Acts 24:26
He hoped also that money should have been given him of Paul, that he might loose him: wherefore he sent for him the oftener, and communed with him. He hoped also that money should have been given him of Paul, that he might loose him: wherefore he sent for him the oftener, and communed with him.
Paul remained a prisoner for two years while Felix took no further legal action against him. During that time Felix sent for him often, conversed with him, and listened attentively to his words. That apparent friendliness was driven only by greed, for Felix hoped Paul would pay a large sum of money to secure release, a hope he hinted at and that shaped his dealings with Paul. This grasping expectation marks Felix as a corrupt ruler, in contrast with Festus, who refused bribes.
At the same time Felix was among the heathen magistrates who recognized Paul's innocence and helped protect him, in contrast with the Jewish tribunals that condemned him without proving his guilt. Paul, for his part, would not gain his freedom by bribery. He was too noble to stoop to evade the law by such means. He was innocent of all crime.
He was himself too poor to pay such a ransom even if he had been willing. He would not appeal to the sympathy and generosity of his converts to raise money for himself. He felt he was in the hands of God and would not interfere with the divine purposes concerning himself. Though Felix trembled under conviction, he did not repent but, unlike the jailer at Philippi, rejected the Spirit of God and chose the path of evil.