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Atos 23

BLIVRE · Chapter 23/28

1E Paulo, olhando fixamente para o supremo conselho, disse: Homens irmãos, com toda boa consciência eu tenho andado diante de Deus até o dia de hoje.

2Mas o sumo sacerdote Ananias mandou aos que estavam perto dele, que o espancassem na boca.

3Então Paulo lhe disse: Deus vai te espancar, parede caiada! Estás tu [aqui] sentado para me julgar conforme a Lei, e contra a Lei mandas me espancarem?

4E os que estavam ali disseram: Tu insultas ao sumo sacerdote de Deus?

5E Paulo disse: Eu não sabia, irmãos, que ele era o sumo sacerdote; porque está escrito: Não falarás mal do chefe do teu povo.

6E Paulo, sabendo que uma parte era de saduceus, e outra de fariseus, ele clamou no supremo conselho: Homens irmãos, eu sou fariseu, filho de fariseu; pela esperança e ressurreição dos mortos eu estou sendo julgado.

7E ele, tendo dito isto, houve uma confusão entre os fariseus e saduceus; e a multidão se dividiu;

8Porque os saduceus dizem que não há ressurreição, nem anjo ou espírito; mas os fariseus declaram ambas.

9E houve uma grande gritaria; e levantando-se os escribas da parte dos fariseus, disputavam, dizendo: Nenhum mal achamos neste homem; e se algum espírito ou anjo falou com ele, não briguemos contra Deus.

10E havendo grande confusão, o comandante, temendo que Paulo não fosse despedaçado por eles, mandou descer a tropa, e tirá-lo do meio deles, e levá-lo à área fortificada.

11E [n] a noite seguinte o Senhor, aparecendo-lhe, disse: Tem bom ânimo, Paulo! Porque assim como deste testemunho de mim em Jerusalém, assim é necessário que tu dês testemunho também em Roma.

12E tendo vindo o dia, alguns dos judeus fizeram uma conspiração, e prestaram juramento sob pena de maldição, dizendo que não comeriam nem beberiam enquanto não matassem a Paulo.

13E eram mais de quarenta os que fizeram este juramento.

14Os quais foram até os chefes dos sacerdotes e os anciãos, [e] disseram: Fizemos juramento sob pena de maldição, de que nada experimentaremos enquanto não matarmos a Paulo.

15Agora, pois, vós, com o supremo conselho, informai ao comandante que amanhã ele o traga perante vós, como se fosse para que investigueis mais detalhadamente; e antes que ele chegue, estaremos prontos para o matar.

16E o filho da irmã de Paulo, tendo ouvido esta cilada, veio e entrou na área fortificada, e avisou a Paulo.

17E Paulo, tendo chamado a si um dos centuriões, disse: Leva este rapaz ao comandante, porque ele tem algo para lhe avisar.

18Então ele o tomou, levou ao comandante, e disse: O prisioneiro Paulo, tendo me chamado, rogou [-me] que eu te trouxesse este rapaz, que tem algo a te dizer.

19E o comandante, tomando-o pela mão, e indo para um lugar reservado, perguntou [-lhe] : O que tens para me avisar?

20E ele disse: Os judeus combinaram de te pedirem que amanhã tu leves a Paulo ao supremo conselho, como se fosse para que lhe perguntem mais detalhadamente;

21Porém tu, não acredites neles; porque mais de quarenta homens deles estão lhe preparando cilada, os quais sob pena de maldição fizeram juramento para não comerem nem beberem enquanto não o tiverem matado; e eles já estão preparados, esperando de ti a promessa.

22Então o comandante despediu ao rapaz, mandando [-lhe] : A ninguém digas que tu me revelaste estas coisas.

23E ele, chamando a si certos dois dos centuriões, disse: Aprontai duzentos soldados para irem até Cesareia; e setenta cavaleiros, e duzentos arqueiros, a partir das terceira hora da noite.

24E preparem animais para cavalgarem, para que pondo neles a Paulo, levem [-no] a salvo ao governador Félix.

