Acts 26:14

New Living Translation

We all fell down, and I heard a voice saying to me in Aramaic, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is useless for you to fight against my will.'

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
We all fell to the ground, and I heard a voice speaking to me in Aramaic, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’

King James Version (1611)
And when wee were all fallen to the earth, I heard a voice speaking vnto me, and saying in the Hebrew tongue, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? It is hard for thee to kicke against the prickes.

King James Version
And when we were all fallen to the earth, I heard a voice speaking unto me, and saying in the Hebrew tongue, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks.

English Standard Version
And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.'

New American Standard Bible
"And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew dialect, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.'

New Century Version
We all fell to the ground. Then I heard a voice speaking to me in the Hebrew language, saying, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? You are only hurting yourself by fighting me.'

Amplified Bible
"And when we all had fallen to the ground, I heard a voice in the Hebrew dialect (Jewish Aramaic) saying to me, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me? It is hard for you to kick [repeatedly] against the goads [offering pointless resistance].'

New American Standard Bible (1995)
"And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew dialect, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.'

Legacy Standard Bible
And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.'

Berean Standard Bible
We all fell to the ground, and I heard a voice say to me in Aramaic, 'Saul, Saul, why do you persecute Me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.'

Contemporary English Version
We all fell to the ground. Then I heard a voice say to me in Aramaic, "Saul, Saul, why are you so cruel to me? It's foolish to fight against me!"

Complete Jewish Bible
We all fell to the ground; and then I heard a voice saying to me, in Hebrew, ‘Sha'ul! Sha'ul! Why do you keep persecuting me? It's hard on you to be kicking against the ox-goads!'

Darby Translation
And, when we were all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew tongue, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? [it is] hard for thee to kick against goads.

Easy-to-Read Version
We all fell to the ground. Then I heard a voice talking to me in Aramaic. The voice said, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? You are only hurting yourself by fighting me.'

Geneva Bible (1587)
So when we were all fallen to the earth, I heard a voyce speaking vnto me, and saying in the Hebrew tongue, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? It is hard for thee to kicke against pricks.

George Lamsa Translation
When we all fell to the ground, then I heard a voice speaking unto me, in the Hebrew tongue (Ar-a-ma''ic), Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? It is hard for you to kick against the pricks.

Good News Translation
All of us fell to the ground, and I heard a voice say to me in Hebrew, ‘Saul, Saul! Why are you persecuting me? You are hurting yourself by hitting back, like an ox kicking against its owner's stick.'

Lexham English Bible
And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Aramaic language, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads!'

Literal Translation
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.

American Standard Version
And when we were all fallen to the earth, I heard a voice saying unto me in the Hebrew language, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? it is hard for thee to kick against the goad.

Bible in Basic English
And when we had all gone down on the earth, a voice came to me, saying in the Hebrew language, Saul, Saul, why are you attacking me so cruelly? It is hard for you to go against the impulse which is driving you.

Hebrew Names Version
When we had all fallen to the eretz, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language, 'Sha'ul, Sha'ul, why do you persecute me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.'

International Standard Version
All of us fell to the ground, and I heard a voice asking me in the Hebrew language, 'Saul! Saul! Why are you persecuting me? It is hurting you to keep on kicking against the goads.'

Etheridge Translation
And we fell all of us upon the earth; and I heard a voice that said to me in Hebrew, Shaol, Shaol, why persecutest thou me ? [fn] It is hard to thee to kick against the pricks !

Murdock Translation
And we all fell to the ground; and I heard a voice, which said to me, in Hebrew: Saul, Saul ! why persecutest thou me? It will be a hard thing for thee to kick against the goads.

Bishop's Bible (1568)
And when we were all fallen to the earth, I hearde a voyce speakyng vnto me, and saying in the Hebrewe tongue: Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? It is harde for thee to kicke agaynste the prickes.

English Revised Version
And when we were all fallen to the earth, I heard a voice saying unto me in the Hebrew language, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? it is hard for thee to kick against the goad.

World English Bible
When we had all fallen to the earth, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language, 'Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? It is hard for you to kick against the goad.'

Wesley's New Testament (1755)
And when we were all fallen down to the earth, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew tongue, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? It is hard for thee to kick against the goads.

Weymouth's New Testament
We all fell to the ground; and I heard a voice which said to me in Hebrew, "`Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me? You are finding it painful to kick against the ox-goad.'

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And whanne we alle hadden falle doun in to the erthe, Y herde a vois seiynge to me in Ebrew tunge, Saul, Saul, what pursuest thou me? it is hard to thee, to kicke ayens the pricke.

Update Bible Version
And when we had all fallen to the earth, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language, Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? it is hard for you to kick against the goad.

Webster's Bible Translation
And when we had all fallen to the earth, I heard a voice speaking to me, and saying in the Hebrew language, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? [It is] hard for thee to kick against the goads.

New English Translation
When we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in Aramaic, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? You are hurting yourself by kicking against the goads.'

New King James Version
And when we all had fallen to the ground, I heard a voice speaking to me and saying in the Hebrew language, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.'

