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1. Now when Festus was come into the province, after three days he ascended from Cæsarea to Jerusalem.

2. Then the high-priest, and the chief of the Jews, informed him against Paul, and besought favour against him, that they would send for him to Jerusalem, laying wait in the way to kill him.

*

These men, who, on this occasion, intended to put Paul to death, were probably some of the forty whom we read of before, as having laid themselves under an oath, not to eat nor drink until they had slain him; and their design having been communicated to the high-priest and chief persons in the nation, they join in endeavouring to forward their wicked purpose, by requesting that Paul may be brought up to Jerusalem. That persons of such rank should be privy to such a plot, will not be surprising to those who consider the state of Judæa at this time, when the country abounded with assassins, and when the office of high-priest, according to Josephus, was filled by a man of the most abandoned character.

4. But Festus answered, that Paul should be kept at Cæsarea, and that he himself would depart shortly thither.

He had probably heard of the reason of his being first brought to Cæsarea, and suspected that a similar design was again formed.

5. Let them, therefore, said he, which among you are able, go down with me, and accuse this man, if there be any wickedness in him.

6. And when he had tarried among them more than ten days, or, as some copies read, "not more than eight or ten days," he went down unto Cæsarea, and the next day, sitting in the judgment-seat, commanded Paul to be brought.

7. And when he was come, the Jews, which came down from Jerusalem, stood round about, and laid many and grievous complaints against Paul, which they could not prove;

8. While he answered for himself, Neither against the law of the Jews, neither against the temple, nor yet against Cæsar, have I offended any thing at all.

* Some copies read, Пag' instead of Kar' autou. See Griesbach.

+ See Griesbach, who adopts this reading.

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The historian does not inform us what the complaints brought against him were, or what was his defence: probably, because they were both the same as before.

9. But Festus, willing to do the Jews a pleasure, answered Paul and said, Wilt thou go up to Jerusalem, and there be judged of these things before me?

These words are repeated, verse 20, and the last words, "before me," are left out; and they are to be omitted in both places ;* for if he went up to Jerusalem, he was to be tried before the Jewish council.

10. Then said Paul, I stand at Cæsar's judgmentseat, where I ought to be judged; to the Jews have I done no wrong as thou very well knowest," as thou mayest very well know."

Festus might know Paul's innocence from the nature of the charges, and from his defence. To stand at the judgment-seat of the procurator was standing before Cæsar's, from whom he received his commission.

:

11. For if I be an offender, or have committed any thing worthy of death, I refuse not to die but if there be none of these things whereof these accuse me, no man may deliver me unto them. I appeal unto Cæsar.

It is well known, that a Roman citizen, under a criminal charge, might appeal from an inferior court to Cæsar, and that in this case he was to be sent to Rome, and tried by persons holding a commission from the emperor. Of this privilege the apostle availed himself in the present instance, despairing of justice from his countrymen.

12. Then Festus, when he had conferred with the council, not the Sanhedrim, but a number of persons who attended the governor to give advice, answered, Hast thou appealed unto Cæsar? unto Cæsar shalt thou go.

REFLECTIONS.

1. FROM the language of Paul before Felix, we learn that the gospel of Christ is of a moral tendency. No sooner has the apostle satisfied the inquiries of the Roman governor respecting faith in

* The reader is not to conclude from these words that there is any external evidence for the omission in this passage.-Editor.

Christ, by showing the ground of his belief of the Christian religion, than he proceeds to discourse upon justice, and continence, and a judgment to come; asserting that these virtues were enjoined by the gospel of Jesus, no less than by the law of Moses and the light of nature, and that they received additional authority from the prospect of a future judgment, the certainty of which was established beyond all doubt, by the resurrection of Christ from the dead. These, indeed, are not the only moral virtues which it enjoins, and upon which this enlightened preacher insisted; but they are more particularly noticed by the historian, because they were the cause of that alarm which occasioned the interruption of the discourse. There were, doubtless, many others which he proved to have a similar foundation in the Christian doctrine. Christianity, then, does not consist, as some persons seem to suppose, in the belief of certain speculative and abstruse articles of faith, much less in the persuasion that Christ died to make atonement for our personal sins, and to substitute something for our imperfect righteousness. Its first and leading object is to inculcate upon men personal, social, and divine virtues, and to enforce the practice of them by the awful sanction of a future judgment, when every one will be called to give an account of his conduct before an impartial judge, and be rewarded or punished, according as he has observed or neglected these duties. This is the great design of the gospel-a design worthy of being countenanced by God, and calculated to promote the best interests of man. Those who overlook this design are

ignorant of its fundamental principles.

