EGW WritingsActs 22

Daughters of God

Priscilla

DG 73.5

Priscilla and her husband Aquila were tentmakers. They were faithful in teaching others about Jesus Christ. Paul, also being a tentmaker, worked closely with them, teaching them more about Christ.

DG 73.6

The envy and rage of the Jews against the Christians [in Rome] knew no bounds, and the unbelieving residents were constantly stirred up. They made complaints that the Christian Jews were disorderly, and dangerous to the public good. Constantly they were setting in motion something that would stir up strife. This caused the Christians to be banished from Rome.—The Review and Herald, March 6, 1900.

DG 74.1

Soon after his arrival at Corinth, Paul found “a certain Jew named Aquila, born in Pontus, lately come from Italy, with his wife Priscilla.” These were “of the same craft” with himself. Banished by the decree of Claudius, which commanded all Jews to leave Rome, Aquila and Priscilla had come to Corinth, where they established a business as manufacturers of tents. Paul made inquiry concerning them, and learning that they feared God and were seeking to avoid the contaminating influences with which they were surrounded, “he abode with them, and wrought: ... And he reasoned in the synagogue every sabbath, and persuaded the Jews and the Greeks.” Acts 18:2-4.—The Acts of the Apostles, 349, 350 (1911).

DG 74.2

The apostle Paul was an able minister of the gospel, and yet he labored with his hands, doing the humble work of a tent-maker. By working with his hands he did not lessen his work of communicating to Aquila and Priscilla the great truth of the gospel of Christ. These two men and Priscilla labored with their hands, and Paul’s designs in tent-making were ingenious. He brought fresh methods into his work also as he labored for the people, preaching the gospel of Jesus Christ. Many were brought to a knowledge of the truth by witnessing the faithful toiler making tents to support himself, that he might not be dependent upon anyone for food and raiment. While thus at work, he showed himself skillful, “not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord.” And in preaching the Word, he was no less fervent and able in speech because of his business tact.—Manuscript Releases 19:25 (1897).

DG 74.3

Why did Paul thus connect mechanical labor with the preaching of the gospel? Was not the laborer worthy of his hire? Why did he not labor all his time in preaching? Why waste time and strength in making tents? But Paul did not regard the time spent in making tents lost by any means. As he worked with Aquila, he kept in touch with the great Teacher. He gave Aquila needed instruction in spiritual things, and he also educated the believers in unity. While working at his trade he gave an example in diligence and thoroughness. He was diligent in business, fervent in spirit, serving the Lord. He and Aquila and Priscilla had more than one prayer-and-praise meeting with those associated with them in tent-making. This was a testimony to the value of the truth they were presenting.—Atlantic Union Gleaner, June 16, 1909.

DG 75.1

Aquila and Priscilla were not called to give their whole time to the ministry of the gospel, yet these humble laborers were used by God to show Apollos the way of truth more perfectly. The Lord employs various instrumentalities for the accomplishment of His purpose, and while some with special talents are chosen to devote all their energies to the work of teaching and preaching the gospel, many others, upon whom human hands have never been laid in ordination, are called to act an important part in soulsaving.—The Acts of the Apostles, 355 (1911).

DG 75.2

After leaving Corinth, Paul’s next scene of labor was Ephesus. He was on his way to Jerusalem to attend an approaching festival, and his stay at Ephesus was necessarily brief. He reasoned with the Jews in the synagogue, and so favorable was the impression made upon them that they entreated him to continue his labors among them. His plan to visit Jerusalem prevented him from tarrying then, but he promised to return to them, “if God will.” Aquila and Priscilla had accompanied him to Ephesus, and he left them there to carry on the work that he had begun.—The Acts of the Apostles, 269 (1911).

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 10 (1895)

Ms 5, 1895

10LtMs, Ms 5, 1895, par. 2

We have great reason to praise God that we have the inspired record that is given us in the book of Acts, a narrative of the works of the apostles. We have the sure word of inspiration respecting the foundation of the Christian church. The Acts of the Apostles is full of instruction and light and knowledge. As Christ’s disciples living down in the last days, in the very close of earth’s history, we have the same work to do to prepare for Christ’s second coming as they had in developing the Christian church.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 14 (1899)

Lt 243, 1899

14LtMs, Lt 243, 1899, par. 9

I would be greatly pleased could you unite with us in Australia in our work. You would understand [the work] better that anyone we could get to help me in getting out my testimonies which the people need so much. If I had more help, I would now begin to write, and finish up the New Testament history and then take up the Old Testament history. Which do you think would be the best—the revision of the Life of Paul and the Apostles from Acts through to Revelation, or the Old Testament from Solomon down to Malachi? I would be so pleased if I could have your help. Willie is called off on so many business matters that I cannot hope to have much of his time and careful planning.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 15 (1900)

Lt 53, 1900

15LtMs, Lt 53, 1900, par. 4

In our Bible, we might ask, Why need Matthew, Mark, Luke and John in the Gospels, why need the Acts of the Apostles, and the variety of writers in the Epistles, go over the same thing?

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 18 (1903)

Ms 40, 1903

18LtMs, Ms 40, 1903, par. 1

Luke, the writer of the book of Acts, and Theophilus, to whom it is addressed, had been pleasantly associated. From Luke, Theophilus had received much instruction and great light. Luke had been Theophilus’ teacher, and he still felt a responsibility to direct and instruct him and to sustain and protect him in his work.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 21 (1906)

Lt 244a, 1906

21LtMs, Lt 244a, 1906, par. 14

In the record of the Acts of the Apostles, we see the disciples of Jesus manifesting a Christlike activity in medical missionary work. All their efforts were put forth in the strength of the divine united with the human. Like a stream, which may be traced back to its source, their medical missionary work was so genuine that it could easily be traced back to the Great Medical Missionary. In the work of the Lord’s agencies, the one Chief Agent is recognized as the real, actuating force.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 21 (1906)

Lt 218, 1906

21LtMs, Lt 218, 1906, par. 13

In the record of the Acts of the Apostles, we see the disciples of Jesus manifesting a Christlike activity in medical missionary work. All their efforts were put forth in the strength of the divine united with the human. Like a stream, which may be traced back to its source, their medical missionary work was so genuine that it could easily be traced back to the Great Medical Missionary. In the work of the Lord’s agencies, the one Chief Agent is recognized as the real, actuating force.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 22 (1907)

Lt 170, 1907

22LtMs, Lt 170, 1907, par. 9

Let those who desire to be refreshed in mind and instructed in the truth study the history of the early church during and immediately follow the day of Pentecost. Study carefully in the book of Acts the experiences of Paul and the other apostles; for God’s people in our day must pass through similar experiences.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 24 (1909)

Lt 124, 1909

24LtMs, Lt 124, 1909, par. 23

Let our brethren study carefully the book of Acts and see what was accomplished by the labor of the apostles through the power of the Holy Spirit. As we consecrate ourselves to the work that must be done for these last days, angels from heaven will co-operate with us. They will make the impression upon the minds of those for whom we labor, and many will be brought to a knowledge of the truth.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 24 (1909)

Ms 113, 1909

24LtMs, Ms 113, 1909, par. 6

Read Acts and learn the lessons brought to view in the first chapter and following chapters, especially the first chapter. This whole history is of importance to the setting of things in order. We need to encourage a special work to be done.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 24 (1909)

Lt 100, 1909

24LtMs, Lt 100, 1909, par. 13

The whole of the book of Acts should receive careful study. It is full of precious instruction; it records experiences in evangelistic work, the teachings of which we need in our work today. This is wonderful history; it deals with the highest education, which the students in our schools are to receive.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 25 (1910 - 1915)

Lt 72, 1911

25LtMs, Lt 72, 1911, par. 2

Recently I have been very much occupied in the work of closing up my book on the Acts of the Apostles. I think that my part of this work is about finished.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 25 (1910 - 1915)

Lt 4, 1911

25LtMs, Lt 4, 1911, par. 2

I am thankful that I can remain at home for a time, where I can be close to my helpers. Since you left, I have been very fully employed in the preparation of matter for the Life of Paul. We are trying to bring out scriptural evidences of truth, and these, we believe, will be appreciated by our people. I have been anxious to bring into this book much matter that will be of special help to our workers who may be called upon to pass through experiences similar to those that came to the early Christian church. There is, in the history of the Acts of the Apostles, much that, if appropriated in the daily life, will inspire our brethren and sisters with a desire to seek for a higher spiritual life and for greater power, and for wisdom to co-operate with heavenly intelligences in the salvation of souls.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 25 (1910 - 1915)

Lt 56, 1911

25LtMs, Lt 56, 1911, par. 7

While preparing the book on the Acts of the Apostles, the Lord has kept my mind in perfect peace. This book will soon be ready for publication. When this book is ready for publication, if the Lord sees fit to let me rest, I shall say Amen, and Amen. If the Lord spares my life, I will continue to write and to bear my testimony in the congregation of the people, as the Lord shall give me strength and guidance.

