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27 BUT JUST BEFORE the period of seven days was up, the Jews from the province of Asia saw him in the temple. They stirred up the whole crowd, and seized him, 28 shouting, 'Men of Israel, help, help! This is the fellow who spreads his doctrine all over the world, attacking our people, our law, and this sanctuary. On top of all this he has brought Greeks into the temple and profaned t 29 For they had previously seen Trophimus the Ephesian with him in the city, and assumed that Paul had brought him into the temple.
30 The whole city was in a turmoil, and people came running from all directions. They seized Paul and dragged him out of the temple; and at once the doors were shut. 31 While they were clamouring for his death, a report reached the officer commanding the cohort, that all Jerusalem was in an uproar. 32 He immediately took a force of soldiers with their centurions and came down on the rioters at the double. As soon as they saw the commandant and his troops, they stopped beating Paul. 33 The commandant stepped forward, arrested him, and ordered him to be shackled with two chains; he then asked who the man was and what he had been doing. 34 Some in the crowd shouted one thing, some another. As he could not get at the truth because of the hubbub, he ordered him to be taken into barracks. 35 When Paul reached the steps, he had to be carried by the soldiers because of the violence of the mob. 36 For the whole crowd were at their heels yelling, 'Kill him!'
37 Just before Paul was taken into the barracks he said to the commandant, 'May I say something to you?' The commandant said, 'So you speak Greek, do you? 38 Then you are not the Egyptian who started a revolt some time ago and led a force of four thousand terrorists out into the wilds?' 39 Paul replied, 'I am a Jew, a Tarsian from Cilicia, a citizen of no mean city. I ask your permission to speak to the people.' 40 When permission had been given, Paul stood on the steps and with a gesture called for the attention of the people. As soon as quiet was restored, he addressed them in the Jewish language:
221 'Brothers and fathers, give me a hearing while I make my defence before you.' 2 When they heard him speaking to them in their own language, they listened the more quietly. 3 'I am a true-born Jew,' he said, 'a native of Tarsus in Cilicia. I was brought up in this city, and as a pupil of Gamaliel I was thoroughly trained in every point of our ancestral law. I have always been ardent in God's service, as you all are today. 4 And so I began to persecute this movement to the death, arresting its followers, men and women alike, and putting them in chains. 5 For this I have as witnesses the High Priest and the whole Council of Elders. I was given letters from them to our fellow-Jews at Damascus, and had started out to bring the Christians there to Jerusalem as prisoners for punishment; and this is what happened. 6 I was on the road and nearing Damascus, when suddenly about midday a great light flashed from the sky all around me, 7 and I fell to the ground. Then I heard a voice saying to me, "Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?" 8 I answered, "Tell me. Lord, who you are." "I am Jesus of Nazareth," he said, "whom you are persecuting." 9 My companions saw the light, but did not hear the voice that spoke to me. 10 "What shall I do, Lord?" I said, and the Lord replied, "Get up and continue your journey to Damascus; there you will be told of all the tasks that are laid upon you." 11 As I had been blinded by the brilliance of that light, my companions led me by the hand, and so I came to Damascus.
12 'There, a man called Ananias, a devout observer of the Law and well spoken of by all the Jews of that place, 13 came and stood beside me and said, "Saul, my brother, recover your sight." 14 Instantly I recovered my sight and saw him. He went on: "The God of our fathers appointed you to know his will and to see the Righteous One and to hear his very voice, 15 because you are to be his witness before the world, and testify to what you have seen and heard. 16 And now why delay? Be baptized at once, with invocation of his name, and wash away your sins."
