Acts of the Apostles Chapter 24-1 (Bible Illustrations by Sweet Media)

In the

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts ...

, Tertullus (a modification of "Tertius") was a lawyer, who was employed by the

Jews Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

to state their case against

Paul Paul may refer to: *Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name) * Paul (surname), a list of people People Christianity *Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chri ...

in the presence of Felix (Acts 24:1-9). The charges he raised against the

apostle An apostle (), in its literal sense, is an emissary, from Ancient Greek ἀπόστολος (''apóstolos''), literally "one who is sent off", from the verb ἀποστέλλειν (''apostéllein''), "to send off". The purpose of such sending ...

were "First, that he created disturbances among the

Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

throughout the empire, an offence against the Roman government (''crimen majestatis''). Secondly, that he was a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes; disturbed the Jews in the exercise of their religion, guaranteed by the state; introduced new gods, a thing prohibited by the Romans. And thirdly, that he attempted to profane the temple, a crime which the Jews were permitted to punish." It is generally assumed that Tertullus was himself a

Hellenistic In Classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Mediterranean history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the emergence of the Roman Empire, as signified by the Battle of Actium in ...

Jew, though he could have been a Gentile. It is not certain whether the trial would have taken place in Latin or Greek. Tertullus before

Antonius Felix Antonius Felix (possibly Tiberius Claudius Antonius Felix, in Greek: ὁ Φῆλιξ; born circa 5–10) was the 4th Roman procurator of Judea Province in 52–60, in succession to Ventidius Cumanus. Life Felix was the younger brother of t ...

makes the first recorded use of the plural "Nazarenes" (the plural form of the ''Iesous ho Nazoraios'' "Jesus of Nazareth") to refer to

Christians Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words '' Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρ ...

, though the use of the term "Christians" is already used at Antioch, and by

Herod Agrippa II Herod Agrippa II (; AD 27/28 – or 100), officially named Marcus Julius Agrippa and sometimes shortened to Agrippa, was the last ruler from the Herodian dynasty, reigning over territories outside of Judea as a Roman client. Agrippa II fled ...

in the next trial of Paul before

Porcius Festus Porcius Festus was the 5th procurator of Judea from about 59 to 62, succeeding Antonius Felix. Term in office The exact time of Festus in office is not known. The earliest proposed date for the start of his term is c. 55–56, while the latest i ...

. Tertullus' use of the Greek term ''Nazoraioi'' has continuity with the Hebrew term '' Notzrim'' found in later rabbinical literature. Tertullus presumably could not use the Antioch term ''Christianoi'' (Hebrew ''Meshiykhiyyim'' משיחיים) since ''Christianoi'' from Greek ''Christos'' (literally "Anointed One", "Messiah") might imply Tertullus' recognition of Jesus of Nazareth as a Davidic "Anointed One," or "Messiah."Arthur Powell Davies (1956), ''The meaning of the Dead Sea scrolls'': "The second mention of Christianoi in the New Testament is also in the book of Acts (xxvi, 28). King Herod Agrippa says to Paul, "Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christianos." Agrippa probably meant it in derision. .. He was himself a king in Israel, an "Anointed One", and therefore quite literally a "Christos" of the existing order."

References

Attribution

* {{Authority control People in Acts of the Apostles Ancient lawyers