The life and work of St. Paul

556 THE LIFE AND WORK OF ST. PAUL.
capital and of the last scions of that Idumean house of brilliant adventurers
who had allied themselves with the Asmonaean princes, and worn the title of
Jewish kings.
For only a day or two had elapsed after the appeal, when Agrippa II., the
last of the Herods, and his sister Berenice came down to Osesarea to pay their
respects to the new Procurator. It was a compliment which they could never
safely omit, and we find that they paid similar visits to each Procurator in
succession. The regal power of Agrippa, such as it was, depended on no
popular support, but simply and solely on the will of the Emperor. As a
breath had made him first king of Chalcis (A.D. 48), then of the tetrarchy of
Philip (AJD. 52), and finally of various other cities (A.D. 55), so on any day
a breath might unmake him. He was not, like his father, " the king of tho
Jews," and therefore St. Luke, with his usual accuracy in these details, only
calls him " "
the king but as he had succeeded his uncle Herod of ;
Chalcis in
the guardianship of the Temple, with its sacred robes, and the right of nomi-
nations to the High-priesthood, he practically became a mere gilded instrument
to keep order for the Romans, and it was essential for him to remain on good
terms with them. 1
in their turn found it desirable to flatter the harm-
They
less vanities of a phantom royalty.
During tho visit of Agrippa and Berenice to Festus, he took the opportunity
of referring to the perplexing case of the prisoner Paul. He told
Agrippa of the fury which seemed to inspire the whole Jewish people at the
mention of his name, and of the futile results of the trial just concluded.
However much the Jews might try to misrepresent the real questions at issue,
it was clear that they turned on Mosaic technicalities, 2 and " on one Jesus who
was dead, whom Paul alleged to be alive " 3 matters about which Festus had
no jurisdiction, and could not be supposed to know anything. The prisoner,
however, had refused to be tried again by the Sanhedrin, and had appealed to
the decision of the Augustus.
"I shoiild have liked myself also to hear this person," said Agrippa.*
Festus eagerly closed with the wish, and fixed the next day for the gratifica-
tion of the king's fancy.
It was not, as is commonly represented, a new trial. That would have
been, on all grounds, impossible. Agrippa was without judicial functions,
and the authority of the Procurator had been cut short by the appeal. It was
more of the nature of a private or drawing-room audience a sort of show
occasion designed for the amusement of these princely guests, and the idle
1 The Romans would have resented any neglect towards their representative, as much
as we should resent the conduct of Scindiah or Holkar if they entered the district of one
of our Indian Residents without paying their respects.
2 xxv. 19. The use of the phrase, wepi r>; ZSi'as fenm&Hfurta, "about their own religious
matters " (cf. xvii. 22), shows sufficiently that among Gentiles Agrippa was accustomed
to speak of his religion quite in the tone of a man of tho world.
* St. Luke and the early Christians were far too much in earnest in their belief to
make them shrink in the least from recording the scorn with which it was spoken of.
4 xxv. 22, 'E/3ovx6/xr)v KO.I nvTot ; cf. GaL iv. 20. It might, however, mean, "I, too,
was feeling a personal desire."