“Then said Paul unto him, God shall smite thee, thou whited wall: for sittest thou to judge me after the law, and commandest me to be smitten contrary to the law?”
Then Paul said to him, 'God will strike you, you whitewashed wall! Are you sitting to judge me according to the Law, and in violation of the Law are you commanding that I be struck?' — Paul's retort compares the high priest to a 'whitewashed wall,' an image evoking Jesus' denunciation of the Pharisees (Matthew 23:27-28). The accusation is that the high priest violates the law he claims to uphold; hypocrisy is the sin.
Church Fathers on Acts 23:3
And the high priest Ananias commanded them that stood by him to smite him on the mouth. Then said Paul unto him, God shall smite you, you whited wall: for do you sit to judge me after the law, and commandest me to be smitten contrary to the law? And they that stood by said, Do you revile God's high priest? Then said Paul, I knew not, brethren, that he was the high priest: for it is written, You shall not speak evil of the ruler of your people. Acts 23:3-5 Because I knew not…
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