Acts 25:12 - Printer Friendly

ESV: Then Festus, when he had conferred with his council, answered, "To Caesar you have appealed; to Caesar you shall go."

NIV: After Festus had conferred with his council, he declared: "You have appealed to Caesar. To Caesar you will go!"

NASB: Then when Festus had conferred with his council, he answered, 'You have appealed to Caesar; to Caesar you shall go.'

CSB: Then after Festus conferred with his council, he replied, "You have appealed to Caesar; to Caesar you will go."

NLT: Festus conferred with his advisers and then replied, 'Very well! You have appealed to Caesar, and to Caesar you will go!'

KJV: Then Festus, when he had conferred with the council, answered, Hast thou appealed unto Caesar? unto Caesar shalt thou go.

NKJV: Then Festus, when he had conferred with the council, answered, “You have appealed to Caesar? To Caesar you shall go!”

Everyone wants something different. Porcius Festus, the new governor, wants a good relationship with the Jewish leaders. The previous governor had been cruel and violent. Festus would rather keep the peace by working together. He's inclined to give the Sanhedrin what they want if he can.

The Sanhedrin wants Paul dead. They failed two years ago (Acts 23:12–15), and they want another shot. If they can convince the new governor to send Paul to Jerusalem for trial, Paul can come to an untimely end along the way (Acts 25:3). Festus is only useful to them so far as he gives them what they want.

Paul wants to get out of Caesarea Maritima where he's been in custody for the last two years. Preferably, he'd like to be freed, but if that isn't going to happen, he can at least escape the Sanhedrin. When he realizes he can't trust Festus to do the right thing and clear the Sanhedrin's baseless charges, he appeals his case to Caesar (Acts 25:11).

This is almost as good for Festus as it is for Paul. Paul's fate is out of his hands—the Sanhedrin can't fault him for following Roman law. But now he has a new problem: what is he going to tell Caesar? Paul didn't do anything except argue about religion (Acts 25:19). He shouldn't have been kept for two years. Festus can't send Paul to Nero without a reason (Acts 25:26–27).

Luckily, Festus finds an ally. After a few days, King Agrippa II and his sister Bernice arrive, and they agree to listen to Paul and help determine his crime. Festus includes all the noblemen of Caesarea (Acts 25:23). Paul is not only allowed to give his testimony to Agrippa and the leaders of the district, but he nearly converts Agrippa. Agrippa agrees that Paul has done nothing, but they must honor Paul's request and send him to Rome (Acts 26).

Acts 25:6–12 shows Paul taking legal matters into his own hands. He has been incarcerated in Caesarea Maritima for two years without charges. Felix has been replaced by Festus, and the Sanhedrin return to Caesarea to see if their paltry evidence will slip by the new governor. When Festus unwittingly seems about to enable the Sanhedrin to kill Paul, Paul plays his trump card: he is a Roman citizen and he appeals to a higher court, in Rome. After a short audience with King Agrippa II and the leaders of Caesarea, Paul gets his wish (Acts 26—28).

In Acts 25, the new governor, Festus, must clean up Felix's mess. He tries to ingratiate himself with the Sanhedrin but when they ask him to bring Paul to Jerusalem for trial, he refuses. The Sanhedrin agrees to come to Caesarea Maritima, instead, to present their accusations. Festus quickly realizes they don't have a case. Yet when he hesitates to dismiss the charges, Paul appeals the case to a higher court. Festus then invites King Agrippa II, the king's sister Bernice, and the city leaders to hear Paul and determine how to justify Paul's presence before Caesar.

When Felix is called back to Rome to answer for his cruelty, he leaves a bit of a mess. Paul is still under house arrest without charges (Acts 24). When the new governor Festus refuses to exonerate him, Paul appeals to a higher court. Paul is a Roman citizen, so Festus must send him. Yet he still has no formal charges. After inviting King Agrippa II and the city leaders to hear Paul's testimony, they realize Paul has done nothing wrong and should have been released. Paul and Luke survive a harrowing sea voyage but finally arrive at Rome (Acts 27—29).

The summary of the book of Acts is provided in Jesus' words in Acts 1:8: ''But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.'' In Acts 2:1–13, the Christ-followers receive the Holy Spirit. Acts 2:14—7:60 describes the rapid growth of the church in Jerusalem. Chapters 8—12 find Jewish persecution inadvertently spreading the gospel throughout Judea and Samaria. And in chapters 13—28, Paul and his companions spread the good news throughout the Roman Empire.