< Acts 22 >
1 “Brothers and fathers, listen now to my defense before you.”
My brothers and fathers, give ear to the story of my life which I now put before you.
2 When they heard him speak to them in Hebrew, they became even more silent. Then Paul declared,
And, hearing him talking in the Hebrew language, they became the more quiet, and he said,
3 “I am a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but raised in this city. I was educated at the feet of Gamaliel in strict conformity to the law of our fathers. I am just as zealous for God as any of you here today.
I am a Jew of Tarsus in Cilicia by birth, but I had my education in this town at the feet of Gamaliel, being trained in the keeping of every detail of the law of our fathers; given up to the cause of God with all my heart, as you are today.
4 I persecuted this Way even to the death, detaining both men and women and throwing them into prison,
And I made attacks on this Way, even to death, taking men and women and putting them in prison.
5 as the high priest and the whole Council can testify about me. I even obtained letters from them to their brothers in Damascus, and I was on my way to apprehend these people and bring them to Jerusalem to be punished.
Of which the high priest will be a witness, and all the rulers, from whom I had letters to the brothers; and I went into Damascus, to take those who were there as prisoners to Jerusalem for punishment.
6 About noon as I was approaching Damascus, suddenly a bright light from heaven flashed around me.
And it came about that while I was on my journey, coming near to Damascus, about the middle of the day, suddenly I saw a great light from heaven shining round me.
7 I fell to the ground and heard a voice say to me, ‘Saul, Saul, why do you persecute Me?’
And when I went down on the earth, a voice came to my ears saying to me, Saul, Saul, why are you attacking me so cruelly?
8 ‘Who are You, Lord?’ I asked. ‘I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you are persecuting,’ He replied.
And I, answering, said, Who are you; Lord? And he said to me, I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you are attacking.
9 My companions saw the light, but they could not understand the voice of the One speaking to me.
And those who were with me saw the light, but the voice of him who was talking to me came not to their ears.
10 Then I asked, ‘What should I do, Lord?’ ‘Get up and go into Damascus,’ He told me. ‘There you will be told all that you have been appointed to do.’
And I said, What have I to do, Lord? And the Lord said to me, Get up, and go into Damascus; and it will be made clear to you what you have to do.
11 Because the brilliance of the light had blinded me, my companions led me by the hand into Damascus.
And because I was unable to see because of the glory of that light, those who were with me took me by the hand, and so I came to Damascus.
12 There a man named Ananias, a devout observer of the law who was highly regarded by all the Jews living there,
And one Ananias, a God-fearing man, who kept the law, and of whom all the Jews in that place had a high opinion,
13 came and stood beside me. ‘Brother Saul,’ he said, ‘receive your sight.’ And at that moment I could see him.
Came to my side and said, Brother Saul, let your eyes be open. And in that very hour I was able to see him.
14 Then he said, ‘The God of our fathers has appointed you to know His will, and to see the Righteous One, and to hear His voice.
And he said, You have been marked out by the God of our fathers to have knowledge of his purpose, and to see the Upright One and to give ear to the words of his mouth.
15 You will be His witness to everyone of what you have seen and heard.
For you will be a witness for him to all men of what you have seen and of what has come to your ears.
16 And now what are you waiting for? Get up, be baptized, and wash your sins away, calling on His name.’
And now, why are you waiting? get up, and have baptism, for the washing away of your sins, giving worship to his name.
17 Later, when I had returned to Jerusalem and was praying at the temple, I fell into a trance
And it came about that when I had come back to Jerusalem, while I was at prayer in the Temple, my senses became more than naturally clear,
18 and saw the Lord saying to me, ‘Hurry! Leave Jerusalem quickly, because the people here will not accept your testimony about Me.’
And I saw him saying to me, Go out of Jerusalem straight away because they will not give hearing to your witness about me.
19 ‘Lord,’ I answered, ‘they know very well that in one synagogue after another I imprisoned and beat those who believed in You.
And I said, Lord, they themselves have knowledge that I went through the Synagogues putting in prison and whipping all those who had faith in you:
20 And when the blood of Your witness Stephen was shed, I stood there giving my approval and watching over the garments of those who killed him.’
And when Stephen your witness was put to death, I was there, giving approval, and looking after the clothing of those who put him to death.
21 Then He said to me, ‘Go! I will send you far away to the Gentiles.’”
And he said to me, Go, for I will send you far away to the Gentiles.
22 The crowd listened to Paul until he made this statement. Then they lifted up their voices and shouted, “Rid the earth of him! He is not fit to live!”
And they gave him a hearing as far as this word; then with loud voices they said, Away with this man from the earth; it is not right for him to be living.
23 As they were shouting and throwing off their cloaks and tossing dust into the air,
And while they were crying out, and pulling off their clothing, and sending dust into the air,
24 the commander ordered that Paul be brought into the barracks. He directed that Paul be flogged and interrogated to determine the reason for this outcry against him.
The chief captain gave orders for him to be taken into the army building, saying that he would put him to the test by whipping, so that he might have knowledge of the reason why they were crying out so violently against him.
25 But as they stretched him out to strap him down, Paul said to the centurion standing there, “Is it lawful for you to flog a Roman citizen without a trial?”
And when they had put leather bands round him, Paul said to the captain who was present, Is it the law for you to give blows to a man who is a Roman and has not been judged?
26 On hearing this, the centurion went and reported it to the commander. “What are you going to do?” he said. “This man is a Roman citizen.”
And hearing this, the man went to the chief captain and gave him an account of it, saying, What are you about to do? for this man is a Roman.
27 The commander went to Paul and asked, “Tell me, are you a Roman citizen?” “Yes,” he answered.
And the chief captain came to him and said, Give me an answer, are you a Roman? And he said, Yes.
28 “I paid a high price for my citizenship,” said the commander. “But I was born a citizen,” Paul replied.
And the chief captain said, I got Roman rights for myself at a great price. And Paul said, But I had them by birth.
29 Then those who were about to interrogate Paul stepped back, and the commander himself was alarmed when he realized that he had put a Roman citizen in chains.
Then those who were about to put him to the test went away: and the chief captain was in fear, seeing that he was a Roman, and that he had put chains on him.
30 The next day the commander, wanting to learn the real reason Paul was accused by the Jews, released him and ordered the chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin to assemble. Then he brought Paul down and had him stand before them.
But on the day after, desiring to have certain knowledge of what the Jews had to say against him, he made him free, and gave orders for the chief priests and all the Sanhedrin to come together, and he took Paul and put him before them.