Acts 26 Pulpit Commentary

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "//www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="//www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" /><meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1"><title>Acts 26 Pulpit Commentary</title><link rel="stylesheet" href="/5001com.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="../spec.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-width: 4800px), only screen and (max-device-width: 4800px)" href="/4801.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-width: 1550px), only screen and (max-device-width: 1550px)" href="/1551.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-width: 1250px), only screen and (max-device-width: 1250px)" href="/1251.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-width: 1050px), only screen and (max-device-width: 1050px)" href="/1051.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-width: 900px), only screen and (max-device-width: 900px)" href="/901.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-width: 800px), only screen and (max-device-width: 800px)" href="/801.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-width: 575px), only screen and (max-device-width: 575px)" href="/501.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link media="handheld, only screen and (max-height: 450px), only screen and (max-device-height: 450px)" href="/h451.css" type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="/print.css" type="text/css" media="Print" /><script type="application/javascript" src="https://scripts.webcontentassessor.com/scripts/8a2459b64f9cac8122fc7f2eac4409c8555fac9383016db59c4c26e3d5b8b157"></script><script src='https://qd.admetricspro.com/js/biblehub/biblehub-layout-loader-revcatch.js'></script><script id='HyDgbd_1s' src='https://prebidads.revcatch.com/ads.js' type='text/javascript' async></script><script>(function(w,d,b,s,i){var cts=d.createElement(s);cts.async=true;cts.id='catchscript'; cts.dataset.appid=i;cts.src='https://app.protectsubrev.com/catch_rp.js?cb='+Math.random(); document.head.appendChild(cts); }) (window,document,'head','script','rc-anksrH');</script></head> <script async src="https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtag/js?id=G-LR4HSKRP2H"></script> <script> window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; function gtag(){dataLayer.push(arguments);} gtag('js', new Date()); gtag('config', 'G-LR4HSKRP2H'); </script><body><div id="fx"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx2"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="30" scrolling="no" src="../cmenus/acts/26.htm" align="left" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div><div id="blnk"></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable"><tr><td><div id="fx5"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" id="fx6"><tr><td><iframe width="100%" height="245" scrolling="no" src="//biblehu.com/bmcom/acts/26-1.htm" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" class="maintable3"><tr><td><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center" id="announce"><tr><td><div id="l1"><div id="breadcrumbs"><a href="//biblehub.com">Bible</a> > <a href="../">Pulpit Commentary</a> > Acts 26</div><div id="anc"><iframe src="/anc.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></div><div id="anc2"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><iframe src="/anc2.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></div></td></tr></table><div id="movebox2"><table border="0" align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tr><td><div id="topheading"><a href="../acts/25.htm" title="Acts 25">◄</a> Acts 26 <a href="../acts/27.htm" title="Acts 27">►</a></div></td></tr></table></div><div align="center" class="maintable2"><table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><div id="leftbox"><div class="padleft"><div class="vheading">Pulpit Commentary</div><div class="chap"><div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-1.htm">Acts 26:1</a></div><div class="verse">Then Agrippa said unto Paul, Thou art permitted to speak for thyself. Then Paul stretched forth the hand, and answered for himself:</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 1.</span> - And for <span class="accented">then</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">his</span> for <span class="accented">the</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">made his</span> defense for <span class="accented">answered for himself</span>, A.V. <span class="cmt_word">Agrippa said</span>. It was by the courtesy of Festus that Agrippa thus took the chief place. It was, perhaps, with the like courtesy that Agrippa said, impersonally, <span class="cmt_word">Thou art permitted</span>, without specifying whether by himself or by Festus. <span class="cmt_word">Stretched forth his hand</span>. The action of an orator, rendered in this case still more impressive by the chains which hung upon his arms. Luke here relates what he saw. <span class="cmt_word">Made his defense</span> (<span class="greek">ἀπελογεῖτο</span>); <a href="/acts/25-8.htm">Acts 25:8</a>; <a href="/acts/24-10.htm">Acts 24:10</a>, note. </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-2.htm">Acts 26:2</a></div><div class="verse">I think myself happy, king Agrippa, because I shall answer for myself this day before thee touching all the things whereof I am accused of the Jews:</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 2.</span> <span class="accented">- That I am to make my</span> defense <span class="accented">before thee this day</span> for <span class="accented">because I shall answer for myself this day before thee</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">by</span> for of, A.V. </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-3.htm">Acts 26:3</a></div><div class="verse">Especially <i>because I know</i> thee to be expert in all customs and questions which are among the Jews: wherefore I beseech thee to hear me patiently.</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 3.</span> <span class="accented">- Thou art expert</span> for <span class="accented">I know thee to be expert</span>, A.V. and T.R. <span class="cmt_word">Expert</span>; <span class="greek">γνώστην</span>, here only in the New Testament, but found in the LXX. (Daniel, <span class="accented">i.e.