The Acts of the Apostles 25:1-12

Acts

25:1-12

5. The Gospel Reaches Rome, 21:1-28:31

ix] Paul appeals to Caesar

Synopsis

Porcius Festus has now replaced Felix as procurator. On his first official visit to Jerusalem, he meets with the local Jewish authorities. At this meeting, the Jewish religious authorities press their case against Paul, asking that he be brought to Jerusalem, with a view to assassinating him. Festus obviously intends to be firm with the Jews, but none-the-less, he invites them to come to Caesarea and present their case, one which he will hear immediately. After some ten days in Jerusalem, Festus returns to Caesarea and on the next day he hears Paul's case. The Jewish authorities lay their charges and Paul answers them, but when Festus asks whether Paul is willing to have his case heard in Jerusalem, Paul asked that it be transferred to the Emperor's Tribunal in Rome. After consulting with his legal advisers, Festus agrees to Paul's request.

Teaching

Paul's life evidences God's predetermined purpose that his gospel message extend to all the peoples of the world and their rulers, as well as to the people of Israel (9:15).

Issues

i] Context: See 21:1-16.

ii] Background:

•i The Roman province of Judea and Herod Agrippa II. Originally Judea was an administrative part of Syria Palastinia, but given the difficulties Rome encountered governing the Jews, the administrative area of Judea was made a Roman province in AD 6, covering Judea, Samaria and Idumea. Hasmonean rulers controlled different parts of the province at different times, with the last Hasmonean king, Agrippa II, the grandson of Herod the Great, granted by Claudius in AD 53 to rule the former territory governed by his uncle Philip, and as a Tetrarch, to have administrative oversight of the Temple in Jerusalem. It was rumoured that his relationship with his sister Bernice was incestuous. He supported the Romans in the Jewish rebellion, fleeing Jerusalem in AD 66, and so continued to rule until his death in the late 90s.

•iThe movement of the gospel from Jerusalem to Rome, 1:1-11;

iii] Structure: Paul appeals to Caesar:

Festus visits Jerusalem, v1-5;

Paul appears before Festus, v6-12.

iv] Interpretation:

Around AD 59, Felix is replaced as procurator by Porcius Festus. Festus only held the posting for two years, dying in office. Like Felix, Festus is "compromised as an administrator of Roman justice because of his concern to grant a favour to Paul's accusers", Peterson Gk. In the face of the fickle nature of Roman provincial justice, Paul may feel "the passive pawn of characters and events outside his control", Johnson, but throughout his ordeal "God is the hidden actor who influences all event on the stage of history, as human beings play their part in the drama that unfolds", Peterson Gk.

Luke continues to draw out the story of Paul's confinement under Roman provincial authority, now running into a fourth chapter. As Dunn notes, even if Paul's appeal to Caesar is a high-point in the Lukan story of Acts (it occasions Paul's move to Rome), Luke could have easily included it at the end of Paul's speech in chapter 26, but for some reason or other, he draws out the story. The immediacy of events may be the reason, given the possibility of Luke's presence in Caesarea at this time, so providing an opportune two years to work on his gospel and his Acts of the Apostles. Dunn suggests a literary reason: the dramatic effect of suspense, ie., the manoeuvres of principal players designed to retain a reader's interest.

Gaventa divides chapter 25 into four parts: 1-5, 6-12, 13-22, 23-17. In the first part we witness the unabated desire of Israel's religious authorities to prosecute their case against Paul, now totally complicit in the plan to assassinate him. On the inaugural visit of Porcius Festus to Jerusalem, the Jewish authorities press their case against Paul. Bock suggests that the use of the verb parakalew, "to exhort, urge", being imperfect, possibly suggests an element of pressure on Festus. Festus, in response, maintains his personal authority, but at the same time, he is amenable to their request - Paul will be tried in Caesarea, not Jerusalem, but he will be tried promptly.