25E ele [lhe] escreveu uma carta, que continha este aspecto:

26Cláudio Lísias, a Félix, excelentíssimo governador, saudações.

27Este homem foi preso pelos judeus, e estando já a ponte de o matarem, eu vim com a tropa e [o] tomei, ao ser informado que ele era romano.

28E eu, querendo saber a causa por que o acusavam, levei-o ao supremo conselho deles.

29O qual eu achei que acusavam de algumas questões da Lei deles; mas que nenhum crime digno de morte ou de prisão havia contra ele.

30E tendo sido avisado de que os judeus estavam para pôr uma cilada contra este homem, logo eu [o] enviei a ti, mandando também aos acusadores que diante de ti digam o que [tiverem] contra ele. Que tu estejas bem.

31Tendo então os soldados tomado a Paulo, assim como lhes tinha sido ordenado, trouxeram-no durante a noite a Antipátride.

32E no [dia] seguinte, deixando irem com ele os cavaleiros, voltaram à área fortificada.

33Os quais, tendo chegado a Cesareia, e entregado a carta ao governador, apresentaram-lhe também a Paulo.

34E o governador, tendo lido [a carta] , perguntou de que província ele era; e ao entender que [era] da Cilícia,

35disse: “Eu te ouvirei quando também chegarem os teus acusadores”. E mandou que o guardassem no palácio de Herodes.

📖 Chapter study

Summary

Before the Sanhedrin, Paul causes division between Pharisees and Sadducees by mentioning the resurrection. When a plot by more than forty men to kill him is uncovered, he is sent under heavy guard to Caesarea, to the governor Felix.

Explanation

Paul shows strategic insight by exploiting the theological divide between the Pharisees (who believed in the resurrection) and the Sadducees (who did not), sparking a dispute that ends up shielding him from direct violence. The vision he receives from Jesus himself, confirming that he would also testify in Rome, gives divine context to events that seemed like mere political persecution. The assassination plot, revealed by his nephew, shows that Paul's protection came both from divine intervention and from ordinary people willing to act.

Fun facts

  • Paul's nephew, mentioned here, is the only biblical reference to his family besides indirect mentions — suggesting that part of his family still lived in Jerusalem.
  • The escort of 470 soldiers (200 soldiers, 70 horsemen, and 200 spearmen) to transport a single prisoner shows how serious the threat was and how seriously Rome took keeping public order in the province of Judea.

