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Fest in Jerusalem, complaints of the Jews against the Apostle Paul (1–6). Apostle at the trial of Festus (7–12). Agrippa II (with Bernice) in Caesarea learns from Festus about the case of Paul and expresses a desire to hear it (13–27) Acts 25:1. Festus, having arrived in the region, three days later set off from Caesarea to Jerusalem. Acts 25:2. Then the high priest and the noblest of the Jews came to him with a complaint against Paul and urged him, The “high priest” is Ishmael, the son of Fabi, whom Felix installed in the place of Ananias, whom he had displaced (Acts 23:2; Flav. Archaeol. XX, 8, 8 and 11). “The most noble of the Jews” - οι πρώτοι τῶν Ιουδαίων - the first of the Jews - the most noble, eminent people. This probably means that there were not only members of the Sanhedrin, but also other secular persons who were most noble in their official and social status, which indicates a significant increase in hostility towards Paul, the imaginary enemy of the people's religion. Apparently, these complainants came to the new procurator specifically to congratulate him and introduce him to him, but they were not slow to bring him a complaint against Paul, presenting his case as the case of an entire people, the most important national matter of the current moment, which could not tolerate delay. Acts 25:3. asking him to do the favor of summoning him to Jerusalem; and they plotted to kill him on the road. From what follows it is clear (Acts 25:15) that the Jews directly “demanded” Paul’s condemnation. But Festus wisely rejected their advances (Acts 25:16). Acts 25:4. But Festus replied that Paul was being held in custody in Caesarea and that he himself would soon go there. Acts 25:5. So, he said, those of you who are able, let them come with me, and if there is anything behind this man, let them accuse him. “The mighty among you...” - that is, those who have power, vested with rights or powers on behalf of the Jewish people or the Sanhedrin. Acts 25:6. Having stayed with them no more than eight or ten days, he returned to Caesarea, and the next day, sitting down in the judge’s seat, he ordered Paul to be brought. The way of thinking and actions of the new ruler reveals his decisiveness and justice, combined with an important severity, so appropriate for a Roman government official who had the power to administer justice justly, quickly and mercifully. How pitiful, next to this dignity of a pagan, is the baseness of the Jewish people's government, which humbly begged, under the guise of mercy, for the possibility of treacherously killing a prisoner on the road to justice! Acts 25:7. When he appeared, the Jews who had come from Jerusalem stood around, bringing many grave accusations against Paul, which they could not prove. “They stood around” - perhaps with the aim of intimidating Paul, depriving him of courage and presence of mind. “Many and serious charges...” – which ones exactly? The writer does not speak directly, noting only that these accusations were unsubstantiated and unfounded. From the apostle's answer (Acts 25:8) we can conclude that the accusations were the same as before - at the trial before Felix (Acts 24:5-6). There is, however, something new, or at least more sharply expressed: this is an accusation of some kind of crime “against Caesar.” Apparently, this is a sharper, intensified reproduction of the previous accusation of the apostle that he was a “disturber” (Acts 24:5). It is also possible that the slander that the Thessalonica Jews leveled against Christians (Acts 17, etc.) is repeated here, making it appear that Christians honor “another king Jesus” and, therefore, go “against the commands of Caesar.” Acts 25:8. He said in his justification: I have not committed any crime either against the law of the Jews, or against the church, or against Caesar. The verse represents either the apostle’s truly brief response in his justification, which is decisive in nature, or, perhaps, it conveys only the essence of Paul’s defensive speech. Acts 25:9. Festus, wanting to please the Jews, answered Paul: Do you want to go to Jerusalem, so that I can judge you there? Like Felix, Festus did not find any guilt in Paul, but did not dare, like him, to offend the Jews by freeing an innocent man. Therefore, wanting to do what is pleasing to the Jews, he asks Paul: “Do you want to go to Jerusalem, so that I can judge you on this?” Although with this expression Festus made it clear that he would not leave Paul to the mercy of the Sanhedrin, however, Paul refused such indirect, unreliable protection and preferred that his case be transferred not into the hands of a lower court, but into the hands of the highest court of Caesar, to which he had every right as a Roman citizen. Ask Pavel - “Do you want?” - Fest had to because the transfer of the case from the highest court (court of the procurator - in the name of Caesar) to the lower (local, national court) could only be done at the request of the defendant. On the other hand, without doubting Paul’s decisive refusal to his proposal, Festus still asks Paul “Do you want it?” - all due to the same obsequiousness to the Jews, to whom Festus wanted to show that the refusal to fulfill their request to extradite Paul to them (Acts 25:4) was not made out of displeasure towards them, but depended on the defendant himself, who, according to Roman laws, cannot be transferred from a higher court to a lower one against his will. Festus “did not yet know the Jews and had not experienced honor from them, he answered fairly (Acts 25:4); and when he visited Jerusalem, he also began to please them, and not just pleases, but with servility” (Chrysostom). Acts 25:10. Paul said: I stand before the judgment of Caesar, where I should be judged. I did not