Acts Chapter 25
Showing all 27 verses for Acts Chapter 25.
The People's Bible is written by people, for the people. Each verse below shows:
"Now when Festus was come into the province, after three days he ascended from Caesarea to Jerusalem. "
"Festus, the new Roman governor, arrived in the province and three days later travelled up from Caesarea to Jerusalem."
New leadership doesn't erase old unfinished business - the same courage and integrity Paul needed under Felix he needs again under Festus. Don't assume a change of circumstance means your character is off the hook; stay ready.
"Then the high priest and the chief of the Jews informed him against Paul, and besought him, "
"The high priest and the leading Jews immediately brought their case against Paul to Festus and pleaded with him."
Watch what happens in you when someone new arrives and you feel a fresh chance to press an old grievance - Jesus asks you to notice that impulse and let it go rather than feed it. Real peace comes from releasing old fights, not restarting them with new allies.
"And desired favour against him, that he would send for him to Jerusalem, laying wait in the way to kill him. "
"They asked Festus for a favour - to have Paul brought to Jerusalem - while secretly planning to ambush and kill him on the road."
Jesus warns that evil rarely announces itself plainly - it often comes dressed as a "reasonable request". Learn to notice when someone's stated ask doesn't match the energy or history behind it, and don't be pressured by politeness into ignoring danger.
"But Festus answered, that Paul should be kept at Caesarea, and that he himself would depart shortly thither. "
"But Festus replied that Paul would stay in Caesarea, and that he himself would be returning there shortly."
You don't always see the danger you were protected from - Jesus wants you to trust that ordinary, unglamorous decisions (following proper process, not rushing) can be exactly how protection arrives. Don't dismiss the value of patience and due process.
"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. "
""So," he said, "let your leading men come down with me, and if this man has done anything wrong, let them make the accusation there.""
Fair process matters, even when handled by people who don't share your faith or values - Jesus doesn't ask you to distrust every system, but to recognise and be grateful for genuine fairness wherever it appears. Justice done properly protects everyone, including you.
"And when he had tarried among them more than ten days, he went down unto Caesarea; and the next day siting on the judgment seat commanded Paul to be brought. "
"After spending more than ten days in Jerusalem, Festus went down to Caesarea, and the next day took his seat on the judgement bench and ordered Paul to be brought in."
Endurance matters as much as any single dramatic moment - Jesus commends the quiet stamina of showing up, again and again, to face the same trial without losing hope or integrity. Long ordeals are still worth enduring well.
"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. "
"When Paul arrived, the Jews who had come from Jerusalem surrounded him, throwing out many serious accusations which they were unable to prove."
Jesus reminds you that being loudly accused doesn't make you guilty, and being surrounded by hostility doesn't mean you're wrong - character is proven over time, not by who shouts loudest in the moment. Stand steady when truth is on your side.
"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. "
"Paul defended himself, saying, "I have done nothing wrong against Jewish law, against the Temple, or against Caesar.""
Integrity means your story doesn't change depending on who's asking or what's convenient - Jesus values a life so consistent that the same simple truth holds up under repeated pressure. Live so that you never need a different account for different audiences.
"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? "
"But Festus, wanting to win favour with the Jewish leaders, asked Paul, "Are you willing to go up to Jerusalem and be tried before me there on these charges?""
Jesus warns against people-pleasing that quietly compromises what's right - watch for the moment you're tempted to bend a good decision just to keep someone happy. Courage sometimes means declining an offer dressed up as reasonable.
"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. "
"Paul replied, "I am standing before Caesar's own court, which is where I ought to be tried. I have done the Jews no wrong, as you very well know.""
Jesus commends knowing your own situation clearly enough to say no to pressure, even from authority - self-respect and wisdom aren't opposed to humility. Standing your ground on truth, calmly and without hostility, is itself a form of faithfulness.
"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. "
""If I have done wrong and deserve to die, I'm not trying to escape death. But if none of their accusations are true, no one has the right to hand me over to them. I appeal to Caesar.""
Jesus shows here that courage isn't the absence of fear about death, but the presence of trust that truth and justice matter more than self-preservation - and also that using legitimate means to protect yourself from injustice is wise, not cowardly. Fearlessness and shrewdness can coexist.
"Then Festus, when he had conferred with the council, answered, Hast thou appealed unto Caesar? unto Caesar shalt thou go. "
"After conferring with his advisory council, Festus declared, "You have appealed to Caesar - to Caesar you will go.""
Jesus works through ordinary bureaucratic decisions as much as through dramatic visions - notice how doors open through unremarkable process, not just dramatic intervention. Trust the path even when it looks procedural rather than miraculous.
"And after certain days king Agrippa and Bernice came unto Caesarea to salute Festus. "
"Some days later, King Agrippa and Bernice arrived in Caesarea to pay a formal visit to Festus."
Jesus often arranges unexpected audiences for the truth to be spoken to - people show up in your life, seemingly by coincidence, who are exactly positioned to hear what needs saying. Stay ready to speak when the door opens, even socially.
"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: "
"During their stay, Festus told the king about Paul's case: "There's a man here whom Felix left in prison.""
