Acts 25:3

25:3 Requesting him to do them a favor against Paul, 1  they urged Festus 2  to summon him to Jerusalem, planning an ambush 3  to kill him along the way.

Acts 25:7

25:7 When he arrived, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem stood around him, 4  bringing many serious 5  charges that they were not able to prove. 6 

1 tn Grk “Requesting a favor against him”; the referent (Paul) has been specified in the translation, the understood direct object of “requesting” has been supplied, and the phrase “to do them” supplied for clarity.

2 tn Grk “him”; the referent (Festus) has been specified in the translation for clarity. The words “they urged him” are in v. 2 in the Greek text.

3 sn Planning an ambush. The Jewish leadership had not forgotten the original plan of several years ago (see 23:16). They did not trust the Roman legal process, but preferred to take matters into their own hands.

4 tn BDAG 801 s.v. περιίστημι 1.a has “περιέστησαν αὐτὸν οἱ ᾿Ιουδαῖοι the Judeans stood around him 25:7.”

5 tn Grk “many and serious.” The term βαρύς (barus) refers to weighty or serious charges (BDAG 167 s.v. 1).

6 tn The term ἀποδείκνυμι (apodeiknumi) in a legal context refers to legal proof (4 Macc 1:8; BDAG 108 s.v. 3).