Many, therefore, from among them, believed, and, of the Grecian women of the higher class, and of men, not a few.

So they laid hold of him and took him to the Court of Areopagus. "May we hear," they asked, "what new teaching this is which you are giving?

(For all the Athenians and strangers which were there spent their time in nothing else, but either to tell, or to hear some new thing.)

For as I was going here and there and looking at the things you worship, I even found an altar with this inscription, 'TO AN UNKNOWN GOD.' So it is about the Being whom you are in ignorance already worshiping that I am telling you.

And when they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some mocked: and others said, We will hear thee again of this matter.

Here he found a Jew, a native of Pontus, of the name of Aquila. He and his wife Priscilla had recently come from Italy because of Claudius's edict expelling all the Jews from Rome. So Paul paid them a visit;

And as Paul was about to open his mouth, Gallio said unto the Jews, "If it were a matter of wrong, or an evil deed to ye, reason would that I should hear you:

If indeed this was now a matter of injustice, or wicked knavery, with reason I should hear you patiently; but if it be merely a controversy about the word, and names, and a law peculiar to yourselves, settle it yourselves: for I will be no judge of these matters.

Paul stayed for a while longer, and then told the brothers and sisters goodbye and sailed for Syria; and he was accompanied by Priscilla and Aquila. At Cenchrea [the southeastern port of Corinth] he had his hair cut, because he was keeping a [Nazirite] vow [of abstention].

And it came about that while Apollos was at Corinth, Paul, having gone through the higher country, came to Ephesus, where there were certain disciples:

and he said unto them, Did ye receive the Holy Spirit when ye believed? And they'said unto him, Nay, we did not so much as hear whether the Holy Spirit was given .

And this happened for two years so that all those dwelling in Asia did hear the word of the Lord Jesus, both Jews and Greeks,

[Here is what happened]: A certain manufacturer of silver objects named Demetrius, who made silver replicas of the temple of Artemis [i.e., a Greek goddess], brought much business to his workmen.

Moreover ye see and hear, that not alone at Ephesus, but almost throughout all Asia, this Paul hath persuaded and turned away much people, saying that they be no gods, which are made with hands:

So that not only this our craft is in danger to be set at nought; but also that the temple of the great goddess Diana should be despised, and her magnificence should be destroyed, whom all Asia and the world worshippeth.

After the town clerk had quieted the crowd, he said, “Men of Ephesus, what person is there who does not know that the city of the Ephesians is the guardian of the temple of the great Artemis and of that [sacred stone image of her] which fell from the sky?

Seeing then that no man saith here against, ye ought to be content, and to do nothing rashly;

For you have brought these men here who are neither temple robbers nor blasphemers of our goddess.

For we are truly in danger of being accused of inciting a riot here today when there is [really] no reason for it to happen. Then concerning this problem, we will not be able to explain how it all came about."

These [men] had gone ahead and were waiting for us [when we arrived] in Troas [i.e., a seaport town across the Aegean Sea from Philippi]. [Note: The use of "us" begins here again, suggesting that the writer Luke rejoins the party at Philippi. See next verse].

And now, under spiritual constraint, I am here on my way to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there,

[Because] I know that after I am gone [from here] there will be vicious wolves [i.e., ravaging false teachers] who will come in among you, and they will not spare the flock [i.e., the congregation].

Here we found a ship heading across [the open sea] for Phoenicia, boarded it and sailed away.

Now when we had discovered Cyprus, we left it on the left hand, and sailed into Syria, and landed at Tyre: for there the ship was to unlade her burden.

As for us, our voyage was over when having sailed from Tyre we reached Ptolemais. here we inquired after the welfare of the brethren, and remained a day with them.

While we were spending some days here, a prophet named Agabus came down from Judea.

He came to us, took Paul's girdle and bound his own feet and hands, saying, "Here is the word of the holy Spirit: 'So shall the Jews bind the owner of this girdle at Jerusalem and hand him over to the Gentiles'."

What is it therefore? the multitude must needs come together: for they will hear that thou art come.

so do this which we now tell you. We have four men here who have a vow resting on them.

"We have four men here under a vow; associate yourself with them, purify yourself with them, and pay their expenses so that they may have their heads shaved; then every one will know that there is no truth in the rumors that they have heard about you; but that you yourself walk orderly obeying the law.

shouting, "To the rescue, men of Israel! Here is the man who teaches everyone everywhere against the People and the Law and this Place! And he has actually brought Greeks inside the temple and defiled this holy Place!"

From the crowd, some shouted one thing and some another. When the commander could not hear what was being said because of the noise, he ordered Paul to be taken into the battalion headquarters.

Men, brethren, and fathers, hear ye my defence which I make now unto you.

"I am a Jew, born in Tarsus, in Cilicia, but raised [here] in this city [i.e., Jerusalem]. [I was] instructed by Gamaliel [i.e., a renowned Jewish rabbi of the time] according to the strictest methods of observing the law of our forefathers. [I was very] eager to serve God, just as all of you are here today.

The head priest can also verify all this, and so can the body of [Jewish] elders. They furnished me with letters to our fellow-Jews in Damascus, to which I also traveled to bring people back here to Jerusalem, bound in chains to be punished.

Now those who were with me saw the light, but did not understand the voice of the One who was speaking to me.

Came unto me, and stood, and said unto me, Brother Saul, receive thy sight. And the same hour I looked up upon him.

