Comments for November 12

v.17,20 - The Nethinims, is seems, (mentioned here and also in 2:43,58,70, 7:7, 8:17,20, 1Chr.9:2, Neh.3:26,31, 7:46,60,73, 10:28, 11:3,21 ), were a type of temple slave that were assigned to be of help to the Levites.

Up to the end of chapter 7 the record was not written by Ezra. It speaks in the third person about Ezra - 'this Ezra' Ezra 7:8 but now as the account is in the first person 'me' Ezra 8:1 so we can conclude that Ezra wrote down the things that we read from this point.

v. 17 - Iddo, it appears, was the grandfather of the prophet Zechariah, being the father of Berechiah

8:22 The way that Ezra speaks of his thinking about the provision of a guard for him is instructive. Because he had already said that God was working for them and the work of going up to Jerusalem was of God he did not want to avail himself of the worldly help offered. Ezra truly trusted his God. Where do we stand on such issues?

8:35  Whilst we might think that the 'important' individuals who had gone to Jerusalem - for example Ezra - would have been the ones who made the offerings. However we note it was the children of those who had been taken captivity. It must have been a great encouragement to these men and women to be able to sacrifice in a place that they had only ever heard of up to this time.

8:28  In reminding the priests that they were holy to the Lord Ezra is emphasising the need for integrity. These men had entrusted to them large amounts of precious metals. Ezra was concerned that the men would be honest in their dealings. Holiness is the guard against sin.

Do we see our holiness as a reason for being totally honest or do we not even think about the fact that we are holy and should behave as such (1Pet 1:15-16)

There’s a wonderfully human insight into Ezra’s character in Ezra 8:21-23. This is the sort of description that helps us to realise that these great Godly men of the Old Testament were ever so much like us.  Ezra had been offered soldiers and horsemen to accompany him, but had refused the king’s offer  -  why? Because he had already told the king that God would protect him. Ezra, unlike Cromwell, didn’t pray and still keep his powder dry. Ezra refused the powder!

Vs.21-23 The road from Babylon to Jerusalem was dangerous, being occupied by bandits.  Because Ezra had made a statement of faith concerning Yahweh, he felt it would be inconsistent to ask the king for protection on the journey. (Later, it appears that Nehemiah had no such conflict of faith (Neh 2:9)). 

And so, Ezra petitioned Yahweh for a safe journey and Yahweh listened.  Then he divided the treasures between 24 men and recorded each one's portion (vs.24-30,34).  Each man was responsible for just over one ton of material. 

Dividing the material among 24 men was, of course, to share the burden.  But it was also precautionary to divide the goods on such a perilous journey given that they were unguarded and going through bandit territory. 

There appears to be a lesson here.  Although we put our trust in Yahweh and ask Him for help, we have the obligation to do everything reasonable to prepare ourselves for an event (Prov 16:3,9).

8:18  Ezra is ready to acknowledge that the things that benefited them were ‘of God’ saying ‘by the good hand of our God …’. How often do we think that when things work out well for us that the event is a consequence of our own skill?

8:23  Having declined support from ‘the world’ Ezra does not presume support from his God. So he and those with him prayed and fasted before leaving on their four month journey.

8:33-34 It would appear that after the long, hard journey to Jerusalem, that the first three days after their arrival were spent resting. It was not until the fourth day that the treasures were weighed, and in turn handed over to the custody of the officiating priests of the temple.

8:21 Ezra saw the whole of his ambitions towards going to the land of Israel was of God – so he did not feel it appropriate to ask for a military escort. However he does not just leave it at that. He involves those who are to go with him in supplication to God for a safe journey.

8:23 So the journey prospered and they arrived safely in the land. So Ezra now recognises that God had delivered them. It is so easy, when a prayer has been answered, to forget that we asked the prayer and that God has been entreated of us.

V.15 Ezra could not persuade the Levites to join him in the venture to Jerusalem.

V.17 Ezra’s appeal to Iddo persuaded 38 Levites and 220 Nethinims to join the returnees at the Ahava camp.

The Nethinims were the descendants of the Gibeonites (Josh 9:3 etc.) They were now general helpers around the temple.

Vs.21-23 Ezra put himself and his fellow travellers in the hands of Yahweh for safe passage to Jerusalem. He had rejected worldly protection. His faith should be an example and encouragement for us (Psa 118:8,9).

