New International Reader s Version - NIrV - 1996
Acts 25
1
Three days after Festus arrived, he went up from Caesarea to Jerusalem.
Reference
Parallel theme
Acts 23:34
2
There the chief priests and Jewish leaders came to him and brought their charges against Paul.
Reference
3
They tried to get Festus to have Paul taken to Jerusalem. They asked for this as a favor. They were planning to hide and attack Paul along the way. They wanted to kill him.
4
Festus answered, "Paul is being held at Caesarea. Soon I'll be going there myself.
5
Let some of your leaders come with me. If the man has done anything wrong, they can bring charges against him there."
6
Festus spent eight or ten days in Jerusalem with them. Then he went down to Caesarea. The next day he called the court together. He ordered Paul to be brought to him.
Reference
7
When Paul arrived, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem stood around him. They brought many strong charges against him. But they couldn't prove them.
Reference
8
Then Paul spoke up for himself. He said, "I've done nothing wrong against the law of the Jews or against the temple. I've done nothing wrong against Caesar."
Reference
People
9
But Festus wanted to do the Jews a favor. So he said to Paul, "Are you willing to go up to Jerusalem? Are you willing to go on trial there? Are you willing to face these charges in my court?"
Reference
10
Paul answered, "I'm already standing in Caesar's court. This is where I should go on trial. I haven't done anything wrong to the Jews. You yourself know that very well.
Reference
Parallel theme
2 Corinthians 4:2
11
If I am guilty of anything worthy of death, I'm willing to die. But the charges brought against me by these Jews are not true. No one has the right to hand me over to them. I make my appeal to Caesar!"
Reference
12
Festus talked it over with the members of his court. Then he said, "You have made an appeal to Caesar. To Caesar you will go!"
13
A few days later King Agrippa and Bernice arrived in Caesarea. They came to pay a visit to Festus.
People
14
They were spending many days there. So Festus talked with the king about Paul's case. He said, "There's a man here that Felix left as a prisoner.
Reference
References Paul
Acts 24:27
15
When I went to Jerusalem, the Jewish chief priests and the elders brought charges against the man. They wanted him to be found guilty.
16
"I told them that this is not the way Romans do things. We don't judge people before they have faced those bringing charges against them. They must have a chance to speak up for themselves.
Reference
17
When the Jews came back with me, I didn't waste any time. I called the court together the next day. I ordered the man to be brought in.
Reference
18
Those bringing charges against him got up to speak. But they didn't charge him with any of the crimes I had expected.
19
Instead, they argued with him about their own beliefs. They didn't agree about a dead man named Jesus. Paul claimed Jesus was alive.
Reference
20
"I had no idea how to look into such matters. So I asked Paul if he would be willing to go to Jerusalem. There he could be tried on these charges.
Reference
Judgment
Acts 25:9
21
But Paul made an appeal to have the Emperor decide his case. So I ordered him to be held until I could send him to Caesar."
22
Then Agrippa said to Festus, "I would like to hear this man myself." Festus replied, "Tomorrow you will hear him."
Reference
Parallel theme
Acts 9:15
23
The next day Agrippa and Bernice arrived. They acted like very important people. They entered the courtroom. The most important officers and the leading men of the city came with them. When Festus gave the command, Paul was brought in.
Reference
24
Festus said, "King Agrippa, and all who are here with us, take a good look at this man! Both in Jerusalem and here in Caesarea a large number of Jews have come to me about him. They keep shouting that he shouldn't live any longer.
Reference
25
I have found that he hasn't done anything worthy of death. But he made his appeal to the Emperor. So I decided to send him to Rome.
Reference
26
"I don't have anything certain to write about him to His Majesty. So I have brought him here today. Now all of you will be able to hear him. King Agrippa, it will also be very good for you to hear him. As a result of this hearing, I will have something to write.
Summary of Acts 25
Acts 25 continues Paul's imprisonment in Caesarea as a new Roman governor, Porcius Festus, takes over the case and faces pressure from Jewish leaders who still want Paul condemned.
Shortly after arriving in Judea, Festus travels to Jerusalem, where the chief priests and other Jewish leaders ask him to bring Paul back to Jerusalem because they secretly plan to kill him along the road.
Festus refuses and tells them that Paul's case should be heard in Caesarea, where Roman authority can properly examine the accusations.
When the Jewish leaders later appear before Festus, they make many serious accusations against Paul but are unable to prove them.
Paul strongly defends himself by saying that he has committed no crime against Jewish law, the temple, or Caesar, making it clear that his religious beliefs should not be treated as a political rebellion.
Festus, however, wants to maintain good relations with the Jewish leaders and asks Paul whether he would be willing to go to Jerusalem for another hearing.
Paul recognizes that such a move could place him in danger and insists that he is already standing before the proper Roman court.
He declares that if he has committed a crime deserving death, he is willing to accept the punishment, but because the accusations are not proven, he refuses to be handed over to his enemies.
Paul then makes the important decision to appeal to Caesar, using his rights as a Roman citizen to seek judgment from the highest Roman authority.
Festus discusses the matter with his advisers and agrees that Paul will be sent to Caesar.
Soon afterward, King Agrippa II and Bernice arrive in Caesarea to visit Festus, and Festus takes the opportunity to explain Paul's complicated case to Agrippa.
Festus explains that the Jewish leaders want Paul condemned, but when the case was examined, the accusations turned out to involve mainly religious questions rather than a clear Roman crime.
Festus specifically identifies the central issue as Paul's claim that Jesus, who had died, was alive.
This statement is important because it shows that the heart of the conflict is not really Paul's political behavior but his belief in the resurrection of Jesus.
Festus admits that he does not understand how to judge such religious questions, which is one reason he had considered sending Paul back to Jerusalem.
