Acts 23
1 Paul, looking sraight at the council, said, “Brothers, right up to now I have always conducted myself before God with a clear conscience.”
Ἀτενίσας δὲ τῷ συνεδρίῳ ὁ Παῦλος εἶπεν, Ἄνδρες ἀδελφοί, ἐγὼ πάσῃ συνειδήσει ἀγαθῇ πεπολίτευμαι τῷ θεῷ ἄχρι ταύτης τῆς ἡμέρας.
2 Ananias the high priest ordered the officers standing beside Paul to hit him on the mouth.
ὁ δὲ ἀρχιερεὺς Ἀνανίας ἐπέταξεν τοῖς παρεστῶσιν αὐτῷ τύπτειν αὐτοῦ τὸ στόμα.
3 Paul said to him, “God will hit you, you whitewashed wall! You're sitting there to judge me according to the law, and you order me to be hit in contravention of the law!”
τότε ὁ Παῦλος πρὸς αὐτὸν εἶπεν, Τύπτειν σε μέλλει ὁ θεός, τοῖχε κεκονιαμένε· καὶ σὺ κάθῃ κρίνων με κατὰ τὸν νόμον, καὶ παρανομῶν κελεύεις με τύπτεσθαι;
4 The officers standing beside Paul said, “How dare you insult the high priest!”
οἱ δὲ παρεστῶτες εἶπαν, Τὸν ἀρχιερέα τοῦ θεοῦ λοιδορεῖς;
5 “Brothers, I didn't know that he was the high priest,” Paul replied. “As Scriptures say, ‘You must not speak evil of any ruler of your people.’”
ἔφη τε ὁ Παῦλος, Οὐκ ᾔδειν, ἀδελφοί, ὅτι ἐστὶν ἀρχιερεύς· γέγραπται γὰρ ὅτι Ἄρχοντα τοῦ λαοῦ σου οὐκ ἐρεῖς κακῶς.
6 When Paul realized that some of the council were Sadducees and the others Pharisees, he shouted out, “Brothers, I am a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee! I'm on trial because of my hope in the resurrection of the dead!”
γνοὺς δὲ ὁ Παῦλος ὅτι τὸ ἓν μέρος ἐστὶν Σαδδουκαίων τὸ δὲ ἕτερον Φαρισαίων, ἔκραζεν ἐν τῷ συνεδρίῳ, Ἄνδρες ἀδελφοί, ἐγὼ Φαρισαῖός εἰμι, υἱὸς Φαρισαίων· περὶ ἐλπίδος καὶ ἀναστάσεως νεκρῶν κρίνομαι.
7 When he said this, a tremendous argument broke out between the Pharisees and Sadducees that split the council.
τοῦτο δὲ αὐτοῦ εἰπόντος ἐγένετο στάσις τῶν Φαρισαίων καὶ Σαδδουκαίων, καὶ ἐσχίσθη τὸ πλῆθος,
8 (The Sadducees say there is no resurrection from the dead, no angels, and no spirits, but Pharisees believe in all of these.)
(Σαδδουκαῖοι [μὲν] γὰρ λέγουσιν μὴ εἶναι ἀνάστασιν, μήτε ἄγγελον μήτε πνεῦμα· Φαρισαῖοι δὲ ὁμολογοῦσιν τὰ ἀμφότερα).
9 A great commotion erupted and some of the Pharisee teachers of the law stood up and argued fiercely, saying, “We find this man not guilty! Maybe a spirit spoke to him, or an angel!”
ἐγένετο δὲ κραυγὴ μεγάλη· καὶ ἀναστάντες τινὲς τῶν γραμματέων τοῦ μέρους τῶν Φαρισαίων διεμάχοντο λέγοντες, Οὐδὲν κακὸν εὑρίσκομεν ἐν τῷ ἀνθρώπῳ τούτῳ· εἰ δὲ πνεῦμα ἐλάλησεν αὐτῷ ἢ ἄγγελος;
10 The argument was getting out of hand, so the commander, concerned that they would tear Paul to pieces, ordered the soldiers to go and rescue him from them by force, and take him back into the fortress.
πολλῆς δὲ γενομένης στάσεως, φοβηθεὶς ὁ χιλίαρχος μὴ διασπασθῇ ὁ Παῦλος ὑπ᾽ αὐτῶν, ἐκέλευσεν τὸ στράτευμα καταβὰν ἁρπάσαι αὐτὸν ἐκ μέσου αὐτῶν, ἄγειν τε εἰς τὴν παρεμβολήν.
11 Afterwards, during the night, the Lord stood by Paul, and told him, “Keep up your courage! Just as you have given your testimony about me in Jerusalem, so you must be my witness in Rome as well.”
