World English Bible · Under Rome
Acts 26
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said to , "You may speak for yourself." Then stretched out his hand, and made his defense. 2"I think myself happy, King , that I am to make my defense before you today concerning all the things that I am accused by the , especially because you are expert in all customs and questions which are among the . Therefore I beg you to hear me patiently. "Indeed, all the know my way of life from my youth up, which was among my own nation and at ; having known me from the first, if they are willing to testify, that after the strictest sect of our religion I lived a . Now I stand here to be judged for the of the promise made by to our fathers, which our twelve tribes, earnestly night and day, to attain. Concerning this I am accused by the , King ! Why is it judged incredible with you if does raise ? "I myself most certainly thought that I ought to do many things contrary to the name of of . I also did this in . I both shut up many of in prisons, having received from the ; and when they were put to I gave my vote against them. Punishing them often in all the , I tried to make them blaspheme. Being exceedingly enraged against them, I persecuted them even to foreign cities. "Whereupon as I traveled to with the and commission from the , at noon, O king, I saw on a from , brighter than the sun, shining around me and those who traveled with me. When we had all fallen to the earth, I heard a voice saying to me in the language, ', , why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.' "I said, 'Who are you, ?' "He said, 'I am , whom you are persecuting. But arise, and stand on your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose: to appoint you a servant and a both of the things which you have seen and of the things which I will to you; delivering you from the people and from the , to whom I send you, to open their eyes, that they may turn from to and from the of to , that they may receive remission of and an among those who are by in me.' "Therefore, King , I was not to the , but declared first to them of , at , and throughout all the country of , and also to the , that they should and turn to , doing works worthy of . For this reason the seized me in and tried to kill me. Having therefore obtained the help that is from , I stand to this day testifying both to small and great, saying nothing but what and said would happen, how the Christ must suffer, and how, by the of , he would be first to proclaim both to these people and to the ." As he thus made his defense, said with a loud voice, ", you are crazy! Your great learning is driving you insane!" But he said, "I am not crazy, most excellent , but boldly declare words of truth and reasonableness. For the king knows of these things, to whom also I speak freely. For I am persuaded that none of these things is hidden from him, for this has not been done in a corner. King , do you ? I know that you ." said to , "With a little persuasion are you trying to make me a Christian?" said, "I to , that whether with little or with much, not only you, but also all that hear me today, might become such as I am, except for these bonds." The king rose up with the governor and , and those who sat with them. When they had withdrawn, they spoke to one another, saying, "This man does nothing worthy of or of bonds." said to , "This man might have been if he had not appealed to ."
A public domain modern English translation, free to read and share. Notes and cards are EKLI’s own.
The world at this moment · Under Rome, 63 BC to AD 100 ›
Judea as a client kingdom and then a province. Roads, garrisons, taxes, crucifixion, and a common Greek language that let a message travel the empire faster than any before it.
- Rome
- The republic tears itself apart in civil war and comes out as an empire under Augustus. What follows is two centuries of relative peace across the whole Mediterranean, enforced by legions and paid for by taxes, with safe roads and safe sea lanes. Every one of Paul's journeys depends on that.
- Judea
- Governed first through Herod the Great, a client king of enormous ability and enormous brutality who rebuilds the temple into one of the wonders of the ancient world, then directly by Roman prefects. Crucifixion is the standard penalty for sedition and is used often and publicly.
- The wider world
- Greek is spoken from Spain to Syria, which means a letter written in Corinth can be read in Rome without translation. Jewish communities already exist in most major cities, which is where the first Christian preaching lands. Mystery religions, imperial cult, and philosophy all compete in the same marketplace.
- Further afield
- The Han dynasty rules China and trades silk westward along routes that touch the Roman world at second hand. In Britain the Roman conquest begins within a decade of the crucifixion.