Eld Goh Kee Tai

Paul’s trials and imprisonments

Towards the end of his third missionary journey, the Apostle Paul was repeatedly warned not to go to Jerusalem to participate in the Pentecost feast (Act 20:16,22,23;21:4,11).  However, he was undeterred by bond or death for the name of the Lord Jesus Christ (Act 20:24;21:13,14). On arrival, he was well received by fellow believers and church leaders who glorified God for the work of salvation among the Gentiles in the Roman empire. However, there was a rumour that Paul had taught the Jews who lived among the Gentiles not to walk after the Mosaic laws. To refute the rumour and to preserve the unity of Christian Jews, Paul acceded to the request by the church leaders to join four other Jews who had taken the Nazarite vow in the ceremonial purification ritual and offerings required after completion of the vow in the Temple (Act 21:24).

In the Temple, certain unbelieving Jews from Asia saw Paul, and falsely accused him of desecrating the holy place by bringing the Gentiles into the inner court which was for the Jews only. This caused a large unruly crowd to gather around him in frenzied fury and violence. They also charged him for teaching all men everywhere against the Mosaic law, the Temple and the Jews (Act 21: 27,28). By divine providence, as Paul was dragged out of the Temple and being beaten, Claudius Lysias, the Roman military commander, came to know about it and he immediately arrived at the scene with his soldiers to snatch Paul away from the jaw of death (Act 21: 31,32). Paul was arrested and bound in two chains. On the way to the fortress of Antionio, he requested for permission to speak to the angry mob to defend himself, and it was granted.

Paul respectfully addressed the agitated and noisy crowd and calmly gave an account of himself, a Pharisee, trained in Jerusalem (Act 22:3). He was an exceedingly zealous practitioner of the Mosaic laws and would give his life to defend the laws and traditions of the Jewish faith. He had the reputation as the most ruthless persecutor of Christians until his miraculous conversion (Act22:8). He was transformed by the power and grace of God to the most fervent preacher of the gospel. While praying in the Temple, Christ revealed to Paul in a vision to depart from Jerusalem  and to witness to the Gentiles: ‘I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles’ (Act 22: 21). The hostile mob became extremely disgusted on hearing that the Gentiles could come to God on an equal basis as the Jews, and lifted up their voices ‘Away with such a fellow from the earth: for it is not fit that he should live’ (Act 22:22). Fearing the restless anger of the crowd might turn uncontrollable, the commander quickly took Paul away to the fortress. As he could not understand what Paul was speaking in Hebrew, and the hostile crowd reacted more violently, he believed that Paul must have committed some serious crimes worthy of death.  He ordered Paul to be scourged to force him to confess (Act 22:24). Paul then revealed that he was a Roman citizen and demanded his right to a fair trial before punishment (Act 22:25).

Trial before the Sanhedrin council

Paul was held under custody in the fortress. To get to the root cause of the Jewish unrest, the commander directed the chief priests to hear Paul’s case with their council the following day (Act 22:30). When Paul began his defence by stating that he did not feel guilty for all that he had done for Christ despite the accusations brought against him: ‘I have lived in all good conscience before God until this day’ (Act 23:1), the high priest, Ananias, who considered him a traitor and an apostate, was indignant at this bold claim and ordered the Apostle be slapped on the mouth. Paul angrily rebuked Ananias as a hypocrite: ‘God shall smite thee, thou whited wall: for sittest thou to judge me after the law, and commandest me to be smitten contrary to the law?’ (Act 23:3). As soon as he was told that Ananias was the high priest, he quickly apologised for breaking the Mosaic law (Ex 22:28) unknowingly. When Paul observed that both the Pharisees and Saduccees were present in the trial, he declared himself a Pharisee and that he was charged for preaching ‘the hope and resurrection of the dead’ (Act 23:6). This caused  a great commotion and bitter dispute in the religious court as the Pharisees believed in the resurrection of the dead, whereas the Sadducees did not. The scribes who were of the Pharisees pronounced their verdict: ‘We find no evil in this man: but if a spirit or an angel hath spoken to him, let us not fight against God’ (Act 23:9).

