the time of Octavius, having assumed this appellation. Cæsar, was another name assumed by the Roman emperors from Julius Cæsar, the first of them.

22. Then Agrippa said unto Festus, I would also hear the man myself. To-morrow, said he, thou shalt hear him.

Agrippa had doubtless heard of the Christians from his father, who had put James the apostle to death with the sword, and imprisoned Peter. His curiosity was, therefore, awakened to hear so illustrious an advocate of this cause as Paul, who was probably more celebrated than any of the other apostles, on account of his early opposition to Christianity.

23. And on the morrow, when Agrippa was come, and Bernice, with great pomp, and was entered into the place of hearing, i. e. the room of audience used by the governor, and not a court of justice; for Paul was not now tried, with the chief captains and principal men of the city, at Festus' commandment Paul was brought forth.

24. And Festus said, King Agrippa, and all men who are here present with us, ye see this man, about whom all the multitude of the Jews have dealt with me, "have applied to me," both at Jerusalem and also here, crying, that he ought not to live any longer.

25. But when I found that he had committed nothing worthy of death, and that he himself hath appealed to Augustus, I have determined to send him ;

26. Of whom I have no certain thing to write unto my Lord; wherefore I have brought him forth before you, and especially before thee, O king Agrippa, that after examination had, I might have somewhat to write :

As Agrippa was a Jew, and well acquainted with Jewish customs, he hoped that he might relieve him from his present embarrassment, and enable him to describe in what the peculiar nature of Paul's offence consisted.

27. For it seemeth to me unreasonable to send a prisoner, and not withal to signify the crimes laid against him.

At this time it is plain that there was no law of the Roman state,

as there was afterwards, pronouncing it a crime to be a Christian. As the followers of Jesus conformed to the law of Moses, the Romans now considered them as composing one of the sects, of all which were allowed the free exercise of their religion.

REFLECTIONS.

1. In the preceding history we see that it was an invariable maxim of Roman jurisprudence that no man should be condemned unheard, and without enjoying every aid for his defence which could arise from confronting his accusers. This is, indeed, an essential branch of criminal justice; and small is the title to the praise of equity in that judgment where it is not allowed. Happy would it be for the world, if the same regard to propriety were observed in forming a decision upon other matters. How often are actions and characters condemned by us, without our hearing what men have to offer in their defence! How often are opinions pronounced to be absurd, unscriptural, and dangerous, without inquiring into the evidence on which they are founded, or their tendency to do harm! When disputes and contentions arise, how often do men decide in favour of one party, before they hear their opponents! If their wish be to obtain a plausible excuse for censure or hatred, this method of judging is doubtless well calculated to answer their purpose; but nothing can be more hostile to their design, if they look for truth and justice. The maxim of prudence is to hear both sides of every question, and to suspend the judgment until each has been examined. It was an observation which long since suggested itself to the royal preacher, and which the experience of every day has confirmed, that "he who is first in his own cause seemeth just, but his neighbour cometh, and searcheth him."

2. Observe with what indifference men of the world look upon the most important topics and characters in religion. The illustrious captain of our salvation, the most eminent prophet who ever appeared in the world, whose distinguished endowments entitled him to the character of the Son of God, the patient martyr for the truth, the perfect pattern of human excellence, who was honoured with the privilege of being the first to rise from the grave to immortal life-this distinguished personage is, in the language of a Roman governor, one Jesus, an unknown and obscure individual. His resurrection from the dead, the most interesting event which ever took place, and which ought to have attracted the attention of all men throughout the world, is a matter about which he has formed no opinion, but must inquire. But wisdom is justified of her children. The virtuous and the good have not failed to do honour to Jesus and his doctrine in all ages.

3. How honourable to Paul is the declaration of the Roman governor! He has been detained two years in prison; his enemies have been repeatedly heard against him; all the arts of oratory have been employed to aggravate his offences, and to blacken his char

acter; he has been examined by Felix; he has been examined by Festus. But in all these trials not a shadow of guilt has been discovered; an impartial judge is ashamed to send him a prisoner to Rome, because he can find nothing to allege against him. Such, Christians, is the charactor of the first witnesses of your religion. Can you doubt their testimony? Can you believe them to be wicked impostors ?

1. THEN Agrippa said unto Paul, Thou art permitted to speak for thyself. Then Paul stretched forth the hand, and answered for himself, "made his defence."

