Acts 26:27

26:24-32 It becomes us, on all occasions, to speak the words of truth and soberness, and then we need not be troubled at the unjust censures of men. Active and laborious followers of the gospel often have been despised as dreamers or madmen, for believing such doctrines and such wonderful facts; and for attesting that the same faith and diligence, and an experience like their own, are necessary to all men, whatever their rank, in order to their salvation. But apostles and prophets, and the Son of God himself, were exposed to this charge; and none need be moved thereby, when Divine grace has made them wise unto salvation. Agrippa saw a great deal of reason for Christianity. His understanding and judgment were for the time convinced, but his heart was not changed. And his conduct and temper were widely different from the humility and spirituality of the gospel. Many are almost persuaded to be religious, who are not quite persuaded; they are under strong convictions of their duty, and of the excellence of the ways of God, yet do not pursue their convictions. Paul urged that it was the concern of every one to become a true Christian; that there is grace enough in Christ for all. He expressed his full conviction of the truth of the gospel, the absolute necessity of faith in Christ in order to salvation. Such salvation from such bondage, the gospel of Christ offers to the Gentiles; to a lost world.

Yet it is with much difficulty that any person can be persuaded he needs a work of grace on his heart, like that which was needful for the conversion of the Gentiles. Let us beware of fatal hesitation in our own conduct; and recollect how far the being almost persuaded to be a Christian, is from being altogether such a one as every true believer is.

A rhetorical insinuation, that could not but much affect the king, and leave a sensible impression on his heart. St. Paul answers the question which he had propounded, and that in favour of Agrippa; or rather blames himself for making that a question; but his cryptical inference would then be, If you believe the prophets, why do you not believe Christ of whom they prophesied?

Acts 26:27 . Τοῖς προφήταις , the prophets ) He who believes these, must believe Paul, and Christ Himself.— οἶδα , I know ) Here Paul so holds fast the king, that he can hardly struggle against it. [This is an artifice which it is of advantage that energetic teachers should often use: but the hearer who feels himself closely pressed thereby, should not delay to yield in submission.—V. g.] Acts 26:27

27-29. believest thou the prophets? I know that thou believest—The courage and confidence here shown proceeded from a vivid persuasion of Agrippa's knowledge of the facts and faith in the predictions which they verified; and the king's reply is the highest testimony to the correctness of these presumptions and the immense power of such bold yet courteous appeals to conscience.

Acts 26:27 . Instead of adding to the “ for this was not done in a corner ” as a second reason, “and the prophets in whom the king believes have foretold it,” in the increased vehemence of his impassioned discourse (comp. Dissen, ad Dem. de cor . pp. 186, 346) Paul turns to the king with the question: Believest thou the prophets? and immediately himself answers the question with confidence: I know that thou believest! Thus with fervent earnestness he suddenly withdraws the sacred subject from merely objective contemplation, and brings it as a matter of conscience home to the king’s consciousness of faith. Paul could reasonably say without flattery, οἶδα , ὅτι πιστεύεις , since Agrippa, educated as a Jew, could not have belief in the truth of the prophecies otherwise than as a heritage of his national training, although it had in his case remained simply theory , and therefore the words of the apostle did not touch his heart , but glanced off on his polished and good-natured levity.

27 . believest thou the prophets ] Whose writings foretell these events of which I am speaking, and which have had their fulfilment in the history of Jesus of Nazareth. I know that thou believest ] The Apostle answers his own question, for he is sure that Agrippa would not have given a different answer, seeing how anxious all his family were, in spite of their relations with Rome, to be accepted of the Jewish nation. St Paul does not imply by his words any conviction about the character of Agrippa’s faith in the Scriptures.

(27) Believest thou the prophets? —The appeal to Agrippa’s knowledge was followed by the assumption of his accepting the ground on which St. Paul invited discussion. He might, of course, dispute St. Paul’s interpretation of prophecy, but he could not, as a Jew, in the presence of other Jews, speak of the Law and the Prophets as Festus had spoken of St. Paul’s “learning,” and so the way might have been opened to that argument from prophecy which, when the Apostle was reasoning with his own countrymen, was (as in Acts 13:16-41 ; Acts 18:2-3 ) his favourite method of producing conviction.

King Agrippa - This bold personal address is an instance of Paul's happy manner of appeal. He does it to bring in the testimony of Agrippa to meet the charge of Festus that he was deranged. Believest thou the prophets? - The prophecies respecting the character, the sufferings, and the death of the Messiah. I know that thou believest - Agrippa was a Jew; and, as such, he of course believed the prophets. Perhaps, too, from what Paul knew of his personal character, he might confidently affirm that he professed to be a believer. Instead, therefore, of waiting for his answer, Paul anticipated it, and said that he knew that Agrippa professed to believe all these prophecies respecting the Messiah. His design is evident. It is: (1) To meet the charge of derangement, and to bring in the testimony of Agrippa, who well understood the subject, to the importance and the truth of what he was saying. (2) to press on the conscience of his royal hearer the evidence of the Christian religion, and to secure, if possible, his conversion. "Since thou believest the prophecies, and since I have shown that they are fulfilled in Jesus of Nazareth; that he corresponds in person, character, and work, with the prophets, it follows that his religion is true." Paul lost no opportunity in pressing the truth on every class of people.

He had such a conviction of the truth of Christianity that he was deterred by no rank, station, or office; by no fear of the rich, the great, and the learned; but everywhere urged the evidence of that religion as indisputable. In this lay the secret of no small part of his success. A man who really believes the truth will be ready to defend it. A man who truly loves religion will not be ashamed of it anywhere.

Acts 26:27 . πιστεύεις ; the question and answer were quite natural as addressed to a Jewish king; it was a belief which St. Paul could justly presuppose in every Jew, even in one like Agrippa, educated amongst the Romans. The question may well have been asked as a proof that the words which had preceded were words of truth and soberness, and that the king could so regard them, even if Festus could not; if Agrippa believed the prophets—as Paul affirmed—he could not regard the fulfilment of their prophecies as irrational. Or we may view the question as taking up, after the interruption of Festus, the statement of Acts 26:22-23 , and as a forcible appeal to Agrippa, as to one who could judge whether in the death and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth there was anything really contrary to the picture of the Messiah drawn by the Hebrew prophets. It is possible that the Apostle meant to add a second ground for the knowledge of the king; not only were these events not done in a corner, but they had been prophesied by the prophets, in whom Agrippa believed; but instead of thus stating a fact, he addresses the king with increasing urgency and emotion, as one specially interested in religious questions, Acts 26:3 (Zöckler, Meyer).