V.24 etc. Ezra distributed the very rich cargo amongst the priests and Levites. Each one was responsible for his portion that would be checked in Jerusalem.

8:15 It might have been thought that it did not matter who returned to help in a building project. However this was no ordinary building project. It was the house of God. Therefore people skilled in the Law of Moses had to be involved. Likewise in our building the house of God it has to be built according to the Divine instructions given in His word. If we ignore His instructions or seek advice from others not ‘in Christ’ we run the risk of building inappropriately

Ezra 8:15 - "abode we in tents" [Heb. "chanah" (2583) means "to decline, to incline, encamp, bend down, lie, rest in a tent, grow to an end"] three days;  Ezra 8:32 - "...came to Jerusalem and abode there three days..." (could these two verses be echoes of Christ's being in the tomb three days?).

Ezra 8:28 - "...the vessels" [Heb. "keliy" (3627) means "something prepared, any apparatus, vessel, etc."]  are holy also; and the silver and gold are a free will offering..." [is the vessel not unlike how Christ and/or his followers were prepared as saints and how Christ was redeemed from sin (i.e. silver) and refined his faith to perfection (i.e. gold) before freely offering his life?].

Ezra 8:31 - "...he delivered us from the hand of the enemy..." (is this possibly an echo of the sacrificial provision of deliverance from sin and death?).

Ezra 8:35 - "...the children...which were come out of the captivity, offered burnt offerings..." (perhaps an echo of coming out of captivity to sin and death through Christ's sacrificial offering).

Ezra 8:33 - "...was the silver and the gold and the vessels weighed in the house of our God by the hand of Meremoth..." ["weighed" Heb. "shaqal" (8254) means "suspend, pay, receive, weigh", etc.], ["Meremoth" (4822) means "heights, elevations" and is derived from Heb. "rum" (7311) meaning "to be high, to rise or raise (literally or figuratively), to exalt, hold up, lift", etc.].

8:31   If we compare this passage with Ezra 7:9 we see that the preparation before leaving on the journey took 12 days.

8:1   Again, like in Ezra 2:2-63 we have a list of the faithful  who believed the promises of God and were willing to suffer privations that they might be part of the fulfilment of those promises.  Do we prefer the comfortable life of ‘Babylon’ or are we happy to suffer for our faith?

8:18    Isn’t it interesting to see how God always provides a man who meets the needs of the time? Here, of all the men that could have come in response to Ezra’s request, “a man of understanding” came.  So often God raises up men who meet His exact needs. This should help us to realise that God is always in control even though often it seems that men are simply doing what they think best.

8:36   So the people, recognising the commitment of Artaxerxes, - see 77:21 – are happy to comply with what the king has decreed.  

Trusting in God instead of armies

Imagine this. A small band of people, without soldiers to protect them, had to make a journey of several months through fairly deserted territory to the land of Israel. This was difficult enough, but what really worried Ezra was the large quantity of Gold and Silver they were carrying (v25-27). There was clearly an "enemy" lying in wait for this treasure along the way (v22). The specifics of this journey aren't recorded and all we are told is this:

"the hand of our God was upon us, and he delivered us from the hand of the enemy, and of such as lay in wait by the way." v31

What do you think happened along the way, and what did God do to save them? If it were you, would you have taken this journey? Would our trust in God be strong enough?

8:24-28         the amount of precious metals weighted out to each priest was tremendous. Some might have found it a great temptation. However, in telling the men that they were “holy unto the Lord”, their focus was encouraged to be on the work, not on the precious metals.

8:16   We should not think that sending for Levites was a small affair. Ezra and others had come from Babylon. So to send to Levite would require travelling to Babylon and finding Levites and then the return journey. Given that journey took 4 months we can imagine that about 8 months passed before the Levites arrived from Babylon.

8:23     The fact that God was intreated – that is he answered their prayer – is an indication that not only were their hearts right with God but He was happy with their decision. Their prayer was according to His will – 1John 5:14. 

8:22  The sentiments expressed by Ezra here echo those of Azariah as recorded in 2Sam 15:2

8:3-14 Do you think that Ezra was encouraged or discouraged by the fact that 1,496 men returned with him? Give the number who had been taken captive the number is quite insignificant. It would appear that many had decided that their future was in Babylon, not in returning to the land promised to their fathers.

8:17 Caphia is in Babylon. So Ezra sent back to the place where the captives and come from to find Levites. This must have taken quite some time.

