18 And G2532 saw G1492 him G846 saying G3004 unto me, G3427 Make haste, G4692 and G2532 get thee G1831 quickly G5034 G1722 out of G1537 Jerusalem: G2419 for G1360 they will G3858 not G3756 receive G3858 thy G4675 testimony G3141 concerning G4012 me. G1700
Not to many H7227 people H5971 of a strange H6012 speech H8193 and of an hard H3515 language, H3956 whose words H1697 thou canst not understand. H8085 Surely, had I sent H7971 thee to them, they would have hearkened H8085 unto thee. But the house H1004 of Israel H3478 will H14 not hearken H8085 unto thee; for they will H14 not hearken H8085 unto me: for all the house H1004 of Israel H3478 are impudent H2389 H4696 and hardhearted. H7186 H3820
And G2532 whosoever G3739 shall G1209 not G3362 receive G1209 you, G5209 nor G3366 hear G191 your G5216 words, G3056 when ye depart out G1831 of that G1565 house G3614 or G2228 city, G4172 shake off G1621 the dust G2868 of your G5216 feet. G4228
But G1161 when G3752 they persecute G1377 you G5209 in G1722 this G5026 city, G4172 flee ye G5343 into G1519 another: G243 for G1063 verily G281 I say G3004 unto you, G5213 Ye shall G5055 not G3364 have gone over G5055 the cities G4172 of Israel, G2474 till G2193 the Son G5207 of man G444 be G302 come. G2064
Then G5119 let them G5343 which are in G1722 Judaea G2449 flee G5343 to G1519 the mountains; G3735 and G2532 let them G1633 which are in G1722 the midst G3319 of it G846 depart out; G1633 and G2532 let G1525 not G3361 them that are in G1722 the countries G5561 enter G1525 thereinto. G1519 G846
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Acts 22
Commentary on Acts 22 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 22
In the close of the foregoing chapter we had Paul bound, according to Agabus's prophecy of the hard usage he should receive from the Jews at Jerusalem, yet he had his tongue set at liberty, by the permission the chief captain gave him to speak for himself; and so intent he is upon using that liberty of speech which is allowed him, to the honour of Christ and the service of his interest, that he forgets the bonds he is in, makes no mention of them, but speaks of the great things Christ had done for him with as much ease and cheerfulness as if nothing had been done to ruffle him or put him into disorder. We have here,
Act 22:1-2
Paul had, in the last verse of the foregoing chapter, gained a great point, by commanding so profound a silence after so loud a clamour. Now here observe,
Act 22:3-21
Paul here gives such an account of himself as might serve not only to satisfy the chief captain that he was not that Egyptian he took him to be, but the Jews also that he was not that enemy to their church and nation, to their law and temple, they took him to be, and that what he did in preaching Christ, and particularly in preaching him to the Gentiles, he did by a divine commission. He here gives them to understand,
Observe,
Now, if they would lay all this together, surely they would see that they had no reason to be angry with Paul for preaching among the Gentiles, or construe it as an act of ill-will to his own nation, for he was compelled to it, contrary to his own mind, by an overruling command from heaven.
Act 22:22-30
Paul was going on with this account of himself, had shown them his commission to preach among the Gentiles without any peevish reflections upon the Jews, and we may suppose designed next to show how he was afterwards, by a special direction of the Holy Ghost at Antioch, separated to this service, how tender he was of the Jews, how respectful to them, and how careful to give them the precedency in all places whither he came, and to unite Jews and Gentiles in one body; and then to show how wonderfully God had owned him, and what good service had been done to the interest of God's kingdom among men in general, without damage to any of the true interests of the Jewish church in particular. But, whatever he designs to say, they resolve he shall say no more to them: They gave him audience to this word. Hitherto they had heard him with patience and some attention. But when he speaks of being sent to the Gentiles, though it was what Christ himself said to him, they cannot bear it, not so much as to hear the Gentiles named, such an enmity had they to them, and such a jealousy of them. Upon the mention of this, they have no manner of patience, but forget all rules of decency and equity; thus were they provoked to jealousy by those that were no people, Rom. 10:19.
Now here we are told how furious and outrageous the people were against Paul, for mentioning the Gentiles as taken into the cognizance of divine grace, and so justifying his preaching among them.