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Acts 22 - New American Standard Bible 1995 (NASB1995)

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Paul’s Defense before the Jews

22 “(A)Brethren and fathers, hear my defense which I now offer to you.”

2 And when they heard that he was addressing them in the [a](B)Hebrew dialect, they became even more quiet; and he *said,

3 “(C)I am (D)a Jew, born in (E)Tarsus of (F)Cilicia, but brought up in this city, educated [b]under (G)Gamaliel, [c](H)strictly according to the law of our fathers, being zealous for God just as (I)you all are today. 4 (J)I persecuted this (K)Way to the death, binding and putting both men and women into prisons, 5 as also (L)the high priest and all (M)the Council of the elders [d]can testify. From them I also (N)received letters to (O)the brethren, and started off for (P)Damascus in order to bring even those who were there to Jerusalem [e]as prisoners to be punished.

6 “(Q)But it happened that as I was on my way, approaching Damascus about noontime, a very bright light suddenly flashed from heaven all around me, 7 and I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?’ 8 And I answered, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ And He said to me, ‘I am (R)Jesus the Nazarene, whom you are persecuting.’ 9 And those who were with me (S)saw the light, to be sure, but (T)did not [f]understand the voice of the One who was speaking to me. 10 And I said, ‘(U)What shall I do, Lord?’ And the Lord said to me, ‘Get up and go on into Damascus, and there you will be told of all that has been appointed for you to do.’ 11 But since I (V)could not see because of the [g]brightness of that light, I was led by the hand by those who were with me and came into Damascus.

12 “A certain (W)Ananias, a man who was devout by the standard of the Law, and (X)well spoken of by all the Jews who lived there, 13 came to me, and standing near said to me, ‘(Y)Brother Saul, receive your sight!’ And [h](Z)at that very time I looked up at him. 14 And he said, ‘(AA)The God of our fathers has (AB)appointed you to know His will and to (AC)see the (AD)Righteous One and to hear an [i]utterance from His mouth. 15 For you will be (AE)a witness for Him to all men of (AF)what you have seen and heard. 16 Now why do you delay? (AG)Get up and be baptized, and (AH)wash away your sins, (AI)calling on His name.’

17 “It happened when I (AJ)returned to Jerusalem and was praying in the temple, that I (AK)fell into a trance, 18 and I saw Him saying to me, ‘(AL)Make haste, and get out of Jerusalem quickly, because they will not accept your testimony about Me.’ 19 And I said, ‘Lord, they themselves understand that in one synagogue after another (AM)I used to imprison and (AN)beat those who believed in You. 20 And (AO)when the blood of Your witness Stephen was being shed, I also was standing by approving, and watching out for the coats of those who were slaying him.’ 21 And He said to me, ‘Go! For I will send you far away (AP)to the Gentiles.’”

22 They listened to him up to this statement, and then they raised their voices and said, “(AQ)Away with such a fellow from the earth, for (AR)he should not be allowed to live!” 23 And as they were crying out and (AS)throwing off their cloaks and (AT)tossing dust into the air, 24 the [j]commander ordered him to be brought into (AU)the barracks, stating that he should be (AV)examined by scourging so that he might find out the reason why they were shouting against him that way. 25 But when they stretched him out [k]with thongs, Paul said to the centurion who was standing by, “Is it [l]lawful for you to scourge (AW)a man who is a Roman and uncondemned?” 26 When the centurion heard this, he went to the [m]commander and told him, saying, “What are you about to do? For this man is a Roman.” 27 The [n]commander came and said to him, “Tell me, are you a Roman?” And he said, “Yes.” 28 The [o]commander answered, “I acquired this citizenship with a large sum of money.” And Paul said, “But I was actually born a citizen.” 29 Therefore those who were about to (AX)examine him immediately [p]let go of him; and the [q]commander also (AY)was afraid when he found out that he was a Roman, and because he had [r](AZ)put him in chains.

30 But on the next day, (BA)wishing to know for certain why he had been accused by the Jews, he (BB)released him and ordered the chief priests and all (BC)the [s]Council to assemble, and brought Paul down and set him before them.

Footnotes

  1. Acts 22:2 I.e. Jewish Aramaic
  2. Acts 22:3 Lit at the feet of
  3. Acts 22:3 Lit according to the strictness of the ancestral law
  4. Acts 22:5 Lit testifies for me
  5. Acts 22:5 Lit having been bound
  6. Acts 22:9 Or hear (with comprehension)
  7. Acts 22:11 Lit glory
  8. Acts 22:13 Or instantly; lit at the very hour
  9. Acts 22:14 Or message; lit voice
  10. Acts 22:24 I.e. chiliarch, in command of one thousand troops
  11. Acts 22:25 Or for the whip
  12. Acts 22:25 Interrogation by torture was a procedure used with slaves
  13. Acts 22:26 V 24, note 1
  14. Acts 22:27 V 24, note 1
  15. Acts 22:28 V 24, note 1
  16. Acts 22:29 Lit withdrew from
  17. Acts 22:29 V 24, note 1
  18. Acts 22:29 Lit bound him
  19. Acts 22:30 Or Sanhedrin

