Acts 25:15

Monday, 4 March 2024

“about whom the chief priests and the elders of the Jews informed me, when I was in Jerusalem, asking for a judgment against him. Acts 25:15

In the previous verse, Festus laid Paul’s case before Agrippa the king, noting that Paul had been left by Felix. He continues the thought now, saying, “about whom the chief priests and the elders of the Jews informed me.”

The words of the verse are rather clear. The entire body of the leaders of the Jews, both chief priests and elders, had a united voice against Paul. Even if they couldn’t agree on sound theology, such as their arguments concerning the resurrection of the dead, they could all agree that Paul was an enemy of their way of life. He was telling the Gentiles that they were on the same level with God as the Jews if they were in Christ.

Further, anyone not in Christ stood condemned before God. To them, this was intolerable, and it was worthy of being excommunicated from the temple and the nation. And more, in their eyes, it was worthy of death. Therefore, Festus next says, “when I was in Jerusalem.”

As Festus had just become governor, and as he had made one trip to Jerusalem, what was presented to him must have been of the highest importance to the Jews. It wasn’t like the topic was something that could wait until they had established a good working relationship.

Rather, right from the moment of his being introduced to them, they brought the issue of Paul up as an absolutely important diplomatic matter. And the issue was that they were “asking for a judgment against him.”

The Greek word is dike. It speaks of a judicial hearing, an execution of a sentence, punishment, justice, etc. It is only found elsewhere in Acts 28:4, 2 Thessalonians 1:9, and Jude 1:7. Some older texts actually have a stronger word in the Greek, katadikazo, a word implying “condemnation.”

Either way, the Jews were intent on getting their hands on Paul, and they did this through the pretext of a trial leading to judgment. However, their true intentions were to have him killed during the passage to or from Jerusalem.

Life application: The Jews wanted Paul dead. Extrabiblical writings reveal that Paul and most of the apostles were eventually martyred for their faith. The fact is, however, that we are all going to die. And that could happen at any moment.

We have no control over stopping that aspect of our existence. However, we can control what we do while we are alive. Each of us must work out our own salvation. This doesn’t mean working out getting saved or remaining saved. Rather, it means working out what we will do with the salvation we received based on faith in Jesus.

The older one gets, the more he realizes how short this life really is. A young person will look at old people and think, “Wow, they are really old.” An old person will look at a young person and think, “It was only moments ago when I was like that.” Because of this, we should consider our days and be willing to use them wisely, to the glory of God.

This is especially so because of what was already noted. We have no idea when our day of death will come. Therefore, let us be about the business of the Lord while we can. It should not be our attitude to say, “I will start living for the Lord tomorrow!” Rather, we should say, “I will live for the Lord today!”

Demonstrate the wisdom that the Bible proclaims and live out your days, starting right now, for the sake of the Lord. Each moment is a new moment to dedicate to Him. May it be so in our lives!

Lord God Almighty, help us to be wise and discerning about the lives we lead. May we forget what is past, put what we cannot change behind us, and go forward with a new and right attitude from moment to moment, honoring You and bringing glory to You all our days. Amen.