It is very difficult to believe that Paul would be purified, enter into the temple, and wait for the offerings to be offered by the priest. He did this after writing the Epistles to the Galatians and the Romans, books that were written not long before he came to Jerusalem. Although it is difficult to believe that Paul carried out the word of James and the elders, it is a fact that he joined himself to the Nazarites and went with them into the temple.
As we shall see in a later message, there was an uproar against Paul (21:27—23:15), and he was seized by the Jews in Jerusalem (21:27-30). Concerning this, 21:27 and 28 say, “Now when the seven days were about to be concluded, the Jews from Asia saw him in the temple and threw all the crowd into confusion; and they laid their hands on him, crying out, Men, Israelites, help! This is the man who is teaching all men everywhere against the people, and the law, and this place; and besides, he has even brought Greeks into the temple and has profaned this holy place.” This uproar took place “when the seven days were about to be concluded,” that is, on the seventh day. Humanly speaking, Paul’s intention in going into the temple was to avoid trouble. Actually, his going into the temple with the four Nazarites caused a great deal of trouble for him.
Suppose Paul had decided not to go to the temple but simply to stay with the brothers in the house of Mnason, with whom Paul and his companions were to lodge in Jerusalem. Let us further suppose that Paul had said to the brothers, “I do not care for the temple, because God is finished with it. Brothers, did the Lord Jesus not tell us that God has forsaken the temple? I am practicing the Lord’s word concerning us. The priesthood and all the sacrifices are also over. Therefore, I cannot go back to the temple to have any share in the offerings and the priesthood. Brothers, I would like to stay here to have fellowship with you.” Would not the situation have been very different if Paul had decided not to go to the temple and instead had spent his time having fellowship with the brothers? To be sure, the situation would have been very different.
In chapter twenty-one of Acts Paul was compromising. He was the writer of the Epistles to the Galatians and the Romans, yet not long after these Epistles were written, he took the step described in this chapter. For Paul to take such a step was a great compromise on his part.
According to 21:26 and 27, Paul was in the temple waiting for the completion of the days of the purification. He was to be in the temple until the priest came to offer the offerings for him and the four others. How could Paul bear to stay in the temple for that period of time? Do you think he was happy? Do you think he was joyfully praising the Lord? Paul could praise the Lord when he was in prison in Philippi (16:23-25). But do you think he could praise the Lord there in the temple in Jerusalem? Apparently, the temple was a much better place for Paul than a prison. However, that prison in Philippi actually became a holy place, even the heavens, for Paul, whereas the temple in Jerusalem was a prison for him. In a very real sense, Paul was imprisoned there in the temple, unable to be released. Paul had become “trapped” in that situation.
Although Paul was imprisoned in the temple, the Lord had a way to release him from this prison. The Lord used the Jews to accomplish this release. In particular, the Lord used the uproar caused by the Jews to take Paul out of the temple. On the one hand, Paul was then in greater difficulty. On the other hand, he was released not only from the temple but also from the God-condemned mixture of the New Testament grace with the Old Testament law in Jerusalem. In His sovereignty the Lord protected His faithful servant from that terrible mixture.
We have pointed out that Paul went to Jerusalem the last time not only to carry out his loving concern for the need of the poor saints there, but also to have fellowship with James and the other apostles and elders in Jerusalem concerning the Judaic influence upon the church there. The decision made by the conference of the apostles and elders in Acts 15 to solve the problem concerning circumcision was not fully satisfactory to him. Therefore, in going to Jerusalem, Paul might have intended to clear up the Judaic influence on the church there. However, God had His own way to deal with the situation. In His sovereignty He allowed Paul to be arrested by the Jews and imprisoned by the Romans. He then allowed the terrible mixture of the grace with the law in Jerusalem to remain until the city was destroyed by Titus with his Roman army in A.D. 70. That mixture was terminated approximately ten years after the events recorded in Acts 21.
In the Gospel of Matthew the Lord Jesus prophesied the coming destruction of Jerusalem. For example, in the parable in Matthew 21:33-46 concerning the transfer of the kingdom of God, the Lord portrayed the leaders of the Israelites as evil husbandmen (vv. 33-35, 38-41), indicating that God would “miserably destroy those evil men, and will lease the vineyard to other husbandmen, who will render the fruits to him in their seasons.” This word concerning destruction was fulfilled when Titus destroyed Jerusalem. The Lord also predicted the destruction of Jerusalem in the parable in Matthew 22:1-14. In Matthew 22:7 He says, “And the king was angry; and he sent his troops and destroyed those murderers and burned their city.” These “troops” were the Roman soldiers under Titus who destroyed Jerusalem.
In Matthew 23:37-39 we see the Lord’s forsaking of Jerusalem with its temple. Concerning the coming destruction of the temple, the Lord said to His disciples, “Do you not see all these things? Truly I say to you, A stone shall by no means be left upon a stone which shall not be thrown down” (Matt. 24:2). This also was fulfilled when Titus destroyed Jerusalem. According to the description given by Josephus, the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple was thorough and absolute. Thousands of Jews were killed, perhaps including many of the Jewish believers. In His anger the Lord not only destroyed a rebellious nation of Israel; He also terminated Judaism and the mixture of Judaism with Christianity. When Jerusalem was destroyed, the source of the “poison” that was flowing out of it was also terminated. Therefore, the Lord had His marvelous way to deal with the situation in Jerusalem.