7保罗知道有难处等著他，他在他的灵里领悟这个。地中海一带遍处的犹太人都设谋要抓他。不但是耶路撒冷的犹太人，还有亚西亚、马其顿、亚该亚的犹太人也定意要捉拿他。他们可能联手合作，有共同的计谋。最终，保罗末次去耶路撒冷时，被一些从小亚细亚到耶路撒冷的犹太人捉住了。保罗知道犹太人的计谋，说真的，他无处可去。如果他去小亚细亚，犹太人在那里。如果他去马其顿和亚该亚，犹太人在那里。如果他回犹太地，那里的犹太人更多。那样，他怎能不受捆绑？他要去那里？我们需要了解保罗的处境。保罗激起犹太人的反对不是因为作错甚么事。他们的反对乃是因他忠于神新约的经纶，因他不违背属天的异象。只因保罗忠于从主新领受关于神新约经纶的异象，他不论到那里都遭受反对。雅各和彼得都没有面临保罗所面临的反对。雅各妥协，彼得有点软弱。实际上，彼得的职事既开始在保罗以前，他应当先激起犹太人的反对。然而，彼得的情形不是那样。彼得无疑的是遭受了苦难，但他的受苦是来自外人，而保罗的受苦不仅来自外人，也来自自己人。
7Paul knew that trouble was waiting for him. He realized this in his spirit. The Jews throughout the area around the Mediterranean Sea were plotting to seize him. Not only those in Jerusalem but also those in Asia and in Macedonia and Achaia were determined to apprehend him. It may have been that they all were working together and had a joint plot. Eventually, in his last visit to Jerusalem, Paul was caught by some Jews who had come to Jerusalem from Asia Minor. Aware of the plot of the Jews, Paul, in a very real sense, had nowhere to go. If he went to Asia Minor, the Jews were there. If he went to Macedonia and Achaia, the Jews were there. If he went back to Judea, the Jews were there all the more. How, then, could he not be bound? Where was he to go? We need to understand Paul’s situation. It was not by doing something wrong that Paul stirred up the opposition of the Jews. Rather, their opposition was stirred up by his being faithful to God’s New Testament economy; it was provoked by his obedience to the heavenly vision. Simply because Paul was faithful to the vision he had received from the Lord concerning God’s New Testament economy, there was opposition to him wherever he went. Neither James nor Peter faced the kind of opposition Paul did. James was compromising, and Peter was somewhat weak. Actually, since Peter’s ministry began before Paul’s, he should have stirred up the opposition of the Jews. However, that was not the case with Peter. No doubt, Peter suffered. But his suffering came from the outsiders, whereas Paul’s suffering came from insiders as well as outsiders.