Like many Romans, the commander who rescued Paul from the mob by arresting him was at a loss to understand Jewish religious arguments (which included, in his view, the Christians). He called the Jewish council (the Sanhedrin) together, and asked Paul to speak to them. Knowing firsthand how divided the council members were, Paul cannily called on his history as a Pharisee. They got almost as angry at one another as they were at him.

• Things looked glum for Paul. But verse 11 said, “The Lord stood near Paul” (a dream? Luke wasn’t any more specific), and God’s message was, “Be encouraged! Just as you have testified about me in Jerusalem, so too you must testify in Rome.” Have you ever received a word of support at a time when you really needed it? How can you keep the “ears” of your heart open to recognize God as the ultimate source of such messages?
• Verse 16 said, “Paul’s sister had a son who heard about the ambush and he came to the military headquarters and reported it to Paul.” Scholar N. T. Wright wrote, “This tells us … something we didn’t know and would love to know more about. Did Paul have lots of family members in Jerusalem? Were they Christians? How much contact did he have with them? Were they … supporters of what he was doing or embarrassed by the attention he was drawing to the family? We know none of this.” We do know God worked through Paul’s nephew, and his alert ears, to save Paul from a deadly trap. When have you seen God work through people, sometimes unexpected people?