When Agrippa expresses interest in hearing Paul, Festus agrees.
The following day, Agrippa and Bernice arrive with great ceremony, accompanied by military commanders and important leaders of Caesarea.
Paul is brought before this large gathering, and Festus explains that the Jewish community has demanded Paul's death, yet he himself has found no crime deserving such punishment.
Festus also admits that he has a problem: he has to send Paul to the emperor, but he does not have a clear criminal charge to put in his official report.
For this reason, he hopes that Agrippa's knowledge of Jewish beliefs will help him understand the case and determine what accusations should be written.
The central message of Acts 25 is that God continues to move Paul's mission forward even through political systems, legal delays, and opposition.
Paul's imprisonment may look like a setback, but it actually becomes the means by which he will eventually reach Rome, exactly as Jesus had promised earlier.
The chapter also shows that Paul does not use his Roman citizenship simply to escape trouble; instead, he uses his legal rights to make sure that his case receives a proper hearing.
Historically, Porcius Festus became governor of Judea after Felix, probably around AD 58, and his administration took place during a period when Judea remained politically sensitive and frequently troubled by conflict.
Agrippa II was the last major ruler from the Herodian dynasty mentioned in Acts, and he had significant knowledge of Jewish religious customs, making him a useful person for Festus to consult.
The Roman emperor at this time was Nero, and Paul's appeal to Caesar therefore means that his case is ultimately moving toward the highest level of Roman authority.
Acts 25 also provides an interesting picture of the difference between religious and Roman law.
The Jewish leaders view Paul's teaching about Jesus as extremely serious, but Festus struggles to see how those religious disagreements amount to a crime under Roman law.
Paul's statement about Jesus being alive after His death is therefore presented as the central theological claim behind the entire dispute.
The chapter ends with Paul still a prisoner, but his situation is changing rapidly because his appeal to Caesar has opened the way for him to travel to Rome.
What appears to be a long and frustrating legal process is actually becoming the path through which Paul's witness will reach the center of the Roman Empire.
Shortly after arriving in Judea, Festus travels to Jerusalem, where the chief priests and other Jewish leaders ask him to bring Paul back to Jerusalem because they secretly plan to kill him along the road.
Festus refuses and tells them that Paul's case should be heard in Caesarea, where Roman authority can properly examine the accusations.
When the Jewish leaders later appear before Festus, they make many serious accusations against Paul but are unable to prove them.
Paul strongly defends himself by saying that he has committed no crime against Jewish law, the temple, or Caesar, making it clear that his religious beliefs should not be treated as a political rebellion.
Festus, however, wants to maintain good relations with the Jewish leaders and asks Paul whether he would be willing to go to Jerusalem for another hearing.
Paul recognizes that such a move could place him in danger and insists that he is already standing before the proper Roman court.
He declares that if he has committed a crime deserving death, he is willing to accept the punishment, but because the accusations are not proven, he refuses to be handed over to his enemies.
Paul then makes the important decision to appeal to Caesar, using his rights as a Roman citizen to seek judgment from the highest Roman authority.
Festus discusses the matter with his advisers and agrees that Paul will be sent to Caesar.
Soon afterward, King Agrippa II and Bernice arrive in Caesarea to visit Festus, and Festus takes the opportunity to explain Paul's complicated case to Agrippa.
Festus explains that the Jewish leaders want Paul condemned, but when the case was examined, the accusations turned out to involve mainly religious questions rather than a clear Roman crime.
Festus specifically identifies the central issue as Paul's claim that Jesus, who had died, was alive.
This statement is important because it shows that the heart of the conflict is not really Paul's political behavior but his belief in the resurrection of Jesus.
Festus admits that he does not understand how to judge such religious questions, which is one reason he had considered sending Paul back to Jerusalem.
When Agrippa expresses interest in hearing Paul, Festus agrees.
The following day, Agrippa and Bernice arrive with great ceremony, accompanied by military commanders and important leaders of Caesarea.
Paul is brought before this large gathering, and Festus explains that the Jewish community has demanded Paul's death, yet he himself has found no crime deserving such punishment.
Festus also admits that he has a problem: he has to send Paul to the emperor, but he does not have a clear criminal charge to put in his official report.
For this reason, he hopes that Agrippa's knowledge of Jewish beliefs will help him understand the case and determine what accusations should be written.
The central message of Acts 25 is that God continues to move Paul's mission forward even through political systems, legal delays, and opposition.
Paul's imprisonment may look like a setback, but it actually becomes the means by which he will eventually reach Rome, exactly as Jesus had promised earlier.
The chapter also shows that Paul does not use his Roman citizenship simply to escape trouble; instead, he uses his legal rights to make sure that his case receives a proper hearing.
Historically, Porcius Festus became governor of Judea after Felix, probably around AD 58, and his administration took place during a period when Judea remained politically sensitive and frequently troubled by conflict.
Agrippa II was the last major ruler from the Herodian dynasty mentioned in Acts, and he had significant knowledge of Jewish religious customs, making him a useful person for Festus to consult.
The Roman emperor at this time was Nero, and Paul's appeal to Caesar therefore means that his case is ultimately moving toward the highest level of Roman authority.
Acts 25 also provides an interesting picture of the difference between religious and Roman law.
The Jewish leaders view Paul's teaching about Jesus as extremely serious, but Festus struggles to see how those religious disagreements amount to a crime under Roman law.
Paul's statement about Jesus being alive after His death is therefore presented as the central theological claim behind the entire dispute.
The chapter ends with Paul still a prisoner, but his situation is changing rapidly because his appeal to Caesar has opened the way for him to travel to Rome.
What appears to be a long and frustrating legal process is actually becoming the path through which Paul's witness will reach the center of the Roman Empire.