Today's Scripture Reading (October 28, 2025): 1 Chronicles 22
The Temple in Jerusalem was
divided into several "courts." The innermost portion of the Temple
was the Holy of Holies. At the time of Solomon, it was a place reserved for the
Ark of the Covenant, and a place that only the High Priest could enter, and
even he could only enter this space once a year, on Yom Kippur, or the Day of
Atonement. Outside of the Holy of Holies was the Temple Proper, a place where
Levites and Priests ministered before the Lord daily. The altar, the place of
sacrifice, was outside of this area, but still within the Court of the Priests.
Outside of this area was the Court of Israel, where the men of Israel came for
worship. Outside of this area was another court, the Court of Women, where
every Israelite was welcome to come. Surrounding the Temple area was the Court
of the Gentiles, the only part of the Temple complex that was open for anyone.
When Paul was arrested in
Jerusalem at the end of his Third Missionary Journey, one of the charges
against Paul was that he had brought a Gentile into the Temple. More
specifically, the charge was that Paul had brought a Gentile into a place where
Gentiles were forbidden to enter, which would have meant the Court of Women or
possibly even the Court of Israel.
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, 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." [They
had previously seen Trophimus the Ephesian in the city with Paul and
assumed that Paul had brought him into the Temple] (Acts 21:27-29).
The
case was flimsy. Trophimus was not the only one whom Paul was accused of
bringing into the Temple area. It was likely that a young Christian Pastor
named Titus was also seen with Paul in and about Jerusalem.
It is
unlikely that Paul had taken either Trophimus or Titus into the Temple Court.
It is also unlikely that Paul ever taught against the Jews. Paul's problem, as
far as his opponents were concerned, was that when he looked at the world, he
saw a people who were all loved by God, and who God had invited to be part of
his family.
It
was the fulfillment of something that had been in the works from the very beginning.
As David begins preparation for the construction of the Temple, he gathers
foreigners living within Israel to start preparing the stones. Later in this
passage, we are told that "He also provided more cedar logs than could be counted,
for the Sidonians and Tyrians had brought large numbers of them to David"
(1 Chronicles 22:4). A place that was to be reserved for Israel only began in
the hands of foreigners working with material that came from outside of Israel.
All of this was a foreshadowing of what Paul had come to understand; the family
of God was much larger than Israel understood. That is still true; the family
is much larger than we sometimes think, as well.
Tomorrow's Scripture Reading:
1 Chronicles 23
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