Acts 22:1

Paul’s Defense

22:1 “Brothers and fathers, listen to my defense ¹  that I now ²  make to you.”

Acts 25:16

25:16 I answered them ³  that it was not the custom of the Romans to hand over anyone ⁴  before the accused had met his accusers face to face ⁵  and had been given ⁶  an opportunity to make a defense against the accusation. ⁷ 

¹ sn Listen to my defense. This is the first of several speeches Paul would make in his own defense: Acts 24:10ff.; 25:8, 16; and 26:1ff. For the use of such a speech (“apologia”) in Greek, see Josephus, Ag. Ap. 2.15 [2.147]; Wis 6:10.

² tn The adverb νυνί (nuni, “now”) is connected with the phrase τῆς πρὸς ὑμᾶς νυνὶ ἀπολογίας (th" pro" Juma" nuni apologia") rather than the verb ἀκούσατε (akousate), and the entire construction (prepositional phrase plus adverb) is in first attributive position and thus translated into English by a relative clause.

³ tn Grk “to whom I answered.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, the relative pronoun (“whom”) has been replaced with a personal pronoun (“them”) and a new sentence started in the translation at the beginning of v. 16.

⁴ tn Grk “any man.” This is a generic use of ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpos).

⁵ tn Or “has met his accusers in person.”

⁶ tn Grk “and receives.”

⁷ tn Or “indictment” (a legal technical term). BDAG 273-74 s.v. ἔγκλημα 1 states, “legal t.t.…ἀπολογία περὶ τοῦ ἐ. defense against the accusation Ac 25:16.” L&N 56.6 defines ἔγκλημα (enklhma) as “(a technical, legal term) a formal indictment or accusation brought against someone – ‘indictment, accusation, case.’ …‘and might receive an opportunity for a defense against the indictment’ Ac 25:16.”