Acts 22:1-21 Men, brothers, and fathers, hear you my defense which I make now to you.… 1. Christians may at any time be called upon for "a reason of the hope that is in them," and ought to be "ready to give it, with meekness and reverence" (ver. 1; 1 Peter 5:1). 2. We ought to consider in the best light even the acts of enemies (ver. 3). 3. Prayers are often answered in ways we least expect. Not only are our greatest joys, but our keenest disappointments, experienced in Divine communion. Paul wished first to be an apostle to Jews. Even devotions must cease when the demands of duty are urgent. It is well to carry the zeal and consecration acquired in prayer into life and action. There are many tasks for which we are unprepared until we have been fired by devotion (vers. 17, 18). 4. Men are not always the best judges as to how, when, and where they shall do the most good (vers. 19, 20). 5. The distant purposes and preparations of Christianity prove its Divine character and power (ver. 21). 6. Where there is conscious rectitude, a narrative of facts is the best defence. 7. The hardness of the heart is as supernatural as its conversion. (A. F. Muir, M. A.) Parallel Verses KJV: Men, brethren, and fathers, hear ye my defence which I make now unto you.WEB: "Brothers and fathers, listen to the defense which I now make to you." |
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