Acts 23:34

Sunday, 21 January 2024

And when the governor had read it, he asked what province he was from. And when he understood that he was from Cilicia, Acts 23:34

In the Greek, the words are full of participles, and the sentence remains incomplete until the next verse. More literally, it reads, “And the governor having read, and having asked from what province he is, and having learned that from Cilicia” (CG).

The previous verse told of the arrival of the Roman horsemen in Caesarea, where they delivered the letter to the governor and presented Paul to him. That next continues with, “And the governor having read.”

One can imagine the situation. The soldiers, along with Paul, were conducted into the main area where the governor sat. The letter bearer would have come forward, probably not saying a word but simply presenting the letter. Then, he would have stood at attention while the letter was read. Once the governor read it, it next says, “and having asked from what province he is.”

Luke begins the clause with an aorist participle and then uses a present tense verb, thus bringing the reader right into the proceedings – “What is his status?”

The question as to where Paul was from would have been the normal way of validating jurisdiction and being able to ascertain more information about the person at hand. This is the same thing that occurs in Luke 23:6. In the US, it is common for a similar question to be asked, such as, “What state are you from?”

We are not told who gave the response. It only says, “and having learned that from Cilicia.” There are a couple of possibilities concerning his question. Cambridge says –

“Cilicia had been at one time, and perhaps still was, attached to the province of Syria. It was so in the time of Quirinus. This will explain why at once Felix without question decided that, at the proper time, he would hear the cause.”

If Cilicia was not attached to Syria, then a formal note would probably have been sent out for either permission to try the case or to determine what they wanted to do with the matter. On the other hand, Vincent's Word Studies says that rather than asking what province Paul was from, his words ek poias eparchias signify “from what kind of a province?” 

In other words, Vincent’s Word Studies is stating that in this situation, the word poios is intended to mean “of what sort,” not merely “which.” As such, he is trying to determine if the province is senatorial or imperial. Cilicia was an imperial province.

Life application: The question concerning Paul’s province may seem irrelevant to us until we consider that the same type of question is asked of accused criminals thousands of times a day. What was the crime? Where was it perpetrated? What is the citizenship of the person who committed it? What is the legal status of the person who committed it?

All of these things must be determined before someone can be properly processed and tried. If a person is from Japan, something is learned about him. If he is in the US on a student visa, something more is now known. If he came here illegally, on a green card, or with diplomatic privileges, it makes a difference in whether he can even be charged at all.

Luke is carefully recording what happened so that the status of Paul in the coming verses will be more properly understood. Seemingly unimportant details may be extremely important if someone wants to question the Bible’s authenticity. A person who is well-informed about how legal matters were conducted in the Roman empire at Paul’s time may say, “This isn’t at all how things worked. The Bible is wrong.”

But with Luke carefully presenting what occurred, such arguments can be laid to rest. Therefore, should you come across such accusations, be sure to not just accept them at face value. Rather, because commentaries have been faithfully composed covering every verse in Scripture, there is a good chance that you will find one that covers exactly what you are looking for.

So carefully has the Bible been studied that even the nuances of single words – their tense, gender, etc., are carefully considered and commented on. Be sure that this word has been meticulously looked over and challenged. And yet, the brightest minds in history have concluded that this is, in fact, the sure word of God.

Heavenly Father, Your word is a gloriously constructed marvel of wisdom. It is presented to the world as a testament that You are truly working within the stream of time and human existence to reconcile man back to Yourself. Thank You for the elaborate and intricate detail of Your wonderful, superior word. Amen.