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looked directly at the Sanhedrin and said, “Men and brothers, I have lived my life before God in all good conscience to this day.” 2 At this, the high priest Ananias ordered those standing near Paul to strike him on the mouth. 3 Then Paul said to him, “God will strike you, you whitewashed wall! You sit there judging me according to the law, yet in violation of the law you order me to be struck!”
4 Those standing near Paul said, “Do you dare to insult God’s high priest?”
5 Paul replied, “I did not know, brothers, that he is the high priest. For it is written: ‘You must not speak evil of a ruler of your people’.”
6 When Paul realised that some of them were Sadducees and the others Pharisees, he called out in the Sanhedrin, “Men and brothers, I am a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee! I am being judged because of our hope of the resurrection of the dead!” 7 When he said this, a dispute broke out between the Pharisees and the Sadducees, and the assembly was divided. 8 (For the Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, nor angels or spirits, but the Pharisees acknowledge them all.)
9 Then a heated dispute erupted, and some of the teachers of the law from the Pharisees stood up and vehemently declared, “We find nothing evil in this man. What if a spirit or an angel has spoken to him?” 10 When the dispute became violent, the commander was afraid that Paul would be torn in pieces by them. He ordered the soldiers to go down and take him by force from among them, and bring him into the barracks.
11 The following night the Lord stood by Paul and said, ’Take courage, for as you have testified about Me in Jerusalem, so you must also testify in Rome.”
12 The next morning the Jews formed a conspiracy and bound themselves by an oath not to eat or drink until they had killed Paul. 13 There were more than forty who had formed this conspiracy. 14 They went to the chief priests and elders and said, “We have bound ourselves under a solemn oath not to eat anything until we have killed Paul. 15 So you then, along with the Sanhedrin, make a request to the commander that he brings Paul down to you, on the pretext of making a more thorough investigation of his case. Then we will be ready to kill him before he gets here.”
16 But the son of Paul’s sister heard about the ambush, so he went into the barracks and told this to Paul.
17 So Paul called over one of the centurions and said, “Take this young man to the commander, because he has something to tell him.” 18 So he took him to the commander.
The centurion said, “The prisoner Paul called me over to him and asked that I bring this young man to you, because he has something to tell you.”
19 Then the commander took the young man by the hand, led him aside, and asked privately, “What is it that you have to tell me?”
20 He said, “The Jews have agreed to ask you to bring Paul down to the Sanhedrin tomorrow on the pretext of making a more thorough examination of his case. 21 But do not be persuaded by them, because there are more than forty men who lie in wait for him, men who have bound themselves by an oath not to eat or drink until they have killed him. Now they are ready, waiting for your consent to their request.”
22 So the commander dismissed the young man and ordered him, “Don’t tell anyone that you have informed me about this.”
23 Then he summoned two of his centurions and ordered them, “Assemble a detachment of two hundred soldiers, seventy horsemen, and two hundred spearmen and get ready to go to Caesarea at the third hour of the night. 24 Also provide mounts for Paul to ride, and take him safely to Governor Felix.” 25 He wrote a letter in the following manner:
26Claudius Lysias,
To the most excellent Governor Felix:
Greetings.
27 This man was seized by the Jews and was about to be killed by them, but I arrived with my soldiers and rescued him, for I had learned that he is a Roman citizen. 28 I wanted to know the charge for which they were accusing him, so I brought him before their Sanhedrin. 29 I found out that the accusations against him were about disputed matters concerning their law, and that there was no charge against him that deserved death or imprisonment. 30 When I was informed that there was a plot to be carried out against the man, I send him to you straight away. I also ordered his accusers to present to you their case against him.
Farewell.
31 So the soldiers took Paul with them during the night and brought him to Antipatris, as they had been commanded. 32 The next day they let the cavalry to go on with him, while they returned to the barracks. 33 When they came to Caesarea and delivered the letter to the governor, they also presented Paul to him. 34 After the governor had read the letter, he asked what province Paul was from. When he learned that he was from Cilicia, 35 he said, “I will give you a hearing when your accusers get here.” Then he ordered that Paul be kept under guard in Herod’s palace.