² “Regarding all the things of which I am accused by the Jews, King Agrippa, I consider myself fortunate that I am about to make my defense before you today, ^3 [a]especially because you are an expert in all ^(A)customs and ^[b]questions among the Jews; therefore I beg you to listen to me patiently.

⁴ “So then, all Jews know ^(B)my way of life since my youth, which from the beginning was spent among my own nation and in Jerusalem, ⁵ since they have known about me for a long time, if they are willing to testify, that I lived as a ^(C)Pharisee ^(D)according to the strictest ^(E)sect of our religion. ⁶ And now I am standing trial ^(F)for the hope of ^(G)the promise made by God to our fathers; ⁷ the promise ^(H)to which our twelve tribes hope to attain, as they earnestly serve God night and day. For this ^(I)hope, O king, I am being ^(J)accused by Jews. ⁸ Why is it considered incredible among you people ^(K)if God raises the dead?

⁹ “So ^(L)I thought to myself that I had to act in strong opposition to ^(M)the name of Jesus ^[c]of Nazareth. ¹⁰ And this is ^[d]just what I ^(N)did in Jerusalem; not only did I lock up many of the ^[e]saints in prisons, after ^(O)receiving authority from the chief priests, but I also ^(P)cast my vote against them when they were being put to death. ¹¹ And ^(Q)as I punished them often in all the synagogues, I tried to force them to blaspheme; and since I was ^(R)extremely enraged at them, I kept pursuing them ^(S)even to ^[f]foreign cities.

¹² “^[g]While so engaged, ^(T)as I was journeying to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests, ¹³ at midday, O king, I saw on the way a light from heaven, ^[h]brighter than the sun, shining around me and those who were journeying with me. ¹⁴ And when we had ^(U)all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the ^[i](V)Hebrew dialect, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me? ^[j]It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’ ¹⁵ And I said, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ And the Lord said, ‘I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. ¹⁶ But get up and ^(W)stand on your feet; for this purpose I have appeared to you, to ^(X)appoint you as a ^(Y)servant and ^(Z)a witness not only to the things in which you have seen Me, but also to the things in which I will appear to you, ^17 (AA)rescuing you ^(AB)from the Jewish people and from the Gentiles, to whom I am sending you, ¹⁸ to ^(AC)open their eyes so that they may turn from ^(AD)darkness to light, and from the ^[k]power of ^(AE)Satan to God, that they may receive ^(AF)forgiveness of sins and an ^(AG)inheritance among those who have been sanctified by ^(AH)faith in Me.’