Acts:2:22-
Seeker Overlay ON
* "
Men of Israel ,
hear these words :
Jesus of Nazareth ,
a Man attested by God to you by miracles ,
wonders ,
and signs which God did through Him in your midst ,
as you yourselves also know --
*
Him ,
being delivered by the determined purpose and foreknowledge of God ,
you have taken by lawless hands ,
have crucified ,
and put to death ;
*
whom God raised up ,
having loosed the pains of death ,
because it was not possible that He should be held by it .
*
For David says concerning Him : "
I foresaw the LORD always before my face ,
For He is at my right hand ,
that I may not be shaken .
*
Therefore my heart rejoiced ,
and my tongue was glad ;
Moreover my flesh also will rest in hope .
*
For You will not leave my soul in Hades ,
Nor will You allow Your Holy One to see corruption .
*
You have made known to me the ways of life ;
You will make me full of joy in Your presence .'
* "
Men and brethren ,
let me speak freely to you of the patriarch David ,
that he is both dead and buried ,
and his tomb is with us to this day .
*
Therefore ,
being a prophet ,
and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that of the fruit of his body ,
according to the flesh ,
He would raise up the Christ to sit on his throne ,
*
he ,
foreseeing this ,
spoke concerning the resurrection of the Christ ,
that His soul was not left in Hades ,
nor did His flesh see corruption .
*
This Jesus God has raised up ,
of which we are all witnesses .
*
Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God ,
and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit ,
He poured out this which you now see and hear .
* "
For David did not ascend into the heavens ,
but he says himself : "
The LORD said to my Lord , "
Sit at My right hand ,
*
Till I make Your enemies Your footstool ."'
* "
Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus ,
whom you crucified ,
both Lord and Christ ."
*
Now when they heard this ,
they were cut to the heart ,
and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles , "
Men and brethren ,
what shall we do ?"
*
Then Peter said to them , "
Repent ,
and let every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins ;
and you shall receive the gift of the Holy Spirit .
*
For the promise is to you and to your children ,
and to all who are afar off ,
as many as the Lord our God will call ."
*
And with many other words he testified and exhorted them ,
saying , "
Be saved from this perverse generation ."
*
Then those who gladly received his word were baptized ;
and that day about three thousand souls were added to them .
*
And they continued steadfastly in the apostles '
doctrine and fellowship ,
in the breaking of bread ,
and in prayers .
*
Then fear came upon every soul ,
and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles .
*
Now all who believed were together ,
and had all things in common ,
*
and sold their possessions and goods ,
and divided them among all ,
as anyone had need .
*
So continuing daily with one accord in the temple ,
and breaking bread from house to house ,
they ate their food with gladness and simplicity of heart ,
*
praising God and having favor with all the people .
And the Lord added to the church daily those who were being saved .
*
After the uproar had ceased ,
Paul called the disciples to himself ,
embraced them ,
and departed to go to Macedonia .
*
Now when he had gone over that region and encouraged them with many words ,
he came to Greece
*
and stayed three months .
And when the Jews plotted against him as he was about to sail to Syria ,
he decided to return through Macedonia .
*
And Sopater of Berea accompanied him to Asia--also Aristarchus and Secundus of the Thessalonians ,
and Gaius of Derbe ,
and Timothy ,
and Tychicus and Trophimus of Asia .
*
These men ,
going ahead ,
waited for us at Troas .
*
But we sailed away from Philippi after the Days of Unleavened Bread ,
and in five days joined them at Troas ,
where we stayed seven days .
*
Now on the first day of the week ,
when the disciples came together to break bread ,
Paul ,
ready to depart the next day ,
spoke to them and continued his message until midnight .
*
There were many lamps in the upper room where they were gathered together .
*
And in a window sat a certain young man named Eutychus ,
who was sinking into a deep sleep .
He was overcome by sleep ;
and as Paul continued speaking ,
he fell down from the third story and was taken up dead .
*
But Paul went down ,
fell on him ,
and embracing him said , "
Do not trouble yourselves ,
for his life is in him ."
*
Now when he had come up ,
had broken bread and eaten ,
and talked a long while ,
even till daybreak ,
he departed .
*
And they brought the young man in alive ,
and they were not a little comforted .
*
Then we went ahead to the ship and sailed to Assos ,
there intending to take Paul on board ;
for so he had given orders ,
intending himself to go on foot .
*
And when he met us at Assos ,
we took him on board and came to Mitylene .
*
We sailed from there ,
and the next day came opposite Chios .
The following day we arrived at Samos and stayed at Trogyllium .
The next day we came to Miletus .
*
For Paul had decided to sail past Ephesus ,
so that he would not have to spend time in Asia ;
for he was hurrying to be at Jerusalem ,
if possible ,
on the Day of Pentecost .
*
From Miletus he sent to Ephesus and called for the elders of the church .