In the second part, v6-12, Luke summarises a second trial in Caesarea. The Jewish authorities bring their charges, but provide no witnesses, and Paul answers, claiming that he is innocent of the desecration of the Temple and of civil insurrection. Festus probably recognises that Paul is innocent of any crime under Roman law, and that the issue is religious. This being the case, there is good reason to have the matter heard in Jerusalem, as requested by the Jewish authorities. Paul knows only too well what that would mean, and so he is left with only one procedural option, namely provacatio ad Caesarem, "an appeal of a citizen for Caesar's judgment before a judgment has been rendered", Bock. "Paul declares his innocence and insists on his right as a Roman citizen to be judged as such", Fitzmyer.

v] Homiletics: Confer to Caesar, what is Caesar's, and to God, what is God's

[Map] Like so many of us, I binged watching the Paris Olympics in 24. What a spectacle it was! Along with many others, I also found myself wondering about the rights and wrongs of the Algerian boxer, Imane Khelif, who eventually won gold. Although a biological woman, she has heightened testosterone levels which have to be suppressed by drugs to enable her to legally compete as a woman. Her testosterone levels have enabled her to build muscle mass beyond the reach of a normal woman. All elite athletes are freakish is some way or other, so where do we draw the line?

Biological confusion is the norm today, and given the ideological move from Jesus to Marx (Carl, not Groucho!!), believers increasingly find themselves in an ethically compromised environment. Should we try to influence that environment to the point of alienating ourselves from the mainstream, or are we best to just sit within it and get on with Jesus' instruction to make the gospel known to the ends of the world?

The Roman justice system was built on violent conquest and slavery, and yet neither Jesus, nor Paul, address the issue. Luke, in Acts, affirms Roman justice, and Paul happily uses it to his own ends. The progress of the gospel is what matters; making Christ known is our mission, Ideological considerations should always be a second-tier matter.

Text - 25:1

Paul's appeal to Caesar, v1-12; i] Festus visits Jerusalem, v1-5. The sense of the opening phrase is probably geographical, as NIV, but given the variants, Barrett offers the alternative "Having entered upon his (provincial) office". There is little known about Festus, given that he dies in office after serving only two years.

oun "-" - therefore. Inferential, serving to establish a logical connection.

meta "after" - after [three days]. Temporal use of the preposition serving to introduce a temporal clause.

epibaV (epibainw) aor. part. "arriving" - [festus] having arrived [in the province, he went up into jerusalem from caesarea]. Attendant circumstance participle expressing action accompanying the verb "to go up".

The chief priest (the use of the plural is idiomatic, eg., 5.24) is now Ishmael, appointed by Agrippa II. Ishmael, and Israel's other religious leaders, move quickly to lay their charges against Paul. Clearly, they are intent on ridding themselves of this pesky leader of the Gentile branch of the Way. The silence from the Jerusalem church is deafening.

twn Ioudaiwn (oV) gen. "Jewish [leaders]" - [and the chief priests and the prominent men] of the jews. The genitive is adjectival, partitive.

autw/ dat. pro. "-" - [explained, informed = made representation] to him. Dative of indirect object.

kata + gen. "against [Paul]" - against [paul]. Here expressing opposition, so "against Paul", as NIV.

parekaloun (parakalew) "-" - [and] they were urging, exhorting [him]. Possibly "pleaded", Barclay, or maybe "they tried to pressure [him]", taking the imperfect as voluntative (attempted action), or even "pestered [him]", taking the imperfect as iterative (repeated action). The verb is modified in the next verse with the participial clause "asking a favour of him", and a clause, introduced by oJpwV, "that he might summon him to Jerusalem".

