The Pulpit Commentary — Acts — Volume 2 — Section 226

'Ver. 10.-.And tDMII fM gooernor, et<I., neither raieing up the people, A.V.: nor ... Paul a-llM"ed for then Paul, after that tlui nor for neitJier . .• nor, A.V. Btl.rring up a gorerno,-, et.o., an81l!ered, A.V.; aheerf,t.lly orowd. The reading of the R.T. le brltrTatr111 for tM mo,-e cheerfully, A.V. and T.R.; ,..0 ,oii,,.,.a ix;l.ov,which must mean "e. stoppage malre ffl!I defence for anBtDer /or myielf, A.V. of the crowd," in which sense it is e. medioal Forumuoh u I know, eto. St. Paul, with in- t.erm. Dut Meyer thinks it is e. mere olerioal imitftble skill, pit.ohed upon the one favour- error for the reading of the T.R. i,r1tr6tr'Tatr111, able ~ide of his judge's person, viz. his Ion~ which is used in the LXX for "e. tumultu- experience in Jewish affairs, and me.de it ous assembly" (Numb. xxvi. 9: S Esdr, t.he subject of his opening reference-a cour- xxv. 9), and in Josephus, 'Oontr. Apion.,' i. t.eons and conoiliatory reference, in striking 20, of a conspiracy or revolt. In the LXX. contrast with the fe.lse, fulsome :flattery of e.lso the verb l,r1trvvltr'f'aµ.,u means "to rise Tertullus. Of ma.ny years. If Paul was in revolt against" (Numb. xiv. 25: xvi. 19; i;pee.ldng in the year A.D. 58, and Felix :u:vi. 9). had been governor only sinoe A.D. 58, Ver. IS.-Prot1e lo thee for prooe, A.V. " many years " was rather an hyperbole. Prove ( ,rapa<T'l'ijtra,); see oh. i. S, note. But Tacitus expressly states that Felix Ver. 14.-.A eeet for heresy, A.V.; ,enie for W1II! joint proourat.or with Cumanus; and 'IDOrBhip, A.V.; our for my, A.V. (my is t.herefore he had been a judge to the better, as following "I serve," and addressed Jewish nation long before the banishment to a Rome.n judge); whioh are according fD of Cumanus. Te.citus's authority is infi- the Lau,, and which are written in the pro- nitely superior to that of Josephus, and this phets for tDhich are written in the Law and pe.sse.ge strongly supports the statement of in the prophets, A.V. A seat. This, of Te.citus (' Anne.I.,' xii. 54). Make my de- course, refers to this expression of Tertullus fence ( .,.,,_ ,apl lµ,avToii a,ro;\.o')'oiiµAt). For in ver. 5, npwTotr'f'&.,.11s Tijs .,.;;,,, Na(wpalwv the word tz:,ro;l.o-yoiiµ.a,., and for the situation alpltr•ws," Ringleader of the seot of the Naza~ of St. Paul, e.nd for the gre.cions promise renes." The word a1p•tris, which means provided for such situation, see Luke xii. primarily " choice," has not necessarily or 12; xxi. 15; see too eh. xix. 33; :x:xv. 8: even ordinarily a bad sense. In cle.ssical :x:xvi. 1, 2; and for t.he nee of a:,ro;l.o.,,(cr, see Greek its secondary sense we.s a " sect" or eh. xrii. 1, note. "school" of philosophy, Academics, Peripa- Ver. 11.-&eing that 0wu OllftBt take knotD- tetics, Stoics, Epicureans, eto. The Jews ledge for be.caU11e that tJwu maye,st, underswnd, applied it to their own different sohools of A.'V. and T.R.; it is not more than for there thougl~. So in eh. v. 17 we read, A1p,tr,s are yet but, A.V.; I went up to worship at .,;;,,, ~a66ov1ealwv, "The sect of the So.ddu- Jeru.salem for I went up to Jerusalem for fD cees ; " in eh. xv. 5, A1p•tris .,.;;,,, 4'ap,tra!wv, worship, A.V. Twelve days. These de.ye " The sect of the Pharisees ;" in oh. xxvi. 5 may be thns reckoned: (1) arrival at Jern- St. Paul speaks of himself as having been e. 1181em (eh. :xxi. 15); (2) visit to Jamee and Pharisee, K,ml -r¾/v d1ep,f3,.,.,.d..,11v aYp,tr,v Tijs the elders ( eh. :u:i. 18) ; (3) first day of ~µ,•.,•pas 6p71tr1e•las, "After the straitest sect purification (eh. :u:i. 26); (4) second de.y of our religion" (see too eh. :uviii. 22). It of purification; (5) t.he third day; (6) the begins to he.ve e. bad sense in Sf. Paul's fourth day; (7) the fifth day, when t.he Epistles (1 Cor. xi. 19; Gal. v. 20; e.ud 2 tumult took ple.ce (eh. :ui. 27); (8) Paul Pet. iL 1, a/plo-.. s a.,rwl\.•las, where, however, brought before the Se.nhedrim ; (9) the con- it gets its bad sense from the a.,r.,;1.,fas spiracy of the forty Jews, Paul leaves Jeru- joined to it). In ecclesiastical writers it salem for Cmsarea-the first oft.he five days came to he.ve its worst sense of "heresy" as mentioned in eh. xriv. I; (10) arrival of St. something worse even than "schism." In Pan! "next day ''at Cmsarea,andlodgedinthe this reference to Tertu!lus's phrase, St. Paul pretorium-eeoond oft.he five days (eh. :xxiii seems hardly to admit that Christianity was 82, 35); (11) Paul in Herod's judgment he.11 properly called " e. sect" by the Jews, but -t.hirdofthe five days; (12) ditto-fourth of gives it the milder term of "the Way" (see the five days; (13)thecurrent day, being also eh. iL 2, note). The God ofonr [my] father the fifth day of those mentioned in eh. ( ..,; -,,a.,prprp 0,rp); comp. Ga.I. i. 14 : aud eh. xxiv. 1. The mention of the brief time of xrii. 3; :u:viil. 17. Observe how St. Paul twdH, days shows the narrow limits of time throughout insists that, in becoming a Chris- witl1iu which the crime must he.ve been tian, he had not been disloyal to Moses, or oommitted, while the adroit mention of the the Law, or the prophets, or to the religion of pnrpoee of his visit, to wonhip, would show his fathers, but quite the contrary. Acoord- bow milikely it wu that he should have ing to the Law. Ka'l'a. .,.b,, v&µ,ov may rnean gone with any evil intent. either, as in the R.V., "according to the Ver. 12.-NeiJMr in the tmnpT,e did Oieg Law,'' or, as Meyer takes it, "throughout flnd me for they fleith.er fQfl,nd, me in the the Law,·• Bnd then ia better coupled, u tem1,le, A.V.; or stirring up a erO'Uld for in the A.V., with ,,.o,s -yt-ypa/L/Llvoir. lM atr, lllV, 1-27,] TllE ACTS OF THE APOSTLES. 233