John Calvin Commentary Acts 21:37

"And as Paul was about to be brought into the castle, he saith unto the chief captain, May I say something unto thee? And he said, Dost thou know Greek?" — Acts 21:37 (ASV)

May I speak unto thee? Paul offered to defend his cause, as all servants of God must do. For we must endeavor to make our integrity known to all people, so that the name of God is not blasphemed through our disgrace. But when the chief captain asks whether Paul is not that Egyptian who was a murderer, who a little before had led away a company of men, let us learn that however modestly and quietly the ministers of Christ behave themselves, and however free from all fault they may be, they still cannot escape the reproaches and slanders of the world.

We must note this for this reason: that we may become accustomed to rebukes, and that in doing good we may be prepared to be spoken evil of. When he asks him concerning the Egyptian, he does not mean Theudas the sorcerer, as some people falsely suppose; whom Gamaliel mentioned before in the fifth chapter (Acts 5:36), and of whom Josephus speaks more in his twentieth book of Antiquities.

For, besides the fact that we read there that Theudas led away only four hundred men, and the chief captain counts up four thousand in this place, and says that they were all murderers, what is more significant is that Theudas raised that faction during the reign of Tiberius or Augustus Caesar; of which only an obscure report remained, because, as soon as a troop of horsemen was sent after them, they were immediately destroyed.

Nevertheless, it seems to me that Josephus is mistaken when he says, first, that Cuspius Fadus was sent by Claudius, and then adds that Theudas was overcome by him, since I have previously shown that the former insurrection occurred when Claudius was only a private citizen.

Although Josephus disagrees significantly with Luke’s narration, even in the number, since he says that there were about thirty thousand who took part in the sedition, unless perhaps we explain it this way: that, after he was put to flight by Felix, he fled into the wilderness with four thousand.

And it would have been absurd for the number to be made ten times greater, and also for a troop, having no skill in war, or being altogether without courage, to have been defamed with the name of murderers.

For as Josephus testifies, that seducer had deceived the simple and credulous common people with false promises, boasting that he was a prophet of God, who would lead the people dry-shod through the middle of the Jordan.

But the same Josephus puts the matter beyond doubt when he says that an Egyptian, a prophet, gathered together a band of men under Felix the governor, and carried them to the Mount of Olives, of whom four hundred were slain, two hundred taken, and the rest were dispersed.

The history was fresh in memory.

Again, since the author of the sedition had escaped, and the region was filled with murderers, it is not without reason that the chief captain asks Paul, when he sees everyone hating him so much, whether he was that Egyptian.

Luke records no further conversation between the chief captain and Paul; yet it is likely, since both of them understood the Greek tongue, that they had further talk.

As a result, as soon as Paul had effectively cleared himself, he was granted permission to speak to the people.

For the chief captain would never have allowed a wicked man to make any public speech in a city that was under such strong suspicion.