*
And when they had come to him ,
he said to them : "
You know ,
from the first day that I came to Asia ,
in what manner I always lived among you ,
*
serving the Lord with all humility ,
with many tears and trials which happened to me by the plotting of the Jews ;
*
how I kept back nothing that was helpful ,
but proclaimed it to you ,
and taught you publicly and from house to house ,
*
testifying to Jews ,
and also to Greeks ,
repentance toward God and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ .
*
And see ,
now I go bound in the spirit to Jerusalem ,
not knowing the things that will happen to me there ,
*
except that the Holy Spirit testifies in every city ,
saying that chains and tribulations await me .
*
But none of these things move me ;
nor do I count my life dear to myself ,
so that I may finish my race with joy ,
and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus ,
to testify to the gospel of the grace of God .
* "
And indeed ,
now I know that you all ,
among whom I have gone preaching the kingdom of God ,
will see my face no more .
*
Therefore I testify to you this day that I am innocent of the blood of all men .
*
For I have not shunned to declare to you the whole counsel of God .
*
Therefore take heed to yourselves and to all the flock ,
among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers ,
to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood .
*
For I know this ,
that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you ,
not sparing the flock .
*
Also from among yourselves men will rise up ,
speaking perverse things ,
to draw away the disciples after themselves .
*
Therefore watch ,
and remember that for three years I did not cease to warn everyone night and day with tears .
* "
So now ,
brethren ,
I commend you to God and to the word of His grace ,
which is able to build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified .
*
I have coveted no one '
s silver or gold or apparel .
*
Yes ,
you yourselves know that these hands have provided for my necessities ,
and for those who were with me .
*
I have shown you in every way ,
by laboring like this ,
that you must support the weak .
And remember the words of the Lord Jesus ,
that He said , "
It is more blessed to give than to receive ."'
*
And when he had said these things ,
he knelt down and prayed with them all .
*
Then they all wept freely ,
and fell on Paul '
s neck and kissed him ,
*
sorrowing most of all for the words which he spoke ,
that they would see his face no more .
And they accompanied him to the ship .
*
Now it came to pass ,
that when we had departed from them and set sail ,
running a straight course we came to Cos ,
the following day to Rhodes ,
and from there to Patara .
*
And finding a ship sailing over to Phoenicia ,
we went aboard and set sail .
*
When we had sighted Cyprus ,
we passed it on the left ,
sailed to Syria ,
and landed at Tyre ;
for there the ship was to unload her cargo .
*
And finding disciples ,
we stayed there seven days .
They told Paul through the Spirit not to go up to Jerusalem .
*
When we had come to the end of those days ,
we departed and went on our way ;
and they all accompanied us ,
with wives and children ,
till we were out of the city .
And we knelt down on the shore and prayed .
*
When we had taken our leave of one another ,
we boarded the ship ,
and they returned home .
*
And when we had finished our voyage from Tyre ,
we came to Ptolemais ,
greeted the brethren ,
and stayed with them one day .
*
On the next day we who were Paul '
s companions departed and came to Caesarea ,
and entered the house of Philip the evangelist ,
who was one of the seven ,
and stayed with him .
*
Now this man had four virgin daughters who prophesied .
*
And as we stayed many days ,
a certain prophet named Agabus came down from Judea .
*
When he had come to us ,
he took Paul '
s belt ,
bound his own hands and feet ,
and said , "
Thus says the Holy Spirit , "
So shall the Jews at Jerusalem bind the man who owns this belt ,
and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles ."'
*
Now when we heard these things ,
both we and those from that place pleaded with him not to go up to Jerusalem .
*
Then Paul answered , "
What do you mean by weeping and breaking my heart ?
For I am ready not only to be bound ,
but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus ."
*
So when he would not be persuaded ,
we ceased ,
saying , "
The will of the Lord be done ."
*
And after those days we packed and went up to Jerusalem .
*
Also some of the disciples from Caesarea went with us and brought with them a certain Mnason of Cyprus ,
an early disciple ,
with whom we were to lodge .
*
And when we had come to Jerusalem ,
the brethren received us gladly .
*
On the following day Paul went in with us to James ,
and all the elders were present .
*
When he had greeted them ,
he told in detail those things which God had done among the Gentiles through his ministry .
*
And when they heard it ,
they glorified the Lord .
And they said to him , "
You see ,
brother ,
how many myriads of Jews there are who have believed ,
and they are all zealous for the law ;
*
but they have been informed about you that you teach all the Jews who are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses ,
saying that they ought not to circumcise their children nor to walk according to the customs .
*
What then ?
The assembly must certainly meet ,
for they will hear that you have come .
*
Therefore do what we tell you :
We have four men who have taken a vow .
*
Take them and be purified with them ,
and pay their expenses so that they may shave their heads ,
and that all may know that those things of which they were informed concerning you are nothing ,
but that you yourself also walk orderly and keep the law .
*
But concerning the Gentiles who believe ,
we have written and decided that they should observe no such thing ,
except that they should keep themselves from things offered to idols ,
from blood ,
from things strangled ,
and from sexual immorality ."