8:22-23 Ezra, having already placed his trust in God declined the king’s escort. However having already placed his trust in his God he and the people still fasted and prayed. We need to understand that it not sufficient to say that we trust God. We need also to demonstrate that by praying for His care.

8:15 The Jews living in captivity would have built houses and lived in them as Jeremiah had instructed them – Jer 29:5 – so the mention of dwelling in tents for three days is an indication of the privations that those returning to the land of Israel would experience.  This is an indication of their commitment to the project of returning to Jerusalem.

8:32 Given the journey from Babylon to Jerusalem would have been arduous we could be forgiven for thinking that Ezra just was resting for three days. However it is far more likely that he was marshalling the material and people who had come from Babylon in readiness for the word in hand.

8:1  It is generally understood that Artaxerxes is the same person as Ahasuerus that we find in the book of Esther. If this is so we might conclude that the mass exodus from the land of the Chaldeans to the land of Israel was a consequence of the thwarted evil intentions of Haman who had sought to kill all the Jews in the provinces.

v.4 mourners - the Hebrew is 0205 aven . It is normally translated wicked, vanity, mischief etc. The root word means to pant from exertion which has no gain.

9:7 visitation Luke 21:22
9:9 as in the day of Gibeah Judges 19:22
9:10 went to Baal-Peor Numbers 25:3
9:12 Though they bring ... bereave them Deuteronomy 28:41
9:17 wanderers among the nations Deuteronomy 28:64
9:3 'eat unclean things in Assyria' 2 Kings 17:3 - 6 Hoshea was taken to Assyria.

9:10 - 15 Baal-Peor refers to the events of Balaam in Num 25. These events took place in the plains of Moab at Shittim before Israel passed over Jordan to Gilgal. The mention of Baal-Peor in v10 and Gilgal in v15 catches the events of the time. Like 'remember from Shittim to Gilgal' Micah 6:5 where Micah who was a contemporary prophet with Hosea makes the same point.

v.8 - It would be easy to conclude, as indeed some do, that Israel have no part left to play in God's purpose. If it were left to passages like this we would believe that, but the watchmen of Ephraim will have their day, as shown in Jer.31:6 , which will lead to the possibility of their forgiveness and their place in God's kingdom.

9:10 That Israel was found as 'the first ripe in the fig tree' is rather like the way that Jesus came to the fig tree ( Matthew 21:19 ) looking for fruit. The nation should always have been bringing forth fruit - not just once a year. The fathers had done so - Abraham Isaac and Jacob ( your fathers :10 ).

The repeated use of the language of Deut 28 - see above - was designed to highlight the reason for Israel's captivity. They had turned away from God and were consequently suffering the curses that they had accepted. The fact that they had separated themselves from Judah in the days of Jeroboam did not make them immune to the judgements of God.

Hos 9:1. Here the Children of Israel are told to rejoice not, but in the law rejoicing was a part of their activities, at the times of the feasts. (DEUT.16) At this point of time they have fallen to such a degree that there was nothing to rejoice about, nothing to be happy about, they have left their God, and they shall not at this time dwell in the Lord’s land. 

Hos 9:7. It is interesting to note that prophets are now added to the people, priests and the king, which we read the other day in 5:1. 

OBEDIENCE
 
Hosea said of Israel, "My God will reject them because they have not obeyed him, they will be wanderers among the nations." (Hos 9:17)  Hosea could have said a number of different things.  He could have said that God rejected them because they had not loved him, trusted him, worshipped him or believed him.  All those descriptions would have been right, but he chose to speak of their lack of obedience.
 
Obedience is the outward sign of loving, trusting, worshipping and believing God.  Trust is difficult to see unless that trust is put to the test in action.  Love is shown in its actions.  Worship is shown in the things we choose to do, and belief is shown through faith in action.  Obedience is the key. 
 
Jesus said, "Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me." (John 14:21)  Obviously the same lesson applies to us as was given to Israel.  Our love for our Lord is shown in our obedience.  It is no use just saying we are followers of Christ without bothering to do what he wants us to do, or even to find out how we can be obedient.  Jesus' instructions are in the Bible.  In order for us to show our love to him, we need to read the Bible, find out how he wants us to behave, and live in obedience to him.

 God rejoiced in Israel. They were His people. He describes them in today’s chapter as “Grapes in the wilderness” (Hos 9:10). You don’t find grapes in the wilderness – so unusual and welcome were Israel to God.  The rest of the nations were not interested in the Lord God, and so He looked to His people to give Him love and honour. But His people turned their back on Him. It hurt the Lord, greatly.
 

