About Jesus    Steve Sweetman

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The Trial Before Felix (ch. 24:1 - 27)

Five days after Paul arrived in Caesarea Annanias and certain elders along with a lawyer named Tertullus came to present their case.  Five days is not a long time for Paul to wait.  It would have taken at least 2 days for these men to travel the 70 miles from Jerusalem down to the coastal city of Caesarea .

We must remember that Paul is not a prisoner at this moment.  He has not even been charged as yet.   This is the reason for the meeting at hand. 

Tertullus opens his remarks by saying flattering things about Governor Felix.  Depending on how Felix thinks of these words would determine his response. Was this indeed flattery or respect for Felix on the behalf of Tertullus?  It could well have been pure flattery. 

The lawyer says, “we have enjoyed a long period of peace under you, and your foresight has brought about reforms in this nation”.  It is hard for me to know whether Tertullus really believed what he was saying.  Of course we should expect many Jews to be in opposition to Felix and the Roman Empire he represented. 

Tertullus goes on to say that “we acknowledge this with profound gratitude”.  This could either get his case on the right foot with Felix or cause problems in the very beginning, depending on how Felix interprets these words.  But what else could this lawyer do.  He had to acknowledge the governor in the best way possible without sounding overly flattering.

I am not sure that Luke records all that Tertullus says.  I am sure there was more words spoken than what we read.  The main charge against Paul was that “he was a troublemaker, stirring up riots among the Jews all over the world”. (ch. 24:5)

The lawyer called Paul “a leader of the Nazarene sect and he even tried to desecrate the Temple ”.  Of course the reference to the “Nazarene sect” is to Jesus of Nazareth. The desecrating of the temple would be in reference to the assumption that Paul brought a Gentile into the Temple during the ceremonial vow discharging of the 4 men.  This  was never proved.

Verse 9 tells us that the rest of the Jews joined in these assertions that were made by Tertullus.

Verse 10 begins Paul’s defense once Felix gave him permission by motioning to him. Paul begins his address by acknowledging that Felix has been a “judge over this nation for many years”.  He uses no flattery as did Tertullus. He only recognizes Felix’s legal position and adds that he is glad to be able to defend himself before the governor. Paul is both respectful and to the point.

The first part of Paul’s defense refers to the charge of causing a riot.  He says that “no more than 12 days ago I went up to Jerusalem to worship.  My accusers did not find me arguing with anyone at the temple, or stirring up a crowd in the synagogue, or anywhere else in the city.  And they cannot prove to you the charge that they are making against me”.  (ch. 24:11 - 12)  Paul denies that he started a riot, and he informs Felix that the Jews have no concrete proof for their charge against him.

Concerning being a “ring leader of the Nazarene sect” Paul says, “I admit that I worship the God of our fathers as a follower of the way, which they call a sect.”  You see here that Paul’s God is indeed the God of the Jews.  His God, and ours too is not a different God.  By adding the point about being a follower of “the way”, Paul is only giving further clarity to the God he worships.  In fact the God that Paul preaches is the God of the Old Testament, but also the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. 

Paul continues by saying that he is in full agreement with the Law and the prophets and that he tries to live his life with a clean conscience before God.  Of course Paul would redefine the meaning of the Law since the cross, something that he does not explain here.  He and his accusers are in agreement concerning the importance of Law as he is suggesting to Felix.  It is the application of the Law where he and the Jews differ. 

Paul also mentions the hope in the resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked, which he says is in agreement with those who accuse him.  Yet Paul knows, and we know it too, that not all his accusers had this same hope as he suggests.  There is a good chance that only those agreeing with the Sadducees on this point came with Annanias.  Remember, the Sadducees did not believe in life after death, but the Pharisees did. 

Still all that Paul has said in the second part of his defense is a religious matter, not a civil matter.  There would be no legal grounds to arrest Paul merely because he was a follower of the way.  Tertullus’s charge here was worthless.

In verse 17 Paul tells Felix just why he was in Jerusalem.  Paul says that the reason why he came was to bring gifts to the poor and to present offerings.  He had not been in Jerusalem for many years prior to this point.

It is interesting to note that it is not until now, in Paul’s address that we know that he had brought the collection of money for the poor saints.  Before this, Luke does not mentioned this fact for some reason, but now it is confirmed by what Paul says.