</span> Hist. of Susanna 42) applied to God, <span class="greek">ὁ τῶν κρυπτῶν</span> <span class="greek">γνώστης</span>: and <a href="/1_samuel/28-3.htm">1 Samuel 28:3</a> and <a href="/2_kings/21-6.htm">2 Kings 21:6</a>, as the rendering of <span class="hebrew">יִדֹּעְנִי</span>, a wizard. It is seldom found in classical Greek. According to the R.T., which is that generally adopted (Meyer, Kuinoel, <span class="cmt_word">Wordsworth</span>, Alford, etc.), the accusative <span class="greek">γνώστην ὄντα σέ</span> is put, by a not uncommon construction, for the genitive absolute, as in <a href="/ephesians/1-18.htm">Ephesians 1:18</a>. The <span class="accented">m</span>arginal rendering, <span class="accented">because thou art especially expert</span>, seems preferable to that in the text. <span class="cmt_word">Customs and questions</span>. For the use of <span class="greek">ἔθη</span> and <span class="greek">ζητήματα</span> applied to Jewish customs and controversies, see <a href="/acts/6-14.htm">Acts 6:14</a>; <a href="/acts/16-21.htm">Acts 16:21</a>; <a href="/acts/21-21.htm">Acts 21:21</a>, etc.; and <a href="/acts/25-19.htm">Acts 25:19</a>, note. </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-4.htm">Acts 26:4</a></div><div class="verse">My manner of life from my youth, which was at the first among mine own nation at Jerusalem, know all the Jews;</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 4.</span> <span class="accented">- Then from my youth up</span> for <span class="accented">for my youth.</span> A.V.; <span class="accented">from the beginning</span> for <span class="accented">at the first.</span> A.V.; <span class="accented">and at</span> for <span class="accented">at</span>, A.V. and T.R. <span class="cmt_word">My manner of life</span>, etc. The same testimony of a good conscience as that in <a href="/acts/23-1.htm">Acts 23:1</a> and Acts 24:16. The word <span class="greek">βίωσις</span> occurs only here in the New Testament. But we find the phrase, <span class="greek">τῆς ἐννόμου βιώσεως</span>, "the manner of life according to the Law," in the Prologue to Ecclesiasticus and in Symmachus (<a href="/psalms/38-6.htm">Psalm 38:6</a>), though not in classical Greek. The verb <span class="greek">βιόω</span> occurs in <a href="/1_peter/4-2.htm">1 Peter 4:2</a>, and not infrequently in the LXX. <span class="cmt_word">From my youth up</span>, which was from the beginning among my own nation, etc., having knowledge of me from the first (in ver. 5). No appeal could be stronger as to the notoriety of his who<span class="accented">le</span> <span class="accented">li</span>fe spent in the midst of his own people, observed and known of all. The T.R. implies that his youth was spent at Jerusalem, according to what he himself tells us in <a href="/acts/22-3.htm">Acts 22:3</a>. The R.T. does so less distinctly. (For St. Paul's account of his early Pharisaism, comp. <a href="/galatians/1-13.htm">Galatians 1:13, 14</a>; <a href="/philippians/3-5.htm">Philippians 3:5, 6</a>.) </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-5.htm">Acts 26:5</a></div><div class="verse">Which knew me from the beginning, if they would testify, that after the most straitest sect of our religion I lived a Pharisee.</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 5.</span> - <span class="accented">Having knowledge of me from the first</span> for <span class="accented">which knew me from the beginning</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">be willing to</span> for <span class="accented">would</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">how that</span> for <span class="accented">that</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">straitest</span> for <span class="accented">most straitest</span>, A.V. <span class="cmt_word">Straitest</span> (<span class="greek">ἀκριβεστάτην</span>); see <a href="/acts/22-3.htm">Acts 22:3</a>; <a href="/acts/18-26.htm">Acts 18:26</a>, etc. <span class="cmt_word">Sect</span> (<span class="greek">αἵρεσις</span>); see <a href="/acts/24-14.htm">Acts 24:14</a>, note. He does not disclaim being still a Pharisee. On the contrary, in the next verse (ver. 6) he declares, as he had done in <a href="/acts/23-6.htm">Acts 23:6</a>, that it was for the chief hope of the Pharisees that he was now accused. He tries to enlist all the good feeling that <span class="accented">ye</span>t remained among the Jews on his side. </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-6.htm">Acts 26:6</a></div><div class="verse">And now I stand and am judged for the hope of the promise made of God unto our fathers:</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 6.</span> <span class="accented">- Here to be judged</span> for <span class="accented">and am judged</span>, A.V. <span class="cmt_word">To be judged</span> (<span class="greek">ἕστηκα</span> <span class="greek">κρινόμενος</span>); rather, <span class="accented">I stand on my trial.</span> The A.V. seems to give the sense well. <span class="cmt_word">The hope of the promise</span>. The hope of the kingdom of Christ, which necessarily implies the resurrection of the dead. This hope, which rested upon God's promise to the fathers, Paul clung to; this hope his Sadducean persecutors denied. He, then, was the true Jew; he was faithful to Moses and the prophets; he claimed the sympathy and support of all true Israelites, and specially of King Agrippa. </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-7.htm">Acts 26:7</a></div><div class="verse">Unto which <i>promise</i> our twelve tribes, instantly serving <i>God</i> day and night, hope to come. For which hope's sake, king Agrippa, I am accused of the Jews.</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 7.</span> <span class="accented">- Earnestly</span> for <span class="accented">instantly</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">might and day</span> for <span class="accented">day and night</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">attain</span> for <span class="accented">come</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">and concerning this hope I am accused by the Jews, O King!</span> for <span class="accented">for which hope's sake, King Agrippa, I am accused of the Jews</span>, A.V. and T.R. <span class="cmt_word">Our twelve tribes</span>. <span class="greek">Δωδεκάφυλον</span> only occurs here, in the Sibylline oracles, and in the prot-evangel. Jacob., 3, and in Clement's 1 Corinthians 55, but is formed, after the analogy of such words as <span class="greek">δωδεκαετής δωδεκάμοιρος δωδεκάμηνος</span> <span class="greek">τετράφυλος δεκάφυλος</span> (Herod., 5:66), and the like. The idea of the twelve tribes of Israel is part of the essential conception of the Israel of God. So our Lord (<a href="/matthew/19-28.htm">Matthew 19:28</a>; <a href="/james/1-1.htm">James 1:1</a>; <a href="/revelation/7-4.htm">Revelation 7:4</a>, etc.). St. Paul felt and spoke like a thorough Israelite. <span class="cmt_word">Earnestly</span>; <span class="greek">ἐν ἐκτενείᾳ</span>, only here and in 2 Macc. 14:38 (where Razis is said to have risked his body and his life for the religion of the Jews, <span class="greek">μετᾶ πάσης ἐκτενίας</span>, "with all vehemence," A.V.), and Jud. 4:9, where the phrase, <span class="greek">ἐν ἐκτενίᾳ μεγάλῃ</span>, "with great vehemency," "with great fervency," A.V., occurs twice, applied to prayer and to self-humiliation. The adjective <span class="greek">ἐκτενής</span> occurs in <a href="/acts/12-5.htm">Acts 12:5</a>; <a href="/luke/22-44.htm">Luke 22:44</a>; <a href="/1_peter/4-8.htm">1 Peter 4:8</a>; and <span class="greek">ἐκτενῶς</span> in <a href="/1_peter/1-22.htm">1 Peter 1:22</a>. <span class="cmt_word">Serving</span> (<span class="greek">λατρεῦον</span>); <span class="accented">i.e.