offend the Jews in any way, as you well know. Acts 25:11. For if I am wrong and have done something worthy of death, then I do not refuse to die; and if there is nothing of what they accuse me of, then no one can hand me over to them. I demand a Caesarian judgment. Paul's refusal breathes dignity and the consciousness of his complete innocence. “I stand before the court of Caesar,” he answered, and he answered fairly, because the court of the Roman governor was considered the court of the emperor himself. “Where I should be judged” is a hint that if Festus himself did not find guilt in Paul and, so to speak, does not have the right and courage to condemn an ​​innocent, then even more so he does not have the right to hand over this innocent to the deliberate condemnation of a lower court: here only the court of Caesar himself could be impartial and fair. “I have not offended the Jews in any way” is a new basis for refusing to be tried by a Jewish court, the harassment of which is unceremonious lawlessness and does not promise anything but lawlessness. “As you also know well” – ως καί σύ κάλλιον επιγινώσκεις – “as you also know well”, “as you also know better”, i.e. you know better or should know both that I did not offend the Jews and that I did not offend they should not be handed over to them, but conveyed to the highest court of Caesar. This subtly and delicately shows the inappropriateness of the question itself - “Do you want”? You know better (than you pretend) what I should want, both according to Roman laws and from a sense of innocence before the Jews: there is no point in asking about this, the matter is clear in this case there is nothing to be afraid of: he is completely ready to die if he deserves it; guilt, then “no one can betray” (χαρίσασθαι - give) “me to them.” Paul makes such a decisive statement, limiting the freedom of the procurator himself, obviously because Festus, with his revealed obsequiousness to the Jews, instilled strong doubts about his impartiality, making him think that the intrigues of the mortal enemies of the apostle would triumph over this procurator as well. “I demand the judgment of Caesar!” - the apostle concludes, freeing Festus from the fear of arousing the displeasure of the Jews with his liberation and finding the present moment most favorable to fulfilling the will of the Lord, which destined him to testify about Him in Rome (Acts 23:11). Acts 25:12. Then Festus, having talked with the council, answered: you demanded the judgment of Caesar, and you will go to Caesar. “Fest, having talked with the council” of several officials, called councilors, who were usually attached to provincial rulers to participate in the affairs of governing the region. “You demanded the judgment of Caesar, and you will go to Caesar.” There is a note of displeasure in this announcement, understandable after the subtle hints to which the apostle was aroused by the procurator’s actions. Acts 25:13. A few days later, King Agrippa and Bernice arrived in Caesarea to congratulate Festus. "King Agrippa". This was Herod Agrippa II, the last king from the Herod family. He was the son of Herod Agrippa I (mentioned in Acts 12), great-grandson of Herod I, brother of Drusilla, the wife of the former procurator Felix. He was brought up at the court of the Roman emperor Claudius, who, soon after the death of his father, gave him the possession of Chalkis (in Syria), and four years later (about 53 AD) instead of him - the former tetrarchy of Philip and the tetrarchy of Lysanias (see Matthew 2 and Luke 3: 1), with the title of king and the authority to have care and supervision of the temple of Jerusalem (under him and completed, see John 2:20) and elect the high priests of Jerusalem (Flav., Archaeol., XIX, 9, 2; XX, 1, 1 and 3, 7, 1). “Berenice” is the sister of Agrippa, who was first married to her uncle Herod, the ruler of Chalkis, then after his death she lived with the aforementioned brother, as they believed, in an unlawful relationship (Flav., Archaeol. XX, 7, 3), then married the Cilician king Polemon (ibid., 7, 5) and, finally, was in the possession of Vespasian and Titus. “Congratulate Festus...” Fulfilling not just a duty of politeness, but also a direct duty - in view of the vassal relationship to Rome. Acts 25:14. And as they spent many days there, Festus proposed Pavlovo’s case to the king, saying: “There is a man here who was left in chains by Felix, Acts 25:15. against whom, while I was in Jerusalem, the chief priests and elders of the Jews came with a complaint, demanding his condemnation. Festus, apparently, had no urgent need to propose Paul’s case to the Tsar. If he did this, then, according to the writer’s remark, it was because... it was necessary to occupy the “many days” the king spent here with something, especially since this matter was really not indifferent and not uninteresting for the king, and Festus could even hope to hear from the king, after familiarizing himself with this matter, an opinion about it that was more correct and competent than what the ruler himself, who still knew so little of the customs and laws of the Jews, could form (cf. Acts 25:26–27). Acts 25:15–21. Festus gives Agrippa a rather detailed report about the case of Paul, simultaneously exposing his personal truthfulness (without neglecting, however, lies, cf. Acts 25:20), honesty and zeal in the conduct of this case, and the advantages in general of Roman legal proceedings in comparison with the then Jewish ones. Acts 25:16. I answered them that the Romans are not in the habit of handing over any person to death before the accused has his accusers present and is free to defend himself against the accusation. Festus gives Agrippa a rather detailed report about the case of Paul, simultaneously exposing his personal truthfulness (without neglecting, however, lies, cf. verse 20), honesty and zeal in the conduct of this case, and the advantages in general of Roman legal proceedings in comparison with the then Jewish ones. Acts 25:17. When they came here, then, without any delay, the next day I sat down in the judge’s seat and ordered that man to be brought. Acts 25:18. Having surrounded him, the accusers did not present any of the charges that I expected; “None of the accusations that I expected,” judging by the persistence and bitterness of the accusers, especially the accusations of a political nature. The only accusation of this kind was so frivolous and, most importantly, unsubstantiated, like all the others, that the words of the procurator were tantamount to a complete acquittal of the accused. Acts 25:19. but they had some disputes with him about their worship of God and about some Jesus who died, about whom Paul claimed that He was alive. “Disputes... about their worship of God and about some Jesus who died, about whom Paul claimed to be alive.” The expression sounds like indifference to all these truths and a desire to show oneself above these “Jewish superstitions,” as the pagans generally expressed about the frank Jewish religion. Paul's teaching about the resurrection of Christ is conveyed with undisguised mockery: “ζῆν” - about a certain Jesus who died, whom Paul “affirmed to live,” that is, did something that was beyond his strength, such as the eternal and irresistible laws of nature. Acts 25:20. Finding it difficult to resolve this issue, I said: does he want to go to Jerusalem and be judged there in this matter? “Having difficulty in resolving this issue.” This is a lie: Festus asked Paul the following question not out of difficulty in resolving such a clear question, but out of a desire to “do what was pleasing to the Jews” Acts 25:9). This lie is used out of a desire to present oneself before Agrippa in the best light. Acts 25:21. But as Paul demanded that he be left for Augustus’ consideration, I ordered him to be kept in custody until I sent him to Caesar. “For the consideration of Augustus” is the same as “for the judgment of Caesar,” the usual title of which since the time of Octavian was Augustus. Acts 25:22. Agrippa said to Festus: I would like to listen to this man. Tomorrow, he answered, you will hear him. “I wish I could listen too.” It is very likely that Agrippa had heard something before about the apostle and about Christianity (Acts 26:26), and now it is quite natural that he is glad to take advantage of the opportunity to see and hear this greatest confessor and teacher of Christianity. Acts 25:23. The next day, when Agrippa and Bernice came with great pomp and entered the courtroom with the captains and the most noble citizens, Paul was brought in by order of Festus. “With great pomp,” that is, in a royal manner, befitting one’s rank. "With the leaders of thousands". In Caesarea, the residence of the procurator, the ruler of such a troubled region as Palestine was then, there were five cohorts of troops and, therefore, five thousand commanders (Flav. “On the War of Jude.” III, 4, 2). “The most distinguished citizens” - representatives of the city in which the administration of the entire province was concentrated. Thus it was a numerous and brilliant assembly of representatives of the military and civil departments of Caesarea, with the king and his sister and the governor of the province at their head. It was into this brilliant assembly that the apostle was led in chains (Acts 26:29). Acts 25:24. And Festus said: King Agrippa and all the men present with us! you see the one against whom the whole multitude of Jews approached me in Jerusalem and here and shouted that he should no longer live. Acts 25:25. But I found that he had done nothing worthy of death; and since he himself demanded trial from Augustus, I decided to send him to him. Acts 25:26. I don’t have anything true to write about him to the sovereign; Therefore, I brought it before you, and especially before you, King Agrippa, so that, after consideration, I might have something to write. Acts 25:27. For, it seems to me, it is unreasonable to send a prisoner and not show the charges against him. Introducing the prisoner to the meeting, Festus briefly outlines his case and the purpose of a new discussion of this case - “so that I might have something to write” (Acts 25:26). Obviously, poor Paul’s case turned out so well that there was nothing to even write about him: he had to let him go, but he didn’t want to - “for fear of the Jews,” and there was nothing to blame him for. Poor justice! Poor guards of the notorious Roman law! “The whole multitude of Jews” is somewhat exaggerated, cf. Acts 25 and Acts 25:15. It is possible, however, that the persons indicated there were actually accompanied by a more or less significant crowd of people, supporting complaints and accusations against Paul and shouting for his condemnation to death. “I don’t have anything true to write about him.” It is possible that the ruler sincerely found it difficult to clearly and correctly present the essence of the matter, which is quite understandable in him, as a foreigner who had recently arrived in this region and was unfamiliar with its regulations, character and customs - although from the presented accusations of Paul he managed to make a firm conviction that according to Roman laws he was not subject to the death penalty. It was therefore natural for him to want to hear the opinions of those deliberately gathered by him and especially Agrippa, as he was closest to everyone familiar with the local institutions and customs of the country, in order to form a completely correct judgment about this matter, about which he had to write a detailed report to the emperor. You might be interested in: