Bible Commentaries

St. Paul before Festus

1f. St. Paul and Festus.

2. The high priest] RV 'the chief priests.'

3. Favour] They desired from the judge partiality, not justice; and probably offered him money.

5. Able] rather, 'influential.'

6. More than, etc.] RV 'not more than eight or ten days.'

9. Provincial governors were generally anxious to be on good terms with their subjects, because, when their term of office was over, the provincials had the right to complain of them to the Emperor. Before me] The proposal was that Paul should be tried by the Sanhedrin, and that Festus should be present to see fair play.

10, 11. The appeal was forced upon him because, (1) trial by the Sanhedrin (even with Festus present as moderator) meant certain condemnation; and (2) there seemed no prospect of release without appeal. Festus was too just to pronounce his condemnation; but he was also too timid to incur the odium of pronouncing him innocent.

10. I stand] RV (correctly) 'I am (now) standing before Cæsar's judgmentseat' (i.e. thy judgment-seat, O Festus); 'where I ought to be judged' (and not before a Jewish court, like the Sanhedrin).

12. The council] i.e. the governo's legal advisers.

13. King Agrippa and Bernice] Agrippa II (Marcus Julius Agrippa) was the son of Agrippa I and Cypros. See art. 'Dynasty of the Herods.' His sister Bernice, with whom at this time he was living on terms of criminal intimacy, was an attractive but dissolute woman. At thirteen she was married to her uncle, Herod, king of Chalcis, to whom she bore two sons. After his death she became wife of Polemo, king of Cilicia, and mistress of Vespasian and Titus. To salute] RV 'and saluted.' On the arrival of the Roman governor, the inferior rulers naturally made haste to show him respect.

19. Superstition] RV 'religion.'

20. Doubted] RV '(was) perplexed how to inquire concerning these things.'

21. Augustus] lit. 'the Augustus.' 'Augustus,' originally a family name, had now become an official title of the Emperor.

23. Chief captains] i.e. tribunes.

26. As Agrippa was expert in all matters of the Jewish law, Festus hoped that he would help him to compose a letter to the Emperor, which would make it clear what the charges against Paul really were.