Πραξεις 23
1 Ἀτενίσας δὲ ὁ Παῦλος τῷ συνεδρίῳ εἶπεν, Ἄνδρες ἀδελφοί, ἐγὼ πάσῃ συνειδήσει ἀγαθῇ πεπολίτευμαι τῷ Θεῷ ἄχρι ταύτης τῆς ἡμέρας.
Paul, looking sraight at the council, said, “Brothers, right up to now I have always conducted myself before God with a clear conscience.”
2 Ὁ δὲ ἀρχιερεὺς Ἀνανίας ἐπέταξε τοῖς παρεστῶσιν αὐτῷ τύπτειν αὐτοῦ τὸ στόμα.
Ananias the high priest ordered the officers standing beside Paul to hit him on the mouth.
3 Τότε ὁ Παῦλος πρὸς αὐτὸν εἶπε, Τύπτειν σε μέλλει ὁ Θεός, τοῖχε κεκονιαμένε· καὶ σὺ κάθῃ κρίνων με κατὰ τὸν νόμον, καὶ παρανομῶν κελεύεις με τύπτεσθαι;
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!”
4 Οἱ δὲ παρεστῶτες εἶπον, Τὸν ἀρχιερέα τοῦ Θεοῦ λοιδορεῖς;
The officers standing beside Paul said, “How dare you insult the high priest!”
5 Ἔφη τε ὁ Παῦλος, Οὐκ ᾔδειν, ἀδελφοί, ὅτι ἐστὶν ἀρχιερεύς· γέγραπται γάρ, Ἄρχοντα τοῦ λαοῦ σου οὐκ ἐρεῖς κακῶς.
“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.’”
6 Γνοὺς δὲ ὁ Παῦλος ὅτι τὸ ἓν μέρος ἐστὶ Σαδδουκαίων, τὸ δὲ ἕτερον Φαρισαίων, ἔκραξεν ἐν τῷ συνεδρίῳ, Ἄνδρες ἀδελφοί, ἐγὼ Φαρισαῖός εἰμι, υἱὸς Φαρισαίου· περὶ ἐλπίδος καὶ ἀναστάσεως νεκρῶν ἐγὼ κρίνομαι.
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!”
7 Τοῦτο δὲ αὐτοῦ λαλήσαντος, ἐγένετο στάσις τῶν Φαρισαίων καὶ τῶν Σαδδουκαίων, καὶ ἐσχίσθη τὸ πλῆθος.
When he said this, a tremendous argument broke out between the Pharisees and Sadducees that split the council.
8 Σαδδουκαῖοι μὲν γὰρ λέγουσι μὴ εἶναι ἀνάστασιν, μηδὲ ἄγγελον, μήτε πνεῦμα· Φαρισαῖοι δὲ ὁμολογοῦσι τὰ ἀμφότερα.
(The Sadducees say there is no resurrection from the dead, no angels, and no spirits, but Pharisees believe in all of these.)
9 Ἐγένετο δὲ κραυγὴ μεγάλη· καὶ ἀναστάντες οἱ γραμματεῖς τοῦ μέρους τῶν Φαρισαίων διεμάχοντο λέγοντες, Οὐδὲν κακὸν εὑρίσκομεν ἐν τῷ ἀνθρώπῳ τούτῳ· εἰ δὲ πνεῦμα ἐλάλησεν αὐτῷ ἢ ἄγγελος, μὴ θεομαχῶμεν.
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!”
10 Πολλῆς δὲ γενομένης στάσεως, εὐλαβηθεὶς ὁ χιλίαρχος μὴ διασπασθῇ ὁ Παῦλος ὑπ᾿ αὐτῶν, ἐκέλευσε τὸ στράτευμα καταβὰν ἁρπάσαι αὐτὸν ἐκ μέσου αὐτῶν, ἄγειν τε εἰς τὴν παρεμβολήν.
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.
11 Τῇ δὲ ἐπιούσῃ νυκτὶ ἐπιστὰς αὐτῷ ὁ Κύριος εἶπε, Θάρσει Παῦλε· ὡς γὰρ διεμαρτύρω τὰ περὶ ἐμοῦ εἰς Ἱερουσαλήμ, οὕτω σε δεῖ καὶ εἰς Ῥώμην μαρτυρῆσαι.
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.”
