Bible Study Lesson for Acts 24: Paul Stands Trial Before Roman Governor Felix

This chapter describes Paul's trial before Felix. { Put symbol for Felix up on flannel board}

Read Acts 24:1. 5 days would just about cover the time it would take for messengers from Caesarea to reach Jerusalem, for the Sanhedrin to appoint representatives (chose the elders), then head back. Ananias, the high priest, himself chooses to make the 60 mile journey to supervise the trial, so clearly the Jews aren't taking any chances. The name Tertullus suggests that the lawyer may have been Roman or more likely a Hellenistic Jew familiar with the procedures of the Roman court.

Read Acts 24:2-4. Yup, this guy is an accomplished lawyer! You can see right away how he starts his speech by "buttering up" the judge. In regards to the "long period of peace" that the lawyer is talking about, he is referring to how in his six years in office Felix had eliminated bands of robbers, thwarted organized assassins and crushed a movement led by an Egyptian. One of my Bible Dictionaries gives us a little more information. { Read "The Westminster Dictionary of the Bible", pg. 182 }

Read Acts 24:5. Here we have the basis of the lawyer's case. Just like with the other of Paul's accusers, Tertullus tailors it to meet his audience, in this case a Roman governor. To excite dissension (that is, to instigate riots) in the empire was considered treason against Caesar. By calling Christianity "the Nazarene sect" the lawyer is claiming that Paul is a leader of a religious sect that did not have official Roman approval, which was also against Roman law.

Read Acts 24:6. The lawyer tacks this last charge on almost as an after thought; it is extremely important to the Jews that Paul may or may not have attempted to desecrate the temple, but that wouldn't have matter all that much to Felix. The lawyer presents the two charges that would have most caught the attention of the Roman governor, but adds the information about the temple as a way to help explain the Jews extreme reaction - ie. the possible attempt on Paul's life. You'll note that the lawyer has downgraded the charge against Paul regarding the temple. Look at what Paul was originally charged with. Read Acts 21:28. Now, before Felix, realizing he could not prove that Paul actually did bring a Gentile into the sacred temple grounds, Tertullus changes this to "tried to desecrate", which is much harder to disprove.

Your Bibles may or may not have verse 7 included here. { Read NIV text note at bottom of Study Bible. } I don't see how having this information included or excluded changes the meaning of this passage in any way; this was information already presented in earlier chapters.

Read Acts 24:8-9. Self-explanatory. The trial continues... Now it is Paul's chance to respond to these accusations.

Read Acts 24:10. Paul's introductory speech clearly lacks the flattery of the lawyer's! Notice that he sticks just to the facts about Felix's position "I know that for a number of years you have been a judge over this nation."

Read Acts 24:11-13. Paul responds to each accusation brought against him with logic and facts. He was not a troublemaker, and he had not been involved in disturbances. He had but recently arrived in Jerusalem. He had spent five days in Caesarea and nearly seven in Jerusalem. Paul is aggressive and to the point: "they cannot prove to you the charges they are now making against me". The only way the lawyer could win his case, legally, was if he could provide witnesses willing to testify that Paul did stir up a crowd intentionally. The truth, of course, was that some Jews from Asia were the ones who did the agitating! Read Acts 21:27. They are the ones who should be standing before Felix being accused of starting riots, not Paul!

Read Acts 24:14-15. Paul answers the next accusation, that he is a leader of a religion which does not have official Roman approval. Now Judaism did have official Roman approval so Paul's response is that he worships that same God as his Jewish accusers and therefore he is not breaking any Roman laws in that area. He honors the same religious texts as they do, the Law and the Prophets. He even goes so far as to say that he shares the Pharisees' belief in the resurrection of the dead and that there will be judgment between the righteous and the wicked. For a Roman such as Felix, I doubt it would have been easy to discern the religious differences between Paul and his Pharisee accusers!

Read Acts 24:16. Paul consistently claims that his conscience is clear before God and that he has not done anything to be ashamed of.

Read Acts 24:17. Paul is talking about the collection of monies that he helped organize from the churches in Macedonia and Asia; this money was given to the Jerusalem church to help out those who were suffering from the famine and persecution in Judea. The "offerings" that Paul mentions may have been personal offerings or he may have been referring to how he helped sponsor some of the Jewish believers so that they could fulfill their vows. Read Acts 21:22-24. In any case, Paul makes it clear that his reasons for coming to Jerusalem were benevolent, not evil or designed to cause dissension and trouble.

