Lechem Panim #225 “The Whitewashed Wall” (Acts 23:30-23:5) Pastor Cameron Ury

Greetings! It’s good to have you with us as we continue our study of the book of Acts today. You will remember if you were with us last week that Paul has just (after taking a significant beating) given his first of six defenses that we find in the closing chapters of the book of Acts. And this first defense was given before this angry crowd of people in Jerusalem who had been stirred up into thinking that Paul was against the Law of God and (therefore) anti-Jewish; and hence had to be taken out.

Putin’s Propaganda— Now what really struck a chord with me as I was studying this week was how closely these false accusers were to somebody we all have been seeing a lot of on the news of late: Vladimir Putin. One of the things that has surprised me the most in recent weeks is how effective his propaganda machine is. He has been brainwashing his people with the lie that Ukraine has been taken over by neo-Nazis and therefore an invasion to help free Ukraine from the control of these neo-Nazis is the right thing to do. Now I’m not surprised at his lies (though it is shocking some of the things that he says); but I am surprised at how well he’s able to convince his people. In this day and age with the internet and everything that goes along with that (Facebook, YouTube, etc.) you would think that he wouldn’t be able to stop the free flow of information. But he really is; he knows how to cut his people off from outside influence and perspective; and anything that slips through he labels as Western propaganda. But anything he says is a great gauge of where the truth is because you know that whatever comes out of his mouth, the truth is the complete opposite; and whatever crime he accuses Ukraine and the West of is exactly the crime he himself is committing (sometimes even in a more egregious way).

The Real Lawbreakers— Now why this is relevant to our study today is because of how much those accusing Paul of encouraging law-breaking are themselves breaking the law. I mean Paul has just barely escaped assassination. And, battered and bruised from that, he has taken the stand and makes his first defense. And he does so (like we saw last week) by sharing his own personal testimony of how he had always religiously observed the Jewish law; and what Jesus had to do in his life to bring him into Christianity, which of course is the fulfillment of all their Jewish hopes. And all the people listen to him up until the point where he says that he had a vision right there in the temple in which Jesus spoke to him and told him “…“Depart, for I will send you far from here to the Gentiles.’ ” And at this point they go absolutely crazy and so the commander has Paul taken into the barracks, has him bound, and is prepared to scourge him until he gets the information he wants. But before that happens, Paul decides that now is a good time to mention his Roman citizenship. It says…

Acts 22:25-30 (ESV)— 25 But when they had stretched him out for the whips, Paul said to the centurion who was standing by, “Is it lawful for you to flog a man who is a Roman citizen and uncondemned?” 26 When the centurion heard this, he went to the tribune and said to him, “What are you about to do? For this man is a Roman citizen.” 27 So the tribune came and said to him, “Tell me, are you a Roman citizen?” And he said, “Yes.” 28 The tribune answered, “I bought this citizenship for a large sum.” Paul said, “But I am a citizen by birth.” 29 So those who were about to examine him withdrew from him immediately, and the tribune also was afraid, for he realized that Paul was a Roman citizen and that he had bound him. 30 But on the next day, desiring to know the real reason why he was being accused by the Jews, he unbound him and commanded the chief priests and all the council to meet, and he brought Paul down and set him before them.

The Sanhedrin— Now one thing I found interesting about this verse was that it is the next day and yet (despite their being worried that they had bound Paul) we find here that he is still bound. It is only now that he is finally unbound and brought to the council. And this was a meeting, albeit an unofficial one, of the Sanhedrin; the national ruling body of the Jews and the supreme court, comprised of 71 members, including the high priest. The chief priests were [A small group within the Sanhedrin composed of former high priest and members of influential priestly families…] And [They met daily in the temple to hold court, except on the Sabbath and other holy days.] So Paul is before them and it says…

Acts 23:1-2 (ESV)— 1 And looking intently at the council, Paul said, “Brothers, I have lived my life before God in all good conscience up to this day.” 2 And the high priest Ananias commanded those who stood by him to strike him on the mouth.

Ananias— Now it's important to note that this Ananias is not the Annas of the Gospels. Nor was he (in reality) the actual high priest. Caiaphas was in fact the acting high priest (serving from A.D. 18-36, after Ananias). But though Caiaphas was the official high priest, Ananias had [retained his title and {still} wielded great influence]. And so Ananias is the one who has Paul struck; this former high priest (who had served from A.D. 6-15). Now Ananias had in fact been [one of Israel’s cruelest and most corrupt high priests.] And [His pro-Roman policies alienated him from the Jewish people]. And we’ll see what that leads to. But this command to strike Paul was [An illegal act in keeping with Ananias’ brutal character. The verb translated “strike” is used of the mob’s beating of Paul (21:32) and the Roman soldiers’ beating of Jesus (Matt. 27:30) {So} It was no mere slap on the face, but a vicious blow.] And one that Paul does not take kindly.

Acts 23:3 (ESV)— 3 Then Paul said to him, “God is going to strike you, you whitewashed wall! Are you sitting to judge me according to the law, and yet contrary to the law you order me to be struck?”

