“Several days later Felix came with his wife Drusilla, who was Jewish. He had Paul summoned and listened to him speak about faith in Christ Jesus. But as he spoke about righteousness and self-control and the coming judgment, Felix became frightened and said, ‘You may go for now; when I find an opportunity I shall summon you again'” (Acts 24:23,24 NAB). What strikes us here as being highly unusual, is that the powerful Roman governor of Judea, M. Antonius Felix became frightened while listening to the prisoner Paul speak in a hearing before him. One would naturally think that Paul should be the one who is frightened, not Felix. So, the question naturally arises, why did Felix become frightened listening to Paul? 

History gives us several reasons.

“Felix’s cruelty and his accessibility to bribes (see Book of Acts 24:26) led to a great increase of crime in Judaea. The period of his rule was marked by internal feuds and disturbances, which he put down with severity. In 58, Felix hired assassins to murder Jonathan the High Priest, shortly after Jonathan took office.“—Wikipedia

“Felix and his brother had been favourite slaves of the Emperor, and so had won great power at court. At the date of this incident he had been for some five or six years the procurator of the Roman province of Judaea; and how he used his power the historian Tacitus tells us in one of his bitter sentences, in which he says, ‘He wielded his kingly authority with the spirit of a slave, in all cruelty and lust.’ He had tempted from her husband, Drusilla, the daughter of that Herod whose dreadful death is familiar to us all; and his court reeked with blood and debauchery.“—MacLarens Expositions

“The way of Christian discipleship greatly disquiets Felix, who has entered into an adulterous marriage with Drusilla, daughter of Herod Agrippa I. This marriage provides the background for the topics Paul speaks about which Felix does not want to hear“—NAB Study Bible note on Acts 24:23,24

Thus, history gives us the corroborative facts to know why Felix became frightened listening to Paul. The more that historical, archaeological and other facts come to light, the stronger the case for the Bible’s authenticity becomes, giving us every reason to accept “it for what it really is, not the word of any human being, but God’s word” (2 Thessalonians 2:13 NJB).