*
Then Paul took the men ,
and the next day ,
having been purified with them ,
entered the temple to announce the expiration of the days of purification ,
at which time an offering should be made for each one of them .
*
Now when the seven days were almost ended ,
the Jews from Asia ,
seeing him in the temple ,
stirred up the whole crowd and laid hands on him ,
*
crying out , "
Men of Israel ,
help !
This is the man who teaches all men everywhere against the people ,
the law ,
and this place ;
and furthermore he also brought Greeks into the temple and has defiled this holy place ."
* (
For they had previously seen Trophimus the Ephesian with him in the city ,
whom they supposed that Paul had brought into the temple .)
*
And all the city was disturbed ;
and the people ran together ,
seized Paul ,
and dragged him out of the temple ;
and immediately the doors were shut .
*
Now as they were seeking to kill him ,
news came to the commander of the garrison that all Jerusalem was in an uproar .
*
He immediately took soldiers and centurions ,
and ran down to them .
And when they saw the commander and the soldiers ,
they stopped beating Paul .
*
Then the commander came near and took him ,
and commanded him to be bound with two chains ;
and he asked who he was and what he had done .
*
And some among the multitude cried one thing and some another .
So when he could not ascertain the truth because of the tumult ,
he commanded him to be taken into the barracks .
*
When he reached the stairs ,
he had to be carried by the soldiers because of the violence of the mob .
*
For the multitude of the people followed after ,
crying out , "
Away with him !"
*
Then as Paul was about to be led into the barracks ,
he said to the commander , "
May I speak to you ?"
He replied , "
Can you speak Greek ?
*
Are you not the Egyptian who some time ago stirred up a rebellion and led the four thousand assassins out into the wilderness ?"
*
But Paul said , "
I am a Jew from Tarsus ,
in Cilicia ,
a citizen of no mean city ;
and I implore you ,
permit me to speak to the people ."
*
So when he had given him permission ,
Paul stood on the stairs and motioned with his hand to the people .
And when there was a great silence ,
he spoke to them in the Hebrew language ,
saying ,
* "
Brethren and fathers ,
hear my defense before you now ."
*
And when they heard that he spoke to them in the Hebrew language ,
they kept all the more silent .
Then he said :
* "
I am indeed a Jew ,
born in Tarsus of Cilicia ,
but brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel ,
taught according to the strictness of our fathers '
law ,
and was zealous toward God as you all are today .
*
I persecuted this Way to the death ,
binding and delivering into prisons both men and women ,
*
as also the high priest bears me witness ,
and all the council of the elders ,
from whom I also received letters to the brethren ,
and went to Damascus to bring in chains even those who were there to Jerusalem to be punished .
* "
Now it happened ,
as I journeyed and came near Damascus at about noon ,
suddenly a great light from heaven shone around me .
*
And I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me , "
Saul ,
Saul ,
why are you persecuting Me ?'
*
So I answered , "
Who are You ,
Lord ?'
And He said to me , "
I am Jesus of Nazareth ,
whom you are persecuting .'
* "
And those who were with me indeed saw the light and were afraid ,
but they did not hear the voice of Him who spoke to me .
*
So I said , "
What shall I do ,
Lord ?'
And the Lord said to me , "
Arise and go into Damascus ,
and there you will be told all things which are appointed for you to do .'
*
And since I could not see for the glory of that light ,
being led by the hand of those who were with me ,
I came into Damascus .
* "
Then a certain Ananias ,
a devout man according to the law ,
having a good testimony with all the Jews who dwelt there ,
*
came to me ;
and he stood and said to me , "
Brother Saul ,
receive your sight .'
And at that same hour I looked up at him .
*
Then he said , "
The God of our fathers has chosen you that you should know His will ,
and see the Just One ,
and hear the voice of His mouth .
*
For you will be His witness to all men of what you have seen and heard .
*
And now why are you waiting ?
Arise and be baptized ,
and wash away your sins ,
calling on the name of the Lord .'
* "
Now it happened ,
when I returned to Jerusalem and was praying in the temple ,
that I was in a trance
*
and saw Him saying to me , "
Make haste and get out of Jerusalem quickly ,
for they will not receive your testimony concerning Me .'
*
So I said , "
Lord ,
they know that in every synagogue I imprisoned and beat those who believe on You .
*
And when the blood of Your martyr Stephen was shed ,
I also was standing by consenting to his death ,
and guarding the clothes of those who were killing him .'
*
Then He said to me , "
Depart ,
for I will send you far from here to the Gentiles ."'
*
And they listened to him until this word ,
and then they raised their voices and said , "
Away with such a fellow from the earth ,
for he is not fit to live !"
*
Then ,
as they cried out and tore off their clothes and threw dust into the air ,
*
the commander ordered him to be brought into the barracks ,
and said that he should be examined under scourging ,
so that he might know why they shouted so against him .
