Acts 23:10

Thursday, 28 December 2023

Now when there arose a great dissension, the commander, fearing lest Paul might be pulled to pieces by them, commanded the soldiers to go down and take him by force from among them, and bring him into the barracks. Acts 23:10

The Greek more literally reads, “And great dissension arising, the commander, having feared lest Paul should be torn apart by them, commanded the detachment – having descended – to seize him from among them and bring into the barracks” (CG).

In the previous verse, the scribes of the Pharisees protested Paul’s treatment, defending the fact that he could have been spoken to by a spirit or an angel. This upset the apple cart, and things immediately devolved, as seen in the next words, “And great dissension arising.”

It is the same word just used in verse 7 that indicated a dissension between the Pharisees and Sadducees. Now, the entire council is in an uproar. This was so much the case that “the commander, having feared lest Paul should be torn apart by them.”

Here is the second and last use of the word diaspaó in Scripture. It was only seen elsewhere in Mark 5:4, where it noted that the demon-possessed man tore apart the chains that bound him. This is now what the commander feared would happen to Paul.

This argument between the two parties grew to such a state that each side was probably grabbing onto Paul and pulling him in either direction – one to rescue him and one to pummel him. In the tugging, he could actually be ripped apart. But, being a Roman citizen, the commander was responsible for him. Therefore, he “commanded the detachment – having descended – to seize him from among them and bring into the barracks.”

The soldiers would be necessary by this time because of the violence of those who meant Paul harm. This included the high priest himself, and it shows the level of depravity that they had fallen to, despite being the supposed representatives of the Lord on earth.

In securing Paul and taking him to the barracks, it could be that Paul had been in and out of the very same room that had been used for Jesus on the night before His cross. In contrast to the sufferings He faced, Paul would be kept safe in that same location.

Life application: The conduct of the council seems entirely out of place, and it is. However, it is not uncommon. Innumerable fights have broken out in parliaments, congresses, and other bodies that rule the people. Many of them are recorded and can be seen on YouTube.

It is not unlikely that if you pick a country at random and do a search for a fight in that country’s government, you will find a video of a fight breaking out. An arbitrary search immediately brought up a lively brawl in Kosovo’s cabinet, including men and women, older and younger, etc. Following that came a long list of similar videos. The Indian parliament went full throttle, into chaos throwing microphones and lamps; the Taiwanese were throwing chairs; and there was a lot of slapping and punching in the Jordanian parliament.

Anytime you deal with religion or politics, tempers are bound to get out of control. In the council where Paul stood, it was a mixture of both. Thus, it was an explosive environment that Paul was able to successfully divide, taking the focus off of him and demonstrating the hypocrisy of those who stood over him with their accusations.

If you attend any large gathering to defend your rights as a Christian, such as a state or local meeting, you should be prepared to have accusations fly, angry people demanding your silence, and possibly fighting to break out. In the place where civility is most expected, it often is not. Thus, it is a clear indication that things will only continue to devolve in the world around us.

The message of Christ is the only true hope and saving message in the world. And yet, it is becoming less and less tolerated because it deals with the underlying problem in man: sin. Because it does, in highlighting this defect, people will continue to strengthen their enmity toward the message it proclaims. Be aware of this as you head out and speak about the goodness of God in Christ. Many will find it offensive.

Glorious Lord God, we were all at enmity with You at some point. But because of Jesus, we were reconciled to You. Help us to be willing to share this message, even if it brings about trouble in our lives. Without addressing the problem of sin, all people remain Your enemies. Give us the ability to explain this and to effectively speak about the goodness of what You have done in sending Jesus to fix the problem. Amen.