Acts 24:1. Ananias—descended— Or, Went down.

Acts 24:2. Tertullus began to accuse him,— Almost every word of this oration is false,—the accusation of St. Paul, the encomium on the government of Felix, and the declaration of a lawful intention in what they had done and attempted. When he says, We enjoy great quietness by thee, he probably refers to what Felix had done to clear the country of robbers and impostors; for all the historians agree that he was in every other respect a man of so bad a character, that his government was a plague to all the provinces over which he presided; and as for Judea, its state under Felix was so far from being what Tertullus here represents, that Josephus, besides what he says of the barbarous and cowardly assassination of Jonathan the high-priest by his means, declares, that the Jews accused himbefore Nero of unsufferable oppressions; and had certainly ruined him, if his brother Pallas had not interposed in his favour. We may read the next clause, and illustrious deeds are happily done to this nation by your prudent administration, which is the exact rendering of the original.

Acts 24:4. Notwithstanding,— Or, But.

Acts 24:6. Who also hath gone about to profane the temple:— Tertullus artfully mentions this as the most express fact he had to charge upon him, well knowing that the Romans allowed the Jews a power of executing, even without forms of law, any person who should be found in any such act of profanation; and he seems to have designed to make a merit of their moderation, that they intended, nevertheless, fairly to have tried him, and not to have destroyed him on the spot, as Lysias had justly charged them with attempting: and it is observable, that Tertullus no where expressly avows so much as a design to have put St. Paul to death, though it was undoubtedly intended, The expression, with great violence took him, Act 24:7 is another base and false insinuation of this orator, as if Lysias's just care of the life of a man had stopped the course of justice, and been an act of the highest outrage.

Acts 24:10. Then Paul—answered, Forasmuch, &c.— It was now about seven years since Felix entered on his government. The three articles of Tertullus's charge were sedition,—heresy,—and a profanation of the temple. St. Paul's answer exactly corresponds to each of these. As to the first he suggests, that he had not been long enough at Jerusalem to form a party, and attempt an insurrection; and challenges his accusers, in fact, to produce any evidence of such practices, Acts 24:11-13. As to the second, he confesses himself to be a Christian, but maintains that Christianity is a religion perfectly agreeable to the revelation of Moses and all the prophets, and consequently not deserving to be branded with any infamous or invidious title, Acts 24:14-16. And as for the profanation of the temple, he tells them, that on the contrary he had entered it with some peculiar rites of religious purification, and had behaved himself therein in a most peaceful and regular manner; so thathis innocence had been evident even before the sanhedrim, where the authors of the tumult did not dare to appear against him; Acts 24:17-21.

Acts 24:14. So worship I the God of my fathers,— This was a very proper plea before a Roman magistrate, as it proves that he was under the protection of the Roman laws, since the Jews were so; whereas, had he introduced the worship of new gods, he had forfeited that protection.

Acts 24:16. And herein— Εν τουτω, that is, in this work do I employ myself; or, as others render it; "In the mean time, whilst I am in this world;" or as others, (I think most probably,) "for this cause, or on this account, because I believe a resurrection, therefore, I have a conscientious care of my life, and all the actions of it." That the phrase εν τουτω sometimes signifies on this account, is shewn by Raphelius, Annot. ex Xen. p. 185.

Acts 24:18. Neither with multitude, nor with tumult:— If the apostle had disturbed other people in their religious worship, whether Jews or Gentiles, invaded their civil rights, or made any tumult, sedition, or insurrection, the Roman law would have condemned him: but as there were already several sects among the Jews, the Christians might, if considered as a new sect, differ from them all, and yet remain under the protection of the Roman law.

Acts 24:22. Having more perfect knowledge, &c.— Dr. Heylin, after many learned expositors, translates this verse thus: Felix, having heard both parties, put them off to another time, saying, When I shall be better informed concerning this sect, and the chief captain Lysias shall be here, I will inquire more narrowly into this affair. If the passage is to be understood according to our version, the meaning must be, "that Felix when he heard these things, having been more accurately informed concerning this way of Christianity, and knowing it not to be the mischievous thing which these accusers suggested, put them off."

Acts 24:23. That he should forbid none of his acquaintance— This was a circumstance graciously ordered by divine Providence, which would make St. Paul's confinement much lighter than it could otherwise have been, and gave him an opportunity of much greater usefulness. The word Υπηρετειν, rendered minister, sometimes is used for assistance in general, where personal ministration and attendance is out of the question; and as it is here distinguished from and prefixed to coming to him, it may probably signify, "Sending him food, books, or other accommodations."

Acts 24:24. His wife Drusilla,— She was the daughter of Herod Agrippa, and sister of the king Agrippa mentioned in thenext chapter. She had been married to Azizus king of the Emessenes; but Felix, being struck with her beauty which was remarkably great, made use of the agency of one Simon, a wicked Jew, who professed himself a magician, to persuade her to abandon her husband, and marry him; to which she consented, more perhaps to avoid the envy of her sister Bernice, than out of love to Felix; though Azizus had but a little before submitted to circumcision, and so embraced Judaism as the condition of the nuptials. She was afterwards consumed with the son she had by Felix, in a terrible eruption of Vesuvius.

Acts 24:25. And as he reasoned of righteousness, &c.—. How suitable this discourse was to the character and circumstances of the persons to whom it was addressed, appears sufficiently from the former note, and from the note on Act 24:2 but see more in the Inferences. It may be proper here to obviate some mistakes, and perhaps dangerous ones, which have been drawn from this passage; as if reasoning on these topics was sufficiently preaching of faith in Christ. "This (says Dr. Benson,) was St. Paul's preaching Christ, or the faith of Christ:" whereas, if the reader will cast his eye on the preceding verse, he willfind that the foundation of St. Paul's discourse was concerning that faith in Christ, the great Messiah, which this great apostle ever laid down as the ground-work of what he delivered; in strict conformity with what he himself had said,—Other foundation can no man lay, than that which is laid, namely Jesus Christ. Upon this foundation alone he always raised the amiable and important superstructure of holy and virtuous practice; and agreeably hereto, upon the present occasion, speaking of faith in Christ, as the great and important subject of his ministry, he took an opportunity from the peculiar characters of his principal hearers, to dwell upon subjects in a particular manner adapted to them, and at the same time inseparably dependant upon that faith in Christ which he preached. And undoubtedly this is the true and important method of preaching Christ; and they who think they discharge this duty properly, and imitate St. Paul's example, by preaching of righteousness, temperance, and other moral virtues, separately and independently from their living foundation, faith in Jesus, not only mistake this matter greatly, but certainly have not the least countenance from the apostle's practice in this plac
Acts 24:25. When I have a convenient season, &c.— And I will take some future opportunity to called for thee. This is fully expressed by the original. St. Paul must, no doubt, discern those marks of confusion, which would be so apparent in Felix's countenance, and which would give him some hopes of succeeding through grace in this important attempt for such a conversion, and consequently would animate him when he resumed the discourse: this must of course have increased in Felix a conviction of the apostle's innocence, and an esteem for his virtues; yet, in spite of all, he was so far from genuine repentance, that he would not do justice to St. Paul. However, the conviction might perhaps prevail so far, as to engage him to perfect in his resolution of not delivering him up to the Jews. How affecting an instance and illustration of the treachery of the human heart! See on ch. Acts 26:24.