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 25 (1910 - 1915)

Lt 66, 1911

25LtMs, Lt 66, 1911, par. 7

I long for strength to do the work that must be done at this time. I would speak daily at this Long Beach camp-meeting if I could; but I have not strength to do this. I dare not consume all my strength in this meeting; for there is other important work before me. Lately I have given considerable time and effort to the work of completing the book on the Acts of the Apostles. This book is now nearly finished, and I am very thankful for this.

From Trials to Triumph

Chapter 38—Paul’s Brethren Give Him Bad Advice

TT 209.1

Paul presented to the leaders at Jerusalem the contributions forwarded by the Gentile churches for the support of the poor among their Jewish brethren. The sum far exceeded the expectations of the elders at Jerusalem and represented severe privations on the part of the Gentile believers.

TT 209.2

These freewill offerings betokened the loyalty of the Gentile converts to the organized work of God throughout the world. Yet it was apparent that some were unable to appreciate the spirit of brotherly love that had prompted the gifts.

TT 209.3

In earlier years, some of the leading brethren at Jerusalem had not cooperated heartily with Paul. In their anxiety to preserve a few meaningless forms and ceremonies, they had lost sight of the blessing that would come through an effort to unite in one all parts of the Lord’s work. They had failed to keep step with the advancing providences of God and attempted to throw about workers many unnecessary restrictions. Men unacquainted with the peculiar needs in distant fields insisted that they had the authority to direct their brethren to follow certain specified methods of labor.

TT 209.4

Several years had passed since the brethren in Jerusalem gave careful consideration to the methods followed by those who were laboring for the Gentiles, and made recommendations concerning certain rites and ceremonies. At this general council the brethren had also united in commending Barnabas and Paul as laborers worthy of the full confidence of every believer. At this meeting some had severely criticized the apostles upon whom rested the chief burden of carrying the gospel to the Gentile world, but during the council their views of God’s purpose had broadened, and they united in making decisions which made possible the unification of the entire body of believers.

TT 210.1

Afterward, when converts among the Gentiles were increasing rapidly, a few leading brethren at Jerusalem began to cherish anew their former prejudices against the methods of Paul. Some of the leaders determined that the work must henceforth be conducted in accordance with their own ideas. If Paul would conform to policies which they advocated, they would acknowledge and sustain his work; otherwise, they could no longer grant it their support.

TT 210.2

These men had lost sight of the fact that God is the teacher of His people; every worker in His cause is to follow the divine Leader, not looking to man for direct guidance; His workers are to be molded after the similitude of the divine.

TT 210.3

Paul had taught the people “not with enticing words of man’s wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power.” 1 Corinthians 2:4. He had looked to God for direct guidance, yet he had been careful to labor in harmony with the decisions of the general council at Jerusalem. As a result, the churches were “established in the faith and increased in number daily.” Acts 16:5. Notwithstanding the lack of sympathy shown him by some, he had encouraged in his converts a spirit of loyalty, generosity, and brotherly love, as revealed in the liberal contributions he placed before the Jewish elders.

TT 210.4

Paul “declared particularly what things God had wrought among the Gentiles by his ministry.” This brought, even to those who had been doubting, the conviction that the blessing of heaven had accompanied his labors. “When they heard it, they glorified the Lord.” The methods pursued by the apostle bore the signet of Heaven. The men who had urged arbitrary control saw Paul’s ministry in a new light and were convinced that their course had been wrong. They had been held in bondage by Jewish customs and traditions, and the gospel had been hindered by their failure to recognize that the wall of partition between Jew and Gentile had been broken down by the death of Christ.

TT 211.1

This was the golden opportunity for all the leading brethren to confess frankly that God had wrought through Paul and that at times they had erred in permitting his enemies to arouse their jealousy and prejudice. But instead of doing justice to the one who had been injured, they showed that they still cherished a feeling that Paul should be held largely responsible for the existing prejudice. They did not stand nobly in his defense but sought to effect a compromise.

TT 211.2

“You see, brother,” they said in response to his testimony, “how many thousands there are among the Jews of those who have believed; they are all zealous for the law, and they have been told about you that you teach all the Jews who are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children or observe the customs... . Do therefore what we tell you. We have four men who are under a vow; take these men and purify yourself along with them and pay their expenses, so that they may shave their heads. Thus all will know that there is nothing in what they have been told about you but that you yourself live in observance of the law. But as for the Gentiles who have believed, we have sent a letter with our judgment that they should abstain from what had been sacrificed to idols and from blood and from what is strangled and from unchastity.” RSV.

TT 211.3

The brethren assured Paul that the decision of the former council concerning Gentile converts and the ceremonial law still held good. But the advice now given was not consistent with that decision. The Spirit of God did not prompt this instruction; it was the fruit of cowardice.

TT 212.1

Many of the Jews who had accepted the gospel still cherished the ceremonial law and were only too willing to make unwise concessions, hoping thus to remove prejudice and win their countrymen to faith in Christ as the world’s Redeemer. Paul realized that so long as many leading members of the church at Jerusalem should continue to cherish prejudice against him, they would work constantly to counteract his influence. He felt that if by reasonable concession he could win them to the truth, he would remove a great obstacle to the success of the gospel in other places. But he was not authorized of God to concede as much as they asked.

TT 212.2

When we think of Paul’s great desire to be in harmony with his brethren, his tenderness toward the weak in faith, and his reverence for the apostles who had been with Christ, it is less surprising that he was constrained to deviate from the firm course he had hitherto followed. But his efforts for conciliation only hastened his predicted sufferings, separated him from his brethren, and deprived the church of one of its strongest pillars.

TT 212.3

On the following day Paul began to carry out the counsel of the elders. The four men under the Nazarite vow (see Numbers 6) were taken by Paul into the temple. Those who advised Paul to take this step had not considered the great peril to which he would thus be exposed. He had visited many of the world’s largest cities and was well known to thousands who had come to Jerusalem to attend the feast. Among these were men filled with bitter hatred for Paul. For him to enter the temple on a public occasion was to risk his life. For several days he was apparently unnoticed; but as he was talking with a priest concerning the sacrifices to be offered, he was recognized by some Jews from Asia.

TT 212.4

With fury of demons they rushed upon him. “Men of Israel, help! This is the man who is teaching men everywhere against the people and the law and this place.” And as the people responded to the call for help, another accusation was added—“moreover he also brought Greeks into the temple, and he has defiled this holy place.” RSV.

TT 213.1

By Jewish law it was a crime punishable with death for an uncircumcised person to enter the inner courts of the sacred edifice. Paul had been seen in the city with Trophimus, an Ephesian, and it was conjectured that he had brought him into the temple. This he had not done; and being himself a Jew, his act in entering the temple was no violation of the law.

TT 213.2

But though the charge was wholly false, it served to arouse popular prejudice. Wild excitement spread through Jerusalem. “All the city was moved, and the people ran together. They took Paul, and drew him out of the temple: and forthwith the doors were shut.”

TT 213.3

“And as they went about to kill him, tidings came unto the chief captain of the band, that all Jerusalem was in an uproar” Claudius Lysias “immediately took soldiers and centurions, and ran down unto them: and when they saw the chief captain and the soldiers, they left beating of Paul.” Seeing that the rage of the multitude was directed against Paul, the Roman captain “took him, and commanded him to be bound with two chains; and demanded who he was, and what he had done.” At once many voices were raised in loud and angry accusation; “and as he could not learn the facts because of the uproar, he ordered him to be brought into the barracks... . The mob of the people followed, crying, ‘Away with him!’” RSV.

TT 213.4

The apostle was calm and self-possessed. He knew that angels of heaven were about him. As he was about to be led into the barracks he said to the chief captain, “May I speak unto thee?” Lysias responded, “Art not thou that Egyptian, which ... madest an uproar, and leddest out into the wilderness four thousand men that were murderers?”

TT 214.1

In reply Paul said, “I am ... a Jew of Tarsus, a city in Cilicia, a citizen of no mean city: and, I beseech thee, suffer me to speak unto the people.”

