St. Paul Rescued from the Multitude by Gustave DoreRead Acts 21:27-39
It is noteworthy that the same verb epilambanomai is used both of the mob 'seizing' Paul (30) and of the commander 'arresting' him (33), although they had opposite objectives. The crowd were bent on lynching him, and the military tribune on taking him into protective custody. It is a striking example of Luke's aim to contrast Jewish hostility and Roman justice. When the commander failed to discover who the prisoner was and what he had done, because of the hubbub, he had him taken, indeed (owing to the mob's violence) carried, into the barracks. Meanwhile, the crowd was shouting, `Away with him,' just as nearly thirty years previously another crowd had shouted about another prisoner. (Lk. 23:18)
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