Τῇ δὲ ἐπιούσῃ νυκτὶ ἐπιστὰς αὐτῷ ὁ κύριος εἶπεν, Θάρσει· ὡς γὰρ διεμαρτύρω τὰ περὶ ἐμοῦ εἰς Ἱερουσαλήμ, οὕτως σε δεῖ καὶ εἰς Ῥώμην μαρτυρῆσαι.
12 Next day some Jews plotted together, and they took an oath not to eat or drink until they had killed Paul.
γενομένης δὲ ἡμέρας ποιήσαντες συστροφὴν οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι, ἀνεθεμάτισαν ἑαυτούς, λέγοντες μήτε φαγεῖν μήτε πιεῖν ἕως οὗ ἀποκτείνωσιν τὸν Παῦλον.
13 Over forty were part of this conspiracy.
ἦσαν δὲ πλείους τεσσεράκοντα οἱ ταύτην τὴν συνωμοσίαν ποιησάμενοι·
14 They went to the chief priests and leaders and said, “We have taken a solemn oath not to eat anything until we have killed Paul.
οἵτινες προσελθόντες τοῖς ἀρχιερεῦσιν καὶ τοῖς πρεσβυτέροις εἶπαν, Ἀναθέματι ἀνεθεματίσαμεν ἑαυτοὺς μηδενὸς γεύσασθαι ἕως οὗ ἀποκτείνωμεν τὸν Παῦλον.
15 So you and the council should send word to the commander that he should bring Paul down to meet with you, as if you wanted to examine his case in more detail. We're ready to kill him along the way.”
νῦν οὖν ὑμεῖς ἐμφανίσατε τῷ χιλιάρχῳ σὺν τῷ συνεδρίῳ, ὅπως καταγάγῃ αὐτὸν εἰς ὑμᾶς, ὡς μέλλοντας διαγινώσκειν ἀκριβέστερον τὰ περὶ αὐτοῦ· ἡμεῖς δὲ πρὸ τοῦ ἐγγίσαι αὐτὸν ἕτοιμοί ἐσμεν τοῦ ἀνελεῖν αὐτόν.
16 But Paul's nephew (his sister's son) heard about their planned ambush, and he went into the fortress and told Paul about it.
ἀκούσας δὲ ὁ υἱὸς τῆς ἀδελφῆς Παύλου τὴν ἐνέδραν, παραγενόμενος καὶ εἰσελθὼν εἰς τὴν παρεμβολὴν ἀπήγγειλεν τῷ Παύλῳ.
17 Paul called over one of the centurions, and told him, “Take this young man to the commander, because he has some information to share with him.”
προσκαλεσάμενος δὲ ὁ Παῦλος ἕνα τῶν ἑκατοντάρχων ἔφη, Τὸν νεανίαν τοῦτον ἄπαγε πρὸς τὸν χιλίαρχον· ἔχει γὰρ ἀπαγγεῖλαί τι αὐτῷ.
18 So the centurion took Paul's nephew and brought him to the commander and told him, “The prisoner Paul called me over and asked me to bring this young man to you. He has something to tell you.”
ὁ μὲν οὖν παραλαβὼν αὐτὸν ἤγαγεν πρὸς τὸν χιλίαρχον, καί φησίν, Ὁ δέσμιος Παῦλος προσκαλεσάμενός με ἠρώτησεν, τοῦτον τὸν νεανίσκον ἀγαγεῖν πρός σε, ἔχοντά τι λαλῆσαί σοι.
19 The commander took the young man by the hand and drew him aside. “What do you have to tell me?” he asked quietly.
ἐπιλαβόμενος δὲ τῆς χειρὸς αὐτοῦ ὁ χιλίαρχος, καὶ ἀναχωρήσας κατ᾽ ἰδίαν ἐπυνθάνετο, Τί ἐστιν ὃ ἔχεις ἀπαγγεῖλαί μοι;
20 “The Jews have arranged to ask you to bring Paul to the council tomorrow, as if they wanted to ask more detailed questions about his case,” he explained.
εἶπεν δὲ ὅτι Οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι συνέθεντο τοῦ ἐρωτῆσαί σε ὅπως αὔριον τὸν Παῦλον καταγάγῃς εἰς τὸ συνέδριον ὡς μέλλων τι ἀκριβέστερον πυνθάνεσθαι περὶ αὐτοῦ.
21 “Please don't listen to them, because they have planned to ambush him with more than forty men who have taken an oath not to eat or drink until they have killed him. They're ready right now, waiting for you to agree to the request.”
σὺ οὖν μὴ πεισθῇς αὐτοῖς, ἐνεδρεύουσιν γὰρ αὐτὸν ἐξ αὐτῶν ἄνδρες πλείους τεσσεράκοντα, οἵτινες ἀνεθεμάτισαν ἑαυτοὺς μήτε φαγεῖν μήτε πιεῖν ἕως οὗ ἀνέλωσιν αὐτόν, καὶ νῦν εἰσιν ἕτοιμοι προσδεχόμενοι τὴν ἀπὸ σοῦ ἐπαγγελίαν.