*
And as they bound him with thongs ,
Paul said to the centurion who stood by , "
Is it lawful for you to scourge a man who is a Roman ,
and uncondemned ?"
*
When the centurion heard that ,
he went and told the commander ,
saying , "
Take care what you do ,
for this man is a Roman ."
*
Then the commander came and said to him , "
Tell me ,
are you a Roman ?"
He said , "
Yes ."
*
The commander answered , "
With a large sum I obtained this citizenship ."
And Paul said , "
But I was born a citizen ."
*
Then immediately those who were about to examine him withdrew from him ;
and the commander was also afraid after he found out that he was a Roman ,
and because he had bound him .
*
The next day ,
because he wanted to know for certain why he was accused by the Jews ,
he released him from his bonds ,
and commanded the chief priests and all their council to appear ,
and brought Paul down and set him before them .
*
Then Paul ,
looking earnestly at the council ,
said , "
Men and brethren ,
I have lived in all good conscience before God until this day ."
*
And the high priest Ananias commanded those who stood by him to strike him on the mouth .
*
Then Paul said to him , "
God will strike you ,
you whitewashed wall !
For you sit to judge me according to the law ,
and do you command me to be struck contrary to the law ?"
*
And those who stood by said , "
Do you revile God '
s high priest ?"
*
Then Paul said , "
I did not know ,
brethren ,
that he was the high priest ;
for it is written , "
You shall not speak evil of a ruler of your people ."'
*
But when Paul perceived that one part were Sadducees and the other Pharisees ,
he cried out in the council , "
Men and brethren ,
I am a Pharisee ,
the son of a Pharisee ;
concerning the hope and resurrection of the dead I am being judged !"
*
And when he had said this ,
a dissension arose between the Pharisees and the Sadducees ;
and the assembly was divided .
*
For Sadducees say that there is no resurrection--and no angel or spirit ;
but the Pharisees confess both .
*
Then there arose a loud outcry .
And the scribes of the Pharisees '
party arose and protested ,
saying , "
We find no evil in this man ;
but if a spirit or an angel has spoken to him ,
let us not fight against God ."
*
Now when there arose a great dissension ,
the commander ,
fearing lest Paul might be pulled to pieces by them ,
commanded the soldiers to go down and take him by force from among them ,
and bring him into the barracks .
*
But the following night the Lord stood by him and said , "
Be of good cheer ,
Paul ;
for as you have testified for Me in Jerusalem ,
so you must also bear witness at Rome ."
*
And when it was day ,
some of the Jews banded together and bound themselves under an oath ,
saying that they would neither eat nor drink till they had killed Paul .
*
Now there were more than forty who had formed this conspiracy .
*
They came to the chief priests and elders ,
and said , "
We have bound ourselves under a great oath that we will eat nothing until we have killed Paul .
*
Now you ,
therefore ,
together with the council ,
suggest to the commander that he be brought down to you tomorrow ,
as though you were going to make further inquiries concerning him ;
but we are ready to kill him before he comes near ."
*
So when Paul '
s sister '
s son heard of their ambush ,
he went and entered the barracks and told Paul .
*
Then Paul called one of the centurions to him and said , "
Take this young man to the commander ,
for he has something to tell him ."
*
So he took him and brought him to the commander and said , "
Paul the prisoner called me to him and asked me to bring this young man to you .
He has something to say to you ."
*
Then the commander took him by the hand ,
went aside ,
and asked privately , "
What is it that you have to tell me ?"
*
And he said , "
The Jews have agreed to ask that you bring Paul down to the council tomorrow ,
as though they were going to inquire more fully about him .
*
But do not yield to them ,
for more than forty of them lie in wait for him ,
men who have bound themselves by an oath that they will neither eat nor drink till they have killed him ;
and now they are ready ,
waiting for the promise from you ."
*
So the commander let the young man depart ,
and commanded him , "
Tell no one that you have revealed these things to me ."
*
And he called for two centurions ,
saying , "
Prepare two hundred soldiers ,
seventy horsemen ,
and two hundred spearmen to go to Caesarea at the third hour of the night ;
*
and provide mounts to set Paul on ,
and bring him safely to Felix the governor ."
*
He wrote a letter in the following manner :
*
Claudius Lysias ,
To the most excellent governor Felix :
Greetings .
*
This man was seized by the Jews and was about to be killed by them .
Coming with the troops I rescued him ,
having learned that he was a Roman .
*
And when I wanted to know the reason they accused him ,
I brought him before their council .
*
I found out that he was accused concerning questions of their law ,
but had nothing charged against him deserving of death or chains .
*
And when it was told me that the Jews lay in wait for the man ,
I sent him immediately to you ,
and also commanded his accusers to state before you the charges against him .
Farewell .
*
Then the soldiers ,
as they were commanded ,
took Paul and brought him by night to Antipatris .
*
The next day they left the horsemen to go on with him ,
and returned to the barracks .