9:9 ‘The day of Gibeah’ refers to the events of Judg 19 when the Benjamites of Gibeah behaved abominably to the Levite’s concubine and then were unrepentant.

9:12 In saying that Israel will be bereaved of her children shows that God will keep His word which He had spoken – Deut 28:41

V.1 The reference to the corn floor (KJV); threshing floors (ESV) is significant as a place of worship.  Here, Israel had been given over to prostitution. 

Prostitution is often synonymous with idolatry in Biblical language.  The mention of Israel's worship of Baal-peor confirms this (v.10).  Baal-peor was a Moabite god whose worship included illicit sexual practices.  The link between prostitution and idolatry is clear in this case. 

The threshing floor was a wide open place where this kind of worship could be undertaken en masse.  By contrast, the threshing floor of Araunah (Onan) the Jebusite was purchased by David to build an altar to Yahweh (2Sam 24:18-25).  The temple was later built on this spot (traditionally Mount Moriah, were Abraham attempted to sacrifice Isaac (Gen 22:2)).

9:3 The prophet is speaking of the captivity of Samaria which took place in the end of Hoshea’s reign – hence the mention of Assyria. The use of ‘Egypt’ is to remind them of the words of the curse in Deut 28:68

9:15 In saying ‘I will drive them out of mine house’ the prophet is firstly speaking of the Babylonian captivity of Judah and then of the destruction of the temple in AD 70.

IF TRUTH HURTS...

Truth often hurts. It makes us feel uncomfortable, inadequate and guilty. We want to live our own comfortable, non-confrontational lives, doing our own thing in the way we want to do it, but when the honest truth is pointed out, we are not really as strong or as good as we think we are.

God always sent messengers to his people to tell them the truth. Most often they were needed to tell the people to change their ways and to turn back to God, but of course this message didn't always go down too well. We read of Israel's reactions to those that brought the messages in these words: "Because your sins are so many and your hostility so great, the prophet is considered a fool, the inspired man a maniac. The prophet, along with my God, is the watchman over Ephraim, yet snares await him on all his paths, and hostility in the house of his God." (Hos 9:7-8)

The people of Israel hated the message so much that they insisted the prophets were out of their minds (that way they wouldn't have to listen to them). As well as labelling these men as mentally unstable, they constantly tried to trap them, trip them up, and make life a difficult as possible for them.

Let us by no means do the same to those who speak the truth to us - even if we feel uncomfortable, inadequate or guilty because of what they say. If those feelings come, it is us that needs to change.

V.3 The expression Ephraim shall return to Egypt is figurative. Israel would return to the state of bondage that it experienced in Egypt. The overlords in this case would be the Assyrians.

V.4 The bread of mourners is an allusion to uncleanness under the Law (Deut 26:14; Eze 24:17). Israel was spiritually dead and therefore unclean.

V.6 Some people from Israel fled from the Assyrians to Egypt. But, Egypt would not be a safe haven for them.

V.8 The watchman is Yahweh’s true prophet; but the prophet (KJV) represents the false prophet who trapped Israel into idolatry.

V.9 Gibeah is a reference to the incidence in Judges where the sons of Belial tried to force their illicit sexual acts on the visiting stranger (Judg 19:16 etc.).

V.10 Baal-peor (ESV) was the god of Moab. Sexual acts were performed in the worship of this god.

V.13 Tyre held the admiration of all in the region for its beauty, wealth, and power. Israel is likened to Tyre, but destruction would be its end.

V.15 Saul was made king in Gilgal (1Sam 11:14,15). This act was a rejection of Yahweh as Israel’s God (1Sam 8:7).

The whole of this chapter uses a fruit on a tree as a simile of Israel. Their unwillingness to give God the rewards of His labours on them is described in v16 "their root is dried up; they shall bear no fruit". If you add to this the name of the tree mentioned in v10, which new testament incident can you think of? The result of v17 is the warning that this new testament person was trying to convey with that incident.

9:1 ‘Rejoice not’ indicates that Israel was revelling in their idol worship. False worship is appealing, else people would not do it. Heb 11:25 indicates that God realises that sin is pleasurable – we are foolish if we do not acknowledge this. Though the fact that we enjoy it is not a sufficient reason to do it. It just explains why we find it so appealing

9:17   The warning that they would be ‘wanderers among the nations’ reminded the Jews  that the curse of Deut 28:64 was to be fulfilled in their lives because of their rebelliousness.

