Acts 23
1
And Paul having earnestly beheld the sanhedrim, said,
`Men, brethren, I in all good conscience have lived to God unto this day;' 2
and the chief priest Ananias commanded those standing by him to smite him on the
mouth, 3 then Paul said unto him, `God is about to smite thee, thou whitewashed
wall, and thou--thou dost sit judging me according to
the law, and, violating law, dost order me to be smitten!' 4 And those who
stood by said, `The chief priest of God dost thou revile?' 5 and Paul said, `I
did not know, brethren, that he is chief priest: for it hath been written, Of
the ruler of thy people thou shalt not speak evil;' 6 and Paul having known
that the one part are Sadducees, and the other Pharisees, cried out in the sanhedrim, `Men, brethren, I am a Pharisee--son of a
Pharisee--concerning hope and rising again of dead men I am judged.' 7 And he
having spoken this, there came a dissension of the Pharisees and of the
Sadducees, and the crowd was divided, 8 for Sadducees, indeed, say there is no
rising again, nor messenger, nor spirit, but Pharisees confess both. 9 And
there came a great cry, and the scribes of the Pharisees' part having arisen,
were striving, saying, `No evil do we find in this man; and if a spirit spake to him, or a messenger, we may not fight against
God;' 10 and a great dissension having come, the chief captain having been
afraid lest Paul may be pulled to pieces by them, commanded the soldiery,
having gone down, to take him by force out of the midst of them, and to bring
[him] to the castle. 11 And on the following night, the Lord having stood by
him, said, `Take courage, Paul, for as thou didst fully testify the things
concerning me at Jerusalem, so it behoveth thee also
at Rome to testify.' 12 And day having come, certain of the Jews having made a
concourse, did anathematize themselves, saying neither to eat nor to drink till
they may kill Paul; 13 and they were more than forty who made this conspiracy
by oath, 14 who having come near to the chief priests and to the elders said,
`With an anathema we did anathematize ourselves--to taste nothing till we have
killed Paul; 15 now, therefore, ye, signify ye to the chief captain, with the sanhedrim, that to-morrow he may bring him down unto you,
as being about to know more exactly the things concerning him; and we, before
his coming nigh, are ready to put him to death.' 16 And the son of Paul's
sister having heard of the lying in wait, having gone and entered into the
castle, told Paul, 17 and Paul having called near one of the centurions, said,
`This young man lead unto the chief captain, for he hath something to tell
him.' 18 He indeed, then, having taken him, brought him unto the chief captain,
and saith, `The prisoner Paul, having called me near,
asked [me] this young man to bring unto thee, having something to say to thee.'
19 And the chief captain having taken him by the hand, and having withdrawn by
themselves, inquired, `What is that which thou hast to tell me?' 20 and he
said--`The Jews agreed to request thee, that to-morrow to the sanhedrim thou mayest bring down
Paul, as being about to enquire something more exactly concerning him; 21 thou,
therefore, mayest thou not yield to them, for there
lie in wait for him of them more than forty men, who did anathematize
themselves--not to eat nor to drink till they kill him, and now they are ready,
waiting for the promise from thee.' 22 The chief captain, then, indeed, let the
young man go, having charged [him] to tell no one, `that these things thou didst
shew unto me;' 23 and having called near a certain two of the centurions, he
said, `Make ready soldiers two hundred, that they may go on unto Caesarea, and
horsemen seventy, and spearmen two hundred, from the third hour of the night;
24 beasts also provide, that, having set Paul on, they may bring him safe unto
Felix the governor;' 25 he having written a letter after this description: 26
`Claudius Lysias, to the most noble governor Felix,
hail: 27 This man having been taken by the Jews, and being about to be killed
by them--having come with the soldiery, I rescued him, having learned that he
is a Roman; 28 and, intending to know the cause for which they were accusing
him, I brought him down to their sanhedrim, 29 whom I
found accused concerning questions of their law, and having no accusation
worthy of death or bonds; 30 and a plot having been intimated to me against
this man--about to be of the Jews--at once I sent unto thee, having given
command also to the accusers to say the things against him before thee; be
strong.' 31 Then, indeed, the soldiers according to that directed them, having
taken up Paul, brought him through the night to Antipatris,
32 and on the morrow, having suffered the horsemen to go on with him, they
returned to the castle; 33 those having entered into Caesarea, and delivered
the letter to the governor, did present also Paul to him. 34 And the governor
having read [it], and inquired of what province he is, and understood that [he
is] from Cilicia; 35 `I will hear thee--said he--when thine accusers also may
have come;' he also commanded him to be kept in the praetorium
of Herod.