Why Did Agabus Bind Himself?

Tom:

This is our Understanding the Scriptures segment, we’re in the Book of Acts Chapter 21, and we are going to pick up with verse 10.“And as we tarried there many days, there came down from Judea a certain prophet, named Agabus.And when he was come unto us, he took Paul’s girdle, (that is, his belt) and bound his own hands and feet, and said, Thus saith the Holy Ghost, So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man that owneth this girdle, and shall deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.And when we heard these things, both we, and they of that place, besought him, (that is, Paul) not to go up to Jerusalem.Then Paul answered, verse 13, “What mean ye to weep and to break mine heart? for I am ready not to be bound only, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.”Now Dave, thinking back to our last program, we’re trying to explain, or hopefully, you’re going to explain whether Paul is being obedient to the Holy Spirit, or whether he’s doing his own thing.I think some people are confused by that.

Dave:

Well, it does seem that there is some conflict here.We went back to verse 4, “Finding disciples we tarried there seven days who said to Paul through the Spirit that he should not go up to Jerusalem.”That’s even a little more in opposition than this passage.Here he is being bound, and Paul says, “I’m ready to be bound, I mean, I’ll die!”So, the Holy Spirit is not telling him not to.Now what is happening?Then Paul is going to go.Is he disobedient?Well, first of all, I have the utmost confidence in Paul.I know Paul better than I know Agabus or any of these others that it says.

Tom:

And Paul did say, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, he said, “That which you see in me that you are to do.Look at my life it’s a pattern for how you are to live your life.”So, certainly as he follows Christ, but I don’t know anybody else in the scripture who points to his own life as teaching his doctrine and so on like Paul does.

Dave:

Well, if we went to chapter 23, verse 11, Paul is in the midst of being arrested and imprisoned and brought before judges, and so forth.Verse 11 says, “And the night following the Lord stood by him, and said, Be of good cheer, Paul: for as thou hast testified of me in Jerusalem, so must thou bear witness also at Rome.”

Tom:

Now Dave, that doesn’t sound like a rebuke.

Dave:

No.Tom, you notice that the Lord says, As you have testified of Me in Jerusalem, so you must bear witness also at Rome.Now, Jerusalem was the route to Rome, that’s how he got to Rome was going to Jerusalem. And God doesn’t say, You will bear witness at Rome, you must bear witness at Rome.So it sounds to me as though it was God’s will all along for Paul to go to Jerusalem, and then on to Rome.Now I would say that Paul knew what God wanted, and what the Lord wanted, and he was not wavering.Now, then how do we explain where he says, He says to him—let’s go back to verse 4, chapter 21, verse 4, “We found some disciples there, we stayed with them seven days, and they said to Paul, Through the Spirit, that he should not go up to Jerusalem.”Now, is God contradicting himself?God has told Paul—Paul knows, I’m going to Jerusalem, I’m in God’s will.Now, the Spirit tells these to say, No, you’re not supposed to go.Tom, I think myself, if we went back to 1 Kings 13, you remember this man of God, it says it a number of times, He is really a man of God, he’s an amazing prophet.And let me read the first couple of verses there.This is 1 Kings:13:1And, behold, there came a man of God out of Judah by the word of the LORD unto Bethel: and Jeroboam stood by the altar to burn incense.
See All..., “Behold, there came a man of God out of Judah by the word of he Lord unto Bethel:and Jeroboam, (he was the king) stood by the altar to burn incense.And he, (that is, this man of God) cried against the altar in the word of the Lord, and said, O altar, altar, thus saith the Lord” and so forth.Well, this is an amazing prophecy.And it came to pass and Jeroboam reaches out and says, Lay hold on him, grab that man, and his hand, which he put forth against him, dried up so that he could not pull it in again to him.I mean, Wow! this is amazing.The altar also was rent, as he said, right there before their eyes, it’s torn, split down the middle.The ashes are dumped out from the altar.And the king answered and said unto the man of God, Entreat now the face of the Lord thy God, and pray for me, that my hand may be restored me again.And the man of God besought the Lord, and the king’s hand was restored.So, all we are saying, we are establishing, this man is really in touch with God.God is working through him powerfully, and what happens?God told him, Don’t go back the same way you came, go another way and you don’t spend any time there, you don’t spend the night there, you just get out of there now, you’ve done your duty, get out of there.And, away he goes.But in his heart he really misses because the king had offered him some great honor, and so forth, you come and be my prophet, etc.So, he’s kind of dilly dallying a bit, and there’s an old prophet in this place, and his sons tell him about this man of God.He overtakes the man of God, so he is going too slow, and he says, No, no, no I am a prophet too, and God told me to tell you to come back and have a meal with me.But it says, He lied!The man of God went back.Now, here we have an instance where the man of God knew what God wanted him to do, God had told him.Now, he’s willing to accept the word of some other prophet because that tells him what he wants to hear.Now, I guess Paul could have been very happy to be told don’t go to Jerusalem because they are going to mistreat you, they are going to bind you, and they are going to kill you, and so forth.Well, I guess I had better not go, Lord, I don’t want that to happen to me.No, Paul knows what God told him, he is sticking by it, and these other prophets are there like this prophet, the old prophet, he’s there to tempt this man to see whether he will stick with what God told him to do, or whether he will cave-in, and he caved-in.It’s one of the most tragic cases, Tom.Such a man of God, so promising, how could he be in touch with God, and God is working these amazing things through him, and then he goes back.Well, Paul did not go back, and that would be my understanding of this passage.No matter who said it, Agabus or prophets or what, Paul knows what God wants him to do and he is heading to Jerusalem because that is his route to Rome.

Tom:

Verse 14, “And when he would not be persuaded, we ceased, saying, The will of the Lord be done.”Now Dave, I think that’s a confirmation, that God’s will is most important here, and we believe Paul had God’s will in all of this.

Dave:

Well, they are willing for that, too, God’s will be done.Now when they say, God’s will be done, whatever happened that was God’s will, as we have it recorded in the Book of Acts.

Tom:

“And after those days we took up our carriages, and went up to Jerusalem.”Now Dave, I think we will end there.

Dave:

Okay, we will come back and pick it up next week.