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¹ And Agrippa said to Paul, It is allowed for you yourself to speak. Then Paul made a defense, stretching out the hand:² Concerning all of which I am accused by Jews, king Agrippa, I count myself happy being about to make defense before you today,³ you being most of all expert, knowing of all the customs and questions also among the Jews. Because of this, I beg you patiently to hear me.⁴ Truly, then, all the Jews know my way of life from youth, which from the beginning had been in my nation in Jerusalem,⁵ who before knew me from the first, if they will testify, that according to the most exact sect of our religion, I lived a Pharisee.⁶ And now for the hope of the promise having been made by God to the fathers, I stand being judged;⁷ to which our twelve tribes hope to arrive, worshiping in earnestness night and day, concerning which hope I am accused by the Jews, king Agrippa.⁸ Why is it judged unbelievable by you if God raises the dead?⁹ Indeed, I then thought to myself that I ought to do many things contrary to the name of Jesus the Nazarene,¹⁰ which I also did in Jerusalem, I also shut up many of the saints in prisons, receiving authority from the chief priests; and they being put to death, I cast a vote.¹¹ And often punishing them through all the synagogues, I compelled them to blaspheme. And being exceedingly furious against them, I even persecuted as far as the outside cities.

¹² In which also traveling to Damascus with authority and decision power from the chief priests,¹³ at midday along the highway, O king, I and those with me saw a light from heaven shining around me above the brightness of the sun.¹⁴ And all of us falling to the ground, I heard a voice speaking to me, and saying in the Hebrew dialect, Saul, Saul why do you persecute Me? It is hard for you to kick against the prods.¹⁵ And I said, Who are you, Sir? And He said, I am Jesus whom you persecute;¹⁶ but rise up and stand on your feet, for it is for this reason I appeared to you, to appoint you a servant and a witness both of what you saw, and in what I shall appear to you,¹⁷ having delivered you from the people and the nations, to whom I now send you,¹⁸ to open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the authority of Satan to God, in order that they may receive remission of sins, and an inheritance among those being sanctified by faith in Me.¹⁹ Upon this, king Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision,²⁰ but to those first in Damascus, and Jerusalem, and to all the country of Judea, and to the nations, I proclaimed the command to repent and to turn to God, doing works worthy of repentance.²¹ Because of these things, having seized me in the temple, the Jews tried to kill me .²² Then obtaining help from God, I stand until this day, witnessing both to small and to great, saying nothing else than what the prophets and Moses also said was going to happen:²³ whether Christ was liable to suffer, whether first by a resurrection of the dead He was going to proclaim light to the people and to the nations.

²⁴ And he defending himself with these things, Festus said with a loud voice, Paul, You rave! Your many letters turned you into madness.²⁵ But he said, Not to madness, most excellent Festus, but I speak words of truth and sanity.²⁶ For the king understands about these things, to whom I speak, even being bold of speech. For I am persuaded not any of these things are hidden from him, nothing. For the doing of this is not in a corner.²⁷ Do you believe the prophets, king Agrippa? I know that you believe.²⁸ And Agrippa said to Paul, Do you persuade me to become a Christian in but a little?²⁹ And Paul said, I would pray to God, both in a little and in much, not only you, but also these hearing me today to become as I also am, except for these bonds.³⁰ And he saying these things, the king and the governor and Bernice rose up, and those who sat with them.³¹ And having gone aside, they spoke to one another saying, This man does nothing worthy of death or of bonds.³² And Agrippa said to Festus, This man was able to have been let go, if he had not appealed to Caesar.