Read Acts 24:18. Paul points out another important point against his Jewish accusers: he was "ceremonially clean", that is he had just been purified according to the temple ritual when all this upheaval happened. Read Acts 21:26. Also he points out that there wasn't a crowd, nor did he instigate any disturbance on his own.

Read Acts 24:19. Paul points out an obvious weakness in his accusers' strategy: the Jews from Asia that had started all this were not present at this trial. This seems to indicate that they could not substantiate their claims. Definitely a point in Paul's favor.

Read Acts 24:20-21. Paul isn't going to let Ananias or the other Sanhedrin/elders present off easy either: he confronts them and asks them to state what crime he was guilty of when he was on trial before them. Yet again he brings up the point of contention between the Pharisees and the Sadducees: their disagreement about the resurrection of the dead. As that particular argument had been going on for probably years, if not decades, having Paul imprisoned for bringing up that subject in court would look very silly and down right hypocritical. Some of the men present had probably done something similar in the past.

Interestingly there is no indication that Tertullus or the Jews gives any sort of rebuttal to Paul's statements. This is pretty much the sum total of Paul's trial before Felix.

Read Acts 24:22. Felix had been governor of Judea and Samaria for the past six years. He would have to have been a very ineffectual governor indeed to not have heard about the Christians' activities by now and known about the "Way."

Read Acts 24:23. Remember as a Roman citizen, Paul could expect a certain amount of lenience in his treatment. As he had not been found guilty of any crime, at present, he was probably kept under house arrest with one or two guards assigned to make sure he didn't try to run away. It sounds like his friends were allowed to come and go to visit him and take care of his material needs.

Read Acts 24:24. What do we know about Drusilla? { Read caption from "The Westminster Dictionary of the Bible", pg. 143; Show some photos from Pompeii } My interactive commentary says she was 15 years old when she married Azizus and 16 when Felix seduced her and lead her away from her first husband. She was Felix's third wife. How did Felix respond to the gospel message?

Read Acts 24:25. I think that Paul, through the power of the Holy Spirit, knew exactly what Felix needed to hear. Clearly the man felt convicted. Remember he is sitting next to his third wife, which he seduced away from her first husband! As we've said earlier, he was also know for his cruelty and (as we'll read in the next verse) was a corrupt judge, willing to take bribes. I am positive that this was a divine appointment for Felix and his wife; God loved them so much that he brought Paul into their presence to preach the gospel. Because of their positions they probably were not likely to hear the gospel otherwise. But Felix, though he is greatly troubled and afraid of what he hears, does not repent. This reminds me of what God told Ananias about Paul, many years earlier. Read Acts 9:15. Felix is a Roman governor, not a king, but in many ways he has the same power as a king.

Read Acts 24:26. My interactive commentary did a good job of expanding on this verse: "Felix supposed that Paul had access to considerable funds. He had heard of his bringing an offering to the Jewish Christians in Palestine. So he wanted Paul to give him money in order to secure his release. Paul no longer had the money, nor would he offer a bribe if he had it."

Read Acts 24:27. Felix leaves Paul in prison in Caesarea for two years! You have to wonder at the man - you would think that after a few months he would figure it out that he isn't going to get any bribe out of Paul. But as the verse goes on to explain, the real reason Felix keeps Paul in prison is because he wants to stay in good favor with the Jews. It has nothing to do, in the long run, with true justice or even greed, it is all a power play. My commentary provides even more specifics about why Felix would want to keep the Jews happy. "Felix was recalled to Rome in A.D. 59/60 to answer for disturbances and irregularities in his rule, such as his handling of riots between Jewish and Syrian inhabitants. Felix did not want to incite more anger among the Jews, whom he would be facing in Roman court shortly. To release Paul from prison would do just that."

Now what about this new governor, Porcius Festus? I wasn't able to find much about him, so I'll just quote what is provided by my interactive commentary: "Festus is not mentioned in existing historical records before his arrival in Palestine. He died in office after two years, but his record for that time shows wisdom and honesty superior to both his predecessor, Felix, and his successor, Albinus." So, it sounds like Festus was a fairly decent guy, but he, too, as we'll see, cared more about "looking good" and playing the politician than seeing justice done.

Blessings!

Sources
Editors. Compton's Interactive Bible (software)
Philip Yancey and Tim Stafford (notes). The Student Bible. NIV Version
John D. Davis. The Westminster Dictionary of the Bible.