Acts 23

If God calls you to it He will provide the way to accomplish it. Our job is to listen closely to His voice giving us direction in our life. Pray to be in His will always.

Slipping out of Jerusalem when the city was quiet, the foot soldiers and cavalry probably attracted little attention. Ahead lay Antipatris, 40 miles away, by way of a winding downhill road where an ambush would have been disastrous. Antipatris was used by the Romans as a relay station for their troops. The rest of the journey was over open plain where there was no need for a large number of soldiers. The foot soldiers returned to Jerusalem, leaving the 70 horsemen to escort Paul the remaining distance to Caesarea, the capital of Judea. 

The hand of God over Paul’s life can be seen in the provision of such extraordinary protection.

Acts 23:11

¹¹ But the following night the Lord stood by him and said, “Be of good cheer, Paul; for as you have testified for Me in Jerusalem, so you must also bear witness at Rome.”

Acts 23:12

¹² And when it was day, some of the Jews banded together and bound themselves under an oath, saying that they would neither eat nor drink till they had killed Paul.

Acts 23:25-30

²³ And he called for two centurions, saying, “Prepare two hundred soldiers, seventy horsemen, and two hundred spearmen to go to Caesarea at the third hour of the night; ²⁴ and provide mounts to set Paul on, and bring him safely to Felix the governor.” ²⁵ He wrote a letter in the following manner:

²⁶ Claudius Lysias,

To the most excellent governor Felix:

Greetings.

²⁷ This man was seized by the Jews and was about to be killed by them. Coming with the troops I rescued him, having learned that he was a Roman. ²⁸ And when I wanted to know the reason they accused him, I brought him before their council. ²⁹ I found out that he was accused concerning questions of their law, but had nothing charged against him deserving of death or chains. ³⁰ And when it was told me that the Jews lay in wait for the man, I sent him immediately to you, and also commanded his accusers to state before you the charges against him.

Farewell.

³¹ Then the soldiers, as they were commanded, took Paul and brought him by night to Antipatris. ³² The next day they left the horsemen to go on with him, and returned to the barracks. ³³ When they came to Caesarea and had delivered the letter to the governor, they also presented Paul to him. ³⁴ And when the governor had read it, he asked what province he was from. And when he understood that he was from Cilicia, ³⁵ he said, “I will hear you when your accusers also have come.” And he commanded him to be kept in Herod’s Praetorium.