GOD’S WORD FOR YOU
ACTS 21:4-8
4 When we found the disciples there, we stayed with them for seven days. Through the Spirit they urged Paul not to go on to Jerusalem. 5 But when our days to re-equip were completed, we left to resume our journey, but all the disciples with their wives and children accompanied us until we were outside the city. We knelt down on the beach and prayed, 6 and then said farewell to one another. Then we went on board the ship, and they returned home.
Luke is describing the short walk from the inner city of Tyre down to the beach. Their boat was anchored nearby and was just finishing taking on new stores. The Greek word I have translated “re-equip” can mean to simply “complete” a period of time, and most translations take it to mean the days there were completed. However, since the text still involves sea travel from Tyre down to Ptolemais, and from there to Caesarea, I think that the words relate to the provisioning of the ship. Every sailing ship at that time was especially concerned with fresh drinking water. Water in wooden casks or in animal skins becomes thick with green living things after just a few weeks at sea, and every captain would be especially concerned with getting his sailors fresh water as often as he could.
While the travelers left the house where they had been staying in Tyre, the believers of Tyre along with their families (wives and children) escorted Paul and his companions right down to the shoreline. Ancient Tyre had been an island, and it actually had four good ports. Alexander the Great conquered Tyre in 332 BC by making a manmade causeway out to the city gates. The largest seaport was a natural bay facing north and is sometimes called the “Interior Port,” with access between the northern headland of Tyre and the continental shoreline. A southern anchorage (also a natural bay) was called the Egyptian Port. A third anchorage consisted of a series of sandstone ridges all along the western shoreline of the city, and a fourth harbor was located on the mainland east of Tyre north of the hill Tell Mashuk. Although we can’t be certain, Luke’s description of the group kneeling on the beach to pray and say farewell may suggest that the Phoenician ship they were using was anchored at one of the outer sandstone quays. These were located on the long western shore of Tyre facing out to sea. It’s likely that the Phoenician ship would have had to anchor offshore, and small boats would have been used to transport provisions, water and crew out to the ship. A whip rove over a yardarm or a rope with a pulley would easily haul heavy stores up from small boats alongside the ship (pulleys were in universal service throughout the Roman Empire at this time, and are probably a small part of the “tackle” in Acts 27:19).
The group urged Paul not to go to Jerusalem. The Holy Spirit had given them some kind of warning about what was to come, and they were concerned about him. They wouldn’t be the last to say so.
7 We completed our voyage from Tyre. We arrived at Ptolemais, greeted the brothers there and stayed with them for a day. 8 The next day we departed and came to Caesarea. We entered the house of Philip the evangelist, who was one of the seven, and we stayed with him.
Ptolemais was known as Acco in the Old Testament (Judges 1:31) and Acre (AKree, not like our English word “acre”) from Crusader times to the present day. It is located on the northern end of the gulf that ends down at Mount Carmel. It is just 25 miles due west of the north end of the Sea of Galilee. Caesarea was an easy sail down the coast from Ptolemais, around Mount Carmel and into the arms of the little harbor there.
The last mention of Philip was back in Acts 8:40, when he traveled from Azotus throughout the old Philistine villages and finished here at Caesarea. Evidently he, his wife and family moved in here and preached the gospel. Philip is called “the evangelist” here, and this is another opportunity for us to remember that, in Scripture, all preachers are essentially the same regarding their rights and honors. There are five grades of ministry in the New Testament according to Ephesians 4:11: Apostles, Prophets, Evangelists, Pastors and Teachers. The teachers taught the children and new converts (Romans 2:20; Hebrews 5:12). Pastors were set over a particular flock or congregation (1 Peter 5:2). Evangelists were not over certain congregations, but were sent out to preach the gospel in general (2 Timothy 4:5; Ephesians 6:21; Colossians 4:7). Prophets in the New Testament were usually men who interpreted tongues (1 Corinthians 14:1-6) and the Scriptures (but see verse 9 below). Finally, Apostles were directly called by Christ. Martin Chemnitz explains: “They had a universal call and all miraculous gifts, and their preaching and teaching was inspired; therefore God’s Word in the true sense and the source of teaching for others.”
What grieves me about these verses is the warning given by the Tyrian Christians, and Paul’s dogged movement forward despite the difficulty and the danger. There is no hesitation in Paul. A day’s sailing is followed by another day’s sailing, and another, and another, faithfully recorded by Luke. Jerusalem and the danger to Paul were getting closer and closer all the time. Do we face trouble that way? Not that we’re cowards with the gospel, but we can be cowards with the law. We don’t like to stir things up. I was reading a statement of faith from a denomination I don’t know much about yesterday (Evangelical Free) and I noticed that they don’t have a position about baptism. One representative explained that they purposely omit this from their writings because they’re aware that there are many “traditions” about baptism, and they don’t want to cause divisions in their church over it. That’s a cowardly attitude toward both law and gospel. That’s no different than saying “I love Jesus, but I won’t tell you why in case it upsets you.” Snowflakes melt when they touch the least little bit of warmth. Don’t be a snowflake with your faith. Share the reason why you believe in Jesus with the people you love, because their souls are in danger. Why do we boil water, or cook meat? To kill the impurities, the germs, and the bugs. And to make it palatable. Don’t be afraid to heat things up in the hearts of your loved ones. The law needs to kill human arrogance and the “I don’t care” attitude people have for their sins. Not caring about a sin doesn’t cancel the guilt of that sin any more than not caring about an F will change a failing grade into a passing one. The gospel will heal what the law condemns, but both law and gospel need to be proclaimed. Share the “why” for your faith in Jesus, and pray that you can be fearless about it.
In Christ,
Pastor Timothy Smith
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Pastor Smith serves St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, New Ulm, Minnesota
God’s Word for You – Acts 21:4-8 Doggedness