Violence in Jerusalem - Acts 21

²⁷ When the seven days were nearly over, some Jews from the province of Asia saw Paul at the temple. They stirred up the whole crowd and seized him, ²⁸ shouting, “Fellow Israelites, help us! This is the man who teaches everyone everywhere against our people and our law and this place. And besides, he has brought Greeks into the temple and defiled this holy place.” ²⁹ (They had previously seen Trophimus the Ephesian in the city with Paul and assumed that Paul had brought him into the temple.)

³⁰ The whole city was aroused, and the people came running from all directions. Seizing Paul, they dragged him from the temple, and immediately the gates were shut. ³¹ While they were trying to kill him, news reached the commander of the Roman troops that the whole city of Jerusalem was in an uproar. ³² He at once took some officers and soldiers and ran down to the crowd. When the rioters saw the commander and his soldiers, they stopped beating Paul.

³³ The commander came up and arrested him and ordered him to be bound with two chains. Then he asked who he was and what he had done. ³⁴ Some in the crowd shouted one thing and some another, and since the commander could not get at the truth because of the uproar, he ordered that Paul be taken into the barracks. ³⁵ When Paul reached the steps, the violence of the mob was so great he had to be carried by the soldiers. ³⁶ The crowd that followed kept shouting, “Get rid of him!”

Again, we see a mob working on assumption and misinformation.  

When I read about the quickness of the gathering of the mob, the yelling towards and beating of Paul in the streets, I am reminded of the pictures and video from the Middle East that I see in the news as recently as today.  I do not see how the culture is any different today than it was then.  The culture then consists of emotional men who live devoutly to their religion, as it is today.  This makes it very hard for a western educated and cultured person to understand as they have been taught to bind emotion and make logical decisions.  I do believe that the western culture has a strength in this regard relating to an ordered society, however, I believe the eastern culture has a strength with regard to their zeal to stand on their belief, however misplaced it seems to so often be put.  

What we see here are the Jews violently opposing Jesus through Paul.  He is renowned for his work in Asia and knowledge of that work concerning the teaching and preaching of Jesus and the establishment of the churches of the "Way" have traveled into Jerusalem. 

Here we see that the prophet's message to Paul was correct.  Paul is bound.  From this day forward, as far as the book of Acts indicates, Paul is never a free man again.  He will give an account of his defense several times as we follow him to the end of Acts.