"What are we going to do?" they said, "now that this man is performing many signs?" If we leave him alone, this way, every one will believe on him, and the Romans will come and rob us of both our sacred place and of our people."

"They are teaching customs which it is not lawful for us as Romans to adopt or practise."

The lictors reported these words to the praetors, who were frightened when they heard that they were Romans.

I told them that it was not the custom of the Romans to give any man up for punishment, before the accused had his accusers face to face, and had opportunity of defending himself against the charges that had been brought against him.

Now three days later he called the leading Jews together, and when they were come together he said to them. "Brothers, I was delivered a prisoner from Jerusalem into the hands of the Romans, though I had done nothing against the people or the customs of your fathers.

Three times I have been scourged by the Romans; once I have been stoned; three times have I been shipwrecked; a night and a day have I been adrift in the open sea.

You already know that all the Christians in Roman Asia forsook me, among them Phygellus and Hermogenes.

Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to the elect who are sojourners of the dispersion in Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Roman Asia, and Bithynia,

From John to the seven churches that are in Asia the Roman Province. Grace to you, and peace from Him that is and was and is to be, and from the Seven Spirits that are before his throne,

but by all the churches among the Gentiles. Salute likewise the church that meets in their home. Salute Epaenetus, my dearly beloved, the first man in Roman Asia to believe in Christ.

After they had bound him, they led him away, and handed him over to Pilate, the Roman Governor.

When the Roman captain and the soldiers who were with him, guarding Jesus, saw the earthquake and all that happened, they were greatly terrified and said, "Certainly this man must have been God's Son."

Here the slave of a certain Roman captain, a man dear to his master, was ill, and at the point of death.

But certain men from the so-called "Synagogue of the Freedmen" and certain Cyrenians, and Alexandrians, Cilicians, and men from Roman Asia, started to dispute with Stephen,

and thence came to Philippi, a city of Macedonia, the fore most in its district, a Roman colony. There we stayed for some time.

But Paul said: "They have flogged us publicly, uncondemned, men that are Roman citizens; and have thrown us into prison. Are they now going to get rid of us secretly? No, indeed! Let them come here, themselves and take us out."

But when they had tied him up with the thongs, Paul said to the centurion who was standing near, "If a man is a Roman citizen, and uncondemned, is it lawful for you to scourge him?"

When the centurion heard that, he went to the tribune and said to him. "What are you intending to do? This man is a Roman citizen."

So the tribune came to Paul and asked him, "Tell me, are you a Roman citizen?" "Yes," he said.

Then those who were about to scourge him, immediately left him. And the tribune too, was afraid, when he learned that Paul was a Roman citizen, for he had had him bound.

"This man Paul had been seized by the Jews, and was about to be killed by them, when I came upon them with the troops, and rescued him, as I had learned that he was a Roman citizen.