9:7        Whilst the idea of the day of visitation is not uncommon in Scripture we can see that Jesus – Luke 19:44 – draws on the idea of judgement on Jerusalem when he speaks of its downfall by the hands of the Romans.

9:2      The language here speaks of a collapse in the agriculture at that time. It is echoed in the contemporary prophet – Isa 24:7.

Hos 9:16-17 – “Ephraim is smitten their roots are dried up, they shall bear no fruit, yea though they bring forth, yet will I slay the beloved even the beloved fruit of their womb.”

The words of the prophet are picked up by Jesus in Mark 11:12-14.  Jesus was hungry and looking for fruit on the fig tree.  The tree was not ready to bear fruit (Mark 11:13).  The tree was found to have only leaves and no fruit was to be found, so Jesus cursed the fig tree. The tree dried up from the roots upwards and died (Mark 11:20).

Hosea and Jesus were both delivering the same warning to Israel, they were to be removed from the land for their neglect of God’s ways.   First, by the Assyrians and Babylonians and then in Jesus time, by the Romans.

Jesus prophecy concerning the fig tree precisely parallels the prophecy of Hosea.  The warning to Israel in Old testament times were still relevant to the Jews at the time of Jesus ministry.

The example of what happened to Israel is on record for our learning.

We must seek to bear fruit for the Lord in moulding our lives according to the teaching of Jesus and the Apostles.

We must preach the Gospel and seek to witness to its truth in our lives when we get the opportunity. Our preaching should “be instant in season and out of season…” 2 Tim.4:2.  Remember the fig tree, Jesus looked for fruit although it was out of season? 

9:10        That “thorns”  would be in their dwelling places echoes the way in which the contemporary prophet speaks of the way in which Israel is to be overthrown. Isa 5:6 in particular but read the whole of Isa 5

9:4     What a sorry state of affairs. Rather than their sacrifices to God being joyous they would actually be living like those who mourn. Separated from the temple they would be desolate.

9:1         That Israel was ‘an empty vine’ echoes the words of the contemporary prophet Isa 5:2

9:16       The way in which Ephraim is dried up from the root is echoed – Mark 11:20 – in the way the cursed fig tree is spoken of.

9:15    The mention of “Gilgal” continues the point being made in verse :10 and the incident with Balaam. By the time the people had crossed Jordan and encamped at Gilgal all the rebels had died.

9:4-6   Captivity would deprive Israel of all her ability to worship their God. The Assyrians, when they took peoples captive would have destroyed what faithfulness there was to Yahweh.

9:5 Whilst it is clear that Ephraim was not really interested in the feasts that Yahweh had instituted the prophet was inspired to ask the nation what they would do about those feast when I captivity. This indicates that He was concerned about the observance of the feasts even if the nation was not. Whilst there is not a direct parallel between meeting together with fellow believers today and the feasts God instituted there is a lesson to be taken. How important to us is it that we meet with our fellow believers?

9:4 on speaking of “bread of mourners” the prophet is reminding Israel of a judgment written in Lev 26:19. The lack of rain would impact on their harvests and they would not be able to grow corn.

9:8God had sent prophets to warn Israel about their waywardness the nation did not listen to those prophets. They preferred to listen to prophets who spoke smooth words, speaking words to which brought about God’s judgment on the nation.

The same condition is found in the New Testament when false teachers undermined the faith of some. We need to be extremely careful to ensure that we are listening to God’s words rather than words which are “smooth” but undermine the truth revealed by our Heavenly Father.

9:7  The nation had been living their lives as they saw fit. There was no feeling of remorse, no recognition of their sinfulness. Life was continuing in blissful ignorance – just like in the days of Lot and in the days of Noah – Until the judgment came from God. Hosea calls is “the day of visitation”.

9:15 God had promised the nation, through the patriarchs, that they would multiply like the stars of heaven – Gen 22:17 – for example. But the rebellious nation is now told that they will be less fruitful, just Like Moses said – Lev 26:22

v. 6 - The word for god ( 2316 theos ) was used in Greek parlance not just of deities, but also of dignitaries - kings, magistrates, judges etc. To refer exclusively to the one true God, the word 3588 - ho - was attached. That word is not present here.

28:1 The island of 'Melita' is actually now called Malta. There is no New Testament indication of an ecclesia being formed there as a consequence of Paul's short stay there.