TT 214.2

The request was granted, and “Paul stood on the stairs, and beckoned with the hand unto the people.” His bearing commanded respect. “And when there was made a great silence, he spake unto them in the Hebrew tongue, saying, Men, brethren, and fathers, hear ye my defense which I make now unto you.” In the universal hush he continued:

TT 214.3

“I am a Jew, born at Tarsus in Cilicia, but brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, educated according to the strict manner of the law of our fathers, being zealous for God as you all are this day.” RSV. The facts he referred to were well known. He then spoke of his former zeal in persecuting the disciples of Christ; and he narrated the circumstances of his conversion, telling how his proud heart had been led to bow to the crucified Nazarene. The relation of his experience seemed to soften and subdue the hearts of his opponents.

TT 214.4

He then showed that he had desired to labor for his own nation, but in that very temple the voice of God had spoken to him, directing his course “far hence unto the Gentiles.”

TT 214.5

The people had listened with close attention, but when Paul reached the point where he was appointed ambassador to the Gentiles, their fury broke forth anew. They were unwilling to permit the despised Gentiles to share the privileges hitherto regarded as exclusively their own. They cried, “Away with such a fellow from the earth: for it is not fit that he should live.”

TT 214.6

“As they cried out, ... the chief captain commanded him to be brought into the castle, and bade that he should be examined by scourging; that he might know whereof they cried so against him.”

TT 215.1

“But when they had tied him up with the thongs, Paul said to the centurion who was standing by, ‘Is it lawful for you to scourge a man who is a Roman citizen, and uncondemned?’ When the centurion heard that, he went to the tribune and said to him, ‘What are you about to do? For this man is a Roman citizen.’ So the tribune came and said to him, ‘Tell me, are you a Roman citizen?’ And he said, ‘Yes.’ The tribune answered, ‘I bought this citizenship for a large sum.’ Paul said, ‘But I was born a citizen.’ So those who were about to examine him withdrew from him instantly; and the tribune also was afraid, for he realized that Paul was a Roman citizen and that he had bound him.”

TT 215.2

“But on the morrow, desiring to know the real reason why the Jews accused him, he unbound him, and commanded the chief priests and all the council to meet, and he brought Paul down and set him before them.” Acts 22:25-30, RSV.

TT 215.3

As he stood before the Jewish rulers, Paul’s countenance revealed the peace of Christ. “Brethren, I have lived in all good conscience before God until this day. And the high priest Ananias commanded them that stood by him to smite him on the mouth.” At this inhuman command, Paul exclaimed, “God shall smite thee, thou whited wall: for sittest thou to judge me after the law, and commandest me to be smitten contrary to the law?” “They that stood by said, Revilest thou God’s high priest?” With his usual courtesy Paul answered, “I wist not, brethren, that he was the high priest: for it is written, Thou shalt not speak evil of the ruler of thy people.”

TT 215.4

“But when Paul perceived that the one part were Sadducees, and the other Pharisees, he cried out in the council, Men and brethren, I am a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee: of the hope and resurrection of the dead I am called in question.”

TT 216.1

The two parties began to dispute between themselves, and thus the strength of their opposition against Paul was broken. “The scribes that were of the Pharisees’ party arose, and strove, saying, We find no evil in this man: but if a spirit or an angel hath spoken to him, let us not fight against God.”

TT 216.2

The Sadducees were eagerly striving to gain possession of the apostle, that they might put him to death; and the Pharisees were as eager to protect him. “The Chief Captain, fearing lest Paul should have been pulled in pieces of them, commanded the soldiers to go down, and to take him by force from among them, and to bring him into the castle.”

TT 216.3

Later, Paul began to fear that his course might not have been pleasing to God. Had he made a mistake in visiting Jerusalem? Had his great desire to be in union with His brethren led to this disastrous result?

TT 216.4

How would those heathen officers look upon the Jews as God’s professed people—assuming sacred office, yet giving themselves up to blind anger, seeking to destroy even their brethren who dared to differ with them in religious faith, and turning their solemn council into a scene of wild confusion? The name of God had suffered reproach in the eyes of the heathen.

TT 216.5

And now he knew that his enemies would resort to any means to put him to death. Could it be that his work for the churches was ended and that ravening wolves were to enter in now? He thought of the perils of the scattered churches, exposed to the persecutions of such men as he had encountered in the Sanhedrin council. In distress he wept and prayed.

TT 216.6

In this dark hour the Lord revealed Himself to His faithful witness in response to earnest prayers for guidance. “The night following the Lord stood by him, and said, Be of good cheer, Paul: for as thou hast testified of Me in Jerusalem, so must thou bear witness also at Rome.”

TT 217.1

While the Lord encouraged His servant, Paul’s enemies were plotting his destruction. Conspirators “came to the chief priests and elders, and said, We have bound ourselves under a great curse, that we will eat nothing until we have slain Paul. Now therefore ye with the council signify to the chief captain that he bring him down unto you tomorrow, as though ye would inquire something more perfectly concerning him: and we, or ever he come near, are ready to kill him.”

TT 217.2

The priests and rulers eagerly agreed. Paul had spoken the truth when he compared Ananias to a “whited wall.”

TT 217.3

But God interposed to save His servant. Paul’s sister’s son, hearing of the ambush of the assassins, “entered into the castle, and told Paul. Then Paul called one of the centurions unto him, and said, Bring this young man unto the chief captain: for he hath a certain thing to tell him. So he took him, and brought him to the chief captain, and said, Paul the prisoner called me unto him, and prayed me to bring this young man unto thee, who hath something to say unto thee.”

TT 217.4

Claudius Lysias received the youth kindly. “What is it that you have to tell me?” The youth replied: “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 yield to them; for more than forty of their men lie in ambush for him, having bound themselves by an oath neither to eat nor drink till they have killed him; and now they are ready, waiting for the promise from you.”

TT 217.5

“So the tribune dismissed the young man, charging him, ‘Tell no one that you have informed me of this.’”

TT 217.6

Lysias “called two of the centurions and said, ‘At the third hour of the night get ready two hundred soldiers with seventy horsemen and two hundred spearmen to go as far as Caesarea. Also provide mounts for Paul to ride and bring him safely to Felix the governor.’” Acts 23:20-24, RSV.

TT 218.1

No time was to be lost. “So the soldiers, according to their instructions, took Paul and brought him by night to Antipatris.” RSV. The horsemen went on with the prisoner to Caesarea. The officer in charge delivered his prisoner to Felix, also presenting a letter:

TT 218.2

“Claudius Lysias unto the most excellent governor Felix sendeth greeting. This man was taken of the Jews, and should have been killed of them: then came I with an army, and rescued him, having understood that he was a Roman... . And when it was told me how that the Jews laid wait for the man, I sent straightway to thee, and gave commandment to his accusers also to say before thee what they had against him.”

TT 218.3

In their rage against Paul, the Jews had added another crime to the dark catalogue which marked the history of that people and had rendered their doom more certain. Christ in the synagogue at Nazareth reminded His hearers that in time past God had turned away from His chosen people because of their unbelief and rebellion, and had manifested Himself to those in heathen lands who had not rejected the light of heaven. With backsliding Israel there was no safety for the faithful messenger of God. The Jewish leaders were leading the people farther and farther from obedience to God—where He could not be their defense in the day of trouble.

TT 218.4

The Saviour’s words of reproof to the men of Nazareth applied in the case of Paul to his own brethren in the faith. Had the leaders in the church fully surrendered their bitterness toward the apostle and accepted him as one specially called of God to bear the gospel to the Gentiles, the Lord would have spared him to them. God had not ordained that Paul’s labors should so soon end.

TT 218.5

The same spirit is still depriving the church of many a blessing. How often would the Lord have prolonged the work of some faithful minister, had his labors been appreciated. But if church members misrepresent and misinterpret the words and acts of the servant of Christ; if they allow themselves to stand in his way, the Lord sometimes removes from them the blessing which He gave.

TT 219.1

Those whom God has chosen to accomplish a great and good work may be ready to sacrifice even life itself for the cause of Christ, yet the great deceiver will suggest to their brethren doubts concerning them which undermine confidence in their integrity and cripple their usefulness. Too often he succeeds in bringing upon them, through their own brethren, such sorrow of heart that God graciously interposes to give His persecuted servants rest. After the voice of warning and encouragement is silent, then the obdurate may see and prize the blessings they have cast from them. Their death may accomplish that which their life has failed to do.

The Acts of the Apostles

Chapter 38—Paul a Prisoner

AA 399.1

When we were come to Jerusalem, the brethren received us gladly. And the day following Paul went in with us unto James; and all the elders were present.”

