1"Brothers and fathers, listen to my defense that I now present to you."
2When they heard him speak to them in the Hebrew language, they became even quieter. He said,
3"I am a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but I grew up in this city and was educated at the feet of Gamaliel. I was thoroughly trained in the strict law of our ancestors and was just as zealous for God as all of you are today.
4I persecuted those who followed this Way, even to death, arresting both men and women and putting them in prison.
5The high priest and the entire council of elders can testify to this. I even received letters from them to the believers in Damascus and went there to bring these people back to Jerusalem in chains to be punished.
6As I was traveling and coming near Damascus, around noon, a bright light from heaven suddenly flashed around me.
7I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?’
8I answered, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ And he said to me, ‘I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you are persecuting.’
9“Those who were with me saw the light and were afraid, but they did not understand the voice of the one who spoke to me.
10I said, ‘What should I do, Lord?’ The Lord told me, ‘Get up and go into Damascus. There you will be told everything you are appointed to do.’
11Since I could not see because of the intense brightness of that light, those who were with me led me by the hand, and I entered Damascus.
12A man named Ananias, a devout man who followed the Law and was highly respected by all the Jews living in Damascus,
13came to me. He stood by me and said, ‘Brother Saul, receive your sight!’ And at that very moment, I looked up and saw him.
14He then said, ‘The God of our fathers has chosen you to know his will, to see the Righteous One, and to hear words from his mouth.
15For you will be his witness to all people of what you have seen and heard.
16Now what are you waiting for? Get up, be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on his name.’
17"When I had returned to Jerusalem, and was praying in the temple, I fell into a trance quickly,
18and saw him saying to me, ‘Hurry and get out of Jerusalem quickly, because they will not accept your message about me.’
19I said, ‘Lord, they themselves know that I imprisoned and beat in every synagogue those who believed in you.’
20When Stephen, your witness, was killed, I was also standing by, agreeing to his death, and guarding the cloaks of those who killed him.’
21“He said to me, ‘Leave, for I will send you far from here to the non-Jews.’”
22They listened to him until he said that; then they shouted, “Get rid of this man! He doesn’t deserve to live!”
23As they shouted, threw off their cloaks, and threw dust into the air,
24the commanding officer ordered him to be brought into the barracks, and commanded him to be whipped to find out why they were shouting against him like that.
25When they had tied him up with leather straps, Paul asked the centurion who was standing by, “Is it legal for you to whip a Roman citizen who has not been found guilty?”
26When the centurion heard this, he went to the commanding officer and told him, “Be careful what you do, because this man is a Roman citizen!”
27The commanding officer came and asked him, “Tell me, are you a Roman citizen?” He said, “Yes.”
28The commanding officer answered, “I bought my citizenship for a large sum of money.” Paul said, “But I was born a Roman citizen.”
29Immediately, those who were about to question him left him, and the commanding officer was also afraid when he realized that Paul was a Roman citizen, because he had ordered him to be bound.
30But the next day, wanting to know the real reason why he was accused by the Jews, the commanding officer freed him from his chains, and ordered the chief priests and the entire council to come together, and he brought Paul down and presented him to them.