…the Jews made a plot and bound themselves by an oath neither to eat nor drink till they had killed Paul.
Acts 23: 12-22
Now, some Jews made a vow to not eat or drink until they had killed Paul. Paul’s nephew heard the plot being planned and he went to tell Paul who was being held in jail. When Paul heard of the plot, he asked a centurion to take his nephew to the tribune. The nephew related the whole plot to the tribune. As the tribune dismissed the boy, he told him to not say word to anyone about the plot. Non-biblical writings indicate Paul may have been disowned by his family, deserted by his wife and, generally, hated by his fellow Jews who rejected Jesus as Messiah. Luke’s short story here tells us that not all of Paul’s family forsook him. Though Luke does not write any further of Paul’s family, we learn here of Paul’s sister who had a son. Apparently, Paul’s sister cared for her brother and, possibly, her son admired his Uncle Paul. Otherwise, such action would not have been taken nor recorded by Luke. Paul wanted his nephew to tell the tribune himself since the boy had been a first-hand witness to the plot. The boy impressed the tribune enough for him to take action to avoid becoming part of an attack which could kill some of his own soldiers as well as the Jews who so foolishly made a plot against Rome. Christians understand that God controls His creation. His control extends to everything that God created. What may not be thought of is that God even works through evil humans to accomplish His will. We do see God at work that way in the Old Testament as God punished His people, the Israelites, by using pagan armies to invade and take captive the rebellious Israelites who resisted God’s calls to repent. Today, Christians may wonder why God has not done the same given that today’s world is under such evil control. Christians cannot be impatient that God does not act when they think He should. God knows what He is doing though Christians may not understand. Let all Christians put trust in God alone knowing that He works all things, good and bad, for good to those who love and obey Him. Source: S C Ball August 7, 2023
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