What is the meaning of Acts 24:5? We have found this man • The accusers (Ananias the high priest and the elders, Acts 24:1) point to Paul with a dismissive “this man,” hoping to paint him as a dangerous outsider. • Similar language was hurled at believers before: “Men of Israel, help! This is the man who teaches everyone everywhere against our people” (Acts 21:28). • Like Elijah—“Is that you, O troubler of Israel?” (1 Kings 18:17)—Paul is labeled troublesome because he calls people back to God. • The irony: the very figure they try to reduce to “this man” is God’s chosen instrument (Acts 9:15). To be a pestilence • “Pestilence” pictures a spreading plague. Calling Paul that implies he endangers public health. • Yet the gospel he carries brings life, not death: “I have come that they may have life, and have it in all its fullness” (John 10:10). • The world has often branded God’s messengers with similar insults: believers in Thessalonica were said to have “turned the world upside down” (Acts 17:6). • God’s servants may be slandered, but the word of God “is not bound” (2 Timothy 2:9). Stirring up dissension among the Jews all over the world • The charge of inciting riots ignores that opposition usually arose from unbelieving crowds, not from Paul (Acts 13:50; 14:2; 17:5; 18:12; 19:23). • Paul states the truth moments later: “They found me neither debating with anyone in the temple, nor causing a disturbance among the crowds” (Acts 24:12). • The gospel does create division because truth confronts sin: “Do you think that I have come to bring peace to the earth? No… but division” (Luke 12:51). • Worldwide reach—“among the Jews all over the world”—unintentionally testifies to how far Paul’s ministry has spread (Romans 15:19). He is a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes • “Nazarenes” links believers to Jesus of Nazareth (Matthew 2:23); outsiders dismiss the church as a fringe group. • Paul freely owns the label while clarifying: “I worship the God of our fathers according to the Way, which they call a sect” (Acts 24:14). • The risen Christ Himself said, “I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you are persecuting” (Acts 22:8); following Him is no crime. • Calling Paul a “ringleader” highlights God-given leadership: the Lord told Ananias that Paul would “carry My name before the Gentiles” (Acts 9:15). • Believers were first called Christians at Antioch (Acts 11:26); whatever name the world uses, our identity is anchored in Christ. summary Acts 24:5 records three false accusations meant to destroy Paul’s credibility. Instead, they reveal the impact of a faithful servant whose life-giving message has spread across the Roman world. Being labeled a plague, a disturber, or a sect leader did not silence Paul; it only showcased the unstoppable advance of the gospel. When we are misunderstood or maligned for Christ, we stand in good company and can trust God to use even hostile words to further His kingdom. |
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