</span> serving with worship, prayers, sacrifices and the like. The allusion is to the temple service, with its worship by night and by day (comp. <a href="/psalms/134-1.htm">Psalm 134:1</a>; <a href="/1_chronicles/9-33.htm">1 Chronicles 9:33</a>). </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-8.htm">Acts 26:8</a></div><div class="verse">Why should it be thought a thing incredible with you, that God should raise the dead?</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 8.</span> - Why <span class="accented">is it judged incredible with you, if</span> for <span class="accented">why should it be thought a thing incredible with you, that</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">doth</span> for <span class="accented">should</span>, A.V. <span class="cmt_word">Why is it judged</span>, etc. The use of d is somewhat peculiar. It cannot stand for <span class="greek">ὅτι</span>, but it is nearly equivalent to "whether," as in ver. 23. The question proposed to the mind is here whether God has raised the dead; and in ver. 23 whether Christ has suffered, whether he is the first to rise. In the latter case St. Paul gives the answer by his witness to the truth, affirming that it is so. In the former case he chides his hearers for giving the answer of unbelief, and saying that it is not so. </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-9.htm">Acts 26:9</a></div><div class="verse">I verily thought with myself, that I ought to do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth.</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 9.</span> - <span class="cmt_word">I verily</span>. He gently excuses their unbelief by confessing that he himself had once felt like them, and insinuates the hope that they would change their minds as he had, and proceeds to give them good reason for doing so. <span class="cmt_word">Contrary to the Name</span> (<a href="/galatians/1-13.htm">Galatians 1:13</a>; <a href="/1_timothy/1-13.htm">1 Timothy 1:13</a>). <span class="cmt_word">Jesus of Nazareth</span>. By so designating the Lord of glory, he avows himself a member of "the sect of the Nazarenes" (see <a href="/acts/2-22.htm">Acts 2:22</a>; <a href="/acts/3-6.htm">Acts 3:6</a>; <a href="/acts/4-10.htm">Acts 4:10</a>; <a href="/acts/10-33.htm">Acts 10:33</a>, etc.). </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-10.htm">Acts 26:10</a></div><div class="verse">Which thing I also did in Jerusalem: and many of the saints did I shut up in prison, having received authority from the chief priests; and when they were put to death, I gave my voice against <i>them</i>.</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 10.</span> <span class="accented">- And this</span> for <span class="accented">which thing</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">I both shut up</span> for <span class="accented">did I shut up</span>, A.V. (with a change of order); <span class="accented">prisons</span> for <span class="accented">prison</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">vote for voice</span>, A.V. <span class="cmt_word">I... shut up</span>. The <span class="greek">ἐγώ</span> is emphatic. The verb <span class="greek">κατακλείω</span>, peculiar to St. Luke (see <a href="/luke/3-20.htm">Luke 3:20</a>) is much used by medical writers. <span class="cmt_word">Were put to death</span>; <span class="greek">ἀναιρουμένων</span>, a word frequent in St. Luke's writings, and much used in medical works, as well as <span class="greek">ἀναίρεσις</span> (<a href="/acts/8-1.htm">Acts 8:1</a>). The phrase <span class="greek">καταφέρειν ψῆφον</span> is unusual; <span class="greek">φέρειν ψῆφον</span> is the more common phrase, both in Josephus and in classical writers. <span class="cmt_word">I gave my vote</span>, etc. Not, as Meyer and others take it, "I assented to it, at the moment of their being killed," equivalent to <span class="greek">συνευδοκῶν</span> of <a href="/acts/22-20.htm">Acts 22:20</a>; but rather," when the Christians were being punished with death, I was one of those who in the Sanhedrim voted for their death." </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-11.htm">Acts 26:11</a></div><div class="verse">And I punished them oft in every synagogue, and compelled <i>them</i> to blaspheme; and being exceedingly mad against them, I persecuted <i>them</i> even unto strange cities.</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 11.</span> <span class="accented">- Punishing them oftentimes in all the synagogues, I strove to make them blaspheme</span> for <span class="accented">I punished them oft in every synagogue, and compelled them to blaspheme</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">foreign</span> for <span class="accented">strange</span>, A.V. <span class="cmt_word">In all the synagogues</span>. Those in Jerusalem, as the contrast of the foreign cities shows. (For the facts, see <a href="/acts/8-1.htm">Acts 8:1, 3</a>.) <span class="cmt_word">I strove</span>, etc. The "compelled" of the A.V. is the natural rendering of <span class="greek">ἠνάγκαζον</span> (<a href="/matthew/14-22.htm">Matthew 14:22</a>; <a href="/luke/14-23.htm">Luke 14:23</a>; <a href="/acts/28-19.htm">Acts 28:19</a>, etc.); but it does not necessarily follow that the compulsion was successful. It might be in some cases, and not in others. Pliny, in his letter to Trajan, says that those who were accused of being Christians cleared themselves by calling upon the gods, offering to the image of the emperor, and cursing Christ, none of which things, it is said, true Christians ("qui sunt revera Christiani") can be compelled to do ('Epist.,' 10, 95, quoted by Kuinoel). <span class="cmt_word">Mad against them</span>; <span class="greek">ἐμμαινόμενος</span> <span class="greek">αὐτοῖς</span>, only here; but the adjective <span class="greek">ἐμμανής</span>, frantic, is not uncommon in classical writers. </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-12.htm">Acts 26:12</a></div><div class="verse">Whereupon as I went to Damascus with authority and commission from the chief priests,</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 12.