28:21-22 It may seem surprising that the Jews in Rome had heard about the Christians but had not heard about Paul's position, even though he was on his way to Rome as a consequence of arguments with the religious leaders in Jerusalem. Maybe those in Jerusalem did not think that Paul was going to be a problem again after he had been taken as a Roman prisoner and so did not bother to send messages to them in Rome.

28:31 And so to the end - Paul is preaching the kingdom of God. We should take heed to this. The message is simple. It started with the disciples asking Jesus ( 1:6) about the restoration to Israel of the kingdom. Acts end with Paul preaching the same thing. The message does not change --we should not try to embellish it.

:17-27 And so again we see the prime objective in Paul's life is to preach the gospel.

28:29 Away from Jerusalem, the spiritual centre of Judaism, it is likely that the Jews were more willing to listen to the reasoning of Paul about Christ. Maybe this is hinted at when we read 'the Jews departed and had great reasoning'

V.17 Paul had not spoken against the Mosaic ritual. Such ritual had automatically fallen away in Christ. There now was no need for an alter, when Christ our alter was here. There was no need for a priest, now that our High Priest had come. There was no need for the sacrifices, now that Jesus had made the perfect sacrifice. All these things were not Paul's doing. They were all in the Plan and Purpose of God.

28:4-9 We are shown a contrast between the two ways people could have viewed Paul On the one had there was superstition and on the other hand faith in God. The outcome of the healing was that others came to be healed showing that the gospel prevailed over superstition.

V.18 The apostle was not a criminal as the other prisoners were. He had come to Rome to be tried. He had come to be heard, and to be exonerated. He was not even accusing Israel, on the contrary, he had addressed them as brethren, thus identifying himself as an Israelite. They had attacked them. He was not attacking them.

28:20‘The hope of Israel’ is one major strand of the gospel message. So in verse :23 he speaks of Jesus and the kingdom using the Old Testament highlighting that the hope of Israel is central to the gospel message.

V.29 is not found in some manuscripts.

28:15 Notice the ‘brethren’, not being deterred by the fact that Paul was a prisoner, went to meet with him. Probably not even knowing whether the centurion would allow the visit. Their concern was fellowship. How often do we put ourselves out to seek fellowship?

V.11 Castor and Pollux (KJV) were heroes in Greek and Roman Mythology.  They were the twin sons of Jupiter.  The constellation Gemini was the heavenly representation of them.  They were either painted, or were carved as figures, on the prow of ships because they were considered as divine agents for the protection of sailors.

28:6 The way men think! God had been at work in the saving of Paul from the venomous best but the people would rather ascribe the work to a false god. Such is human nature. It is unwilling to see the clear evidence of the existence of God and His work.

V.1 Melita is present-day Malta.

V.3 Vipers can rush at a perceived enemy. They are highly venomous. Viperid venoms typically contain an abundance of protein-degrading enzymes, called proteases, that produce symptoms such as pain, strong local swelling and necrosis, blood loss from cardiovascular damage complicated by coagulopathy, and disruption of the blood clotting system. Death is usually caused by collapse in blood pressure (Wikipedia).

V.6 The locals were quite familiar with viper bites: to swell up or suddenly fall down dead (ESV).

Today, there are no vipers on Malta.

V.16 Paul arrived in Rome 60-61 AD. He was under house arrest for two years. Under Roman law, if any accusations against a prisoner went unsubstantiated after two years, the prisoner would be freed. In Paul's case, that meant he was probably freed in 62-63 AD.

Nero was the emperor at this time (54-68 AD). He was a cruel, despotic ruler. Nero had his mother murdered to shift suspicion away from his involvement in the death of his half-brother. He was a homosexual who engaged in much debauchery and excess.

There was a great fire in Rome in 64 AD. To deflect suspicion that he had caused it, Nero accused the Christians of starting the fire. He then set about a campaign of great persecution towards Christians. Although it is not certain what happened to Paul, it is probable that he was executed during this time.

28:8 The healing of Publius’ father by Paul is the second witness that God was working through him. The first being his deliverance from the poisonous beast.

28:14  The way in which Paul was allowed to stay seven days with the brethren is a further indication that the Romans were treating Paul differently from other prisoner. They had no charge against him – Acts 23:29, 25:25, 26:31. He is transported to Rome at the state’s expense, protected by Rome, to allow him to preach the gospel there.

