Acts 21
21
1And it came to pass, at our sailing, having been parted from them, having run direct, we came to Coos, and the succeeding [day] to Rhodes, and thence to Patara,
2and having found a ship passing over to Phenicia, having gone on board, we sailed,
3and having discovered Cyprus, and having left it on the left, we were sailing to Syria, and did land at Tyre, for there was the ship discharging the lading.
4And having found out the disciples, we tarried there seven days, and they said to Paul, through the Spirit, not to go up to Jerusalem;
5but when it came that we completed the days, having gone forth, we went on, all bringing us on the way, with women and children, unto the outside of the city, and having bowed the knees upon the shore, we prayed,
6and having embraced one another, we embarked in the ship, and they returned to their own friends.
7And we, having finished the course, from Tyre came down to Ptolemais, and having saluted the brethren, we remained one day with them;
8and on the morrow Paul and his company having gone forth, we came to Caesarea, and having entered into the house of Philip the evangelist — who is of the seven — we remained with him,
9and this one had four daughters, virgins, prophesying.
10And we remaining many more days, there came down a certain one from Judea, a prophet, by name Agabus,
11and he having come unto us, and having taken up the girdle of Paul, having bound also his own hands and feet, said, ‘Thus saith the Holy Spirit, The man whose is this girdle — so shall the Jews in Jerusalem bind, and they shall deliver [him] up to the hands of nations.’
12And when we heard these things, we called upon [him] — both we, and those of that place — not to go up to Jerusalem,
13and Paul answered, ‘What do ye — weeping, and crushing mine heart? for I, not only to be bound, but also to die at Jerusalem, am ready, for the name of the Lord Jesus;’
14and he not being persuaded, we were silent, saying, ‘The will of the Lord be done.’
15And after these days, having taken [our] vessels, we were going up to Jerusalem,
16and there went also of the disciples from Caesarea with us, bringing with them him with whom we may lodge, a certain Mnason of Cyprus, an aged disciple.
17And we having come to Jerusalem, the brethren did gladly receive us,
18and on the morrow Paul was going in with us unto James, all the elders also came,
19and having saluted them, he was declaring, one by one, each of the things God did among the nations through his ministration,
20and they having heard, were glorifying the Lord. They said also to him, ‘Thou seest, brother, how many myriads there are of Jews who have believed, and all are zealous of the law,
21and they are instructed concerning thee, that apostasy from Moses thou dost teach to all Jews among the nations, saying — Not to circumcise the children, nor after the customs to walk;
22what then is it? certainly the multitude it behoveth to come together, for they will hear that thou hast come.
23‘This, therefore, do that we say to thee: We have four men having a vow on themselves,
24these having taken, be purified with them, and be at expence with them, that they may shave the head, and all may know that the things of which they have been instructed concerning thee are nothing, but thou dost walk — thyself also — the law keeping.
25‘And concerning those of the nations who have believed, we have written, having given judgment, that they observe no such thing, except to keep themselves both from idol-sacrifices, and blood, and a strangled thing, and whoredom.’
26Then Paul, having taken the men, on the following day, with them having purified himself, was entering into the temple, announcing the fulfilment of the days of the purification, till the offering was offered for each one of them.
27And, as the seven days were about to be fully ended, the Jews from Asia having beheld him in the temple, were stirring up all the multitude, and they laid hands upon him,
28crying out, ‘Men, Israelites, help! this is the man who, against the people, and the law, and this place, all everywhere is teaching; and further, also, Greeks he brought into the temple, and hath defiled this holy place;’
29for they had seen before Trophimus, the Ephesian, in the city with him, whom they were supposing that Paul brought into the temple.
30All the city also was moved and there was a running together of the people, and having laid hold on Paul, they were drawing him out of the temple, and immediately were the doors shut,
31and they seeking to kill him, a rumour came to the chief captain of the band that all Jerusalem hath been thrown into confusion,
32who, at once, having taken soldiers and centurions, ran down upon them, and they having seen the chief captain and the soldiers, did leave off beating Paul.
33Then the chief captain, having come nigh, took him, and commanded [him] to be bound with two chains, and was inquiring who he may be, and what it is he hath been doing,
34and some were crying out one thing, and some another, among the multitude, and not being able to know the certainty because of the tumult, he commanded him to be carried to the castle,
35and when he came upon the steps, it happened he was borne by the soldiers, because of the violence of the multitude,
36for the crowd of the people was following after, crying, ‘Away with him.’
37And Paul being about to be led into the castle, saith to the chief captain, ‘Is it permitted to me to say anything unto thee?’ and he said, ‘Greek dost thou know?
38art not thou, then, the Egyptian who before these days made an uprising, and did lead into the desert the four thousand men of the assassins?’
39And Paul said, ‘I, indeed, am a man, a Jew, of Tarsus of Cilicia, of no mean city a citizen; and I beseech thee, suffer me to speak unto the people.’
