Jesus' Sovereign and Providential Protection (Acts 23:11-35)
God’s providence is His sovereign control over and ordering of natural circumstances to accomplish His will.
This passage finds Paul in difficult circumstances. He has been falsely accused, beaten, arrested, imprisoned, and plotted against. Yet God will deliver him—not by a supernatural miracle, but by His providential ordering of circumstances.
(1) The schemes of men (Acts 23:12-15)
(2) The providence of God (Acts 23:16-22)
The boy then accurately informed Lysias of the details of the plot: “The Jews have agreed to ask you to bring Paul down tomorrow to the Council, as though they were going to inquire somewhat more thoroughly about him.” Thus, in God’s providence, Lysias learned of the plot before the Jews even approached him. Paul’s nephew then urged the Roman commander not to give in: “So do not listen to them, for more than forty of them are lying in wait for him who have bound themselves under a curse not to eat or drink until they slay him; and now they are ready and waiting for the promise from you.”
Recognizing the seriousness of the situation, Lysias took immediate action. First, he let the young man go, instructing him, “Tell no one that you have notified me of these things.” If the conspirators realized their plot had been uncovered, they would undoubtedly have abandoned it and formulated another. And if that one were not discovered, Lysias reasoned, Paul might be killed. Further, if the Jews did not know that he knew of the plot, they could not question his motives for sending Paul to Caesarea. Then he took the necessary measures, without imagining he was carrying out God’s providential protection of Paul.
In God’s providence, the son of Paul’s sister heard of their ambush. This is the only specific reference in Scripture to Paul’s family (except for possible references in Rom. 16:7, 11, 21). It raises many questions that cannot be answered with certainty. What was Paul’s nephew doing in Jerusalem, since the family home was in Tarsus? Was he following in his uncle’s footsteps and studying to be a rabbi? Since Paul’s family had apparently disinherited him when he became a believer (Phil. 3:8), why did he care what happened to his uncle? Had Paul’s sister or nephew become Christians?
How Paul’s nephew heard of the plot is also not known, but when he did, he came and entered the barracks and told Paul. Paul had not been charged with a crime, so was merely in protective custody. He was therefore permitted to receive visitors. Knowing the danger of such plots from experience (cf. Acts 9:23, 29; 20:3, 19), Paul immediately called one of the centurions to him and said, “Lead this young man to the commander, for he has something to report to him.”
Paul’s unnamed nephew somehow heard about the plot of the 40 and was able to get to the barracks to tell Paul and then the commander. Many unresolved questions come to mind. Was Paul’s nephew a Christian? How did he secure this information? Did Paul’s sister live in Jerusalem? If Paul had relatives living in Jerusalem, why did he not stay with them?
The nephew was a young man (vv. 17–19, 22). This Greek word neanias, used in verse 17, was earlier used of Paul (7:58) and Eutychus (20:9). It may refer to a man in his twenties or thirties. (Neaniskos, a synonym of neanios, is used in 23:18 and 22. In v. 19 the NIV has “young man” but the Gr. does not.) When the fortress commander heard of this plan, he cautioned Paul’s nephew not to tell anyone he had reported this.
(3) The will of God accomplished through the plans of men (Acts 23:23-35)
The commander decided to get Paul away from this danger spot. So he made every possible provision for Paul’s security in his escape. First, he sent Paul in the company of more than 470 men—two … centurions … 200 soldiers (a centurion was over 100), 70 horsemen, and 200 spearmen. Second, they began the journey under cover of nightfall at 9 P.M. In addition, Caesarea would be a far more secure place, not as subject to a riot as was Jerusalem.
23:25–30. When a prisoner was forwarded to a superior, the subordinate officer was required to accompany the subject with a written statement of the case.
This letter from Claudius Lysias presents the essentials of the case. The commander bent the truth in saying he rescued Paul (v. 27) because he actually learned from a subordinate that Paul was a Roman citizen (22:26). He also discreetly omitted any reference to his preparing to have Paul flogged (cf. 22:25, 29).
The journey to Antipatris from Jerusalem was more than 35 miles. This must have been a forced march because they arrived by the next day. The terrain from Jerusalem to Lydda or Joppa (modern-day Lod; cf. 9:32–43), seven or eight miles before Antipatris, was difficult and would provide suitable cover for an ambush party. Once the entourage was in Antipatris the soldiers were no longer needed. The remaining 27 miles to Caesarea could be traversed with less danger.