Acts 26
26
1 Yet truly, Agrippa said to Paul, "It is permitted for you to speak for yourself." Then Paul, extending his hand, began to offer his defense.
2 "I consider myself blessed, O king Agrippa, that I am to give my defense today before you, about everything of which I am accused by the Jews,
3 especially since you know everything that pertains to the Jews, both customs and questions. Because of this, I beg you to listen to me patiently.
4 And certainly, all the Jews know about my life from my youth, which had its beginning among my own people in Jerusalem.
5 They knew me well from the beginning, (if they would be willing to offer testimony) for I lived according to the most determined sect of our religion: as a Pharisee.
6 And now, it is in the hope of the Promise which was made by God to our fathers that I stand subject to judgment.
7 It is the Promise that our twelve tribes, worshiping night and day, hope to see. About this hope, O king, I am accused by the Jews.
8 Why should it be judged so unbelievable with you all that God might raise the dead?
9 And certainly, I myself formerly considered that I ought to act in many ways which are contrary to the name of Jesus the Nazarene.
10 This is also how I acted at Jerusalem. And so, I enclosed many holy persons in prison, having received authority from the leaders of the priests. And when they were to be killed, I brought the sentence.
11 And in every synagogue, frequently while punishing them, I compelled them to blaspheme. And being all the more maddened against them, I persecuted them, even to foreign cities.
12 Thereafter, as I was going to Damascus, with authority and permission from the high priest,
13 at midday, O king, I and those who were also with me, saw along the way a light from heaven shining around me with a splendor greater than that of the sun.
14 And when we had all fallen down to the ground, I heard a voice speaking to me in the Hebrew language: 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the goad.'
15 Then I said, 'Who are you, Lord?' And the Lord said, 'I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.
16 But rise up and stand on your feet. For I appeared to you for this reason: so that I may establish you as a minister and a witness concerning the things that you have seen, and concerning the things that I will show to you:
17 rescuing you from the people and the nations to which I am now sending you,
18 in order to open their eyes, so that they may be converted from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive the remission of sins and a place among the saints, through the faith that is in me.'
19 From then on, O king Agrippa, I was not unbelieving to the heavenly vision.
20 But I preached, first to those who are at Damascus and at Jerusalem, and then to the entire region of Judea, and to the Gentiles, so that they would repent and convert to God, doing the works that are worthy of repentance.
21 It was for this reason that the Jews, having apprehended me when I was in the temple, attempted to kill me.
22 But having been aided by the help of God, even to this day, I stand witnessing to the small and the great, saying nothing beyond what the Prophets and Moses have said would be in the future:
23 that the Christ would suffer, and that he would be the first from the resurrection of the dead, and that he would bring light to the people and to the nations."
24 While he was speaking these things and presenting his defense, Festus said with a loud voice: "Paul, you are insane! Too much studying has turned you to insanity."
25 And Paul said: "I am not insane, most excellent Festus, but rather I am speaking words of truth and sobriety.
26 For the king knows about these things. To him also, I am speaking with constancy. For I think that none of these things are unknown to him. And neither were these things done in a corner.
27 Do you believe the Prophets, O king Agrippa? I know that you believe."
28 Then Agrippa said to Paul, "To some extent, you persuade me to become a Christian."
29 And Paul said, "I hope to God that, both to a small extent and to a great extent, not only you, but also all those who hear me this day will become just as I also am, except for these chains."
30 And the king rose up, and the governor, and Bernice, and those who were sitting with them.
31 And when they had withdrawn, they were speaking among themselves, saying, "This man has done nothing worthy of death, nor of imprisonment."
32 Then Agrippa said to Festus, "This man could have been released, if he had not appealed to Caesar."
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Acts 26: CPDV
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Acts 26
26
1Agrippa then said to Paul, “You are free to speak on your own behalf.”
With a sweep of his arm, Paul began his defense. 2“I am delighted, King Agrippa, to make my defense before you today regarding everything I am accused of by the Jews, 3particularly because you are an expert in all Jewish issues and customs. I beg your patient indulgence as you listen to what I have to say.
4All the Jews know my life story—from my earliest days beginning in my own country and then in Jerusalem. 5They have known me for a long time and can verify, if they choose to, that I have followed the religious school that observes our faith in the strictest way—I lived as a Pharisee.
6Now I am standing here to be judged regarding the promised hope God gave to our fathers 7that our twelve tribes hoped to receive as they continually dedicated themselves in God's service. Yes, it's because of this hope that I'm accused by the Jews, Your Majesty! 8Why should any of you think it's unbelievable that God raises the dead?
9Previously I was sincerely convinced I should do as much as I could to oppose the name of Jesus of Nazareth. 10This is what I did in Jerusalem. I threw many of the believers in prison, having been given authority to do this by the chief priests. When they were sentenced to death I cast my vote against them. 11I had them punished in all the synagogues, trying to make them recant. I was so furiously opposed to them that I went to cities outside our country to persecute them.
12That's why one day I was on my way to Damascus with the authority and orders from the chief priests. 13At about noon as I was on my way, Your Majesty, I saw a light from heaven that blazed brighter than the sun. It shone around me and those who were traveling with me. 14All of us fell to the ground. Then I heard a voice speaking to me in Aramaic, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It's hard for you to fight against me!’#26:14. Literally, “kick against the goads”—the image of the prods used to direct livestock.
15‘Who are you, Lord?’ I asked.
‘I am Jesus, the one you're persecuting,’ the Lord replied. 16‘But pick yourself up and get to your feet. The reason why I've appeared to you is to appoint you as my servant, to be a witness for me, telling others how you have seen me and everything I will reveal to you. 17I will save you from your own people and from the foreigners. I am sending you to them 18to open their eyes so they can turn from darkness to light, from the power of Satan to God, and so they can receive forgiveness for their sins and a place with those who are set right as they trust in me.’
19Clearly, King Agrippa, I could not disobey this vision from heaven. 20First in Damascus, then in Jerusalem, and then all over Judea and also to the foreigners I shared the message of repentance: how they should turn to God, demonstrating their repentance through their actions. 21That's why the Jews seized me in the Temple and tried to kill me.
22God has looked after me so I can stand here today as a witness to everyone, both to ordinary people and to those who are important. I am only repeating what Moses and the prophets said would happen— 23how the Messiah had to suffer, and that by being the first to rise from the dead he would announce the light of God's salvation#26:23. Implied. The original simply says “light.” to both Jews and foreigners.”
24Festus interrupted Paul as he made his defense, shouting out, “Paul, you've gone mad! All your knowledge is driving you insane!”
25“I'm not mad, Festus your Excellency,” Paul replied. “What I am saying is true and makes sense. 26The king recognizes this, and I'm explaining it very clearly. I am sure that he is aware of what's been happening, because none of this took place as if it were hidden in a corner.
27King Agrippa, do you believe what the prophets said? I'm sure you do!”
28“Do you think you can convince me to become a Christian so quickly?” Agrippa asked Paul.
29“Whether it takes a short time or a long time doesn't matter,” Paul answered. “But my prayer to God is that not just you, but everybody listening to me today would become like me—except for these chains!”
30The king stood up, along with the governor and Bernice, and everyone who had been sitting with them. 31They conferred together after they had left. “This man hasn't done anything that deserves death or imprisonment,” they concluded. 32Agrippa told Festus, “He could have been freed if he hadn't appealed to Caesar.”
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Dr. Jonathan Gallagher. Released under Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 Unported License. Version 4.3. For corrections send email to jonathangallagherfbv@gmail.com