</span> <span class="accented">- Journeyed</span> for <span class="accented">went</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">with the authority</span>... <span class="accented">of</span> for <span class="accented">with authority... from</span>, A.V. and T.R. <span class="cmt_word">Commission</span>; <span class="greek">ἐπιτροπῆς</span>, here only in the New Testament. But <span class="greek">ἐπίτροπος</span> is a "steward" (<a href="/matthew/20-8.htm">Matthew 20:8</a>; <a href="/luke/8-3.htm">Luke 8:3</a>); and hence the Roman procurator was called in Greek, <span class="greek">ἐπίτροπος</span>, and so were governors generally, as those who acted with a delegated authority. <span class="cmt_word">The chief priests</span>. In <a href="/acts/9-1.htm">Acts 9:1</a> Saul is said to have applied to "the chief priest" for authority. The high priest, as president of the Sanhedrim, acted with the other chief priests (<a href="/acts/9-14.htm">Acts 9:14</a>). </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-13.htm">Acts 26:13</a></div><div class="verse">At midday, O king, I saw in the way a light from heaven, above the brightness of the sun, shining round about me and them which journeyed with me.</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 13.</span> <span class="accented">- On</span> for <span class="accented">in</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">that</span> for <span class="accented">which</span>, A.V. <span class="cmt_word">At midday</span>. "About noon" (<a href="/acts/22-6.htm">Acts 22:6</a>). <span class="cmt_word">It</span> enhanced the wonder of that <span class="cmt_word">light from heaven</span> that it should be seen above <span class="cmt_word">the brightness of the sun</span> at midday, in such a latitude. </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-14.htm">Acts 26:14</a></div><div class="verse">And when we were all fallen to the earth, I heard a voice speaking unto me, and saying in the Hebrew tongue, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? <i>it is</i> hard for thee to kick against the pricks.</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 14.</span> <span class="accented">- Saying unto me in the Hebrew language</span> for <span class="accented">speaking unto me, and saying in the Hebrew tongue</span>, A.V. and T.R.; <span class="accented">goad</span> for <span class="accented">pricks</span>, A.V. <span class="cmt_word">I heard a voice saying</span>, etc. (see <a href="/acts/9-7.htm">Acts 9:7</a>, note). <span class="cmt_word">In the Hebrew language</span>. This is an additional detail not mentioned in <a href="/acts/9-4.htm">Acts 9:4</a> or <a href="/acts/22-8.htm">Acts 22:8</a>; but recalled here, as tending to confirm St. Paul's claim to be a thorough Jew, a Hebrew of the Hebrews, and, moreover, to represent Christianity as a thing not alien from, but rather in thorough harmony with, the true national life and spirit of Israel. <span class="cmt_word">It is hard for thee to kick</span>, etc. This, also, according to the best manuscripts, is an additional detail not mentioned before. The proverb <span class="greek">Πρὸς κέντρα λακτίζειν</span>, to kick against the ox-goads, as the unbroken bullock does to his own hurt, instead of quietly submitting, as he must do at last, to go the way and the pace his master chooses he should go, is found in Pindar, AEschylus, Euripides, Plautus, Terence, etc. The <span class="accented">passages</span> are given in Bochart, 'Hierozoicon.,' part 1. lib. it. Acts 39; in Kninoel, and in Bishop Wordsworth. The passage in Eurip., 'Baach,' 1. 793, 794 (750, 751), brings out the force of the proverb, viz. fruitless resistance to a superior power, most distinctly: "<span class="accented">Better</span> to sacrifice to him, than, being mortal, by vainly raging against God, to kick against the goads." Saul had better yield at once to the constraining grace of God, and no longer do despite to the Spirit of grace. It does not appear clearly that the proverb was used by the Hebrews. Dr. Donaldson ('Christian Orthodoxy,' p. 293) affirms that" there is no Jewish use of this proverbial expression." And this is borne out by Lightfoot, who adduces the two passages, <a href="/deuteronomy/32-15.htm">Deuteronomy 32:15</a> and <a href="/1_samuel/2-9.htm">1 Samuel 2:9</a>, as the only evidences of the existence of such a proverb, together with a rabbinical saying, "R. Bibai sat and taught, and R. Isaac Ben Cahna kicked against him" ('Exereit. on <span class="accented">Acts</span>,' <span class="accented">9:</span>5). It is, therefore, a curious question how this classical phrase came to be used here. Bishop Wordsworth <span class="accented">says</span>, "<span class="accented">Even</span> in heaven our Lord did not disdain to use a proverb familiar to the heathen world." But, perhaps, we may assume that such a proverb was substantially in use among the Jews, though no distinct evidence of it has been preserved; and that St. Paul, in rendering the Hebrew words of Jesus into Greek, made use of the language of Euripides, with which he was familiar, in a case bearing a strong analogy to his own, viz. the resistance of Pentheus to the claims of Bacchus. This is to a certain extent borne out by the use of the words <span class="greek">θεομάχος</span> and <span class="greek">θεομαχεῖν</span> (<a href="/acts/5-39.htm">Acts 5:39</a>; <a href="/acts/23-9.htm">Acts 23:9</a>); the latter of which is twice used in the 'Bacchae' of Euripides, though not common elsewhere. It is, however, found in 2 Macc. 7:19. </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-15.htm">Acts 26:15</a></div><div class="verse">And I said, Who art thou, Lord? And he said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest.</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 15.</span> <span class="accented">- The Lord</span> for <span class="accented">he</span>, A.V. and T.R. </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-16.htm">Acts 26:16</a></div><div class="verse">But rise, and stand upon thy feet: for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee;</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 16.</span> <span class="accented">- Arise</span> for <span class="accented">rise</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">to this end have I</span>, etc., for <span class="accented">I have</span>, etc., <span class="accented">for this purpose</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">appoint</span> for <span class="accented">make</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">the things wherein thou hast seen me</span> for <span class="accented">these things which thou hast seen</span>, A.V. and T.R.; the <span class="accented">things wherein</span> for <span class="accented">those things in the which</span>, A.V. <span class="cmt_word">For to this end have I appeared</span>, etc. On comparing this statement with those in <a href="/acts/9-6.htm">Acts 9:6</a> and <a href="/acts/22-10.htm">Acts 22:10, 14, 15</a>, it appears that in this condensed account given before King Agrippa, St. Paul blends into one message the words spoken to him when the Lord first appeared to him, and the instruction subsequently given to him through Ananias, and the words spoken to him in the trance (<a href="/acts/22-17.htm">Acts 22:17-21</a>). This may especially be inferred from <a href="/acts/9-6.htm">Acts 9:6</a>, and again from comparing <a href="/acts/22-15.htm">Acts 22:15</a> with this verse. </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-17.htm">Acts 26:17</a></div><div class="verse">Delivering thee from the people, and <i>from</i> the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee,</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 17.