Verse-by-Verse Commentary
The Book of Acts
Chapter 28: Preaching the Kingdom of God, No Man Forbidding Him
Acts 28 brings the book to its triumphant close, with Paul reaching Rome and the gospel going forth unhindered. Shipwrecked on Malta, Paul is bitten by a viper yet shakes it off and feels no harm, and the islanders, first thinking him a murderer, then a god, watch him heal the sick, including the father of Publius. After three months the journey resumes, and at last Paul nears Rome, where believers come out to meet him, and 'when Paul saw them, he thanked God, and took courage.' In Rome, though a prisoner, he calls the Jewish leaders together and testifies 'concerning Jesus, both out of the law of Moses, and out of the prophets, from morning till evening.' Some believe, some do not, and Paul applies Isaiah's word about hardened hearts, declaring, 'the salvation of God is sent unto the Gentiles, and that they will hear it.' The book ends with Paul dwelling two years in his own hired house, 'Preaching the kingdom of God, and teaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ, with all confidence, no man forbidding him.' The chapter shows us the God who guards His servant, the gospel that reaches the heart of the empire, and the word of the Lord that cannot be bound.
About This Commentary
This is a verse-by-verse study of Acts chapter 28, the final chapter of the book. For each section you will find the KJV text, the Greek words that sharpen the meaning, plain explanation, and a Gospel Focus. Here Paul is preserved on Malta, reaches Rome, testifies to the Jews, and preaches the gospel unhindered. Every Scripture quotation is from the King James Version.
Setting the Stage
He Felt No Harm
Paul shakes off the viper; God preserves and heals.
He Thanked God, and Took Courage
Believers meet Paul; he is encouraged as he nears Rome.
Persuading Them Concerning Jesus
Paul proves Christ from Moses and the prophets.
No Man Forbidding Him
The gospel goes forth free at the heart of the empire.
He Thanked God, and Took Courage (Acts 28:1-16)
God preserves Paul from the viper and heals the sick on Malta, and brings him at last to Rome, encouraged by the brethren.
He Shook Off the Beast Into the Fire, and Felt No Harm
"And when they were escaped, then they knew that the island was called Melita. And the barbarous people shewed us no little kindness: for they kindled a fire, and received us every one, because of the present rain, and because of the cold. And when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks, and laid them on the fire, there came a viper out of the heat, and fastened on his hand. And when the barbarians saw the venomous beast hang on his hand, they said among themselves, No doubt this man is a murderer, whom, though he hath escaped the sea, yet vengeance suffereth not to live. And he shook off the beast into the fire, and felt no harm. Howbeit they looked when he should have swollen, or fallen down dead suddenly: but after they had looked a great while, and saw no harm come to him, they changed their minds, and said that he was a god. In the same quarters were possessions of the chief man of the island, whose name was Publius; who received us, and lodged us three days courteously. And it came to pass, that the father of Publius lay sick of a fever and of a bloody flux: to whom Paul entered in, and prayed, and laid his hands on him, and healed him. So when this was done, others also, which had diseases in the island, came, and were healed: Who also honoured us with many honours; and when we departed, they laded us with such things as were necessary. And after three months we departed in a ship of Alexandria, which had wintered in the isle, whose sign was Castor and Pollux. And landing at Syracuse, we tarried there three days. And from thence we fetched a compass, and came to Rhegium: and after one day the south wind blew, and we came the next day to Puteoli: Where we found brethren, and were desired to tarry with them seven days: and so we went toward Rome. And from thence, when the brethren heard of us, they came to meet us as far as Appii forum, and The three taverns: whom when Paul saw, he thanked God, and took courage. And when we came to Rome, the centurion delivered the prisoners to the captain of the guard: but Paul was suffered to dwell by himself with a soldier that kept him."