A Whitewashed Wall— And so we see that Paul is outraged by Ananias’ hypocrisy; breaking Jewish law while in the midst of accusing him of showing disregard for the law. And so Paul says to him “God is going to strike you, you whitewashed wall! ” Now to understand why Paul calls him a whitewashed wall, we have to look back at Ezekiel 13. False prophets during that time in history had lulled God’s people into a false sense of security. [Phony “peace” promises, while sin continued on the brink of God’s judgment, was a way, so to speak, of erecting a defective “wall” and white-washing it to make it look good. {But} Such an unsafe “wall” was doomed to collapse (v.11) when God would bring his storm, picturing the invaders’ assault (v.11).] And this storm is of wind, flood, and hail. Now [These descriptions are all images belonging to the illustration of the wall, not meant to convey real wind, flood, and hail. The Babylonians were the actual destroyers of Israel’s hypocritical false spirituality.] And so Paul is saying, basically, that God is going to do the same thing to Ananias. Now those around Paul did not take kindly to Paul’s saying this. And so it says…

Acts 23:4 (ESV)— 4 Those who stood by said, “Would you revile God's high priest?”

Revile— And that word “revile” is a very strong word. It [is the same word used in John 9:28 to describe the Jewish leaders’ insulting remarks to the blind man whom Jesus had healed. Peter {also} used it to speak of the abuse Jesus endured (1 Pet. 2:23). So they see what Paul has just said as a very severe thing because of how saying something like that (knowingly) to Ananias would mean that Paul had disdain not only Ananias, but the office that he held. And so they call him out on it. And Paul is (honestly) taken aback. It says…

Acts 23:5 (ESV)— 5 And Paul said, “I did not know, brothers, that he was the high priest, for it is written, ‘You shall not speak evil of a ruler of your people.’”

Name-Calling— Now I love Paul’s response. Because (despite just being wrongfully assaulted) he is immediately willing to acknowledge his mistake. And that is all it was. It was not a sin. If name-calling in itself is a sin, then Jesus also was guilty, because he wasn’t afraid of telling people exactly what they were behaving like. Paul is within the realm of right Christian behavior in what he says. Where the problem comes in is in regards to who he has directed it towards. Paul is fully justified in the content of what he says, but immediately admits that (because of the Law) he would not have said it if he had known who it was he was speaking to. Now this begs the question, “How could Paul not know who Ananias was?” Well, Paul [had been gone from Jerusalem for many years and would not likely have recognized Ananias by sight. {Plus remember} That this was an informal gathering of the Sanhedrin {,which} would have meant the high priest would not have been wearing his official garments.] And so it would have been very easy for Paul to not know who he was, especially considering that Ananias’ behavior was so contradictory to what a high priest should do, BREAK THE LAW! But Paul may also have had some trouble with his eyes, as Galatians 4:15 seems to indicate. But whatever the case, Paul says he didn’t know it was the high priest. Now he never says he was wrong in WHAT he said, only in that he had unknowingly said that to God’s high priest. And I love how he uses the word of God to even pinpoint what he had done wrong. He says: …it is written, ‘You shall not speak evil of a ruler of your people.’”  And he’s quoting right from the Torah, from Exodus 22:28, which says …

Exodus 22:28 (ESV)— 28 “You shall not revile God, nor curse a ruler of your people.

A Deep Respect— And so in all of this, despite his mistake, Paul shows (even in the way he corrects himself) that he truly does have a deep and profound respect for the Law of God. He quotes it verbatim and shows that he himself is willing to submit to it even when he himself is being wrongly treated.

Was Paul Right?— Now some say that Paul was wrong in what he said. Personally, I think God used Paul’s eye problems to prevent his recognizing Ananias so that Paul would say exactly what needed to be said. I think it was important to God for all Christians since this time to read this passage and see this very accurate exposition of who Ananias was and how Paul’s character stood in marked contrast to it. Furthermore, I feel that God honors Paul’s curse; because God did strike Ananias; and He did so through his own people. Because of his pro-Roman policies, at the outset of the revolt against Rome in A.D. 66, the Jewish people end up murdering him. And then of course Rome sweeps in and destroys Jerusalem and the Temple in A.D. 70. Now in light of that, listen to the words of Ezekiel 13 that Paul borrows from to curse him and see if this doesn’t fit. Just listen. It says…

Ezekiel 13:10-16 (ESV)— 10 Precisely because they have misled my people, saying, ‘Peace,’ when there is no peace, and because, when the people build a wall, these prophets smear it with whitewash,[a] 11 say to those who smear it with whitewash that it shall fall! There will be a deluge of rain, and you, O great hailstones, will fall, and a stormy wind break out. 12 And when the wall falls, will it not be said to you, ‘Where is the coating with which you smeared it?’ 13 Therefore thus says the Lord God: I will make a stormy wind break out in my wrath, and there shall be a deluge of rain in my anger, and great hailstones in wrath to make a full end. 14 And I will break down the wall that you have smeared with whitewash, and bring it down to the ground, so that its foundation will be laid bare. When it falls, you shall perish in the midst of it, and you shall know that I am the Lord. 15 Thus will I spend my wrath upon the wall and upon those who have smeared it with whitewash, and I will say to you, The wall is no more, nor those who smeared it, 16 the prophets of Israel who prophesied concerning Jerusalem and saw visions of peace for her, when there was no peace, declares the Lord God.

Let Us Proclaim— Now what we learn from all of this is very simply that the world is not friendly to those who proclaim the name of Jesus. There will always be people (even religious people) who will set themselves against us. And yet (as we will see) God stands with Paul. And God will stand with you and me as well. And so let us not shrink from proclaiming His name so that even in biting us the world may taste and see that the Lord is good.