*
When they came to Caesarea and had delivered the letter to the governor ,
they also presented Paul to him .
*
And when the governor had read it ,
he asked what province he was from .
And when he understood that he was from Cilicia ,
*
he said , "
I will hear you when your accusers also have come ."
And he commanded him to be kept in Herod '
s Praetorium .
*
Now after five days Ananias the high priest came down with the elders and a certain orator named Tertullus .
These gave evidence to the governor against Paul .
*
And when he was called upon ,
Tertullus began his accusation ,
saying : "
Seeing that through you we enjoy great peace ,
and prosperity is being brought to this nation by your foresight ,
*
we accept it always and in all places ,
most noble Felix ,
with all thankfulness .
*
Nevertheless ,
not to be tedious to you any further ,
I beg you to hear ,
by your courtesy ,
a few words from us .
*
For we have found this man a plague ,
a creator of dissension among all the Jews throughout the world ,
and a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes .
*
He even tried to profane the temple ,
and we seized him ,
and wanted to judge him according to our law .
*
But the commander Lysias came by and with great violence took him out of our hands ,
*
commanding his accusers to come to you .
By examining him yourself you may ascertain all these things of which we accuse him ."
*
And the Jews also assented ,
maintaining that these things were so .
*
Then Paul ,
after the governor had nodded to him to speak ,
answered : "
Inasmuch as I know that you have been for many years a judge of this nation ,
I do the more cheerfully answer for myself ,
*
because you may ascertain that it is no more than twelve days since I went up to Jerusalem to worship .
*
And they neither found me in the temple disputing with anyone nor inciting the crowd ,
either in the synagogues or in the city .
*
Nor can they prove the things of which they now accuse me .
*
But this I confess to you ,
that according to the Way which they call a sect ,
so I worship the God of my fathers ,
believing all things which are written in the Law and in the Prophets .
*
I have hope in God ,
which they themselves also accept ,
that there will be a resurrection of the dead ,
both of the just and the unjust .
*
This being so ,
I myself always strive to have a conscience without offense toward God and men .
* "
Now after many years I came to bring alms and offerings to my nation ,
*
in the midst of which some Jews from Asia found me purified in the temple ,
neither with a mob nor with tumult .
*
They ought to have been here before you to object if they had anything against me .
*
Or else let those who are here themselves say if they found any wrongdoing in me while I stood before the council ,
*
unless it is for this one statement which I cried out ,
standing among them , "
Concerning the resurrection of the dead I am being judged by you this day ."'
*
But when Felix heard these things ,
having more accurate knowledge of the Way ,
he adjourned the proceedings and said , "
When Lysias the commander comes down ,
I will make a decision on your case ."
*
So he commanded the centurion to keep Paul and to let him have liberty ,
and told him not to forbid any of his friends to provide for or visit him .
*
And after some days ,
when Felix came with his wife Drusilla ,
who was Jewish ,
he sent for Paul and heard him concerning the faith in Christ .
*
Now as he reasoned about righteousness ,
self-control ,
and the judgment to come ,
Felix was afraid and answered , "
Go away for now ;
when I have a convenient time I will call for you ."
*
Meanwhile he also hoped that money would be given him by Paul ,
that he might release him .
Therefore he sent for him more often and conversed with him .
*
But after two years Porcius Festus succeeded Felix ;
and Felix ,
wanting to do the Jews a favor ,
left Paul bound .
*
Now when Festus had come to the province ,
after three days he went up from Caesarea to Jerusalem .
*
Then the high priest and the chief men of the Jews informed him against Paul ;
and they petitioned him ,
*
asking a favor against him ,
that he would summon him to Jerusalem--while they lay in ambush along the road to kill him .
*
But Festus answered that Paul should be kept at Caesarea ,
and that he himself was going there shortly .
* "
Therefore ,"
he said , "
let those who have authority among you go down with me and accuse this man ,
to see if there is any fault in him ."
*
And when he had remained among them more than ten days ,
he went down to Caesarea .
And the next day ,
sitting on the judgment seat ,
he commanded Paul to be brought .
*
When he had come ,
the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem stood about and laid many serious complaints against Paul ,
which they could not prove ,
*
while he answered for himself , "
Neither against the law of the Jews ,
nor against the temple ,
nor against Caesar have I offended in anything at all ."
*
But Festus ,
wanting to do the Jews a favor ,
answered Paul and said , "
Are you willing to go up to Jerusalem and there be judged before me concerning these things ?"
*
So Paul said , "
I stand at Caesar '
s judgment seat ,
where I ought to be judged .
To the Jews I have done no wrong ,
as you very well know .
*
For if I am an offender ,
or have committed anything deserving of death ,
I do not object to dying ;
but if there is nothing in these things of which these men accuse me ,
no one can deliver me to them .
I appeal to Caesar ."
*
Then Festus ,
when he had conferred with the council ,
answered , "
You have appealed to Caesar ?
To Caesar you shall go !"