</span> <span class="accented">- Unto whom</span> for <span class="accented">unto whom</span> note, A.V. <span class="cmt_word">Unto [the Gentiles]</span>. These seem to be the words heard in the trance reported in <a href="/acts/22-21.htm">Acts 22:21</a>, the sequel to which, as contained in ver. 18, the apostle would then have recited, had he not been cut short by the furious cries of the Jews. </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-18.htm">Acts 26:18</a></div><div class="verse">To open their eyes, <i>and</i> to turn <i>them</i> from darkness to light, and <i>from</i> the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 18.</span> <span class="accented">- That they may turn</span> for <span class="accented">and to turn them</span>, A.V. and T.R.; <span class="accented">remission</span> for <span class="accented">forgiveness</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">an inheritance</span> for in<span class="accented">heritance</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">that</span> for <span class="accented">which</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">faith in me for faith that is in me</span>, A.V. <span class="cmt_word">To open their eyes</span> (comp. <a href="/luke/4-18.htm">Luke 4:18</a> and the LXX. of <a href="/isaiah/61-1.htm">Isaiah 61:1</a>; <a href="/2_corinthians/4-4.htm">2 Corinthians 4:4-6</a>, etc.). <span class="cmt_word">That they may turn from darkness to light</span> (comp. <a href="/colossians/1-12.htm">Colossians 1:12, 13</a>; <a href="/ephesians/5-8.htm">Ephesians 5:8</a>; <a href="/1_peter/2-9.htm">1 Peter 2:9</a>, etc.). Remission of sins (see <a href="/acts/2-38.htm">Acts 2:38</a>; <a href="/acts/3-19.htm">Acts 3:19</a>; <a href="/acts/10-43.htm">Acts 10:43</a>). </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-19.htm">Acts 26:19</a></div><div class="verse">Whereupon, O king Agrippa, I was not disobedient unto the heavenly vision:</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 19.</span> - <span class="accented">Wherefore</span> for <span class="accented">whereupon</span>, A.V. <span class="cmt_word">Disobedient</span> (<span class="greek">ἀπειθής</span>); see <a href="/luke/1-17.htm">Luke 1:17</a>; <a href="/romans/1-30.htm">Romans 1:30</a>, etc. The turn of the phrase is moat skillful; as if be should say, "Can you blame me for obeying such a heavenly message? How could I act otherwise, being thus directed?" <span class="cmt_word">Vision</span> (<span class="greek">ὀπτασία</span>); <a href="/luke/1-22.htm">Luke 1:22</a>; <a href="/luke/24-23.htm">Luke 24:23</a>; <a href="/2_corinthians/12-1.htm">2 Corinthians 12:1</a>. Found also repeatedly in the LXX. of Daniel and Wisdom (comp. the use of <span class="greek">ὀπτάνω</span>, <a href="/acts/1-3.htm">Acts 1:3</a>). </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-20.htm">Acts 26:20</a></div><div class="verse">But shewed first unto them of Damascus, and at Jerusalem, and throughout all the coasts of Judaea, and <i>then</i> to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance.</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 20.</span> <span class="accented">- Declared</span> for <span class="accented">showed</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">both to them of Damascus first</span> for <span class="accented">first unto them of Damascus</span>, A.V. and T.R.; <span class="accented">country</span> for <span class="accented">coasts</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">also</span> for <span class="accented">then</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">doing</span> for <span class="accented">and do</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">worthy of</span> for <span class="accented">meet for</span>, A.V. <span class="accented"><span class="cmt_word"></span>Them of Damascus first</span>, etc. He enumerates his evangelical labors in the order in which they took place: at Damascus first, as related in <a href="/acts/9-19.htm">Acts 9:19-22</a>; then at Jerusalem, as in <a href="/acts/9-26.htm">Acts 9:26-29</a>; and then those on a larger and wider scale, among the Jews of Palestine and the heathen in all the countries which he visited. <span class="cmt_word">Throughout all the country of Judaea</span>. This does not allude to any preaching in the land of Judaea at the time of his first visit to Jerusalem (<a href="/acts/9-25.htm">Acts 9:25</a>), because he says in <a href="/galatians/1-22.htm">Galatians 1:22</a>, that at <span class="accented">that time</span>, viz. before he went into the regions of Syria and Cilicia, he was still "<span class="accented">unknown</span> by face unto the Churches of Judaea." But he had opportunities later of preaching in Judaea. For instance, the language of <a href="/acts/11-29.htm">Acts 11:29</a> suggests that such an opportunity may have arisen when Paul and Barnabas carried up the alms of the Christians at Antioch "unto the brethren that dwelt in Judaea." Another opportunity he manifestly had when he passed with Barnabas through Phoenicia and Samaria to Jerusalem, as related in <a href="/acts/15-3.htm">Acts 15:3</a>. Another, when he went from Caesarea to Jerusalem, as related in <a href="/acts/18-22.htm">Acts 18:22</a>. Again, there was room for working among the Jews in Palestine while he was staying at Caesarea "many days," and journeying to Jerusalem, as we read in <a href="/acts/21-10.htm">Acts 21:10, 15</a>. So that there is no contradiction whatever between the statement in this verse and that in <a href="/galatians/1-22.htm">Galatians 1:22</a>. The clauses in this verse are two: <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="note_emph">(1)</span> "both to them at Damascus, and at Jerusalem first;" and <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="note_emph">(2)</span> "and throughout all Judaea, and to the Gentiles." </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-21.htm">Acts 26:21</a></div><div class="verse">For these causes the Jews caught me in the temple, and went about to kill <i>me</i>.