Word Study
"took courage," Greek tharsos (θάρσος). The word means courage, boldness, confidence. Nearing Rome after all his trials, "when Paul saw" the believers who had come out to meet him, "he thanked God, and took courage." Even the great apostle, tested by shipwreck and long imprisonment, was strengthened by the sight of fellow believers; the fellowship of the saints is a means God uses to renew our courage. Paul, who had encouraged so many, was himself encouraged by the brethren who walked forty miles to greet a prisoner they had never met. This is the sweetness of the body of Christ: we bear one another up, and the presence of God's people is a fresh supply of courage for the weary. The same God who stood by Paul in the prison and the storm now cheered him through the love of the Roman brethren, so that he thanked God and took heart for what lay ahead.
Explanation
On Malta a viper fastens on Paul's hand, and the natives expect him to swell and die -- but he shakes it off unharmed, fulfilling the promise that nothing would by any means hurt God's servant. He heals the chief man's father and many others, and the island honors them. The God who preserved Paul through storm and shipwreck now preserves him through serpent and sickness, confirming the gospel by signs even on a pagan island. After three months they sail on, and at last, escorted by brethren who came to meet him, Paul enters Rome -- "whom when Paul saw, he thanked God, and took courage." The long road, through riot, prison, trial, and sea, reaches the capital of the world.
Gospel Focus
The shipwrecked company lands safely on Malta, where "the barbarous people" (non-Greek-speaking islanders) show them remarkable kindness, kindling a fire against the rain and cold. As Paul, ever willing to serve, gathers sticks for the fire, "there came a viper out of the heat, and fastened on his hand." The islanders, seeing the deadly snake, conclude Paul must be a murderer whom "vengeance suffereth not to live" though he escaped the sea. But Paul simply "shook off the beast into the fire, and felt no harm", a fulfillment of the Lord's promise that His servants would take up serpents without hurt, and a sign of God's protecting hand. When Paul does not swell up or drop dead, the islanders swing to the opposite error and "said that he was a god", the same error the Lystrans made, which Paul had firmly refused. Then God uses the occasion for the gospel's advance. The chief man Publius hospitably lodges them, and his father lies sick "of a fever and of a bloody flux." Paul "entered in, and prayed, and laid his hands on him, and healed him," and then "others also, which had diseases in the island, came, and were healed." Even shipwrecked and bound, Paul is a channel of God's healing power, and the whole island is blessed. After three months they sail on, and at last the journey nears its end. As Paul approaches Rome, believers hear of his coming and travel out to meet him, some as far as Appii Forum, about forty miles. This gesture of love moves the apostle deeply: "when Paul saw them, he thanked God, and took courage." The lonely prisoner, worn by trials, is refreshed by the fellowship of the saints; the sight of his brethren renewed his courage for Rome. And so, at long last, "when we came to Rome", the goal toward which God had been drawing Paul since the Lord said, "so must thou bear witness also at Rome." Though a prisoner, he is granted the liberty to "dwell by himself with a soldier that kept him," a mild custody that would allow him to preach freely. God had kept every promise: through plots, appeals, storm, shipwreck, viper, and voyage, He had brought His servant safely to the capital of the world. The section magnifies the protecting, healing, faithful hand of God, and the sweet encouragement of the fellowship of believers, which cheered even Paul as he came to Rome.
No Man Forbidding Him (Acts 28:17-31)
Paul testifies of Christ to the Jews at Rome, turns to the Gentiles, and preaches the kingdom of God unhindered.
Preaching the Kingdom of God With All Confidence
"And it came to pass, that after three days Paul called the chief of the Jews together: and when they were come together, he said unto them, Men and brethren, though I have committed nothing against the people, or customs of our fathers, yet was I delivered prisoner from Jerusalem into the hands of the Romans. Who, when they had examined me, would have let me go, because there was no cause of death in me. But when the Jews spake against it, I was constrained to appeal unto Caesar; not that I had ought to accuse my nation of. For this cause therefore have I called for you, to see you, and to speak with you: because that for the hope of Israel I am bound with this chain. And they said unto him, We neither received letters out of Judaea concerning thee, neither any of the brethren that came shewed or spake any harm of thee. But we desire to hear of thee what thou thinkest: for as concerning this sect, we know that every where it is spoken against. And when they had appointed him a day, there came many to him into his lodging; to whom he expounded and testified the kingdom of God, persuading them concerning Jesus, both out of the law of Moses, and out of the prophets, from morning till evening. And some believed the things which were spoken, and some believed not. And when they agreed not among themselves, they departed, after that Paul had spoken one word, Well spake the Holy Ghost by Esaias the prophet unto our fathers, Saying, Go unto this people, and say, Hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and not perceive: For the heart of this people is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes have they closed; lest they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them. Be it known therefore unto you, that the salvation of God is sent unto the Gentiles, and that they will hear it. And when he had said these words, the Jews departed, and had great reasoning among themselves. And Paul dwelt two whole years in his own hired house, and received all that came in unto him, Preaching the kingdom of God, and teaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ, with all confidence, no man forbidding him."
