On the Acts of the Apostles

Various thoughts concerning Paul and the events surrounding his arrest

Paul was expecting to be bound, and taken to prison. He even said he was warned about this in every city by the Holy Spirit (Acts 20:23). This brings up the question of whether Paul was being disobedient to the Holy Spirit as he continued on, whether these warnings were some sort of test that he passed, or if it was for others to see God's power. Since we see no indication that Paul did wrongly in continuing, we must assume that the prophesies and warnings were not meant to forbid Paul from continuing, but to show the might and foreknowledge of God.

Look at the way Paul dealt with his arrest. When he was arrested, he made no immediate protest. He allowed his rights to be ignored. If he had declared himself a Roman, he would have been given more respect to start with, and less seemingly issues later on.

When was it that Paul pulled out his rights as a Roman citizen? It was not until they were about to whip him to extract a confession, something unlawful to do to a Roman. The commander did not immediately release him to save face.

Did the Romans have the right to arrest him and keep him? Not without a fair trial. Wikipedia also has a nice summary of the privileges Roman citizenship brought that was quite handy for understanding this.

Were the Jews acting in accordance to the law IF Paul had been a leader of a cult, or were they just being a mob? If he was, they still should not have gone about his arrest in such a deceptive way, but their response was to be commended on one level. They were told that their law was under attack, and they responded with a proper sense for how important it was for God's glory not to be tarnished. Even so, they were terribly misguided in their perceptions.

How well Paul's education served him at this point. This also shows that there is purpose to all things. He addresses them with diplomacy, in their own language, which has efficacy he would not be able to achieve otherwise. In his speech he makes it clear that he understands and even applauds them for their zealousy, but that it is misguided. He meets them, and does not only condemn, but encourages them at the same time.