Acts Chapter 22 Verse-by-Verse Commentary
Acts 22:1 & 2
"Brothers and fathers! Listen to me as I make my defense before you now! When they heard him speaking to them in Hebrew, they settled down more; so he continued:
Paul got the crowd's attention when he began to speak their language. He addressed them as "brothers and fathers" further identifying himself with them as he was also a Jew. It is easier for people to persecute someone that is not the same as themselves but, here, they learn that Paul is one of them and it quiets them down.
Acts 22:3
"I am a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but brought up in this city and trained at the feet of Gamli'el in every detail of the Torah of our forefathers. I was a zealot for God, as all of you are today.
Paul begins his testimony with the fact that he was no ordinary Jew. He was trained by one of the most famous teachers in Jerusalem and so, when he mentioned the name of Gamaliel, it would have gotten their attention. It is interesting to note that Paul does not condemn them for their zealousness in defending the law in fact, once again, he identifies himself as being in their shoes at one time.
Acts 22:4 & 5
I persecuted to death the followers of this Way, arresting both men and women and throwing them in prison. The cohen hagadol and the whole Sanhedrin can also testify to this. Indeed, after receiving letters from them to their colleagues in Dammesek, I was on my way there in order to arrest the ones in that city too and bring them back to Yerushalayim for punishment.
Paul went on to explain that he had not only done what this mob was doing here in Jerusalem but he had also went to Damascus to do the same thing. He says that the Council can verify these facts.
Acts 22:6-8
"As I was traveling and approaching Dammesek, around noon, suddenly a brilliant light from heaven flashed all around me! I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, 'Sha'ul! Sha'ul! Why do you keep persecuting me?' I answered, 'Sir, who are you?' 'I am Yeshua from Natzeret,' he said to me, 'and you are persecuting me!'
Saul had a little talk with Jesus on the road to Damascus. Jesus made a dramatic entrance and got Saul/Paul's attention. Jesus immediately asked him about his sin in order to bring Paul to understand his need for repentance. This is the same dramatic type of thing that occurs in everyone who comes to Christ. If you can't remember Jesus showing up in your life, you might want to check yourself to make sure that you have actually met Him.
Acts 22:9
Those who were with me did see the light, but they didn't hear the voice of the one who was speaking to me.
Paul continues to describe his encounter with Jesus and there were witnesses who saw the light. They heard Jesus speaking to Paul but could not understand what He was saying. Jesus was giving a specific message to Saul/Paul and his companions did not need to understand or God would have allowed them to do so. There are those that say that God/Jesus does not audibly speak to people today but there is no basis for putting such a limit on God. If He wants to tell you something, He can! (What He tells you will line up with his Word and purpose.)
Acts 22:10
I said 'What should I do, Lord?' And the Lord said to me, 'Get up, and go into Dammesek, and there you will be told about everything that has been laid out for you to do.'
When Paul came face to face with the Lord, his reaction was to fall down in worship and then it was to find out how he was to serve. Jesus told Paul that he had been assigned things to do and we may say he's Paul and God had great things planned for him which is true. But, God has also planned great things for each of us to do as Paul tells us in Ephesians 2:10.
Acts 22:11
I had been blinded by the brightness of the light, so my companions led me by the hand into Dammesek.
We might ask ourselves why God would blind Paul just as he was having a change of heart. As we shall see, God is working behind the scenes for the good of His servant. We will have some tough things happen in our walk with Christ walking through these valleys is a normal part of our growth. (see Nehemiah 3 for a look at the valley gate and its role in our walk.)
Acts 22:12 & 13
"A man named Hananyah, an observant follower of the Torah who was highly regarded by the entire Jewish community there, came to me, stood by me and said, 'Brother Sha'ul, see again!' And at that very moment, I recovered my sight and saw him.
Paul continues to tell the people the story of his encounter with Jesus. He now recalls the miracle of having his sight restored. This would have been surprising to the people as they believed that God would not heal a sinner without the prescribed rituals.
Acts 22:14 & 15
He said, 'The God of our fathers determined in advance that you should know his will, see the Tzaddik and hear his voice; because you will be a witness for him to everyone of what you have seen and heard.
Now Ananias is used by God to tell Saul/Paul his purpose and that is to be a witness for Jesus. We may say that this was just for Paul but we, too, have been given the same purpose. Though we may not have seen and heard Jesus on the road like he did, if you know Jesus and what He has done for you, you are to testify to "what you have seen and heard".
Acts 22:16
So now, what are you waiting for? Get up, immerse yourself and have your sins washed away as you call on his name.'
