Sunday, January 25, 2009
The Peril of the Word Acts 27:1-44 (46:35)
Acts 27:1-44:
http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Acts%2027:1-44
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Sunday, January 11, 2009
"Trial ofThe Word: Appeal" Acts 25:1-25
Acts 25: (NASB)
Paul before Festus
1Festus then, having arrived in (A)the province, three days later went up to Jerusalem from (B)Caesarea.2And the chief priests and the leading men of the Jews (C)brought charges against Paul, and they were urging him,
3requesting a concession against Paul, that he might have him brought to Jerusalem (at the same time, (D)setting an ambush to kill him on the way).
4Festus then (E)answered that Paul (F)was being kept in custody at (G)Caesarea and that he himself was about to leave shortly.
5"Therefore," he said, "let the influential men among you go there with me, and if there is anything wrong about the man, let them prosecute him."
6After he had spent not more than eight or ten days among them, he went down to (H)Caesarea, and on the next day he took his seat on (I)the tribunal and ordered Paul to be brought.
7After Paul arrived, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem stood around him, bringing (J)many and serious charges against him (K)which they could not prove,
8while Paul said in his own defense, "(L)I have committed no offense either against the Law of the Jews or against the temple or against Caesar."
9But Festus, (M)wishing to do the Jews a favor, answered Paul and said, "(N)Are you willing to go up to Jerusalem and stand trial before me on these charges?"
10But Paul said, "I am standing before Caesar's (O)tribunal, where I ought to be tried. I have done no wrong to the Jews, as you also very well know.
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 (P)appeal to Caesar."
12Then when Festus had conferred with his council, he answered, "You have appealed to Caesar, to Caesar you shall go."
13Now when several days had elapsed, King Agrippa and Bernice arrived at (Q)Caesarea and paid their respects to Festus.
14While they were spending many days there, Festus laid Paul's case before the king, saying, "There is a man who was (R)left as a prisoner by Felix;
15and when I was at Jerusalem, the chief priests and the elders of the Jews (S)brought charges against him, asking for a sentence of condemnation against him.
16"I (T)answered them that it is not the custom of the Romans to hand over any man before (U)the accused meets his accusers face to face and has an opportunity to make his defense against the charges.
17"So after they had assembled here, I did not delay, but on the next day took my seat on (V)the tribunal and ordered the man to be brought before me.
18"When the accusers stood up, they began bringing charges against him not of such crimes as I was expecting,
19but they simply had some (W)points of disagreement with him about their own (X)religion and about a dead man, Jesus, whom Paul asserted to be alive.
20"(Y)Being at a loss how to investigate such matters, I asked whether he was willing to go to Jerusalem and there stand trial on these matters.
21"But when Paul (Z)appealed to be held in custody for [a]the Emperor's decision, I ordered him to be kept in custody until I send him to Caesar."
22Then (AA)Agrippa said to Festus, "I also would like to hear the man myself." "Tomorrow," he said, "you shall hear him."
Paul before Agrippa
23So, on the next day when (AB)Agrippa came together with (AC)Bernice amid great pomp, and entered the auditorium [b]accompanied by the commanders and the prominent men of the city, at the command of Festus, Paul was brought in.24Festus said, "King Agrippa, and all you gentlemen here present with us, you see this man about whom (AD)all the people of the Jews appealed to me, both at Jerusalem and here, loudly declaring that (AE)he ought not to live any longer.
25"But I found that he had committed (AF)nothing worthy of death; and since he himself (AG)appealed to the Emperor, I decided to send him.