The Acts of the Apostles

Men, brothers, and fathers, hear my defense now to you.

And hearing that he spoke in the Hebrew dialect to them, they showed more quietness. And he said:

Indeed I am a man, a Jew having been born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but having been brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, having been trained according to the exactness of the ancestral law, being a zealous one of God, even as you all are today.

[I] persecuted this Way as far as death, binding and delivering up both men and women to prisons,

as also the high priest and all the elderhood witnesses to me. And having received letters from [them] to the brothers, I traveled into Damascus even to lead those to Jerusalem being bound there, in order that they might be punished.

And it happened to me, traveling and drawing near to Damascus: suddenly, about midday, a great light out of the heaven shone around me.

And I fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to me, Saul, Saul, why do you persecute Me?

And I answered, Who are you, Sir? And He said to me, I am Jesus the Nazarene whom you persecute.

But those being with me indeed saw the light, and were alarmed, but did not hear His voice speaking to me.

And I said, What shall I do, Lord? And the Lord said to me, Rising up, go into Damascus, and there you will be told about all things which are appointed to you to do.

And as I did not see, from the glory of that light, being led by the hand by those being with me, I went into Damascus.

And a certain Ananias, a devout man according to the Law, testified to by all the Jews living [there],

coming to me and standing by, [he] said to me, Brother Saul, look up. And in the same hour I looked up on him.

And he said, The God of our fathers appointed you to know His will, and to see the Just One, and to hear a voice out of His mouth;

for you shall be a witness for Him to all men of what you have seen and heard.

And now what do you intend? Rising up, be baptized and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord.

And it happened to me, returning to Jerusalem and praying in the temple: I became in an ecstasy,

and I saw Him saying to me, Hurry and go out quickly from Jerusalem, because they will not receive your testimony concerning Me.

And I said, Lord, they understand that I was imprisoning and beating the ones believing on You throughout the synagogues.

And when the blood of Your witness Stephen was poured out, I myself also was standing by and consenting to his execution, and holding the garments of those killing him.

And they heard him until this word, and lifted up their voice, saying, Take such a one from the earth, for it is not fitting that he should live!

And they shouting, and tearing the garments, and throwing dust into the air,

the chiliarch ordered to bring him into the fortress, saying for him to be examined with scourges, that he may know for what crime they cried out so against him.

But as they stretched him with the thongs, Paul said to the centurion standing by, Is it lawful for you to flog a man, a Roman not found guilty?

And hearing, coming near the centurion reported to the chiliarch, saying, Watch what you are about to do, for this man is a Roman.

And coming up, the chiliarch said to him, Tell me, are you a Roman? And he said, Yes.

And the chiliarch answered, I bought this citizenship with a great sum. And Paul said, But I even was born [free].

Then at once those being about to examine him stood away from him. And the chiliarch also feared, fully knowing that he was a Roman, and that he had bound him.

And on the morrow, desiring to know the certainty as to why he was accused by the Jews, he freed him from the bonds. And [he] commanded the chief priests and all their sanhedrin to come. And bringing Paul down, [he] set [him] among them.