As the commander was concerned for the safety of Paul, he ordered his soldiers to take the prisoner back to the fortress (Act 23:10).

In the meantime, a group of more than 40 fanatical Jews conspired with the Jewish leaders to get rid of Paul. The chief priests would request the commander for Paul to appear before the council again and these evil men would then ambush and kill him (Act 23:14,15). As soon as this plot was discovered, the commander decided to refer Paul’s case to Felix, the  governor of Judaea in Caesarea. He also ordered the Jewish leaders to bring their charges against Paul who was escorted there under heavy military guard the same night (Act 23:23,30).

Trial before Governor Felix

The high priest and the elders of the council engaged a well-known barrister-in-law, Tertullus, to prosecute Paul. The attorney began by flattering the governor, known for his oppression, covetousness and cruelty, to win his goodwill and favour: ‘Seeing that by thee we enjoy great quietness, and that very worthy deeds are done unto this nation by thy providence, We accept it always, and in all places, most noble Felix, with all thankfulness’ (Act 24:2,3). He  then brought up four charges against Paul: ‘a pestilent fellow’; ‘a mover of sedition among all the Jews throughout the world’; ‘a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes’; and profaner of the temple (Act 24:5,6). He accused Paul of being a pest, a trouble-maker, disturbing the peace of the nation, and an insurrectionist who stirred up riots and rebellion among the Jews in the Roman empire. He used a despicable and contemptuous term ‘sect of the Nazarenes’ to show the great indignation and displeasures of the Jewish leaders against the followers of Jesus Christ who was from Nazareth, an insignificant place where nothing great had ever come out of it (Jn 1:46).  

For the charge against Paul’s desecration of the temple, the attorney blamed the commander for exceeding his authority by forcefully taking the Apostle away, otherwise they would have judged him according to the Mosaic laws (Act 24:6,7).

Paul waited patiently for his turn to speak. He showed courtesy and great respect for the governor as a judge for many years, and gladly defended himself with facts giving a detailed account of his activities during the 12-day period from the time of his arrival in Jerusalem to the trial in Caesarea. He ignored the first charge accusing him as a pestilent fellow. Regarding the second charge that he was a mover of sedition among the Jews, a serious crime under the Roman law, he stated that he came to Jerusalem to worship God and to fellowship with other Jews. He did not dispute with any man about religion in the temple, or incite rebellion in the synagogues or in the city (Act 24:11,12). Paul questioned why those Jews who accused him were not present as witnesses to be examined by the court (Act 24:13).

He confessed that he preached the way to salvation through Jesus of Nazareth, the Promised Messiah. But the Jews considered him a heretic (Act 25:14). Like all other Jews, Paul worshipped the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. He believed all things written in the law and in the prophets, including the doctrine of resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust, and lived a life with a conscience void of offence towards God and towards man (Act 24:15,16). He came back to Jerusalem to do good by bringing alms and offerings collected from the Gentile churches to relieve the poor in Judaea.   He asserted that he had not done anything illegal. The reason why he was accused by the Jewish leaders was because of his teaching and preaching on ‘the resurrection of the dead’ (Act 24:21).

Felix adjourned the case giving the excuse that he would obtain more details from the commander who had in fact written a letter which accompanied Paul stating his view that the prisoner was accused by the Jews of ‘questions of their law, but to have nothing laid to his charge worthy of death or of bonds’ (Act 23:29). To the great disappointment of the Jewish leaders, Paul was not condemned. To the disappointment of Paul, he was not released from captivity, as Felix was afraid that the Jews might cause unrest and rebellion.

Paul was kept under custody in Caesarea. However, he was granted much liberty to have fellowship with many of his acquaintances and other visitors and to preach the gospel (Act 24:23).  

Trial before Governor Festus

Two years later, Felix was succeeded by Porcius Festus. The new governor was prepared to please the Jews to atone the many offences he had done against them. In his visit to Jerusalem, the Jewish leaders requested him to have Paul’s trial reconvened in the city. By the providence of God, he rejected their request, but was ready to hear Paul’s case in Caesarea (Act 25:5).

