The lad who saved Paul’s life

"Anyone, then, who knows the good he ought to do and doesn’t do it, sins."- James 4:17

Sometimes what you say can get you into far more trouble than what you do! Have you discovered that?

Paul would have believed that. This brilliant man always nailed down his argument with the unvarnished facts and, like waving a red flag in front of a bull, what he said drew the anger of his listeners. After Paul had preached the Gospel throughout Asia Minor, he came to Jerusalem and there gave his testimony. His speech went just fine until he mentioned that God had sent him to the Gentiles, and that’s when things exploded.

Things got so bad that the Roman commander-of-the-guard feard Paul might be killed by his enemies. He intervened, taking him into protective custody. Forty Jewish men took a vow not to eat anything until they had killed this rebel who was so brazen as to believe that God loved the Gentiles.

Once Paul was under the protection of the Roman army, getting close enough to kill him was a challenge. They convinced the High Priest to lean on the Romans and ask them to return Paul to the Jewish council for more questioning. On the way to the council they planned to attack him.

But there was one big problem with their plan. A youth–probably in his teens–heard about the plot. He happened to be the son of Paul’s sister who lived in Jerusalem, where Paul was. This lad took it upon himself to let Paul know about the plot. He went to the garrison where Paul was being kept, and asked to speak to his uncle. When Paul heard the bad news, he asked that his nephew be given an audience with the commander of the garrison.

When the commander heard about the plot, he ordered an armed guard to assemble in the night and whisk Paul to safety in Caesarea. Luke never tells us whether those 40 men starved to death or went back on their vow to death.

One thing is certain: This teenager saved Paul’s life. His moment in the spotlight is brief, but tremendously important. It took a lot of courage for the boy to expose the plot.

Exposing corruption or dishonesty does take courage. Standing alone while others go along with the crowd often makes you an enemy. The real heroes are those who have the courage to abide by their convictions and do what is right. As Golda Meir once put it, "If not I, then who? If not now, when?" The questions are still valid today. - Resource Reading: Acts 23:12-24