Then all the city was aroused, and the people rushed together. They seized Paul and dragged him out of the temple, and immediately the doors were shut. Acts 21:30
The seven days of purification are almost complete. The Jews from Asia stir up the crowd, seize Paul and shout loudly, “Fellow Israelites, help! This is the man who is teaching everyone everywhere against our people, our law, and this place; more than that, he has actually brought Greeks into the temple and has defiled this holy place.” (Acts 22:28). ‘Against our people,’ means all the Jewish Nation. And ‘this place’ refers to the temple. Now Greeks may come into the outer court of the temple yet they imagined Paul has brought them into the inner temple area and defiled it.
This riles up those in Jerusalem city and others now seize him and drag Paul out of the temple, and close the gates. In this way Paul is prevented from taking sanctuary at the horns of the altar. For it was that any uncircumcised person who came into the innermost area of the temple could be stoned to death and these who seize Paul begin to take similar punishment toward Paul.
The oldest Roman tribune Lyasis is not present when violence begins against Paul yet when word comes to Lyasis he immediately sends a cohort (which lodged in the adjacent castle of Antonia) of soldiers right into the troubled mob, tries to settle the mob mentality which has gone wild and cannot, and soldiers are ordered to swiftly bind Paul in chains. They start to walk Paul to take him to the barracks of Roman authority and end up carrying him through this total disruption.
Thus the prophecy of Agabus, and the four prophesying daughters, is fulfilled. And after this violence is pounded unjustly upon Paul we still find Paul is in his right mind. Reference Acts 22:22, for Paul grabs this opportunity to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ Resurrected another time, safely and in spite of all this Jerusalem uproar! And beginning in Acts 22:1, Paul speaks in Hebrew and they marvel– at his words, his witness, and his Christ-like abilities. Watch again as our Holy Spirit is securely with Paul.
