[Before Felix] Tertullus praised power and sharpened the charge, Paul answered calmly before the governor's chair. He confessed the Way and the hope of the dead, Then Felix grew troubled when judgment was said. [Verse I] Two years of waiting, a bribe never paid, Festus inherited the unresolved case. Jerusalem pressed for an ambush on road, But Caesar was named and the appeal would hold. [Chorus] Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian, The king heard the prophets and knew what they said. Paul stood in chains yet spoke as a witness, Of light from the risen One stronger than death. Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian, Would to God all who hear were as free from these bonds. [Before Agrippa] From strictest devotion to persecuting rage, He told of the brightness that shattered his way. To open blind eyes, turn darkness to light, And bring Gentile nations from Satan to God. [Bridge] I was not disobedient to heaven's vision, He said to the ruler who knew the tradition. Festus cried madness, but Paul answered plain: These words are of truth and a sober mind. [Final Chorus] Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian, No hidden event and no whispered defense. The prisoner questioned the king from his chains, And all rose knowing no death had been earned. [Coda] The court dismissed him, But the question remained.