Luke makes sure that the reader understands the reason why Paul is about to appeal to Caesar. Paul's life is in danger, not from a gang of thugs (cf., 23:14-15), but from the religious leaders of Israel.

aitoumenoi (aitew) pres. mid. part. "they requested" - asking [a grace = a gratitude, favour]. Rogers Gk. classifies this participle as supplementary, although whatever it's doing, it's not really serving to complete the thought of the main verb "to urge". Culy and Kellum classify it as attendance circumstance, although by following the main verb, it would function much like a participle of saying, yet here it doesn't introduce the content of their urging. It seems more likely that the participle is adverbial, modifying the verb "to urge", possibly modal, expressing manner, "they urged him, asking a favour ....", or instrumental, expressing means, "they urged him by asking a favour ...."

kat (kata) + gen. "-" - against [him]. Here used to express opposition, "against". A person would normally ask a favour for someone, here it is a "against" someone, and this for them; the "him" being Paul. "Moreover, they pestered Festus, pumping him for a special favour against Paul's interests, that ......"

oJpwV + subj. "to have [Paul] transferred" - that [he might send for him into jerusalem]. This construction probably serves to introduce a final clause expressing purpose, "in order to have Paul sent up to Jerusalem", but it could introduce an object clause / dependent statement of indirect speech expressing what the religious authorities urged Festus to do, namely, summon Paul to Jerusalem.

poiounteV (poiew) pres. part. "for they were preparing" - making = planning [an ambush / plot]. The participle is adverbial, probably causal, as NIV; "because they were hatching a plot".

anelein (anairew) aor. inf. "to kill" - to kill [him]. Culy takes the infinitive as adverbial, expressing the purpose of their planning, "planning an ambush in order to kill him", but it could also be taken as epexegetic, specifying the "plot", so Rogers Gk., "hatching a plot namely to kill him".

kata + acc. "along [the way]" - according to [the way]. Spatial use of the preposition expressing extension of distance; "along the road".

"Festus was too shrewd to accept the Jewish plea at its face value", Neil.

men .... de "-" - [therefore,] on the one hand, [festus answered to be kept in caesarea] but on the other hand. At first glance it looks as if we have another men oun construction, see 1:6, but as Barrett notes, it is more likely that we have a men de construction, an adversative comparative / coordinate construction. The inferential oun independently serves to introduce a logical conclusion. The inference is that Festus reads the improper motives behind the request and so asserts proper process, but at the same time, promises to deal with the matter promptly. "So, Festus replied, 'Caesarea is the proper jurisdiction to handle Paul's case, but I will be back there in a few days.'"

threisqai (threw) pres. mid. inf. "is being held" - [paul] to be kept [into caesarea but himself = he to be about]. This infinitive, along with the infinitive mellein, "to be about", serves to introduce an object clause / dependent statement of indirect speech, expressing what Festus replied; "that Paul is in custody in Caesarea and will stay there, but that he himself is about ....." Often translated as direct speech, as NIV, given that Luke slips into direct speech in v5. The accusative subject of the first infinitive is "Paul", with the second infinitive taking "himself = he" as its accusative subject.

mellein (mellw) pres. inf. "am going there" - to go there. Complementary infinitive, completing the sense of the infinitive "to be about"; "he was intending to go there".

en + dat. "soon" - in [quickness]. Adverbial use of the preposition, which with the noun "quickness", forms the adverb of manner "quickly"; "he intended to go there shortly".

Festus wants to hear if anything is atopon, "out of place", with Paul, ie., anything ranging from unusual to criminal.

oun "-" - therefore [in = among you, he says]. Inferential, establishing a logical connection with v4, while moving from indirect, to direct speech, as indicated by the use of fhsin, "he says".

sugkatabanteV (sunkatabainw) aor. part. "let [some of your leaders] come with me" - [powerful men] having come down with me. Attendant circumstance participle expressing action accompanying the imperative verb "to bring charges against". The subject "powerful men" takes the sense "eminent men", Barrett, ie., the Jewish religious authorities - v2, the "chief priests" and the prwtoi, "first men". Possibly here with a judicial sense - those with the legal authority to prosecute a case. "Let those among you who occupy a leading position come down with me to Caesarea", Cassirer.

