Festus said, "King Agrippa and all who are here with us: You see this man against whom all the Jewish people, both here and in Jerusalem, have brought complaints to me. They scream that he should not live any longer.

"People of Israel!" they shouted. "Help! This is the man who goes everywhere teaching everyone against the people of Israel, the Law of Moses, and this Temple. And now he has even brought some Gentiles into the Temple and defiled this holy place!"

We found this man to be a dangerous nuisance; he starts riots among Jews all over the world and is a leader of the party of the Nazarenes.

He also tried to defile the Temple, and we arrested him.

Nor can they give you proof of the accusations they now bring against me.

that you order a search to be made in the records your ancestors kept. If you do, you will discover that this city has always been rebellious and that from ancient times it has given trouble to kings and to rulers of provinces. Its people have always been hard to govern. This is why the city was destroyed.

So Haman told the king, "There is a certain race of people scattered all over your empire and found in every province. They observe customs that are not like those of any other people. Moreover, they do not obey the laws of the empire, so it is not in your best interests to tolerate them.

Don't abandon me to my enemies, who attack me with lies and threats.

Evil people testify against me and accuse me of crimes I know nothing about.

"Happy are you when people insult you and persecute you and tell all kinds of evil lies against you because you are my followers.

Be happy and glad, for a great reward is kept for you in heaven. This is how the prophets who lived before you were persecuted.

but they could not find any, even though many people came forward and told lies about him. Finally two men stepped up

The High Priest stood up and said to Jesus, "Have you no answer to give to this accusation against you?"

The chief priests were accusing Jesus of many things,

so Pilate questioned him again, "Aren't you going to answer? Listen to all their accusations!"

where they began to accuse him: "We caught this man misleading our people, telling them not to pay taxes to the Emperor and claiming that he himself is the Messiah, a king."

The chief priests and the teachers of the Law stepped forward and made strong accusations against Jesus.

Happy are you if you are insulted because you are Christ's followers; this means that the glorious Spirit, the Spirit of God, is resting on you.

However, if you suffer because you are a Christian, don't be ashamed of it, but thank God that you bear Christ's name.