Acts 21:2 - Printer Friendly

ESV: And having found a ship crossing to Phoenicia, we went aboard and set sail.

NIV: We found a ship crossing over to Phoenicia, went on board and set sail.

NASB: and having found a ship crossing over to Phoenicia, we went aboard and set sail.

CSB: Finding a ship crossing over to Phoenicia, we boarded and set sail.

NLT: There we boarded a ship sailing for Phoenicia.

KJV: And finding a ship sailing over unto Phenicia, we went aboard, and set forth.

NKJV: And finding a ship sailing over to Phoenicia, we went aboard and set sail.

Paul, Luke, and several others (Acts 20:4) are on their way to Jerusalem. Paul's companions are going because their home churches—in Ephesus, Troas, Thessalonica, Philippi, and Berea—have collected support for the church in Jerusalem (Romans 15:26). Paul is going so he can continue to serve God in his own way; in this case, that will include being arrested.

They leave Miletus, a port on the southwest corner of modern-day Turkey, and round the peninsula until they reach Patara on the island of Rhodes. From here, it's straight to Tyre on the coast of Phoenicia, north of Galilee. They will spend a week in Tyre while the ship unloads before sailing south to Ptolemais and Caesarea Maritima. At Caesarea, they will head inland to Jerusalem.

On their way to Phoenicia, the ship will pass the southern coast of the island of Cyprus. Cyprus is the original home of Barnabas, and the first place Barnabas and Paul went after the elders at Syrian Antioch commissioned them to bring Jesus' story to the Gentiles (Acts 13:4).

Phoenicia is a district along the coastline of Syria. It is flanked by the Mediterranean on the west and a rugged mountain range on the east. It takes up much of the same territory as modern-day Lebanon while spilling north into Syria and south into Israel. The ship will land in Tyre, an ancient seaport first mentioned in the book of Joshua. The king of Tyre gave King David supplies for his royal house (2 Samuel 5:11).

Despite their proximity to Cyprus, they do not stop to visit the proconsul who came to faith in Jesus (Acts 13:12). Nor do they go north to Paul's home church in Syrian Antioch. The Holy Spirit compels Paul to reach Jerusalem by Pentecost (Acts 20:16). Even though Paul knows he will face arrest and persecution, he knows he must go.

Acts 21:1–6 describes how Paul and his companions finally start their way back to Judea. They sail from Miletus on the southwest coast of modern-day Turkey around the islands to Tyre in Phoenicia. Whether because the Holy Spirit informs them or Paul tells them, the Jesus-followers there realize Paul faces arrest in Jerusalem. Not understanding God's purpose, they try to protect their friend by begging him not to go. When Paul insists, they pray for him and send him on his way.

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.

Acts 21 fulfills the fears of many of Paul's friends. Throughout the last part of his third missionary journey the Holy Spirit has been telling him he will be arrested in Jerusalem (Acts 20:23–25). When Paul reacts to dire personal prophecy, the Jesus-followers in Caesarea Maritima try to stop him from going on (Acts 21:8–14). Through a complicated trail of rumors, lies, and wrong assumptions, things go according to the Holy Spirit's foreknowledge and Roman soldiers arrest Paul. He will face the next 5 years in custody in Caesarea and Rome, but he will spread Jesus' story the entire time (Acts 22—28).

The summary of the book of Acts is provided in Jesus' words in Acts 1:8: ''But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.'' In Acts 2:1–13, the Christ-followers receive the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:14—7:60 describes the rapid growth of the church in Jerusalem. Chapters 8—12 find Jewish persecution inadvertently spreading the gospel throughout Judea and Samaria. And in chapters 13—28, Paul and his companions spread the good news throughout the Roman Empire.