ei + ind. "if" - if, as is the case for argument's sake, [certain things are out of place = wrong in the man, then let eminent men come down with me and let them bring charges against him]. Introducing a conditional clause where the proposed condition is assumed to be true, here for argument's sake.

en + dat. "-" - in [the man]. The preposition here is adverbial, reference / respect; "if there is anything wrong about the man", ESV.

autou gen. pro. "him" - him. Genitive of direct object after the kata prefix verb "to bring charges against".

ii] Paul appears before Festus, v6-12. On returning to Caesarea, the next day, as promised, Festus takes his seat on the bhmatoV, the covered rostrum / dais in the town square used by the Roman authorities to make public announcements and judge judicial matters.

diatriyaV (diatribw) aor. part. "after spending" - [but/and] having stayed. Usually taken as an adverbial participle, temporal, introducing a temporal clause.

pleiouV adj. "[eight or tend days]" - [no] more [days of eight or ten]. The adjective serves to limit the noun "days", with "eight" and "ten" treated as if genitives of comparison; "no more days than eight or ten". "After staying with them for a week, or ten days at the most", Cassirer.

en + dat. "with" - with [them]. Used here to express association / accompaniment.

katabaV (katabainw) aor. part. "went down [to Caesarea]" - having come down [into caesarea, on the next day having sat upon the dais, he commanded]. This participle, along with "having sat", expresses attendant action accompanying the verb "to command"; "he went down to Caesarea, and next day he took his seat in court and ordered Paul to be brought before him", REB. The dative th/ epaurion, "in the tomorrow", is adverbial, temporal, "on the next day".

acqhnai (agw) aor. pas. part. "be brought before him" - [paul] to be brought. The infinitive introduces an object clause / dependent statement of indirect speech expressing what Festus commanded. "Paul" serves as the accusative subject of the infinitive.

When the Jewish delegation arrives, they stand around Paul in a threatening manner, bringing many barea, "heavy" = "weighty / serious", charges against him, although without providing the corroborating testimony of witnesses.

paragenomenou (paraginomai) gen. aor. part. "when [Paul] came in" - [but/and he] having appeared. The genitive participle with its genitive subject autou, "he", forms a genitive absolute construction, temporal, as NIV.

katabebhkonteV (katabainw) perf. part. "who had come down" - [the jews] having come down [from jerusalem stood around him]. Although anarthrous, the participle is likely adjectival, attributive, limiting "Jews", as NIV.

kataferonteV (kataferw) pres. part. "they brought [many serious charges] against him" - bringing [many and weighty charges]. The participle is adverbial, modal, expressing the manner in which Paul's accusers stood around him; "they pressed in on him, hurling extreme accusations for which they had no supporting evidence".

apodeixai (apodeiknumi) aor. inf. "[they could not] prove" - [which they were no able] to prove. Complementary infinitive completing the sense of the verb "to be able".

Luke summarises Paul's defence. The first rebuttal relates to Jewish law, probably ritual / cultic law, rather than moral law, an issue not covered by Roman law. The second rebuttal concerns the desecration of the temple, a crime covered by Roman law. The third rebuttal, now in the terms of a crime against Caesar, relates to fomenting a riot / insurrection.

apologoumenou (apologeomai) gen. perf. part. "then [Paul] made his defence" - [paul] having defended himself. The genitive participle and its genitive subject "Paul" forms a genitive absolute construction, temporal. Verses 7 and 8 form one sentence, so this absolute construction is attendant on the absolute construction introducing v7; "When he arrived, the Jews ......., and then Paul replied, 'Neither against Jewish law, nor ......'"

oJti "-" - saying that. If we assume a verb or participle of speech, then oJti introduces an object clause / dependent statement of direct speech expressing what Paul says in his defence, although we may treat it as introducing the object of the participle "defending oneself".

oute .... oute .... oute "nothing [wrong ....], or ... or" - neither .... nor ..... nor ..... Negated coordinate construction.

