Parallel Bible results for "acts 23"

Acts 23

The Message Bible MSG

1 Paul surveyed the members of the council with a steady gaze, and then said his piece: "Friends, I've lived with a clear conscience before God all my life, up to this very moment."

2 That set the Chief Priest Ananias off. He ordered his aides to slap Paul in the face.

3 Paul shot back, "God will slap you down! What a fake you are! You sit there and judge me by the Law and then break the Law by ordering me slapped around!"

4 The aides were scandalized: "How dare you talk to God's Chief Priest like that!

5 Paul acted surprised. "How was I to know he was Chief Priest? He doesn't act like a Chief Priest. You're right, the Scripture does say, 'Don't speak abusively to a ruler of the people.' Sorry."

6 Paul, knowing some of the council was made up of Sadducees and others of Pharisees and how they hated each other, decided to exploit their antagonism: "Friends, I am a stalwart Pharisee from a long line of Pharisees. It's because of my Pharisee convictions - the hope and resurrection of the dead - that I've been hauled into this court."

7 The moment he said this, the council split right down the middle, Pharisees and Sadducees going at each other in heated argument.

8 Sadducees have nothing to do with a resurrection or angels or even a spirit. If they can't see it, they don't believe it. Pharisees believe it all.

9 And so a huge and noisy quarrel broke out. Then some of the religion scholars on the Pharisee side shouted down the others: "We don't find anything wrong with this man! And what if a spirit has spoken to him? Or maybe an angel? What if it turns out we're fighting against God?"

10 That was fuel on the fire. The quarrel flamed up and became so violent the captain was afraid they would tear Paul apart, limb from limb. He ordered the soldiers to get him out of there and escort him back to the safety of the barracks.

11 That night the Master appeared to Paul: "It's going to be all right. Everything is going to turn out for the best. You've been a good witness for me here in Jerusalem. Now you're going to be my witness in Rome!"

12 Next day the Jews worked up a plot against Paul. They took a solemn oath that they would neither eat nor drink until they had killed him.

13 Over forty of them ritually bound themselves to this murder pact

14 and presented themselves to the high priests and religious leaders. "We've bound ourselves by a solemn oath to eat nothing until we have killed Paul

15 But we need your help. Send a request from the council to the captain to bring Paul back so that you can investigate the charges in more detail. We'll do the rest. Before he gets anywhere near you, we'll have killed him. You won't be involved."

16 Paul's nephew, his sister's son, overheard them plotting the ambush. He went immediately to the barracks and told Paul.

17 Paul called over one of the centurions and said, "Take this young man to the captain. He has something important to tell him."

18 The centurion brought him to the captain and said, "The prisoner Paul asked me to bring this young man to you. He said he has something urgent to tell you."

19 The captain took him by the arm and led him aside privately. "What is it? What do you have to tell me?

20 Paul's nephew said, "The Jews have worked up a plot against Paul. They're going to ask you to bring Paul to the council first thing in the morning on the pretext that they want to investigate the charges against him in more detail.

21 But it's a trick to get him out of your safekeeping so they can murder him. Right now there are more than forty men lying in ambush for him. They've all taken a vow to neither eat nor drink until they've killed him. The ambush is set - all they're waiting for is for you to send him over.

22 The captain dismissed the nephew with a warning: "Don't breathe a word of this to a soul."

23 The captain called up two centurions. "Get two hundred soldiers ready to go immediately to Caesarea. Also seventy cavalry and two hundred light infantry. I want them ready to march by nine o'clock tonight.

24 And you'll need a couple of mules for Paul and his gear. We're going to present this man safe and sound to Governor Felix."

25 Then he wrote this letter:

26 From Claudius Lysias, to the Most Honorable Governor Felix:

27 I rescued this man from a Jewish mob. They had seized him and were about to kill him when I learned that he was a Roman citizen. So I sent in my soldiers.

28 Wanting to know what he had done wrong, I had him brought before their council.

29 It turned out to be a squabble turned vicious over some of their religious differences, but nothing remotely criminal.

30 The next thing I knew, they had cooked up a plot to murder him. I decided that for his own safety I'd better get him out of here in a hurry. So I'm sending him to you. I'm informing his accusers that he's now under your jurisdiction.

31 The soldiers, following orders, took Paul that same night to safety in Antipatris.

32 In the morning the soldiers returned to their barracks in Jerusalem, sending Paul on to Caesarea under guard of the cavalry.

33 The cavalry entered Caesarea and handed Paul and the letter over to the governor.

34 After reading the letter, the governor asked Paul what province he came from and was told "Cilicia."

35 Then he said, "I'll take up your case when your accusers show up." He ordered him locked up for the meantime in King Herod's official quarters.