17 'After my return to Jerusalem, I was praying in the is temple when I fell into a trance 18 and saw him there, speaking to me. "Make haste", he said, "and leave Jerusalem without delay, for they will not accept your testimony about me." 19 "Lord," I said, "they know that I imprisoned those who believe in thee, and flogged them in every synagogue; 20 and when the blood of Stephen thy witness was shed I stood by, approving, and I looked after the clothes of those who killed him." 21 But he said to me, "Go, for I am sending you far away to the Gentiles." '
22 Up to this point they had given him a hearing; but now they began shouting, 'Down with him! A scoundrel like that is better dead!' 23 And as they were yelling and waving their cloaks and flinging dust in the air, 24 the commandant ordered him to be brought into the barracks and gave instructions to examine him by flogging, and find out what reason there was for such an outcry against him. 25 But when they tied him up for the lash, Paul said to the centurion who was standing there, 'Can you legally flog a man who is a Roman citizen, and moreover has not been found guilty?' 26 When the centurion heard this, he went and reported it to the commandant. 'What do you mean to do?' he said. 'This man is a Roman citizen.' 27 The commandant came to Paul. 'Tell me, are you a Roman citizen?' he asked. 'Yes', said he. 28 The commandant rejoined, 'It cost me a large sum to acquire this citizenship.' Paul said, 'But it was mine by birth.' 29 Then those who were about to examine him withdrew hastily, and the commandant himself was alarmed when he realized that Paul was a Roman citizen and that he had put him in irons.
30 THE FOLLOWING DAY, wishing to be quite sure what charge the Jews were bringing against Paul, he released him and ordered the chief priests and the entire Council to assemble. He then took Paul down and stood him before them.
231 Paul fixed his eyes on the Council and said, 'My brothers, I have lived all my life, and still live today, with a perfectly clear conscience before God.' 2 At this the High Priest Ananias ordered his attendants to strike him on the mouth. 3 Paul retorted, 'God will strike you, you whitewashed wall! You sit there to judge me in accordance with the Law, and then in defiance of the Law you order me to be struck!' 4 The attendants said, 'Would you insult God's High Priest?' 5 'My brothers,' said Paul, 'I had no idea that he was High Priest; Scripture, I know, says: "You must not abuse the ruler of your people." '
6 Now Paul was well aware that one section of them were Sadducees and the other Pharisees, so he called out in the Council, 'My brothers, I am a Pharisee, a Pharisee born and bred; and the true issue in this trial is our hope of the resurrection of the dead.' 7 At these words the Pharisees and Sadducees fell out among themselves, and the assembly was divided. 8 (The Sadducees deny that there is any resurrection, or angel, or spirit, but the Pharisees accept them.) 9 So a great uproar broke out, and some of the doctors of the law belonging to the Pharisaic party openly took sides and declared, 'We can find no fault with this man; perhaps an angel or spirit has spoken to him.' 10 The dissension was mounting, and the commandant was afraid that Paul would be torn in pieces, so he ordered the troops to go down, pull him out of the crowd, and bring him into the barracks.
11 The following night the Lord appeared to him and said, 'Keep up your courage, you have affirmed the truth about me in Jerusalem, and you must do the same in Rome.'
12 When day broke, the Jews banded together and took an oath not to eat or drink until they had killed Paul. 13 There were more than forty in this conspiracy. 14 They came to the chief priests and elders and said, 'We have bound ourselves by a solemn oath not to taste food until we have killed Paul. 15 It is now for you, acting with the Council, to apply to the commandant to bring him down to you, on the pretext of a closer investigation of his case; and we have arranged to do away with him before he arrives.'
16 But the son of Paul's sister heard of the ambush; he went to the barracks, obtained entry, and reported it to Paul. 17 Paul called one of the centurions and said, 'Take this young man to the commandant; he has something to report.' 18 The centurion took him and brought him to the commandant. 'The prisoner Paul', he said, 'sent for me and asked me to bring this young man to you; he has something to tell you.' 19 The commandant took him by the arm, drew him aside, and asked him, 'What is it you have to report?' 20 He said, 'The Jews have made a plan among themselves and will request you to bring Paul down to the Council tomorrow, on the pretext of obtaining more precise information about him. 21 Do not listen to them; for a party more than forty strong are lying in wait for him. They have sworn not to eat or drink until they have done away with him; they are now ready, and wait only for your consent.' 22 So the commandant dismissed the young man, with orders not to let anyone know that he had given him this information.