Acts 22:20; 23:6-11

Acts 22:20; 23:6-11

Wishing to determine the truth

about why Paul was being accused by the Jews,

the commander freed him

and ordered the chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin to convene.

Then he brought Paul down and made him stand before them.

Paul was aware that some were Sadducees and some Pharisees,

so he called out before the Sanhedrin,

“My brothers, I am a Pharisee, the son of Pharisees;

I am on trial for hope in the resurrection of the dead.”

When he said this,

a dispute broke out between the Pharisees and Sadducees,

and the group became divided.

For the Sadducees say that there is no resurrection

or angels or spirits,

while the Pharisees acknowledge all three.

A great uproar occurred,

and some scribes belonging to the Pharisee party

stood up and sharply argued,

“We find nothing wrong with this man.

Suppose a spirit or an angel has spoken to him?”

The dispute was so serious that the commander,

afraid that Paul would be torn to pieces by them,

ordered his troops to go down and rescue Paul from their midst

and take him into the compound.

The following night the Lord stood by him and said, “Take courage.

For just as you have borne witness to my cause in Jerusalem,

so you must also bear witness in Rome.”

Opening Prayer: Lord God, I am on a long journey to you and your Son in heaven. Your Son has given me a share in your glory and brings me to perfection so that, one day, I may behold the glory of your face. Guide me along my journey, protect me, and keep me safe.

Encountering the Word of God

1. Paul’s Share in Jesus’ Passion: The last chapters of the Acts of the Apostles draw out a parallel between the passion of Jesus Christ and that of Paul. Like Christ, who set his face to go to Jerusalem (Luke 9:53), Paul is also determined to go to Jerusalem, where he knows that he will undergo trials and will suffer for the name of Christ. In the Gospels, Jesus predicts his passion three times (Mark 8:31; 9:30-31; 10:32-34; Luke 9:22; 17:25; 18:31-33); Paul's sufferings are also predicted three times (Acts 20:22-23; 21:4; 21:11-14). Paul shares in the sufferings of Jesus just as Jesus foretold he would (Acts 9:15-16). On his arrival in Jerusalem, the Jews plot to kill Paul. They accuse him – before the high priest Ananias, the Sanhedrin, the Roman governor Felix, and King Herod Agrippa II – of acting against the Jewish people and Caesar. Paul’s trial recalls Jesus’ trial: the “Jewish chief priests seek his death, while the governor declares him innocent three times and Herod treats him as innocent once” (Kurz, Acts of the Apostles, 324). Jesus was scourged in the praetorium; Paul was seized and beaten by a Jewish mob in the temple courtyard. 

2. Paul’s Trial: After the Romans rescue Paul from the mob, the cohort commander demands to know the truth about the accusation against Paul and orders the chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin to convene. During Paul’s trial, the high priest Ananias ordered his attendants to strike Paul on the mouth. This is another parallel: Just as Jesus responded to the high priest, declaring his innocence, so also does Paul. During his trial, Paul seized the opportunity to pit the Sadducees, who denied the resurrection of the dead, against the Pharisees, who believed in it. The Pharisees sided with Paul and refused to condemn him. In the fight that ensued, Paul was rescued once again by the Romans. 

3. The Vision of the Risen Christ: The Pharisees were willing to concede that Paul’s visions may have been of a spirit or an angel (Acts 23:9). The Sadducees refused to accept this, since they denied the existence of angels. “In any case, neither group conceded that Jesus of Nazareth might have appeared to Paul. By their refusal to accept the Resurrection of Jesus, the Jerusalem leaders, including the Pharisees among them, rejected the saving work of the God of Israel” (Pimentel, Envoy of the Messiah, 64). Paul remained under arrest, and, during the night, Jesus appeared to Paul to encourage him and send him out on his last mission. Paul bore witness to Jesus in Jerusalem. And many of the religious authorities rejected his witness. But now Paul must also bear witness in Rome, the capital of the Roman Empire, and proclaim the advent of the Kingdom of God.

Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, you grant your friends a share in your passion. You do this because you know it is the path that leads to eternal life. You eagerly desired the hour of your passion when you would glorify the Father, and will sustain me as I share in your passion and glorify God. 

Living the Word of God: Do I regularly unite my sufferings to those of Christ? What have I suffered this past year for the sake of Jesus’ name? Can I offer that in union with Christ to the Father?