Paul’s First Roman Imprisonment (2 Years) A. References 1. Acts 28:14-31 2. Romans 3. Philemon 4. Colossians 5. Ephesians 6. Philippians B. There were Christians at Rome. 1. Acts 28:14-15– “ . . . And so we went toward Rome. 15 And from there, when the brethren heard about us, they came to meet us as far as Appii Forum and Three Inns.
The only way to reconcile all these passages is to have two imprisonments of Paul. One captivity was Acts 28:30-31 (Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, Philemon), followed by an interlude of liberty to travel (1 Timothy, Titus), with a second imprisonment a few years later (2 Timothy).
Paul's Second Imprisonment, and Martyrdom; Peter, his Epistles, his Martyrdom, and the Roman Church. In process of time it was discovered that Paul was rather an inconvenient companion for the apostle of the circumcision; and Peter alone then began to be spoken of as the founder and first bishop of the Church of Rome.
However, during Paul’s second imprisonment in the Mamertine dungeon, he had apparently received a preliminary hearing and was awaiting a final trial ( 2 Timothy 4:16 ). He didn’t expect acquittal; he expected to be found guilty, in all likelihood, for hating humankind.
The only way to reconcile all these passages is to have two imprisonments of Paul. One captivity was Acts 28:30-31 (Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, Philemon), followed by an interlude of liberty to travel (1 Timothy, Titus), with a second imprisonment a few years later (2 Timothy). Also see:
While under the two-year house arrest in Rome (Acts 28:30-31), Paul wrote Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon. According to Philippians 2:24 and Philemon 22, he expected a release. First Timothy 1:3, Titus 3:12-13, and 2 Timothy 4:20 all indicate he was freed and ministered in various regions—Ephesus, Macedonia, Miletum, et cetera. Finally, he was re-arrested, re-imprisoned in Rome, and executed. Second Timothy would have been written in a dungeon, worse conditions than Acts 28:30-31, just before his death by beheading (2 Timothy 4:6-8).
He intended to travel into Macedonia, and he asked Timothy to stay at Ephesus to correct erroneous teaching. This was evidently something that occurred after Acts— after the two years of Acts 28:30-31. Paul was released (as he expected).
Using a little common sense, the only way Paul could have “left” a man at Miletum is if Paul himself had been at Miletum. He would have thus been free from the Roman house arrest of Acts 28:30-31.
Luke closes the Book by reporting in chapter 28 : “ [30] And Paul dwelt two whole years in his own hired house, and received all that came in unto him, [31] Preaching the kingdom of God, and teaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ, with all confidence, no man forbidding him.”. This was Paul’s “house arrest” period.
Remember, he was a prisoner, having been arrested back in Acts 21:33 in Jerusalem.
He is not in prison here, but free to travel as he pleases. Surely, he was released from his first imprisonment. By the time of 2 Timothy, nevertheless, Paul has been arrested and is incarcerated again. This is not merely house arrest as before. Now, he is in a dungeon… awaiting his certain execution.
Rome could also boast that it was for some time the residence of two of the most eminent of the apostles. Paul was there for at least two years as a prisoner; and Peter may have resided for twelve months within its walls.
The tradition that he died on the same day of the same month as Paul, but exactly a year afterwards, [160:4] is not destitute of probability. According to this statement he suffered A.D.67; and he may have been about a year in Rome before his martyrdom.
In the New Testament it is impossible to find a trace of either the primacy of Peter or the supremacy of the Pope ; but the facts already stated throw some light on the history of that great spiritual despotism whose seat of government has been so long established in the city of the Caesars.
Paul's Second Imprisonment, and Martyrdom; Peter, his Epistles, his Martyrdom, and the Roman Church. The Ancient Church— William Dool Killen. The Book of the Acts terminates abruptly; and the subsequent history of Paul is involved in much obscurity. Some have contended that the apostle was never released from his first imprisonment at Rome, ...
And as a “ringleader” ( Acts 24:5 ), Paul was rearrested at some point and placed, according to church tradition, in the Mamertine Prison .
Jeremiah was imprisoned under accusation of treason ( Jeremiah 37:11–16) but was transferred to the temple guardhouse after an appeal to King Zedekiah, who sought to protect the prophet (37:17–21). And though Jeremiah was later thrown into a cistern, the purpose was to kill him, not imprison him (38:1–6). During Paul’s first imprisonment, he ...
But all human efforts, all the lavish gifts of the emperor, and the propitiations of the gods, did not banish the sinister belief that the conflagration was the result of an order.
10.1. Imprisonment in Caesarea (57-59 AD) For the next two years (57-59 AD), Paul is kept under guard in Herod's palace in Caesarea (Acts 23:34-35) as the politicians -- Roman governors and Jewish kings -- seek to use Paul to gain political advantage with the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem.
But apparently it is primarily a Gentile congregation. So the first thing Paul does when he arrives is to reach out to the Jewish community.
Paul is aware of the Jews' plot to ambush him, so he refuses to go to Jerusalem. With Festus wanting to go along with the Jews' request, Paul feels he has no choice. Roman justice in Caesarea has been subverted by the Romans' desire to keep the Jews happy, thus easier to govern. Paul won't find justice here.
They are well-received by the islanders. Paul is bit by a viper believed poisonous by the natives, but when he suffers no ill effects, they begin to think he is a god.
But this isn't the last word on the subject. In Romans 9, 10, and 11, Paul suffers anguish because his people, the Jews, have rejected the gospel, but he holds forth the hope and promise of the Scriptures that in the end they will receive the Messiah. Not now, but eventually, in God's time. As we saw in Lesson 4.5 (The New Israel of God), God isn't finished with Israel.
In Lesson 9.2 we saw Paul has been assaulted in the temple at Jerusalem. Only the intervention of a detachment of Roman soldiers saves him from death. Paul addresses the crowds -- under Roman protection. And when a plot against his life is revealed, a strong band of cavalry and foot soldiers takes him at night to safety in Caesarea (Acts 21:27-33).
Instead of releasing Paul, as would be just, Felix keeps Paul in prison "to grant a favor to the Jews.". To Felix, Paul is a political pawn in the Roman occupation of Judea -- and an interesting fellow to converse with. Little more.