It seems that when Paul went to Jerusalem the last time, he did not have the opportunity to help matters there. Rather, the door was firmly closed, and he was pressed by James and the elders into a very difficult situation. Having no way out, he acted on the proposal to go to the temple in order to be purified with the four who had a Nazarite vow. But, as we have seen, the Lord did not tolerate this.
In 21:23 and 24 James said to Paul, “Four men are with us who have a vow on themselves; take these and be purified with them, and pay their expenses that they may shave their heads; and all will know that there is nothing to the things of which they have been instructed concerning you, but that you yourself also walk orderly, keeping the law.” We have seen that the vow in verse 23 was the Nazarite vow (Num. 6:2-5) and that to be purified with the Nazarites was to become a Nazarite with them and to join with them in their vow.
Acts 21:26 goes on to say, “Then Paul took the men on the following day, and having been purified with them entered into the temple, giving notice of the completion of the days of the purification, until the offering was offered for each one of them.” This was an extremely serious matter. A Nazarite vow was not something ordinary; rather, it was special, particular, and extraordinary. Furthermore, the offerings related to the Nazarite vow were particular. It is difficult to believe, therefore, that the apostle Paul would go back to the temple, participate in the Nazarite vow, and wait for the priests to offer sacrifices for him and the others.
According to what Paul had written in the Epistles to the Romans and the Galatians, he should not have returned to the temple, and he certainly should not have participated in this vow. It is no surprise, then, that the Lord did not tolerate this situation. Paul may have been trying to keep the peace, but the Lord allowed a great uproar to take place against Paul.
It was a very serious matter for an apostle such as Paul, after writing the Epistles to the Romans and the Galatians, to join himself with those who had the Nazarite vow and go with them to the temple to be purified and then to remain in the temple until the priest came to offer the sacrifices. The Lord tolerated Paul’s private vow in 18:18, but He did not tolerate Paul’s joining himself to those with the Nazarite vow in chapter twenty-one.
Actually, Paul should not even have made the vow in chapter eighteen. In Galatians 2:20 he had declared that he had been crucified with Christ. There Paul seemed to be saying, “I, the Jewish Paul, have been crucified with Christ. Now it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me.” However, in having a vow in the Jewish way, Paul was living not as a Christian but as a Jew, for he was following a Jewish practice, not a Christian one.
All the believers in Jerusalem were Jews. It was in Antioch that the believers were first called Christians (11:26). Had Paul forgotten the term “Christian” when, in Acts 18, he was carrying out a Jewish practice? Should a Christian have a vow for thanksgiving in a Jewish way? If not, then why did Paul continue to practice something Jewish? Although the Lord tolerated that practice, He had no toleration for what was taking place in Acts 21, when Paul was awaiting the time for the priests to offer the sacrifices at the completion of the days of purification.
From 21:27 onward we see the Lord’s sovereignty in a particular way. We also see His sympathy. On the one hand, Paul was faithful. He was even willing to risk his life for the Lord’s name (20:24; 21:13). He was ready “to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus” (21:13). On the other hand, Paul was still human and was not able to help himself in Acts 21. The Lord did not have anyone better or more faithful than Paul. Therefore, He intervened first to rescue Paul from the mixture in Jerusalem and then from the Jews who were plotting to kill him. Eventually, he was placed in Roman custody, separated from troubles and disturbances. In this way the Lord gave Paul a tranquil time for the writing of his last Epistles. In particular, Paul was given the opportunity to write the four crucial Epistles of Hebrews, Ephesians, Philippians, and Colossians. Let us now briefly consider these four Epistles, which should be grouped together.