</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 21.</span> - This <span class="accented">cause</span> for <span class="accented">these causes</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">seized</span> for <span class="accented">caught</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">essayed</span> for <span class="accented">went about</span>, A.V. <span class="cmt_word">For this cause</span>. Here again is a most telling statement. "I have spent my life in trying to persuade men to repent and turn to God, and for doing so the Jews seek to kill me. Can this be right? Will not you, O King Agrippa, protect me from such an unjust requital?" <span class="cmt_word">To kill me</span>; <span class="greek">διαχειρίσασθαι</span>, here and in <a href="/acts/5-30.htm">Acts 5:30</a> only in the New Testament; not in the LXX., but in Polybius, and in Hippocrates and Galen, of surgical operations. </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-22.htm">Acts 26:22</a></div><div class="verse">Having therefore obtained help of God, I continue unto this day, witnessing both to small and great, saying none other things than those which the prophets and Moses did say should come:</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 22.</span> <span class="accented">- The help that is from God</span> for <span class="accented">help of God</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">stand</span> for <span class="accented">continue</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">testifying</span> for <span class="accented">witnessing</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">nothing but what</span> for <span class="accented">none other things than those which</span>, A.V. <span class="cmt_word">Help</span>, etc.; <span class="greek">ἐπικουρία</span>, here only and in Wisd. 13:18, still of Divine help; in medical writers frequently, of aid from medicine and physicians; common also in classical writers, of auxiliary forces. It is properly spoken of help and allies <span class="accented">from without</span> (Bengel). <span class="cmt_word">I stand</span>; <span class="accented">i.e.</span> I continue unmoved, steadfast, and, by God's help, not crushed by my enemies. <span class="cmt_word">Testifying</span>. The natural rendering of the R.T. <span class="greek">μαρτυρόμενος</span>. The T.R. <span class="greek">μαρτυρούμενος</span>, followed by <span class="greek">ὑπὸ</span>, would mean "borne witness to," "approved," as in <a href="/acts/6-3.htm">Acts 6:3</a>; <a href="/acts/10-22.htm">Acts 10:22</a>, etc., and so Meyer understands it here. But <span class="greek">μαρτυρύμενος</span> makes much better sense, and is much better supported by manuscript authority. It is in close agreement with <a href="/acts/9-15.htm">Acts 9:15</a> and <a href="/acts/22-15.htm">Acts 22:15</a>, that St Paul should thus "<span class="accented">testify"</span> to small and great. </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-23.htm">Acts 26:23</a></div><div class="verse">That Christ should suffer, <i>and</i> that he should be the first that should rise from the dead, and should shew light unto the people, and to the Gentiles.</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 23.</span> <span class="accented">- How that the Christ must</span> for <span class="accented">that Christ should</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">how that he first by the resurrection of the dead should proclaim</span> for <span class="accented">that he should be the first that should rise from the dead, and should show</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">both to</span> for <span class="accented">unto</span>, A.V. and T.R. <span class="cmt_word">How that</span> (<span class="greek">εἰ</span>); see ver. 8, note. <span class="cmt_word">Must suffer</span>; <span class="greek">ταθητός</span> only here and in profane Greek writers. The exact meaning of <span class="greek">παθητός</span> is "liable to suffering," just as <span class="greek">θνητός</span> (from <span class="greek">θνήσκω</span>) means "liable to death," <span class="accented">i.e.</span> mortal. But just as <span class="greek">θνητός</span> in use comes to mean "one who must die," so <span class="greek">παθητός</span> means "one who must suffer;" and so we read in <a href="/luke/24-26.htm">Luke 24:26</a>, <span class="greek">Οὐχὶ ἔδει παθεῖν τὸν Ξριστὸν καὶ εἰσελθεῖν</span> <span class="greek">εἰς τὴν δόξαν αὑτοῦ</span>; "Ought not Christ to have suffered," etc.? And so again in <a href="/luke/24-46.htm">Luke 24:46</a> (T.R.), <span class="greek">Ἔδει παθεῖν τὸν Ξριστὸν καὶ</span> <span class="greek">ἀναστῆναι ἐκ νεκρῶν</span>, "It behooved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead," where the turn of thought is exactly the same as here. The Vulgate renders it by <span class="accented">passibilis.</span> The Fathers (Ignatius, Polycarp, Justin Martyr) contrast the state of Christ in glory with his state in the flesh by the words <span class="greek">ἀπαθής</span> and <span class="greek">παθητός</span>, "impassible" and "passible." <span class="cmt_word">That he first by the resurrection of the dead should proclaim</span>, etc. Most commentators, from Chrysostom downwards, connect the first with the resurrection. "First from the resurrection," equal to <span class="greek">πρωτότοκος ἐκ τῶν</span> <span class="greek">νεκρῶν</span> (<a href="/colossians/1-18.htm">Colossians 1:18</a>). As Meyer truly says, "The chief stress of this sentence lies on <span class="greek">πρῶτος ἐξ ἀναστάσεως</span>." The A.V. gives the sense by a periphrasis; only it must be well understood that it was especially by being the first to rise, and so to bring life and immortality to light, that Christ showed light to the people. The words may, of course, be construed as the R.V. does, but such a rendering is not in accordance with the spirit of the passage or the analogy of other passages. Christ was the first rise, and he will be followed by them that are his. But it is not true to say that he was the first to give light to Jews and Gentiles, and will be followed by others doing the same. (For the sentiment, setup. <a href="/luke/2-32.htm">Luke 2:32</a>.) Note on the whole the enormous stress laid by St. Paul on the fulfillment of prophecy as a proof of the truth of the gospel, following therein our Lord himself (<a href="/luke/24-25.htm">Luke 24:25, 27, 44, 45</a>). </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-24.htm">Acts 26:24</a></div><div class="verse">And as he thus spake for himself, Festus said with a loud voice, Paul, thou art beside thyself; much learning doth make thee mad.</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 24.