12 Γενομένης δὲ ἡμέρας, ποιήσαντές τινες τῶν Ἰουδαίων συστροφήν, ἀνεθεμάτισαν ἑαυτούς, λέγοντες μήτε φαγεῖν μήτε πιεῖν ἕως οὗ ἀποκτείνωσι τὸν Παῦλον.
Next day some Jews plotted together, and they took an oath not to eat or drink until they had killed Paul.
13 Ἦσαν δὲ πλείους τεσσαράκοντα οἱ ταύτην τὴν συνωμοσίαν πεποιηκότες·
Over forty were part of this conspiracy.
14 οἵτινες προσελθόντες τοῖς ἀρχιερεῦσι καὶ τοῖς πρεσβυτέροις εἶπον, Ἀναθέματι ἀνεθεματίσαμεν ἑαυτούς, μηδενὸς γεύσασθαι ἕως οὗ ἀποκτείνωμεν τὸν Παῦλον.
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.
15 Νῦν οὖν ὑμεῖς ἐμφανίσατε τῷ χιλιάρχῳ σὺν τῷ συνεδρίῳ, ὅπως αὔριον αὐτὸν καταγάγῃ πρὸς ὑμᾶς, ὡς μέλλοντας διαγινώσκειν ἀκριβέστερον τὰ περὶ αὐτοῦ· ἡμεῖς δέ, πρὸ τοῦ ἐγγίσαι αὐτόν, ἕτοιμοί ἐσμεν τοῦ ἀνελεῖν αὐτόν.
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.”
16 Ἀκούσας δὲ ὁ υἱὸς τῆς ἀδελφῆς Παύλου τὴν ἐνέδραν, παραγενόμενος καὶ εἰσελθὼν εἰς τὴν παρεμβολήν, ἀπήγγειλε τῷ Παύλῳ.
But Paul's nephew (his sister's son) heard about their planned ambush, and he went into the fortress and told Paul about it.
17 Προσκαλεσάμενος δὲ ὁ Παῦλος ἕνα τῶν ἑκατοντάρχων ἔφη, Τὸν νεανίαν τοῦτον ἀπάγαγε πρὸς τὸν χιλίαρχον· ἔχει γάρ τι ἀπαγγεῖλαι αὐτῷ.
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.”
18 Ὁ μὲν οὖν παραλαβὼν αὐτὸν ἤγαγε πρὸς τὸν χιλίαρχον, καί φησιν, Ὁ δέσμιος Παῦλος προσκαλεσάμενός με ἠρώτησε τοῦτον τὸν νεανίαν ἀγαγεῖν πρός σε, ἔχοντά τι λαλῆσαί σοι.
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.”
19 Ἐπιλαβόμενος δὲ τῆς χειρὸς αὐτοῦ ὁ χιλίαρχος, καὶ ἀναχωρήσας κατ᾿ ἰδίαν ἐπυνθάνετο, Τί ἐστιν ὃ ἔχεις ἀπαγγεῖλαί μοι;
The commander took the young man by the hand and drew him aside. “What do you have to tell me?” he asked quietly.
20 Εἶπε δὲ ὅτι Οἱ Ἰουδαῖοι συνέθεντο τοῦ ἐρωτῆσαί σε, ὅπως αὔριον εἰς τὸ συνέδριον καταγάγῃς τὸν Παῦλον, ὡς μέλλοντές τι ἀκριβέστερον πυνθάνεσθαι περὶ αὐτοῦ.
“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.
21 Σὺ οὖν μὴ πεισθῇς αὐτοῖς· ἐνεδρεύουσι γὰρ αὐτὸν ἐξ αὐτῶν ἄνδρες πλείους τεσσαράκοντα, οἵτινες ἀνεθεμάτισαν ἑαυτοὺς μήτε φαγεῖν μήτε πιεῖν ἕως οὗ ἀνέλωσιν αὐτόν· καὶ νῦν ἕτοιμοί εἰσι προσδεχόμενοι τὴν ἀπὸ σοῦ ἐπαγγελίαν.
“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.”
22 Ὁ μὲν οὖν χιλίαρχος ἀπέλυσε τὸν νεανίαν, παραγγείλας Μηδενὶ ἐκλαλῆσαι ὅτι ταῦτα ἐνεφάνισας πρός με.
The commander sent the young man on his way, warning him, “Don't tell anyone that you've told me about this.”
