What does Acts 21:34 mean?
The tribune of Jerusalem is confused. He was interrupted from his normal duties by word that a riot had broken out in the temple courtyard. He rushed out to find a mob of Jews beating a man. At the sight of the soldiers, the Jews parted. The tribune ordered soldiers to chain the man and asked what was going on (Acts 21:31–33).The man is Paul. The crowd is beating him for two reasons. They heard a rumor that he teaches Jews they should not follow the Mosaic law, which is not true. They also believe Paul brought a Gentile into the temple, which is not accurate, either. In truth, Paul teaches that Gentiles do not have to follow the Law, and he had gone to the temple to help four Jewish men complete their Nazirite vow by paying for their sacrifices (Acts 21:20–30).
The tribune can't get a straight answer, however. He thinks Paul might be an Egyptian commander of 4000 would-be revolutionaries who tried to reclaim Jerusalem a few years prior. When Paul explains he's just a Jew from Tarsus, the tribune lets him speak to the crowd (Acts 21:37–40). This only riles up the mob even more. The tribune then turns to standard Roman procedure when seeking information from a prisoner: flog him until he tells the truth. Unbeknownst to the tribune, Paul is a Roman citizen, whose civil rights exclude both flogging and being chained before facing trial (Acts 22:1–29).
The situation deteriorates from there. The tribune brings Paul before the Sanhedrin in hopes they can explain, but in just a few short sentences Paul manages to set the Pharisees and Sadducees of the council against each other (Acts 22:30—23:10). When the tribune then learns the Sanhedrin is implicated in a plot to kill Paul, he gives up. He sends Paul to the governor in Caesarea Maritima and doesn't even show up for the hearing (Acts 23:12–35; 24:22).
Acts 21:27–36 explains why Paul's public ministry takes a five-year hiatus. He has arrived in Jerusalem only to hear a rumor that he abandoned the Mosaic law. Seeking to prove otherwise, he is then slandered with a rumor that he brought a Gentile into the temple. Before the mob can kill him, the Roman tribune takes him into custody. He will face two years house arrest in Caesarea Maritima and two in Rome, broken up by a dangerous sea voyage that ends in a shipwreck. But he will also be able to share Jesus' story with audiences he never dreamed of. These include a king and Caesar's own household.
In Acts 21, Paul returns to Judea from his third missionary journey and promptly gets arrested. He begins by visiting Philip in Caesarea Maritima. Church elders in Jerusalem ask Paul to help men fulfill a Nazirite vow, to dispel rumors he has apostatized his Jewishness. While doing so, Ephesian Jews accuse Paul of bringing one of his Gentile Ephesian companions into the temple. The Roman military tribune keeps the enraged crowd from tearing Paul limb from limb by arresting him.
