SEV Biblia, Chapter 25:13
¶ Y pasados algunos días, el rey Agripa y Berenice vinieron a Cesarea a saludar a Festo.
Clarke's Bible Commentary - Acts 25:13
Verse 13. King Agrippa] This was the son of Herod Agrippa, who is mentioned chap. xii. 1. Upon the death of his father's youngest brother, Herod, he succeeded him in the kingdom of Chalcis, by the favour of the Emperor Claudius: Jos. Antiq. lib. xx. cap. 4, s. 2; and Bell. lib. ii. cap. 12, s. 1. Afterwards, Claudius removed him from that kingdom to a larger one, giving him the tetrarchy of Philip, which contained Trachonitis, Batanea, and Gaulonitis. He gave him, likewise, the tetrarchy of Lysanias, and the province which Varus had governed. Jos. Antiq. lib. xx. cap. 6, s. 1; Bell. lib. ii. cap. 19, s. 8. Nero made a farther addition, and gave him four cities, Abila, Julias in Peraea, Tarichaea and Tiberias in Galilee: Jos. Antiq. lib. xx.cap. 7, s. 4; Bell. lib. ii. cap 13, s. 2. Claudius gave him the power of appointing the high priest among the Jews; Joseph. Antiq. lib. xx. cap. 1, s. 3; and instances of his exercising this power may be seen in Joseph. Antiq. lib. xx. cap. 7, s. 8, 11. This king was strongly attached to the Romans, and did every thing in his power to prevent the Jews from rebelling against them; and, when he could not prevail, he united his troops to those of Titus, and assisted in the siege of Jerusalem: he survived the ruin of his country several years. See Bishop Pearce and Calmet.
Bernice, or, as she is sometimes called, Berenice, was sister of this Agrippa, and of the Drusilla mentioned chap. xxiv. 24: She was at first married to her uncle Herod, king of Chalcis, Jos. Antiq. lib. xix. cap. 9, s. 1; and, on his death, went to live with her brother Agrippa, with whom she was violently suspected to lead an incestuous life. Juvenal, as usual, mentions this in the broadest manner-Sat. vi. ver. 1l5: - Deinde adamas notissimus, et Berenices In digito factus pretiosior: hunc dedit olim Barbarus incestae, dedit hunc Agrippa sorori.
"Next, a most valuable diamond, rendered more precious by being put on the finger of Berenice; a barbarian gave it to this incestuous woman formerly; and Agrippa gave this to his sister." Josephus mentions the report of her having criminal conversation with her brother Agrippa, fhmhv episcoushv, oti tudelfw sunhei. To shield herself from this scandal, she persuaded Polemo, king of Cilicia, to embrace the Jewish religion, and marry her; this he was induced to do on account of her great riches; but she soon left him, and he revolted to heathenism: see Jos. Antiq. lib. xx. cap. 7, s. 3. After this, she lived often with her brother, and her life was by no means creditable; she had, however, address to ingratiate herself with Titus Vespasian, and there were even rumors of her becoming empress-propterque insignem reginae Berenices amorem, cui etiam nuptias pollicitus ferebatur.-Suet. in Vit. Titi. Which was prevented by the murmurs of the Roman people: Berenicen statim ab urbe dimisit, invitus invitam.-Ibid. Tacitus also, Hist. lib. ii. cap. 1, speaks of her love intrigue with Titus. From all accounts she must have been a woman of great address; and, upon the whole, an exceptionable character.
John Gill's Bible Commentary
Ver. 13. And after certain days , etc.] Several days after the above appeal made by Paul: King Agrippa and Bernice came unto Caesarea to salute Festus : this King Agrippa was the son of Herod Agrippa, who killed James the brother of John, and of whose death mention is made in ( Acts 12:1,2) the Jewish chronologer calls him Agrippa the Second, the son of Agrippa the First, the fifth king of the family of Herod: he was not king of Judea, this was reduced again into a province by Claudius; and upon the death of his uncle Herod, king of Chalcis, he was by the said emperor made king of that place, who afterwards removed him from thence to a greater kingdom, and gave him the tetrarchy, which was Philips, his great uncles; namely, Batanea, Trachonitis, and Gaulanitis, to which he added the kingdom of Lysanias; ((see Luke 3:1)) and the province which Varus had; and to these Nero added four cities, with what belonged to them; in Peraea, Abila and Julias, and in Galilee, Tarichea and Tiberias f1209 . The Jewish writers often make mention of him, calling him, as here, King Agrippa; (see Gill on Acts 26:3), and so does Josephus f1210 . According to the above chronologer he was had to Rome by Vespasian, when he went to be made Caesar; and was put to death by him, three years and a half before the destruction of the temple; though others say he lived some years after it: and some of the Jewish writers affirm, that in his days the temple was destroyed f1212 . Agrippa, though he was a Jew, his name was a Roman name; Augustus Caesar had a relation of this name f1213 , who had a son of the same name, and a daughter called Agrippina; and Herod the great being much obliged to the Romans, took the name from them, and gave it to one of his sons, the father of this king: the name originally was given to such persons, who at their birth came forth not with their heads first, as is the usual way of births, but with their feet first, and which is accounted a difficult birth; and ab aegritudine, from the grief, trouble, and weariness of it, such are called Agrippas f1214 . Bernice, who is said to be with King Agrippa, is not the name of a man, as some have supposed, because said to sit in the judgment hall with the king, but of a woman; so called, in the dialect of the Macedonians, for Pheronice, which signifies one that carries away the victory; and this same person is, in Suetonius f1215 , called Queen Beronice, for whom Titus the emperor is said to have a very great love, and was near upon marrying her: she was not wife of Agrippa, as the Arabic version reads, but his sister; his father left besides him, three daughters, Bernice, Mariamne, and Drusilla, which last was the wife of Felix, ( Acts 24:24). Bernice was first married to her uncle Herod, king of Chalcis f1216 , and after his death to Polemon, king of Cilicia, from whom she separated, and lived in too great familiarity with her brother Agrippa, as she had done before her second marriage, as was suspected f1217 , to which incest Juvenal refers f1218 ; and with whom she now was, who came together to pay a visit to Festus, upon his coming to his government, and to congratulate him upon it.