</span> <span class="accented">- Made his</span> defense for <span class="accented">spake for himself</span>, A.V. (<span class="greek">ἀπολογουμένου</span>, as ver. 2); <span class="accented">saith</span> for <span class="accented">said</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">mad</span> for <span class="accented">beside thyself</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">thy much</span> for <span class="accented">much</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">turn thee to madness</span> for <span class="accented">make thee mad</span>, A.V. <span class="cmt_word">With a loud voice</span>. Another detail, betraying the eyewitness of the scene described. <span class="cmt_word">Thou art mad</span> (<span class="greek">μαίνῃ</span>); <a href="/acts/12-15.htm">Acts 12:15</a>; <a href="/john/10-20.htm">John 10:20</a>; <a href="/1_corinthians/14-23.htm">1 Corinthians 14:23</a>. <span class="cmt_word">Much learning</span> (<span class="greek">τὰ πολλά</span> <span class="greek">γράμματα</span>). So <a href="/john/7-15.htm">John 7:15</a>, "How knoweth this man letters (<span class="greek">γράμματα</span>)?" is equivalent to Whence hath this man this wisdom? (<a href="/matthew/13-54.htm">Matthew 13:54</a>). And <span class="greek">ἀγράμματος ιν</span> <a href="/acts/4-13.htm">Acts 4:13</a> is "unlearned." The excited interruption by Festus shows that he was unable to accept the truths enunciated by the apostle. The ideas of fulfilled prophecy, and of the resurrection of the dead, and of a crucified Jew giving light to the great Roman world, were" foolishness unto him," because he lacked spiritual discernment. He thought the apostle's glowing words must be the outcome of a disordered mind. <span class="cmt_word">Turn thee to madness</span> (<span class="greek">εἰς μανίαν περιτρέπει</span>). The word <span class="greek">μανία</span> (mania) occurs only here in the New Testament. But it is the technical name in medical writers for the disease of <span class="greek">μανία</span>, mania, and is also common in classical writers. The verb for "doth turn" (<span class="greek">περιτρέπει</span>) is also peculiar to St. Luke, being found only in this place. It is used by Plato, but specially by medical writers, as is also the substantive formed from it, <span class="greek">περιτροπή</span>, spoken of the "turn" taken by a disease, and the simple verb <span class="greek">τρέπει</span> and <span class="greek">τρέπεται</span>: <span class="accented">e.g.</span> <span class="greek">ἔτρεψε γνώμην ἐς μανίην</span>: <span class="greek">ἐς</span> <span class="greek">σκυθρωππὸν ἡ μανίη τρέπεται</span>: <span class="greek">τοῖς μαινομένοισι ἄλλοτε μὲν ἐς ὀῤγὴν ἄλλοτε δὲ ἐς θυμηδίαν</span> (mirth) <span class="greek">ἡγνώμη τρέπεται</span>, etc. (Hobart, p. 468). </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-25.htm">Acts 26:25</a></div><div class="verse">But he said, I am not mad, most noble Festus; but speak forth the words of truth and soberness.</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 25.</span> <span class="accented">- Paul saith</span> for <span class="accented">he said</span>, A.V. and T.R.; <span class="accented">excellent</span> for <span class="accented">noble</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">words</span> for <span class="accented">the words</span>, A.V. <span class="cmt_word">Most excellent</span> (<span class="greek">κράτιστε</span>). It appears to be the proper title to give the procurator (see <a href="/acts/23-26.htm">Acts 23:26</a>; <a href="/acts/24-3.htm">Acts 24:3</a>). St. Luke also applies it to Theophilus (<a href="/luke/1-3.htm">Luke 1:3</a>). In classical Greek <span class="greek">οἱ κράτιστοι</span> are the aristocracy. <span class="cmt_word">Soberness</span> (<span class="greek">σωφροσύνη</span>); <span class="accented">sound</span> or <span class="accented">sober mindedness</span>; just the opposite of the <span class="greek">μανία</span> of which he was accused. See the use of <span class="greek">σωφρονεῖν</span> (<a href="/mark/5-15.htm">Mark 5:15</a>; <a href="/luke/8-35.htm">Luke 8:35</a>; <a href="/2_corinthians/5-13.htm">2 Corinthians 5:13</a>, etc.), and of <span class="greek">σωφρονίζειν</span> <span class="greek">σωφρωνισμός σώφρων</span>, etc. So also in Plato, <span class="greek">σωφρωσύνη</span> is opposed to <span class="greek">μανία</span>. </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-26.htm">Acts 26:26</a></div><div class="verse">For the king knoweth of these things, before whom also I speak freely: for I am persuaded that none of these things are hidden from him; for this thing was not done in a corner.</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 26.</span> <span class="accented">- Unto</span> for <span class="accented">before</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">is hidden</span> for are <span class="accented">hidden</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">this hath not been</span> for <span class="accented">this thing was not</span>, A.V. <span class="cmt_word">For the king</span>, etc. Something in Agrippa's manner showed St. Paul that he was not unaffected by what he had heard. And so with his usual quickness and tact he appeals to him to confirm the "words of truth and soberness" which he had just addressed to the skeptical Festus. <span class="cmt_word">I speak freely</span>. He was indeed a prisoner and in chains, as he so touchingly said (in ver. 29), but the word of God in his mouth was not bound. <span class="greek">Παρρησιαζόμενος</span> (see <a href="/acts/9-27.htm">Acts 9:27</a>; <a href="/acts/13-46.htm">Acts 13:46</a>; <a href="/acts/14-3.htm">Acts 14:3</a>; <a href="/acts/18-26.htm">Acts 18:26</a>; <a href="/acts/19-8.htm">Acts 19:8</a>; and the frequent use of <span class="greek">παρρησία</span>). </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-27.htm">Acts 26:27</a></div><div class="verse">King Agrippa, believest thou the prophets? I know that thou believest.</div><div class="comm"></div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-28.htm">Acts 26:28</a></div><div class="verse">Then Agrippa said unto Paul, Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian.</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 28.</span> <span class="accented">- And</span> for <span class="accented">then</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">with but little persuasion thou wouldest fain make me a Christian</span> for <span class="accented">almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian</span>, A.V. <span class="cmt_word">With but little persuasion</span> (<span class="greek">ἐν ὀλίγῳ κ.τ.