AC-22:1  Men, brethren, and fathers, hear ye my defence [which I

make] now unto you.

AC-22:2  (And when they heard that he spake in the Hebrew tongue

to

them, they kept the more silence: and he saith,)

AC-22:3  I am verily a man [which am] a Jew, born in Tarsus, [a

city] in Cilicia, yet brought up in this city at the feet of

Gamaliel, [and] taught according to the perfect manner of the

law of

the fathers, and was zealous toward God, as ye all are this day.

AC-22:4  And I persecuted this way unto the death, binding and

delivering into prisons both men and women.

AC-22:5  As also the high priest doth bear me witness, and all

the

estate of the elders: from whom also I received letters unto the

brethren, and went to Damascus, to bring them which were there

bound

unto Jerusalem, for to be punished.

AC-22:6  And it came to pass, that, as I made my journey, and was

come nigh unto Damascus about noon, suddenly there shone from

heaven

a great light round about me.

AC-22:7  And I fell unto the ground, and heard a voice saying

unto

me, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?

AC-22:8  And I answered, Who art thou, Lord? And he said unto me,

 I

am Jesus of Nazareth, whom thou persecutest.

AC-22:9  And they that were with me saw indeed the light, and

were

afraid; but they heard not the voice of him that spake to me.

AC-22:10  And I said, What shall I do, Lord? And the Lord said

unto

me, Arise, and go into Damascus; and there it shall be told thee

of

all things which are appointed for thee to do.

AC-22:11  And when I could not see for the glory of that light,

being led by the hand of them that were with me, I came into

Damascus.

AC-22:12  And one Ananias, a devout man according to the law,

having

a good report of all the Jews which dwelt [there],

AC-22:13  Came unto me, and stood, and said unto me, Brother

Saul,

receive thy sight. And the same hour I looked up upon him.

AC-22:14  And he said, The God of our fathers hath chosen thee,

that

thou shouldest know his will, and see that Just One, and

shouldest

hear the voice of his mouth.

AC-22:15  For thou shalt be his witness unto all men of what thou

hast seen and heard.

AC-22:16  And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized, and

wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord.

AC-22:17  And it came to pass, that, when I was come again to

Jerusalem, even while I prayed in the temple, I was in a trance;

AC-22:18  And saw him saying unto me, Make haste, and get thee

quickly out of Jerusalem: for they will not receive thy testimony

concerning me.

AC-22:19  And I said, Lord, they know that I imprisoned and beat

in

every synagogue them that believed on thee:

AC-22:20  And when the blood of thy martyr Stephen was shed, I

also

was standing by, and consenting unto his death, and kept the

raiment

of them that slew him.

AC-22:21  And he said unto me, Depart: for I will send thee far

hence unto the Gentiles.

AC-22:22  And they gave him audience unto this word, and [then]

lifted up their voices, and said, Away with such a [fellow] from

the

earth: for it is not fit that he should live.

AC-22:23  And as they cried out, and cast off [their] clothes,

and

threw dust into the air,

AC-22:24  The chief captain commanded him to be brought into the

castle, and bade that he should be examined by scourging; that he

might know wherefore they cried so against him.

AC-22:25  And as they bound him with thongs, Paul said unto the

centurion that stood by, Is it lawful for you to scourge a man

that

is a Roman, and uncondemned?

AC-22:26  When the centurion heard [that], he went and told the

chief captain, saying, Take heed what thou doest: for this man

is a

Roman.

AC-22:27  Then the chief captain came, and said unto him, Tell

me,

art thou a Roman? He said, Yea.

AC-22:28  And the chief captain answered, With a great sum

obtained

I this freedom. And Paul said, But I was [free] born.

AC-22:29  Then straightway they departed from him which should

have

examined him: and the chief captain also was afraid, after he

knew

that he was a Roman, and because he had bound him.

AC-22:30  On the morrow, because he would have known the

certainty

wherefore he was accused of the Jews, he loosed him from [his]

bands, and commanded the chief priests and all their council to

appear, and brought Paul down, and set him before them.

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