*
And after some days King Agrippa and Bernice came to Caesarea to greet Festus .
*
When they had been there many days ,
Festus laid Paul '
s case before the king ,
saying : "
There is a certain man left a prisoner by Felix ,
*
about whom the chief priests and the elders of the Jews informed me ,
when I was in Jerusalem ,
asking for a judgment against him .
*
To them I answered , "
It is not the custom of the Romans to deliver any man to destruction before the accused meets the accusers face to face ,
and has opportunity to answer for himself concerning the charge against him .'
*
Therefore when they had come together ,
without any delay ,
the next day I sat on the judgment seat and commanded the man to be brought in .
*
When the accusers stood up ,
they brought no accusation against him of such things as I supposed ,
*
but had some questions against him about their own religion and about a certain Jesus ,
who had died ,
whom Paul affirmed to be alive .
*
And because I was uncertain of such questions ,
I asked whether he was willing to go to Jerusalem and there be judged concerning these matters .
*
But when Paul appealed to be reserved for the decision of Augustus ,
I commanded him to be kept till I could send him to Caesar ."
*
Then Agrippa said to Festus , "
I also would like to hear the man myself ." "
Tomorrow ,"
he said , "
you shall hear him ."
*
So the next day ,
when Agrippa and Bernice had come with great pomp ,
and had entered the auditorium with the commanders and the prominent men of the city ,
at Festus '
command Paul was brought in .
*
And Festus said : "
King Agrippa and all the men who are here present with us ,
you see this man about whom the whole assembly of the Jews petitioned me ,
both at Jerusalem and here ,
crying out that he was not fit to live any longer .
*
But when I found that he had committed nothing deserving of death ,
and that he himself had appealed to Augustus ,
I decided to send him .
*
I have nothing certain to write to my lord concerning him .
Therefore I have brought him out before you ,
and especially before you ,
King Agrippa ,
so that after the examination has taken place I may have something to write .
*
For it seems to me unreasonable to send a prisoner and not to specify the charges against him ."
*
Then Agrippa said to Paul , "
You are permitted to speak for yourself ."
So Paul stretched out his hand and answered for himself :
* "
I think myself happy ,
King Agrippa ,
because today I shall answer for myself before you concerning all the things of which I am accused by the Jews ,
*
especially because you are expert in all customs and questions which have to do with the Jews .
Therefore I beg you to hear me patiently .
* "
My manner of life from my youth ,
which was spent from the beginning among my own nation at Jerusalem ,
all the Jews know .
*
They knew me from the first ,
if they were willing to testify ,
that according to the strictest sect of our religion I lived a Pharisee .
*
And now I stand and am judged for the hope of the promise made by God to our fathers .
*
To this promise our twelve tribes ,
earnestly serving God night and day ,
hope to attain .
For this hope '
s sake ,
King Agrippa ,
I am accused by the Jews .
*
Why should it be thought incredible by you that God raises the dead ?
* "
Indeed ,
I myself thought I must do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth .
*
This I also did in Jerusalem ,
and many of the saints I shut up in prison ,
having received authority from the chief priests ;
and when they were put to death ,
I cast my vote against them .
*
And I punished them often in every synagogue and compelled them to blaspheme ;
and being exceedingly enraged against them ,
I persecuted them even to foreign cities .
* "
While thus occupied ,
as I journeyed to Damascus with authority and commission from the chief priests ,
*
at midday ,
O king ,
along the road I saw a light from heaven ,
brighter than the sun ,
shining around me and those who journeyed with me .
*
And when we all had fallen to the ground ,
I heard a voice speaking to me and saying in the Hebrew language , "
Saul ,
Saul ,
why are you persecuting Me ?
It is hard for you to kick against the goads .'
*
So I said , "
Who are You ,
Lord ?'
And He said , "
I am Jesus ,
whom you are persecuting .
*
But rise and stand on your feet ;
for I have appeared to you for this purpose ,
to make you a minister and a witness both of the things which you have seen and of the things which I will yet reveal to you .
*
I will deliver you from the Jewish people ,
as well as from the Gentiles ,
to whom I now send you ,
*
to open their eyes ,
in order to turn them from darkness to light ,
and from the power of Satan to God ,
that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in Me .'
* "
Therefore ,
King Agrippa ,
I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision ,
*
but declared first to those in Damascus and in Jerusalem ,
and throughout all the region of Judea ,
and then to the Gentiles ,
that they should repent ,
turn to God ,
and do works befitting repentance .
*
For these reasons the Jews seized me in the temple and tried to kill me .
*
Therefore ,
having obtained help from God ,
to this day I stand ,
witnessing both to small and great ,
saying no other things than those which the prophets and Moses said would come --
*
that the Christ would suffer ,
that He would be the first to rise from the dead ,
and would proclaim light to the Jewish people and to the Gentiles ."
*
Now as he thus made his defense ,
Festus said with a loud voice , "
Paul ,
you are beside yourself !
Much learning is driving you mad !"