eiV + acc. "against" - into. Here the preposition expresses disadvantage; "I have not broken the Law of my people", CEV.

twn Ioudaiwn (oV) gen. "Jewish [law]" - [the law] of the jews [nor into = against the temple, nor into = against caesar have i offended, erred a certain thing]. The genitive is adjectival, attributive, as NIV, or possessive; "Neither against the Jewish Law, nor against the temple, nor against Caesar have I committed any wrongdoing". The pronoun ti, "a certain thing", at the end of the sentence, serves as a substantive, accusative of respect after the main verb "to offend"; "have I offended with respect to anything" / "in anything". "I have not committed any offence either against the Jewish Law, or against the temple or against the Emperor", Cassirer.

Festus is ruling a province easily aroused by religious issues, so he treads lightly with Israel's religious authorities by offering a compromise which protects Paul, but accommodates Israel's leaders. Presumably, he intends to deal with the civil matters himself in Jerusalem while allowing the Sanhedrin to deal with the religious matters. This is not spelled out, but given Paul's reaction, he obviously fears that the compromise threatens both his life and the completion of his mission.

qelwn (qelw) pres. part. "wishing" - [but/and festus] wanting. The participle is adverbial, best taken as causal, introducing a participial phrase which explains why Festus "said" these words to Paul; "Because Festus wanted to do the Jews a favour, he answered Paul and said, 'Would you be willing to go up to Jerusalem and be tried there before me on these complaints?'"

katawesqai (katatiqhmi) aor. mid. inf. "to do" - to place = give [a favour]. Complementary infinitive, completing the sense of the participle "wanting".

toiV IoudaioiV (oV) dat. "the Jews" - to the jews. Dative of indirect object / interest, advantage; "for the Jews".

apokriqeiV (apokrinomai) aor. part. "[said]" - having answered. Attendant circumstance participle expressing action accompanying the verb "to say"; "he answered ..... and said".

tw/ Paulw/ (oV) dat. "to Paul" - paul [said]. Dative of direct object after the apo prefix verb "to give an answer to", here serving as a participle.

anabaV (anabainw) aor. part. "to go up" - [do you want] having gone up [into jerusalem to be judged there]. Attendant circumstance participle expressing action accompanying the complementary infinitive "to be judged", both of which complete the verb "to want"; "Are you prepared to go up to Jerusalem and to stand trial there before me"

ep (epi) + gen. "before [me]" - upon [me]. Spatial use of the preposition, so "in my presence (and thus under my authority)", Phillips.

peri + gen. "on [these charges]" - about [these things]. The preposition expresses reference / respect, "with respect to these charges"; "on these charges which are being brought against you", Cassirer.

v10

If, in the future, Paul is forced to a trial before the Sanhedrin, his case would not fall under the delegated authority of Caesar's tribunal, and so would be outside Roman justice. Paul's present hearing does fall under the delegated authority of Caesar's tribunal and as a Roman citizen fearing for his life, Paul wants it to stay that way.

eJstwV (iJsthmi) perf. part. "[I am now] standing" - [but/and paul said, i am] having stood. The perfect participle, with the present verb to-be eimi, forms a perfect periphrastic construction, possibly emphasising durative aspect, "I am standing here right now".

KaisaroV (r roV) gen. "Caesar's [court]" - [upon = before the dais (judgment seat, tribunal)] of caesar. The genitive is adjectival, possessive. identifying the possession of a derivative characteristic, "pertaining to Caesar".

krinesqai (krinw) pres. mid. inf. "[I ought] to be tried" - [where me] to be judged [is necessary]. The infinitive serves as as substantive, subject of the impersonal verb "is necessary", but see plhrwqhnai, 1:16. The pronoun me, "me", serves as the accusative subject of the infinitive.

ouden acc. adj. "any wrong" - [i harmed, wronged jews] no one. Taken as a noun, this adjective may serve as the accusative complement of the object "Jews" standing in a double accusative construction and asserting a fact about the object; "I harmed Jews, not even one of them". Culy suggests it is more likely functioning as an adverb, accusative of manner; "In no way have I harmed Jews".