40And he having given him leave, Paul having stood upon the stairs, did beckon with the hand to the people, and there having been a great silence, he spake unto them in the Hebrew dialect, saying:
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Acts 21: YLT98
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Acts 21
21
Paul Continues His Journey to Jerusalem
1After we had torn ourselves away from the Ephesian elders, we headed out to sea. We sailed straight to Kos. The next day we went to Rhodes. From there we continued on to Patara. 2We found a ship crossing over to Phoenicia. So we went on board and headed out to sea. 3We came near Cyprus and passed to the south of it. Then we sailed on to Syria. We landed at Tyre. There our ship was supposed to unload. 4We looked for the believers there and stayed with them for seven days. The believers tried to keep Paul from going on to Jerusalem. They were led by the Holy Spirit to do this. 5When it was time to leave, we continued on our way. All the believers, including their whole families, went with us out of the city. There on the beach we got down on our knees to pray. 6We said goodbye to each other. Then we went on board the ship. And they returned home.
7Continuing on from Tyre, we landed at Ptolemais. There we greeted the brothers and sisters. We stayed with them for a day. 8The next day we left and arrived at Caesarea. We stayed at the house of Philip the evangelist. He was one of the seven deacons. 9He had four unmarried daughters who prophesied.
10We stayed there several days. Then a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea. 11He came over to us. Then he took Paul’s belt and tied his own hands and feet with it. He said, “The Holy Spirit says, ‘This is how the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem will tie up the owner of this belt. They will hand him over to the Gentiles.’ ”
12When we heard this, we all begged Paul not to go up to Jerusalem. 13He asked, “Why are you crying? Why are you breaking my heart? I’m ready to be put in prison. In fact, I’m ready to die in Jerusalem for the Lord Jesus.” 14We couldn’t change his mind. So we gave up. We said, “May what the Lord wants to happen be done.”
15After this, we started on our way to Jerusalem. 16Some of the believers from Caesarea went with us. They brought us to Mnason’s home. We were supposed to stay there. Mnason was from Cyprus. He was one of the first believers.
Paul Arrives in Jerusalem
17When we arrived in Jerusalem, the brothers and sisters gave us a warm welcome. 18The next day Paul and the rest of us went to see James. All the elders were there. 19Paul greeted them. Then he reported everything God had done among the Gentiles through his work.
20When they heard this, they praised God. Then they spoke to Paul. “Brother,” they said, “you see that thousands of Jews have become believers. All of them try very hard to obey the law. 21They have been told that you teach Jews to turn away from the Law of Moses. You teach this to the Jews who live among the Gentiles. They think that you teach those Jews not to circumcise their children. They think that you teach them to give up our Jewish ways. 22What should we do? They will certainly hear that you have come. 23So do what we tell you. There are four men with us who have made a promise to God. 24Take them with you. Join them in the Jewish practice that makes people pure and ‘clean.’ Pay their expenses so they can have their heads shaved. Then everyone will know that these reports about you are not true in any way. They will know that you yourself obey the law. 25We have already given written directions to the believers who are not Jews. They must not eat food that has been offered to statues of gods. They must not drink blood. They must not eat the meat of animals that have been choked to death. And they must not commit sexual sins.”
26The next day Paul took the men with him. They all made themselves pure and “clean” in the usual way. Then Paul went to the temple. There he reported the date when the days of cleansing would end. At that time the proper offering would be made for each of them.
Paul Is Arrested
27The seven days of cleansing were almost over. Some Jews from Asia Minor saw Paul at the temple. They stirred up the whole crowd and grabbed Paul. 28“Fellow Israelites, help us!” they shouted. “This is the man who teaches everyone in all places against our people. He speaks against our law and against this holy place. Besides, he has brought Greeks into the temple. He has made this holy place ‘unclean.’ ” 29They said this because they had seen Trophimus the Ephesian in the city with Paul. They thought Paul had brought him into the temple.
30The whole city was stirred up. People came running from all directions. They grabbed Paul and dragged him out of the temple. Right away the temple gates were shut. 31The people were trying to kill Paul. But news reached the commander of the Roman troops. He heard that people were making trouble in the whole city of Jerusalem. 32Right away he took some officers and soldiers with him. They ran down to the crowd. The people causing the trouble saw the commander and his soldiers. So they stopped beating Paul.
33The commander came up and arrested Paul. He ordered him to be held with two chains. Then he asked who Paul was and what he had done. 34Some in the crowd shouted one thing, some another. But the commander couldn’t get the facts because of all the noise. So he ordered that Paul be taken into the fort. 35Paul reached the steps. But then the mob became so wild that he had to be carried by the soldiers. 36The crowd that followed kept shouting, “Get rid of him!”
Paul Speaks to the Crowd
37The soldiers were about to take Paul into the fort. Then he asked the commander, “May I say something to you?”
“Do you speak Greek?” he replied. 38“Aren’t you the Egyptian who turned some of our people against their leaders? Didn’t you lead 4,000 terrorists out into the desert some time ago?”
39Paul answered, “I am a Jew from Tarsus in Cilicia. I am a citizen of an important city. Please let me speak to the people.”
40The commander told him he could. So Paul stood on the steps and motioned to the crowd. When all of them were quiet, he spoke to them in the Aramaic language.
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