Acts 26:12-32 English Standard Version Paul Tells of His Conversion 12 “In this connection I journeyed to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests. 13 At midday, O king, I saw on the way a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, that shone around me and those who journeyed with me. 14 And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’ 15 And I said, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ And the Lord said, ‘I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. 16 But rise and stand upon your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose, to appoint you as a servant and witness to the things in which you have seen me and to those in which I will appear to you, 17 delivering you from your people and from the Gentiles—to whom I am sending you 18 to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’ 19 “Therefore, O King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision, 20 but declared first to those in Damascus, then in Jerusalem and throughout all the region of Judea, and also to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, performing deeds in keeping with their repentance. 21 For this reason the Jews seized me in the temple and tried to kill me. 22 To this day I have had the help that comes from God, and so I stand here testifying both to small and great, saying nothing but what the prophets and Moses said would come to pass: 23 that the Christ must suffer and that, by being the first to rise from the dead, he would proclaim light both to our people and to the Gentiles.” 24 And as he was saying these things in his defense, Festus said with a loud voice, “Paul, you are out of your mind; your great learning is driving you out of your mind.” 25 But Paul said, “I am not out of my mind, most excellent Festus, but I am speaking true and rational words. 26 For the king knows about these things, and to him I speak boldly. For I am persuaded that none of these things has escaped his notice, for this has not been done in a corner. 27 King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know that you believe.” 28 And Agrippa said to Paul, “In a short time would you persuade me to be a Christian?” 29 And Paul said, “Whether short or long, I would to God that not only you but also all who hear me this day might become such as I am—except for these chains.” 30 Then the king rose, and the governor and Bernice and those who were sitting with them. 31 And when they had withdrawn, they said to one another, “This man is doing nothing to deserve death or imprisonment.” 32 And Agrippa said to Festus, “This man could have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar.” Paul is standing before King Agrippa II, the grandson of King Herod the Great, who is hearing Paul's case to help the newly appointed Roman governor Festus write a charging document to send along with Paul when they send him to Caesar, for Paul has appealed his case to Caesar since it was obvious to him that his life was in jeopardy and that was his right as a Roman citizen.
Paul starts his gospel presentation with Agrippa not at the cross or the empty tomb, but with his own changed life. He has laid the groundwork for who he used to be in the opening statements that he made in the last passage we looked at. Now he is going to tell King Agrippa about the encounter that he had with the risen, living, glorified Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ, the Son of God, and how he cannot deny the resurrection because he has seen the risen Christ, not in a vision or a dream, but in physical, bodily form. This is Paul's moment where God changed him from the inside out--what we call conversion and regeneration, and Paul could never go back to being the same man that he was before this. Paul gives specific details when recounting his Damascus Road conversion that we did not see before. First Paul tells us that Jesus spoke to him in Hebrew (only the highly-educated, scholarly, religious elites learned and spoke in Hebrew--the common people spoke a mixture of Aramaic and Greek). Jesus also tells Paul here that it is hard for him to kick against the goads, that is, that Paul is rebelling against that which Jesus is trying to use to push Paul in the right direction even though it hurts much like a rod can be used to drive an animal in the direction you want it to travel or you can poke or prick someone to get them to wake up and get moving (think of the angel that hit Peter in the side and told him to get up and get moving earlier in the book of Acts when Peter was still half-asleep when God had already removed the chains from him). God is going to use events, sometimes painful events, to push us in the direction he wants us to go--towards repentance and obedience, and being fully reliant and dependent on Him for our salvation and everything that we need for life and godliness. Paul tells King Agrippa of how he was sent as an apostle to the Gentiles to share the gospel with them that their eyes may be opened, that they may turn from darkness to light, and that they may turn from the power of Satan to God. These things would all make sense to Agrippa who was well-versed in the Old Testament where the Jews were told that they were to be a light unto the Gentiles and the idea of the Gentiles living in darkness and ignorance apart from the revelation of God and being under the influence of the power of Satan and his demons was evident. God wanted these Gentiles to to be made holy and to receive forgiveness for their sins--this was one of the main issues with the Jews because they did not want the Gentiles to be saved, but if King Agrippa is being honest, he is one of these Gentiles, for he is an Edomite. He is one of the people that the Jews wanted to keep out of the kingdom of God, but Paul is saying that he's been sent to people like King Agrippa and Festus. Paul then says that he did not and could not disobey the message that he had received through this vision. He's already laid the foundation for how he is a devout Jew who wanted to obey God's Law and do what was pleasing to Him. Now