In Acts 22, citizens of Jerusalem began advocating for the execution of Paul. To defend himself, Paul gives a speech which attempts to show he has not transgressed the Old Testament Law. His speech concerns the righteousness of spreading the gospel to the Gentiles. He addresses this primarily by demonstrating God has given him instructions to go to the Gentiles. Paul makes this argument shortly before a Roman commander takes him into the barracks to question him. A large crowd gathered around him protesting Paul’s decision to go to the Gentiles. This crowd consisted mainly of quite religious and strict Jews. Very zealous concerning fulfilling the law, they wanted to kill Paul because they believed he ignored the law when he went to the Gentiles. So Paul needed to prove to them he had not violated the law, but had obeyed God in bringing the gospel to the Gentiles. In Acts 22, Paul, a Jew, tries convincing the Jews in Jerusalem that bringing the gospel to the Gentiles does not go against the law, so he has not transgressed the law.
Paul uses a large amount of ethos in his argument. In order to prove he has not violated the law, he must prove his familiarity with it and with Jewish rituals in general. For example, Paul says, “I am a …show more content…
Acts 22:2 shows the Jews’ reaction to his speaking in Hebrew: “And when they heard that he addressed them in the Hebrew dialect, they became more quiet.” This has a profound effect on the Jews. They stop their protesting simply because he speaks in Hebrew, their own language. This strengthens his argument in two ways. First, he startles the Jews, which probably made them, for a moment, more open to his side of the story. In addition, he proves his Jewish heritage quite convincingly. The fact he knows Hebrew shows he did not made up the story of his education, which indirectly supports the idea of bringing the gospel to the
Paul uses a large amount of ethos in his argument. In order to prove he has not violated the law, he must prove his familiarity with it and with Jewish rituals in general. For example, Paul says, “I am a …show more content…
Acts 22:2 shows the Jews’ reaction to his speaking in Hebrew: “And when they heard that he addressed them in the Hebrew dialect, they became more quiet.” This has a profound effect on the Jews. They stop their protesting simply because he speaks in Hebrew, their own language. This strengthens his argument in two ways. First, he startles the Jews, which probably made them, for a moment, more open to his side of the story. In addition, he proves his Jewish heritage quite convincingly. The fact he knows Hebrew shows he did not made up the story of his education, which indirectly supports the idea of bringing the gospel to the