Acts 25

25 ¹ Now three days after Festus had arrived in the province, he went up to Jerusalem from Caesarea. ² There the chief priests and the leading men of the Jews laid out their case against Paul, and they kept urging him, ³ asking for a favor against Paul — that Festus would summon him to Jerusalem. They were setting an ambush to kill him along the way. ⁴ Festus replied that Paul was being held at Caesarea, and that he himself was about to leave there shortly. ⁵ "So let those among you who are able," he said, "come down with me and bring charges against the man, if there is anything wrong with him."

⁶ After staying among them no more than eight or ten days, Festus went down to Caesarea, and the next day he took his seat on the judgment bench and ordered Paul to be brought in. ⁷ When Paul arrived, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem surrounded him, bringing many serious charges against him that they could not prove. ⁸ Paul made his defense: "I have done nothing wrong against the law of the Jews, or against the temple, or against Caesar."

⁹ But Festus, wanting to do the Jews a favor, said to Paul, "Are you willing to go up to Jerusalem and stand trial before me there on these charges?"

¹⁰ Paul said, "I am standing before Caesar's judgment bench, where I ought to be tried. I have done no wrong to the Jews, as you yourself know very well. ¹¹ If then I am a wrongdoer and have done anything deserving death, I do not refuse to die. But if there is nothing to the charges these men bring against me, no one can hand me over to them. I appeal to Caesar."

¹² Then Festus, after conferring with his council, answered, "You have appealed to Caesar; to Caesar you will go."

¹³ After some days had passed, King Agrippa and Bernice arrived at Caesarea to pay their respects to Festus. ¹⁴ Since they were staying there many days, Festus laid Paul's case before the king, saying, "There is a man here whom Felix left behind as a prisoner. ¹⁵ When I was in Jerusalem, the chief priests and the elders of the Jews brought charges against him, asking me to condemn him. ¹⁶ I answered them that it is not the Roman custom to hand over anyone before the accused has faced his accusers in person and has had a chance to defend himself against the charge. ¹⁷ So when they came here together, I wasted no time; the next day I took my seat on the judgment bench and ordered the man to be brought in. ¹⁸ When his accusers stood up, they raised none of the criminal charges I had expected. ¹⁹ Instead they had certain disputes with him about their own religion and about a certain Jesus, who had died but whom Paul kept asserting was alive. ²⁰ Since I was at a loss how to investigate such matters, I asked whether he was willing to go to Jerusalem and be tried there on these charges. ²¹ But when Paul appealed to have his case decided by the Emperor, I ordered him to be kept until I could send him on to Caesar.

²² Then Agrippa said to Festus, "I would like to hear the man myself." "Tomorrow," he replied, "you will hear him."

Paul Stands Before Agrippa and Bernice

²³ So the next day Agrippa and Bernice came with great pomp and entered the audience hall, along with the military commanders and the prominent men of the city. At Festus's command, Paul was brought in. ²⁴ Festus said, "King Agrippa and all of you here present with us, you see this man. The whole Jewish community has petitioned me about him, both in Jerusalem and here, shouting that he ought not to live any longer. ²⁵ But I found that he had done nothing deserving death; and since he himself appealed to the Emperor, I decided to send him. ²⁶ But I have nothing definite to write to my lord about him. So I have brought him before you all, and especially before you, King Agrippa, so that after this examination I may have something to write. ²⁷ For it seems unreasonable to me to send a prisoner without indicating the charges against him."