The Jews saw an opportunity of ambushing Paul if they could persuade the new governor Festus to send him back to Jerusalem. Festus did not fall in with their scheme and insisted that Paul have his say. When the trial came, the Jews could not prove their case whereas Paul insisted that he had not broken any laws. Nevertheless, Festus was willing to have the trial in Jerusalem, so Paul indicated that he would exercise his right as a Roman citizen to be tried before Caesar, a privilege which could not easily be denied him.
Sometime later, Festus had a visit from another important couple, Agrippa and his sister Bernice. Agrippa was the great-grandson of Herod the Great, who had tried to kill Jesus when he was an infant. Among Agrippa’s responsibilities from the Roman emperor was care of the Jewish temple in Jerusalem and he also decided who would be the high priest. Therefore, it was not surprising that Festus asked for Agrippa’s help in the dilemma concerning Paul. After hearing what Festus had to say, Agrippa said he would like to hear Paul. So Paul was summoned once again to speak before an important audience.
Luke paints a graphic contrast between the pompous arrival of the dignitaries and the humble and solitary entrance of Paul. Of course, Paul was not alone, because Jesus was with him. Festus explained his dilemma: he did not believe Paul was guilty of any crimes that deserved death. Yet, since Paul had appealed to Caesar, Festus needed to have some information to put in an accompanying letter to explain why Paul had appealed.
After being invited to speak by Agrippa, Paul explained his situation. He spoke politely, recognising Agrippa’s authority. His account of his life is like the previous ones recorded already by Luke in this book. He admitted his initial and brutal hostility to the Christian movement before he had personally met the risen Jesus and received a commission from him to take the gospel to the world. This commission Paul had obeyed.
Festus, while acknowledging that Paul was very learned, assumed he was losing his reason. Paul responded by challenging Agrippa as to whether he recognised that Paul had spoken according to the teaching of the Old Testament prophets. Agrippa did not deny that he believed the prophets, but he was not convinced from Paul’s few words that Jesus was the Messiah. Yet Agrippa expressed no interest in hearing more about Paul’s message.
It is intriguing how Luke knew what Festus, Agrippa, Bernice and the other officials said in private. One of them must have informed Luke in some way. Maybe that person and others had been convinced by Paul’s speech about Jesus. The opinion of the dignitaries was that Paul had done nothing worthy of punishment, and he could have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar. Of course, Paul’s appeal was a handy escape for them because there probably would have been riots among the Jews if Paul had been freed.
What lessons can we see in this incident? One is that the enemies of the gospel, represented here by the Jews, can persist in their hostility. Another is that the best sermons, such as the address here by Paul, are powerless in themselves to change a person’s heart. A third lesson is that the providence of Jesus works in the confusion and dilemmas of men. It was his will that Paul go to Rome and the most powerful of leaders were unable to prevent that happening.
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