Acts 23:1-35

What is the theme of this chapter?

Paul before the Sanhedrin, then escorted to Caesarea.

What is the key verse(s) of this chapter? Verse 11

The following night the Lord stood by him and said, “Take courage, for as you have testified to the facts about me in Jerusalem, so you must testify also in Rome.”

What can I apply to my life from this chapter (things to do/avoid)?

Some find fault with Paul's response to the Sanhedrin, saying he didn't show the same humility as our Lord did when similarly outraged.  But Stam points out that our Lord had come to earth especially to take the blame and bear the penalty for the sins of others and particularly for His people, Israel, while on this occasion Paul faced Israel's rulers after their final demonstration of apostasy against Messiah.  Doesn't this give me permission to defend myself against any false accusers I may encounter?   

Additional observations/questions:

Doesn't verse 11 of this passage rather endorse what Paul did in Jerusalem...and perhaps even that he was there in the first place?

Acts 23:12-35

When it was day, the Jews made a plot and bound themselves by an oath neither to eat nor drink till they had killed Paul. There were more than forty who made this conspiracy. They went to the chief priests and elders and said, “We have strictly bound ourselves by an oath to taste no food till we have killed Paul. Now therefore you, along with the council, give notice to the tribune to bring him down to you, as though you were going to determine his case more exactly. And we are ready to kill him before he comes near.” Now the son of Paul's sister heard of their ambush, so he went and entered the barracks and told Paul. Paul called one of the centurions and said, “Take this young man to the tribune, for he has something to tell him.” So he took him and brought him to the tribune and said, “Paul the prisoner called me and asked me to bring this young man to you, as he has something to say to you.” The tribune took him by the hand, and going aside asked him privately, “What is it that you have to tell me?” And he said, “The Jews have agreed to ask you to bring Paul down to the council tomorrow, as though they were going to inquire somewhat more closely about him. But do not be persuaded by them, for more than forty of their men are lying in ambush for him, who have bound themselves by an oath neither to eat nor drink till they have killed him. And now they are ready, waiting for your consent.” So the tribune dismissed the young man, charging him, “Tell no one that you have informed me of these things.” Then he called two of the centurions and said, “Get ready two hundred soldiers, with seventy horsemen and two hundred spearmen to go as far as Caesarea at the third hour of the night.  Also provide mounts for Paul to ride and bring him safely to Felix the governor.” And he wrote a letter to this effect: “Claudius Lysias, to his Excellency the governor Felix, greetings. This man was seized by the Jews and was about to be killed by them when I came upon them with the soldiers and rescued him, having learned that he was a Roman citizen. And desiring to know the charge for which they were accusing him, I brought him down to their council. I found that he was being accused about questions of their law, but charged with nothing deserving death or imprisonment. And when it was disclosed to me that there would be a plot against the man, I sent him to you at once, ordering his accusers also to state before you what they have against him.” So the soldiers, according to their instructions, took Paul and brought him by night to Antipatris. And on the next day they returned to the barracks, letting the horsemen go on with him. When they had come to Caesarea and delivered the letter to the governor, they presented Paul also before him. On reading the letter, he asked what province he was from. And when he learned that he was from Cilicia, he said, “I will give you a hearing when your accusers arrive.” And he commanded him to be guarded in Herod's praetorium.


son of Paul's sister - "Only here is any mention made of Paul's immediate relatives." (Ryrie)

he went and entered the barracks and told Paul - "The apostle, being still an uncondemned prisoner, was evidently detained under only a moderate form of military custody, for it appears that his nephew had free access to him (Ver. 16; Cf. 24:23; 27:3; 28:16,30)." (Stam)

The Jews have agreed - "The agreement of the leaders of the Sanhedrin to take part in this plot (Ver. 20) shows the depth of infamy to which cultured and religious people can sink (Cf. Matt. 26:4; Acts 6:11, etc.) and the very fact that the assassins could go to the chief justices of Israel's Supreme Court, divulge their plot to them and seek their complicity in it, indicates how notorious was their contempt for the law they pretended to uphold.  Once again Paul was in peril by his own countrymen." (Stam)

Felix the governor - "Roman procurator of Judea (A.D. 52 to probably 58) with headquarters in Caesarea." (Ryrie)

