Acts 21:1-14 - Paul's impending hardship foretold

After the tearful farewell with the elders at Miletus, Paul set sail from there. Acts 21:1-3 gave a summary of the places he and his team stopped at. The first stop was Cos, then to Rhodes the next day. From there they proceeded to Patrai where they found a ship going to Phoenicia, boarded it and set sail. Although they sighted Cyprus on the way, they did not stop until they came to Tyre, the next port of call. Here the ship had to unload its cargo. Since the ship had to stop for a while, it was quite natural for Paul, with his boundless energy for the Lord, to look for people to minister to. So the mission team, including Paul, looked for fellow disciples at Tyre and stayed with them seven days.

Earlier in Paul’s ministry, the Lord had already revealed the hardship he had to endure for His sake. It would not be too presumptuous for us to think that Paul would have known this fact well. So it came as no surprise that the disciples at Tyre should urged him not to go to Jerusalem into dangerous territory. Verse 4 poses a little kink. It appears as if the Holy Spirit through the disciples was urging Paul not to go. It was very likely to have happened this way. Just like before, the Spirit foretold the dangers Paul would be facing, but the disciples at their initiative and because they felt for Paul, tried to dissuade him from going there. But we know that Paul was a very determined person and he would not back down even in the face of hardship.  

So when the seven days at Tire were over, undeterred, Paul was set to continue on his journey. The whole entourage from Tyre, including their wives and children, escorted Paul and his companions out of the city and to the beach where they knelt and prayed, and bade farewell to each other. From there Paul and his traveling companions continued their journey. They next stopped at Ptolemies where they greeted the brethren and stayed with them for a day.

On the next day, they left Ptolemies and came to Caesarea where they stayed with Philip the evangelist. He was one of the seven deacons appointed to serve table. Philip had four unmarried daughters who were also prophetesses. After staying with Philip and his daughters several days, they were visited by the Prophet Agapes, who came from Judea. In a dramatic fashion he prophesied about the impending dangers Paul would face.

The Prophet Agabus took Paul’s belt and bound his own feet and said, “This is what the Holy Spirit says: ‘In this way the Jews at Jerusalem will bind the man who own this belt and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.’ ” Just like what happened at Tyre, the Holy Spirit again revealed what hardship Paul would have to face. His traveling companions, together with the brethren at Caesarea, then tried to persuade him not to proceed with his journey to Jerusalem. Verse 13 suggests that they even wept, pleading with him not to go. Even their tears did not move Paul’s desire to do God’s will.

Paul’s word revealed how much God meant to him. He was bent on serving and fulfilling His will for his life. To see them urging him so earnestly not to fulfil it was heart renting. So Paul restated his commitment. He was not only prepared to be bund but to die for the Lord in Jerusalem. They saw Paul’s determination, so they kept quiet after saying, “The will of the Lord be done!”   

Ever wonder how Paul was able to withstand the pressure? It must be the way he went about living his life. He emulated his master and lived life the way the Lord had approached it. No wonder he could withstand the pressure. In life, doing God’s will is more important than merely knowing it. What good would it do to know the way to live but allowed everything to remain the same? Know God’s will by all means but obey and live it!