AA 399.2

On this occasion, Paul and his companions formally presented to the leaders of the work at Jerusalem the contributions forwarded by the Gentile churches for the support of the poor among their Jewish brethren. The gathering of these contributions had cost the apostle and his fellow workers much time, anxious thought, and wearisome labor. The sum, which far exceeded the expectations of the elders at Jerusalem, represented many sacrifices and even severe privations on the part of the Gentile believers.

AA 399.3

These freewill offerings betokened the loyalty of the Gentile converts to the organized work of God throughout the world and should have been received by all with grateful acknowledgment, yet it was apparent to Paul and his companions that even among those before whom they now stood were some who were unable to appreciate the spirit of brotherly love that had prompted the gifts.

AA 400.1

In the earlier years of the gospel work among the Gentiles some of the leading brethren at Jerusalem, clinging to former prejudices and habits of thought, had not co-operated heartily with Paul and his associates. In their anxiety to preserve a few meaningless forms and ceremonies, they had lost sight of the blessing that would come to them and to the cause they loved, through an effort to unite in one all parts of the Lord’s work. Although desirous of safeguarding the best interests of the Christian church, they had failed to keep step with the advancing providences of God, and in their human wisdom attempted to throw about workers many unnecessary restrictions. Thus there arose a group of men who were unacquainted personally with the changing circumstances and peculiar needs met by laborers in distant fields, yet who insisted that they had the authority to direct their brethren in these fields to follow certain specified methods of labor. They felt as if the work of preaching the gospel should be carried forward in harmony with their opinions.

AA 400.2

Several years had passed since the brethren in Jerusalem, with representatives from other leading churches, gave careful consideration to the perplexing questions that had arisen over methods followed by those who were laboring for the Gentiles. As a result of this council, the brethren had united in making definite recommendations to the churches concerning certain rites and customs, including circumcision. It was at this general council that the brethren had also united in commending to the Christian churches Barnabas and Paul as laborers worthy of the full confidence of every believer.

AA 401.1

Among those present at this meeting, were some who had severely criticized the methods of labor followed by the apostles upon whom rested the chief burden of carrying the gospel to the Gentile world. But during the council their views of God’s purpose had broadened, and they had united with their brethren in making wise decisions which made possible the unification of the entire body of believers.

AA 401.2

Afterward, when it became apparent that the converts among the Gentiles were increasing rapidly, there were a few of the leading brethren at Jerusalem who began to cherish anew their former prejudices against the methods of Paul and his associates. These prejudices strengthened with the passing of the years, until some of the leaders determined that the work of preaching the gospel must henceforth be conducted in accordance with their own ideas. If Paul would conform his methods to certain policies which they advocated they would acknowledge and sustain his work; otherwise they could no longer look upon it with favor or grant it their support.

AA 401.3

These men had lost sight of the fact that God is the teacher of His people; that every worker in His cause is to obtain an individual experience in following the divine Leader, not looking to man for direct guidance; that His workers are to be molded and fashioned, not after man’s ideas, but after the similitude of the divine.

AA 402.1

In his ministry the apostle Paul had taught the people “not with enticing words of man’s wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power.” The truths that he proclaimed had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit, “for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God.... Which things,” declared Paul, “we speak, not in the words which man’s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.” 1 Corinthians 2:4, 10-13.

AA 402.2

Throughout his ministry, Paul had looked to God for direct guidance. At the same time, he had been very careful to labor in harmony with the decisions of the general council at Jerusalem, and as a result the churches were “established in the faith, and increased in number daily.” Acts 16:5. And now, notwithstanding the lack of sympathy shown him by some, he found comfort in the consciousness that he had done his duty in encouraging in his converts a spirit of loyalty, generosity, and brotherly love, as revealed on this occasion in the liberal contributions which he was enabled to place before the Jewish elders.

AA 402.3

After the presentation of the gifts, Paul “declared particularly what things God had wrought among the Gentiles by his ministry.” This recital of facts brought to the hearts of all, even of those who had been doubting, the conviction that the blessing of heaven had accompanied his labors. “When they heard it, they glorified the Lord.” They felt that the methods of labor pursued by the apostle bore the signet of Heaven. The liberal contributions lying before them added weight to the testimony of the apostle concerning the faithfulness of the new churches established among the Gentiles. The men who, while numbered among those who were in charge of the work at Jerusalem, had urged that arbitrary measures of control be adopted, saw Paul’s ministry in a new light and were convinced that their own course had been wrong, that they had been held in bondage by Jewish customs and traditions, and that the work of the gospel had been greatly hindered by their failure to recognize that the wall of partition between Jew and Gentile had been broken down by the death of Christ.

AA 403.1

This was the golden opportunity for all the leading brethren to confess frankly that God had wrought through Paul, and that at times they had erred in permitting the reports of his enemies to arouse their jealousy and prejudice. But instead of uniting in an effort to do justice to the one who had been injured, they gave him counsel which showed that they still cherished a feeling that Paul should be held largely responsible for the existing prejudice. They did not stand nobly in his defense, endeavoring to show the disaffected ones where they were wrong, but sought to effect a compromise by counseling him to pursue a course which in their opinion would remove all cause for misapprehension.

AA 403.2

“Thou seest, brother,” they said, in response to his testimony, “how many thousands of Jews there are which believe; and they are all zealous of the law: and they are informed of thee, that thou teachest all the Jews which are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, saying that they ought not to circumcise their children, neither to walk after the customs. What is it therefore? the multitude must needs come together: for they will hear that thou art come. Do therefore this that we say to thee: We have four men which have a vow on them; them take, and purify thyself with them, and be at charges with them, that they may shave their heads: and all may know that those things, whereof they were informed concerning thee, are nothing; but that thou thyself also walkest orderly, and keepest the law. As touching the Gentiles which believe, we have written and concluded that they observe no such thing, save only that they keep themselves from things offered to idols, and from blood, and from strangled, and from fornication.”

AA 404.1

The brethren hoped that Paul, by following the course suggested, might give a decisive contradiction to the false reports concerning him. They assured him that the decision of the former council concerning the Gentile converts and the ceremonial law, still held good. But the advice now given was not consistent with that decision. The Spirit of God did not prompt this instruction; it was the fruit of cowardice. The leaders of the church in Jerusalem knew that by non-conformity to the ceremonial law, Christians would bring upon themselves the hatred of the Jews and expose themselves to persecution. The Sanhedrin was doing its utmost to hinder the progress of the gospel. Men were chosen by this body to follow up the apostles, especially Paul, and in every possible way to oppose their work. Should the believers in Christ be condemned before the Sanhedrin as breakers of the law, they would suffer swift and severe punishment as apostates from the Jewish faith.

AA 405.1

Many of the Jews who had accepted the gospel still cherished a regard for the ceremonial law and were only too willing to make unwise concessions, hoping thus to gain the confidence of their countrymen, to remove their prejudice, and to win them to faith in Christ as the world’s Redeemer. Paul realized that so long as many of the leading members of the church at Jerusalem should continue to cherish prejudice against him, they would work constantly to counteract his influence. He felt that if by any reasonable concession he could win them to the truth he would remove a great obstacle to the success of the gospel in other places. But he was not authorized of God to concede as much as they asked.

AA 405.2

When we think of Paul’s great desire to be in harmony with his brethren, his tenderness toward the weak in the faith, his reverence for the apostles who had been with Christ, and for James, the brother of the Lord, and his purpose to become all things to all men so far as he could without sacrificing principle—when we think of all this, it is less surprising that he was constrained to deviate from the firm, decided course that he had hitherto followed. But instead of accomplishing the desired object, his efforts for conciliation only precipitated the crisis, hastened his predicted sufferings, and resulted in separating him from his brethren, depriving the church of one of its strongest pillars, and bringing sorrow to Christian hearts in every land.

AA 406.1

On the following day Paul began to carry out the counsel of the elders. The four men who were under the Nazarite vow (Numbers 6), the term of which had nearly expired, were taken by Paul into the temple, “to signify the accomplishment of the days of purification, until that an offering should be offered for every one of them.” Certain costly sacrifices for purification were yet to be offered.

AA 406.2

Those who advised Paul to take this step had not fully considered the great peril to which he would thus be exposed. At this season, Jerusalem was filled with worshipers from many lands. As, in fulfillment of the commission given him by God, Paul had borne the gospel to the Gentiles, he had visited many of the world’s largest cities, and he was well known to thousands who from foreign parts had come to Jerusalem to attend the feast. Among these were men whose hearts were filled with bitter hatred for Paul, and for him to enter the temple on a public occasion was to risk his life. For several days he passed in and out among the worshipers, apparently unnoticed; but before the close of the specified period, as he was talking with a priest concerning the sacrifices to be offered, he was recognized by some of the Jews from Asia.

