Acts 26:9-32

26:9 Of course, ¹  I myself was convinced ²  that it was necessary to do many things hostile to the name of Jesus the Nazarene. 26:10 And that is what I did in Jerusalem: Not only did I lock up many of the saints in prisons by the authority I received ³  from the chief priests, but I also cast my vote ⁴  against them when they were sentenced to death. ⁵  26:11 I punished ⁶  them often in all the synagogues ⁷  and tried to force ⁸  them to blaspheme. Because I was so furiously enraged ⁹  at them, I went to persecute ¹⁰  them even in foreign cities.

26:12 “While doing this very thing, ¹¹  as I was going ¹²  to Damascus with authority and complete power ¹³  from the chief priests, 26:13 about noon along the road, Your Majesty, ¹⁴  I saw a light from heaven, ¹⁵  brighter than the sun, shining everywhere around ¹⁶  me and those traveling with me. 26:14 When we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in Aramaic, ¹⁷  ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? You are hurting yourself ¹⁸  by kicking against the goads.’ ¹⁹  26:15 So I said, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ And the Lord replied, ²⁰  ‘I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. 26:16 But get up and stand on your feet, for I have appeared to you for this reason, to designate you in advance ²¹  as a servant and witness ²²  to the things ²³  you have seen ²⁴  and to the things in which I will appear to you. 26:17 I will rescue ²⁵  you from your own people ²⁶  and from the Gentiles, to whom ²⁷  I am sending you 26:18 to open their eyes so that they turn ²⁸  from darkness to light and from the power ²⁹  of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a share ³⁰  among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’

26:19 “Therefore, King Agrippa, ³¹  I was not disobedient ³²  to the heavenly ³³  vision, 26:20 but I declared to those in Damascus first, and then to those in Jerusalem and in all Judea, ³⁴  and to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, ³⁵  performing deeds consistent with ³⁶  repentance. 26:21 For this reason the Jews seized me in the temple courts ³⁷  and were trying to kill me. 26:22 I have experienced ³⁸  help from God to this day, and so I stand testifying to both small and great, saying nothing except ³⁹  what the prophets and Moses said ⁴⁰  was going to happen: 26:23 that ⁴¹  the Christ ⁴²  was to suffer and be the first to rise from the dead, to proclaim light both to our people ⁴³  and to the Gentiles.” ⁴⁴ 

26:24 As Paul ⁴⁵  was saying these things in his defense, Festus ⁴⁶  exclaimed loudly, “You have lost your mind, ⁴⁷  Paul! Your great learning is driving you insane!” 26:25 But Paul replied, ⁴⁸  “I have not lost my mind, most excellent Festus, ⁴⁹  but am speaking ⁵⁰  true and rational ⁵¹  words. 26:26 For the king knows about these things, and I am speaking freely ⁵²  to him, ⁵³  because I cannot believe ⁵⁴  that any of these things has escaped his notice, ⁵⁵  for this was not done in a corner. ⁵⁶  26:27 Do you believe the prophets, ⁵⁷  King Agrippa? ⁵⁸  I know that you believe.” 26:28 Agrippa ⁵⁹  said to Paul, “In such a short time are you persuading me to become a Christian?” ⁶⁰  26:29 Paul replied, “I pray to God that whether in a short or a long time ⁶¹  not only you but also all those who are listening to me today could become such as I am, except for these chains.” ⁶² 

26:30 So the king got up, and with him the governor and Bernice and those sitting with them, 26:31 and as they were leaving they said to one another, ⁶³  “This man is not doing anything deserving ⁶⁴  death or imprisonment.” 26:32 Agrippa ⁶⁵  said to Festus, ⁶⁶  “This man could have been released ⁶⁷  if he had not appealed to Caesar.” ⁶⁸ 

[26:9]  ¹ tn BDAG 737 s.v. οὖν 3 states, “It has been proposed that some traces of older Gk. usage in which οὖν is emphatic, = certainly, really, to be sure etc. (s. L-S-J-M s.v. 1) remain in the pap…and in the NT…indeed, of course Ac 26:9.”

[26:9]  ² tn Grk “I thought to myself.” BDAG 255 s.v. δοκέω 2.a has “ἔδοξα ἐμαυτῷ δεῖν πρᾶξαι = Lat. mihi videbar I was convinced that it was necessary to do Ac 26:9.”

