Acts:24-26
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And after five days Ananias the high priest descended with the elders ,
and with a certain orator named Tertullus ,
who informed the governor against Paul .
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And when he was called forth ,
Tertullus began to accuse him ,
saying ,
Seeing that by thee we enjoy great quietness ,
and that very worthy deeds are done unto this nation by thy providence ,
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We accept it always ,
and in all places ,
most noble Felix ,
with all thankfulness .
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Notwithstanding ,
that I be not further tedious unto thee ,
I pray thee that thou wouldest hear us of thy clemency a few words .
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For we have found this man a pestilent fellow ,
and a mover of sedition among all the Jews throughout the world ,
and a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes :
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Who also hath gone about to profane the temple :
whom we took ,
and would have judged according to our law .
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But the chief captain Lysias came upon us ,
and with great violence took him away out of our hands ,
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Commanding his accusers to come unto thee :
by examining of whom thyself mayest take knowledge of all these things ,
whereof we accuse him .
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And the Jews also assented ,
saying that these things were so .
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Then Paul ,
after that the governor had beckoned unto him to speak ,
answered ,
Forasmuch as I know that thou hast been of many years a judge unto this nation ,
I do the more cheerfully answer for myself :
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Because that thou mayest understand ,
that there are yet but twelve days since I went up to Jerusalem for to worship .
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And they neither found me in the temple disputing with any man ,
neither raising up the people ,
neither in the synagogues ,
nor in the city :
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Neither can they prove the things whereof they now accuse me .
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But this I confess unto thee ,
that after the way which they call heresy ,
so worship I the God of my fathers ,
believing all things which are written in the law and in the prophets :
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And have hope toward God ,
which they themselves also allow ,
that there shall be a resurrection of the dead ,
both of the just and unjust .
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And herein do I exercise myself ,
to have always a conscience void of offence toward God ,
and toward men .
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Now after many years I came to bring alms to my nation ,
and offerings .
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Whereupon certain Jews from Asia found me purified in the temple ,
neither with multitude ,
nor with tumult .
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Who ought to have been here before thee ,
and object ,
if they had ought against me .
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Or else let these same here say ,
if they have found any evil doing in me ,
while I stood before the council ,
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Except it be for this one voice ,
that I cried standing among them ,
Touching the resurrection of the dead I am called in question by you this day .
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And when Felix heard these things ,
having more perfect knowledge of that way ,
he deferred them ,
and said ,
When Lysias the chief captain shall come down ,
I will know the uttermost of your matter .
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And he commanded a centurion to keep Paul ,
and to let him have liberty ,
and that he should forbid none of his acquaintance to minister or come unto him .
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And after certain days ,
when Felix came with his wife Drusilla ,
which was a Jewess ,
he sent for Paul ,
and heard him concerning the faith in Christ .
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And as he reasoned of righteousness ,
temperance ,
and judgment to come ,
Felix trembled ,
and answered ,
Go thy way for this time ;
when I have a convenient season ,
I will call for thee .
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He hoped also that money should have been given him of Paul ,
that he might loose him :
wherefore he sent for him the oftener ,
and communed with him .
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But after two years Porcius Festus came into Felix '
room :
and Felix ,
willing to shew the Jews a pleasure ,
left Paul bound .
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Now when Festus was come into the province ,
after three days he ascended from Caesarea to Jerusalem .
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Then the high priest and the chief of the Jews informed him against Paul ,
and besought him ,
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And desired favour against him ,
that he would send for him to Jerusalem ,
laying wait in the way to kill him .
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But Festus answered ,
that Paul should be kept at Caesarea ,
and that he himself would depart shortly thither .
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Let them therefore ,
said he ,
which among you are able ,
go down with me ,
and accuse this man ,
if there be any wickedness in him .
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And when he had tarried among them more than ten days ,
he went down unto Caesarea ;
and the next day sitting on the judgment seat commanded Paul to be brought .
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And when he was come ,
the Jews which came down from Jerusalem stood round about ,
and laid many and grievous complaints against Paul ,
which they could not prove .
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While he answered for himself ,
Neither against the law of the Jews ,
neither against the temple ,
nor yet against Caesar ,
have I offended any thing at all .
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But Festus ,
willing to do the Jews a pleasure ,
answered Paul ,
and said ,
Wilt thou go up to Jerusalem ,
and there be judged of these things before me ?
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Then said Paul ,
I stand at Caesar '
s judgment seat ,
where I ought to be judged :
to the Jews have I done no wrong ,
as thou very well knowest .
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For 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 .
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Then Festus ,
when he had conferred with the council ,
answered ,
Hast thou appealed unto Caesar ?
unto Caesar shalt thou go .
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And after certain days king Agrippa and Bernice came unto Caesarea to salute Festus .