wJV "as" - as [and = also you know]. Comparative conjunction introducing a clause qualifying the main clause; "I am entirely innocent of any crime against the Jews, a claim which I am sure is obvious to you".

kallion adv. "very well" - well. Comparative adverb, probably used here as a superlative with an elative sense, "you very well know", so Bruce Gk.

v11

Paul's statement that he does not paraitoumai, "excuse = refuse, decline [to die]" if he has done anything wrong, is probably nothing more than a gesture, but then, maybe the Jewish authorities have ramped up their charges against him such that he now faces the death-penalty. Given Paul's statement "no one has the right to hand me over to them (the Jewish authorities)", the weight of the charges may now fall on the claim that Paul has desecrated the temple, a crime punishable by stoning. This crime is easily concocted and the Jewish authorities have the authority to administer the punishment. Given that Festus is inclined to do the Jews a carin, "favour", v9, Paul is forced to appeal to Caesar's tribunal in Rome. Even though Paul's claim to Roman citizenship is not easily proved, and even though a provincial governor is well able to ignore such an appeal, it suits Festus to grant Paul's request, given that it resolves a potential religious flash-point for him. From Luke's perspective, the incident again affirms Roman justice, but more importantly, evidences the divine intent to progress Paul's gospel of grace to the centre of the world, Rome.

men oun ..... de "however ...... but" - and therefore ..... but. For this transitional construction see 17:12.

ei + ind. "if" - if [i do wrong]. Introducing a 1st. class conditional clause where the proposed condition is assumed to be true for argument's sake; "if, as is the case for argument's sake, I am a criminal and am guilty of a capital offence, then I am ready to die".

axion adj. "deserving" - [and have done a certain thing] worthy = guilty. Attributive adjective limiting / modifying the substantive pronoun "a certain thing"; "and have committed any offence for which I deserve to die", Weymouth. Culy opts for a complementary classification, such that the accusative phrase "worthy of death" stands as the accusative complement of the object "a certain thing", standing in a double accusative construction and asserting a fact about the object.

qanatou (oV) gen. "of death" - of death = of a capital offence. The genitive is adjectival, epexegetic, specifying what Paul, for argument's sake, is "guilty" of, namely "a capital offence".

ei ind. "[but] if" - [but/and] if. Introducing a 1st class conditional clause; "but if, as is the case, there is nothing to their charges against me, then no one can surrender me to them".

w|n gen. pro. "-" - [there is nothing] of which [these accuse]. Introducing a headless relative cause limiting / modifying ouden, "nothing". The genitive is unexpected. We are best to follow Kellum who suggests that it is a genitive of reference / respect; "but if there is no truth in (with respect to) the charges brought against me by my accusers, then ......"

mou gen. pro. "me" - me. Genitive of direct object after the kata prefix verb "to make an accusation against".

carisasqai (carizomai) aor. inf. "to hand me over" - [no one is able] to hand over [me]. Complementary infinitive completing the sense of the verb "to be able".

autoiV dat. pro. "to them" - to them. [i call upon caesar]. Dative of indirect object.

v12

Festus confers with his legal advisers before making his decision to grant Paul his appeal to Caesar's tribunal in Rome. The costs for such an appeal must be met by the appellant, and they can be quite substantial - transportation, provisions, legal representation, ....

sullalhsaV (sullalew) aor. part. "had conferred" - [then festus,] having spoken with [with the council answered, you have called on caesar, you will go to caesar]. Attendant circumstance participle expressing action accompanying the verb "to answer, reply"; "Then Festus conferred with his council, and answered, Hast thou appealed to Caesar?" Knox. Most translations take the participle as adverbial, temporal; "So, after conference with the Council, Festus answered, 'You have appealed to Caesar .......'", Berkeley.

Acts Introduction

Exegetical Commentaries

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