Open English Translation ACTs Chapter 21

21 When it was time for us to sail, we left them and sailed directly across to Cos before going on to Rhodes the next day and then on to Patara. 2 From there we found a ship heading to Phoenicia, so we boarded that and set off. 3 After sighting Cyprus and then leaving it behind on our left, we sailed on to Syria and docked there at the port of Tyre where the ship had cargo to be unloaded. 4 We searched for the believers there and then stayed on with them for seven days. They were inspired by the spirit to tell Paul not to go to Yerusalem. 5 Once our time was up there and everyone knew that we were leaving, even the wives and children accompanied us out of the city to the port. We all knelt on the beach and prayed 6 before we continued on and boarded our ship and they went back to their own homes.

7 So we sailed from Tyre down to Ptolemais where we were able to greet the brothers and sisters and stay overnight with them. 8 The next day we continued on to Caesarea and ended up in Philip’s house. He was one of the original seven men who had been given the responsibility of distributing aid—a preacher of the good message, and we stayed with him. 9 Philip had four unmarried daughters still at home, and they shared messages from God. 10 Several days later a man named Agabus came from Yudea. He too shared messages from God 11 and when he arrived, he picked up Paul’s belt and tied it around his own feet and hands, telling them that the holy spirit had told him that this is how the owner of the belt would be treated by the Jewish leaders in Yerusalem before they would then hand him over to the non-Jews to be dealt with.

12 When we heard this described, both we and the locals begged Paul not to go to Yerusalem 13 but he answered, “Oh come on, what’s all this weeping and carrying on that’s breaking my heart. Actually I’m quite ready not only to be tied up, but even to be killed in Yerusalem as a testimony to the master Yeshua.”

14 When we saw that we couldn’t change his mind, we didn’t say anything else, figuring out that whatever the master wills for the situation would happen, 15 and so after these several days, we had gotten everything ready and started off for Yerusalem. 16 Some of the believers from Caesarea accompanied us and led us to the home of a man named Mnason to stay—he was an older believer from Cyprus.

17 When we arrived at Yerusalem, the brothers and sisters there happily welcomed us, 18 and the next day, we accompanied Paul to go and see Yacob[fn] and the elders of the assembly there. 19 After greeting them, Paul then described all the things that God had done among the non-Jews as he had served among them, 20 and when they’d heard all that they praised God and told Paul, “Brother, you’ve noticed how many thousands of Jews have believed in the messiah but they still strive to observe the Moses’ laws. 21 But they’ve heard reports that you’ve been teaching the Jews that live outside our country that they don’t have to obey what Moses wrote—telling them that they don’t have to have their children circumcised and that they don’t have to follow our Jewish customs. 22 What will happen now, because the leaders here will certainly hear that you have arrived? 23 So here’s what we suggest that you do: Four of our men are making a public vow. 24 Why don’t you join these four and join them in the purification ceremony at the temple and pay their expenses in getting your heads shaved. Then everyone will be able to see that it’s false what they’ve heard about you, because you clearly still comply with Moses’ instructions. 25 And as for the believers who are non-Jews, we’ve informed them of our recommendation that they should avoid anything that’s been offered to an idol, avoid consuming blood and meat from strangled animals and birds, and avoid sexual immorality.”

26 So the next day Paul took the four men for the purification ceremony in the temple and there they announced the date when their vows would be fulfilled and their sacrifices made.

27 When the seven days of the vow were almost over, some Jews from the province of Asia Minor noticed Paul in the temple. They stirred up the crowd and grabbed hold of him, 28 yelling out, “Men of Israel. Help us here. This is the man who’s been teaching all around the world against Israel and against Moses’ law and against this temple. What’s more he brought non-Jews here into the temple and so has defiled this holy place.” 29 (They said this because they had previously seen Trophimus from Ephesus in the city with Paul and had assumed that he had brought him into the temple.)

30 So now the whole city was in an uproar, and the crowds rushed in, grabbed Paul, and dragged him out of the temple and hurriedly closed the temple gates. 31 They were ready to kill Paul, but the commander of the Roman soldiers had heard that all Yerusalem was in an uproar. 32 Taking some soldiers and officers, he immediately ran down to the temple, and when the crowd saw the commander and the soldiers they stopped beating Paul. 33 The commander came close and took hold of Paul and ordered that he be tied up with a pair of chains while he tried to find out who he was and what he’d done wrong. 34 Various people in the crowd were shouting out different things, and not being able to make any sense of it because of all the commotion, the commander ordered that Paul be taken into the barracks. 35 When they got to the stairs, the soldiers had to lift him up above their heads because of the frenzy of the crowd, 36 because most of the people were following and shouting out, “Do away with him!”

37 As they were able to carry him into the fortress, Paul called down to the commander, “Can I say something to you?”

“You speak Greek!”, replied the commander. 38 “Aren’t you the Egyptian who stirred up a group of assassins a while back and led them out into the wilderness?”

39 “No, I’m a Jew from Tarsus in Cilica—a citizen of an important city,” said Paul. “But please, let me speak to these people.”

40 The commander nodded, so the soldiers stood Paul on the stairs where he gestured to the people. The crowd quietened down, and so Paul spoke loudly in his Hebrew language: