(Acts 9:1–19; Acts 26:1–23)

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

² When they heard him speak to them in Hebrew,¹ they became even more silent. Then Paul declared,

1. Or in Aramaic; literally in the Hebrew language

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.

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

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.

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

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

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

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

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

¹² There a man named Ananias, a devout observer of the law who was highly regarded by all the Jews living there,

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

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

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

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

¹⁸ and saw the Lord¹ saying to me, ‘Hurry! Leave Jerusalem quickly, because the people here will not accept your testimony about Me.’

1. Literally saw Him

¹⁹ ‘Lord,’ I answered, ‘they know very well that in one synagogue after another I imprisoned and beat those who believed in You.

²⁰ And when the blood of Your witness¹ Stephen was shed, I stood there giving my approval and watching over the garments of those who killed him.’

1. Or martyr

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

Paul the Roman Citizen

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!”

²³ As they were shouting and throwing off their cloaks and tossing 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.

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?”

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.”

²⁷ The commander went to Paul and asked, “Tell me, are you a Roman citizen?” “Yes,” he answered.

²⁸ “I paid a high price for my citizenship,” said the commander. “But I was born a citizen,” Paul replied.

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.

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 Sanhedrin¹ to assemble. Then he brought Paul down and had him stand before them.

1. Or the whole Council