23 Καὶ προσκαλεσάμενος δύο τινὰς τῶν ἑκατοντάρχων εἶπεν, Ἑτοιμάσατε στρατιώτας διακοσίους ὅπως πορευθῶσιν ἕως Καισαρείας, καὶ ἱππεῖς ἑβδομήκοντα, καὶ δεξιολάβους διακοσίους, ἀπὸ τρίτης ὥρας τῆς νυκτός·
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.
24 κτήνη τε παραστῆσαι, ἵνα ἐπιβιβάσαντες τὸν Παῦλον διασώσωσι πρὸς Φήλικα τὸν ἡγεμόνα·
Provide horses for Paul to ride to make sure he gets to Governor Felix safely.”
25 γράψας ἐπιστολὴν περιέχουσαν τὸν τύπον τοῦτον·
He also wrote a letter that went like this:
26 Κλαύδιος Λυσίας τῷ κρατίστῳ ἡγεμόνι Φήλικι χαίρειν.
“From Claudius Lysias to His Excellency Governor Felix, greetings!
27 Τὸν ἄνδρα τοῦτον συλληφθέντα ὑπὸ τῶν Ἰουδαίων, καὶ μέλλοντα ἀναιρεῖσθαι ὑπ᾿ αὐτῶν, ἐπιστὰς σὺν τῷ στρατεύματι ἐξειλόμην αὐτόν, μαθὼν ὅτι Ῥωμαῖός ἐστι.
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.
28 Βουλόμενος δὲ γνῶναι τὴν αἰτίαν δι᾿ ἣν ἐνεκάλουν αὐτῷ, κατήγαγον αὐτὸν εἰς τὸ συνέδριον αὐτῶν·
I wanted to know the reason for their accusations, so I took him before their council.
29 ὃν εὗρον ἐγκαλούμενον περὶ ζητημάτων τοῦ νόμου αὐτῶν, μηδὲν δὲ ἄξιον θανάτου ἢ δεσμῶν ἔγκλημα ἔχοντα.
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.
30 Μηνυθείσης δέ μοι ἐπιβουλῆς εἰς τὸν ἄνδρα μέλλειν ἔσεσθαι ὑπὸ τῶν Ἰουδαίων, ἐξαυτῆς ἔπεμψα πρός σε, παραγγείλας καὶ τοῖς κατηγόροις λέγειν τὰ πρὸς αὐτὸν ἐπὶ σοῦ. Ἔρρωσο.
When I discovered a plot against this man I sent him to you right away, ordering his accusers to make their complaints before you.”
31 Οἱ μὲν οὖν στρατιῶται, κατὰ τὸ διατεταγμένον αὐτοῖς, ἀναλαβόντες τὸν Παῦλον, ἤγαγον διὰ τῆς νυκτὸς εἰς τὴν Ἀντιπατρίδα.
So the soldiers followed their orders and took Paul overnight to Antipatris.
32 Τῇ δὲ ἐπαύριον ἐάσαντες τοὺς ἱππεῖς πορεύεσθαι σὺν αὐτῷ, ὑπέστρεψαν εἰς τὴν παρεμβολήν·
The next morning they sent him on with the cavalry, and went back to the fortress.
33 οἵτινες εἰσελθόντες εἰς τὴν Καισάρειαν, καὶ ἀναδόντες τὴν ἐπιστολὴν τῷ ἡγεμόνι, παρέστησαν καὶ τὸν Παῦλον αὐτῷ.
When the cavalry arrived at Caesarea they delivered the letter to the governor and brought Paul before him.
34 Ἀναγνοὺς δὲ ὁ ἡγεμών, καὶ ἐπερωτήσας ἐκ ποίας ἐπαρχίας ἐστί, καὶ πυθόμενος ὅτι ἀπὸ Κιλικίας,
After reading the letter, the governor asked Paul what province he came from. When he learned he was from Cilicia he told Paul,
35 Διακούσομαί σου, ἔφη, ὅταν καὶ οἱ κατήγοροί σου παραγένωνται. Ἐκέλευσέ τε αὐτὸν ἐν τῷ πραιτωρίῳ τοῦ Ἡρῴδου φυλάσσεσθαι.
“I will investigate your case when your accusers arrive.” He ordered Paul detained in Herod's palace.
