Kil
ἐστιν ἐν γωνίᾳ πεπραγµένον τοῦτο. 27. πιστεύεις, βασιλεῦ “Ay-
ρίππα, τοῖς προφήταις; οἶδα ὅτι πιστεύει. 28. 6 δὲ ᾽Αγρίππας
πρὸς τὸν Παῦλον ἔφη, Ἐν ὀλίγω µε πείθεις Χριστιανὸν γενέσθαι.
1 εν ολιγῳ µεπειθεις Χριστ. ποιησαι NB 13, 17, 40, 61, Syr. H., mg., Boh., Tisch., Weiss. Instead of πειθεις A, 5ο Lach., Blass (Nosgen, Belser, Alford) πειθῃ, but prob. this was an attempt to solve the difficulty of the reading given above, and with the same purpose EHLP, Vulg., Syr. P. Harcl. text, Cyr.-Jer., Chrys. have γενεσθαι for ποιησαι, so Meyer and Hilg. Both Alford and Blass, while adopting πειθῃ, read ποιησαι. W.H. (and to this view apparently Wendt inclines, 1899) think that there must be some corruption in text, see Afp., p. 100. Hort adds that possibly. πεποιθας should be read for µε πειθεις, for the personal pe loses no force by being left to implication, and the changes of letters are inconsiderable, but at the same time
he thinks it equally possible that the error may lie elsewhere.
Ver. 26. ἐπίσταται yap: here only with περί: in proof that his words were words of soberness, and that he was basing his statements on facts, St. Paul appeals to the knowledge of Agrippa, a knowledge which he would have gained from his close connection with the Jewish religion, but also to some extent perhaps from the events of his father’s reign, for Herod Agrippa had beheaded James with a sword, and had cast Peter into prison: “patet hoc,’’ says Bengel, ‘‘nam etiam Christianum nomen sciebat’’.—If καὶ is retained, ‘“‘to whom also,” ἐ.ε., because of his knowledge just mentioned.—a$- ῥησιαζ.: ‘freely,’ R.V., everywhere else R.V. renders “boldly”; verb only in Luke and Paul, see on ix. 27; the Apostle spoke freely because of the king’s full knowledge, but his boldness is also shown in his question to the king, and to the reply which he makes to it in the king’s name, ver. 27.---λανθάνειν γὰρ αὐτόν κ.τ.λ.: if οὐδέν and τι are both retained, see critical note, τι may be taken adverbially, “in any degree,” but see Winer-Moulton, lv., 9, b., and Wendt’s note, in loco, p. 399 (1899).— ἐν γωνίᾳ πεπραγ., cf Luke vii. 17, xxili. 8. Blass notes this expression, Gram., p. 4, as a proof that Paul used more literary expressions than usual in addressing his audience, and no doubt the expression was used by classical writers, cf. Plato, Gorg., 485 D; Epict., Diss., ii., 12, 17, and other instances in Wetstein, cf. angulus, Ter., Adelph., v., 2,πρ:
Ver. 27. πιστεύεις; the question and answer were quite natural as addressed to a Jewish king; it was a belief which St. Paul could justly presuppose in every Jew, even in one like Agrippa, educated amongst the Romans. ‘The question may well have been asked as a prcof that the words which had preceded were
words of truth and soberness, and that the king could so regard them, even if Festus could not; if Agrippa believed the prophets—as Paul affirmed—he could not regard the fulfilment of their pro- phecies as irrational. Or we may view the question as taking up, after the in- terruption of Festus, the statement of vv. 22, 23, and as a forcible appeal to Agrippa, as to one who could judge whether in the death and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth there was anything really con- trary to the picture of the Messiah drawn by the Hebrew prophets. It is possible that the Apostle meant to add a second ground for the knowledge of the king; not only were these events not done in a corner, but they had been prophesied by the prophets, in whom Agrippa _be- lieved; but instead of thus stating a fact, he addresses the king with increasing urgency and emotion, as one specially interested in religious questions, ver. 3 (Zockler, Meyer).