The commentary in this section is intended to prove that Acts 28 is
indeed of the utmost dispensational importance to the believer today. It
marks a frontier.
Acts 28:23-31
The Dispensational Landmark
A a 23. Chief of the Jews come to Paul's lodging.
b 23. Paul "expounded" the Kingdom of God.
c 23. Persuading concerning Jesus.
d 23. Out of the law and prophets.
e 23. From morning till evening.
B f 24,25. They agreed not among themselves.
g 25. They departed.
C h 25. The word of the Holy Ghost.
i 26. Go unto this people.
j 26. Hear . . . not understand.
D Acts 28:27. Hearts waxed gross.
Ears dull.
Eyes closed.
Eyes see.
Ears hear.
Isa. 6:10. Hearts understand.
Be converted.
I should heal them.
C h 28. The salvation of God.
i 28. SENT unto the Gentiles.
j 28. They will hear it.
B g 29. The Jews departed.
f 29. Great reasoning among themselves.
A a 30. All come to Paul's hired house.
b 31. Paul "preaches" the kingdom of
God.
c 31. "Teaches" concerning the Lord Jesus
Christ.
d 31. With all confidence. No reference to O.T.
e 31. Unhindered.
THE DISPENSATIONAL BOUNDARY
The ministry of Paul to the Elders of Israel in Rome as recorded in Acts
28 is an echo of the ministry of the Lord during His forty days on earth
as recorded in Acts 1.
"Speaking of the things pertaining to the kingdom of God"
(Acts 1:3).
"He expounded and testified the kingdom of God" (Acts
28:23). The record given in Acts 1:3 is a summary of what is written at
large in Luke 24, where "Moses and the Prophets" are
"expounded" by the Lord "concerning Himself". In Acts
28 Paul persuaded the Jews "concerning Jesus" both out of the
law of "Moses" and out of the "Prophets". The
parallel is intentional.
The THEME in both is "concerning Himself"; "concerning
Jesus".
The THEME includes the "hope" of Israel. "We trusted"
(Luke 24:21) translates elpizo "we hoped". The "hope"
of Israel (Acts 28:20) translates elpis.
The BASIS of this ministry in both passages is the O.T. Scriptures, Luke
24:25,27,45; Acts 28:23.
The METHOD is Exposition, Luke 24:27,32; Acts 28:23.
The OBJECT is Persuasion, Luke 24:25, 32,45; Acts 28:26.
In addition, we have such parallels as the use of the word bradus
"slow" (Luke 24:25) and "dull" bareos (Acts
28:27). While the eyes of the two in Luke 24 were "opened", the
eyes of Israel were "closed" (Acts 28:27).
In. neither Luke 24, Acts 1 nor Acts 28 have we yet discovered the
slightest allusion to the high calling of the church of the Mystery. We
are on the verge of its revelation, but not until Israel became Lo-ammi
"not My people" could that calling of the Gentiles that goes
back for its inception to "before the foundation of the world",
be made known.
The testimony of the Apostle on that memorable day was twofold. It was
concerning "the kingdom of God" and "concerning
Jesus", and it was found entirely in the testimony of the Old
Testament.
It is evident that "the restoration of the kingdom to Israel"
(Acts 1:6). arose as a direct result of the Lord's testimony
"pertaining to the kingdom of God" (Acts 1:3), and Paul in Acts
26:22 declared that up to that point he had declared "none other
than Moses and the Prophets did say should come". So, here, in his
testimony to the Elders of the Jews the teaching of the O.T. scriptures
that impinged on "the hope of Israel" set the limits to his
message. When one remembers the scrupulous care with which the Apostle
speaks of his Lord in his epistles; rarely calling Him "Jesus",
but nearly always giving Him His title "Lord" or "Jesus
(the) Christ", it is a matter of importance to observe that to the
Jews he spoke "concerning Jesus".
When the dismissal of the Jew was over, and the salvation of God sent to
the Gentile, a change is observed. He now speaks "concerning the
Lord Jesus Christ" (Acts 28:31). Not only so, the omission of any
reference to the O.T. scriptures is eloquent.
In his early epistles Paul makes constant appeal to the Old Testament.
The Gospel which he preached had been "promised afore in the holy
scriptures" (Rom. 1:2); the doctrine of Justification by Faith is
confirmed by the words "as it is written" (Rom. 1:17); indeed
"What saith the Scriptures?" (Rom. 4:3) might well be cited as
typical of Paul's attitude during his early ministry (see TWOFOLD
MINISTRY OF THE APOSTLE PAUL). In 2 Timothy 3:16 Paul makes it clear that
to the very end he unhesitatingly believed that "All scripture was
given by inspiration of God" - and yet the moment we cross the
boundary line of Acts 28 into his "Prison Epistles" that moment
we come into the light of a new revelation, something that had been hid
in God from the ages, and something not found in the O.T. writings,
something indeed that was a Mystery, or a Secret as the word means.
"It is written" occurs some forty times in Paul's early
epistles, the phrase is never again employed by him after Acts 28. Not
one quotation of Scripture meets us in Ephesians 1, until we come to the
reference to Psalm 8 in Ephesians 1:21-23.
We read on through Chapters two and three right into the practical
section Chapter four, before we meet the next reference to the O.T.
namely Ephesians 4:8. There is no direct quotation of O.T. scripture in
Philippians or Colossians and but one in 2 Timothy 2:9, an allusion to
Numbers 16:5 and 26.
In the seven later epistles, there are not more than eight references to
the O.T. and of this number not one can be said to teach the peculiar
doctrine that was entrusted to Paul to make known. We have already
reminded the reader that the word "depart" apoluo (Acts
28:25) indicates Israel's "divorcement" and the words
"they agreed not" (assumphonos) are used of the marriage
relationship also (1 Cor. 7:5).
The failure of Israel and the consequent blessing of the Gentile, was
foreshadowed in Paul's opening ministry as recorded in Acts 13. The doom
there threatened, now falls. Here is the de facto execution of the
sentence that was pronounced de jure in Matthew 23:38, "Your house
is left unto you desolate". Since the call of Abraham, the
Scriptures contain no record of a Gentile being saved independently of
Israel. "Salvation is of the Jews" was the testimony of the
Lord Himself to the woman of Samaria.
Acts 28 ends with the Apostle dwelling for two years in his own hired
house preaching and teaching "no man forbidding him". During
Paul's early ministry, the Jew had consistently opposed the preaching of
the gospel to the Gentiles, and this, said the Apostle, was their climax
sin.
They "killed the Lord Jesus" but forgiveness was given and a
new opportunity to believe and repent was granted. They had earlier
"killed their own prophets" and had more recently
"persecuted" the Apostle and his helpers "forbidding us to
speak to the Gentiles that they might be saved", reaching however a
climax "To FILL Up their sins always for the wrath is come upon them
to the uttermost" (1 Thess. 2:15,16).
"To the bitter end," reads Moffatt. "In its severest
form," reads Weymouth. This same word "forbidding" found
in 1 Thessalonians 2:16 is the word used by Paul, "No man forbidding
him" - Israel, the opposer, had gone. They had filled up their
measure of sin to the brim, and the very Gentiles that they had
"forbidden" now entered into blessings hitherto unrevealed.
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