[26:10]  ³ tn Grk “by receiving authority.” The participle λαβών (labwn) has been taken instrumentally.

[26:10]  ⁴ tn Grk “cast down a pebble against them.” L&N 30.103 states, “(an idiom, Grk ‘to bring a pebble against someone,’ a reference to a white or black pebble used in voting for or against someone) to make known one’s choice against someone – ‘to vote against.’ …‘when they were sentenced to death, I also voted against them’ Ac 26:10.”

[26:10]  ⁵ tn Grk “when they were being executed”; but the context supports the sentencing rather than the execution itself (cf. L&N 30.103).

[26:11]  ⁶ tn Grk “and punishing…I tried.” The participle τιμωρῶν (timwrwn) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style. Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

[26:11]  ⁷ sn See the note on synagogue in 6:9.

[26:11]  ⁸ tn The imperfect verb ἠνάγκαζον (hnankazon) has been translated as a conative imperfect (so BDAG 60 s.v. ἀναγκάζω 1, which has “ἠνάγκαζον βλασφημεῖν I tried to force them to blaspheme Ac 26:11”).

[26:11]  ⁹ tn Or “was so insanely angry with them.” BDAG 322 s.v. ἐμμαίνομαι states, “to be filled with such anger that one appears to be mad, be enraged…περισσῶς ἐμμαινόμενος αὐτοῖς being furiously enraged at them Ac 26:11”; L&N 88.182 s.v. ἐμμαίνομαι, “to be so furiously angry with someone as to be almost out of one’s mind – ‘to be enraged, to be infuriated, to be insanely angry’ …‘I was so infuriated with them that I even went to foreign cities to persecute them’ Ac 26:11.”

[26:11]  ¹⁰ tn Or “I pursued them even as far as foreign cities.”

[26:12]  ¹¹ tn Grk “in which [activity].” Due to the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started at the beginning of v. 12 in the translation. The referent of the relative pronoun (“which”) was specified as “this very thing” for clarity.

[26:12]  ¹² tn Grk “going.” The participle πορευόμενος (poreuomenos) has been taken temporally.

[26:12]  ¹³ tn L&N 37.40 s.v. ἐπιτροπή states, “the full authority to carry out an assignment or commission – ‘authority, complete power.’ πορευόμενος εἰς τὴν Δαμασκὸν μετ᾿ ἐξουσίας καὶ ἐπιτροπῆς τῶν ἀρχιερέων ‘going to Damascus with authority and complete power from the high priests’ Ac 26:12. In Ac 26:12 the combination of ἐξουσία and ἐπιτροπή serves to reinforce the sense of complete authority.”

[26:13]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “O King.”

[26:13]  ¹⁵ tn Or “from the sky” (the same Greek word means both “heaven” and “sky”).

[26:13]  ¹⁶ tn The word “everywhere” has been supplied in the translation to clarify the meaning of περιλάμψαν (perilamyan). Otherwise the modern reader might think that each of the individuals were encircled by lights or halos. See also Acts 9:7; 22:6, 9.

[26:14]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “in the Hebrew language.” See Acts 22:7 and 9:4.

[26:14]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “It is hard for you.”

[26:14]  ¹⁹ tn “Goads” are pointed sticks used to direct a draft animal (an idiom for stubborn resistance). See BDAG 539-40 s.v. κέντρον 2.

[26:15]  ²⁰ tn Grk “said.”

[26:16]  ²¹ tn L&N 30.89 has “‘to choose in advance, to select beforehand, to designate in advance.’”

[26:16]  ²² sn As a servant and witness. The commission is similar to Acts 1:8 and Luke 1:2. Paul was now an “eyewitness” of the Lord.

[26:16]  ²³ tn BDAG 719 s.v. ὁράω A.1.b states, “W. attraction of the relative ὧν = τούτων ἅ Lk 9:36; Ac 22:15. The attraction may be due to colloq. breviloquence in μάρτυρα ὧν τε εἶδες με ὧν τε ὀφθήσομαί σοι a witness to the things in which you saw me and to those in which I shall appear to you Ac 26:16b.”

[26:16]  ²⁴ tc ‡ Some mss read “of the things in which you have seen me.” The accusative object με (me, “me”) is found after εἶδές (eide") in B C*^vid 614 945 1175 1505 1739 1891 2464 pc sy sa; it is lacking in Ì⁷⁴ א A C² E Ψ 096 Ï latt bo. The external evidence is relatively evenly divided, though there is a slight preference for the omission. NA²⁷ includes the word in brackets, indicating some doubt as to its authenticity.

