Acts 25:13-27

(Acts 25:13-27)

 

And after certain days king Agrippa and Bernice came unto Cæsarea to salute Festus. 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: About whom, when I was at Jerusalem, the chief priests and the elders of the Jews informed me, desiring to have judgment against him. To whom I answered, It is not the manner of the Romans to deliver any man to die, before that he which is accused have the accusers face to face, and have licence to answer for himself concerning the crime laid against him. 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. Against whom when the accusers stood up, they brought none accusation of such things as I supposed:  But had certain questions against him of their own superstition, and of one Jesus, which was dead, whom Paul affirmed to be alive. And because I doubted of such manner of questions, I asked him whether he would go to Jerusalem, and there be judged of these matters. 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. Then Agrippa said unto Festus, I would also hear the man myself. To morrow, said he, thou shalt hear him. And on the morrow, when Agrippa was come, and Bernice, with great pomp, and was entered into the place of hearing, with the chief captains, and principal men of the city, at Festus' commandment Paul was brought forth.  And Festus said, King Agrippa, and all men which are here present with us, ye see this man, about whom all the multitude of the Jews have dealt with me, both at Jerusalem, and also here, crying that he ought not to live any longer. But when I found that he had committed nothing worthy of death, and that he himself hath appealed to Augustus, I have determined to send him. Of whom I have no certain thing to write unto my lord. Wherefore I have brought him forth before you, and specially before thee, O king Agrippa, that, after examination had, I might have somewhat to write.  For it seemeth to me unreasonable to send a prisoner, and not withal to signify the crimes laid against him.

 

As soon as he was appointed as the new governor, Betho was faced with a very troublesome case. The new governor of Festus must have been very embarrassed to hear of the charges against Paul by the high priests and elders he met in Jerusalem. The reason for this was that it was difficult to make any decisions, not to mention the duties of the governor, as well as the atmosphere and characteristics of the Judean region. So he told the high priest and the elders that he had to go to Caesarea and that he would have a rejudgment there.

 

As the governor of Festus said, the Jews who came from Jerusalem to Caesarea accused Paul of various serious crimes, but Festus could not prove Paul's crimes. Nevertheless, the reason why Paul could not be released is because Festus was afraid to lose the hearts of the Jewish leaders as soon as he became governor. So it was a situation that neither did this nor did that. At that moment, Paul made an appeal to Caesar, the Roman emperor.

 

It would have been very fortunate for the new governor Festus that Paul appealed to Caesar. This is because it was a task that could pass a difficult problem that was difficult to solve to a higher court. Instead, it was necessary to prepare the material for appeals between the Jews and Paul. Just then, King Agrippa and Bernice, who were familiar with the Jewish religion and culture, came. For Festus, people who can greatly help in his situation have come.

 

King Agrippa was the son of Herod Agrippa I, A.D. He took over and ruled the small kingdom between Lebanon and Antilles, where his uncle ruled in 48. He also had the right to appoint the high priest of Judea and to rule the synagogues, and in 53 he received larger territories, including the territories governed by Philip and Lusania. King Agrippa had a pro-Roman disposition, so whenever a new Roman governor was appointed, he used to pay homage by preventing it like the text. And Bernice, who was present with him, is the eldest daughter of Herod Agrippa I, and his brother and sister visited the governor of Bethdo together.

 

Governor Festus naturally turned to King Agrippa for advice on Paul's case. He would have a desire to deal with the first incident he faced after his appointment, and he would have also wanted to inform King Agrippa and Bernige of his competence. However, the contents of the Jews' accusations against Paul were not sufficient to impose punishment based on Roman law. Also, there was no evidence they present. In addition, he explained to King Agrippa that what the Jews are accusing is about the religion of the Jews and about the death and resurrection of Jesus.

 

In fact, Governor Bethdo would have been very confused. Under the circumstances, he could not ignore or reject the request of the Jews because it had nothing to do with Roman law. As soon as he took office, the post-storm would have been compelling to ignore the opinions of the Jewish leaders in the first case. Still, it was a crack in his honor to let Paul die at the hands of the Jews, who showed no sin under Roman law.

 

Paul would have been well aware that if he had been tried in Jerusalem, he would die. So Paul refused the trial in Jerusalem and went to Rome to ask Caesar to appeal. There was no better way for Paul, who was dreaming of a mission to Rome, to go safely to Rome under the protection of Roman soldiers than to appeal. 『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. 』

 

King Agrippa, who had informed the governor of Festus about the situation so far, wanted to hear Paul's words. Even from the standpoint of King Agrippa, he would have wanted to meet Paul, who is against the Jewish leaders by preaching that Jesus is the Christ in Judaism. He was met at the meeting point the next day.

 

『 Then Agrippa said unto Festus, I would also hear the man myself. To morrow, said he, thou shalt hear him.  And on the morrow, when Agrippa was come, and Bernice, with great pomp, and was entered into the place of hearing, with the chief captains, and principal men of the city, at Festus' commandment Paul was brought forth.  And Festus said, King Agrippa, and all men which are here present with us, ye see this man, about whom all the multitude of the Jews have dealt with me, both at Jerusalem, and also here, crying that he ought not to live any longer.  But when I found that he had committed nothing worthy of death, and that he himself hath appealed to Augustus, I have determined to send him.  Of whom I have no certain thing to write unto my lord. Wherefore I have brought him forth before you, and specially before thee, O king Agrippa, that, after examination had, I might have somewhat to write.  For it seemeth to me unreasonable to send a prisoner, and not withal to signify the crimes laid against him. 』

 

Like Festus' confession, Paul was without sin. Just as Lucia the commander of heaven and Felix, the former governor, did not discover Paul's sin, neither the new governor Beth nor any of Paul's sins could be found. If Paul's innocence was certain, there was no reason for Paul to be imprisoned anymore, but he was not released. The reason is that the Jewish public opinion has deteriorated considerably. This is hiding the providence of God that sends Paul to Rome to preach the Gospel there. Paul was familiar with all these situations.

 

However, even though Paul had already declared himself innocent, the governor of Bethdo, who referred to Paul as a prisoner to the end, could not reveal the truth, and he became a helpless governor who could not make any decisions due to self-contradiction. A justification for winning the hearts of the Jews, a justification for documenting Paul as a sinner, and these reasons are destroying the governor of Bethdo. Governor Bethdo knew the essence of the gospel. He knew well what Paul was preaching. However, he had no choice but to be cold in front of the Gospel because he could not meet Jesus Christ.

 

Eventually, Paul was held in God's hand and was able to travel safely to Rome in God's plan. Even in his old age, Paul did not refuse the bitter cup of faith and did not hesitate to endure the rough road of his mission. It is because, in spontaneous isolation, there was a deep encounter with God.