For two years no further action was taken against Paul, yet he remained a prisoner. Felix visited him several times and listened attentively to his words. But the real motive for this apparent friendliness was a desire for gain, and he intimated that by the payment of a large sum of money 427 Paul might secure his release. The apostle, however, was of too noble a nature to free himself by a bribe. He was not guilty of any crime, and he would not stoop to commit a wrong in order to gain freedom. Furthermore, he was himself too poor to pay such a ransom, had he been disposed to do so, and he would not, in his own behalf, appeal to the sympathy and generosity of his converts. He also felt that he was in the hands of God, and he would not interfere with the divine purposes respecting himself.

I to år blev der intet yderligere foretaget mod Paulus, men dog blev han ved med at være fange. Feliks besøgte ham flere gange og lyttede opmærksomt til hans ord. Men den egentlige bevæggrund til hans tilsyneladende venlighed var ønsket om vinding og han antydede, at hvis der blev betalt en stor sum penge, kunne Paulus måske blive løsladt. Men apostlen var for ædelttænkende til at ville skaffe sig friheden ved bestikkelse. Han var ikke skyldig i nogen forbrydelse og han ville ikke nedværdige sig til at begå uret for at skaffe sig friheden. Desuden var han selv for fattig til at kunne betale en sådan løsesum, selv om han skulle have haft lyst til det og han ville ikke for sin egen fordels skyld appellere til de omvendtes venlighed og gavmildhed. Han følte også, at han var i Guds hånd og han ville ikke forstyrre Guds plan med ham selv.