[26:17]  ²⁵ tn Grk “rescuing.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, the participle ἐξαιρούμενος (exairoumeno") has been translated as a finite verb and a new sentence started in the translation at the beginning of v. 17.

[26:17]  ²⁶ tn That is, from the Jewish people. Grk “the people”; the words “your own” have been supplied to clarify the meaning.

[26:17]  ²⁷ tn The antecedent of the relative pronoun is probably both the Jews (“your own people”) and the Gentiles, indicating the comprehensive commission Paul received.

[26:18]  ²⁸ sn To open their eyes so that they turn… Here is Luke’s most comprehensive report of Paul’s divine calling. His role was to call humanity to change their position before God and experience God’s forgiveness as a part of God’s family. The image of turning is a key one in the NT: Luke 1:79; Rom 2:19; 13:12; 2 Cor 4:6; 6:14; Eph 5:8; Col 1:12; 1 Thess 5:5. See also Luke 1:77-79; 3:3; 24:47.

[26:18]  ²⁹ tn BDAG 352-53 s.v. ἐξουσία 2 states, “Also of Satan’s power Ac 26:18.” It is also possible to translate this “the domain of Satan” (cf. BDAG 353 s.v. 6)

[26:18]  ³⁰ tn Or “and an inheritance.”

[26:19]  ³¹ sn See the note on King Agrippa in 25:13.

[26:19]  ³² sn I was not disobedient. Paul’s defense is that he merely obeyed the risen Jesus. He was arrested for obeying heavenly direction and preaching the opportunity to turn to God.

[26:19]  ³³ tn According to L&N 1.5, “In Ac 26:19 the adjective οὐράνιος could be interpreted as being related simply to the meaning of οὐρανός^a ‘sky,’ but it seems preferable to regard οὐράνιος in this context as meaning simply ‘from heaven’ or ‘heavenly.’”

[26:20]  ³⁴ tn BDAG 1093-94 s.v. χώρα 2.b states, “of the provincial name (1 Macc 8:3) ἡ χώρα τῆς ᾿Ιουδαίας Ac 26:20.”

[26:20]  ³⁵ sn That they should repent and turn to God. This is the shortest summary of Paul’s message that he preached.

[26:20]  ³⁶ tn BDAG 93 s.v. ἄξιος 1.b, “καρποὶ ἄ. τῆς μετανοίας fruits in keeping with your repentance…Lk 3:8; Mt 3:8. For this ἄ. τῆς μετανοίας ἔργα Ac 26:20.” Note how Paul preached the gospel offer and the issue of response together, side by side.

[26:21]  ³⁷ tn Grk “in the temple.” This is actually a reference to the courts surrounding the temple proper, and has been translated accordingly.

[26:22]  ³⁸ tn Grk “So experiencing…I stand.” The participle τυχών (tucwn) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[26:22]  ³⁹ tn BDAG 311 s.v. ἐκτός 3.b, “functions as prep. w. gen. οὐδὲν ἐ. ὧν nothing except what (cf. 1 Ch 29:3; 2 Ch 17:19; TestNapht. 6:2) Ac 26:22.”

[26:22]  ⁴⁰ sn What the prophets and Moses said. Paul argued that his message reflected the hope of the Jewish scriptures.

[26:23]  ⁴¹ tn BDAG 277-78 s.v. εἰ 2 has “marker of an indirect question as content, that…Sim. also (Procop. Soph., Ep. 123 χάριν ἔχειν εἰ = that) μαρτυρόμενος…εἰ παθητὸς ὁ Χριστός testifying…that the Christ was to suffer…Ac 26:23.”

[26:23]  ⁴² tn Or “the Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”

[26:23]  ⁴³ tn That is, to the Jewish people. Grk “the people”; the word “our” has been supplied to clarify the meaning.

[26:23]  ⁴⁴ sn Note how the context of Paul’s gospel message about Jesus, resurrection, and light both to Jews and to the Gentiles is rooted in the prophetic message of the OT scriptures. Paul was guilty of following God’s call and preaching the scriptural hope.

[26:24]  ⁴⁵ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Paul) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[26:24]  ⁴⁶ sn See the note on Porcius Festus in 24:27.

