Acts 22:18-21

22:18 and saw the Lord ¹  saying to me, ‘Hurry and get out of Jerusalem quickly, because they will not accept your testimony about me.’ 22:19 I replied, ²  ‘Lord, they themselves know that I imprisoned and beat those in the various synagogues ³  who believed in you. 22:20 And when the blood of your witness ⁴  Stephen was shed, ⁵  I myself was standing nearby, approving, ⁶  and guarding the cloaks ⁷  of those who were killing him.’ ⁸  22:21 Then ⁹  he said to me, ‘Go, because I will send you far away to the Gentiles.’”

¹ tn Or “Jesus”; Grk “him.” The referent (the Lord, cf. v. 19) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

² tn Grk “And I said.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai, in καγώ [kagw]) has not been translated here.

³ tn For the distributive sense of the expression κατὰ τὰς συναγωγάς (kata ta" sunagwga") BDAG 512 s.v. κατά B.1.d has “of places viewed serially, distributive use w. acc.…κατ᾿ οἶκαν from house to house…Ac 2:46b; 5:42…Likew. the pl.…κ. τὰς συναγωγάς 22:19.” See also L&N 37.114.

⁴ sn Now Paul referred to Stephen as your witness, and he himself had also become a witness. The reversal was now complete; the opponent had now become a proponent.

⁵ sn When the blood of your witness Stephen was shed means “when your witness Stephen was murdered.”

⁶ tn Grk “and approving.” This καί (kai) has not been translated since English normally uses a coordinating conjunction only between the last two elements in a series of three or more.

⁷ tn Or “outer garments.”

⁸ tn Or “who were putting him to death.” For the translation of ἀναιρούντων (anairountwn) as “putting to death” see BDAG 64 s.v. ἀναιρέω 2.

⁹ tn Grk “And.” Since this represents a response to Paul’s reply in v. 19, καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the logical sequence.