The Latin Vulgate VUL

1 intendens autem concilium Paulus ait viri fratres ego omni conscientia bona conversatus sum ante Deum usque in hodiernum diem

2 princeps autem sacerdotum Ananias praecepit adstantibus sibi percutere os eius

3 tunc Paulus ad eum dixit percutiet te Deus paries dealbate et tu sedens iudicas me secundum legem et contra legem iubes me percuti

4 et qui adstabant dixerunt summum sacerdotem Dei maledici

5 dixit autem Paulus nesciebam fratres quia princeps est sacerdotum scriptum est enim principem populi tui non maledices

6 sciens autem Paulus quia una pars esset Sadducaeorum et altera Pharisaeorum exclamavit in concilio viri fratres ego Pharisaeus sum filius Pharisaeorum de spe et resurrectione mortuorum ego iudicor

7 et cum haec dixisset facta est dissensio inter Pharisaeos et Sadducaeos et soluta est multitudo

8 Sadducaei enim dicunt non esse resurrectionem neque angelum neque spiritum Pharisaei autem utrumque confitentur

9 factus est autem clamor magnus et surgentes quidam Pharisaeorum pugnabant dicentes nihil mali invenimus in homine isto quod si spiritus locutus est ei aut angelus

10 et cum magna dissensio facta esset timens tribunus ne discerperetur Paulus ab ipsis iussit milites descendere et rapere eum de medio eorum ac deducere eum in castra

11 sequenti autem nocte adsistens ei Dominus ait constans esto sicut enim testificatus es de me Hierusalem sic te oportet et Romae testificari

12 facta autem die collegerunt se quidam ex Iudaeis et devoverunt se dicentes neque manducaturos neque bibituros donec occiderent Paulum

13 erant autem plus quam quadraginta qui hanc coniurationem fecerant

14 qui accesserunt ad principes sacerdotum et seniores et dixerunt devotione devovimus nos nihil gustaturos donec occidamus Paulu

15 nunc ergo vos notum facite tribuno cum concilio ut producat illum ad vos tamquam aliquid certius cognituri de eo nos vero priusquam adpropiet parati sumus interficere illum

16 quod cum audisset filius sororis Pauli insidias venit et intravit in castra nuntiavitque Paulo

17 vocans autem Paulus ad se unum ex centurionibus ait adulescentem hunc perduc ad tribunum habet enim aliquid indicare illi

18 et ille quidem adsumens eum duxit ad tribunum et ait vinctus Paulus vocans rogavit me hunc adulescentem perducere ad te habentem aliquid loqui tibi

19 adprehendens autem tribunus manum illius secessit cum eo seorsum et interrogavit illum quid est quod habes indicare mih

20 ille autem dixit Iudaeis convenit rogare te ut crastina die Paulum producas in concilium quasi aliquid certius inquisituri sint de illo

21 tu vero ne credideris illis insidiantur enim ei ex eis viri amplius quadraginta qui se devoverunt non manducare neque bibere donec interficiant eum et nunc parati sunt expectantes promissum tuu

22 tribunus igitur dimisit adulescentem praecipiens ne cui loqueretur quoniam haec nota sibi fecisset

23 et vocatis duobus centurionibus dixit illis parate milites ducentos ut eant usque Caesaream et equites septuaginta et lancearios ducentos a tertia hora noctis

24 et iumenta praeparate ut inponentes Paulum salvum perducerent ad Felicem praesidem

25 []

26 scribens epistulam continentem haec Claudius Lysias optimo praesidi Felici salutem

27 virum hunc conprehensum a Iudaeis et incipientem interfici ab eis superveniens cum exercitu eripui cognito quia Romanus est

28 volensque scire causam quam obiciebant illi deduxi eum in concilium eorum

29 quem inveni accusari de quaestionibus legis ipsorum nihil vero dignum morte aut vinculis habentem crimen

30 et cum mihi perlatum esset de insidiis quas paraverunt ei misi ad te denuntians et accusatoribus ut dicant apud te

31 milites ergo secundum praeceptum sibi adsumentes Paulum duxerunt per noctem in Antipatridem

32 et postera die dimissis equitibus ut irent cum eo reversi sunt ad castra

33 qui cum venissent Caesaream et tradidissent epistulam praesidi statuerunt ante illum et Paulum

34 cum legisset autem et interrogasset de qua provincia esset et cognoscens quia de Cilicia

35 audiam te inquit cum et accusatores tui venerint iussitque in praetorio Herodis custodiri eum