AA 406.3

With the fury of demons they rushed upon him, crying, “Men of Israel, help: This is the man, that teacheth all men everywhere against the people, and the law, and this place.” And as the people responded to the call for help, another accusation was added—“and further brought Greeks also into the temple, and hath polluted this holy place.”

AA 407.1

By the Jewish law it was a crime punishable with death for an uncircumcised person to enter the inner courts of the sacred edifice. Paul had been seen in the city in company with Trophimus, an Ephesian, and it was conjectured that he had brought him into the temple. This he had not done; and being himself a Jew, his act in entering the temple was no violation of the law. But though the charge was wholly false, it served to arouse the popular prejudice. As the cry was taken up and borne through the temple courts, the throngs gathered there were thrown into wild excitement. The news quickly spread through Jerusalem, “and all the city was moved, and the people ran together.”

AA 407.2

That an apostate from Israel should presume to profane the temple at the very time when thousands had come there from all parts of the world to worship, excited the fiercest passions of the mob. “They took Paul, and drew him out of the temple: and forthwith the doors were shut.”

AA 407.3

“As they went about to kill him, tidings came unto the chief captain of the band, that all Jerusalem was in an uproar.” Claudius Lysias well knew the turbulent elements with which he had to deal, and he “immediately took soldiers and centurions, and ran down unto them: and when they saw the chief captain and the soldiers, they left beating of Paul.” Ignorant of the cause of the tumult, but seeing that the rage of the multitude was directed against Paul, the Roman captain concluded that he must be a certain Egyptian rebel of whom he had heard, who had thus far escaped capture. He therefore “took him, and commanded him to be bound with two chains; and demanded who he was, and what he had done.” At once many voices were raised in loud and angry accusation; “some cried one thing, some another, among the multitude: and when he could not know the certainty for the tumult, he commanded him to be carried into the castle. And when he came upon the stairs, so it was, that he was borne of the soldiers for the violence of the people. For the multitude of the people followed after, crying, Away with him.”

AA 408.1

In the midst of the tumult the apostle was calm and self-possessed. His mind was stayed upon God, and he knew that angels of heaven were about him. He felt unwilling to leave the temple without making an effort to set the truth before his countrymen. As he was about to be led into the castle he said to the chief captain, “May I speak unto thee?” Lysias responded, “Canst thou speak Greek? Art not thou that Egyptian, which before these days madest an uproar, and leddest out into the wilderness four thousand men that were murderers?” In reply Paul said, “I am a man which am a Jew of Tarsus, a city in Cilicia, a citizen of no mean city: and, I beseech thee, suffer me to speak unto the people.”

AA 408.2

The request was granted, and “Paul stood on the stairs, and beckoned with the hand unto the people.” The gesture attracted their attention, while his bearing commanded respect. “And when there was made a great silence, he spake unto them in the Hebrew tongue, saying, Men, brethren, and fathers, hear ye my defense which I make now unto you.” At the sound of the familiar Hebrew words, “they kept the more silence,” and in the universal hush he continued:

AA 409.1

“I am verily a man which am a Jew, born in Tarsus, a city in Cilicia, yet brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, and taught according to the perfect manner of the law of the fathers, and was zealous toward God, as ye all are this day.” None could deny the apostle’s statements, as the facts that he referred to were well known to many who were still living in Jerusalem. He then spoke of his former zeal in persecuting the disciples of Christ, even unto death; and he narrated the circumstances of his conversion, telling his hearers how his own proud heart had been led to bow to the crucified Nazarene. Had he attempted to enter into argument with his opponents, they would have stubbornly refused to listen to his words; but the relation of his experience was attended with a convincing power that for the time seemed to soften and subdue their hearts.

AA 409.2

He then endeavored to show that his work among the Gentiles had not been entered upon from choice. He had desired to labor for his own nation; but in that very temple the voice of God had spoken to him in holy vision, directing his course “far hence unto the Gentiles.”

AA 409.3

Hitherto the people had listened with close attention, but when Paul reached the point in his history where he was appointed Christ’s ambassador to the Gentiles, their fury broke forth anew. Accustomed to look upon themselves as the only people favored by God, they were unwilling to permit the despised Gentiles to share the privileges which had hitherto been regarded as exclusively their own. Lifting their voices above the voice of the speaker, they cried, “Away with such a fellow from the earth: for it is not fit that he should live.”

AA 410.1

“As they cried out, and cast off their clothes, and threw dust into the air, the chief captain commanded him to be brought into the castle, and bade that he should be examined by scourging; that he might know wherefore they cried so against him.

AA 410.2

“And as they bound him with thongs, Paul said unto the centurion that stood by, Is it lawful for you to scourge a man that is a Roman, and uncondemned? When the centurion heard that, he went and told the chief captain, saying, Take heed what thou doest: for this man is a Roman. Then the chief captain came, and said unto him, Tell me, art thou a Roman? He said, Yea. And the chief captain answered, With a great sum obtained I this freedom. And Paul said, But I was freeborn. Then straightway they departed from him which should have examined him: and the chief captain also was afraid, after he knew that he was a Roman, and because he had bound him.

AA 410.3

“On the morrow, because he would have known the certainty wherefore he was accused of the Jews, he loosed him from his bands, and commanded the chief priests and all their council to appear, and brought Paul down, and set him before them.”

AA 410.4

The apostle was now to be tried by the same tribunal of which he himself had been a member before his conversion. As he stood before the Jewish rulers, his bearing was calm, and his countenance revealed the peace of Christ. “Earnestly beholding the council,” he said, “Men and brethren, I have lived in all good conscience before God until this day.” Upon hearing these words, their hatred was kindled afresh; “and the high priest Ananias commanded them that stood by him to smite him on the mouth.” At this inhuman command, Paul exclaimed, “God shall smite thee, thou whited wall: for sittest thou to judge me after the law, and commandest me to be smitten contrary to the law?” “They that stood by said, Revilest thou God’s high priest?” With his usual courtesy Paul answered, “I wist not, brethren, that he was the high priest: for it is written, Thou shalt not speak evil of the ruler of thy people.

AA 411.1

“But when Paul perceived that the one part were Sadducees, and the other Pharisees, he cried out in the council, Men and brethren, I am a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee: of the hope and resurrection of the dead I am called in question.

AA 411.2

“And when he had so said, there arose a dissension between the Pharisees and the Sadducees: and the multitude was divided. For the Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, neither angel, nor spirit: but the Pharisees confess both.” The two parties began to dispute between themselves, and thus the strength of their opposition against Paul was broken. “The scribes that were of the Pharisees’ part arose, and strove, saying, We find no evil in this man: but if a spirit or an angel hath spoken to him, let us not fight against God.”

AA 412.1

In the confusion that followed, the Sadducees were eagerly striving to gain possession of the apostle, that they might put him to death; and the Pharisees were as eager in striving to protect him. “The chief captain, fearing lest Paul should have been pulled in pieces of them, commanded the soldiers to go down, and to take him by force from among them, and to bring him into the castle.”

AA 412.2

Later, while reflecting on the trying experiences of the day, Paul began to fear that his course might not have been pleasing to God. Could it be that he had made a mistake after all in visiting Jerusalem? Had his great desire to be in union with his brethren led to this disastrous result?

AA 412.3

The position which the Jews as God’s professed people occupied before an unbelieving world, caused the apostle intense anguish of spirit. How would those heathen officers look upon them?—claiming to be worshipers of Jehovah, and assuming sacred office, yet giving themselves up to the control of blind, unreasoning anger, seeking to destroy even their brethren who dared to differ with them in religious faith, and turning their most solemn deliberative council into a scene of strife and wild confusion. Paul felt that the name of his God had suffered reproach in the eyes of the heathen.

AA 412.4

And now he was in prison, and he knew that his enemies, in their desperate malice, would resort to any means to put him to death. Could it be that his work for the churches was ended and that ravening wolves were to enter in now? The cause of Christ was very near to Paul’s heart, and with deep anxiety he thought of the perils of the scattered churches, exposed as they were to the persecutions of just such men as he had encountered in the Sanhedrin council. In distress and discouragement he wept and prayed.

AA 413.1

In this dark hour the Lord was not unmindful of His servant. He had guarded him from the murderous throng in the temple courts; He had been with him before the Sanhedrin council; He was with him in the fortress; and He revealed Himself to His faithful witness in response to the earnest prayers of the apostle for guidance. “The night following the Lord stood by him, and said, Be of good cheer, Paul: for as thou hast testified of Me in Jerusalem, so must thou bear witness also at Rome.”