28:10  The healing  work of Paul had beneficial effects upon everyone, even those who were not healed. Doubtless the people had seen other shipwrecks and other people who had lost everything at sea. On this occasion, however, when Paul and the others left they were provided for by the men and women of the island. What a testimony to their gratitude to Paul.  That shipwreck must have remained a topic of conversation for quite some time, maybe leaving a seed of the gospel message there.

a couple today - Acts 28:4-6.

1. v. 4. According to the N.I.V., the inhabitants of Malta said, "This man must be a murderer; for though he escaped from the sea, Justice has not allowed him to live." Did they believe in a god that they called Justice?

2. v. 6. Are there other similar examples in the Bible of such quick "turn-arounds" in believing one extreme and then, within a very short time, believing the exact opposite?

1. The N.I.V. translators definitely thought that that was the case - hence their capitalization of the word. The same is true in the Revised Version. The Greek word - "dike" - is used only 3 times in the N.T., and the other 2 times it's not used in that way. They are:

Acts 25:15 (K.J.V.) - "...when I (Festus) was at Jerusalem, the chief priests and the elders of the Jews informed me, desiring to have judgment against him (Paul)."

Jude 7 (K.J.V.) - "Even as Sodom and Gomorrah, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering thevengeance of eternal fire."

There is some precedent, though, in a passage in Isa. - 65:11 - again in the N.I.V. (R.V. concurs) where Israel is condemned for their idolatry. It reads -

"But as for you who forsake the LORD and forget my holy mountain, who spread a table for Fortune and fill bowls of mixed wine for Destiny..."

So, how about a "maybe" on this one? If that were the case here in Acts, it reminds me a bit of humanism and how it elevates certain virtues to the status of a god, replacing in their way of thinking the need for any dependence on a personal God. It's really a fulfillment of what Paul says in Rom. 1:24,25 where God gave people over "to the sinful desires of their hearts, and they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served created things rather than the Creator."

One more point here - that these people could easily have elevated a virtue like justice and made it into a god doesn't seem far-fetched since they were so quick to believe that Paul was a god (v. 6)!

2. The one occasion that comes to mind again has to do with Paul (and Barnabas) in Acts 14 on their first missionary journey in Lystra. After Paul's healing of a crippled man (Acts 14:8-10), the people shouted, "the gods have come down to us in human form." And they called Barnabas Zeus and Paul Hermes and bulls and wreaths were brought to them for the purpose of offering sacrifices to them. Of course, both Paul and Barnabas put a stop to it quickly with some common sense reasoning about God being the creator of all and the only one to be worshiped. But, while the crowd was still assembled, Jews from Antioch won them over, and stoned Paul dragging him outside the city believing him to be dead. But, it would appear, God miraculously healed him so that he immediately got up and went back into the city. So here it is - like Acts 28 - but in reverse order. Needless to say, people that are so quick to reverse their views on things due to their superstitious makeup would need a lot of time and effort on the preaching front to get them to really and truly repent and believe the gospel.

28:20   When Paul uses the phrase “the hope of Israel” he is not inventing a catch phrase to speak of the Christian hope. Rather he is drawing upon the two occasions – Jer 14:8, 17:13 – in the old testament where the idea is found. On those occasions “God” is the hope of Israel and is their salvation. Those who forsake Him have no hope.

Acts 28:20 - The Apostle Paul when under house arrest in Rome said to the chief of the Jews, “for the Hope of Israel am I bound with this chain.”. Paul’s words are taken from the words of the prophet Jeremiah.

Jeremiah 17:13  “O LORD, the hope of Israel, all that forsake thee shall be ashamed, and they that depart from me shall be written in the earth, because they have forsaken the LORD, the fountain of living waters.”

Paul continues, “for the hope of Israel am I bound with this chain.”  The High Priest’s breastplate representing the twelve tribes of Israel was bound with chains of pure gold to the Priest’s ephod (Exo 28:15-22).  The gold chains prevented the breastplate coming loose when the Priest went into holy place (Exodus 28:28-29).  He bore the breastplate upon his heart.  This was typical of the work of our High Priest Jesus who has gone into the Holy place for us.  We, as spiritual Israel, are bound to Jesus who entered within the veil. He is for us, “as an anchor of the soul, sure and steadfast” (Heb 6:19).

We must not forsake the “hope of Israel”.  If we do then our names will “be written in the earth”.  Compared, with the faithful whose “names are written in heaven” (Luke 10:20).

