Yes — the crowd turned violent because Paul's mention of the Gentiles challenged Israel's centuries-old conviction that they alone were God's set-apart covenant people.
In Acts 22, the crowd listened to Paul until he quoted the Lord's words, 'Depart: for I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles.' At that single word they cried out that he was not fit to live. Les Feldick explains that Israel had been taught for centuries that they were a separated people, and the thought of Gentiles sharing access to God was anathema to them.
Acts 22:21-22 — This is the exact moment the crowd reacted negatively to Paul's mention of the Gentiles.
Exodus 19:6 — God's call for Israel to be a kingdom of priests shows the separated identity that shaped the crowd's mindset.
Deuteronomy 32:21 — This verse predicts God will provoke Israel with a foolish nation, which Les ties to the Gentiles' response to the Gospel.
In Acts 22, Paul addressed a large Jewish crowd in Jerusalem and rehearsed how the Lord Jesus had commissioned him. The Lord said, 'Depart: for I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles.' Acts 22:22 records the crowd's response: 'And they gave him audience unto this word, and then lifted up their voices, and said, Away with such a fellow from the earth: for it is not fit that he should live.' The Bible makes clear that the flashpoint was the word 'Gentiles.' The Old Testament establishes why Israel viewed themselves as set apart. In Exodus 19:6 God told Israel, 'And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation.' Deuteronomy 14:2 says, 'For thou art an holy people unto the LORD thy God, and the LORD hath chosen thee to be a peculiar people unto himself, above all the nations that are upon the earth.' God also warned in Deuteronomy 32:21 that He would move Israel to jealousy with those who were not a people and provoke them to anger with a foolish nation.
Les Feldick says the Jews' reaction to Paul's Gentile mission was a national phenomenon rooted in Israel's identity. Ever since they became a nation, God had pounded into them that they were a set-apart covenant people. He put a division between Israel and the Egyptians in Egypt, told them they were separated to Him, and said in Exodus 19 they would be a kingdom of priests. That mindset carried into Paul's day, so when Paul started going to the Gentiles, the Jews hated him for it. In Acts 22, the Jewish crowd listened carefully to Paul until he quoted the Lord's command to go to the Gentiles. At that one word the crowd went into an uproar and declared Paul was not fit to live. Les says Israel had been blinded to her true role as God's vehicle to reach the Gentiles. Instead of embracing that calling, they rejected it in unbelief and fought Paul every inch of the way. Even Peter, Les notes, struggled with the old mindset and withdrew from Gentile believers. Meanwhile the Gentiles who heard the Gospel were thrilled by it, which made Jewish opposition even stronger because the Jews saw the nations as infringing upon their God.
Paul, rescued from a mob by Roman authorities, addressed a huge Jewish crowd in Jerusalem and explained his conversion. He quoted the Lord's words, 'Depart: for I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles.' Up to that word the crowd had given him a hearing. At the word 'Gentile' they went into an uproar and shouted, 'Away with such a fellow from the earth: for it is not fit that he should live.' Les says the Roman authorities were the only reason Paul was not torn to pieces.
Israel had been shaped by centuries of being told they were different. God put a division between Israel and the Egyptians, called them a kingdom of priests, and told them they were a separated people. They were also steeped in the covenant with Abraham and the law of Moses, and they understood themselves to be God's chosen covenant people, with the Gentiles having no part in that relationship. Les says the average Jew considered it anathema even to think of a Gentile having the same access to God.
Les teaches that Israel was meant to be God's vehicle to reach the Gentiles, but they rejected that role in unbelief and fought Paul when he preached to the nations. The Old Testament predicted God would provoke Israel with a foolish nation, and that is what happened as the Gentiles embraced the Gospel. Les points to Peter's withdrawal from Gentile believers in Galatians 2 as proof that even Peter had trouble shaking the old separation mindset. The more the Gentiles responded, the more the Jews resisted, becoming the chief opponents of Christianity.
Separation Pounded Into Israel
Les ties Israel's hatred of Paul to centuries of being told they were a set-apart, covenant people, from the division in Egypt to Exodus 19's kingdom of priests.
The Riot at the Word 'Gentile'
Les shows the crowd listened until Paul said 'Gentile,' then shouted that he was not fit to live; Israel had been blinded to their calling to reach the nations.
Almost Two Thousand Years of Separation
Les explains Israel was taught for nearly two thousand years that they were different, and even Peter, in Galatians 2, struggled to accept Gentile believers.
How the Crowd Responded in Acts 22
Les walks through Acts 22:18-21 and points out that the crowd listened to Paul's testimony up to the statement 'I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles' — that was the trigger.
Gentiles in the Same Category Was Anathema
Les says the Jewish mentality was that only Jews had access to God; putting a Gentile on that same level was intolerable to them.
Steeped in Covenant and Law
Les describes the average Jew as steeped in the Abrahamic covenant and Mosaic law, convinced the Gentiles had no part in the relationship.
One Word Caused an Uproar
Les emphasizes the crowd went into an uproar at the single word 'Gentile' and would have torn Paul to pieces without Roman intervention; Paul's claim of no difference was unthinkable.
Gentiles Responded, Jews Opposed
Les observes that the Gentiles embraced the Gospel, while the Jews hated their intrusion and became the chief opponents of Christianity.
Acts 22:21: And he said unto me, Depart: for I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles.
This is the point in Paul's speech where he repeats the Lord's commission to go to the Gentiles — the direct trigger for the crowd's anger.
Acts 22:22: And they gave him audience unto this word, and then lifted up their voices, and said, Away with such a fellow from the earth: for it is not fit that he should live.
This verse records the angry reaction immediately after Paul mentioned the Gentiles.
Exodus 19:6: And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel.
God's statement that Israel would be a kingdom of priests — the separated identity that carried into Paul's day.
Deuteronomy 14:2: For thou art an holy people unto the LORD thy God, and the LORD hath chosen thee to be a peculiar people unto himself, above all the nations that are upon the earth.
God calls Israel a holy and peculiar people above all nations, reinforcing their sense of separation.
Deuteronomy 32:21: They have moved me to jealousy with that which is not God; they have provoked me to anger with their vanities: and I will move them to jealousy with those which are not a people; I will provoke them to anger with a foolish nation.
This verse predicts God will provoke Israel to jealousy through a foolish nation, which Les connects to the Gentiles' response to the Gospel.
According to Acts 22:22, they lifted up their voices and said, 'Away with such a fellow from the earth: for it is not fit that he should live.' Les Feldick says this happened at the single word 'Gentile.'
Israel had been taught for centuries that they were God's separated covenant people and that the Gentiles had no part in that relationship. Les Feldick says the Jewish mindset made even the thought of a Gentile having equal access to God anathema.
Yes. Les Feldick points to Galatians 2, where Peter withdrew from Gentile believers when certain Jewish men came from Jerusalem. Even Peter had trouble shedding the old conviction that Jews alone were God's people.
Watch the Teaching: Why Did Israel Reject God? Romans 10:18-21 Explained