Old/New Testament
18 On the next day Paul went in with us to see James, with all the elders present. 19 He greeted them and laid out before them everything which God had done through his ministry among the Gentiles, telling it all step by step. 20 They praised God when they heard it.
“You see, brother,” they said, “that there are many thousands of Jews who have believed. They are all of them fiercely enthusiastic for the law. 21 But what they have heard about you is that you teach all the Jews who live among the nations to abandon Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children and not to keep the customs. 22 Where does this leave us? They will certainly hear that you have come. 23 So do what we tell you: there are four men here who have taken a vow upon themselves. 24 Join in with these men. Purify yourself along with them, and pay the expenses for them as they have their heads shaved. That way everyone will know that there is no truth in the accusations against you, but rather that you too are behaving as a law-observant Jew should. 25 As for the Gentiles who have believed, we have written to them with our decision that they should keep themselves from what has been sacrificed to idols, from blood, from what is strangled, and from fornication.”
26 So Paul took the men and, the next day, underwent the ritual of purification alongside them. He went into the Temple and made the declaration, stating when the days of purification would be completed and when the time would come for sacrifice to be offered for each of them.
Riot in the Temple
27 When the seven days were completed, some Jews from Asia spotted Paul in the Temple. They gathered a crowd and grabbed him.
28 “Men of Israel,” they yelled, “come and help us! This is the man who’s been teaching everybody everywhere against our people, our law, and this place! And now, what’s more, he’s brought some Greeks into the Temple, and he’s defiled this holy place!” 29 (They had previously seen Trophimus the Ephesian with Paul in the city, and they thought Paul had taken him into the Temple.)
30 The whole city was stirred up, and people rushed together from all around. They seized Paul and dragged him outside the Temple, and the gates were shut at once. 31 As they were trying to kill him, word reached the tribune of the guard that all Jerusalem was in an uproar. 32 At once he took soldiers and centurions and ran down to them. When the crowd saw the tribune and the soldiers, they stopped beating Paul. 33 Then the tribune came up, arrested him, ordered him to be bound with two chains, and asked who he was and what he had done. 34 Some in the crowd said one thing, some said another. Since he couldn’t find out what was really going on because of the uproar, he gave orders for Paul to be brought into the barracks. 35 When they got to the steps, the pressure of the crowd was so strong that the soldiers had to carry Paul. 36 The great mob of people was following, and shouting, “Kill him! Kill him!”
Why not hear my story?
37 As they were about to go into the barracks, Paul turned to the tribune.
“Am I allowed to say something to you?” he asked.
“Well!” replied the tribune. “So you know some Greek, do you? 38 Aren’t you the Egyptian who raised a revolt some while back and led those four thousand ‘assassins’ into the desert?”
39 “Actually,” replied Paul, “I’m a Jew! I’m from Tarsus in Cilicia. That’s not such a bad place to be a citizen. Please, please, let me speak to the people.”
40 So he gave him permission. Paul stood on the steps and motioned with his hand to the people. When, eventually, there was silence, he spoke to them in Aramaic.
Scripture quotations from The New Testament for Everyone are copyright © Nicholas Thomas Wright 2011, 2018, 2019.