Then the chief captain came near and laid hold of him, and commanded him to be bound with two chains; and inquired who he was, and what he had done. And some cried one thing, and some another, among the multitude. And not being able to gain certain knowledge on account of the uproar, he ordered him to be carried into the castle. And when he reached the stairs, he was obliged to be borne by the soldiers, on account of the violence of the crowd; read more.
for the multitude of the people were following, crying out, Away with him! And as he was about to be led into the castle, Paul saith to the chief captain, May I speak to thee? And he said, Canst thou speak Greek? Art thou not then the Egyptian, who before these days made an insurrection, and led out into the wilderness those four thousand men of the assassins? But Paul said, I am a Jew of Tarsus, a citizen of no mean city of Cilicia; and I beseech thee, suffer me to speak to the people. And when he had given him leave, Paul stood on the stairs, and beckoned with his hand to the people, and there was a great silence; and he spoke to them in the Hebrew tongue, saying,

Brethren and fathers, hear my defence, which I now make to you. And on hearing him speak to them in the Hebrew tongue, they kept the more silence. And he saith: I am indeed a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, hut brought up in this city, taught at the feet of Gamaliel in the strictness of the Law of our fathers, being zealous for God, as ye all are this day. read more.
And I persecuted this way [of belief] even to death, binding and putting into prisons both men and women, as also the highpriest beareth me witness, and all the elderhood; from whom I received letters to the brethren, and was on my way to Damascus to bring those also that were there, bound, to Jerusalem, that they might be punished. But it came to pass, as I was on my way, and approaching Damascus, that about noon there suddenly shone around me a great light from heaven; and I fell to the ground, and heard a voice saying to me, Saul, Saul, why dost thou persecute me? And I answered, Who art thou, Lord? And he said to me, I am Jesus the Nazarene, whom thou persecutest. And they that were with me saw indeed the light, and were afraid; but the voice of him that spoke to me they did not hear. And I said, What shall I do, Lord? And the Lord said to me, Arise, and go into Damascus; and there thou wilt be told of all which it hath been appointed thee to do. And as I could not see by reason of the brightness of that light, I was led by the hand of those that were with me, and came into Damascus. But one Ananias, a devout man according to the Law, well spoken of by all the Jews who dwelt there, came to me, and standing over me said, Brother Saul, receive sight. And I immediately looked up upon him. And he said, The God of our fathers chose thee to know his will, and to see the Righteous One, and to hear a voice from his mouth; for thou shalt be a witness for him to all men of what thou hast seen and heard. And now why dost thou delay? Arise, and be baptized, and wash away thy sins, calling on his name. And it came to pass after my return to Jerusalem, while I was praying in the temple, that I fell into a trance, and saw him saying to me, Make haste, and go quickly out of Jerusalem; for they will not receive thy testimony concerning me. And I said, Lord, they know that I imprisoned, and beat in every synagogue, those that believed in thee; and when the blood of Stephen, thy witness, was shed, I myself was standing by and consenting, and keeping the garments of those who slew him. And he said to me, Depart; for I will send thee far hence to the gentiles.