And he said, The God of our fathers hath chosen thee, that thou shouldest know his will, and see that Just One, and shouldest hear the voice of his mouth.

And I saw [and heard] the Lord saying to me, 'Hurry up, get out of Jerusalem quickly, because the people [here] will reject your testimony about me.'

"He said to me, 'Depart, for I will send you out far from here to the Gentiles.'"

And they continued to hear him until this word, and lifted up their voice, saying, Take away such a one from the earth: for it is not appropriate for him to live.

Then Paul said to him, God will give blows to you, you whitewashed wall: are you here to be my judge by law, and by your orders am I given blows against the law?

But when Paul saw that half of them were Sadducees and the rest Pharisees, he said in the Sanhedrin, Brothers, I am a Pharisee, and the son of Pharisees: I am here to be judged on the question of the hope of the coming back from the dead.

So we want you now, with the consent of the Council, to suggest to the Commanding Officer that he should bring Paul down before you, as though you intended to go more fully into his case; but, before he comes here, we will be ready to make away with him."

And he called unto him two centurions, saying, Make ready two hundred soldiers to go to Caesarea, and horsemen threescore and ten, and spearmen two hundred, at the third hour of the night;

having been informed he was a Roman, I had him brought before their Sanhedrim, to hear what crime they laid to his charge.

"Here I learned that he was accused about questions of their law, but was not charged with anything worthy of death or imprisonment.

And when he had read the letter, he inquired to what province he belonged. And learning that he was from Cilicia, he said: I will hear you when your accusers also have come. And he ordered him to be kept under guard in Herod's palace.

I will hear thee, said he, when thine accusers are also come. And he commanded him to be kept in Herod's judgment hall.

Notwithstanding, that I be not further tedious unto thee, I pray thee that thou wouldest hear us of thy clemency a few words.

Who ought to have been here before thee, and object, if they had ought against me.

Or else let these same here say, if they have found any evil doing in me, while I stood before the council,

unless it is for one thing that I shouted out as I stood among them, 'It is for the resurrection of the dead that I am here on trial before you today.'"

Then Felix, who was somewhat well informed about the Way, adjourned the trial, saying to the Jews, "When Lysias, the colonel, comes down here, I will decide your case."

and, during their rather long stay, Festus laid Paul's case before the king. "There is a man here," he said, "whom Felix left a prisoner,

When therefore they were come together here, I made no delay, but on the next day sat on the judgment-seat, and commanded the man to be brought.

Then Agrippa said unto Festus, I would also hear the man myself. To morrow, said he, thou shalt hear him.

And Festus said, King Agrippa, and all men which are here present with us, ye see this man, about whom all the multitude of the Jews have dealt with me, both at Jerusalem, and also here, crying that he ought not to live any longer.

Especially because I know thee to be expert in all customs and questions which are among the Jews: wherefore I beseech thee to hear me patiently.

All the Jews know how I lived during my youth and my early days among [the people of] my nation, and [especially here] in Jerusalem.

And now I stand here to be judged for the hope of the promise made of God unto our fathers;

But I have had help from God to this day, and I stand [before people] testifying to small and great alike, stating nothing except what the Prophets and Moses said would come to pass—

And Paul said, I would to God, that not only thou, but also all that hear me this day, were both almost, and altogether such as I am, except these bonds.

We boarded a ship [originating] from Adramyttium which was ready to sail [from here in Caesarea], heading out to sea for parts of the coast of [the province of] Asia. Aristarchus, a Macedonian from Thessalonica, went with us.

and there the centurion having found a ship of Alexandria sailing to Italy, he made us go on board her.

But it was not long before a furious north-east wind, coming down from the mountains, burst upon us and carried the ship out of her course.

And when the ship was caught, and could not bear up into the wind, we let her drive.

After hoisting it on board, they used ropes to brace the ship, and since they were afraid of being stranded on the Syrtis quicksands, they lowered the sail and let her drift.

the next day the storm work'd the ship with great fury; they threw some of her lading over board:

But when the fourteenth day came, while we were going here and there in the Adriatic sea, about the middle of the night the sailors had an idea that they were getting near land;

Then the soldiers cut off the ropes of the boat, and let her fall off.

Wherefore I pray you to take some meat: for this is for your health: for there shall not an hair fall from the head of any of you.

And when they had eaten sufficiently, they began lightening the ship [so it would float higher] by throwing their wheat overboard.

And weighing the anchors, they committed her to the sea, and loosing at the same time the chains of the rudders, and hoisting the foresail to the breeze, they made for the beach.

But coming to a place where two seas met, they stranded the ship, and her bow sticking fast remained immovable, while the stern began to go to pieces under the heavy hammering of the sea.

After three months, we set sail in a ship that had wintered in the island. She was an Alexandrian vessel, and had the Twin Sons of Zeus for her figure-head.

Here we found brethren, who invited us to remain with them for a week; and so we reached Rome.

For these reasons, then, I have invited you here, that I might see you and speak to you; for it is for the sake of Him who is the hope of Israel that this chain hangs upon me."

They said to him, “We have not received [any] letters about you from Judea, nor have any of the [Jewish] brothers come here and reported or said anything bad about you.

But we desire to hear of thee what thou thinkest: for as concerning this sect, we know that every where it is spoken against.

Saying, Go unto this people, and say, Hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and not perceive:

For the heart of this people is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes have they closed; lest they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.

Be it known therefore unto you, that the salvation of God is sent unto the Gentiles, and that they will hear it.