At the trial, many and grievous complaints were brought against Paul, but the accusers could not provide witnesses to substantiate their charges. Paul defended himself that he had not committed any offence against the law of the Jews, the Temple and Caesar. To gain the goodwill of the Jews and as a compromise, Festus asked Paul whether or not he would be willing to return to Jerusalem to be judged there by him (Act 25:9). Paul strongly objected and made an earnest appeal as a Roman citizen for his case to be heard before Caesar in Rome: ‘I stand at Caesar’s judgment seat, where I ought to be judged: to the Jews have I done no wrong, as thou very well knowest’ (Act 25:10). Festus was caught by surprise and after legal consultation, he granted this special appeal: ‘unto Caesar shall thou go’ (Act 25:12). The governor continued to keep Paul in custody, ‘willing to shew the Jew a pleasure’ (Act 24:27).

Trial before King Herod Agrippa II

When Festus heard that Agrippa, the king of the Jews, was visiting Jerusalem, he brought Paul’s case to his attention. He briefed him that the Jews wanted Paul dead, for infringing their customs and laws and for preaching the resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth. As the king was more knowledgeable than the other Roman governors in Jewish customs and law, he might be able to provide some insights into the matter (Act 25:26,27). The hearing, presided by the king, was convened, not before the Jewish religious leaders, but high ranking Roman officials and dignitaries.

After the short introduction by Festus, Paul politely addressed the king and was thankful that the king was an expert in Jewish culture and religion, and should be able to clear the many false charges against him. He gave a personal testimony of his life, being brought up and lived as a Pharisee, adhered strictly to the Jewish traditions and Mosaic laws since his youth. With authority from the chief priests, he ruthlessly hounded Christian Jews, scourged them, threw them into prison, and compelled them to blaspheme through torture (Act 26:11). At the height of his career in persecuting Christian Jews, he was  miraculously converted by the risen Christ Himself  on his way Damascus. Paul was commissioned as an Apostle to preach to the Gentiles: ‘To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from 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’ (Act 26:18). He always preached to the Jews first and then the Gentiles ‘that they should repent and turn to God, and do works meet for repentance’(Act 26:20).Paul pointed out that it was for preaching the gospel ‘That Christ should suffer, and that he should be the first that should rise from the dead, and should shew light unto the people and to the Gentiles’ (Act 26:23), a fulfilment of the prophecies of Moses and  the prophets, that the Jews caught him in the temple and went about to kill him.

Agrippa and Festus agreed that Paul had done ‘nothing worthy of death or of bonds’ and ought to be set free (Act 26:31,32) as the gospel he preached was not a form of treason against Caesar and the Roman government. However, since he had already appealed to be heard before Caesar, the final verdict would rest on Rome.

Trial before Emperor Nero

Paul was brought to Rome with other prisoners under military escort. He arrived in Rome with joy and confidence as an ambassador for Christ. All the other prisoners were delivered to the commander of the imperial guard to await trials. By the providence of God, Paul who had a letter written by Festus and Agrippa regarding his case, was not confined to a prison cell, but permitted to dwell by himself with a soldier to guard him (Act 28:16). He was given much liberty, ‘with all freedom’ and ‘without hindrance’ for two years to meet his acquaintances and to preach the gospel, as in Caesarea: ‘And Paul dwelt two whole years in his own hired house, and received all that came in unto him, Preaching the kingdom of God, and teaching those things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ, with all confidence, no man forbidding him’ (Act 28:30,31)

Before the trial, he quickly took the opportunity to meet up with the Jewish leaders in Rome to explain his position, and his loyalty to his own people and their customs. The Roman governors and the king of the Jews had all affirmed his innocence, but the Jewish religious leaders in Jerusalem vehemently opposed it, and he was compelled to appeal to Caesar to receive justice, not to further exasperate the emperor who already had poor opinion of the nation of Israel (Act 28:17-20). During his confinement, his all-consuming concern was for the advancement of the gospel.

There was no biblical record of Paul’s trial before Caesar’s imperial court which had been delayed for more than two years. This could possibly be the Jewish accusers from Jerusalem were unable to bring in their witnesses  to substantiate their charges against Paul, and the case was dropped. It could also be that when the trial was finally convened, the accusers were unable to convince the court that Paul had committed a crime against Caesar worthy of death or of imprisonment, similar to the verdict pronounced in his trials in Caesarea (Act 26:31).

