Chapter 22

  Men, brethren, and fathers, hear ye my defence [which I make] now unto you.  

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  (And when they heard that he spake in the Hebrew tongue to them, they kept the more silence: and he saith,)  

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  I am verily a man [which am] a Jew, born in Tarsus, [a city] in Cilicia, yet brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, [and] taught according to the perfect manner of the law of the fathers, and was zealous toward God, as ye all are this day.  

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  And I persecuted this way unto the death, binding and delivering into prisons both men and women.  

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  As also the high priest doth bear me witness, and all the estate of the elders: from whom also I received letters unto the brethren, and went to Damascus, to bring them which were there bound unto Jerusalem, for to be punished.  

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  And it came to pass, that, as I made my journey, and was come nigh unto Damascus about noon, suddenly there shone from heaven a great light round about me.  

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  And I fell unto the ground, and heard a voice saying unto me, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?  

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  And I answered, Who art thou, Lord? And he said unto me, I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom thou persecutest.  

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  And they that were with me saw indeed the light, and were afraid; but they heard not the voice of him that spake to me.  

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  And I said, What shall I do, Lord? And the Lord said unto me, Arise, and go into Damascus; and there it shall be told thee of all things which are appointed for thee to do.  

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  And when I could not see for the glory of that light, being led by the hand of them that were with me, I came into Damascus.  

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  And one Ananias, a devout man according to the law, having a good report of all the Jews which dwelt [there],  

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  Came unto me, and stood, and said unto me, Brother Saul, receive thy sight. And the same hour I looked up upon him.  

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  And he said, The God of our fathers hath chosen thee, that thou shouldest know his will, and see that Just One, and shouldest hear the voice of his mouth.  

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  For thou shalt be his witness unto all men of what thou hast seen and heard.  

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  And now why tarriest thou? arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord.  

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  And it came to pass, that, when I was come again to Jerusalem, even while I prayed in the temple, I was in a trance;  

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  And saw him saying unto me, Make haste, and get thee quickly out of Jerusalem: for they will not receive thy testimony concerning me.  

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  And I said, Lord, they know that I imprisoned and beat in every synagogue them that believed on thee:  

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  And when the blood of thy martyr Stephen was shed, I also was standing by, and consenting unto his death, and kept the raiment of them that slew him.  

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  And he said unto me, Depart: for I will send thee far hence unto the Gentiles.  

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  And they gave him audience unto this word, and [then] lifted up their voices, and said, Away with such a [fellow] from the earth: for it is not fit that he should live.  

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  And as they cried out, and cast off [their] clothes, and threw dust into the air,  

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  The chief captain commanded him to be brought into the castle, and bade that he should be examined by scourging; that he might know wherefore they cried so against him.  

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  And as they bound him with thongs, Paul said unto the centurion that stood by, Is it lawful for you to scourge a man that is a Roman, and uncondemned?  

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  When the centurion heard [that], he went and told the chief captain, saying, Take heed what thou doest: for this man is a Roman.  

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  Then the chief captain came, and said unto him, Tell me, art thou a Roman? He said, Yea.  

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  And the chief captain answered, With a great sum obtained I this freedom. And Paul said, But I was [free] born.  

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  Then straightway they departed from him which should have examined him: and the chief captain also was afraid, after he knew that he was a Roman, and because he had bound him.  

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  On the morrow, because he would have known the certainty wherefore he was accused of the Jews, he loosed him from [his] bands, and commanded the chief priests and all their council to appear, and brought Paul down, and set him before them.  

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