Acts 26

1 Then Agrippa said to Paul, “You [(sg)] are permitted [now] to speak [to defend] yourself.” Paul stretched out his hand ([dramatically/to salute the king]) and began to defend himself. He said,

And Agrippa said to Paul, It is permitted to thee to speak for thyself. Then Paul reaching forth his hand, proceeded with his defence:

2 “King Agrippa, I consider that I am fortunate that today, while you [(sg)] listen, I can defend myself from all the things about which the Jewish [leaders] [SYN] are accusing me.

O king Agrippa, I consider myself happy, being about this day to make my defence before thee concerning all those things of which I am accused by the Jews:

3 I am really fortunate, because you [(sg)] know all about the customs of us Jews and the questions that we [(exc)] argue about. So I ask you, please listen patiently to what I say.”

especially as thou art acquainted with all the customs and questions among the Jews: therefore I pray you to hear me patiently.

4 “Many [HYP] of my fellow Jews know about how I have conducted my life, from the time I was a child. They know how I lived in the area where I [was born] and [also later] in Jerusalem.

Moreover indeed all the Jews know my life from my youth; being from the beginning in my nation and in Jerusalem,

5 They have known for many years, and they could tell you, if they wanted to, that [since I was very young] I obeyed the customs of our religion very carefully, just like the [other] Pharisees do.

knowing me originally, if they may be willing to testify, that according to the most rigid sect of our religion I lived a Pharisee.

6 Today I am being put on trial {[they] are putting me on trial} because I am confidently expecting that God will do what he promised our [(exc)] ancestors.

And now for the hope of the promise which is from God to our fathers, I stand being judged:

7 Our twelve tribes are [also] confidently waiting for God to do [for us what he promised], as they respectfully worship him, day and night. [Respected] king, I confidently expect [that God will do what he promised, and they also believe that! But that is the reason] that these Jewish leaders [SYN] are accusing me!

unto which our twelve tribes constantly worshiping night and day, hope to attain: concerning which hope I am accused by the Jews, O king.

8 They believe that God can cause those who have died to become alive again, so (why [do any of you refuse to believe that he raised Jesus from the dead?/none of you should refuse to believe that he raised Jesus from the dead!]) [RHQ]”

Why is it judged by you incredible, if God shall raise the dead?

9 “[Formerly] I, too, was sure that I should do everything that I could to oppose Jesus [MTY], the man from Nazareth [town].

Moreover indeed, I thought to myself that I ought to do many things contrary to the name of Jesus the Nazarene:

10 So that is what I did [when I lived] in Jerusalem. I put many of the believers in jail, as the chief priests there had authorized me [to do]. When [the Jewish leaders wanted] those Christians killed {someone to kill those [Christians]}, I voted [for that].

which I did also in Jerusalem, and shut up many of the saints in prison; and having received authority from the chief priests, and they being slain, I gave my vote against them;

11 Many times I punished the believers [whom I found] in Jewish meeting places. [By punishing them], I tried to force them to speak evil [about Jesus]. I was so angry with the followers of Jesus that I even traveled to other cities to [find them and] do things to harm them.”

and throughout all the synagogues, frequently punishing them, I compelled them to blaspheme; and being exceeding mad against them, I was persecuting them even also unto foreign cities.

12 “[One day], I was on my way to Damascus [city] to do that. The chief priests [in Jerusalem] had authorized and sent me [to seize the believers there].

Meanwhile journeying to Damascus with power and authority of the chief priests, I saw on the way, O king,

13 [My respected] king, [while I was going] along the road, at about noon I saw a [bright] light in the sky. It was even brighter than the sun! It shone all around me, and also around the men who were traveling with me.

about midday, a light from heaven above the brightness of the sun, shining around me and those traveling with me;

14 We [(exc)] all fell to the ground. Then I heard the voice of someone speaking to me in my own Hebrew language [MTY]. He said ‘Saul, Saul, (stop causing me to suffer!/why are you causing me to suffer?) [RHQ] You [(sg)] are [hurting yourself by trying to hurt me] [MET], [like an ox] kicking against [its owner’s] goad.’

and we all having fallen to the ground, I heard a voice speaking to me in the Hebrew tongue, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? it is hard for thee to kick against goads.

15 Then I asked, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ The Lord said to me, ‘I am Jesus. You [(sg)] are harming me [by harming my followers].

And I said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou art persecuting.

16 But instead [of continuing to do that], stand up now! I have appeared to you [(sg)] to tell you that I have chosen you to serve me. You must tell people about [what I am showing you] as you are seeing me [now], and about what I [will show you when] I will [later] appear to you.

