Acts 26:1

1 And Agrippa said to Paul, It is suffered to thee, to speak for thyself. Then Paul held forth the hand, and began to yield reason.

Acts 26:1 Meaning and Commentary

Acts 26:1

Then Agrippa said unto Paul
After Festus had made the above speech to him, and to all present, and had introduced the affair of Paul, who now stood before them:

thou art permitted to speak for thyself;
which a prisoner might not do, until he had leave; and this leave was granted by Festus the Roman governor, who was properly the judge, and not Agrippa, though the permission might be by both; and so the Arabic and Ethiopic versions read, "we have ordered", or "permitted thee"

Then Paul stretched forth the hand;
as orators used to do, when they were about to speak; or else to require silence; or it may be to show the freedom of his mind, and how ready he was to embrace the opportunity of pleading his own cause; being conscious to himself of his innocence, and relying on the ingenuity and integrity of his judge; and especially of the king, before whom he stood:

and answered for himself;
or made an apology, or spoke in vindication of himself, in order to remove the charges brought against him.

Acts 26:1 In-Context

1 And Agrippa said to Paul, It is suffered to thee, to speak for thyself. Then Paul held forth the hand, and began to yield reason.

2 Of all things, in which I am accused of the Jews, thou king Agrippa, I guess me blessed at thee, when I shall defend me this day;

3 most for thou knowest all things that be among Jews, customs and questions. For which thing, I beseech, hear me patiently.

4 For all Jews that before knew me from the beginning, know my life from youth; [And soothly all Jews before-witting me from the beginning, have known my life from youth;]

5 that from the beginning was in my folk in Jerusalem, if they will bear witnessing, that by the most certain sect of our religion, I lived a Pharisee. [that from the beginning was in my folk in Jerusalem, if they will bear witness, for after the most certain sect of our religion, I lived a Pharisee.]