Cross references

  1. Acts 22:1 : Acts 7:2
  2. Acts 22:2 : Acts 21:40
  3. Acts 22:3 : Acts 9:1-22; 22:3-16; 26:9-18
  4. Acts 22:3 : Acts 21:39
  5. Acts 22:3 : Acts 9:11
  6. Acts 22:3 : Acts 6:9
  7. Acts 22:3 : Acts 5:34
  8. Acts 22:3 : Acts 23:6; 26:5; Phil 3:6
  9. Acts 22:3 : Acts 21:20
  10. Acts 22:4 : Acts 8:3; 22:19f; 26:9-11
  11. Acts 22:4 : Acts 9:2
  12. Acts 22:5 : Acts 9:1
  13. Acts 22:5 : Luke 22:66; Acts 5:21; 1 Tim 4:14
  14. Acts 22:5 : Acts 9:2
  15. Acts 22:5 : Acts 2:29; 3:17; 13:26; 23:1; 28:17, 21; Rom 9:3
  16. Acts 22:5 : Acts 9:2
  17. Acts 22:6 : Acts 22:6-11: Acts 9:3-8; 26:12-18
  18. Acts 22:8 : Acts 26:9
  19. Acts 22:9 : Acts 26:13
  20. Acts 22:9 : Acts 9:7
  21. Acts 22:10 : Acts 16:30
  22. Acts 22:11 : Acts 9:8
  23. Acts 22:12 : Acts 9:10
  24. Acts 22:12 : Acts 6:3; 10:22
  25. Acts 22:13 : Acts 9:17
  26. Acts 22:13 : Acts 9:18
  27. Acts 22:14 : Acts 3:13
  28. Acts 22:14 : Acts 9:15; 26:16
  29. Acts 22:14 : Acts 9:17; 26:16; 1 Cor 9:1; 15:8
  30. Acts 22:14 : Acts 7:52
  31. Acts 22:15 : Acts 23:11; 26:16
  32. Acts 22:15 : Acts 22:14
  33. Acts 22:16 : Acts 9:18
  34. Acts 22:16 : Acts 2:38; 1 Cor 6:11; Eph 5:26; Heb 10:22
  35. Acts 22:16 : Acts 7:59
  36. Acts 22:17 : Acts 9:26; 26:20
  37. Acts 22:17 : Acts 10:10
  38. Acts 22:18 : Acts 9:29
  39. Acts 22:19 : Acts 8:3; 22:4
  40. Acts 22:19 : Matt 10:17; Acts 26:11
  41. Acts 22:20 : Acts 7:58f; 8:1; 26:10
  42. Acts 22:21 : Acts 9:15
  43. Acts 22:22 : Acts 21:36; 1 Thess 2:16
  44. Acts 22:22 : Acts 25:24
  45. Acts 22:23 : Acts 7:58
  46. Acts 22:23 : 2 Sam 16:13
  47. Acts 22:24 : Acts 21:34
  48. Acts 22:24 : Acts 22:29
  49. Acts 22:25 : Acts 16:37
  50. Acts 22:29 : Acts 22:24
  51. Acts 22:29 : Acts 16:38
  52. Acts 22:29 : Acts 21:33
  53. Acts 22:30 : Acts 23:28
  54. Acts 22:30 : Acts 21:33
  55. Acts 22:30 : Matt 5:22

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22 Brethren and fathers [Men, brethren and fathers], hear ye what reason I yield now to you. 2 And when some heard that in Hebrew tongue he spake to them, they gave the more silence. And he said, 3 I am a man a Jew, born at Tarsus of Cilicia, nourished and in this city beside the feet of Gamaliel,...
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Acts 22 - The Voice (VOICE)

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22 “Brethren and fathers, hear the defense which I now make before you.” 2 And when they heard that he addressed them in the Hebrew language, they were the more quiet. And he said: 3 “I am a Jew, born at Tarsus in Cili′cia, but brought up in this city at the feet of Gama′li-el, educated according to...
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Acts 22 - Revised Standard Version (RSV)

22 “Brethren and fathers, hear the defense which I now make before you.” 2 And when they heard that he addressed them in the Hebrew language, they were the more quiet. And he said: 3 “I am a Jew, born at Tarsus in Cili′cia, but brought up in this city at the feet of Gama′li-el, educated according to...
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Acts 22 - Revised Geneva Translation (RGT)

22 “You men, brothers and fathers, hear now my defense towards you!” 2 And when they heard him speak in the Hebrew tongue to them, they kept even more silent. And he said, 3 “I am indeed a man born Jewish in Tarsus in Cilicia but brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel and instructed accordi...
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Acts 22 - New Testament for Everyone (NTE)

22 ‘My brothers and fathers,’ he began, ‘hear me as I explain myself to you.’ 2 When they heard him speaking in Aramaic they became even quieter. 3 ‘I am a Jew’, he continued, ‘and I was born in Tarsus in Cilicia. I received my education here, in this city, and I studied at the feet of Gamaliel. I w...
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Acts 22 - New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (NRSVCE)

22 “Brothers and fathers, listen to the defense that I now make before you.” 2 When they heard him addressing them in Hebrew,[a] they became even more quiet. Then he said: 3 “I am a Jew, born in Tarsus in Cilicia, but brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, educated strictly according to ou...
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Acts 22 - New Revised Standard Version, Anglicised (NRSVA)

22 ‘Brothers and fathers, listen to the defence that I now make before you.’ 2 When they heard him addressing them in Hebrew,[a] they became even more quiet. Then he said: 3 ‘I am a Jew, born in Tarsus in Cilicia, but brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, educated strictly according to ou...
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Acts 22 - New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)

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Acts 22 - New Matthew Bible (NMB)

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Acts 22 - New Living Translation (NLT)

22 “Brothers and esteemed fathers,” Paul said, “listen to me as I offer my defense.” 2 When they heard him speaking in their own language,[a] the silence was even greater. 3 Then Paul said, “I am a Jew, born in Tarsus, a city in Cilicia, and I was brought up and educated here in Jerusalem under Gama...
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Acts 22 - New Life Version (NLV)

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Acts 22 - New King James Version (NKJV)

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