Matthew Henry Commentary
Verses 13-27 - Agrippa had the government of Galilee. How many unjust and hast judgments the Roman maxim, ver. #(16), condemn! This heathen, guide only by the light of nature, followed law and custom exactly, yet ho many Christians will not follow the rules of truth, justice, an charity, in judging their brethren! The questions about God's worship the way of salvation, and the truths of the gospel, may appear doubtfu and without interest, to worldly men and mere politicians. See ho slightly this Roman speaks of Christ, and of the great controvers between the Jews and the Christians. But the day is at hand when Festu and the whole world will see, that all the concerns of the Roman empir were but trifles and of no consequence, compared with this question of Christ's resurrection. Those who have had means of instruction, an have despised them, will be awfully convinced of their sin and folly Here was a noble assembly brought together to hear the truths of the gospel, though they only meant to gratify their curiosity by attendin to the defence of a prisoner. Many, even now, attend at the places of hearing the word of God with "great pomp," and too often with no bette motive than curiosity. And though ministers do not now stand a prisoners to make a defence for their lives, yet numbers affect to sin in judgment upon them, desirous to make them offenders for a word rather than to learn from them the truth and will of God, for the salvation of their souls But the pomp of this appearance was outshon by the real glory of the poor prisoner at the bar. What was the honou of their fine appearance, compared with that of Paul's wisdom, an grace, and holiness; his courage and constancy in suffering for Christ It is no small mercy to have God clear up our righteousness as the light, and our just dealing as the noon-day; to have nothing certai laid to our charge. And God makes even the enemies of his people to d them right __________________________________________________________________
Greek Textus Receptus
ημερων 2250 N-GPF δε 1161 CONJ διαγενομενων 1230 5637 V-2ADP-GPF τινων 5100 X-GPF αγριππας 67 N-NSM ο 3588 T-NSM βασιλευς 935 N-NSM και 2532 CONJ βερνικη 959 N-NSF κατηντησαν 2658 5656 V-AAI-3P εις 1519 PREP καισαρειαν 2542 N-ASF ασπασομενοι 782 5697 V-FDP-NPM τον 3588 T-ASM φηστον 5347 N-ASM
Vincent's NT Word Studies
13. Agrippa the king. Herod Agrippa II., son of the Herod whose death is recorded in Acts xii. 20-23.Bernice. Sister of Drusilla, the wife of Felix. She is said to have lived in incestuous relations with her brother. Juvenal, in his sixth satire, alludes to this: "A most notable diamond, made more precious by having been worn on the finger of Bernice. This a barbarian king once gave to his incestuous love. This Agrippa gave to his sister."
Robertson's NT Word Studies
25:13 {When certain days were passed} (hemerwn diagenomenon). Genitive absolute of diaginomai, to come between, "days intervening." {Agrippa the King} (agrippas ho basileus). Agrippa II son of Agrippa I of #Ac 12:20-23. On the death of Herod King of Chalcis A.D. 48, Claudius A.D. 50 gave this Herod Agrippa II the throne of Chalcis so that Luke is correct in calling him king, though he is not king of Judea. But he was also given by Claudius the government of the temple and the right of appointing the high priest. Later he was given also the tetrarchies of Philip and Lysanias. He was the last Jewish king in Palestine, though not king of Judea. He angered the Jews by building his palace so as to overlook the temple and by frequent changes in the high priesthood. He made his capital at Caesarea Philippi which he called Neronias in honor of Nero. Titus visited it after the fall of Jerusalem. {Bernice} (bernike). He was her brother and yet she lived with him in shameful intimacy in spite of her marriage to her uncle Herod King of Chalcis and to Polemon King of Cilicia whom she left. Schuerer calls her both a Jewish bigot and a wanton. She afterwards became the mistress of Titus. {Arrived at Caesarea} (katentesan eis kaisarian). Came down (first aorist active of katantaw) to Caesarea from Jerusalem. {And saluted Festus} (aspasamenoi ton feston). The Textus Receptus has aspasomenoi the future participle, but the correct text is the aorist middle participle aspasamenoi which cannot possibly mean subsequent action as given in the Canterbury Revision "and saluted." It can only mean contemporaneous (simultaneous) action "saluting" or antecedent action like the margin "having saluted." But antecedent action is not possible here, so that simultaneous action is the only alternative. It is to be noted that the salutation synchronized with the arrival in Caesarea (note kata, down, the effective aorist tense), not with the departure from Jerusalem, nor with the whole journey. Rightly understood the aorist participle here gives no trouble at all (Robertson, _Grammar_, pp. 861-3).