2. I think myself happy, king Agrippa, because I shall make my defence this day before thee, touching all the things whereof I am accused of the Jews:

3. Especially, because I know thee to be expert in all customs and questions which are among the Jews whereof, I beseech thee to hear me patiently.

Agrippa was the son of Herod Agrippa, a prince who professed a great zeal for the Jewish religion, and who, no doubt, had all his children instructed in it. Beside this advantage which Agrippa enjoyed for becoming acquainted with the manners and customs of the Jews, he had the important post of commanding the temple, and disposing of the sacred money, as well as of nominating the highpriest; situations which would necessarily lead him to an intimate acquaintance with their affairs, and particularly inform him of the different sects which prevailed in the country. defence before so competent a judge, afforded Paul isfaction.

To make his peculiar sat

"since my

4. My manner of life from my youth, youth," which was at the first among my own nation at Jerusalem, know all the Jews,

5. Which knew me from the beginning, (if they would testify,) that after the most straitest sect, "the strictest sect," of our religion, I lived a Pharisee.

Paul was born at Tarsus in Cilicia, and brought up there till he was a young man, when he came to Jerusalem, to complete his education under Gamaliel. To the inhabitants of this place, therefore, he might with propriety appeal for his past conduct, and for the truth of the assertion that he was a Pharisee.

6. And now I stand, and am judged for the hope of the promise made of God unto our fathers;

7. Unto which promise our twelve tribes, instant

ly, "earnestly," serving God, day and night, hope to come; for which hope's sake, "on account of which hope," king Agrippa, I am accused of the Jews.

The hope here referred to, seems to be the hope of the Messiah, who was the subject of expectation among the Jews, at the time when the apostle spoke, as he is at the present day. The doctrine of a resurrection was disbelieved by the Sadducees; the apostle could not, therefore, say that the twelve tribes hoped to come to this promise, when he well knew that only a part of them looked for it. Besides, if he had referred to a resurrection, he could not have asked, as he does in the next verse, why they thought a resurrection from the dead impossible. To this it may be added, that it will be difficult to find any passage in the Old Testament in which a resurrection is promised by God, although intimations may perhaps be found there that it was the faith of some.

The apostle wishes to show Agrippa and the rest of his audience, that in believing in the Messiah he admitted nothing but what had been the common hope of the nation. The principal evidence of this fact was, in his judgment, the resurrection of Jesus from the dead; but this they thought incredible, as he himself had once thought. He therefore proceeds to show how his unbelief was removed; namely, by his seeing Jesus and receiving a message from him.

8. Why should it be thought a thing incredible with you that God should raise the dead?

That is, raise to life Jesus who had been put to death. Into this error he acknowledges that he himself had once fallen.

9. I verily thought with myself that I ought to do many things contrary to the name, against the name," of Jesus of Nazareth;

10. 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 them.

He speaks of persons in the plural number, as being put to death, as if they were many; but he probably refers only to one, and that Stephen.

11. And I punished them oft, or, " by punishing them oft," in every synagogue, I compelled them to blaspheme, to revile the name of Jesus; and, being exceedingly mad against them, I persecuted them, "I was pursuing them," even to strange cities.

12. Whereupon, as I went to Damascus, with authority and commission from the chief priests,

13. At mid-day, O king, I saw in the way a light from heaven, above the brightness of the sun, shining round about me and them who journeyed with me.

14. 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? it is hard for thee to kick against the goad.

This familiar proverb represented to me the folly and danger of my undertaking,

15. And I said, Who art thou, Lord? said, I am Jesus, whom thou persecutest:

And he

16. 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;

More than one instance has already occurred in the course of this history, of Jesus' appearing personally to Paul, agreeably to the declaration which he now makes. It was on some one of these occasions that he received from him the knowledge of the gospel. For says, I neither received it of man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ.*

he

17.

Delivering thee from the people, i e. the Jews, and from the Gentiles, unto whom I now send thee;

It appears hence that the apostle had a commission to preach the gospel to the Gentiles from the beginning, although he did not exercise it till some time afterwards.

18. To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God; that they might receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith in me.

By these expressions, nothing more is intended than a conversion from heathenism to Christianity. Gentiles are in the New Testament denominated sinners, and unholy; they are represented as in a state of darkness, and subject to the authority of Satan, an imaginary being, the supposed patron of wickedness. By their professing

* Galatians i. 12.