Jesus notes that admitting what you don't understand, rather than pretending expertise, is often what opens the way to real answers. Humility about your own limits can lead you exactly where you need to be.
"About whom, when I was at Jerusalem, the chief priests and the elders of the Jews informed me, desiring to have judgment against him. "
""When I was in Jerusalem, the chief priests and elders brought charges against him and asked me to condemn him.""
Jesus notes that persistent, organised opposition to the truth doesn't make the truth wrong - numbers and official standing aren't the same as being right. Don't measure the rightness of your path by how much resistance it draws.
"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. "
""I told them it isn't Roman practice to hand over anyone before he has faced his accusers directly and had a chance to defend himself against the charge.""
Jesus affirms that fair process protects the vulnerable, and that this kind of built-in fairness - giving a person the chance to answer for themselves - is worth valuing and practising in your own dealings with others, even when it's inconvenient. Don't convict people in their absence, in your heart or your speech.
"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. "
""So when they came here, I wasted no time - the very next day I took my seat on the judgement bench and ordered the man to be brought in.""
Jesus notes that how quickly and fairly you act on someone else's need - rather than delaying or dragging things out - reflects genuine care. Prompt, honest handling of other people's situations is itself a form of love.
"Against whom when the accusers stood up, they brought none accusation of such things as I supposed: "
""But when his accusers stood up to speak, they didn't bring any of the charges I expected.""
Jesus points out that sometimes the clearest evidence in your favour comes from people who have no reason to support you - an unbiased observer noticing the accusations don't add up. Truth often becomes visible simply when someone looks closely and honestly.
"But had certain questions against him of their own superstition, and of one Jesus, which was dead, whom Paul affirmed to be alive. "
""Instead they had some disputes with him about their own religion, and about a man named Jesus who had died, whom Paul insists is alive.""
Jesus doesn't need everyone to immediately grasp the significance of the resurrection - even genuine truth can sound baffling to someone outside the frame, and that's alright. Don't be discouraged when your deepest convictions sound strange to someone who hasn't yet encountered them.
"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. "
""Since I wasn't sure how to judge such questions, I asked him if he was willing to go to Jerusalem to be tried there.""
Jesus values honesty about your own limits over false confidence - admitting "I don't know" is often wiser and more trustworthy than pretending certainty you don't have. This kind of humility keeps you from doing harm through overreach.
"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. "
""But Paul appealed to be kept in custody for the emperor's own decision, so I ordered him held until I could send him to Caesar.""
Jesus shows here how using every legitimate avenue available to you can lead to unexpected doors opening - Paul's appeal, made simply to survive an unjust trap, becomes the means by which he reaches Rome to preach, exactly as promised. Faithful action in the moment can serve a much bigger purpose than you realise.
"Then Agrippa said unto Festus, I would also hear the man myself. To morrow, said he, thou shalt hear him. "
"Agrippa said to Festus, "I would like to hear the man myself." "Tomorrow," Festus replied, "you will.""
Jesus notices genuine curiosity and rewards it with real answers - when someone sincerely wants to understand, a door opens for them, as it does here for Agrippa. Approaching big questions with honest curiosity, rather than either hostility or indifference, is itself the beginning of wisdom.
"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. "
"The next day, Agrippa and Bernice arrived with great ceremony and entered the audience hall, accompanied by military commanders and the leading men of the city, and Paul was brought in."
Jesus reminds you that outward status and ceremony mean nothing next to inward truth and courage - the person in chains here has more real freedom and purpose than anyone else in that glittering room. Don't measure worth by appearances of power.
"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. "
"Festus said, "King Agrippa, and everyone here with us, you see this man - the whole Jewish community has petitioned me about him, both in Jerusalem and here, shouting that he shouldn't be allowed to live any longer.""
Jesus points out that popular outrage, however loud, is not the same as justice - crowds crying for someone's death have been wrong before, including at his own trial. Learn to separate the volume of public opinion from the truth of a matter.
"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. "
""But I found that he had done nothing deserving death, and since he has appealed to the emperor himself, I have decided to send him.""
Jesus shows that truth tends to surface again and again, through different witnesses, even when the powerful keep trying to bury it. Trust that persistent honesty and a clear conscience will eventually be recognised, even if it takes time.
"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. "
""But I have nothing definite to write to my lord the emperor about him. So I've brought him before you all, especially before you, King Agrippa, so that after this examination I'll have something to put in writing.""
Jesus notes the irony that an innocent man's fate depends on officials scrambling to invent paperwork that fits - and yet even this awkward, bureaucratic moment becomes the platform for the gospel to be proclaimed to a king. Purpose can emerge from the most unlikely administrative tangles.
"For it seemeth to me unreasonable to send a prisoner, and not withal to signify the crimes laid against him. "
""It seems unreasonable to me to send a prisoner to Rome without specifying the charges against him.""
Jesus shows how even a mundane, procedural problem can become the occasion for something eternally significant - the "reasonable" administrative need for a report becomes the platform for one of the greatest testimonies in the whole book. Nothing is too small a doorway for truth to walk through.