λ</span>.). This saying of Agrippa's is obscure and variously explained. The A.V., following Chrysostom, Beza, Luther, etc., takes <span class="greek">ἐν ὀλίγῳ</span> to mean "within a little" or" almost," like the Hebrew <span class="hebrew">כִּמְעַט</span>, which is very suitable to the context. The corresponding <span class="greek">ἐν πόλλῳ</span>, or, as otherwise read, <span class="greek">ἐν</span> <span class="greek">μεγάλῳ</span> would then mean, as in the A.V., "altogether," and the sense of the whole passage is striking and appropriate. But there is some difficulty in getting Otis meaning out of the words. The natural way of expressing it would be <span class="greek">παρ ὀλίγον</span>, or <span class="greek">ὀλίγου</span>, or <span class="greek">ὀλίγον δεῖ</span>. Hence many other commentators take <span class="greek">ἐν ὀλίγῳ</span> to mean "in a short time," and the sense to be either "you are making short work of my conversion: you are persuading me to become a Christian as suddenly as you yourself did;" with a corresponding sense for <span class="greek">ἐν πόλλῳ</span>, "in a long time," <span class="accented">i.e.</span> whether it takes a short or a long time, I pray God you may become a Christian like myself;" or, "you are soon persuading me," you will soon persuade me if you go on any longer in this strain. Others, again, preferring the reading <span class="greek">ἐν μεγάλῳ</span> in ver. 29, take <span class="greek">ἐν ὀλίγῳ</span> to mean "with little trouble," or "with few words," as <a href="/ephesians/3-5.htm">Ephesians 3:5</a> (understanding <span class="greek">λόγῳ</span> or <span class="greek">πόνῳ</span>), "lightly" (Alford), and then the opposite <span class="greek">ἐν μεγάλῳ</span> would mean "with much trouble," "with many words," <span class="accented">i.e.</span> "with difficulty." But this is rather a fiat rendering. Another difference of opinion is whether the words of Agrippa are to be taken ironically, or sarcastically, or jestingly, or whether they are to be taken seriously, as the words of a man shaken in his convictions and seriously impressed by what he had heard. The whole turn of the narrative seems to favor the latter view. Another view, started by Chrysostom, is that Agrippa used the words in one sense, and St. Paul (mistakenly or advisedly) took them in another. Another possible explanation is that <span class="greek">ἐν ὀλίγῳ</span> is here used in the sense in which Thucydides employs the phrase (it. 86 and Ephesians 4:26), <span class="greek">Τὴν ἐν ὀλίγῳ ναυμάχιαν</span> and <span class="greek">Ἐν ὀλίγῳ</span> <span class="greek">στρατοπεδευομένος</span>, viz. "in a narrow place;" and that Agrippa meant to say, "By your appeal to the prophets you press me hard; you have got me into a corner. I am in a <span class="greek">στενοχωρία</span>, a ' narrow room; ' I hardly know how to get out of it." The <span class="greek">ἐν μεγάλῳ</span> would then mean a" large room," a <span class="greek">εὐρυχωρία</span> (<span class="accented"><a href="/psalms/30.htm">Psalm 30</a>:</span>8). This would suppose <span class="greek">ἐν ὀλίγῳ</span> and <span class="greek">ἐν μεγάλῳ</span> to have become proverbial phrases. </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-29.htm">Acts 26:29</a></div><div class="verse">And Paul said, I would to God, that not only thou, but also all that hear me this day, were both almost, and altogether such as I am, except these bonds.</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 29.</span> - <span class="accented">Whether with little or with much</span> for <span class="accented">both almost, and altogether</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">might become</span> for <span class="accented">were</span>, A.V. (the order of the words is also changed). <span class="cmt_word">I would to God</span>; literally, <span class="accented">I would pray to God.</span> It is not very different from the <span class="greek">ηὐχόμην</span> of <a href="/romans/9-3.htm">Romans 9:3</a>. All acknowledge the extreme beauty and taste of this reply, combining the firmness of the martyr with the courtesy of the gentleman. "Loquitur Paulus ex sensu suae beatitudinis, cum amore latissimo" (Bengel). </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-30.htm">Acts 26:30</a></div><div class="verse">And when he had thus spoken, the king rose up, and the governor, and Bernice, and they that sat with them:</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 30.</span> <span class="accented">- And the king rose up</span> for and <span class="accented">when he had thus spoken, the king, etc.</span>, A.V. and T.R. <span class="cmt_word">They that sat with them</span>. The chief captains and principal men and the royal attendants of <a href="/acts/25-23.htm">Acts 25:23</a>. </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-31.htm">Acts 26:31</a></div><div class="verse">And when they were gone aside, they talked between themselves, saying, This man doeth nothing worthy of death or of bonds.</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 31.</span> <span class="accented">- Had withdrawn</span> for <span class="accented">were gone aside</span>, A.V.; <span class="accented">spake one to another</span> for <span class="accented">talked between themselves</span>, A.V. <span class="cmt_word">Had withdrawn</span>; viz. from the public hall, the <span class="greek">ἀκροατήριον</span> of <a href="/acts/25-23.htm">Acts 25:23</a>, into the private room, "the withdrawing-room" adjoining it. There they freely talked over the trial, and all agreed that the prisoner had done nothing to deserve either death or imprisonment. Paul had made a favorable impression upon both Jews and Romans. </div> <div class="versenum"><a href="/acts/26-32.htm">Acts 26:32</a></div><div class="verse">Then said Agrippa unto Festus, This man might have been set at liberty, if he had not appealed unto Caesar.</div><div class="comm"><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 32.</span> <span class="accented">- And Agrippa said</span> for <span class="accented">then said Agrippa</span>, A.V. <span class="cmt_word">Agrippa said unto Festus</span>. Festus had consulted Agrippa, as one conversant with Jewish questions, about the case of Paul (<a href="/acts/25-14.htm">Acts 25:14-21</a>). And in the place of hearing he had publicly stated that he had brought him before King Agrippa to be examined, that, "after examination had," he might know what to write to the emperor. Accordingly Agrippa now gives it as his opinion that the prisoner might have been discharged if he had not appealed to Caesar. Festus was of the same opinion, and doubtless wrote to Nero to that effect. The result was that he was acquitted before the emperor's tribunal at Rome, at the end of two years. <span class="p"><br /><br /></span> <span class="p"><br /><br /></span> </div></div></div><div id="botbox"><div class="padbot"><div align="center">The Pulpit Commentary, Electronic Database. 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Acts 26 Pulpit Commentary