PAUL BEFORE KING AGRIPPA.
NOTE.—The time of this lesson is two years later than that of last week, and Porcius Festus has taken the place of Felix as governor of Judea. Nero is still emperor of Rome. During these two years Paul has been a prisoner at Cæsarea. Close connection should be made between this and the last lesson, and the chief incidents set forth which lead up to Paul's defense before Agrippa. The lesson section includes chapters 25 and 26. Commit verses 22 and 23. Note the time given Paul for self preparation for the great work which he was to do at Rome. Compare it with the preparation time given to others of God's servants upon whom a great work was placed. 19 "Wherefore, O king Agrippa, I was not disobedient unto the 20 heavenly vision; but declared both to them of Damascus first, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the country of Judea, and also to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, 21 doing works worthy of repentance. For this cause the Jews 22 seized me in the temple, and assayed to kill me. Having therefore obtained the help that is from God, I stand unto this day testifying both to small and great, saying nothing but what 23 the prophets and Moses did say should come; how that the Christ must suffer, and how that he first by the resurrection of the dead should proclaim light both to the people and to the Gentiles. 24 "And as he thus made his defense, Festus saith with a loud voice, Paul, thou art mad; thy much learning doth turn thee to 25 madness. But Paul saith, I am not mad, most excellent Festus; 26 but speak forth words of truth and soberness. For the king knoweth of these things, unto whom also I speak freely; for I am persuaded that none of these things is hidden from him; 27 for this hath not been done in a corner. King Agrippa, believ- 28 est thou the prophets? I know that thou believest. And Agrippa said unto Paul, With but little persuasion thou wouldest 29 fain make me a Christian. And Paul said, I would to God, that whether with little or with much, not thou only, but also all that hear me this day, might become such as I am, except these bonds. 30 "And the king rose up, and the governor, and Bernice, and 31 they that sat with them; and when they had withdrawn, they spake one to another, saying, This man doeth nothing worthy 32 of death or of bonds. And Agrippa said unto Festus, This man might have been set at liberty, if he had not appealed unto Cæsar." Golden Text.—"Whosoever therefore shall confess Me before men, him will I confess also before My Father which is in heaven." Matt. 10: 32. (1) What counsel does Paul claim to be following in teaching the Gospel? Verse 19. (2) In what places did he first perform this work? Verse 20. (3) Then to whom did he go? Same verse. (4) What was the burden of his message to them? Same verse. Note 1. (5) How was his message received? Verse 21. (6) What power did Paul recognize in all his work? Verse 22. (7) How completely did he carry out his commission? Same verse. (8) How did he show the hatred of the Jews toward him to be groundless? Same verse. Note 2. (9) What had the prophets foretold in regard to Christ? Verse 23. (10) Through what did he become a light to the inhabitants of earth? Same verse. Note 3. (11) Of what did Festus accuse Paul while he was making his defense? Verse 24. (12) How did Paul reply? Verse 25. (13) Who was able to verify Paul's statements to Festus? Verse 26. (14) How does Paul speak of the manner in which his conversion was accomplished? Same verse. Note 4. (15) What question did he address to king Agrippa? Verse 27. (16) Receiving no answer, what statement did Paul make? Same verse. (17) What remark did Agrippa make to Paul? Verse 28. Note 5. (18) What wish did Paul express in regard to the king's remark? Verse 29. (19) Following this wish of Paul, what did his royal listeners do? Verse 30. (20) What conclusion did they come to in regard to Paul? Verse 31. Note 6. (21) What alone hindered Paul's liberation at once? Verse 32. 1. Repent and turn to God.—This was a duty which the Jews did not care to have pressed home upon them. While many of them may have known to a limited extent the condition of their own hearts, the presence of one who would remind them of that condition in order to have them turn from it, was a source of irritation to them, instead of the blessing which it might have been if they had allowed it to do for them that which God designed it should. He was troubling Israel, according to the verdict of his accusers; but as in the time of king Ahab, it was Israel's course that made the troubling necessary; and such troubling was for Israel's good. It was God's mercy to Israel. The Jews were "God's chosen people," and in their estimation this covered a "multitude of sins." Their attitude was "Who shall presume to urge us to turn to God when we are God's own people already?" Paul's invitation was an intimation that they were not, in their present condition, accepted of God, and this was the occasion for the outburst of hatred on the part of those who were in need of repentance and were too stubborn to yield. 2. Saying nothing but what the prophets and Moses did say should come.—Every Jew looked for the Messiah. They were familiar with the promises referring to his coming which the prophets had written hundreds of years before; but selfishness and pride blinded their eyes to the majesty of the manger babe, the carpenter's son, the lowly Nazarene. While reading of the sufferings of the One who should come, they looked for an outward show of majesty and splendor which would pander to their personal pride. They looked for a temporal king; and when Jesus taught them that his kingdom was "not of this world," that is, in its present state, they cast him aside. The salvation of the Gentiles, which Christ preached and which Paul was now continuing to preach, was obnoxious to the Jews, and was another thing which caused the Jews to turn from him as the One who "should come." Paul was now teaching that Jesus was the Christ for whom Israel had so long waited, whom the prophets had foretold, toward whom all the sacrifices from that of Abel pointed for the remission of sins, whose work in heaven was year by year brought to the minds of the Jewish people through the atonement services in the earthly sanctuary. The Jews were not willing to be accused of slaying Him of whom the prophets had written, and were ready to add another murder to their list, hoping thereby to stop the work of the Christians. God's message to-day has the same basis as in Paul's day, the law and the prophets. 3. By the resurrection of the dead should proclaim light.—The Revised Version seems the better rendering of verse 23. This is in accordance with 2 Tim. 1: 10. Christ became the light of this darkened, sin-cursed earth through the manifestation of his power to give life to those who should accept him as their Saviour. He was the one ray of hope shining from the Father's throne. "In him was life; and the life was the light of men." John 1: 4. By his resurrection from the dead he brought life and immortality to light. That is, he made immortality accessible to men, possible for them to attain, a condition which they did not have (1 Tim. 6: 16), but must seek for (Rom. 2: 7), must put on (1 Cor. 15: 53, 54). Man finds it alone in Christ Jesus. 4. None of these things is hidden.—King Agrippa was nominally a Jew and was acquainted with the writings of the prophets, and the trials and persecutions of the disciples of Christ and their followers during the early years of Christianity were familiar to him, as he had been for years a ruler in Palestine. Paul had a number of servants with him when on his way to Damascus, officers who were under his direction, and these knew the circumstances of his conversion, having seen the light which smote Paul and heard the voice speaking to him. So both the king and the Jews had opportunity to know the truth of what Paul was relating. 5. Thou wouldst fain make me a Christian.—There seems to be a difference of opinion in regard to the real meaning of the remark made by Agrippa. By the rendering given in the Common Version one would get the idea that Paul had really touched the heart of the king, and he was about persuaded to become a Christian. Many critics consider this a cynical sneer, a sarcasm; and such seems to be the meaning conveyed in the Revised Version. 6. Nothing worthy of death or of bonds.—Paul's address and his explanation of his conduct completely vindicated him in the eyes of his judges. The accusations against him as a brawler, a stirrer up of strife, a "pestilent fellow," had not been proven, but the sincerity of Paul's life and his convictions of duty, in short, his Christian spirit, convinced his judges of his innocence. "From this time a kindly feeling seems to have sprung up in the king's heart towards that strange Nazarene sect. Stier calls attention to the fact of this Agrippa at the outbreak of the great Jewish war, some eight or nine years after the scene at Cæsarea, protecting the Christians, giving them succor, and receiving them kindly into his territory."—Schaff.