Those who have

2. We see the danger of an evil conscience. rendered this power their enemy, by the commission of any crime, are constantly liable to suffer by its reproaches and alarms; and their happiness is never secure. Although its voice may for a time be drowned in the noise and tumult of society and business, or may be stupified by the intoxicating draught of pleasure, yet there are occasions when it will have an opportuniry to speak; and these opportunities it will not fail to improve. Little was it to be expected that a prisoner, when called upon to speak, should be able to say any thing which should alarm the apprehensions of his judge; yet his language fills him with the most lively fear, not so much, indeed, for himself as for his less criminal associate, whose mind was not hardened beyond the reach of remorse, and whose tranquillity was necessary to his own peace. Felix had reflection enough to know that conscience acknowledged no distinction of rank, that it binds the rich as well as the poor, and that it is equally hostile to all those, whatever their condition may be, by whom its dictates have been violated. He well knew that the authority of example, the violence of passion, and every other plea by which the offender endeavours to excuse his wicked conduct to himself, are of no avail at the bar of conscience, and that nothing can avert the sentence of this inexorable judge, if once called to exercise his authority. He resolves, therefore, to hear no more from this awakening preacher, lest the repose of conscience should be disturbed. Foolish and wicked expedient, which could only serve a present purpose, but could afford no lasting security! Let it ever be remembered that

when the peace of the mind has once been destroyed by the commission of sin, there is but one why in which it can be restored repentance and reformation.

SECTION XLII.

Paul defends himself before Festus, in the presence of Agrippa and Bernice.

ACTS XXV. 13-27.; xxvi. 1—32.

13. AND after certain days, king Agrippa and Bernice came unto Cæsarea, to salute, 66 pay their respects to," Festus, to compliment him on his appointment to the province.

This Agrippa was son of the Herod, king of Judæa, who persecuted the church, and of whose tragical death we had an account in the twelfth chapter of this history. He did not, however, succeed his father; the emperor Claudius thinking him too young, as he was no more than seventeen years of age. Acquiring considerable territories in other quarters afterwards, he assumed the title of king, which is here given him, and by which he is frequently denominated by Josephus. That Luke did not consider him as king of Judæa, is evident from his representing him as paying a visit to Festus.* Bernice was sister to Agrippa and to Drusilla, the wife of Felix, mentioned in the last chapter. The conduct of Bernice was not free from censure, any more than that of her sister. She had been

married to her uncle Herod, and was now suspected of living in incestuous intercourse with her brother. She was at one time in so much favour with the emperor Titus Vespasian, that he would have married her, had he not been prevented by the murmurs of the Romans.†

14. And when they had been there many days, Festus declared Paul's cause unto the king, saying, There is a certain man left in bonds by Felix,

15. About whom, when I was at Jerusalem, the chief priests and elders of the Jews informed me, desiring to have judgment against him :

16. To whom I answered, It is not the manner of the Romans to deliver any man to die, before that he who is accused have the accusers face to face, and + See Pearce and Doddridge

* Lardner, Vol. I. p. 28.

have license to answer for himself concerning the crime laid against him.

How fundamental an article of the Roman law this was, may be inferred from the language of Cicero, the Roman orator, who reckons it one of the highest charges against Verres, a Roman governor, that he had condemned men who were absent, and without a hearing.* From the conduct of the Jews upon this occasion, it appears that what they wanted from Festus was not a trial of Paul, but a sentence of condemnation; pretending that his guilt had been already proved.

17. Therefore, when they were come hither, without any delay, on the morrow I sat on the judgment-seat, and commanded the man to be brought forth;

18. Against whom, when the accusers stood up, they brought none accusation of such things as I supposed,

19. But had certain questions against him of their own superstition, "of their own religion," and of one Jesus, who was dead, who Paul affirmed to be alive.

That Festus, in addressing Agrippa, who was a Jew, and who had come to Cæsarea to pay him a visit of compliment, should call his religion a superstition, is not credible. Besides, we have other examples in which the word is taken in a good sense for religion. It ought, therefore, to be so rendered in this place. From the vehement language of the Jews in accusing Paul, Festus supposed that they charged him with some crime against the state. He was surprised, therefore, to find that they only accused him of some religious errors, and especially of a mistake of so little consequence as that of believing that a man who had been dead was alive.

20. And because I doubted of such manner of questions," because I was doubtful how to inquire hereof" i. e. whether Jesus were alive after his death, I asked him whether he would go to Jerusalem, and there be judged of these matters:

The fact being said to have taken place at Jerusalem, it would be easy to procure information on the subject there.

21. But when Paul had appealed to be reserved unto the hearing of Augustus, I commanded him to be kept till I might send him to Cæsar.

Augustus here means Nero, each of the Roman emperors, from

* Lardner, Vol. I. p. 230.

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