BIBLE STUDY LESSON 16

SERIES V --- JOURNEYS FOR YESHUA

CAESAREA

PAUL IS TAKEN TO CAESAREA

From Acts 23:12-35

The day after Paul was taken prisoner, more than forty Jewish men vowed that they would not eat or drink until they had killed him. They shared their plot with the chief priests and elders. [You and the council have the commander bring Paul here again, pretending to examine him further. We will hide along the way and kill him there.] The secret leaked out to Paul’s nephew, his sister’s son. He rushed to the fortress and told Paul, who called for a centurion. [Take this young man to the commander,] Paul told the centurion. [He has an important message for him.] When the centurion reported to the commander, he gave him this message. [The prisoner Paul asked that I bring this young man to you with an important message.] The commander led the boy by the hand to a private place. [Now, what message do you have?] he asked. The boy told the commander about the plot. [They will ask you to bring Paul to the council tomorrow,] he reported. [They will pretend that they want to examine him some more, but forty of them have vowed not to eat or drink until they have killed him, so they will hide and wait for him.] [Tell no one what you have said to me,] the commander urged as he sent the boy away. Then he summoned two centurions and gave them orders. [By nine tonight I want two hundred soldiers, ready to march; as well as seventy horsemen and two hundred spearmen,] he commanded. [Provide animals for Paul to ride on, and escort him safely to Governor Felix in Caesarea.] The commander sent this letter along: [Claudius Lysias to His Excellency, Governor Felix, Greetings! The Jews were trying to kill this man when I rescued him, for he is a Roman citizen. I took him to their council, hoping to learn why they were hurting him, but found that it was nothing but some disagreements concerning their religious Laws, certainly no charge worth execution or imprisonment. I then learned of a plot to murder the man, so I am sending him to you, and am informing his accusers to bring their charges to you.] The soldiers obeyed and took Paul as far as Antipatris that night. The next day they returned to the fortress while the horsemen continued with Paul to Caesarea, where they delivered him to the governor, along with the letter. When the governor read the letter, he asked Paul which province he came from, and Paul told him Cilicia. [I will hear from you completely as soon as your accusers arrive,] the governor responded. Then he ordered Paul kept in the prison in Herod’s palace.

COMMENTARY

IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF PAUL: CAESAREA

Strato’s Tower was once a Phoenician town on the northern coast of Palestine. When Herod the Great chose it as the site of his new harbour, he renamed it {Caesarea} in honour of his friend and patron, Caesar Augustus. Herod built an entirely new city over the old settlement. He encircled it with a wall and equipped it with sewers and road systems. Fresh water was supplied by an aqueduct that connected the city with nearby springs. When it was complete, Caesarea had many public buildings. In addition to an amphitheatre and a hippodrome, Herod built an imposing temple dedicated to Augustus. Herod’s most important contribution to Caesarea was a completely man-made harbour. Two long sea walls formed a large semicircle broken by a large gate on the northern side. Tremendous stone blocks up to fifty feet long were used to build the underwater walls. The project took twelve years to complete, and the finished harbour was the largest on the coast of Palestine. Caesarea soon became the trade centre of Palestine. Because of its important connections with Rome and Jerusalem, the Romans made it their capital city in Palestine. Three thousand Roman troops were stationed there to help keep the rebellious Jewish nation under control. Roman power was much stronger in Caesarea than in Jerusalem. When Paul’s nephew discovered the plot against his uncle’s life in Jerusalem, the apostle had to be smuggled out by night. In Caesarea the Roman guards were better able to protect Paul against the angry Jewish leaders who swore to kill him.