Ananias gave Paul his final instructions which were to go and get prepared to serve. Baptism has been twisted and used to divide God's people into different groups. The simple fact of the matter is that Jesus was baptized by John in the Jordan River (see Matthew 3:13-17). This happened before Jesus began His earthly ministry as a man. We, like Paul, are called to be His disciples and that means doing the same things that Jesus did. It was what Paul was told to do here before the start of his service and it is what we are to do as well.
Acts 22:17 & 18
"After I had returned to Yerushalayim, it happened that as I was praying in the Temple, I went into a trance, and I saw Yeshua. 'Hurry!' he said to me, 'Get out of Yerushalayim immediately, because they will not accept what you have to say about me.'
Paul tells us now of a vision and of the instructions that Jesus gave him concerning his work. The Lord knows all and knew that they would not accept Paul's testimony in Jerusalem so He sent Paul elsewhere. This example can strengthen us when we have times where people do not want to accept our story of how God is working in our lives. There are even those that do not accept the fact that God will give His people visions today but, as we can see, God is in control and communicates with His children in many ways.
Acts 22:19 & 20
I said, 'Lord, they know themselves that in every synagogue I used to imprison and flog those who trusted in you; also that when the blood of your witness Stephen was being shed, I was standing there too, in full agreement; I was even looking after the clothes of the ones who were killing him!'
This passage speaks of the fact that our lives before we came to Christ can determine the best place to serve Him after we accept the Lord. Based on his previous actions, Paul was probably not the one to bring the Jews of Jerusalem into the faith.
Acts 22:21
But he said, 'Get going! For I am going to send you far away - to the Goyim!'"
So, Paul received his ministry instructions directly from the Lord and they weren't what he expected. Remember that Paul was not just a Jew but one of the most educated (a rising star in the Jewish leadership) but now God is going to send him to the Gentiles (non-Jews). We, like Paul, must just trust in God and know that His wisdom and ways are above our understanding. When He speaks, we act in faith just as Paul did.
Acts 22:22
They had been listening to him up to this point; but now they shouted at the top of their lungs, "Rid the earth of such a man! He's not fit to live!"
The crowd was calm until Paul said something that they did not like. They did not accept the fact that Gentiles could be children of God with the Jews and so they wanted him dead. Paul had to have known what their reaction would be but he still shared what Jesus had told him and trusted in God. We, too, will face times when people do not like what God says through us and even more in the last days.
Acts 22:23 & 24
They were screaming, waving their clothes and throwing dust into the air; so the commander ordered him brought into the barracks and directed that he be interrogated and whipped, in order to find out why they were yelling at him like this.
The mob was going crazy so the commander just assumed that Paul had done something wrong and ordered that he be beaten and questioned about the matter. This may sound strange but the same type of thing happens today in many parts of the world. When some people don't like you sharing God's Word, they get a mob to try to stop it. Sometimes, this leads to false accusation and even arrest and unjust punishment as in the case of Paul here.
Acts 22:25
But as they were stretching him out with thongs to be flogged, Sha'ul said to the captain standing by, "Is it legal for you to whip a man who is a Roman citizen and hasn't even had a trial?"
The answer to Paul's question is a big no. Therefore, can you imagine what the soldier was thinking? We can take comfort in this example as we are persecuted for following Jesus Christ. Many who do so do not know that we are royalty as children of God. Imagine their reaction when our true identity in Christ is revealed.
Acts 22:26 & 27
When the captain heard that, he went and reported it to the commander, "Do you realize what you're doing? This man is a Roman citizen!" The commander came and said to Sha'ul, "Tell me, are you a Roman citizen?" "Yes," he said.
The commander questioned Paul to see if he was indeed a Roman citizen. Being a citizen brought many rights and one of them was to have a trial before being punished.
Acts 22:28
The commander replied, "I bought this citizenship for a sizeable sum of money." "But I was born to it," Sha'ul said.
The commander had worked, saved and bought his citizenship but Paul explained to the commander that he was born a Roman citizen. This is a picture of how God has joined Jews and Gentiles into one body (see Ephesians 3).
Acts 22:29
At once the men who had been about to interrogate him drew back from him; and the commander was afraid too, because he realized that he had put this man who was a Roman citizen in chains.
The soldiers knew that they could be in for some serious trouble for putting a Roman citizen in chains without a trial. This was an opportunity for Paul to demonstrate the love of Jesus Christ. He could have gotten really mad and raised a big fuss but he did not.
Acts 22:30
However, the next day, since he wanted to know the specific charge the Judeans were bringing against him, he released him and ordered the head cohanim and the whole Sanhedrin to meet. Then he brought Sha'ul down and put him in front of them.
Now, the commander stopped to find out the truth and so ordered Paul to stand before his accusers. You can almost feel God getting ready to use Paul here in a mighty way. Out of Paul's obedience to God comes another opportunity to testify about Jesus.