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in Suetonius, where we learn that it was the practice of Nero to hear and decide each
branch of the accusation separately.
"Amongst the Romans, as amongst ourselves, the indictment consisted of several
counts, which were heard seriatim" (Lewin).
Who was "the lion" from whose mouth Paul had been delivered at this first hearing?
It might refer to Satan (I Pet. 5: 8) but that is unlikely, the figure being foreign to Paul's
usual description of Satan and his antagonism. It might have been a reference to Nero
himself, and Paul, student as he was of the apocryphal writings of his people would know
the text in the Megillah where Esther cried to Ahaseurus "save me from the lion's
mouth", but there is every reason to justify us taking the statement literally.
"Nero had been intensely anxious to fix on the innocent Christians the stigma of that
horrible conflagration, of which he himself had been dangerously suspected, and the mere
suspicion of which, until averted into another channel, had gone far to shake even his
imperial power. And now the greatest of the Christians--the very coryphaeus of the
hated sect--stood chained before him. He to whom popularity, forfeited in part by his
enormous crimes, had become a matter of supreme importance, saw how cheaply it could
be won by sacrificing a sick, deserted, aged and fettered prisoner, for whom no living
soul would speak a word, and who was evidently regarded with intense hatred by
Gentiles from Asia, and by a dense rabble of the city, and by Jews from every quarter of
the world" (Farrar).
"Notwithstanding", said Paul, "the Lord stood with me". Paristemi "stand beside",
was used by the Saviour, in His hour of trial, when He said:
"Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to My Father, and He shall presently give Me
more than twelve legions of angels?" (Matt. 26: 53).
We have met the word earlier in this epistle for in the exhortation "Study to shew thy
self approved unto God" (II Tim. 2: 15), the word translated "shew" is paristemi. This
twofold use is full of teaching and encouragement. Paul found it to be true, he assured
Timothy that it would be true for him, and we are sure that it has been, and will yet be
true for countless more. In effect Paul teaches us by this double reference that if we but
"stand beside" God "approved" and make it our endeavour so to do, we can rest assured
that He will "stand beside" us in our hour of trial.
Endunamo "to enstrengthen", is a word used only of or by Paul. Once again we turn
back to the second chapter, to find the only other reference in this epistle. To Timothy,
Paul had said:
"Thou therefore, my son, be strong in the grace that is in Christ Jesus" (II Tim. 2: 1),
and here, in his hour of need, Paul testifies to the faithfulness of the Lord Who not only
stood by but strengthened him.
"Sick, deserted, aged, fettered"--so Nero beheld him with the outward eye--but Paul
was clad from top to toe in the whole armour of God, for the exhortation in Eph. 6: to
put on the whole armour of God, is introduced by the same word "be strong" (6: 10).