die of suffocation after many hours of torment and agony.

Praise the Lord that Jesus suffered so! Because it was for our sins that he died upon the cross. He was the sacrificial lamb before God, who took away our sins! This is the gospel. This is the good news that we proclaim. Christ suffered for our sins. Christ was raised for our justification.

Though Paul wasn’t taken to that point of suffering, he still faced the physical violence of the crowd, in suffering like Jesus did. He faced the violent attacks of the crowd.

For you and me (and for Luke and many others who were followers of Jesus in Paul’s day), we have been spared the physical beatings that Paul experienced. But for some today, especially those in foreign lands, especially in Muslim lands, believers are routinely tortured for their faith.

Now, for us in America today, we aren’t in too much danger of violent, physical attacks, but attacks do come upon us. They come in mocking and ridiculing. And in some high-profile cases, they come in lawsuits, as is the case against Jack Philips, the owner of Masterpiece Cakeshop in Lakewood, Colorado. He refused to create a cake of a combination of two colors designed to celebrate a gender transition of Autumn Scardina, an attorney, who promptly sued him. The case went to the Supreme Court, where he was declared innocent. He was targeted. Just like Paul was targeted.

There may be a day when you are targeted as well. it may be in a small way, never making the news. Never coming to blows. Yet, nevertheless, facing attacks from non-believers who hate our gospel! If they hated Jesus, they will hate you. If they hate our gospel, they will hate the messenger.

So be willing to suffer. Is not the cause of Christ worth it?

Ok, let's look at our final point. We have seen Paul suffer like Jesus, with "False Accusations" and "Fierce Attacks." Now, we see a ...

3. Frivolous Arrest (verses 33-40)

We read of Paul’s arrest in verse 33.

Acts 21:33-36
Then the tribune came up and arrested him and ordered him to be bound with two chains. He inquired who he was and what he had done. Some in the crowd were shouting one thing, some another. And as he could not learn the facts because of the uproar, he ordered him to be brought into the barracks. And when he came to the steps, he was actually carried by the soldiers because of the violence of the crowd, for the mob of the people followed, crying out, “Away with him!”

Here we see the tribune coming and arresting Paul, even though he didn’t know who he was, or what the situation was. He simply discerned that Paul was the problem. If he would take him away, calm would be restored.

So we see that he was bound with chains, just like Agabus had prophesied in Caesarea. Do you remember that? In Acts 21:11, we read, "And coming to us, he took Paul's belt and bound his own feet and hands and said, 'Thus says the Holy Spirit, "This is how the Jews at Jerusalem will bind the man who owns this belt and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles."'" This is exactly what I believe happened. At the command of the tribune, the Jews bound him with two chains just like Agabus did with the belt. Then they gave him into the hands of the officer who was there. just like Agabus had prophesied.

Now, in many ways, this arrest was for Paul’s own safety. If he were to be left in the crowds, they may well have beaten him to death. Yet still, it was with a struggle that the soldiers kept him safe. He was "carried by the soldiers because of the violence of the crowd." They were pressing in upon Paul. As they were doing so, they were crying out, “Away with him!”

Isn’t this reminiscent of Jesus? Do you remember what the crowds shouted at Pilate? “Crucify him! Crucify him!” They were done with Paul! They wanted him taken away and killed, never to come back again! They wanted Paul killed! In some ways, this was the final rejection of the Jews! With all finality, they were rejecting Paul and his message of the gospel. Perhaps Luke is winking at us with his little comment in verse 30, "at once the gates were shut."

I call this a “Frivolous Arrest” because the soldiers didn’t understand who Paul was. Do you remember when Jesus was arrested in the garden, they didn't really understand who Jesus was. Judas had agreed with the arresting officers to identify Jesus with a kiss (Matthew 26:48). They didn't even know Jesus by sight. Even after Judas kissed Jesus, Jesus confronted the soldiers saying, "Who are you looking for?" They said, "Jesus" Jesus replied, "I am he." To this, the soldiers fell down (see John 18:4-8). They didn't understand who he was. Finally, they took Jesus away. But Pilate didn't really know who Jesus was. Herod didn't know who he was. Though, Herod had heard of him and was interested in meeting Jesus (Luke 23:8). Likewise, Paul, this troublemaker was unknown to this tribune as well.

There are many things that come against us and we don't quite know why. Much of the political correctness that we deal with today is like this. Policies are made so as not to offend anybody. In doing so, we take God out of the public square, lest it offend anybody (forget the fact that it may offend believers to deny God in this way). There are many things that are frivolous in our culture, where we are caught in the crossfire. There are things that would be better for us and better for the culture. But religious is taken out of the public sphere. Nobody really knows why.

We then read in verse 37 and following.

Acts 21:37-39a
As Paul was about to be brought into the barracks, he said to the tribune, “May I say something to you?” And he said, “Do you know Greek? Are you not the Egyptian, then, who recently stirred up a revolt and led the four thousand men of the Assassins out into the wilderness?” Paul replied, “I am a Jew, from Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of no obscure city.”

The tribune thought that Paul was the Egyptian who had stirred up a revolt previously. What’s interesting about this is that Josephus writes about an Egyptian man who came as an imposter from Egypt, “who claimed to be a prophet. ... [He] led a band of people from the desert to the Mount of Olives. This imposter claimed that at his command the walls of Jerusalem would fall. He intended to overthrow the Romans in the Antionia fortress and then become a [ruler over the area]. But Governor Felix heard about the uprising and sent his cavalry out. His soldiers killed numerous Jews and made many others captives. The Egyptian and some of his followers escaped.^[7]

This tribune thought that they had him. But he was wrong. He didn’t have an Egyptian in custody, He had a Jew. Paul continued, ...

Acts 21:39b-40
I beg you, permit me to speak to the people.” And when he had given him permission, Paul, standing on the steps, motioned with his hand to the people. And when there was a great hush, he addressed them in the Hebrew language, saying:

And we will look at what he says next time.^[8]

This sermon was delivered to Rock Valley Bible Church on October 23, 2022 by Steve Brandon.
For more information see www.rockvalleybiblechurch.org.

[1] W. M. Ramsay, St. Paul the Traveller and the Roman Citizen (New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1896), 303. You can read this great book online here: https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.261358/page/n3/mode/2up.

[2] I. Howard Marshall, The Acts of the Apostles (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 1980), 347.

[3] Simon J. Kistemaker, New Testament Commentary: Exposition of the Acts of the Apostles (Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 2004), 767.

[4] Josephus, Antiquities, XV.11.5 (https://ccel.org/ccel/josephus/complete/complete.ii.xvi.xi.html).

[5] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Temple_Warning_inscription

[6] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Antonia_Fortress
 
[7] Kistemaker, New Testament Commentary: Exposition of the Acts of the Apostles, 774. This is Kistemaker's summary of Josephus, which can be read here: https://ccel.org/ccel/josephus/complete/complete.ii.xxi.viii.html. See especially, paragraph 6.

[8] I think that this is the only time that I have ever finished a sermon commenting upon a gerund (i.e. an "ing" word). "Saying."