Concerning the offerings that are mentioned in verse 17, Some don’t interpret these offerings as Temple offerings.  They suggest that the offerings refer to the collection money for the poor saints.  Others feel that these offerings are referring to Temple offerings that Paul would have made while at the Temple with the 4 men with the vows.  Verse 18 confirms this when Paul says that he “was ceremonially clean when they found him in the temple doing this”.  You need to ask, “what is the ‘doing this’ referring”?  It is pretty clear that it refers back to the last verse when he mentions the offerings.  So any kind of offering done within Temple confines has to do with Jewish Law, not giving of money to poor saints.   

Paul says that he was ceremonially clean when these Jews first found him in the Temple.  He also says that he was not with a crowd of people.  We need to ask what Paul means by being “ceremonially clean”.  Paul does not explain the details to Felix concerning the 4 men and the vows they took that Paul was paying for and helping with. In order for Paul to participate in the closing of these 4 men’s vows in the Temple , he would have to go through a ceremonial cleansing process.  So when the Jews found him in the Temple , he had done nothing wrong.  He was not there inappropriately.

Paul mentions to Felix that certain Asian Jews who had caused trouble for Paul in Asia should be there charging him, not the Sanhedrin.  Since they weren’t there, his accusers should clearly state what crime he committed  while before the Sanhedrin, when he was attempting to defend himself.

The only crime that Paul tells Felix that he could have committed was “concerning the resurrection of the dead”, which in fact was no crime at all.  Paul again is stressing the importance of the resurrection, something that irritates immensely his Jewish accusers.  As far as Paul was concerned, that was the real reason why he was standing before Felix that day. (ch. 24:21)

At this point Felix adjourned the gathering until Lysias, the captain of the guard could come and participate.  Until then Paul was under guard, yet had a measure of freedom.  His friends could visit him.  They really could not imprison Paul since they had not yet charged him with anything.

In verse 24 we learn a little more about Felix the governor.  He had a wife who was a Jew.  This is why he was so acquainted with the Jewish religion.  So out of curiosity Felix called Paul to talk to him. Paul was very specific when talking to Felix this time.  You might say that it was off the record.  It was not a legal proceeding. Felix only wanted to hear more of what Paul had to say.  Paul spoke about his faith in the Lord Jesus.  By this, Paul was clear about his belief in the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. He also spoke to Felix about righteousness, self-control, and the judgment to come.  Concerning righteousness I can only guess what Paul would say.  He most likely spoke about God’s righteous demands that could be attained by obeying the Law.  He then would have told Felix that Jesus was the only one who did live up to God’s demands of righteousness, and that He did that for us.  By trusting in the life of Jesus, who lived righteously for us, God views us as righteous, even though we aren’t.  Such understanding brings a measure of self-control to our lives, which leads to the judgment to come.  Since Paul trusted in Jesus, he would have told Felix that he was spared from the judgment to come, but for those who did not trust in Jesus, they would experience the wrath of God.

At this point the Holy Spirit must have been using Paul’s words to convict the heart of Felix.  He was now afraid and asked Paul to leave. 

We see that Luke records another reason why Felix would often call for Paul.  In verse 26 we see that Felix was hoping that Paul would ask him for a bribe.  Felix really saw that Paul had not committed any crime.  If Paul would only offer him some money, then Felix would dismiss all of these proceedings and let Paul go.  It appears that Felix felt the convicting power of the Spirit, yet ignored it. 

In my estimation, Paul is one of the most important men in Christian history, and here, we see him spending a great deal of time in a prison cell, and this doesn't count the years he spent in chains outside of this cell.

It would have been against Roman Law for Felix to accept a bribe, but in many cases with governors that were quite a distance from Rome, this was never enforced, and often the practice.   

Paul was in prison in Caesarea for 2 whole years.  Apparently Lysias, the captain of the guards never did come to Caesarea.  Paul was in limbo for 2 years not knowing what was happening to him.  That is a long time to sit and wait, with the occasional opportunity to share the gospel with Felix, who was hoping for a bribe and not salvation.  Finally Nero, Emperor of Rome recalled Felix and left Paul for the next governor, named Festus.  

It appears that Felix could have set Paul free but since for some reason he wanted to grant a favour to the Jews he left Paul in prison.