*
But he said , "
I am not mad ,
most noble Festus ,
but speak the words of truth and reason .
*
For the king ,
before whom I also speak freely ,
knows these things ;
for I am convinced that none of these things escapes his attention ,
since this thing was not done in a corner .
*
King Agrippa ,
do you believe the prophets ?
I know that you do believe ."
*
Then Agrippa said to Paul , "
You almost persuade me to become a Christian ."
*
And Paul said , "
I would to God that not only you ,
but also all who hear me today ,
might become both almost and altogether such as I am ,
except for these chains ."
*
When he had said these things ,
the king stood up ,
as well as the governor and Bernice and those who sat with them ;
*
and when they had gone aside ,
they talked among themselves ,
saying , "
This man is doing nothing deserving of death or chains ."
*
Then Agrippa said to Festus , "
This man might have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar ."
*
And when it was decided that we should sail to Italy ,
they delivered Paul and some other prisoners to one named Julius ,
a centurion of the Augustan Regiment .
*
So ,
entering a ship of Adramyttium ,
we put to sea ,
meaning to sail along the coasts of Asia .
Aristarchus ,
a Macedonian of Thessalonica ,
was with us .
*
And the next day we landed at Sidon .
And Julius treated Paul kindly and gave him liberty to go to his friends and receive care .
*
When we had put to sea from there ,
we sailed under the shelter of Cyprus ,
because the winds were contrary .
*
And when we had sailed over the sea which is off Cilicia and Pamphylia ,
we came to Myra ,
a city of Lycia .
*
There the centurion found an Alexandrian ship sailing to Italy ,
and he put us on board .
*
When we had sailed slowly many days ,
and arrived with difficulty off Cnidus ,
the wind not permitting us to proceed ,
we sailed under the shelter of Crete off Salmone .
*
Passing it with difficulty ,
we came to a place called Fair Havens ,
near the city of Lasea .
*
Now when much time had been spent ,
and sailing was now dangerous because the Fast was already over ,
Paul advised them ,
*
saying , "
Men ,
I perceive that this voyage will end with disaster and much loss ,
not only of the cargo and ship ,
but also our lives ."
*
Nevertheless the centurion was more persuaded by the helmsman and the owner of the ship than by the things spoken by Paul .
*
And because the harbor was not suitable to winter in ,
the majority advised to set sail from there also ,
if by any means they could reach Phoenix ,
a harbor of Crete opening toward the southwest and northwest ,
and winter there .
*
When the south wind blew softly ,
supposing that they had obtained their desire ,
putting out to sea ,
they sailed close by Crete .
*
But not long after ,
a tempestuous head wind arose ,
called Euroclydon .
*
So when the ship was caught ,
and could not head into the wind ,
we let her drive .
*
And running under the shelter of an island called Clauda ,
we secured the skiff with difficulty .
*
When they had taken it on board ,
they used cables to undergird the ship ;
and fearing lest they should run aground on the Syrtis Sands ,
they struck sail and so were driven .
*
And because we were exceedingly tempest-tossed ,
the next day they lightened the ship .
*
On the third day we threw the ship '
s tackle overboard with our own hands .
*
Now when neither sun nor stars appeared for many days ,
and no small tempest beat on us ,
all hope that we would be saved was finally given up .
*
But after long abstinence from food ,
then Paul stood in the midst of them and said , "
Men ,
you should have listened to me ,
and not have sailed from Crete and incurred this disaster and loss .
*
And now I urge you to take heart ,
for there will be no loss of life among you ,
but only of the ship .
*
For there stood by me this night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve ,
*
saying , "
Do not be afraid ,
Paul ;
you must be brought before Caesar ;
and indeed God has granted you all those who sail with you .'
*
Therefore take heart ,
men ,
for I believe God that it will be just as it was told me .
*
However ,
we must run aground on a certain island ."
*
Now when the fourteenth night had come ,
as we were driven up and down in the Adriatic Sea ,
about midnight the sailors sensed that they were drawing near some land .
*
And they took soundings and found it to be twenty fathoms ;
and when they had gone a little farther ,
they took soundings again and found it to be fifteen fathoms .
*
Then ,
fearing lest we should run aground on the rocks ,
they dropped four anchors from the stern ,
and prayed for day to come .
*
And as the sailors were seeking to escape from the ship ,
when they had let down the skiff into the sea ,
under pretense of putting out anchors from the prow ,
*
Paul said to the centurion and the soldiers , "
Unless these men stay in the ship ,
you cannot be saved ."
*
Then the soldiers cut away the ropes of the skiff and let it fall off .
*
And as day was about to dawn ,
Paul implored them all to take food ,
saying , "
Today is the fourteenth day you have waited and continued without food ,
and eaten nothing .
*
Therefore I urge you to take nourishment ,
for this is for your survival ,
since not a hair will fall from the head of any of you ."
*
And when he had said these things ,
he took bread and gave thanks to God in the presence of them all ;
and when he had broken it he began to eat .
