Sad Goodbyes

from Miletus to Jerusalem

Verse 1 says “after we were gotten from them.” Literally, this means they were torn from them. It was a very hard goodbye, because the love that the Ephesians had for their dear evangelist and pastor was great, and it was mutual. But Paul, never losing sight of his mission, must press on to Jerusalem.

In our previous chapter, we read in verse 16 that Paul endeavored to be in Jerusalem for Pentecost. One has to understand that Paul, although a Christian and having already stood against the Judaizers who demanded compliance to the Law for Gentiles, was also a Jew and still valued and practiced the Jewish feasts. He celebrated the Feast of Unleavened Bread (Passover) in Acts 20:6 with the Philippians, and he desired to celebrate Pentecost in Jerusalem. Pentecost means “50 days” and that is because the feast of Shavuot, or the Feast of Weeks, began on the 7th week + 1 day (50 days) after Passover. It was a celebration of the wheat harvest, and one of the 3 mandatory feasts that Yahweh had instituted for the Hebrews in Exodus. Later tradition also associated the 50th day as the day that Yahweh gave the law to Moses on Sinai.

It is also significant to remember that Christ rose from the dead during Passover and 50 days later, on the day of Pentecost, the Holy Spirit indwelled the disciples and from then began the evangelization of the world. So it was and is an important date for the Jews, but doubly so for the Jewish Christians.

So Paul and his companions set out from Miletus and make a pit stop at the island of Coos, before striking out east and passing the islands of Rhodes and Patara. You may remember that Rhodes was the site of one of the ancient world’s Seven Wonders, the Colossus of Rhodes. A statue of the sun god that rivaled the size of the Statue of Liberty, it was the pride of Rhodes for a few short years before an earthquake toppled it into the sea about 280 years before the journey of Paul. It is quite likely he would have witnessed the remains of that great statue as they passed by.

As the ship passed Cyprus, I wonder if Paul thought about his former companion and friend, Barnabas, who had split from him after their dispute over John Mark, and had returned to Cyprus to minister to his countrymen. Some 7 or 8 years had passed since their ministries went separate ways, and while I am sure Paul did not harbor any hard feelings, I do wonder if he looked upon the island with some longing to see his old friend? Luke records nothing of the sort, but simply says they passed Cyprus on the left and sailed on to Syria. Once they arrived in Syria, they do not go north to Antioch, but they go to the city of Tyre because being a port city, it was the destination of the merchant ship and it needed to unload it’s cargo.

Reuniting with the Christians

After arriving in Tyre, Paul seeks out the church there. We know there was a church there, or at least in the vicinity, because of what we read in Acts 11:19

Acts 11:19 KJV 1900

Now they which were scattered abroad upon the persecution that arose about Stephen travelled as far as Phenice, and Cyprus, and Antioch, preaching the word to none but unto the Jews only.

They tarried in Tyre for 7 days, fellowshipping and probably teaching the disciples there. This verse 4 presents a little bit of a conundrum. The Holy Spirit evidently informed the disciples that Paul would be in danger in Jerusalem, so they warned and begged him not to go. However, Paul was undeterred. As he told the Ephesian elders in the previous chapter, the Holy Spirit had told him he would be afflicted in every city, so he expected nothing less. Why would the Holy Spirit tell the disciples to warn Paul against going, yet Paul was indeed going by the bidding of the Holy Spirit? Did the Spirit give conflicting orders?

Three Differing Interpretative Strings

Prophetic, but not Prohibitive

this view suggests the Holy Spirit revealed the danger Paul was in

perhaps so they could better pray for and encourage him?

but they interpreted this as a sign they should prevent him from going

remember, he had narrowly escaped out of a window in Damascus early in his ministry

he had fled from cities when persecution got hot

many times he had been beaten, imprisoned, and even once stoned

however, in Acts 20:22-23, Paul asserted that he was “constrained by the Spirit” to go to Jerusalem, so it was the will of God that he go

Conditional warning

this view suggests that the Holy Spirit told Paul, through the disciples, not to go to Jerusalem in order to test his resolve

this might parallel with God’s command to Abraham to sacrifice Isaac in order to test his faith

this view is risky because it could suggest that Paul was tempted by the Holy Spirit to not do what he had already been commanded to do

Permissive will

this position, though a minority view, suggests that the Holy Spirit left the decision up to Paul

he could have stayed in Tyre, or gone to Jerusalem, depending on his own discernment and willingness to suffer

this is a hard stretch because it allows for God to not have control over the situation, leaving the decision-making to Paul

The first view seems to fit best with the context and overall narrative of Acts. Like Jesus, who always travelled with purpose, even pressing on to Jerusalem in order to face His destiny at the will of the Father despite knowing what waited for Him there, Paul was determined to be in Jerusalem as he had desired and been impressed upon the Spirit to do. He did not know the outcome, but he expected nothing less than to die, as he will state in verse 13 which we will read in a few moments.

