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O 21:20.
Many thousands zealous of the law.
P 21:21,22.
Informed. False statement.
P 21:23,24.
Informed. Prove that they are nothing.
O 21:24.
Thou, thyself, keepest the law.
N 21:25.
Gentiles. What the elders and apostles had written.
M 21:26.
Entered in. Paul and the men who had a vow.
`James and all the elders were present' (Acts 21:18).
There is something about this statement that calls up the words of Galatians 2:6: `These who seemed to be
somewhat'.
`It must have been with an almost painful shyness - that timid provincial neophytes, like Timothy and Trophimus
(the latter especially, an uncircumcised Gentile, whom his teacher had encouraged to regard himself as entirely
emancipated from the Jewish law) - found themselves in the awful presence of James, the Lord's brother -
James, the stern, white-robed, mysterious prophet, and the conclave of his but half-conciliated Judaic presbyters'
(Farrar).
The apostle Paul, however, who had withstood Peter to the face, and had yielded by subjection no, not for an
hour, went forward without hesitation to meet this council and `saluted them'. He then `declared particularly', that
is, gave a fairly detailed account, of `what things God had wrought among the Gentiles by his ministry'. Paul had
been absent about four years (Acts 18:21); he referred to `the space of three years' as the duration of his ministry in
Asia, and he would have much to tell concerning Ephesus, Philippi, Galatia and elsewhere. We cannot tell whether
Paul alluded to the antagonism, not only of the unbelieving Jews, but of the believing Jews, which had attempted to
wreck his work at Corinth and Galatia, but in either case the freedom and grace enjoyed by the Gentile churches
would have been made very manifest by his report, and the disclosure would act like breath on glowing tinder. Ever
since James, Cephas and John had asked Paul to `remember the poor' (Gal. 2:10), it had been his intense desire that
he should be able to bring an offering from the Gentile churches to Jerusalem as evidence of their recognition of
indebtedness and a manifest token of their fellowship and goodwill. In pursuit of his desire he had arranged that
each church should select their own representative and personally deliver the love gift of the churches to the leaders
at Jerusalem.
That Paul entertained very serious doubts concerning his reception at Jerusalem, is made clear in his epistle to
*
the Romans. The full structure of Romans 15:8 to 16:23 will be found in chapter 19 of Just and the Justifier . From
it we lift those members that reveal the fears entertained by the apostle in connection with this visit to Jerusalem.
And that the Gentiles might glorify God for His mercy
(Rom. 15:9).
Might be acceptable, being sanctified by the Holy Ghost
(Rom. 15:16).
May be accepted of the saints (Rom. 15:31).
The offering up of the Gentiles to God, was acceptable, for they were sanctified by the Holy Ghost. But of the
offering sent by the Gentiles to Jerusalem, Paul can only earnestly express the hope, may it be accepted by those
who are saints, not by nature, but by grace. O the tragedy of the sectarian spirit! No doubts were entertained as to
the acceptableness of the poor Gentile converts by a holy God, but grave doubts were entertained as to whether
those self-same converts would be acceptable to certain other sinners saved by grace! Paul's fears seem to have been
only too well founded. The offerings had been in his charge throughout the journey. Had they been lost, stolen or
left behind, Luke would have recorded the fact.
*
An exposition of PaulØs epistle to the Romans, by the same author.