New Life Bible
We all fell to the ground. Then I heard a voice speaking to me in the Jewish language, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you working so hard against Me? You hurt yourself by trying to hurt Me.'

New Revised Standard
When we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It hurts you to kick against the goads.'

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
and, when we were all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice, saying unto me, in the Hebrew language - Saul! Saul! why, me, art thou persecuting? It is hard for thee, against goads, to be kicking!

Douay-Rheims Bible
And when we were all fallen down on the ground, I heard a voice speaking to me in the Hebrew tongue: Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? It is hard for thee to kick against the good.

Revised Standard Version
And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language, 'Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? It hurts you to kick against the goads.'

Tyndale New Testament (1525)
When we were all fallen to the erth I hearde a voyce speakynge vnto me and sayinge in ye Hebrue tonge: Saul Saul why persecutest thou me? It is harde for the to kicke agaynste the pricke.

Young's Literal Translation
and we all having fallen to the earth, I heard a voice speaking unto me, and saying in the Hebrew dialect, Saul, Saul, why me dost thou persecute? hard for thee against pricks to kick!

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
But whan we were all fallen downe to the earth, I herde a voyce speakynge vnto me, and sayege in Hebrue: Saul Saul, why persecutest thou me? It shalbe harde for the to kycke agaynst the prycke.

Mace New Testament (1729)
we were all struck down: when I heard a voice directed to me pronounce these words in the Hebrew tongue, "Saul, Saul, why dost thou persecute me? it is dangerous for thee to kick against the goad."

Simplified Cowboy Version
My companions and I all fell to the ground. I raised my head and heard a voice speak to me in Aramaic, 'Saul, Saul, why are you hell-bent on destroying me?'

Contextual Overview

¹² "One day I was on such a mission to Damascus, armed with the authority and commission of the leading priests. ¹³ About noon, Your Majesty, as I was on the road, a light from heaven brighter than the sun shone down on me and my companions. ¹⁴ We all fell down, and I heard a voice saying to me in Aramaic, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is useless for you to fight against my will.' ¹⁵ "‘Who are you, lord?' I asked. "And the Lord replied, ‘I am Jesus, the one you are persecuting. ¹⁶ Now get to your feet! For I have appeared to you to appoint you as my servant and witness. Tell people that you have seen me, and tell them what I will show you in the future. ¹⁷ And I will rescue you from both your own people and the Gentiles. Yes, I am sending you to the Gentiles ¹⁸ to open their eyes, so they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God. Then they will receive forgiveness for their sins and be given a place among God's people, who are set apart by faith in me.' ¹⁹ "And so, King Agrippa, I obeyed that vision from heaven. ²⁰ I preached first to those in Damascus, then in Jerusalem and throughout all Judea, and also to the Gentiles, that all must repent of their sins and turn to God—and prove they have changed by the good things they do. ²¹ Some Jews arrested me in the Temple for preaching this, and they tried to kill me.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

in: Acts 21:40, Acts 22:2

Saul: Acts 9:4, Acts 9:5, Acts 22:7-9

hard: Proverbs 13:15, Zechariah 2:8, Zechariah 12:2, 1 Corinthians 10:22

Reciprocal: Genesis 22:11 - Abraham Matthew 17:6 - General Luke 2:9 - and they John 19:20 - in Acts 9:7 - General Acts 22:8 - whom Acts 23:9 - if Romans 1:1 - Paul Revelation 16:16 - the Hebrew

Cross-References

Genesis 12:16
Then Pharaoh gave Abram many gifts because of her—sheep, goats, cattle, male and female donkeys, male and female servants, and camels.

Genesis 13:2
(Abram was very rich in livestock, silver, and gold.)

Genesis 26:13
He became a very rich man, and his wealth continued to grow.

Genesis 26:14
He acquired so many flocks of sheep and goats, herds of cattle, and servants that the Philistines became jealous of him.

Genesis 37:11
But while his brothers were jealous of Joseph, his father wondered what the dreams meant.

1 Samuel 18:9
So from that time on Saul kept a jealous eye on David.

Job 1:3
He owned 7,000 sheep, 3,000 camels, 500 teams of oxen, and 500 female donkeys. He also had many servants. He was, in fact, the richest person in that entire area.

Job 5:2
Surely resentment destroys the fool, and jealousy kills the simple.

Job 42:12
So the Lord blessed Job in the second half of his life even more than in the beginning. For now he had 14,000 sheep, 6,000 camels, 1,000 teams of oxen, and 1,000 female donkeys.

Psalms 112:3
They themselves will be wealthy, and their good deeds will last forever.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And when we were all fallen to the earth,.... Saul, and the men that were with him, for fear of the divine Majesty, who by this extraordinary light was thought to be present: the other narratives only relate Saul's falling to the earth; how this is to be reconciled to their standing speechless, in Acts 9:7,

Acts 9:7- :.

I heard a voice speaking unto me, &c. Acts 9:7- :.

Acts 9:7- :.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

See this passage explained in the notes on Acts 9:5, etc.