*
Then they were all encouraged ,
and also took food themselves .
*
And in all we were two hundred and seventy-six persons on the ship .
*
So when they had eaten enough ,
they lightened the ship and threw out the wheat into the sea .
*
When it was day ,
they did not recognize the land ;
but they observed a bay with a beach ,
onto which they planned to run the ship if possible .
*
And they let go the anchors and left them in the sea ,
meanwhile loosing the rudder ropes ;
and they hoisted the mainsail to the wind and made for shore .
*
But striking a place where two seas met ,
they ran the ship aground ;
and the prow stuck fast and remained immovable ,
but the stern was being broken up by the violence of the waves .
*
And the soldiers '
plan was to kill the prisoners ,
lest any of them should swim away and escape .
*
But the centurion ,
wanting to save Paul ,
kept them from their purpose ,
and commanded that those who could swim should jump overboard first and get to land ,
*
and the rest ,
some on boards and some on parts of the ship .
And so it was that they all escaped safely to land .
*
Now when they had escaped ,
they then found out that the island was called Malta .
*
And the natives showed us unusual kindness ;
for they kindled a fire and made us all welcome ,
because of the rain that was falling and because of the cold .
*
But when Paul had gathered a bundle of sticks and laid them on the fire ,
a viper came out because of the heat ,
and fastened on his hand .
*
So when the natives saw the creature hanging from his hand ,
they said to one another , "
No doubt this man is a murderer ,
whom ,
though he has escaped the sea ,
yet justice does not allow to live ."
*
But he shook off the creature into the fire and suffered no harm .
*
However ,
they were expecting that he would swell up or suddenly fall down dead .
But after they had looked for a long time and saw no harm come to him ,
they changed their minds and said that he was a god .
*
In that region there was an estate of the leading citizen of the island ,
whose name was Publius ,
who received us and entertained us courteously for three days .
*
And it happened that the father of Publius lay sick of a fever and dysentery .
Paul went in to him and prayed ,
and he laid his hands on him and healed him .
*
So when this was done ,
the rest of those on the island who had diseases also came and were healed .
*
They also honored us in many ways ;
and when we departed ,
they provided such things as were necessary .
*
After three months we sailed in an Alexandrian ship whose figurehead was the Twin Brothers ,
which had wintered at the island .
*
And landing at Syracuse ,
we stayed three days .
*
From there we circled round and reached Rhegium .
And after one day the south wind blew ;
and the next day we came to Puteoli ,
*
where we found brethren ,
and were invited to stay with them seven days .
And so we went toward Rome .
*
And from there ,
when the brethren heard about us ,
they came to meet us as far as Appii Forum and Three Inns .
When Paul saw them ,
he thanked God and took courage .
*
Now when we came to Rome ,
the centurion delivered the prisoners to the captain of the guard ;
but Paul was permitted to dwell by himself with the soldier who guarded him .
*
And it came to pass after three days that Paul called the leaders of the Jews together .
So when they had come together ,
he said to them : "
Men and brethren ,
though I have done nothing against our people or the customs of our fathers ,
yet I was delivered as a prisoner from Jerusalem into the hands of the Romans ,
*
who ,
when they had examined me ,
wanted to let me go ,
because there was no cause for putting me to death .
*
But when the Jews spoke against it ,
I was compelled to appeal to Caesar ,
not that I had anything of which to accuse my nation .
*
For this reason therefore I have called for you ,
to see you and speak with you ,
because for the hope of Israel I am bound with this chain ."
*
Then they said to him , "
We neither received letters from Judea concerning you ,
nor have any of the brethren who came reported or spoken any evil of you .
*
But we desire to hear from you what you think ;
for concerning this sect ,
we know that it is spoken against everywhere ."
*
So when they had appointed him a day ,
many came to him at his lodging ,
to whom he explained and solemnly testified of the kingdom of God ,
persuading them concerning Jesus from both the Law of Moses and the Prophets ,
from morning till evening .
*
And some were persuaded by the things which were spoken ,
and some disbelieved .
*
So when they did not agree among themselves ,
they departed after Paul had said one word : "
The Holy Spirit spoke rightly through Isaiah the prophet to our fathers ,
*
saying , "
Go to this people and say : "
Hearing you will hear ,
and shall not understand ;
And seeing you will see ,
and not perceive ;
*
For the hearts of this people have grown dull .
Their ears are hard of hearing ,
And their eyes they have closed ,
Lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears ,
Lest they should understand with their hearts and turn ,
So that I should heal them ."'
* "
Therefore let it be known to you that the salvation of God has been sent to the Gentiles ,
and they will hear it !"
*
And when he had said these words ,
the Jews departed and had a great dispute among themselves .
*
Then Paul dwelt two whole years in his own rented house ,
and received all who came to him ,
*
preaching the kingdom of God and teaching the things which concern the Lord Jesus Christ with all confidence ,
no one forbidding him .
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