Daily Devotional for Tuesday, April 25

Paul’s Nephew Gives a Report

“And when Paul’s sister’s son heard of their lying in wait,
he went and entered into the castle, and told Paul,” Acts 23:16.

A band of devout Jews were determined to rid themselves of Paul with a seemingly doable scheme. They already knew, from experience, they could create a raucous mob, and in the confusion, they could take down Paul. Apparently, any consequences from Roman authorities were worth the risk. Their plan was viable enough it caused Paul’s nephew to warn him of the danger and Paul needed to take it seriously.
The delivery of the warning is quite interesting, and it says a lot about the characters involved. First, apparently Paul could have visitors because his nephew was admitted into the castle. Paul’s credibility led the centurion to listen to him and carry out his wish. The centurion carried the nephew, not just a message, to the chief captain. Then, the chief captain paused to listen to the nephew and gave him a private meeting. On top of that, the nephew was bold! He straightforwardly told the captain not to bring Paul down to the court the next day. With this knowledge, the captain made a plan.
Let’s have a quick look at the oath of the forty men. Vows were quite common in Israel. The Bible, particularly the Old Testament, is full of verses concerning vows, swearing or oaths. Numbers 30:2 says, “If a man vow a vow unto the Lord, or swear an oath to bind his soul with a bond; he shall not break his word, he shall do according to all that proceedeth out of his mouth.” These men bound themselves to each other, to be accountable to each other to see this through. However, one key phrase is missing and rightly so— “unto the Lord.” Vows in Scripture include this phrase or a direct reference to the Lord. This conspiracy, as Luke called it (Acts 23:13), would not be honored by the Lord. They bound themselves “under a curse” (verse 12), not invoking the Lord at all.

THOUGHT:Conspiracies cannot outwit the Lord.

Kelli Reynolds