Paul before Felix Agrippa

So on the next day Agrippa and Bernice came with great pomp, and they entered the audience hall with the military tribunes and the prominent men of the city. Then Festus gave the order and Paul was brought in. Agrippa said to Paul, ‘You have permission to speak for yourself.’ Then Paul stretched out his hand and began to defend himself: ‘I consider myself fortunate that it is before you, King Agrippa, I am to make my defence today against all the accusations of the Jews, because you are especially familiar with all the customs and controversies of the Jews; therefore I beg of you to listen to me patiently.

[…]

While he was making this defence, Festus exclaimed, ‘You are out of your mind, Paul! Too much learning is driving you insane!’ But Paul said, ‘I am not out of my mind, most excellent Festus, but I am speaking the sober truth. Indeed the king knows about these things, and to him I speak freely; for I am certain that none of these things has escaped his notice, for this was not done in a corner. King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know that you believe.’ Agrippa said to Paul, ‘Are you so quickly persuading me to become a Christian?’ Paul replied, ‘Whether quickly or not, I pray to God that not only you but also all who are listening to me today might become such as I am—except for these chains.’ Acts 25:23,26:1-3,26:24-29

Thornhill 923px-James_Thornhill_-_St._Paul_before_Agrippa_-_Google_Art_Project
Sir James Thornhill, St. Paul before Agrippa, c. 1710. Yale Center for British Art, New Haven, Connecticut.
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William Hogarth, Paul Before Felix, 1748. Lincoln’s Inn, London. Burlington. Print: Tate, Met, Met
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Nikolai Bodarevsky, The Apostle Paul Explains the Law before King Agrippa, 1875. Sotheby’s
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Vasily Surikov, The Apostle Paul Explains the Tenets of His Faith in the Presence of King Agrippa, his Sister Veronica, and Proconsul Festus, 1875. Tretyakov Gallery, Moscow. Wikipedia

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