The Montgomery tribune., 1909-10-08
Paul a Prisoner
The Plot
Sunday School Lesson for 0ei. 10. 1909
Specially Arranged for This Paper

my God; In him will trust."-Psa. 9i:2.
TIME.-May, A. d. 81 or 5s.
PLACE.-Castle Antonia in Jerusalem.
The way between Jerusalem and Cesarea.
A prison In Cesarea.
Suggestion and Practical Thought.
Storm clouds and their silver lining.
The darkness deepens, Oh, abide
with me.
/. Darkness and Storm from the
Jewish Rulers. Acts 22:30-23:5.
Paul Cited Before the Roman Author.
tiles and the Jewish Sanhedrim. The
next morning after our last lesson the
puzzled commandant summoned the
Jewish rulers to meet him.
Pauls defense. Paul did not at this
time use his accustomed tact and
courtesy. But, with one unconscious
exception, for which he apologized
like Christian gentleman, he did not
utter discourteous word.
He spoke as man to his equals.
Charged with crimes, he denied them
in toto. This was no time for con-
Tossing any failures of reaching abso-
lutte perfection before God, as in his
letters to the Ephesians (Eph. 3:8)
All that would have been entirely mis-
understood. Paul had no mock hui
mility, no Uriah Heep humbleness. He
stated the simple fact. ". IL Ear
nestly beholding," docking steadfact-
ly on" "the council" as If he would
look into their inmost souls, he de-
clared, "I have lived" Greek, "1ived
as citizen" obeying the laws Of the
empire, and fulfilling his duties as
Roman citizen. He was faithful cov-
enant member of the commonwealth
Of God to which the other Jews, in
Guiding the members OF the Sanhe-
drim, belonged. 'He lived as true
and loyal Jew" His record was his
| defense. And this Gin all good con-
science before God" However men
may misjudge him. by their false
standards or in ignorance of the facts,
he is right in the sight of God, and
acquitted 'in higher tribunal than
that Of the Sanhedrim or or Caesar"
2. The Silver Lining to the Clouds.
VS.. Gil. The First Rays. To Di-
vide and Conquer came to Paul while
he was explaining his teachings and
his work in words of which the rec
| ord is the barest epitome He per-
ceived difference of opinion among
the rulers. The two leading parties
were almost as much opposed to one
another as they were to the Chris
| uans.
The Result was that the council
came to no decision as to the charge
1 against Paul.
The Second Ray of Light came from
Christ Himself. 2. During "the night
following the Lord" the glorified Je.
sus. stood by" Paul as he had at Cor
inth (Acts 1879, 10), and as he did
again two years later in the storm at
sea (Acts 2724), showing that he was
his ever-present helper, as the electric
flash reveals the continual presence
of the unseen electric power.
3. Another Storm Cloud. An Ingen.
ious Plot to Kill Paul.--Vs. 1915.
IL. Certain of the Jews (more than
40 ". 13), -. bound themselves
under a curse" They invoked the
curse Of God upon them II they should
"eat or drink until they had killed
Paul."
The Plan was to ask Lysias to bring
Paul down from the barracks in the
castle of the Sanhedrim hall, under
pretense of examining him further. A
small guard would seem sufficient
They would excite a tumult, murder
Paul and represent the murder as a
mere accidental incident.
4. The Silver Lining. The Plot Made
Known. The Result Was That Paul
Was Sent Safely on His Way Toward
Rome.-Vs. 1876. Paul's Nephew
"The narrative gives the impression
that he was quite young man." II
Is uncertain how he came to be in Je
rusalem, or how he discovered the
plot.
The youth told Paul what he had
learned. Paul asked centurion to
take the youth to commander Lysias
who Immediately laid his plans to fol
the plot.
Commander Lysias was more in
sympathy with Paul than with the tur
bulent Jews who gave so much
trouble to the Roman authorities.
He assembled guard of 200 infan
try. the ordinary Roman soldiers. 20t
spearmen,I special class Of light
armed soldiers, and band of 70 cav
alrymen. They started secretly al
nine o'clock in the evening, "the third
hour of the night ". 23), for Cesa
rea. the Roman capital of Judea. the
seaport from which Paul embarked
for Rome two years later. They car
ried letter from Claudius Lysias t
/ Felix the governor. The whole caval
cade went little more than half tn,
whole distance. when they came t.
Antipatris, fortress and pleasan
place of residence built by Herod tn,
Great in the plain of Sharon. TIL,
foot soldiers went no farther, but re
turned the next day to Jerusalem
The great desire Of Paul's hear
was assured. Death, nor prison, no