Bible Studies In The Word of God

The Book of Acts ~ Chapter Twenty~Five
Acts of the Apostles and History of the Early Church

ACTS 25

 

Verse 1. Caesarea was the political headquarters of the Roman Empire in Palestine, but Jerusalem was the chief city of the province from many standpoints. Hence when Festus had been in his own official city three days, he went to Jerusalem to acquaint himself with conditions in that metropolis.

Verse 2. The leading Jews lost no time in approaching Festus with their complaints against Paul.

Verse 3. Desired favor means they asked Festus to grant them the favor of having Paul brought from Caesarea to Jerusalem. The  inspired writer is the one who is telling the purpose of the Jews to lie in wait and kill Paul in the journey.

Verse 4. Festus evidently knew nothing of the murderous intent of the Jews, but supposed they preferred having Paul tried in their own court; it was in keeping with court form to refuse their request under the circumstances.

Verse 5. Festus invited the proper persons to accompany him to Caesarea and press their complaint aginst Paul.  If there be any wickedness indicates he thought the Jews had some serious charge against the defendant.

Verse 6. After spending ten days in Jerusalem, Festus returned to his own jurisdiction at Caesarea. He did not delay the matter at hand, but summoned Paul to be brought before him the next day after arriving from Jerusalem.

Verse 7. The Jews had never appeared at Caesarea while Felix was in ofiice, though they had two years to do so. For some reason they seemed to think they would succeed better with their case before Festus. Many and grievous complaints were doubtless general, and it was not delinitely shown whether Paul was accused as an offender against the secular or the religious laws, or both.  

Verse 8. Whichever they meant, Paul denied having transgressed against either.

Verse 9. For reasons of political policy, Festus changed his attitude toward the request of the Jews. He proposed to try Paul at Jerusalem as they had requested.

Verse 10. In view of the two-fold phase of the complaints made against him, Paul insisted that he should stand trial before Caesar, the secular ruler.

Verse 11. If I . . . committed angthing worthy of death, I refuse not to die. This sentence is against the sentimentalists who oppose capital punishment, and who claim the New Testament does not endorse it. If that penalty is wrong in God’s sight, then it would be impossible for a man to commit anything worthy of death, and Paul would not have admitted such a possibility, which he did by the words “if I have.” Also, if capital punishment is wrong, then Paul would not have given his consent to it, which he did by not refusing to die. But since he denied any guilt whatsoever, and was a Roman citizen entitled to the rights of such a standing, he appealed his case to the highest secular court in the world, whose headquarters were at Rome.

Verse 12. This council was not the  Sanhedrin, but a consultation with the advisers of Festus. After the consultation, Festus, as the “lower court,” granted the appeal.

Verse 13. The full name of this man was Herod Agrippa II, who was a ruler in another part of the Roman Empire, and who came to make a friendly judicial call upon Festus. He was accompanied by his sister Bernice,  with whom he was suspected to be living in the intimacy of husband and wife.

Verses 14, 15. Festus told his royal guest of Paul, and of the circumstances that brought him as a defendant before him.

Verse 16. In this verse Festus states the just procedure of the Roman government in the case of one facing trial for life. The present “recess” in the case was caused by the absence of Paul’s accusers who were supposed to appear soon.

Verses 17, 18. The preliminary hearing showed to Festus that the charges against the defendant were nothing like what was expected to be offered.

Verse 19. In the opinion of Festus, the issue between Paul and the Jews was only a matter of superstition with Paul; that he was affirming the resurrection of a man by the name of Jesus who had died. As far as Festus could see, such a question was not worth all the bother the Jews were making, and hence there certainly must be something more serious that had not been brought out.  

Verse 20. The above opinions are all that Festus stated to Agrippa as his reason for proposing moving the case t-o the Jewish courts in Jerusalem, there to be tried by him. However, verse 9 gives us another motive he had for the proposal.

Verse 21. When Festus granted the appeal of Paul, that took the case out of his hands, and he was waiting to get the “appeal papers” ready to send up to the higher court. Augustus is from a Greek word that was one of the titles of the Roman emperors, not a personal name as in other cases. 

Verse 22. Doubtless it was curiosity mainly that prompted the request of Agrippa, but verses 26, 27 show the real motive of Festus in granting it.

Verse 23. This verse describes the important audience that gathered in the official auditorium to see and hear the speech of Paul.

Verse 24. Festus gave Paul a respectful introduction to his audience.

Verse 25. Agrippa had not been asked to listen as a trial judge, for Paul had already taken his case to another court. The statement of Festus, therefore, in declaring Paul innocent of any capital crime, was not an effort to prejudice Agrippa.

 

Verses 26, 27. My lord means theRoman emperor, whose personal namewas Nero. Here was a strange situa-tion; Festus had agreed to send a prisoner up to the highest secular court in the World, and yet had no charge of any importance on which to send him. He thought that if Paul were allowed to speak, something might be said as a basis for a charge.