Nov 23 - Acts 25-26
Acts
1And so, when Festus had arrived in the province, after three days, he ascended to Jerusalem from Caesarea2And the leaders of the priests, and those first among the Jews, went to him against Paul. And they were petitioning him3asking for favor against him, so that he would order him to be led to Jerusalem, where they were maintaining an ambush in order to kill him along the way4But Festus responded that Paul was to be kept in Caesarea, and that he himself would soon go there5"Therefore," he said, "let those among you who are able, descend at the same time, and if there is any guilt in the man, they may accuse him.6Then, having stayed among them no more than eight or ten days, he descended to Caesarea. And on the next day, he sat in the judgment seat, and he ordered Paul to be led in7And when he had been brought, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem stood around him, throwing out many serious accusations, none of which they were able to prove8Paul offered this defense: "Neither against the law of the Jews, nor against the temple, nor against Caesar, have I offended in any matter.9But Festus, wanting to show greater favor to the Jews, responded to Paul by saying: "Are you willing to ascend to Jerusalem and to be judged there about these things before me?10But Paul said: "I stand in Caesar’s tribunal, which is where I ought to be judged. I have done no harm to the Jews, as you well know11For if I have harmed them, or if I have done anything deserving of death, I do not object to dying. But if there is nothing to these things about which they accuse me, no one is able to deliver me to them. I appeal to Caesar.12Then Festus, having spoken with the council, responded: "You have appealed to Caesar, to Caesar you shall go.13And when some days had passed, king Agrippa and Bernice descended to Caesarea, to greet Festus14And since they remained there for many days, Festus spoke to the king about Paul, saying: "A certain man was left behind as a prisoner by Felix15When I was at Jerusalem, the leaders of the priests and the elders of the Jews came to me about him, asking for condemnation against him16I answered them that it is not the custom of the Romans to condemn any man, before he who is being accused has been confronted by his accusers and has received the opportunity to defend himself, so as to clear himself of the charges17Therefore, when they had arrived here, without any delay, on the following day, sitting in the judgment seat, I ordered the man to be brought18But when the accusers had stood up, they did not present any accusation about him from which I would suspect evil19Instead, they brought against him certain disputes about their own superstition and about a certain Jesus, who had died, but whom Paul asserted to be alive20Therefore, being in doubt about this kind of question, I asked him if he was willing go to Jerusalem and to be judged there about these things21But since Paul was appealing to be kept for a decision before Augustus, I ordered him to be kept, until I might send him to Caesar.22Then Agrippa said to Festus: "I myself also want to hear the man." "Tomorrow," he said, "you shall hear him.23And on the next day, when Agrippa and Bernice had arrived with great ostentation and had entered into the auditorium with the tribunes and the principal men of the city, Paul was brought in, at the order of Festus24And Festus said: "King Agrippa, and all who are present together with us, you see this man, about whom all the multitude of the Jews disturbed me at Jerusalem, petitioning and clamoring that he should not be allowed to live any longer25Truly, I have discovered nothing brought forth against him that is worthy of death. But since he himself has appealed to Augustus, it was my judgment to send him26But I have not determined what to write to the emperor about him. Because of this, I have brought him before you all, and especially before you, O king Agrippa, so that, once an inquiry has occurred, I may have something to write27For it seems to me unreasonable to send a prisoner and not to indicate the accusations set against him.
1Yet truly, Agrippa said to Paul, "It is permitted for you to speak for yourself." Then Paul, extending his hand, began to offer his defense2"I consider myself blessed, O king Agrippa, that I am to give my defense today before you, about everything of which I am accused by the Jews3especially since you know everything that pertains to the Jews, both customs and questions. Because of this, I beg you to listen to me patiently4And certainly, all the Jews know about my life from my youth, which had its beginning among my own people in Jerusalem5They knew me well from the beginning, (if they would be willing to offer testimony) for I lived according to the most determined sect of our religion: as a Pharisee6And now, it is in the hope of the Promise which was made by God to our fathers that I stand subject to judgment7It is the Promise that our twelve tribes, worshiping night and day, hope to see. About this hope, O king, I am accused by the Jews8Why should it be judged so unbelievable with you all that God might raise the dead9And certainly, I myself formerly considered that I ought to act in many ways which are contrary to the name of Jesus the Nazarene10This is also how I acted at Jerusalem. And so, I enclosed many holy persons in prison, having received authority from the leaders of the priests. And when they were to be killed, I brought the sentence11And in every synagogue, frequently while punishing them, I compelled them to blaspheme. And being all the more maddened against them, I persecuted them, even to foreign cities12Thereafter, as I was going to Damascus, with authority and permission from the high priest13at midday, O king, I and those who were also with me, saw along the way a light from heaven shining around me with a splendor greater than that of the sun14And when we had all fallen down to the ground, I heard a voice speaking to me in the Hebrew language: ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the goad.15Then I said, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ And the Lord said, ‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting16But rise up and stand on your feet. For I appeared to you for this reason: so that I may establish you as a minister and a witness concerning the things that you have seen, and concerning the things that I will show to you17rescuing you from the people and the nations to which I am now sending you18in order to open their eyes, so that they may be converted from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive the remission of sins and a place among the saints, through the faith that is in me.19From then on, O king Agrippa, I was not unbelieving to the heavenly vision20But I preached, first to those who are at Damascus and at Jerusalem, and then to the entire region of Judea, and to the Gentiles, so that they would repent and convert to God, doing the works that are worthy of repentance21It was for this reason that the Jews, having apprehended me when I was in the temple, attempted to kill me22But having been aided by the help of God, even to this day, I stand witnessing to the small and the great, saying nothing beyond what the Prophets and Moses have said would be in the future23that the Christ would suffer, and that he would be the first from the resurrection of the dead, and that he would bring light to the people and to the nations.24While he was speaking these things and presenting his defense, Festus said with a loud voice: "Paul, you are insane! Too much studying has turned you to insanity.25And Paul said: "I am not insane, most excellent Festus, but rather I am speaking words of truth and sobriety26For the king knows about these things. To him also, I am speaking with constancy. For I think that none of these things are unknown to him. And neither were these things done in a corner27Do you believe the Prophets, O king Agrippa? I know that you believe.28Then Agrippa said to Paul, "To some extent, you persuade me to become a Christian.29And Paul said, "I hope to God that, both to a small extent and to a great extent, not only you, but also all those who hear me this day will become just as I also am, except for these chains.30And the king rose up, and the governor, and Bernice, and those who were sitting with them31And when they had withdrawn, they were speaking among themselves, saying, "This man has done nothing worthy of death, nor of imprisonment.32Then Agrippa said to Festus, "This man could have been released, if he had not appealed to Caesar.