AA 413.2

Paul had long looked forward to visiting Rome; he greatly desired to witness for Christ there, but had felt that his purposes were frustrated by the enmity of the Jews. He little thought, even now, that it would be as a prisoner that he would go.

AA 413.3

While the Lord encouraged His servant, Paul’s enemies were eagerly plotting his destruction. “And when it was day, certain of the Jews banded together, and bound themselves under a curse, saying that they would neither eat nor drink till they had killed Paul. And they were more than forty which had made this conspiracy.” Here was a fast such as the Lord through Isaiah had condemned—a fast “for strife and debate, and to smite with the fist of wickedness.” Isaiah 58:4.

AA 413.4

The conspirators “came to the chief priests and elders, and said, We have bound ourselves under a great curse, that we will eat nothing until we have slain Paul. Now therefore ye with the council signify to the chief captain that he bring him down unto you tomorrow, as though ye would inquire something more perfectly concerning him: and we, or ever he come near, are ready to kill him.”

AA 414.1

Instead of rebuking this cruel scheme, the priests and rulers eagerly agreed to it. Paul had spoken the truth when he compared Ananias to a whited sepulcher.

AA 414.2

But God interposed to save the life of His servant. Paul’s sister’s son, hearing of the “lying in wait” of the assassins, “went and entered into the castle, and told Paul. Then Paul called one of the centurions unto him, and said, Bring this young man unto the chief captain: for he hath a certain thing to tell him. So he took him, and brought him to the chief captain, and said, Paul the prisoner called me unto him, and prayed me to bring this young man unto thee, who hath something to say unto thee.”

AA 414.3

Claudius Lysias received the youth kindly, and taking him aside, asked, “What is that thou hast to tell me?” The youth replied: “The Jews have agreed to desire thee that thou wouldest bring down Paul tomorrow into the council, as though they would inquire somewhat of him more perfectly. But do not thou yield unto them: for there lie in wait for him of them more than forty men, which have bound themselves with an oath, that they will neither eat nor drink till they have killed him: and now are they ready, looking for a promise from thee.”

AA 414.4

“The chief captain then let the young man depart, and charged him, See thou tell no man that thou hast showed these things to me.”

AA 415.1

Lysias at once decided to transfer Paul from his jurisdiction to that of Felix the procurator. As a people, the Jews were in a state of excitement and irritation, and tumults were of frequent occurrence. The continued presence of the apostle in Jerusalem might lead to consequences dangerous to the city and even to the commandant himself. He therefore “called unto him two centurions, saying, Make ready two hundred soldiers to go to Caesarea, and horsemen threescore and ten, and spearmen two hundred, at the third hour of the night; and provide them beasts, that they may set Paul on, and bring him safe unto Felix the governor.”

AA 415.2

No time was to be lost in sending Paul away. “The soldiers, as it was commanded them, took Paul, and brought him by night to Antipatris.” From that place the horsemen went on with the prisoner to Caesarea, while the four hundred soldiers returned to Jerusalem.

AA 415.3

The officer in charge of the detachment delivered his prisoner to Felix, also presenting a letter with which he had been entrusted by the chief captain:

AA 415.4

“Claudius Lysias unto the most excellent governor Felix sendeth greeting. This man was taken of the Jews, and should have been killed of them: then came I with an army, and rescued him, having understood that he was a Roman. And when I would have known the cause wherefore they accused him, I brought him forth into their council: whom I perceived to be accused of questions of their law, but to have nothing laid to his charge worthy of death or of bonds. And when it was told me how that the Jews laid wait for the man, I sent straightway to thee, and gave commandment to his accusers also to say before thee what they had against him. Farewell.”

AA 416.1

After reading the communication, Felix inquired to what province the prisoner belonged, and being informed that he was of Cilicia, said: “I will hear thee ... when thine accusers are also come. And he commanded him to be kept in Herod’s judgment hall.”

AA 416.2

The case of Paul was not the first in which a servant of God had found among the heathen an asylum from the malice of the professed people of Jehovah. In their rage against Paul the Jews had added another crime to the dark catalogue which marked the history of that people. They had still further hardened their hearts against the truth and had rendered their doom more certain.

AA 416.3

Few realize the full meaning of the words that Christ spoke when, in the synagogue at Nazareth, He announced Himself as the Anointed One. He declared His mission to comfort, bless, and save the sorrowing and the sinful; and then, seeing that pride and unbelief controlled the hearts of His hearers, He reminded them that in time past God had turned away from His chosen people because of their unbelief and rebellion, and had manifested Himself to those in heathen lands who had not rejected the light of heaven. The widow of Sarepta and Naaman the Syrian had lived up to all the light they had; hence they were accounted more righteous than God’s chosen people who had backslidden from Him and had sacrificed principle to convenience and worldly honor.

AA 417.1

Christ told the Jews at Nazareth a fearful truth when He declared that with backsliding Israel there was no safety for the faithful messenger of God. They would not know his worth or appreciate his labors. While the Jewish leaders professed to have great zeal for the honor of God and the good of Israel, they were enemies of both. By precept and example they were leading the people farther and farther from obedience to God—leading them where He could not be their defense in the day of trouble.

AA 417.2

The Saviour’s words of reproof to the men of Nazareth applied, in the case of Paul, not only to the unbelieving Jews, but to his own brethren in the faith. Had the leaders in the church fully surrendered their feeling of bitterness toward the apostle, and accepted him as one specially called of God to bear the gospel to the Gentiles, the Lord would have spared him to them. God had not ordained that Paul’s labors should so soon end, but He did not work a miracle to counteract the train of circumstances to which the course of the leaders in the church at Jerusalem had given rise.

AA 417.3

The same spirit is still leading to the same results. A neglect to appreciate and improve the provisions of divine grace has deprived the church of many a blessing. How often would the Lord have prolonged the work of some faithful minister, had his labors been appreciated! But if the church permits the enemy of souls to pervert the understanding, so that they misrepresent and misinterpret the words and acts of the servant of Christ; if they allow themselves to stand in his way and hinder his usefulness, the Lord sometimes removes from them the blessing which He gave.

AA 418.1

Satan is constantly working through his agents to dishearten and destroy those whom God has chosen to accomplish a great and good work. They may be ready to sacrifice even life itself for the advancement of the cause of Christ, yet the great deceiver will suggest to their brethren doubts concerning them which, if entertained, would undermine confidence in their integrity of character, and thus cripple their usefulness. Too often he succeeds in bringing upon them, through their own brethren, such sorrow of heart that God graciously interposes to give His persecuted servants rest. After the hands are folded upon the pulseless breast, when the voice of warning and encouragement is silent, then the obdurate may be aroused to see and prize the blessings they have cast from them. Their death may accomplish that which their life has failed to do.

Sons and Daughters of God

We Are to Be Zealous in Our Labors, September 13

SD 263.1

I am verily a man which ... was zealous toward God, as ye all are this day. Acts 22:3.

Selected Messages Book 1

Chapter 26—The Perfect Law

1SM 214.3

The belief of a falsehood did not make Paul a kind, tender, compassionate man. He was a religious zealot, exceedingly mad against the truth concerning Jesus. He went through the country, haling men and women, and committing them to prison. Speaking of this, he says: “I am verily a man which am a Jew, born in Tarsus, a city in Cilicia, yet brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, and taught according to the perfect manner of the law of the fathers, and was zealous toward God, as ye all are this day. And I persecuted this way unto the death, binding and delivering into prisons both men and women” (Acts 22:3, 4).

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 12 (1897)

Ms 16, 1897

12LtMs, Ms 16, 1897, par. 26

“And I persecuted this way unto the death, binding and delivering into prisons both men and women. ... And it came to pass that when I was come again to Jerusalem, even while I prayed in the temple, I was in a trance; and I saw him saying unto me, Make haste, and get thee quickly out of Jerusalem; for they will not receive thy testimony concerning me. And I said, Lord, they know that I imprisoned and beat in every synagogue them that believed on thee and when the blood of thy martyr Stephen was shed, I also was standing by, and consenting unto his death, and kept the raiment of them that slew him. And he said, Depart; for I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles.” [Acts 22:3, 4, 18-21.]

12LtMs, Ms 16, 1897, par. 27

These bigoted Jews entertained the idea that the Gentiles were not to have the light of truth. “And they gave him audience unto this word, and then lifted up their voices, and said, Away with such a fellow from the earth; for it is not fit that he should live.” And they “cried out, and cast off their clothes, and threw dust into the air.” [Verses 22, 23.] Was this the inspiration of God or of Satan?

