Acts 22

¹Men brethren and fathers, hear what account I do render now unto you.

²(And when they had heard that he spake to them in the Hebrew tongue, they did the more keep silence.

³And he saith:) I am a man a Jew, born at Tarsus in Cilicia, but brought up in this city, at the feet of Gamaliel instructed according to the verity of the law of the fathers, an emulator of the Law as also all you are this day:

⁴who persecuted this way unto death, binding & delivering into custodies men & women,

⁵as the high Priest doth give me testimony, and all the Ancients. Of whom receiving letters also to the brethren, I went to Damascus, that I might bring them thence bound to Jerusalem, to be punished.

⁶And it came to pass as I was going, and drawing nigh to Damascus at mid-day, suddenly from Heaven there shone round about me much light:

⁷and falling on the ground, I heard a voice saying to me: Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?

⁸And I answered: Who are thou Lord? And he said to me: I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom thou persecutest.

⁹And they that were with me, saw the light indeed, but the voice they heard not of him that spake with me.

¹⁰And I said: What shall I do Lord? And our Lord said to me: Arise and go to Damascus; and there it shall be told thee of all things that thou must do.

¹¹And whereas I did not see for the brightness of that light, being led of my companions by the hand, I came to Damascus.

¹²And one Ananias, a man according to the Law, having testimony of all the Jews' inhabitants,

¹³coming to me, and standing by me, said to me: Brother Saul, look up. And I the self-same hour looked upon him.

¹⁴But he said: The God of our fathers hath preordained thee, that thou shouldest know his will, and see the just one, and hear a voice from his mouth:

¹⁵because thou shalt be his witness to all men, of those things which thou hast seen and heard.

¹⁶And now what tarriest thou? Rise up, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins invocating his name.

¹⁷And it befell me returning into Jerusalem, and praying in the temple, that I was in a trance,

¹⁸and saw him saying unto me: Make haste, and depart quickly out of Jerusalem: because they will not receive thy testimony of me.

¹⁹And I said, Lord, they know that I did cast into prison and beat in every Synagogue them that believed in thee.

²⁰And when the blood of Steven thy witness was shed, I stood by and consented, and kept the garments of them that killed him.

²¹And he said to me: Go, for into the Gentiles a far will I send thee.

²²And they heard him until this word, and they lifted up their voice, saying: Away with such an one from the earth: for it is not meet he should live.

²³And when they cried out, and threw off their garments, and cast dust into the air,

²⁴the Tribune commanded him to be carried into the castle, and to be beaten with whips, & that he should be tormented: to know for what cause they did so cry at him.

²⁵And when they had bound him very straight with thongs, Paul saith to the Centurion standing by him: Is it lawful for you to whip a man that is a Roman and uncondemned?

²⁶Which the Centurion hearing, went to the Tribune, and told him, saying: What wilt thou do? for this man is a citizen of Rome.

²⁷And the Tribune coming, said to him: Tell me, art thou a Roman? But he said: Yea.

²⁸And the Tribune answered: I obtained this city with a great sum. And Paul said: But I was also born to it.

²⁹Immediately therefore they departed from him that were to torment him. The Tribune also feared after he understood that he was a citizen of Rome, and because he had bound him.

³⁰But the next day meaning to know more diligently for what cause he was accused of the Jews, he loosed him, and commanded the Priests to come together and all the Council: & bringing forth Paul, he set him among them.