VIN(i)
1 “Brothers and fathers, listen now to my defense before you.”
2 When they heard him speak to them in Aramaic, they became even more silent. Then Paul declared,
3 "I am a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but brought up in this city, educated under Gamaliel, strictly according to the law of our fathers, being zealous for God just as you all are 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 shall 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 »I was blind because of the bright light. So my companions took me by the hand and led me to Damascus.
12 There a man named Ananias, a devout observer of the Law, highly respected by all the Jews who lived there,
13 came to me. He stood beside me and said, 'Brother Saul, receive your sight!' At that moment I could see him.
14 Then he said: ‘The God of our fathers has chosen you to know His will, and to see the Righteous One, and to hear words from His mouth.
15 You will be His witness to all men 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 "When I had returned to Jerusalem and was praying in the temple, I fell into a trance
18 And saw Jesus saying to me 'Make haste and leave Jerusalem at once, because they will not accept your testimony about me.'
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 witness Stephen was shed, I stood there giving my approval and watching over the garments of those who killed him.’
21 Then He said to me, ‘Go! I will send you far away to the Gentiles.’”
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 tribune ordered Paul to be taken into the barracks and told the soldiers to beat and question him in order to find out why the people were yelling at him like this.
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 When the officer heard this, he went to the commander and said to him, "What are you going to do? 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 The commander replied, "I had to pay a large sum for this citizenship." "But I was born a citizen," said Paul.
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, since the Tribune wanted to find out exactly what Paul was being accused of by the Jews, he released him and ordered the high priests and the entire Council to meet. Then he brought Paul down and had him stand before them.