[26:24]  ⁴⁷ tn On the term translated “lost your mind” see BDAG 610 s.v. μαίνομαι, which has “you’re out of your mind, you’re raving, said to one whose enthusiasm seems to have outrun better judgment 26:24.”

[26:25]  ⁴⁸ tn Grk “said.”

[26:25]  ⁴⁹ sn See the note on Porcius Festus in 24:27.

[26:25]  ⁵⁰ tn Or “declaring.” BDAG 125 s.v. ἀποφθέγγομαι states, “speak out, declare boldly or loudly…τὶ: σωφροσύνης ῥήματα Ac 26:25.”

[26:25]  ⁵¹ tn BDAG 987 s.v. σωφροσύνη 1 has “gener. soundness of mind, reasonableness, rationality…ἀληθείας καὶ σωφροσύνης ῥήματα true and rational words (opp. μαίνομαι) Ac 26:25.”

[26:26]  ⁵² tn BDAG 782 s.v. παρρησιάζομαι 1 states, “speak freely, openly, fearlessly…likew. in the ptc. w. a verb of saying foll.…παρρησιασάμενοι εἶπαν 13:46. – 26:26.” This could refer to boldness in speaking here.

[26:26]  ⁵³ tn Grk “to whom I am speaking freely.” The relative pronoun (“whom”) was replaced by the personal pronoun (“him”) to simplify the translation.

[26:26]  ⁵⁴ tn Grk “I cannot convince myself.” BDAG 792 s.v. πείθω 3.a states, “οὐ πείθομαι w. acc. and inf. I cannot believe Ac 26:26” (see also BDAG 586 s.v. λανθάνω).

[26:26]  ⁵⁵ tn BDAG 586 s.v. λανθάνω states, “λανθάνειν αὐτὸν τούτων οὐ πείθομαι οὐθέν I cannot bring myself to believe that any of these things has escaped his notice Ac 26:26.”

[26:26]  ⁵⁶ tn This term refers to a hidden corner (BDAG 209 s.v. γωνία). Paul’s point is that these events to which he refers were not done in a secret, hidden place, tucked away outside of view. They were done in public for all the world to see.

[26:27]  ⁵⁷ sn “Do you believe the prophets?” Note how Paul made the issue believing the OT prophets and God’s promise which God fulfilled in Christ. He was pushing King Agrippa toward a decision not for or against Paul’s guilt of any crime, but concerning Paul’s message.

[26:27]  ⁵⁸ sn See the note on King Agrippa in 25:13.

[26:28]  ⁵⁹ sn See the note on King Agrippa in 25:13.

[26:28]  ⁶⁰ tn Or “In a short time you will make me a Christian.” On the difficulty of the precise nuances of Agrippa’s reply in this passage, see BDAG 791 s.v. πείθω 1.b. The idiom is like 1 Kgs 21:7 LXX. The point is that Paul was trying to persuade Agrippa to accept his message. If Agrippa had let Paul persuade him, he would have converted to Christianity.

[26:29]  ⁶¹ tn BDAG 703 s.v. ὀλίγος 2.b.β has “καὶ ἐν ὀλ. καὶ ἐν μεγάλῳ whether in a short or a long time vs. 29 (cf. B-D-F §195; GWhitaker, The Words of Agrippa to St. Paul: JTS 15, 1914, 82f; AFridrichsen, SymbOsl 14, ’35, 50; Field, Notes 141-43; s. Rob. 653).”

[26:29]  ⁶² sn Except for these chains. The chains represented Paul’s unjust suffering for the sake of the message. His point was, in effect, “I do not care how long it takes. I only hope you and everyone else hearing this would become believers in Christ, but without my unjust suffering.”

[26:31]  ⁶³ tn Grk “they spoke to one another saying.” The participle λέγοντες (legontes) is redundant in English and has not been translated.

[26:31]  ⁶⁴ tn BDAG 93 s.v. ἄξιος 1.b has “θανάτου ἢ δεσμῶν ἄ. nothing deserving death or imprisonment 23:29; 26:31.”

[26:32]  ⁶⁵ sn See the note on King Agrippa in 25:13.

[26:32]  ⁶⁶ sn See the note on Porcius Festus in 24:27.

[26:32]  ⁶⁷ tn Or “set free.”

[26:32]  ⁶⁸ tn Or “to the emperor” (“Caesar” is a title for the Roman emperor).