Daily Scripture Reading Acts 24:24 - 25:16
Injustice is very common in our world. People with money, power, and/or prestige often pervert justice for monetary or political gain.
According to Proverbs 21:3, Yahweh not only wants people to act justly, He chooses justice over sacrifice. This is a theme we see throughout the Bible. God expects humans to act fairly and impartially. He condemns those who pervert justice for their own personal benefit.
Today’s passage contains an example of two rulers denying justice to Paul because they were trying to curry favor with the Jewish leaders. This is an example of what humans should not do, and something we Christians should be diligent to avoid.
Yesterday’s passage ended with Paul pointing out, during his trial before Felix, that his accusers had not proven any of their charges against him, but Felix, the Roman governor, kept Paul in prison anyway. Felix promised to decide Paul’s case at a later date.
Acts 24:24 ¶ But some days later Felix arrived with Drusilla, his wife who was a Jewess, and summoned Paul and heard him speak about faith in Christ Jesus.
This verse tells us Paul had the opportunity to tell Felix about Jesus.
Acts 24:25 But as he was discussing righteousness, self-control, and the judgment to come, Felix became frightened and answered, “Go away for the present, and when I find time I will call for you.”
Note the word “frightened”. Paul did not shy away from producing fear. He spoke about the judgment to come.
There is a mentality in modern Christianity that we should always present the positive side of Jesus and avoid any topics that come across as negative. However, Paul did not do that.
The reality is fear of the judgment to come is the only reason to become a Christian. If there is not a future judgment, then no one will experience eternal punishment, meaning there is no downside for not being a Christian, nor any consequences for disobeying Jesus.
Acts 24:26 At the same time, he was also hoping that money would be given him by Paul; therefore he also used to summon for him quite often and converse with him.
This verse tells us why Felix did not do the right thing and release Paul in light of the fact that Paul’s accusers failed to prove Paul did anything wrong. Felix was hoping for a bribe.
Acts 24:27 But after two years had passed, Felix was succeeded by Porcius Festus, and wishing to do the Jews a favor, Felix left Paul imprisoned.
Don’t miss the phrase “wishing to do the Jews a favor”. Felix was more interested in acting politically than he was in doing the right thing.
Acts 25:1 ¶ Festus then, having arrived in the province, after three days went up to Jerusalem from Caesarea.
Acts 25:2 And the chief priests and the leading men of the Jews brought charges against Paul, and they were pleading with him,
Acts 25:3 requesting a favor against Paul, that he might have him brought to Jerusalem (while they set an ambush to kill him on the way).
As we have seen many times in the book of Acts, the Jews were actively plotting to kill Paul. They were not mildly opposed to Paul. They were rabidly against Paul and his ministry.
Acts 25:4 Festus then answered that Paul was being kept in custody at Caesarea and that he himself was about to leave shortly.
Acts 25:5 “Therefore,” he said, “let the influential men among you go down there with me, and if there is anything wrong about the man, let them accuse him.”
Acts 25:6 ¶ And after he had spent not more than eight or ten days among them, he went down to Caesarea, and on the next day he took his seat on the judgment seat and ordered Paul to be brought.
Acts 25:7 And after Paul arrived, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem stood around him, bringing many and serious charges against him which they could not prove,
The last phrase is important. They were not able to prove any of their charges.
This raises the question of why they accused Paul if they had no proof, and why were they plotting so fervently to kill Paul. Paul’s trial before Festus took place somewhere around 60AD. That was roughly 30 years after the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus. The chief priests and leading men of the Jews who were accusing Paul were a different set of men than the chief priests and leading men of the Jews who had conspired to kill Jesus 3 decades earlier.
Despite the changeover in leadership, the Jewish leaders were still against Jesus; therefore, they were against Paul because Paul believed in Jesus. This illustrates the extent to which a set of beliefs can take hold in an organization or a society and still be fervently held decades later.
Acts 25:8 while Paul said in his own defense, “I have committed no sin either against the Law of the Jews or against the temple or against Caesar.”
Acts 25:9 But Festus, wishing to do the Jews a favor, answered Paul and said, “Are you willing to go up to Jerusalem and to be tried before me on these matters?”
The phrase “wishing to do the Jews a favor” shows that Festus was not trying to do the right thing. He was distorting justice for the sake of politics.
Proverbs 21:3 says Yahweh prefers chooses over sacrifice. Isaiah 1:23 criticizes the rulers of Israel for not executing justice. These are samples of a theme we see throughout the Bible. God expects humans to act justly and fairly.
Unfortunately, injustice is a common fact of life across all centuries and all societies, including our culture today. Powerful people should always do the right thing, but too often they pervert justice for their own personal benefit.
Anytime we are in a position where we need to dispense a verdict, whether as a juror, employer, parent, or church leader, we need to act according to truth and justice, not according to favoritism or personal benefit.
Acts 25:10 But Paul said, “I am standing before Caesar’s judgment seat, where I ought to be tried. I have done no wrong to the Jews, as you also very well know.
Acts 25:11 If, then, I am a wrongdoer and have committed anything worthy of death, I do not refuse to die; but if none of those things is true of which these men accuse me, no one can hand me over to them. I appeal to Caesar.”
Acts 25:12 Then when Festus had conferred with his council, he answered, “You have appealed to Caesar, to Caesar you shall go.”
Acts 25:13 ¶ Now when several days had passed, King Agrippa and Bernice arrived at Caesarea and greeted Festus.
Acts 25:14 And while they were spending many days there, Festus laid Paul’s case before the king, saying, “There is a man who was left as a prisoner by Felix;
Acts 25:15 and when I was at Jerusalem, the chief priests and the elders of the Jews brought charges against him, asking for a sentence of condemnation against him.
Acts 25:16 I answered them that it is not the custom of the Romans to hand over any man before the accused meets his accusers face to face and has an opportunity to make his defense against the charges.
This verse tells us at least Festus afforded Paul some of his basic rights as a Roman citizen.
That doesn’t change the fact that both Felix and Festus acted with bias against Paul in order to gain political favor with the Jewish leaders. Many people with power and prestige across all cultures pervert justice for their own personal gain. However, a theme we see throughout the Bible is that God expects humans to judge impartially and fairly.
Who are some people you know who have been denied justice because their accusers were seeking political influence or monetary gain?
Why is it so common for powerful people to ignore truth and render unfair verdicts against those under their authority?
What are occasions where you are tempted to do the wrong thing and distort justice because doing so was to your personal benefit?
Thanks for visiting Bible Mountain. If you have already joined my email list, thank you and please tell others about Bible Mountain. If you have not joined my email list yet, please do so now. In order to join, go to Bible Mountain dotcom, click on subscribe, and that will take you to a page where you can sign up. Your email address will not be sold nor given away. Once again, thanks for visiting Bible Mountain.
“Scripture quotations taken from the (LSB®) Legacy Standard Bible®, Copyright © 2021 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Managed in partnership with Three Sixteen Publishing Inc. LSBible.org and 316publishing.com.”