But rise up, and stand upon thy feet: for unto this have I appeared unto thee, to make thee a minister and a martyr both of those things which thou hast seen, and of which I will appear unto thee;

17 I will protect you [from those who will try to harm you, both] your own people and [also] those who are not Jewish. I am sending you to non-Jews

delivering thee from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom now I send thee,

18 to help them to realize [MTY] what is true and to stop believing what is false [MET]. I am sending you to them so that they may let God control them and not let Satan control them any more. [Then God] will forgive their sins and will accept them as his people because they believe in me.’ [That is what Jesus said to me].”

to open their eyes, to turn them from darkness unto light, and from the power of Satan unto God, in order that they may receive remission of sins, and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in me.

19 “So, King Agrippa, I fully obeyed [LIT] what [the Lord Jesus told me to do when he spoke to me] from heaven.

Therefore, O king, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision:

20 First, I preached to [the Jews] in Damascus. Then I [preached to the Jews] in Jerusalem and throughout [the rest of] Judea [province]. After that, I also preached to non-Jews. I preached that they must turn away from their sinful behavior and turn their lives over to God. I told them that they must do things that would show that they had truly stopped their sinful behavior.”

but first to those in Damascus, and also in Jerusalem, and throughout all the country of Judea, and to the Gentiles, I was preaching that they should repent and turn to God, doing things worthy of repentance.

21 “It is because I [preached] this message [that some] [SYN] Jews seized me [when I was] in the Temple [courtyard and] tried to kill me.

On account of these things the Jews, taking me while in the temple, endeavored to kill me.

22 However, God has been helping me [from that time, and he is still helping me] today. So I stand here and I tell [all of you people], those who are important and those who are not, [who Jesus is]. Everything that I say [about him] is what Moses and the [other] prophets wrote [about long ago, things that they said] would happen.

Then having received help from God, I have stood unto this day, witnessing both to small and great, saying nothing but what the prophets and Moses said were about to come to pass:

23 They wrote that [people would cause] the Messiah to suffer and die. They also wrote that he would be the first person to become alive again, to proclaim [the message that would be like] light, [that he would save] both [his own Jewish] people and non-Jewish people.”

how that Christ must suffer, how being the first from the resurrection of the dead, he is to proclaim light both to the people, and the Gentiles.

24 Before Paul could say anything [further] to defend himself, Festus shouted: “Paul, you are crazy! You have studied too much, and it has made you insane!”

And he making his defence to these things, Festus says with a loud voice, O Paul, thou art beside thyself; many writings turned thee into insanity.

25 But Paul answered, “Your Excellency, Festus, I am not raving [insanely]. On the contrary, what I am saying is true and sensible!

But Paul says, I am not a maniac, most noble Festus; but I speak forth the words of truth and soberness.

26 King Agrippa knows the things [that I have been talking about], and I can speak confidently to him [about them]. I am sure that he knows [LIT] these things, because people everywhere [IDM] have heard [LIT] about what happened [to Jesus].”

For the king, to whom I also speak boldly, knows concerning these things: for I am persuaded that nothing of these things is hidden; for this has not been done in a corner.

27 Then Paul asked, “King Agrippa, do you believe [what] the prophets [wrote]? I know that you [(sg)] believe it.”

O king Agrippa, dost thou believe the prophets? I know that thou believest them.

28 Then Agrippa [answered] Paul, “([I hope that you(sg)] do not think that by the few things [that you have just now said] you can persuade me to become a Christian!/You do not think, [do you], that by the few things [that you have just now said] you can persuade me to become a Christian?)” [RHQ]

And Agrippa said to Paul, With little persuasion thou dost persuade thyself to make me a Christian.

29 Paul replied, “Whether it takes a short time or a long time, it does not matter. I pray to God that you and also all of the others who are listening to me today will also [believe in Jesus] like I do, but I do not want you to become prisoners [MTY] [like I am].”

And Paul said, I would to God, that both in little and in much, not only you, but also all of those hearing me this day, were such as I am, except these bonds.

30 Then the king, the governor, Bernice, and all the others got up

And the king, and the governor, and Bernice, and those sitting with them, arose up:

31 and left [the room. While] they were talking to one another they said to each other, “There is no reason why (the authorities/we) should execute this man, or that he should even be kept in prison [MTY].”

and having gone away, they were talking to one another, saying, that This man is doing nothing worthy of death or of bonds.

32 Agrippa said to Festus, “If this man had not asked that the Emperor judge him, he could have been released {[we(inc)] could have released him}.”

But Agrippa said to Festus, This man was able to have been released, if he had not appealed to Caesar.