Acts 26:24-29

Acts 26:24-29 Paul’s dialogue with Festus and Agrippa

Verses 24-25: thou art beside thyself; much learning doth make thee mad. But he said, I am not mad, most noble Festus Even when Festus called him “beside thyself” and “mad” (crazy), Paul responded with respect – “most noble Festus.” He then reminded Festus that his words were not the ravings of a madman, but he spoke “words of truth and soberness.”

Verses 28-29: Of this Henry Smith states:

“In Agrippa, you shall hear what we are; in Paul, you shall see what we should be; for the king shews that he is almost a Christian, and the apostle shews that he should be altogether a Christian.”

He points to three acknowledgements Paul makes in addressing Agrippa:

A reverent title, King Agrippa.

A profitable question, Dost thou believe the prophets?

A favourable prevention, I know that thou believest.

“…almost standeth in the way before we can come to altogether…Is this altogether, like Paul, or like Festus, not at all? Now if we be almost Christians, let us see what it is to be almost a Christian. Almost a son, is a bastard; almost sweet, is unsavoury; almost hot, is lukewarm, which God spueth out of his mouth, Rev. iii. 16; so almost a Christian is not a Christian…Almost a Christian is like Jeroboam, which said, ‘It is too far to go to Jerusalem to worship,’ and therefore chose rather to worship calves at home. Almost a Christian is like Micah, which thought himself religious enough because he had gotten a priest into his house. Almost a Christian is like the Ephraimites, which could not pronounce Shibboleth, but Sibboleth.”[1] 

In this exchange of Paul with the king and the governor, one finds “almost Agrippa” and “not at all Festus.” Right preaching is about the message, not its results.

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[1] “The Dialogue Between Paul and King Agrippa,” in The Works of Henry Smith: including Sermons, Treatises, Prayers, and Poems. With Life of the Author, Vol. I, Thomas Fuller, editor, pp. 435-436, 443-444. On “Shibboleth” and “Sibboleth,” see Judges 12:5-6.