"Antonius Felix, a Greek by birth, was the younger brother of Pallas, the emperor Claudius's favourite.  The two brothers had formerly been slaves of Antonia, Claudius's mother, but she had made them 'freedmen' and advanced them.  Pallas's influence at court procured Felix a military command in Samaria under the procurator Ventidius Cumanus; and, on the latter's degradation from office, Felix became procurator of Judaea in his stead (about A.D. 52).  He proved to be a cruel, corrupt, and avaricious governor.  Tacitus the historian tells us that 'he wielded the power of a king with the mind of a slave'.  During his last two years of office, serious riots occurred in Caesarea between the Jewish and Syrian inhabitants, and Felix acted in a very high-handed manner.  He was recalled to Rome to answer the charges against him, and only escaped condemnation through his brother's influence.  He is then lost to view in history." (Walker)

Antipatris - "A military post about half-way between Jerusalem and Caesarea." (Ryrie)

"A city founded by Herod the Great, and so called in honour of his father.  It was about thirty-five miles from Jerusalem, a little more than half-way to Caesarea.  Here the party halted, being now beyond the reach of surprise." (Walker)

they had come to Caesarea - "What must have been the thoughts and feelings of the Caesarean believers as the weary cavalcade rode into the city with Paul in their midst!  Only a few days ago Agabus had warned him of the dangers at Jerusalem, predicting that he would be delivered into the hands of the Gentiles, and they all, along with Paul's own companions, had pleaded with him not to go (Acts 21:8-12).  Now already Agabus' prediction had been fulfilled and their fears were realized.  And what thoughts must have filled Paul's heart and mind!  But God was in it all, for in this way Paul was to bear the name of Christ before 'kings,' as predicted in Acts 9:15, and fulfil a still greater ministry among the Gentiles." (Stam)

what province he was from - "Roman law required that this question be asked at the opening of a hearing, for Paul had the right to be tried in his home province or in the province where the alleged crime was committed.  Tarsus was in Cilicia.  Felix was a deputy of the legate of Syria and Cilicia, and so claimed the right to conduct the hearing, whichever choice Paul made.  Such a detail is strong proof that Luke was with Paul at the hearing." (Ryrie)

"If Paul's would-be assassins held true to their oath they must all have died of starvation, but Lightfoot shows from the Talmud that such vows could be easily annulled." (Stam)

"In the apostle's experiences on this occasion we see again the dispensational trend so evident in the Book of Acts.  Twice, on previous occasions, Peter had been miraculously delivered from prison as angels appeared to open the doors (Acts 5:19; 12:7-10).  Indeed, Paul  himself had seen prison doors fly open and his fetters fall miraculously off some years before at Philippi, but now, when such a miracle would seem to serve so great a purpose, no miracle takes place.  God has 'stretched forth His hands' long enough to this 'gainsaying people'; why increase their condemnation by allowing them to close their eyes to still further evidence?  But this trend is further seen in the fact that during Peter's imprisonment in early Acts, the whole Judaen Church prayed 'without ceasing' for him.  But now, though the number of Hebrew believers had multiplied into 'myriads' and the Jewish Church had become strong in Jerusalem, there is not a single hint that any of the — even of their leaders — did one single thing to help Paul." (Stam)

Acts 23:1-11

And looking intently at the council, Paul said, “Brothers, I have lived my life before God in all good conscience up to this day.” And the high priest Ananias commanded those who stood by him to strike him on the mouth. Then Paul said to him, “God is going to strike you, you whitewashed wall! Are you sitting to judge me according to the law, and yet contrary to the law you order me to be struck?” Those who stood by said, “Would you revile God's high priest?” And Paul said, “I did not know, brothers, that he was the high priest, for it is written, ‘You shall not speak evil of a ruler of your people.’” Now when Paul perceived that one part were Sadducees and the other Pharisees, he cried out in the council, “Brothers, I am a Pharisee, a son of Pharisees. It is with respect to the hope and the resurrection of the dead that I am on trial.” And when he had said this, a dissension arose between the Pharisees and the Sadducees, and the assembly was divided. For the Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, nor angel, nor spirit, but the Pharisees acknowledge them all. Then a great clamor arose, and some of the scribes of the Pharisees' party stood up and contended sharply, “We find nothing wrong in this man. What if a spirit or an angel spoke to him?” And when the dissension became violent, the tribune, afraid that Paul would be torn to pieces by them, commanded the soldiers to go down and take him away from among them by force and bring him into the barracks. The following night the Lord stood by him and said, “Take courage, for as you have testified to the facts about me in Jerusalem, so you must testify also in Rome.”


