1. A plot to kill Paul (vs. 12-15)
 a) On the heels of the Lord’s reassurance that Paul would witness to His cause in Rome, a threat arises to
     nullify God’s plan/promise. Over 40 fanatical Jews bound themselves under an oath/curse that they
     would not eat or drink until they killed Paul (Rabbis allowed for the breaking of such vows where
     circumstances kept the conditions from being met).
 b) They approached the chief priests & elders (vs.1-2) with their pact, and asked for their cooperation.
     They requested they contact the Roman commander over the Fortress of Antonia where Paul was.
     They would pretend that they wanted to investigate the case against Paul more thoroughly & needed
     him present to do this. These 40+ men would slay Paul before he got to the Sanhedrin’s chambers on
     the SW side of the temple area. The fanatics realized some might die at the hands of Roman soldiers,
     but they wanted rid of Paul.
 c) The Sanhedrin, about 27 years before also formed a plot against Jesus (Matt. 26:3f).
2. A conversation overheard (vs. 16-22)
 a) Paul’s nephew somehow heard of this plan of ambush. He went and informed Paul (who was free to
     receive visitors). “young man”- ranges from an older teen to 40. The way the commander treats him
     indicates the younger side.
 b) Paul called one of the centurions to lead this young man to the commander. In this way, the
     information would get to the top without anyone else hearing it first. With Paul being a Roman citizen,
     yet mysteriously hated, gave Paul leverage to give such an order.
 c) The commander took him by the hand & led Paul’s nephew aside to hear his report privately.
 d) The young man exposed the plot of the Council & 40+ men & urged him not to listen to/be persuaded/
     comply with them. The commander sent Paul’s nephew away commanding him to keep their
     conversation a secret. One never knows who is listening to the divulging of secrets.
3. Ample protection for safety (vs. 23-35)
 a) The commander was responsible for the protection & fair trial for his Roman prisoner. He recognized
     the case was beyond him so he acted quickly to send Paul to a higher official: Governor Felix.
 b) He called two centurions (officer over 100 troops) to prepare 200 troops to be ready by 9 PM with 70
     horseman & 200 spearman to get Paul safely to Caesarea. The high numbers guaranteed Paul’s safety
     in the face on an ambush of over 40 fanatics.
 c) Commander Lysias followed protocol with a letter to Governor Felix explaining the situation. He
     twisted the truth to present himself more favorably: implying he knew sooner than he did that Paul was
     a Roman citizen and not mentioning chains or his plan to scourge Paul. He discovered the charges
     were over religious questions about the Law and declared Paul was not deserving of death or
     imprisonment/chains. This is an important emphasis in Luke/Acts.
 d) The exposed plot caused him to send Paul to Felix and instruct the Council to bring their charges
     against Paul before Felix in Caesarea.
 e) Maybe the spearman returned to the barracks after they got Paul beyond the potential dangers near
     Jerusalem. The rest traveled about 35 miles NW by night to Antipatris (a military station at a trade
     route crossing). The next day the horsemen escorted Paul another 30 miles to Caesarea, a seacoast city
     which was the Roman capitol of Judea.
 f) Felix read the letter and asked Paul about his home province. Upon hearing that it was Cilicia, he
     agreed to hear Paul’s case before his Jewish accusers (maybe not wanting to bother a higher authority
     with this minor case or burden the Jewish authorities with a much longer trip).  Meanwhile he kept
     him in Herod’s Praetorium – Herod’s palace or official residence, where he had some freedom.
 g) God used a young man & Romans to rescue & move Paul to another place where he could witness for
     Christ before high government officials. His plans are secure no matter how vulnerable we feel.