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 Caesar. Then Festus, when he had conferred with the council, answered, Hast thou appealed unto Caesar? unto Caesar shalt thou go. (Acts 25:11–12)

In the previous chapter, we read of how Paul was left in bondage by Felix for the last two years of his rule as Roman governor of Judea. At the beginning of this chapter of Luke’s record, a new governor has been named in Porcius Festus. Just as his predecessor had hoped to do by leaving Paul in prison (Acts 24:27), Festus is looking for any opportunity to win the favor of a Jewish nation who always seemed to despise Roman rule. In this text we learn of a visit that Festus made to Jerusalem (Acts 25:1). Certainly Festus expected that the leaders of the Jews would come to him with a long list of things they would like to have changed, and one of their requests involved a man bound in Caesarea––Paul. The Jews asked that Paul be sent to them so that they could put him to death (vv 2–3), but Festus invited them to first come to Caesarea to accuse him face-to-face (vv 4–5). The Jews wasted no time in coming to accuse Paul (v 7), and Festus offered to send Paul to Jerusalem to please them (v 9) until Paul, knowing that he would not have a fair trial in Judea, exercised his right as a Roman citizen and appealed to Caesar’s court (v 11). It is certainly worth noting that the emperor to whom Paul appealed was Nero (reigned A.D. 54–68), the emperor best known for his tyranny and torture of Christians. This request of Paul’s was made around A.D. 60, about four years before Nero began to unleash his rage against the Christian faith.

Unable to do anything further, Festus must now send Paul to Nero’s court, but, at least at the present, he still has no idea what charges are to be brought against him there. Shortly, however, Festus is visited by a king who is very knowledgeable about the Jewish faith, being partly Jewish himself. The king who visits Festus is Herod Agrippa II, son of Herod Agrippa I (who killed James and arrested Peter, Acts 12:1–3) and great-grandson of Herod the Great (who attempted to kill Jesus as an infant, Matt. 2:16). When Agrippa learns of the situation, he readily agrees to assist Festus by hearing Paul’s defense himself (Acts 25:22). It is certain that Agrippa had at least an acquaintance with Christianity, but the insight Paul would give was probably far more than this king would ever have expected or desired. Next week we will see Paul on trial again before a king who will be faced with some hard facts and an important decision. 

After reading the text listed below, see if you can answer the following questions. 

Non-trivial Questions (Acts 25:1–27)
1. Where was Porcius Festus when he first learned of Paul?
2. How would Festus “do the Jews a pleasure?”
3. To whose court did Paul appeal?
4. What ruler came to visit Festus and requested to hear Paul?
5. What privilege gave Paul the liberty to speak for himself when charges were brought against him?
6. Why did Festus not send Paul to Caesar immediately upon his request?