28:31   Paul, as a prisoner in Rome, had been accused by the Jews, was confined in house arrest. However, despite the accusations of the Jews Paul was not hindered by the Romans in his preaching which implies that they had no problems with his message as had already been indicated earlier – Acts 26:32. 

28:27     The way in which the Jews would not listen to what Paul was saying is a fulfilment of what the prophet said – Amos 8:10

28:20 In Acts Acts 23:6 Paul speaks of the “hope of the resurrection”. In Acts 26:6 it is the “hope of the promise made to the fathers” and here  it is “the hope of Israel”. All three statements are true, of course, and show elements of the Christian gospel.

28:12  This is the only time that Syracuse is mention in Scripture. The three day stay there, seemingly, produced no response – for we cannot imagine that Paul did not preach whilst he was there.

Acts 28:22 (cf. Acts 24:5; Acts 26:5)

“… for as concerning this sect, we know that everywhere it is spoken against.”

“A SECT is a body of men following some particular master, or united in some settled tenets. The word is derived from the Latin secta, which comes from sequor to follow; hence, a following. For this reason the apostles and their brethren were a sect, because they followed Jesus as their master. All who follow Jesus are members of this sect, which is everywhere spoken against to this day. But while the disciples of Jesus are a sect, the founders of it would tolerate no minor sects within it. It recognizes but one following—‘The truth as it is in Jesus.’” – Dr. John Thomas

This isn’t surprising to us, as we know that Jesus said, “… If they have called the master of the house Beelzebub, how much more shall they call them of his household? (Matt 10:25). “… and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake (Matt 24:9). “Woe unto you, when all men shall speak well of you!” (Luke 6:26. Despite strong opposition against the Truth, the Word thrived “mightily and prevailed” (Acts 6:7 Acts 12:24; Acts 19:20).

28:3  The mention of Paul gathering sticks highlights a serious logistical problem for the centurion and the soldiers  he had under him. It was their responsibility to oversee the prisoners and deliver them to Rome. But now the prisoners are freely moving about on the island. Escape was always a possibility.

28:10   So the islanders saw the value of Paul’s presence on the island. But only as a healer. Hence the gifts. What a shame the evidence of the miracles did not appear to produce repentance from sin.

28:22 Luke has already spoken of the gospel being “spoken against” – Luke 23:34. So here he is reminding Theophilus of the connection between the gospel he wrote and Acts. Showing the ongoing work of God it the fulfilment of God’s words.

28:3 This incident is similar in type to that described in Ecclesiastes 10:8: “and whoso breaketh an hedge, a serpent shall bite him”. Here it is a serpent, not a viper, but they share similarities, as Christ said: “Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers …” (Mt. 23:33). Paul’s miraculous deliverance shows how the vanity of life of Ecclesiastes with its inevitability of death can be overcome. Solomon goes on to write: “Surely the serpent will bite without enchantment; and a babbler is no better” (Eccl. 10:11). The serpent will attack without a warning noise, and the “babbler”, or ‘tongue’, is no better. And this was illustrated in Acts 28 for first they babbled, “No doubt this man is a murderer …” (Acts 28:4) and then they babbled, “that he was a god” (Acts 28:6), but in both cases, like the serpent, they did not speak the truth.

28:22 Luke has already spoken of the gospel being “spoken against” – Luke 2:34. So here he is reminding Theophilus of the connection between the gospel he wrote and Acts. Showing the ongoing work of God it the fulfilment of God’s words.

28:15    How important do we feel seeking out those in difficulty is?  The fellow believers did not need to travel over 40 miles to meet Paul as he travelled towards Rome. However they chose to. And Paul was greatly encouraged by their presence. Their commitment is an example to us.

28:15 That Paul “thanked God” when he saw the brethren speaks volumes about the benefit of fellowship. Paul’s future was uncertain. He knew he would testify in Rome but did not know what would happen afterwards. The fellowship of a number of believers, who he probably did not even know, encouraged him.

We should appreciate that we can encourage others even if we do not know them.

28:14  The apparently casual way in which we are told that Paul “found brethren” in Puteoli indicates that Paul must have used the opportunity to preach the gospel, maybe being unaware that there were fellow believers there. What a joy it must have been to both Paul and the believers in Puteoli when they found each other.

When we are away from home do we seek out those who share our faith, or do we keep ourselves to ourselves and just please ourselves.