God had spoken directly to him through His Son. How could he disobey Him? Paul reiterates that it is because he was preaching the gospel to the Gentiles and because they were repenting and believing and being baptized and God was welcoming them into His family, the family that was promised to Abraham that the Jews that they had exclusive rights to, that the Jews became jealous and attacked Paul in the Temple and tried to kill him, first by their own hand, and then by the hand of the Roman authorities. Paul then tells Agrippa he should not be surprised by these things that he is saying, for it was all foretold by God through Moses and the Prophets (what we would call the Old Testament, but what the Jews would call the Scriptures and the Greeks would call the Septuagint--their Greek translation of the Old Testament). That is that Paul has declared that the Christ, that is Jesus of Nazareth, must suffer and die as a penal, substitutionary atonement for our sins, but that He would rise again on the third day, and that after rising from the dead, that He would proclaim light to both the Jews and the Gentiles alike. Agrippa seemed to understand these things, but Festus, being a Gentile with no background in the Old Testament did not. Festus though Paul to be out of his mind, and Festus interrupted Paul's presentation to let him know that he thought Paul was insane (maybe even looking for a way out of this whole ordeal by declaring Paul not fit to stand trial). Paul stops to address Festus and assures him that he is very much in his right mind and speaking intelligently and rationally, and that the words that he is speaking are true. Then he reminds Festus that his argument was being delivered to King Agrippa and Agrippa was aware of these facts and knew them to be true, even if Festus did not. Is that not part of why Festus asked Agrippa for help, since he was unaware of the issues surrounding the Jews, the Way, and the gospel? Paul says that he is sure that Agrippa has taken note of all these things that occurred in his territory because none of it was done in secret, and then Paul turns to King Agrippa and puts him in a very hard spot. He directly asks King Agrippa, "Don't you believe the Prophets? I know you do." This was Paul saying that if King Agrippa truly believed the Prophets then he would have to admit that Jesus fulfilled those prophecies and did everything according to the Scriptures just as Paul was saying. However, to deny Paul's message would be to deny the Prophets and to alienate King Agrippa from the Jews (though they did not believe in Jesus) and even his wife Berniece who was a Jew. Paul knows exactly the corner that he has painted King Agrippa into. King Agrippa responds by telling Paul he knows that Paul is trying to use this time of defending his own life to try to persuade Agrippa to become what Agrippa calls a Christian (Paul had not used that world, and it was used by the Romans as a pejorative of the followers of the Way, which they later took upon themselves with honor because it meant "little Christ" or "Christ-like"). Agrippa is asking if Paul really expected him to become one of the followers of the Way, and Paul said that he hoped that all of them listening to him that day would be like him in every way (that they would have the salvation that he experienced, that kind of testimony, and that kind of calling) with the exception that he would not wish the chains he was in on anyone--he wishes that one day they may all know God and worship him freely. At this, the king, that is King Agrippa, rose from the tribunal (a sign to say that he had heard enough and was ready to deliberate). All those in attendance rose when King Agrippa did, and the text tells us that Festus, Bernice, and Agrippa all withdrew to discuss these matters (it seems that perhaps Bernice had a lot of influence) and they all said to one another that they were now convinced that Paul and done nothing wrong and that he would have had to have been let go had he not appealed to Caesar, but there was nothing they could do now that the appeal had been made (and Paul knew that God wanted him to go before Caesar and his court to present the gospel, even if it was going to cost him his life). The next couple of chapters will tell the details of Paul's trip to Rome (apparently Luke and some others accompany Paul), and we will see Paul deliver his final message of this book as recorded by Luke at the end of chapter 28. We'll talk about this more when we get there, but the story will be left open-ended and feel like it does not have an ending or conclusion because it is not the end of the story, as the Holy Spirit is still at work within the Church to continue all the works that Jesus began when He was among us as we were told in the Gospels (see Acts 1:1-5). There is therefore a call for us to continue the work that these men started--to take the gospel to Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria, and to the uttermost ends of the earth just as Jesus commanded us to do in the Great Commission. Paul may have started that process, but there are many other people groups unknown to Paul and his companions. We have the opportunity like never before to reach the whole world with the gospel in a single generation. If someone like Luke were to follow you around and record your life, what events would be added to this story to show others what Jesus has done to you, in you, and through you? Who are the unreached and least reached peoples that you have taken the gospel to? We will never know the entirety of this story until we one day get to heaven and we will see all that Jesus has accomplished to redeem a people to Himself and put all people in subjection to Him--those in heaven and on earth and under the earth. Comments are closed.
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Daniel WestfallI will mostly use this space for recording my "journal" from my daily devotions as I hope to encourage others to read the Bible along with me and to leave a legacy for others. Archives
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