2
"I consider myself fortunate that it is before you, King Agrippa, I am going to make my defense today
1against all the accusations of the Jews,
3
especially because you are familiar with all the
2customs and
3controversies of the Jews. Therefore I beg you to listen to me patiently.
4
4"My manner of life from my youth, spent from the beginning among
5my own nation and in Jerusalem, is known by all the Jews.
5
They have known for a long time, if they are willing to testify, that
6according to the strictest
7party of our
8religion I have lived as
9a Pharisee.
6
And now I stand here on trial because of my hope in
10the promise made by God to our fathers,
7
11to which
12our twelve tribes hope to
13attain, as they earnestly worship night and day. And for this hope
14I am accused by Jews, O king!
8
Why is it thought
15incredible by any of you that God raises the dead?
9
16"I myself was convinced that I ought to do many things in opposing the name of
17Jesus of Nazareth.
10
18And I did so in Jerusalem. I not only locked up many of the saints in prison after receiving authority
19from the chief priests, but
20when they were put to death I cast my vote against them.
11
And
21I punished them often in all the synagogues and tried to make them
22blaspheme, and
23in raging fury against them I
24persecuted them even to foreign cities.
Paul Tells of His Conversion
12 "In this connection
25I journeyed to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests.
13
At midday, O king, I saw on the way a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, that shone around me and those who journeyed with me.
14
And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me
26in the Hebrew language,
'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.'
15
And I said, 'Who are you, Lord?' And the Lord said,
'I am Jesus whom you are persecuting.
16
But rise and 27stand upon your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose, 28to appoint you as a servant and witness to the things in which you have seen me and to those in which I will appear to you,
17
29delivering you from your people and from the Gentiles--30to whom I 31am sending you
18
32to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from 33the power of Satan to God, that they may receive 34forgiveness of sins and 35a place among those who are sanctified 36by faith in me.'
19
"Therefore, O King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to
37the heavenly vision,
20
but declared first
38to those in Damascus,
39then in Jerusalem and throughout all the region of Judea, and also
40to the Gentiles, that they should
41repent and
42turn to God, performing deeds
43in keeping with their repentance.
21
For this reason
44the Jews seized me in the temple and tried to kill me.
22
45To this day I have had the help that comes from God, and so
46I stand here testifying both to small and great, saying nothing but what
47the prophets and Moses said would come to pass:
23
48that the Christ
49must suffer and that,
50by being the first
51to rise from the dead,
52he would proclaim
53light both to our people and to the Gentiles."