For two years no further action was taken against Paul, yet he remained a prisoner. Felix several times visited him, and listened attentively to his words. But the real motive for this apparent friendliness was a desire for gain, and he intimated to Paul that by the payment of a large sum of money he might secure his release. The apostle, however, was of too noble a nature to free himself by a bribe. He was innocent of all crime, and he would not stoop to evade the law. 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. {LP 244.2}

I to år blev der ikke gjort noget mere imod Paulus, dog forblev han en fange. Feliks besøgte ham flere gange, og lyttede opmærksomht til hans ord. Men det virkelige motiv for dette tilsyneladende venskab var et ønske om vinding, og han tilkendegav over for Paulus at han kunne løslade ham for en stor sum penge. Apostlen var dog for ældelmodig af natur til at udfri sig selv for bestikkelse. Han var uskyldig over for alle forbrydelser, og han ville ikke bøje af og overtræde loven. Derudover var han selv for fattig til at betale en sådan løsesum, og kunne han ville han ikke, for sin egen skyld, apellere til sine nyomvendtes forståelse og ædelmodighed. Han følte også at han var i Guds hænder, og han ville ikke lægge sig ud med de guddommelige planer for ham selv.