22 The commander sent the young man on his way, warning him, “Don't tell anyone that you've told me about this.”
ὁ μὲν οὖν χιλίαρχος ἀπέλυσεν τὸν νεανίσκον, παραγγείλας μηδενὶ ἐκλαλῆσαι ὅτι ταῦτα ἐνεφάνισας πρὸς ἐμέ.
23 He summoned two centurions and told them, “Get two hundred soldiers ready to go to Caesarea, together with seventy cavalry-men and two hundred spearmen. Be ready to leave at nine p.m. tonight.
καὶ προσκαλεσάμενός τινας δύο τῶν ἑκατοντάρχων εἶπεν, Ἑτοιμάσατε στρατιώτας διακοσίους ὅπως πορευθῶσιν ἕως Καισαρείας, καὶ ἱππεῖς ἑβδομήκοντα καὶ δεξιολάβους διακοσίους, ἀπὸ τρίτης ὥρας τῆς νυκτός,
24 Provide horses for Paul to ride to make sure he gets to Governor Felix safely.”
κτήνη τε παραστῆσαι, ἵνα ἐπιβιβάσαντες τὸν Παῦλον διασώσωσιν πρὸς Φήλικα τὸν ἡγεμόνα·
25 He also wrote a letter that went like this:
γράψας ἐπιστολὴν ἔχουσαν τὸν τύπον τοῦτον·
26 “From Claudius Lysias to His Excellency Governor Felix, greetings!
Κλαύδιος Λυσίας τῷ κρατίστῳ ἡγεμόνι Φήλικι χαίρειν.
27 This man was seized by the Jews and they were about to kill him, when I arrived on the scene with soldiers and rescued him, because I had found out he was a Roman citizen.
Τὸν ἄνδρα τοῦτον συλλημφθέντα ὑπὸ τῶν Ἰουδαίων καὶ μέλλοντα ἀναιρεῖσθαι ὐπ᾽ αὐτῶν, ἐπιστὰς σὺν τῷ στρατεύματι ἐξειλάμην μαθὼν ὅτι Ῥωμαῖός ἐστιν·
28 I wanted to know the reason for their accusations, so I took him before their council.
βουλόμενός τε ἐπιγνῶναι τὴν αἰτίαν δι᾽ ἣν ἐνεκάλουν αὐτῷ, κατήγαγον [αὐτὸν] εἰς τὸ συνέδριον αὐτῶν·
29 I found out the charges against him had to do with issues regarding their law, but he was not guilty of anything that merited death or imprisonment.
ὃν εὗρον ἐγκαλούμενον περὶ ζητημάτων τοῦ νόμου αὐτῶν, μηδὲν δὲ ἄξιον θανάτου ἢ δεσμῶν ἔχοντα ἔγκλημα.
30 When I discovered a plot against this man I sent him to you right away, ordering his accusers to make their complaints before you.”
μηνυθείσης δέ μοι ἐπιβουλῆς εἰς τὸν ἄνδρα ἔσεσθαι ἐξ αὐτῶν ἔπεμψα πρὸς σέ, παραγγείλας καὶ τοῖς κατηγόροις λέγειν πρὸς αὐτὸν ἐπὶ σοῦ.
31 So the soldiers followed their orders and took Paul overnight to Antipatris.
Οἱ μὲν οὖν στρατιῶται κατὰ τὸ διατεταγμένον αὐτοῖς, ἀναλαβόντες τὸν Παῦλον ἤγαγον διὰ νυκτὸς εἰς τὴν Ἀντιπατρίδα.
32 The next morning they sent him on with the cavalry, and went back to the fortress.
τῇ δὲ ἐπαύριον ἐάσαντες τοὺς ἱππεῖς ἀπέρχεσθαι σὺν αὐτῷ, ὑπέστρεψαν εἰς τὴν παρεμβολήν·
33 When the cavalry arrived at Caesarea they delivered the letter to the governor and brought Paul before him.
οἵτινες εἰσελθόντες εἰς τὴν Καισάρειαν, καὶ ἀναδόντες τὴν ἐπιστολὴν τῷ ἡγεμόνι, παρέστησαν καὶ τὸν Παῦλον αὐτῷ.
34 After reading the letter, the governor asked Paul what province he came from. When he learned he was from Cilicia he told Paul,
ἀναγνοὺς δὲ καὶ ἐπερωτήσας ἐκ ποίας ἐπαρχίας ἐστίν, καὶ πυθόμενος ὅτι ἀπὸ Κιλικίας,
35 “I will investigate your case when your accusers arrive.” He ordered Paul detained in Herod's palace.
Διακούσομαί σου, ἔφη, ὅταν καὶ οἱ κατήγοροί σου παραγένωνται. κελεύσας ἐν τῷ πραιτωρίῳ τοῦ Ἡρώδου φυλάσσεσθαι αὐτόν.
