Acts of the Apostles 22

NEW AMERICAN BIBLE	DOUAI-RHEIMS
1 "My brothers and fathers, listen to what I am about to say to you in my defense."	1 Men, brethren, and fathers, hear ye the account which I now give unto you.
2 When they heard him addressing them in Hebrew they became all the more quiet. And he continued,	2 (And when they heard that he spoke to them in the Hebrew tongue, they kept the more silence.)
3 "I am a Jew, born in Tarsus in Cilicia, but brought up in this city. At the feet of Gamaliel I was educated strictly in our ancestral law and was zealous for God, just as all of you are today.	3 And he saith: I am a Jew, born at Tarsus in Cilicia, but brought up in this city, at the feet of Gamaliel, taught according to the truth of the law of the fathers, zealous for the law, as also all you are this day:
4 I persecuted this Way to death, binding both men and women and delivering them to prison.	4 Who persecuted this way unto death, binding and delivering into prisons both men and women.
5 Even the high priest and the whole council of elders can testify on my behalf. For from them I even received letters to the brothers and set out for Damascus to bring back to Jerusalem in chains for punishment those there as well.	5 As the high priest doth bear me witness, and all the ancients: from whom also receiving letters to the brethren, I went to Damascus, that I might bring them bound from thence to Jerusalem to be punished.
6 "On that journey as I drew near to Damascus, about noon a great light from the sky suddenly shone around me.	6 And it came to pass, as I was going, and drawing nigh to Damascus at midday, that suddenly from heaven there shone round about me a great light:
7 I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?'	7 And falling on the ground, I heard a voice saying to me: Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?
8 I replied, 'Who are you, sir?' And he said to me, 'I am Jesus the Nazorean whom you are persecuting.'	8 And I answered: Who art thou, Lord? And he said to me: I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom thou persecutest.
9 My companions saw the light but did not hear the voice of the one who spoke to me.	9 And they that were with me, saw indeed the light, but they heard not the voice of him that spoke with me.
10 I asked, 'What shall I do, sir?' The Lord answered me, 'Get up and go into Damascus, and there you will be told about everything appointed for you to do.'	10 And I said: What shall I do, Lord? And the Lord said to me: Arise, and go to Damascus; and there it shall be told thee of all things that thou must do.
11 Since I could see nothing because of the brightness of that light, I was led by hand by my companions and entered Damascus.	11 And whereas I did not see for the brightness of that light, being led by the hand by my companions, I came to Damascus.
12 "A certain Ananias, a devout observer of the law, and highly spoken of by all the Jews who lived there,	12 And one Ananias, a man according to the law, having testimony of all the Jews who dwelt there,
13 came to me and stood there and said, 'Saul, my brother, regain your sight.' And at that very moment I regained my sight and saw him.	13 Coming to me, and standing by me, said to me: Brother Saul, look up. And I the same hour looked upon him.
14 Then he said, 'The God of our ancestors designated you to know his will, to see the Righteous One, and to hear the sound of his voice;	14 But he said: The God of our fathers hath preordained thee that thou shouldst know his will, and see the Just One, and shouldst hear the voice from his mouth.
15 for you will be his witness before all to what you have seen and heard.	15 For thou shalt be his witness to all men, of those things which thou hast seen and heard.
16 Now, why delay? Get up and have yourself baptized and your sins washed away, calling upon his name.'	16 And now why tarriest thou? Rise up, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, invoking his name.
17 "After I had returned to Jerusalem and while I was praying in the temple, I fell into a trance	17 And it came to pass, when I was come again to Jerusalem, and was praying in the temple, that I was in a trance,
18 and saw the Lord saying to me, 'Hurry, leave Jerusalem at once, because they will not accept your testimony about me.'	18 And saw him saying unto me: Make haste, and get thee quickly out of Jerusalem; because they will not receive thy testimony concerning me.
19 But I replied, 'Lord, they themselves know that from synagogue to synagogue I used to imprison and beat those who believed in you.	19 And I said: Lord, they know that I cast into prison, and beat in every synagogue, them that believed in thee.
20 And when the blood of your witness Stephen was being shed, I myself stood by giving my approval and keeping guard over the cloaks of his murderers.'	20 And when the blood of Stephen thy witness was shed, I stood by and consented, and kept the garments of them that killed him.
21 Then he said to me, 'Go, I shall send you far away to the Gentiles.'"	21 And he said to me: Go, for unto the Gentiles afar off, will I send thee.
22 They listened to him until he said this, but then they raised their voices and shouted, "Take such a one as this away from the earth. It is not right that he should live."	22 And they heard him until this word, and then lifted up their voice, saying: Away with such an one from the earth; for it is not fit that he should live.
23 And as they were yelling and throwing off their cloaks and flinging dust into the air,	23 And as they cried out and threw off their garments, and cast dust into the air,
24 the cohort commander ordered him to be brought into the compound and gave instruction that he be interrogated under the lash to determine the reason why they were making such an outcry against him.	24 The tribune commanded him to be brought into the castle, and that he should be scourged and tortured: to know for what cause they did so cry out against him.
25 But when they had stretched him out for the whips, Paul said to the centurion on duty, "Is it lawful for you to scourge a man who is a Roman citizen and has not been tried?"	25 And when they had bound him with thongs, Paul saith to the centurion that stood by him: Is it lawful for you to scourge a man that is a Roman, and uncondemned?
26 When the centurion heard this, he went to the cohort commander and reported it, saying, "What are you going to do? This man is a Roman citizen."	26 Which the centurion hearing, went to the tribune, and told him, saying: What art thou about to do? For this man is a Roman citizen.
27 Then the commander came and said to him, "Tell me, are you a Roman citizen?" "Yes," he answered.	27 And the tribune coming, said to him: Tell me, art thou a Roman? But he said: Yea.
28 The commander replied, "I acquired this citizenship for a large sum of money." Paul said, "But I was born one."	28 And the tribune answered: I obtained the being free of this city with a great sum. And Paul said: But I was born so.
29 At once those who were going to interrogate him backed away from him, and the commander became alarmed when he realized that he was a Roman citizen and that he had had him bound.	29 Immediately therefore they departed from him that were about to torture him. The tribune also was afraid after he understood that he was a Roman citizen, and because he had bound him.
30 The next day, wishing to determine the truth about why he was being accused by the Jews, he freed him and ordered the chief priests and the whole Sanhedrin to convene. Then he brought Paul down and made him stand before them.	30 But on the next day, meaning to know more diligently for what cause he was accused by the Jews, he loosed him, and commanded the priests to come together, and all the council: and bringing forth Paul, he set him before them.