Word Study
"no man forbidding him," Greek akolutos (ἀκωλύτως). The word means without hindrance, unhindered, freely; it is the single word that ends the book of Acts, rendered "no man forbidding him." It is a triumphant final note. Paul is a prisoner, chained to a soldier, awaiting trial before Caesar, yet the word of God is not bound: he preaches "the kingdom of God" and teaches "those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ, with all confidence," and no one hinders him. The gospel that began in a Jerusalem upper room has reached Rome, the capital of the world, and goes forth freely from the heart of the empire. Acts ends not with Paul's release or death, but with this one word, "unhindered", for the true hero of the book is not Paul but the unstoppable word of God, which no chain, prison, storm, or opposition can bind. The gospel is free, and it will fill the earth.
Explanation
In Rome Paul, though a prisoner, gathers the Jewish leaders and reasons with them "concerning Jesus, both out of the law of Moses, and out of the prophets, from morning till evening" -- some believe, some do not, and he cites Isaiah's word about hardened hearts, declaring that "the salvation of God is sent unto the Gentiles." Then Luke ends his account not with Paul's death but with the triumph of the word: for two years the apostle preaches "the kingdom of God, and... those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ, with all confidence, no man forbidding him." The book closes deliberately open-ended -- the gospel has reached Rome and cannot be stopped, and the mission it launched runs on to the ends of the earth, and to us.
Gospel Focus
True to his lifelong practice, "to the Jew first," Paul, though a prisoner in Rome, calls the Jewish leaders together within three days. He explains his situation with grace, insisting he has "committed nothing against the people," that the Romans found "no cause of death" in him, and that he appealed to Caesar only out of necessity, "not that I had ought to accuse my nation." He states the true issue plainly: "for the hope of Israel I am bound with this chain", the hope of the Messiah and the resurrection, fulfilled in Jesus. The Roman Jews have received no word against him and wish to hear his views, though they note the sect "every where... is spoken against." So on an appointed day, many come, and Paul gives them a full day's exposition: "he expounded and testified the kingdom of God, persuading them concerning Jesus, both out of the law of Moses, and out of the prophets, from morning till evening." Here again is the Apostolic method: proving from all the Scriptures that Jesus is the Christ. The response is the same as everywhere: "some believed the things which were spoken, and some believed not." The gospel divides; it is a savour of life to some and of death to others. When they disagree and prepare to leave, Paul speaks a solemn final word from Isaiah, the prophecy of hardened hearts, ears dull, eyes closed, "lest they should... be converted, and I should heal them." The judicial blindness Isaiah foretold had fallen on those who persistently refused the light. And Paul draws the great conclusion that runs through all of Acts: "Be it known therefore unto you, that the salvation of God is sent unto the Gentiles, and that they will hear it." Where the gospel is rejected by many in Israel, it goes to the nations, who receive it. Then Luke closes the book with a picture of the unhindered gospel: Paul "dwelt two whole years in his own hired house, and received all that came in unto him, Preaching the kingdom of God, and teaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ, with all confidence, no man forbidding him." The final word of Acts is "unhindered." The book that began with a handful of disciples in Jerusalem ends with the gospel proclaimed freely in Rome, the heart of the empire; the word of God, which "grew and multiplied" through every persecution, could not be stopped. Acts has no formal ending, no account of Paul's release or death, because the story is not finished: the true subject of the book is the unstoppable advance of the gospel, and that advance goes on still. The Lord Jesus is preached with all confidence, and the salvation of God is sent to all nations, and no man can forbid it. The gospel that reached Rome is the gospel that has reached us, and it goes forth yet, unhindered, to the ends of the earth.
