Acts 23 28

Acts 23:28 kjv

And when I would have known the cause wherefore they accused him, I brought him forth into their council:

Acts 23:28 nkjv

And when I wanted to know the reason they accused him, I brought him before their council.

Acts 23:28 niv

I wanted to know why they were accusing him, so I brought him to their Sanhedrin.

Acts 23:28 esv

And desiring to know the charge for which they were accusing him, I brought him down to their council.

Acts 23:28 nlt

Then I took him to their high council to try to learn the basis of the accusations against him.

Acts 23 verses

Acts 23 28 Meaning

Acts 23:28 conveys Tribune Claudius Lysias's reasoning, as documented in his letter to Governor Felix, for presenting the Apostle Paul before the Jewish Sanhedrin. His aim was to ascertain the precise charge the Jewish accusers had against Paul, as the mob's outcry was vague and didn't constitute a clear accusation under Roman law. This action highlights his commitment to understanding the legal grounds of the dispute within both the local and Roman frameworks.

Acts 23 28 Context

Acts chapter 23 picks up immediately after Paul's arrest and near lynching in Jerusalem. After narrowly escaping the mob that dragged him out of the Temple, Roman Tribune Claudius Lysias intervened with soldiers to rescue him, bringing Paul to the Roman barracks in the Antonia Fortress. Upon learning Paul was a Roman citizen, Lysias stopped the planned scourging. However, Lysias remained confused by the zealous, vague, and religiously charged accusations hurled by the Jewish crowd ("Away with him!"). To get a formal, legally coherent charge, Lysias convened a meeting of the Sanhedrin, the highest Jewish religious and judicial council. His objective, stated in this verse (part of the letter to Felix), was to determine the exact accusations against Paul, which he hoped the Sanhedrin could clarify into a criminal offense understandable under Roman law, or dismiss as purely religious. The hearing before the Sanhedrin subsequently descended into a fierce sectarian debate ignited by Paul himself, necessitating Lysias's second intervention to rescue Paul.

Acts 23 28 Word analysis

• "I wanted to know" (βουλόμενος, boulomenos): This is a participle from the verb boulomai, which expresses a deliberate and conscious desire or intention. It indicates Lysias's active decision and specific aim to understand the underlying "reason" or "cause." This was not a passive inquiry but a purposeful attempt by a Roman official to gain clarity within a confusing situation, essential for upholding Roman legal standards.
• "the reason" (τὴν αἰτίαν, tēn aitian): The Greek word aitia carries the meanings of "cause," "reason," and significantly, "charge" or "accusation" in a legal context. Lysias was not merely curious; he was searching for a legally definable charge that would explain the commotion and provide a basis for Paul's detention or release. This reflects Roman jurisprudence's demand for clear, articulable offenses.
• "they accused him" (ἐνεκαλουν αὐτῷ, enekaloun autō): Derived from enkaleō, meaning "to call to account" or "to bring a charge against." The imperfect tense here ("enekaloun") suggests an ongoing, repeated, or persistent nature of the accusations. The Jews had been continuously raising a clamor of charges, but these accusations lacked the specific, actionable content a Roman tribune required.
• "and so I brought him down" (κατήγαγον αὐτὸν, katēgagon auton): From katagō, "to lead down" or "bring down." This describes the physical action of transferring Paul from the Antonia Fortress, which was typically elevated, to the area where the Sanhedrin met, often in a lower part of Jerusalem near the Temple courts. This highlights a deliberate, official act by the tribune as part of the legal process.
• "before their Sanhedrin" (εἰς τὸ συνέδριον αὐτῶν, eis to synedrion autōn):
  • "Sanhedrin" (synedrion): The supreme Jewish council, composed of 71 elders, chief priests, and scribes. It served as the highest judicial and legislative body for Jewish affairs, though its power to execute capital punishment was curtailed by Roman overlordship.
  • "their Sanhedrin": The use of "their" (autōn) emphasizes Lysias's perspective as an outsider to Jewish customs and legal systems, highlighting that this was a body distinct from Roman authority. He was attempting to navigate and utilize the local jurisdiction to clarify charges that puzzled him, a Roman, despite his position of ultimate authority in Jerusalem.

Acts 23 28 Bonus section

Lysias's strategic decision to consult the Sanhedrin exemplifies a common Roman administrative tactic of utilizing local judicial bodies to resolve provincial disputes and maintain stability, rather than immediately imposing full Roman authority. This also underscores his impartiality at this point, attempting to ascertain truth and adhere to proper legal procedure rather than simply yielding to the Jewish clamor or immediately prosecuting Paul. The failure of the Sanhedrin to provide comprehensible charges under Roman law directly paved the way for Paul's transfer to Caesarea under heavy guard, protecting him from a dangerous conspiracy, and aligning with Paul's divinely given mission to testify in Rome (Acts 23:11). Lysias, a pragmatic Roman, was used by God for His redemptive purposes.

Acts 23 28 Commentary

Acts 23:28 is a window into the Roman official's mindset amid a bewildering situation in Jerusalem. Tribune Lysias, concerned with Roman legal decorum and maintaining order, was perplexed by the fervent yet undefined accusations against Paul. He needed a specific, legally actionable "reason" for the public unrest and for detaining a Roman citizen. His action of bringing Paul before the Sanhedrin was a calculated attempt to use the Jewish legal system to distill clear charges. However, as subsequent verses reveal (Acts 23:29), the Jewish leaders could not produce criminal charges that made sense to a Roman, only "questions about their law." This demonstrated a fundamental clash: Roman law sought criminal culpability, while the Sanhedrin's objections were deeply rooted in religious tenets that Romans considered mere disputes. Lysias, therefore, functioned as an unwitting agent of divine providence, securing Paul's transfer from immediate danger in Jerusalem, thus advancing God's plan for Paul to testify in Rome.