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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 :
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About whom ,
when I was at Jerusalem ,
the chief priests and the elders of the Jews informed me ,
desiring to have judgment against him .
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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 .
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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 .
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Against whom when the accusers stood up ,
they brought none accusation of such things as I supposed :
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But had certain questions against him of their own superstition ,
and of one Jesus ,
which was dead ,
whom Paul affirmed to be alive .
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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 .
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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 Caesar .
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Then Agrippa said unto Festus ,
I would also hear the man myself .
To morrow ,
said he ,
thou shalt hear him .
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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 .
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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 .
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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 .
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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 .
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For it seemeth to me unreasonable to send a prisoner ,
and not withal to signify the crimes laid against him .
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Then Agrippa said unto Paul ,
Thou art permitted to speak for thyself .
Then Paul stretched forth the hand ,
and answered for himself :
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I think myself happy ,
king Agrippa ,
because I shall answer for myself this day before thee touching all the things whereof I am accused of the Jews :
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Especially because I know thee to be expert in all customs and questions which are among the Jews :
wherefore I beseech thee to hear me patiently .
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My manner of life from my youth ,
which was at the first among mine own nation at Jerusalem ,
know all the Jews ;
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Which knew me from the beginning ,
if they would testify ,
that after the most straitest sect of our religion I lived a Pharisee .
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And now I stand and am judged for the hope of the promise made of God unto our fathers :
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Unto which promise our twelve tribes ,
instantly serving God day and night ,
hope to come .
For which hope '
s sake ,
king Agrippa ,
I am accused of the Jews .
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Why should it be thought a thing incredible with you ,
that God should raise the dead ?
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I verily thought with myself ,
that I ought to do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth .
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Which thing I also did in Jerusalem :
and many of the saints did I shut up in prison ,
having received authority from the chief priests ;
and when they were put to death ,
I gave my voice against them .
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And I punished them oft in every synagogue ,
and compelled them to blaspheme ;
and being exceedingly mad against them ,
I persecuted them even unto strange cities .
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Whereupon as I went to Damascus with authority and commission from the chief priests ,
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At midday ,
O king ,
I saw in the way a light from heaven ,
above the brightness of the sun ,
shining round about me and them which journeyed with me .
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And when we were all fallen to the earth ,
I heard a voice speaking unto me ,
and saying in the Hebrew tongue ,
Saul ,
Saul ,
why persecutest thou me ?
it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks .
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And I said ,
Who art thou ,
Lord ?
And he said ,
I am Jesus whom thou persecutest .
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But rise ,
and stand upon thy feet :
for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose ,
to make thee a minister and a witness both of these things which thou hast seen ,
and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee ;
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Delivering thee from the people ,
and from the Gentiles ,
unto whom now I send thee ,
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To open their eyes ,
and to turn them from darkness to light ,
and from the power of Satan unto God ,
that they may receive forgiveness of sins ,
and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me .
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Whereupon ,
O king Agrippa ,
I was not disobedient unto the heavenly vision :
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But shewed first unto them of Damascus ,
and at Jerusalem ,
and throughout all the coasts of Judaea ,
and then to the Gentiles ,
that they should repent and turn to God ,
and do works meet for repentance .
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For these causes the Jews caught me in the temple ,
and went about to kill me .
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Having therefore obtained help of God ,
I continue unto this day ,
witnessing both to small and great ,
saying none other things than those which the prophets and Moses did say should come :
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That Christ should suffer ,
and that he should be the first that should rise from the dead ,
and should shew light unto the people ,
and to the Gentiles .
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And as he thus spake for himself ,
Festus said with a loud voice ,
Paul ,
thou art beside thyself ;
much learning doth make thee mad .
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But he said ,
I am not mad ,
most noble Festus ;
but speak forth the words of truth and soberness .
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For the king knoweth of these things ,
before whom also I speak freely :
for I am persuaded that none of these things are hidden from him ;
for this thing was not done in a corner .
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King Agrippa ,
believest thou the prophets ?
I know that thou believest .
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Then Agrippa said unto Paul ,
Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian .
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And Paul said ,
I would to God ,
that not only thou ,
but also all that hear me this day ,
were both almost ,
and altogether such as I am ,
except these bonds .
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And when he had thus spoken ,
the king rose up ,
and the governor ,
and Bernice ,
and they that sat with them :
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And when they were gone aside ,
they talked between themselves ,
saying ,
This man doeth nothing worthy of death or of bonds .
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Then said Agrippa unto Festus ,
This man might have been set at liberty ,
if he had not appealed unto Caesar .
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And when it was determined that we should sail into Italy ,
they delivered Paul and certain other prisoners unto one named Julius ,
a centurion of Augustus '
band .
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