Verse-by-verse explanation

  1. Atos 23:1Paul opens his address before the Sanhedrin by stating that he had lived up to that point with a good conscience before God, a declaration of innocence even before any formal accusation.
  2. Atos 23:2Ananias was the high priest at the time, not to be confused with the Ananias of Damascus in chapter 9 or the one in chapter 5. Ordering a defendant struck before even hearing his defense was a clear violation of Jewish judicial procedure itself.
  3. Atos 23:3Paul reacts sharply to the order to strike him before the trial has even begun, calling the high priest a “whited wall”—an image of a fine-looking surface hiding rot underneath—and pointing out the hypocrisy of judging him against the very law he was supposed to uphold.
  4. Atos 23:4Those present are shocked at Paul’s boldness in directly insulting the high priest, a figure of the highest religious authority.
  5. Atos 23:5Paul apologizes, saying he did not know it was the high priest who had given the order, and cites an Old Testament law forbidding speaking evil of a ruler of the people.
  6. Atos 23:6Paul uses a clever tactic: knowing the council was split between Pharisees and Sadducees, he shifts the discussion to belief in the resurrection, which only the Pharisees accepted, turning the two groups against each other instead of against him.
  7. Atos 23:7As soon as Paul mentions the resurrection, an internal dispute breaks out between the Pharisees and the Sadducees, dividing the very assembly that was supposed to judge him.
  8. Atos 23:8A direct summary of the theological difference between the two main Jewish religious groups of the time: the Sadducees followed only the five books of Moses in a more literal way, while the Pharisees accepted more developed ideas such as the resurrection and angels.
  9. Atos 23:9The uproar grows, and the scribes on the Pharisaic side even go so far as to defend Paul, saying they find no fault in him and admitting the possibility that he really had received a spiritual revelation.
  10. Atos 23:10With the fight spiraling out of control, the Roman commander fears Paul will be torn apart in the confusion and orders the soldiers to force him back into the fortress.
  11. Atos 23:11This is the first clear indication that Paul will eventually reach Rome, something that will only be fulfilled two years of imprisonment later, at the end of the book. It functions as a promise that guides the rest of the narrative.
  12. Atos 23:12The next day, a group of Jews makes an extreme oath: not to eat or drink until they succeed in killing Paul, showing the level of hatred he stirred up.
  13. Atos 23:13Luke records the exact size of this group of conspirators, more than forty men, making clear this was not an isolated plan by just a few people.
  14. Atos 23:14The conspirators approach the chief priests and elders to tell them the plan and ask for logistical help in carrying it out.
  15. Atos 23:15Their strategy is to convince the council to ask the Roman commander to bring Paul back before the Sanhedrin, claiming they want more information, so they can ambush him along the way.
  16. Atos 23:16This is the Bible’s only mention of a relative of Paul, showing he had family living in Jerusalem. The nephew, whose name we do not know, is the one who learns of the murder plot and prevents his uncle’s death.
  17. Atos 23:17As soon as he learns of the plan through his nephew, Paul asks a centurion to take the young man to the commander to tell him what he knew.
  18. Atos 23:18The centurion obeys and takes the young man to the commander, explaining that it was Paul the prisoner himself who asked for him to be heard.
  19. Atos 23:19The commander takes the young man aside to a private spot, takes him by the hand in a gesture of personal attention, and asks directly what he has to tell him.
  20. Atos 23:20The nephew reveals the Jews’ plan to ask that Paul be brought back before the council under the pretext of further questions.
  21. Atos 23:21He warns that more than forty men were lying in ambush, ready to kill Paul along the way, and were only waiting for the commander’s approval to act.
  22. Atos 23:22The commander lets the young man go, but demands total secrecy, telling him not to tell anyone that he had revealed this information.
  23. Atos 23:23A huge escort, nearly four hundred soldiers between infantry, cavalry, and spearmen, to take a single prisoner to Caesarea. It shows the scale of the uproar Paul caused and how careful the Roman commander was to avoid a scandal involving a Roman citizen under his watch.
  24. Atos 23:24The commander also provides mounts to transport Paul safely to Governor Felix, an escort fit for someone important, even though he was a prisoner.
  25. Atos 23:25The commander writes an official letter explaining the situation to the governor, a document Luke reproduces almost in full next.
  26. Atos 23:26The letter opens with a standard formal Roman greeting: from Claudius Lysias, the commander, to the “most excellent” governor Felix.
  27. Atos 23:27Lysias sums up the case in his own favor, describing how he rescued Paul from being killed by the Jews as soon as he learned he was a Roman citizen.
  28. Atos 23:28He explains that, wanting to understand the real charge against Paul, he brought him before the Jewish religious council to investigate.
  29. Atos 23:29Lysias concludes, in the official report, that the accusation was only about internal questions of Jewish law, with no crime deserving death or imprisonment.
  30. Atos 23:30He justifies sending Paul urgently to Felix by pointing to the discovery of the ambush plot, and asks that the accusers themselves bring their charges directly to the governor.
  31. Atos 23:31Following the orders they received, the soldiers take Paul by night to Antipatris, a town about halfway to Caesarea.
  32. Atos 23:32The next day, the infantry returns to the fortress in Jerusalem, leaving only the cavalry to continue escorting Paul, now in a safer region.
  33. Atos 23:33On arriving in Caesarea, the horsemen deliver both the letter and Paul himself directly to Governor Felix.
  34. Atos 23:34After reading the letter, Felix asks what province Paul is from, and on learning he is from Cilicia, decides how to proceed.
  35. Atos 23:35Felix promises to hear the case once the accusers arrive, and orders Paul kept under guard in Herod’s former palace, used as the seat of Roman government in Caesarea.

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