DEFENCE BEFORE AGRIPPA 1-32. St. Paul before Agrippa. This speech, though in form a defence to the Jews, is really intended by St. Luke to be St. Paul's defence to the world—an apology for his whole life and work. ANALYSIS. Opening compliment to Agrippa (Acts 26:2); the Apostle's orthodox Pharisaic... [ Continue Reading ]
See Acts 22:3; Acts 23:6; Philippians 3:5.... [ Continue Reading ]
THE PROMISE] viz. of the Messiah, made to Abraham, Genesis 22:18 also of the Resurrection, for it was believed by the Pharisees and orthodox Jews that all Jews would be raised to life to share in the Messianic kingdom.... [ Continue Reading ]
INSTANTLY] RV 'earnestly.' 9, 10. 'I once found the same difficulty in believing that God does actually raise the dead; and therefore I bitterly persecuted those who proclaimed the Resurrection of Jesus, just as you are now persecuting me.'... [ Continue Reading ]
CONTRARY TO THE NAME] i.e. in order to suppress the confession and invocation of it.... [ Continue Reading ]
MY VOICE] RV 'my vote.' The Gk. means 'the vote of a judge,' and establishes the fact that at the time of the death of Stephen, Paul, though so young a man, was a member of the Sanhedrin. 12-18. See on Acts 9:3; Acts 22:6. 16-18. It appears from Acts 9:6; Acts 22:10 that all the directions that Jes... [ Continue Reading ]
THAT CHRIST SHOULD SUFFER] RV 'how that the Christ must suffer'; RM 'if the Christ must suffer,' or, 'whether the Christ must suffer': see Luke 24:26; Luke 24:46 and Isaiah 53. THE FIRST] see 1 Corinthians 15:20, 'the firstfruits of them that slept'; Colossians 1:18, 'the firstborn from the dead'; R... [ Continue Reading ]
The exclamation of Festus shows impatience and perhaps anger at the idea that an uneducated peasant like Jesus (one, moreover, who had been crucified) could have anything to teach a Roman like himself. MUCH LEARNING] lit. 'the numerous writings,' probably the writings of Moses and the prophets, quot... [ Continue Reading ]
Observe the good temper and courtesy of St. Paul's retort. MOST NOBLE] see Luke 1:3, 'most excellent Theophilus' (same word).... [ Continue Reading ]
ALMOST THOU PERSUADEST ME TO BE A CHRISTIAN] This translation is now given up. The best rendering seems to be, 'Too easily art thou persuading thyself that thou canst make me a Christian!'... [ Continue Reading ]
Agrippa, speaking as a Jew, pronounces St. Paul's views orthodox, or at least not heretical. There is nothing in them, he thinks, contrary to the OT., though, of course he does not accept them as true.... [ Continue Reading ]