Ananias commanded those who stood by him to strike him on the mouth - "Ananias (high priest about A.D. 48-58) was reportedly insolent and overbearing.  He was probably angered at Paul's bold claims and ordered him struck." (Ryrie)

"Ananias, son of Nedebaeus, high priest A.D. 47-59.  He received his appointment through Herod of Chalcis.  On account of acts of violence against the Samaritans during his term of office, he was summoned to Rome for inquiry, but was acquitted through the influence of the younger Agrippa.  Josephus (Antiq. 20.9.2) describes his avariciousness and acts of robbery and violence.  He seems to have been deposed towards the end of Felix's tenure of office as procurator.  His treatment of St. Paul agrees with what we otherwise know of him.  He met with a violent death at the hands of the 'Sicarii', some years after his deposition from office, in A.D. 66 (Josephus. Wars IJ.17.9)." (Walker)

whitewashed wall - hypocrite

I did not know, brothers, that he was the high priest - "Some think Paul's weak eyes caused him to fail to recognize the high priest; however, the remark may have been sarcasm — 'I didn't think the high priest would ever speak like that!'" (Ryrie)

"The apostle's answer to those who upbraided him for rebuking the high priest, has been understood by some as sarcasm.  How, they ask, could Paul have failed to recognize the president of the Sanhedrin?  He must, therefore, have meant:  'I did not know that one who would do this could possibly be the high priest.'  We do not accept this interpretation, however.  Apart from a consideration of the exact wording in the original here, it is doubtful that Paul's words could have been intended as a sarcastic rebuttal.  In the first place, it would not be like Paul to 'speak evil of dignitaries.'  Second, Israel's high priests, at this time of her history, were appointed with gross irregularity, partly due to national apostasy from God's commands and partly to Rome's intrusion, so that one illegitimate high priest after another held office and the council was even presided over, at time, by substitute 'high priests.'  Under these circumstance — and Paul having been in Jerusalem but a few days — it is quite understandable that he would not recognize the high priest ... Had the apostle known that it was the high priest who had ordered him smitten he would have refrained from rebuking him in view of the command in Ex. 22:28.  But having done so he merely explained how this had come about and retracted neither his rebuke nor his prediction.  The more shame that the high priest should be guilty of so brazenly violating the basic rules of justice." (Stam)

v 6 - "In effect Paul said, 'I, a Pharisee by inheritance and training, can hardly be regarded as a subversive teach!'  He then proceeded to split the Sanhedrin into its two factions by mentioning the resurrection, which the Sadducees denied but the Pharisees believed." (Ryrie)

"Paul knew too that there was a deep doctrinal division between the Pharisees and the Sadducees and, taking advantage of the situation, he cried out:  'Men and brethren, I am a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee (some of the best MSS have 'Pharisees,' making him the off-spring of a line of Pharisees); of the hope and resurrection of the dead I am called in question' (Ver. 6) thus directing the jurors' attention to a subject on which he knew the Pharisees would be on his side.  This maneuver had an instantaneous effect.  Almost immediately 'there arose a dissension between the Pharisees and the Sadducees' and 'the multitude was divided' and 'there arose a great cry;and the scribes that were of the Pharisees' part arose and strove' for the apostle's acquittal, till the 'dissension' was so 'great' that the chief captain became concerned 'lest Paul should have been pulled in pieces of them' and sent his soldiers down to take him from them by force.  Thus Paul was brought again under the jurisdiction — and protection — of the Roman government." (Stam)

"The circumcision apostles and the multitudes of Jewish believers at Jerusalem had for years believed and proclaimed the resurrection of Christ, yet the unbelieving Jews, even now, tolerated them.  Why this great outcry against Paul?  Ah, it was because he had, by revelation, preached the resurrection of 'the Seed of David' in a new light as the basis for a proclamation of freedom from the law and salvation by grace to Jew and Gentile alike (See 2 Tim. 2:7-9; Rom. 4:22-25; 10:9, etc.).  This was what they so bitterly opposed." (Stam)

the Lord stood by him - "Christ appeared to Paul four times:  at his conversion (Acts 9:5), in Corinth (Acts 18:9-10), on his first visit to Jerusalem (Acts 22:17-18), and here during his last visit to Jerusalem." (Ryrie)

"... 'the Lord stood by him.'  How beautiful!  It does not appear that any of his companions were with him nor, evidently, did the church at Jerusalem or its leaders do anything to help him.  He was alone." (Stam)