Acts 26 Summary - 5 Minute Bible Study

Acts 26 in 5 Minutes

WHEN:

• The events of Acts 26 occurred around 59 A.D.

CHARACTERS:

• Paul (Saul) – Paul was an Apostles who planted churches in the Mediterranean region.

• Porcius Festus – The 5th Roman Procurator (governor) of Judea. He replaced Antonius Felix.

• Herod Agrippa II – Last king of the Herodian Dynasty. He ruled as a client king of Rome over several territories outside of Judea.

• Berenice – Sister of Herod Agrippa II. She was the daughter of Herod Agrippa I who God killed in Acts 12.

WHERE:

• Paul spoke before Agrippa and Festus in Caesarea.

OUTLINE:

• PAUL’S DEFENSE BEFORE AGRIPPA AND BERENICE (26:1-23):

  • Chapter 26 picks up where 25 left off. Paul was standing before Festus, Agrippa, and Berenice and was about to defend himself against his Jewish accusers. 

  • Paul expressed his joy that he had the chance to defend himself before Agrippa, because Agrippa was familiar with the customs of the Jews.

  • He recounted his upbringing, how from his youth he had been in adherence to the strictest party of the Jewish faith and had lived as a Pharisee.

  • He told Agrippa about his past life, how he had punished, imprisoned, and killed Christians.

  • Paul described his zeal for persecuting Christians as a “raging fury.”

  • But everything changed when his zeal took him to Damascus.

  • He recounted how Jesus spoke to him in a “light from heaven, brighter than the sun.”

  • Paul was convinced he was doing the right thing by persecuting Christians, but Jesus showed him he had been misled.

  • Jesus told Paul he was to be God’s “servant and witness” to turn people from “darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God.”

  • Paul told Agrippa he was obedient to God’s call, and began immediately to preach in Damascus, then in Jerusalem, and in all the region of Judea.

  • It was on account of Paul’s conversion and redirected zeal that the Jews hated him and tried to kill him in the Temple.

  • Paul preached only what “the prophets and Moses said would come to pass,” that Jesus would die, resurrect, and would be a light to Jews and Gentiles.

• FESTUS AND AGRIPPA’S RESPONSE (26:24-32):

  • While Paul was speaking, Festus spoke up and told Paul his learning had made him crazy.

  • Paul told him he wasn’t crazy, rather everything he believed was rational and provable.

  • Paul knew Agrippa was familiar with the Jewish prophets and some of the facts about Jesus, so he asked him if he believed.

  • Agrippa responded, “In a short time would you persuade me to be a Christian?”

  • When Agrippa, Berenice, and Festus had exited the audience hall, they all agreed that Paul could have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar.

APPLICATION:

• Bible knowledge without a humble heart is dangerous.  

• As a Pharisee, Paul would have been very familiar with the Old Testament scriptures, yet his biased reading of them led him to miss how they all pointed to Jesus.

• We can know a lot of facts about the Bible, have parts of it memorized, and even teach it to others while living a misguided life.

• In Paul’s case, God knew his heart was honest and all he needed was a bit of correction.

• We need to make sure our hearts are open to correction so God can providentially lead us to the truth.

• Unfortunately, many who know the Bible well think they are beyond correction.