Acts 22

1 “Brothers and fathers, listen now to my defense before you.”

'Men, brethren, and fathers, hear my defence now unto you;' —

2 When they heard him speak to them in Hebrew, they became even more silent. Then Paul declared,

and they having heard that in the Hebrew dialect he was speaking to them, gave the more silence, and he saith, —

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, indeed, am a man, a Jew, having been born in Tarsus of Cilicia, and brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, having been taught according to the exactitude of a law of the fathers, being zealous of God, as all ye are to-day.

4 I persecuted this Way even to the death, detaining both men and women and throwing them into prison,

'And this way I persecuted unto death, binding and delivering up to prisons both men and women,

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.

as also the chief priest doth testify to me, and all the eldership; from whom also having received letters unto the brethren, to Damascus, I was going on, to bring also those there bound to Jerusalem that they might be punished,

6 About noon as I was approaching Damascus, suddenly a bright light from heaven flashed around me.

and it came to pass, in my going on and coming nigh to Damascus, about noon, suddenly out of the heaven there shone a great light round about me,

7 I fell to the ground and heard a voice say to me, ‘Saul, Saul, why do you persecute Me?’

I fell also to the ground, and I heard a voice saying to me, Saul, Saul, why me dost thou persecute?

8 ‘Who are You, Lord?’ I asked. ‘I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you are persecuting,’ He replied.

'And I answered, Who art thou, Lord? and he said unto me, I am Jesus the Nazarene whom thou dost persecute —

9 My companions saw the light, but they could not understand the voice of the One speaking to me.

and they who are with me the light did see, and became afraid, and the voice they heard not of him who is speaking to me —

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 shall I do, Lord? and the Lord said unto me, Having risen, go on to Damascus, and there it shall be told thee concerning all things that have been appointed for thee to do.

11 Because the brilliance of the light had blinded me, my companions led me by the hand into Damascus.

'And when I did not see from the glory of that light, being led by the hand by those who are with me, 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 a certain one, Ananias, a pious man according to the law, being testified to by all the Jews dwelling [there],

13 came and stood beside me. ‘Brother Saul,’ he said, ‘receive your sight.’ And at that moment I could see him.

having come unto me and stood by [me], said to me, Saul, brother, look up; and I the same hour did look up to 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, The God of our fathers did choose thee beforehand to know His will, and to see the Righteous One, and to hear a voice out of his mouth,

15 You will be His witness to everyone of what you have seen and heard.

because thou shalt be his witness unto all men of what thou hast seen and heard;

16 And now what are you waiting for? Get up, be baptized, and wash your sins away, calling on His name.’

and now, why tarriest thou? having risen, baptize thyself, and wash away thy sins, calling upon the name of the Lord.

17 Later, when I had returned to Jerusalem and was praying at the temple, I fell into a trance

'And it came to pass when I returned to Jerusalem, and while I was praying in the temple, I came into a trance,

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, Haste and go forth in haste out of Jerusalem, because they will not receive thy testimony concerning 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 — they know that I was imprisoning and was scourging in every synagogue those believing on thee;

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 the blood of thy witness Stephen was being poured forth, I also was standing by and assenting to his death, and keeping the garments of those putting him to death;

21 Then He said to me, ‘Go! I will send you far away to the Gentiles.’”

and he said unto me, Go, because to nations far off I will send thee.'

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 were hearing him unto this word, and they lifted up their voice, saying, 'Away from the earth with such an one; for it is not fit for him to live.'

23 As they were shouting and throwing off their cloaks and tossing dust into the air,

And they crying out and casting up their garments, and throwing 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 commanded him to be brought into the castle, saying, 'By scourges let him be examined;' that he might know for what cause they were crying so 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 as he was stretching him with the thongs, Paul said unto the centurion who was standing by, 'A man, a Roman, uncondemned — is it lawful to you to scourge;'

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 the centurion having heard, having gone near to the chief captain, told, saying, 'Take heed what thou art 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 having come near, said to him, 'Tell me, art thou 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 answered, 'I, with a great sum, did obtain this citizenship;' but Paul said, 'But I have been even born [so].'

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.

Immediately, therefore, they departed from him who are about to examine him, and the chief captain also was afraid, having learned that he is a Roman, and because he had bound 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.

and on the morrow, intending to know the certainty wherefore he is accused by the Jews, he did loose him from the bonds, and commanded the chief priests and all their sanhedrim to come, and having brought down Paul, he set [him] before them.