Reference: Lysias Claudius
Fausets
A Roman chiliarch or captain in charge of the troops of the citadel Antonia at Paul's last visit to Jerusalem. He rescued Paul from the fanatical crowd, and subsequently from the plot of more than 40 zealots against his life (Ac 21:27-36; 23:12-33). With worldly tact he in writing to Felix makes no mention of having bound Paul for scourging (Ac 21:33; 22:24-29), for he" feared" the consequences to himself of having so treated a Roman citizen. Still his treatment of the apostle otherwise, after he knew his Roman citizenship, was fair and firm.
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When the seven days were almost over, the Jews from the province of Asia who had seen him in the temple area stirred up the whole crowd and seized him, shouting, "Men of Israel, help! This is the man who teaches everyone everywhere against our people, our law, and this sanctuary! Furthermore he has brought Greeks into the inner courts of the temple and made this holy place ritually unclean!" read more. (For they had seen Trophimus the Ephesian in the city with him previously, and they assumed Paul had brought him into the inner temple courts.) The whole city was stirred up, and the people rushed together. They seized Paul and dragged him out of the temple courts, and immediately the doors were shut. While they were trying to kill him, a report was sent up to the commanding officer of the cohort that all Jerusalem was in confusion. He immediately took soldiers and centurions and ran down to the crowd. When they saw the commanding officer and the soldiers, they stopped beating Paul. Then the commanding officer came up and arrested him and ordered him to be tied up with two chains; he then asked who he was and what he had done.
Then the commanding officer came up and arrested him and ordered him to be tied up with two chains; he then asked who he was and what he had done. But some in the crowd shouted one thing, and others something else, and when the commanding officer was unable to find out the truth because of the disturbance, he ordered Paul to be brought into the barracks. read more. When he came to the steps, Paul had to be carried by the soldiers because of the violence of the mob, for a crowd of people followed them, screaming, "Away with him!"
the commanding officer ordered Paul to be brought back into the barracks. He told them to interrogate Paul by beating him with a lash so that he could find out the reason the crowd was shouting at Paul in this way. When they had stretched him out for the lash, Paul said to the centurion standing nearby, "Is it legal for you to lash a man who is a Roman citizen without a proper trial?" read more. When the centurion heard this, he went to the commanding officer and reported it, saying, "What are you about to do? For this man is a Roman citizen." So the commanding officer came and asked Paul, "Tell me, are you a Roman citizen?" He replied, "Yes." The commanding officer answered, "I acquired this citizenship with a large sum of money." "But I was even born a citizen," Paul replied. Then those who were about to interrogate him stayed away from him, and the commanding officer was frightened when he realized that Paul was a Roman citizen and that he had had him tied up.
When morning came, the Jews formed a conspiracy and bound themselves with an oath not to eat or drink anything until they had killed Paul. There were more than forty of them who formed this conspiracy. read more. They went to the chief priests and the elders and said, "We have bound ourselves with a solemn oath not to partake of anything until we have killed Paul. So now you and the council request the commanding officer to bring him down to you, as if you were going to determine his case by conducting a more thorough inquiry. We are ready to kill him before he comes near this place." But when the son of Paul's sister heard about the ambush, he came and entered the barracks and told Paul. Paul called one of the centurions and said, "Take this young man to the commanding officer, for he has something to report to him." So the centurion took him and brought him to the commanding officer and said, "The prisoner Paul called me and asked me to bring this young man to you because he has something to tell you." The commanding officer took him by the hand, withdrew privately, and asked, "What is it that you want to report to me?" He replied, "The Jews have agreed to ask you to bring Paul down to the council tomorrow, as if they were going to inquire more thoroughly about him. So do not let them persuade you to do this, because more than forty of them are lying in ambush for him. They have bound themselves with an oath not to eat or drink anything until they have killed him, and now they are ready, waiting for you to agree to their request." Then the commanding officer sent the young man away, directing him, "Tell no one that you have reported these things to me." Then he summoned two of the centurions and said, "Make ready two hundred soldiers to go to Caesarea along with seventy horsemen and two hundred spearmen by nine o'clock tonight, and provide mounts for Paul to ride so that he may be brought safely to Felix the governor." He wrote a letter that went like this: Claudius Lysias to His Excellency Governor Felix, greetings. This man was seized by the Jews and they were about to kill him, when I came up with the detachment and rescued him, because I had learned that he was a Roman citizen. Since I wanted to know what charge they were accusing him of, I brought him down to their council. I found he was accused with reference to controversial questions about their law, but no charge against him deserved death or imprisonment. When I was informed there would be a plot against this man, I sent him to you at once, also ordering his accusers to state their charges against him before you. So the soldiers, in accordance with their orders, took Paul and brought him to Antipatris during the night. The next day they let the horsemen go on with him, and they returned to the barracks. When the horsemen came to Caesarea and delivered the letter to the governor, they also presented Paul to him.
Smith
Lys'ias Clau'dius,
a chief captain of the band, that is, tribune of the Roman cohort who rescued St. Paul from the hands of the infuriated mob at Jerusalem, and sent him under a guard to Felix, the governor or proconsul of Caesarea.
seq.; Acts 23:26; 24:7 (A.D. 55.)
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While they were trying to kill him, a report was sent up to the commanding officer of the cohort that all Jerusalem was in confusion.