Paul’s Witness before Gentiles
and the Jewish King
23:23 to 26:32
57-59 AD
The theme of Paul’s witness continues. The scene shifts from Jerusalem to Caesarea, from the Jews to the Roman governors. Still, the primary focus was on the Jewish antagonism toward Paul. The Roman governors became more and more convinced that Paul had broken none of their laws. Nevertheless, in the face of the strong Jewish opposition to Paul, they were reluctant to release him. Only an appeal to Caesar removed Paul from the very real prospect that the officials would ultimately give in to the pressure and turn him over to the Jews.
This section is built around the three major political figures before whom Paul appeared – the Roman governors Felix (to see link click Cv – Paul’s Defense before Governor Felix), Festus (see Cx – Festus Seeks Agrippa’s Counsel), and the Jewish King Agrippa (see Cy – Paul’s Defense before Agrippa). In also contains two major speeches of Paul – in the context of a formal trial at the beginning of his confinement at Caesarea (24:1-23), and in a hearing before Agrippa II (26:4-29). In between comes the pivotal event of Paul’s appeal to Caesar (see Cw – Paul’s Appeal to Caesar).
The major emphasis, however, is basically the same as in the previous three chapters –
Paul’s innocence and his protection by the Roman governors, combined with their stalling and failing to release him. The primary emphasis continues to be Paul’s witness – this time before the unsaved Jews, the Roman governors, and the Jewish King Agrippa II. Though the setting was that of Paul’s defense before Jewish charges, the end result was consistently Paul’s witness of His Messiah. For this witness, His resurrection was central.556
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