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 12 (1897)

Ms 142, 1897

12LtMs, Ms 142, 1897, par. 10

Paul had an abundance of energy and zeal to work out an erroneous faith in persecuting the saints of God, confining them in prisons and putting them to death. Although his hand did not do the work of murder, yet he had a voice in the decisions and zealously sustained them. He prepared the way, and game up the believers of the gospel into hands that took their lives. In reference to his zeal Paul himself says, “I was exceedingly mad against them.” “I persecuted this way unto the death, binding and delivering into prisons both men and women.” [Acts 26:11; 22:4.]

Letters and Manuscripts — Volume 22 (1907)

Lt 332, 1907

22LtMs, Lt 332, 1907, par. 5

Paul was not an unlearned man, but the preaching of Christ was a new gospel to him. It was a work entirely different [from] that he had engaged in when he hunted the believers from place to place, and persecuted them even “unto the death.” [Acts 22:4.] But Christ had revealed Himself to Paul in a remarkable manner at his conversion. At the gate of Damascus the vision of the Crucified One changed the whole current of his life. The persecutor became a disciple, the teacher a learner.

From Trials to Triumph

Chapter 12—From Saul to Paul: Persecutor to Disciple

TT 61.2

As the weary travelers neared Damascus, “at midday” they came within view of fertile lands, beautiful gardens, and fruitful orchards, watered by cool streams from the mountains. While Saul gazed with admiration on the fair city below, “suddenly,” as he afterward declared, there shone “round about me and them which journeyed with me” “a light from heaven, above the brightness of the sun.” Blinded, Saul fell prostrate to the ground. He heard “a voice speaking ... in the Hebrew tongue, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou Me? ... I am Jesus whom thou persecutest.” Acts 22:6; 26:13-15.

Ye Shall Receive Power

Paul, September 27

YRP 279.2

The solemn charge that had been given Paul on the occasion of his interview with Ananias rested with increasing weight upon his heart. When, in response to the invitation “Brother Saul, receive thy sight,” Paul had for the first time looked upon the face of this devout man, Ananias under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit said to him: “The God of our fathers hath chosen thee, that thou shouldest know his will, and see that Just One, and shouldest hear the voice of his mouth. For thou shalt be his witness unto all men of what thou hast seen and heard. And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord” (Acts 22:13-16).

The Acts of the Apostles

Chapter 13—Days of Preparation

AA 126.2

The solemn charge that had been given Paul on the occasion of his interview with Ananias, rested with increasing weight upon his heart. When, in response to the word, “Brother Saul, receive thy sight,” Paul had for the first time looked upon the face of this devout man, Ananias under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit said to him: “The God of our fathers hath chosen thee, that thou shouldest know His will, and see that Just One, and shouldest hear the voice of His mouth. For thou shalt be His witness unto all men of what thou hast seen and heard. And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord.” Acts 22:13-16.

AA 130.1

Burdened in behalf of those who refused to believe, Paul was praying in the temple, as he himself afterward testified, when he fell into a trance; whereupon a heavenly messenger appeared before him and said, “Make haste, and get thee quickly out of Jerusalem: for they will not receive thy testimony concerning Me.” Acts 22:18.

AA 130.2

Paul was inclined to remain at Jerusalem, where he could face the opposition. To him it seemed an act of cowardice to flee, if by remaining he might be able to convince some of the obstinate Jews of the truth of the gospel message, even if to remain should cost him his life. And so he answered, “Lord, they know that I imprisoned and beat in every synagogue them that believed on Thee: and when the blood of Thy martyr Stephen was shed, I was also standing by, and consenting unto his death, and kept the raiment of them that slew him.” But it was not in harmony with the purpose of God that His servant should needlessly expose his life; and the heavenly messenger replied, “Depart: for I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles.” Acts 22:19-21.

From Trials to Triumph

Paul’s “University” in the Desert

TT 67.5

Ananias under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit had said to Paul: “The God of our fathers hath chosen thee, that thou shouldest know His will, and see that Just One, and shouldest hear the voice of His mouth. For thou shalt be His witness unto all men of what thou hast seen and heard. And now why tarriest thou? Arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord.” Acts 22:14-16.

The Faith I Live By

When Rebaptism Is Appropriate, May 22

FLB 148.1

And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord. Acts 22:16.

The Story of Redemption

Chapter 38—The Early Ministry of Paul

SR 276.1

Paul now returned to Damascus and preached boldly in the name of Jesus. The Jews could not withstand the wisdom of his arguments, and they therefore counseled together to silence his voice by force—the only argument left to a sinking cause. They decided to assassinate him. The apostle was made acquainted with their purpose. The gates of the city were vigilantly guarded, day and night, to cut off his escape. The anxiety of the disciples drew them to God in prayer; there was little sleeping among them, as they were busy in devising ways and means for the escape of the chosen apostle. Finally they conceived a plan by which he was let down from a window and lowered over the wall in a basket at night. In this humiliating manner Paul made his escape from Damascus.

SR 276.2

He now proceeded to Jerusalem, wishing to become acquainted with the apostles there, and especially with Peter. He was very anxious to meet the Galilean fishermen who had lived, and prayed, and conversed with Christ upon earth. It was with a yearning heart that he desired to meet the chief of apostles. As Paul entered Jerusalem, he regarded with changed views the city and the temple. He now knew that the retributive judgment of God was hanging over them.

SR 276.3

The grief and anger of the Jews because of the conversion of Paul knew no bounds. But he was firm as a rock, and flattered himself that when he related his wonderful experience to his friends, they would change their faith as he had done, and believe on Jesus. He had been strictly conscientious in his opposition to Christ and His followers, and when he was arrested and convicted of his sin, he immediately forsook his evil ways and professed the faith of Jesus. He now fully believed that when his friends and former associates heard the circumstances of his marvelous conversion, and saw how changed he was from the proud Pharisee who persecuted and delivered unto death those who believed in Jesus as the Son of God, they would also become convicted of their error and join the ranks of the believers.

SR 277.1

He attempted to join himself to his brethren, the disciples; but great was his grief and disappointment when he found that they would not receive him as one of their number. They remembered his former persecutions, and suspected him of acting a part to deceive and destroy them. True, they had heard of his wonderful conversion, but as he had immediately retired into Arabia, and they had heard nothing definite of him further, they had not credited the rumor of his great change.

SR 277.2

Barnabas, who had liberally contributed his money to sustain the cause of Christ and to relieve the necessities of the poor, had been acquainted with Paul when he opposed the believers. He now came forward and renewed that acquaintance, heard the testimony of Paul in regard to his miraculous conversion and his experience from that time. He fully believed and received Paul, took him by the hand and led him into the presence of the apostles. He related his experience which he had just heard—that Jesus had personally appeared to Paul while on his way to Damascus; that He had talked with him; that Paul had recovered his sight in answer to the prayers of Ananias, and had afterward maintained that Jesus was the Son of God in the synagogues of that city.

SR 278.1

The apostles no longer hesitated; they could not withstand God. Peter and James, who at that time were the only apostles in Jerusalem, gave the right hand of fellowship to the once fierce persecutor of their faith; and he was now as much beloved and respected as he had formerly been feared and avoided. Here the two grand characters of the new faith met—Peter, one of the chosen companions of Christ while He was upon earth, and Paul, the Pharisee, who, since the ascension of Jesus, had met Him face to face and had talked with Him, and had also seen Him in vision, and the nature of His work in heaven.

SR 278.2

This first interview was of great consequence to both these apostles, but it was of short duration, for Paul was eager to get about his Master’s business. Soon the voice which had so earnestly disputed with Stephen was heard in the same synagogue fearlessly proclaiming that Jesus was the Son of God—advocating the same cause that Stephen had died to vindicate. He related his own wonderful experience, and with a heart filled with yearning for his brethren and former associates, presented the evidences from prophecy, as Stephen had done, that Jesus, who had been crucified, was the Son of God.

SR 278.3

But Paul had miscalculated the spirit of his Jewish brethren. The same fury that had burst forth upon Stephen was visited upon himself. He saw that he must separate from his brethren, and sorrow filled his heart. He would willingly have yielded up his life if by that means they might have been brought to a knowledge of the truth. The Jews began to lay plans to take his life, and the disciples urged him to leave Jerusalem; but he lingered, unwilling to leave the place, and anxious to labor a little longer for his Jewish brethren. He had taken so active a part in the martyrdom of Stephen that he was deeply anxious to wipe out the stain by boldly vindicating the truth which had cost Stephen his life. It looked to him like cowardice to flee from Jerusalem.

