Tuesday, 14th Week of Ordinary Time

Acts 21:1-14

Morning Prayer

The seminary geek term for what Agabus did is “symbolic prophetic action.” There are numerous examples in the Old Testament of such prophecy. In fact, this kind of action had more to do with “prophecy” than the fortune-telling that often gets confused with genuine prophecy. Prophecy was not about forecasting the future. It was about announcing the judgment and will of God. Inspired by the Holy Spirit, Agabus was acting out what God had determined, and by acting it out, Agabus actually was guaranteeing the truth of his prophetic action.

After such a dramatic action, it is no surprise that Paul’s friends beg him not to go to Jerusalem for fear of his life. But Paul is ready “to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus.” In the face of this determination, all his brothers and sisters can say is, “Let the will of the Lord be done.”

But what exactly is that will? Does Agabus actually say that Paul will die in Jerusalem? No. I suspect that Agabus himself assumed that Paul would die. But Agabus only says that Paul will be bound and handed over to the Gentiles. In fact, that is what happened. The prophecy will be fulfilled. But remember that hanging over this story is the promise spoken by the greatest prophet of all: “you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” So said Jesus at the beginning of Acts. And that promise must still be fulfilled. And to hint at the ending, it is by going to Jerusalem that Paul will see Jesus’s promise fulfilled in him.

Of course at this point, neither Paul nor anyone else knows that. They have been given just enough information to make them think twice. Can they trust the will of the Lord enough to push ahead. I often think that God gives all of us just enough information to make sure that following the will of God is not a blind leap in the dark, or a naïve skipping along the Yellow Brick Road. God gives us just enough knowledge, so that to follow his call is an act of faith, of trust in God’s promises and God’s power to fulfill those promises.