Paul Defends Himself Openly to King Agrippa |
Acts 26:1-32 The Acts of the Apostles [in Smaller Chunks] |
Then, [king] Agrippa said to Paul, You [are] permitted to speak for yourself. Then, Paul stretched [out] [his] hand, & answered for himself. I [consider] myself happy, king Agrippa, because this day, I shall answer for myself [in front of] you, [about] all things, [of which] I'm accused of [by] the Jews. [Acts 21:28-29 Crying out, Men of Israel, help. This is the man, [in] this place, [who teaches] against the people [of the Jews,] & the Law [of Moses, to] all men, everywhere. [Furthermore,] [he has] also brought the Greeks, [a.k.a. Gentiles,] into the temple, & has [defiled] this Holy Place. (For they had [previously] seen [Paul] in the city [of] Trophimus, with an Ephesian, whom they supposed Paul had brought into the temple.)] |
Especially, because I know you to be [an] expert in all customs & questions [that] are among the Jews. [For this reason,] I [urge] you to hear me patiently. First, among [my] own nation, [in] Jerusalem, [as] all the Jews know, [who] knew me from the beginning, if they would testify, my [custom] of life from my youth [on, was] that [of] a Pharisee, [according] to the most [strict] sect of our religion. |
And now, I stand & am judged, [because] [of] the hope of the promise made [by] God to our [forefathers.] Our 12 tribes [served] God [earnestly] day & night, [for] [this] promise & hope to come. [Isaiah 11:1-4 *And a Rod shall come forth out of the stem of Jesse, & a Branch shall grow out of his roots. *And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon Him: the Spirit of wisdom & understanding; the Spirit of [advice, & strength;] & the Spirit of knowledge & of the fear, [a.k.a respect,] of the Lord. *And shall make Him of [immediate] understanding in the fear, [a.k.a. respect,] of the Lord. *And He shall not judge [according] [to what] His eyes [see,] & neither [chastise according] [to what] His ears [hear.] *But He shall judge the poor with righteousness, & [repay] the meek, [a.k.a. humble,] of the earth with equity. *And He shall slay the wicked with the breath of His lips.] |
I am accused [by] the Jews, king Agrippa, for [this] hope's sake. Why should it be thought [an] incredible thing [by] you, that God [would] raise the dead? [Philippians 3:10-11 That I may know Him, & the power of His Resurrection, & the fellowship of His sufferings, being made [obedient] unto His death; If by any means, I might attain the resurrection of the dead.] |
I [truly] thought [within] myself, that I [should] do many things contrary, [a.k.a. in opposition,] to the Name of Jesus of Nazareth. Which [things,] I also did in Jerusalem, having received authority from the chief priests. And I shut up in prison many of the saints, & when they were put to death, I gave my voice, [a.k.a. testified,] against them. |
And in every synagogue, I punished them [often,] & compelled them to blaspheme. And being exceedingly [angry] against them, I persecuted them even to [foreign] cities. |
[When] I went to Damascus with [the] authority, & [mission] from the chief priests, at mid-day, O king, I saw [on] the [road] a light from heaven, [beyond] the brightness of the sun, shining [all around] me, & [those, who] journeyed with me. |
And when we [had] all fallen to the [ground,] I heard a voice speaking to me, saying in the Hebrew tongue, [a.k.a. language,] Saul, Saul, why [do] you [persecute] Me? It is hard to kick against the pricks, [a.k.a. needles of sticker bushes.] |
And I said, Who [are] You, Lord? And He said, I Am Jesus, Whom you [persecute.] But rise, & stand on your feet. For I have appeared to you for this [reason:] to make you a minister & a witness both: of these things [that] you [have] seen, & those things [that] I will [make] [apparent] to you. |
[Sending] you from the people [of Israel,] & [to] the Gentiles, to [whom I now send you. To open their eyes, & to turn them from darkness, to Light. [1 John 1:7 But if we walk, [a.k.a. follow,] in the Light, [like] He is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another. And the blood of Jesus Christ, His Son, [cleanses us from all sin.] |
And [to turn them] from the power of Satan, to God, [so] that they may receive forgiveness of sins, & inheritance among [those, who] are sanctified by faith that is in Me. |
[For this reason,] O king Agrippa, I wasn't disobedient to the heavenly vision: but [declared] 1st to [those from] Damascus, & [in] Jerusalem, & throughout all the coasts of Judaea, [a.k.a. Judea.] And then to the Gentiles, [so] that they should repent & turn to God, & do works, [a.k.a. deeds, appropriate,] for repentance, [a.k.a. forgiveness.] |
The Jews [seized] me in the temple for these [reasons,] & [plotted] to kill me. Therefore, having obtained help [from] God, I continue to this day, witnessing to both the [powerless & powerful,] saying [only] those things [that] the prophets, & Moses [said] should [happen.] [Isaiah 42:6-8 In Righteousness, I the Lord have called You, & will hold Your hand, & will keep You, & give you for a Covenant, [a.k.a. contract, for] the people, & for a Light [for] the Gentiles. *To open the blind eyes, to bring: prisoners from the prison, & [those, who] sit in darkness, out of the prison house. I Am the Lord & that is My Name. And I won't give My Glory to another, & neither My praise to [carved] images.] |
That Christ [would] suffer, & that He [would] be the first, [Who would] rise from the dead. And [Jesus Christ,] [would [show] Light to the people, & to the Gentiles. [Acts 17:2-3 And [like Paul's custom] was, [for] 3 Sabbath Days, went in to them, & reasoned with them out of the Scriptures, opening [them,] & alleging, that [it was necessary that] Christ must have suffered. And [Christ] [rose] again from the dead. And that this Jesus, Whom I preach to you, Is Christ.] |
And [while Paul spoke this] for himself, Festus said with a loud voice, Paul, you [are] beside yourself. [Too] much learning makes you mad, [a.k.a. insane.] But [Paul] said, Most noble Felix, I'm not [insane,] but speak [out] the Words of Truth, [in sincerity.] |
For the king, before whom I also [now] speak freely, [knows about] these things, for I am persuaded that none of these things are hidden from him. For this thing wasn't done [secretly] in a corner. [John 18:20-22 Jesus answered [the high priest, I [spoke] openly in the world. I [always] taught in the synagogue, & in the temple, [where] the Jews always [come.] And I have said nothing in secret. Why [do] you [ask] Me? Ask [those, who] heard Me, what I have said to them. [See,] they know what I said. And when [Jesus] had spoken, one of the officers, [who] stood [near] by, struck Jesus with the palm of his hand, saying, And [do] You [answer] the high priest [this way?] |
King Agrippa, [do] you [believe] the prophets? I know that you [believe.] Then, Agrippa said to Paul, You [have] almost persuaded me to be a Christian. And Paul said, I [wish that] God would not only [make you believers,] but also all, [who] hear me this day, were both: almost & [totally] [believers] such as I am, except [for] these [chains.] [Luke 15:7 I say to you, that [also] joy shall be in heaven over 1 sinner, [who repents,] more than over 99 just [people, who] need no repentance, [a.k.a. forgiveness.] |
And when [Paul] had spoken [this,] the king, the governor, & Bernice rose up, & [those, who] sat with them. And when they [had] gone aside, they talked between themselves, saying, This man [does] nothing worthy of death or [chains.] Then, Agrippa said to Festus, This man might have been set [free,] if he hadn't appealed to Caesar. |