SR 279.1

While Paul, braving all the consequences of such a step, was praying earnestly to God in the temple, the Saviour appeared to him in vision, saying, “Make haste, and get thee quickly out of Jerusalem: for they will not receive thy testimony concerning Me.” Paul even then hesitated to leave Jerusalem without convincing the obstinate Jews of the truth of his faith; he thought that, even if his life should be sacrificed for the truth, it would not more than settle the fearful account which he held against himself for the death of Stephen. He answered, “Lord, they know that I imprisoned and beat in every synagogue them that believed on Thee: and when the blood of Thy martyr Stephen was shed, I also was standing by, and consenting unto his death, and kept the raiment of them that slew him.” But the reply was more decided than before: “Depart: for I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles.”

SR 279.2

When the brethren learned of the vision of Paul, and the care which God had over him, their anxiety on his behalf was increased; for they realized that he was indeed a chosen vessel of the Lord, to bear the truth to the Gentiles. They hastened his secret escape from Jerusalem, for fear of his assassination by the Jews. The departure of Paul suspended for a time the violent opposition of the Jews, and the church had a period of rest, in which many were added to the number of believers.

From Trials to Triumph

The Former Persecutor Is Persecuted

TT 69.3

Burdened for those who refused to believe, Paul was praying in the temple when a heavenly messenger appeared and said, “Make haste, and get thee quickly out of Jerusalem: for they will not receive thy testimony concerning Me.” Acts 22:18. To Paul it seemed an act of cowardice to flee. And so he answered: “Lord, they themselves know that in every synagogue I imprisoned and beat those who believed in Thee. And when the blood of Stephen Thy witness was shed, I also was standing by and approving, and keeping the garments of those who killed him.” But it was not the purpose of God that His servant should needlessly expose his life, and the heavenly messenger replied, “Depart; for I will send you far away to the Gentiles.” Verses 19-21, RSV.

Christ’s Object Lessons

Chapter 2—“The Sower Went Forth to Sow”

COL 36.2

His servants in like manner must go forth to sow. When called to become a sower of the seed of truth, Abraham was bidden, “Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will show thee.” Genesis 12:1. “And he went out, not knowing whither he went.” Hebrews 11:8. So to the apostle Paul, praying in the temple at Jerusalem, came the message from God, “Depart; for I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles.” Acts 22:21. So those who are called to unite with Christ must leave all, in order to follow Him. Old associations must be broken up, plans of life relinquished, earthly hopes surrendered. In toil and tears, in solitude, and through sacrifice, must the seed be sown.

Jesus, Name Above All Names

Heavenly Sower, September 9

JNN 267.3

His servants in like manner must go forth to sow. When called to become a sower of the seed of truth, Abraham was bidden, “Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father’s house, unto a land that I will show thee” (Genesis 12:1). “And he went out, not knowing whither he went” (Hebrews 11:8). So to the apostle Paul, praying in the temple at Jerusalem, came the message from God, “Depart; for I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles” (Acts 22:21). So those who are called to unite with Christ must leave all, in order to follow Him. Old associations must be broken up, plans of life relinquished, earthly hopes surrendered. In toil and tears, in solitude, and through sacrifice, must the seed be sown.

Early Writings

The Reckoning of the Prophetic Periods

EW xiii.2

“The seventy weeks, or 490 years, especially allotted to the Jews, ended, as we have seen, in A.D. 34. At that time, through the action of the Jewish Sanhedrim, the nation sealed its rejection of the gospel by the martyrdom of Stephen and the persecution of the followers of Christ. Then the message of salvation, no longer restricted to the chosen people, was given to the world. The disciples, forced by persecution to flee from Jerusalem, ‘went everywhere preaching the word.’ ‘Philip went down to the city of Samaria, and preached Christ unto them.’ Peter, divinely guided, opened the gospel to the centurion of Caesarea, the God-fearing Cornelius; and the ardent Paul, won to the faith of Christ, was commissioned to carry the glad tidings ‘far hence unto the Gentiles.’ [Acts 8:4, 5; Acts 22:21.]

Gospel Workers (1915 ed.)

Consecration

GW 112.2

So to the apostle Paul, praying in the temple at Jerusalem, came the message, “Depart: for I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles.” [Acts 22:21.] So those who are called to unite with Christ must leave all in order to follow Him. Old associations must be broken up, plans of life relinquished, earthly hopes surrendered. In toil and tears, in solitude and through sacrifice, must the seed be sown.

The Acts of the Apostles

Chapter 16—The Gospel Message in Antioch

AA 159.1

Paul’s labors at Antioch, in association with Barnabas, strengthened him in his conviction that the Lord had called him to do a special work for the Gentile world. At the time of Paul’s conversion, the Lord had declared that he was to be made a minister to the Gentiles, “to open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in Me.” Acts 26:18. The angel that appeared to Ananias had said of Paul, “He is a chosen vessel unto Me, to bear My name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel.” Acts 9:15. And Paul himself, later in his Christian experience, while praying in the temple at Jerusalem, had been visited by an angel from heaven, who bade him, “Depart: for I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles.” Acts 22:21.

The Acts of the Apostles

Chapter 23—Berea and Athens

AA 233.1

Thus persecution followed the teachers of truth from city to city. The enemies of Christ could not prevent the advancement of the gospel, but they succeeded in making the work of the apostles exceedingly hard. Yet in the face of opposition and conflict, Paul pressed steadily forward, determined to carry out the purpose of God as revealed to him in the vision at Jerusalem: “I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles.” Acts 22:21.

The Great Controversy

Chapter 18—An American Reformer

GC 328.1

The seventy weeks, or 490 years, especially allotted to the Jews, ended, as we have seen, in A.D. 34. At that time, through the action of the Jewish Sanhedrin, the nation sealed its rejection of the gospel by the martyrdom of Stephen and the persecution of the followers of Christ. Then the message of salvation, no longer restricted to the chosen people, was given to the world. The disciples, forced by persecution to flee from Jerusalem, “went everywhere preaching the word.” “Philip went down to the city of Samaria, and preached Christ unto them.” Peter, divinely guided, opened the gospel to the centurion of Caesarea, the God-fearing Cornelius; and the ardent Paul, won to the faith of Christ, was commissioned to carry the glad tidings “far hence unto the Gentiles.” Acts 8:4, 5; 22:21.

The Great Controversy (1888 ed.)

Chapter 18—An American Reformer

GC88 328.1

The seventy weeks, or 490 years, especially allotted to the Jews, ended, as we have seen, in A. D. 34. At that time, through the action of the Jewish Sanhedrim, the nation sealed its rejection of the gospel, by the martyrdom of Stephen and the persecution of the followers of Christ. Then the message of salvation, no longer restricted to the chosen people, was given to the world. The disciples, forced by persecution to flee from Jerusalem, “went everywhere preaching the Word.” “Philip went down to the city of Samaria, and preached Christ unto them.” [Acts 8:4, 5; 22:21.] Peter, divinely guided, opened the gospel to the centurion of Cesarea, the God-fearing Cornelius; and the ardent Paul, won to the faith of Christ, was commissioned to carry the glad tidings “far hence unto the Gentiles.” [Acts 8:4, 5; 22:21.]

The Truth About Angels

Paul Leaves Damascus

TA 229.5

Paul’s labors at Antioch, in association with Barnabas, strengthened him in his conviction that the Lord had called him to do a special work for the Gentile world. At the time of Paul’s conversion, the Lord had declared that he was to be made a minister to the Gentiles, “to open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive the forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in Me.” Acts 26:18. The angel that appeared to Ananias, had said of Paul, “He is a chosen vessel unto Me, to bear My name before the Gentiles, and kings, and the children of Israel.” Acts 9:15. And Paul himself, later in his Christian experience, while praying in the temple at Jerusalem, had been visited by an angel from heaven, who bade him, “Depart: for I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles.” Acts 22:21.—The Acts of the Apostles, 159.

Christ in His Sanctuary

The Prophecy of Daniel 8:14

CIHS 85.3

The seventy weeks, or 490 years, especially allotted to the Jews, ended, as we have seen, in A.D. 34. At that time, through the action of the Jewish Sanhedrin, the nation sealed its rejection of the gospel by the martyrdom of Stephen and the persecution of the followers of Christ. Then the message of salvation, no longer restricted to the chosen people, was given to the world. The disciples, forced by persecution to flee from Jerusalem, “went everywhere preaching the word.” “Philip went down to the city of Samaria, and preached Christ unto them.” Peter, divinely guided, opened the gospel to the centurion of Caesarea, the God-fearing Cornelius; and the ardent Paul, won to the faith of Christ, was commissioned to carry the glad tidings “far hence unto the Gentiles.” Acts 8:4, 5; 22:21.