After resolving to continue, Paul and his companions (Luke still uses the plural) departed and after leaving the city along with the men, women, and children of the church, they knelt on the shore of the Mediterranean and prayed. Wouldn’t you love to know what they prayed for, and how they prayed? How powerful and deeply sincere their prayers must have been! They must have wept and interceded for Paul so intensely and fervently, knowing they would likely never see him again.

It is also noteworthy that this is one of the few times children are mentioned in the Acts.

On to Caesarea

Departing from Tyre, they made their way to Caesarea by way of Ptolemais. Upon arrival in Caesarea, they sought out the house of Philip the Evangelist, also known as one of the seven deacons selected by the church at Jerusalem in Acts Chapter 6. Hearkening back to Chapter 8, the reader will remember Philip, although a deacon, was known as a great evangelist, preaching first in Samaria, then to the Ethiopian eunuch in the wilderness, whom he baptized. Scripture then tells us he went to Caesarea where he evidently settled and started a family. Here we see a perplexing sentence in Verse 9.

It says Philip had 4 daughters, all unmarried virgins, who prophesied. What makes this verse perplexing is that we do not know what they prophesied, and why it was not recorded. Eusebius, the bishop of Caesarea and a church historian in the 2nd-3rd century, says they provided Luke with information about the early days of the Jerusalem church. In other words, all the information listed in the book of Acts up to the point of Paul entering the scene would have been recounted to Luke by someone other than Paul, and Eusebius asserts it was these daughters of Philip, their father being one of the men who would have been present during the events that took place in the first stage of the church. If that be the case, even though they are not named, Luke is citing his source in this one verse.

Moving on from here, we come to our final stretch of verses today; 10 through 14. Here we see Agabus the prophet, who came to the house of Philip and in the eccentric manner of many of the Old Testament prophets, he demonstrated signs to show the future. He took Paul’s belt and bound his own hands and feet, to demonstrate the bonds that Paul would soon suffer at the hands of the Jews. Upon hearing this, Luke enters the first person and says “both we, and they of that place besought him not to go up to Jerusalem.”

For the third time in a few weeks, the Christians that Paul loved and who loved him either begged him not to go, or wept when he did go. First, those at Ephesus wept and embraced and kissed him when he left because they knew they would not see him again, then the saints at Troas begged him not to go to Jerusalem. When he could not be persuaded to change his mind, they followed him out of the city and prayed with him earnestly. Now, in Caesarea, we see both begging and weeping as they, too, understand they will never see Paul again.

These goodbyes were sorrowful and sad to be sure. But the worst kind of goodbye is the one that is never said.

Every one of us has had a conversation with someone we knew or loved, and we ended that conversation not knowing it would be the last one we would have with them. Unfortunately, some of those conversations were not loving or pleasant. Perhaps this is why Paul said to the Ephesians in Ephesians 4:26-27

Ephesians 4:26–27 KJV 1900

Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath: Neither give place to the devil.

I tell my family all the time, Be careful what you say to people, because you never know if that is the last thing you say to them. This same principle applies to sharing the Gospel. Don’t ever think, “Well, I’ll tell them next time.” Worse still, don’t ever think, “I’ll trust Christ another time.” You absolutely have no idea if there will be a next time.

One day, there will be no more goodbyes. C.H. Spurgeon declared, “We shall not say farewell in heaven.”

C.S. Lewis said, “There are far, far better things ahead than any we leave behind.”

Revelation 21:4 LSB

“and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain. The first things passed away.”

Paul said his final goodbyes to the saints in Caesarea. He did not know what faced him in Jerusalem, but a part of him knew his journey was coming to an end, or at the very least, he would not be visiting the churches he had planted ever again. He turned his face with resolve towards Jerusalem, and set out on his final trip to the Holy City, where Christ had died, and where Paul had once persecuted the saints.