From a careful study of Paul’s four Prison Epistles (Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, and Philemon) which he wrote in AD 61, it is quite certain that he was  released from house arrest, departed from Rome and visited a number of churches and cities in his last missionary journey as recorded in his first pastoral epistles to Timothy and Titus written in AD 63 and 65, respectively, and his second epistle to Timothy in AD 66.

In AD 64, Rome was burned and Caesar Nero who reigned from AD 54-68, blamed the Christians for this catastrophe. He decreed Christianity (which was previously regarded as a sect of Judaism) an illegal religion and evangelism became a crime punishable by death. Once illegalised, Christians were persecuted not only by the unbelieving Jews, but also by the Gentiles. With this new development, Paul was subsequently re-arrested and taken to Rome. Unlike his first captivity which was in fact house-arrest, he could have been scourged, cast into the dark inner dungeon with his feet fast in the stock, similar to the situation in Philippi where he was held a prisoner without trial (Act 16:24). Based on his second pastoral epistle to Timothy,  he was cold and alone in the dungeon and his martyrdom imminent (2 Tim 4: 6). According to tradition, Paul was beheaded by Nero in AD 68.

Conclusion

The Roman governors Felix and Festus, should have released Paul after the trials, but they were more concerned with their popularity among the Jews than strict justice. Christ Himself was falsely accused by the Jewish religious leaders when He was brought before Pontius Pilate and Herod Antipas for committing crimes against the Roman laws by stirring up the people and ‘perverting the nation, and forbidding to give tribute to Caesar, saying that he himself is Christ a King’ (Lk 23:2).

In His earthly ministry, Jesus Christ warned His disciples of severe persecution by the unbelieving Jews and later the Gentiles: ‘for they will deliver you up to the councils, and they will scourge you in their synagogues; And ye shall be brought before governors and kings for my sake, for a testimony against them and the Gentiles’ (Mt 10:17,18). He  encouraged His disciples not to be concerned as to what they should say in the trials: ‘take ye no thought how or what ye shall speak: for it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak. For it is not ye that  speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you’ (Mt 19,20).  Paul’s defence in all his trials fulfilled Christ’s promise.

Of far greater significance was Paul’s testimony for the Lord in his imprisonments and trials. He continued to preach the gospel when he was in custody in Caesarea and Rome. In his trials, his testimonies for the Saviour did have an impact on Felix, while Agrippa confessed that he was almost persuaded to be a Christian. Unfortunately, both of them lost the opportunity to come to salvation in the Lord  (2 Cor 6:2). In the case of Festus, who embraced the Roman philosophy of life in worshipping power, fame and wealth, he regarded resurrection of the dead as a ‘superstition’ of the Jews and angrily cried out to Paul in his trial before Agrippa: ‘much learning doth make thee mad’ (Act 26:24).

Felix desired to know more of the gospel of salvation. After the trial, he came with his young wife, Drusilla, daughter of Herod Agrippa I (Felix’s  third wife who divorced from her husband to marry him), to meet Paul privately. Paul pointed out the need of repentance from the sins of  unrighteousness and immorality, and warned them of a day of judgment for the impenitent.  Felix trembled but there was no repentance towards God and faith in the Lord Jesus Christ, and dismissed Paul till another convenient time. While he called for further sessions with Paul, his motive was not to hear the gospel, but that Paul might bribe him to be released from custody. Like Festus, Agrippa was also unrepentant (his wife Bernice was his blood sister).

It was the sovereignty, providence and grace of God and Paul’s unwavering faith in Christ that His divine purpose and plan for him was accomplished (Act 9:15;23:11). The good hand of the Lord was with Paul and protected and delivered him from untimely death on many dangerous occasions in Jerusalem.

Paul cleaved to Christ as a zealous and faithful disciple despite ‘bonds and afflictions’. He persevered in  obedience to God’s will in his life: ‘I have fought a good fight, I have finished my course, I have kept the faith: Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing’( 2 Tim 4:7,8). Amen.