Chapter 28 in Review
Acts 28 brings the book to its triumphant close. On Malta God preserves Paul from the viper's bite and heals the sick through him, and after three months the journey resumes. As Paul nears Rome, believers come out to meet him, and "when Paul saw them, he thanked God, and took courage." At Rome, though a prisoner, he testifies to the Jewish leaders, "persuading them concerning Jesus, both out of the law of Moses, and out of the prophets," and when some believe and some do not, he applies Isaiah's word about hardened hearts and declares, "the salvation of God is sent unto the Gentiles, and that they will hear it." The book ends with Paul dwelling two years in his own hired house, "Preaching the kingdom of God, and teaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ, with all confidence, no man forbidding him."
For the Apostolic reader this final chapter gathers up the great themes of Acts. It magnifies the protecting, healing, faithful hand of God, who kept every promise, bringing His servant through plots, appeals, storm, shipwreck, and viper safely to Rome, exactly as the Lord had said. It shows the sweet encouragement of the fellowship of believers, which cheered even the great apostle as he came to the capital. It displays once more the Apostolic method and message, proving from Moses and the prophets that Jesus is the Christ, and the constant result, that the gospel divides, believed by some and rejected by others, with judicial blindness falling on those who persistently refuse the light, and salvation going out to the Gentiles who receive it. And it ends, fittingly, not with the fate of Paul but with the freedom of the word: "no man forbidding him." The true hero of Acts is not any apostle but the unstoppable word of God, which grew and multiplied through every persecution and now goes forth unhindered from the heart of the empire. The book has no tidy ending because the story is not over: the gospel that reached Rome is the gospel that has reached us, and it continues to advance to the ends of the earth. So take courage from the God who keeps His promises and guards His people; be strengthened by the fellowship of the saints; preach Christ from all the Scriptures; and rejoice that the word of the Lord cannot be bound. The kingdom of God is preached, the Lord Jesus is proclaimed with all confidence, the salvation of God is sent to all nations, and no man can forbid it.
- God preserves and heals through His servant even after shipwreck (28:3-9).
- The fellowship of believers renews the courage of the weary (28:15).
- God kept every promise, bringing Paul safely to Rome (28:16).
- Paul proves Jesus is the Christ from Moses and the prophets (28:23).
- The gospel divides; salvation goes to the Gentiles who receive it (28:24-28).
- The word of God cannot be bound: preached "no man forbidding him" (28:31).
Questions for Reflection
- Do you trust the God who keeps His promises through every trial?
- Do you draw courage from, and give courage to, the fellowship of believers?
- Do you receive the gospel that so many hear yet reject, and believe?
- Will you help carry the unhindered word of God to the ends of the earth?
References & Sources
Scripture is quoted from the King James Version (KJV). Supporting passages are listed so every claim can be verified in its own setting. Preservation and signs following: Mark 16:17-18; Luke 10:19; Psalm 91:13. Healing through God's servants: James 5:14-16; Acts 3:6-8; 5:15-16. The encouragement of fellowship: Romans 1:11-12; 1 Thessalonians 3:7; Hebrews 10:24-25. Proving Christ from Moses and the prophets: Luke 24:27, 44; Acts 17:2-3; John 5:39. The prophecy of hardened hearts: Isaiah 6:9-10; Matthew 13:14-15; John 12:39-40. Salvation to the Gentiles: Acts 13:46-47; Romans 11:11; Isaiah 49:6. The unhindered word of God: 2 Timothy 2:9; Philippians 1:12-14; Isaiah 55:11. If anything here does not look right, a verse, a reference, or a wording, please tell us at info@FruitBearers.net. Thank you for helping us keep Bible Learning error free.
- Malta and the journey to Rome: Acts 28:1-16; Mark 16:17-18; Hebrews 10:24-25.
- Paul's witness at Rome and the unhindered gospel: Acts 28:17-31; Isaiah 6:9-10; 2 Timothy 2:9.