Acts 21

21 ¹Having torn ourselves away from them, we set sail and went straight to Cos, then the next day to Rhodes, then from there to Patara. ²Finding a ship crossing over to Phoenicia, we went aboard and set sail. ³Sighting Cyprus and leaving it on our left, we sailed to Syria and landed at Tyre, where the ship was to unload its cargo. ⁴We found the disciples there and stayed seven days. Through the Holy Spirit they kept telling Paul not to set foot in Jerusalem. ⁵When our time there was up, we left and went on, all of them with wives and children walking with us out of the city. We knelt on the beach and prayed, ⁶and said farewell to one another. Then we went aboard the ship, and they returned home.

⁷Finishing our voyage from Tyre, we arrived at Ptolemais, greeted the brothers, and stayed one day with them.

⁸The next day we left for Caesarea and entered the house of Philip the evangelist, one of the seven, and stayed with him. ⁹He had four unmarried daughters who prophesied. ¹⁰While we were staying there for many days, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea.

¹¹He came to us, took Paul's belt, tied his own feet and hands, and said, "The Holy Spirit says this: the Jews in Jerusalem will tie up this belt's owner the same way, then hand him over into Gentile hands."

¹²When we heard this, we and the local people begged Paul not to go up to Jerusalem. ¹³Paul answered, "Why weep and break my heart? I'm ready not only to be bound but to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus." ¹⁴And since he would not be persuaded, we fell silent and said, "The Lord's will be done."

¹⁵After these days we got ready and went up to Jerusalem. ¹⁶Some disciples from Caesarea also went with us, bringing us to stay with Mnason, a Cypriot and early disciple.

¹⁷When we arrived in Jerusalem, the brothers welcomed us gladly. ¹⁸On the following day Paul went with us to see James, and all the elders were present. ¹⁹He greeted them, then related one by one what our Father had done among the Gentiles through his ministry. ²⁰Hearing this, they praised our Father, then told him, "You see, brother, how many thousands of Jews have believed, and all are passionate for the law. ²¹They were told you teach all Jews among the nations to abandon Moses, telling them not to circumcise their children or follow our customs. ²²So what should we do? They will certainly hear that you have come. ²³So do what we tell you. We have four men who are under a vow. ^a a v23 These men had taken a Nazirite vow — a temporary pledge of devotion that ended with shaving the head and presenting an offering at the temple. ²⁴Take these men, purify yourself with them, and pay their expenses so they may shave their heads. Then everyone will know the reports about you are false, and that you yourself keep the law. ²⁵As for the Gentiles who have believed, we already wrote our decision: avoid food offered to idols, blood, strangled animals, and sexual immorality."

²⁶So Paul took the men, and the next day, having purified himself with them, entered the temple, announcing when the purification days would end and the offering would be made for each of them.

Paul Seized at the Temple

²⁷As the seven days were ending, Jews from Asia saw him in the temple, stirred up the whole crowd, and grabbed him, ²⁸shouting, "Men of Israel, help! This is the man teaching everyone everywhere against our people, the law, and this place. He's even brought Greeks into the temple, making this holy place unclean." ²⁹They had earlier seen Trophimus the Ephesian with Paul in the city and assumed Paul had brought Trophimus into the temple.

³⁰The whole city was stirred; people ran together, seized Paul, dragged him out of the temple, and at once the gates were shut. ³¹As they tried to kill him, word reached the cohort commander that all Jerusalem was in turmoil. ³²He immediately took soldiers and centurions and ran down to them. Seeing the commander and soldiers, the crowd stopped beating Paul. ³³The commander came, seized him, ordered him bound with two chains, then asked who he was and what he'd done. ³⁴In the crowd some shouted one thing, some another. Unable to learn what was true because of the uproar, he ordered Paul brought into the barracks. ³⁵When Paul reached the steps, soldiers had to carry him because of the crowd's violence, ³⁶for the mob kept following, shouting, "Away with him!"

Paul Speaks to the Crowd

³⁷As Paul was about to be led into the barracks, he asked the commander, "May I say something to you?" He replied, "Do you know Greek?"

³⁸Aren't you the Egyptian who stirred up a revolt earlier and led 4,000 Assassins into the wilderness?

³⁹Paul answered, "I am a Jew, from Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of no insignificant city. I beg you, let me speak to the people."

⁴⁰With permission granted, Paul stood on the steps and motioned to the people with his hand. When deep silence fell, he spoke to them in Hebrew: