Acts 26

New International Version

26 Then Agrippa said to Paul, “You have permission to speak for yourself.”^(A)

So Paul motioned with his hand^(B) and began his defense: ²“King Agrippa, I consider myself fortunate to stand before you^(C) today as I make my defense against all the accusations of the Jews,^(D) ³and especially so because you are well acquainted with all the Jewish customs^(E) and controversies.^(F) Therefore, I beg you to listen to me patiently.

⁴“The Jewish people all know the way I have lived ever since I was a child,^(G) from the beginning of my life in my own country, and also in Jerusalem. ⁵They have known me for a long time^(H) and can testify, if they are willing, that I conformed to the strictest sect^(I) of our religion, living as a Pharisee.^(J) ⁶And now it is because of my hope^(K) in what God has promised our ancestors^(L) that I am on trial today. ⁷This is the promise our twelve tribes^(M) are hoping to see fulfilled as they earnestly serve God day and night.^(N) King Agrippa, it is because of this hope that these Jews are accusing me.^(O) ⁸Why should any of you consider it incredible that God raises the dead?^(P)

⁹“I too was convinced^(Q) that I ought to do all that was possible to oppose^(R) the name of Jesus of Nazareth.^(S) ¹⁰And that is just what I did in Jerusalem. On the authority of the chief priests I put many of the Lord’s people^(T) in prison,^(U) and when they were put to death, I cast my vote against them.^(V) ¹¹Many a time I went from one synagogue to another to have them punished,^(W) and I tried to force them to blaspheme. I was so obsessed with persecuting them that I even hunted them down in foreign cities.

¹²“On one of these journeys I was going to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests. ¹³About noon, King Agrippa, as I was on the road, I saw a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, blazing around me and my companions. ¹⁴We all fell to the ground, and I heard a voice^(X) saying to me in Aramaic,^[a]^(Y) ‘Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’

¹⁵“Then I asked, ‘Who are you, Lord?’

“ ‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,’ the Lord replied. ¹⁶‘Now get up and stand on your feet.^(Z) I have appeared to you to appoint you as a servant and as a witness of what you have seen and will see of me.^(AA) ¹⁷I will rescue you^(AB) from your own people and from the Gentiles.^(AC) I am sending you to them ¹⁸to open their eyes^(AD) and turn them from darkness to light,^(AE) and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins^(AF) and a place among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’^(AG)

¹⁹“So then, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient^(AH) to the vision from heaven. ²⁰First to those in Damascus,^(AI) then to those in Jerusalem^(AJ) and in all Judea, and then to the Gentiles,^(AK) I preached that they should repent^(AL) and turn to God and demonstrate their repentance by their deeds.^(AM) ²¹That is why some Jews seized me^(AN) in the temple courts and tried to kill me.^(AO) ²²But God has helped me to this very day; so I stand here and testify to small and great alike. I am saying nothing beyond what the prophets and Moses said would happen^(AP)— ²³that the Messiah would suffer^(AQ) and, as the first to rise from the dead,^(AR) would bring the message of light to his own people and to the Gentiles.”^(AS)

²⁴At this point Festus interrupted Paul’s defense. “You are out of your mind,^(AT) Paul!” he shouted. “Your great learning^(AU) is driving you insane.”

²⁵“I am not insane, most excellent^(AV) Festus,” Paul replied. “What I am saying is true and reasonable. ²⁶The king is familiar with these things,^(AW) and I can speak freely to him. I am convinced that none of this has escaped his notice, because it was not done in a corner. ²⁷King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know you do.”

²⁸Then Agrippa said to Paul, “Do you think that in such a short time you can persuade me to be a Christian?”^(AX)

²⁹Paul replied, “Short time or long—I pray to God that not only you but all who are listening to me today may become what I am, except for these chains.”^(AY)

³⁰The king rose, and with him the governor and Bernice^(AZ) and those sitting with them. ³¹After they left the room, they began saying to one another, “This man is not doing anything that deserves death or imprisonment.”^(BA)

³²Agrippa said to Festus, “This man could have been set free^(BB) if he had not appealed to Caesar.”^(BC)

Footnotes

Acts 26:14 Or Hebrew

Veprat e Apostujve 26

Albanian Bible

26 Atëherë Agripa i tha Palit: “Ke leje të flasësh për të mbrojtur veten!.” Dhe Pali, si e shtriu dorën, nisi të bëjë mbrojtjen e tij:

²“O mbret Agripa, e quaj veten të lumtur që kam mundësi sot të shfajësohem para teje nga të gjitha ato që më kanë akuzuar Judenjtë,

³veçanërisht sepse ti i njeh të gjitha zakonet dhe çështjet që janë midis Judenjve; prandaj të lutem të më dëgjosh me durim.

⁴Se cila ka qenë mënyra ime e të jetuarit që nga rinia, të cilën e kalova tërësisht në Jeruzalem në mes të popullit tim, të gjithë Judenjtë e dinë.

⁵Ata më njohin qysh atëherë dhe mund të dëshmojnë, po deshën, se kam jetuar si farise, sipas sektit më të drejtë të fesë sonë.

⁶Dhe tani ndodhem para qjyqit për shpresën e premtimit që u ka bërë Perëndia etërve tanë,

⁷premtim të cilin dymbëdhjetë fiset tona, që i shërbejnë me zell ditë e natë Perëndisë, shpresojnë ta fitojnë; për këtë shpresë, o mbret Agripa, unë jam akuzuar nga Judenjtë.

⁸Përse vallë mendoni se është e pabesueshme që Perëndia t’i ringjallë të vdekurit?

⁹Unë vetë mendova se ishte detyra ime të bëj shumë gjëra kundër emrit të Jezusit Nazarenas.

¹⁰Dhe këtë kam bërë në Jeruzalem; mbasi kam marrë pushtet nga krerët e priftërinjve, futa në burg shumë shenjtorë dhe, kur i vrisnin, jepja miratimin tim.

¹¹Dhe shpesh, duke shkuar nga një sinagogë te tjetra, i kam detyruar të blasfemojnë dhe, me zemërim të madh kundër tyre, i kam përndjekur deri në qytetet e huaja.

¹²Në kohën kur unë po merresha me këtë punë dhe po shkoja në Damask me autorizim dhe me fuqi të plota nga krerët e priftërinjve,

¹³në mesditë, o mbret, në rrugë unë pashë një dritë nga qielli që shkëlqente më shumë se dielli, e cila vetëtiu rreth meje dhe rreth atyre që udhëtonin me mua.

¹⁴Mbasi të gjithë ne ramë përtokë, dëgjova një zë që po më fliste dhe më tha në gjuhën hebraike: "Saul, Saul, pse më përndjek? Éshtë e rëndë për ty të godasësh me shkelm kundër gjembave".

¹⁵Unë thashë: "Kush je ti, Zot?". Ai tha: "Unë jam Jezusi, të cilin ti e përndjek.

¹⁶Por çohu dhe rri në këmbë, sepse prandaj të jam shfaqur: që të të vë shërbyes dhe dëshmues për gjërat që ke parë dhe për ato për të cilat unë do të shfaqem,

¹⁷duke të zgjedhur ty nga populli dhe nga johebrenjtë, tek të cilët po të dërgoj tani,

¹⁸që t’u çelësh sytë atyre dhe t’i kthesh nga errësira në dritë dhe nga pushteti i Satanit te Perëndia, që të marrin me anë të besimit në mua faljen e mëkateve dhe një trashëgim midis të shenjtëruarve".

¹⁹Prandaj, o mbret Agripa, unë nuk kam qenë i pabindur ndaj vegimit qiellor.

²⁰Por në fillim atyre në Damask, pastaj në Jeruzalem, në mbarë krahinën e Judesë dhe johebrenjve, u kam shpallur të pendohen dhe të kthehen te Perëndia, duke bërë vepra të denja pendimi.

²¹Për këto gjëra Judenjtë, mbasi më kapën në tempull, u orvatën të më vrasin.

²²Por, për shkak të ndihmës që pata nga Perëndia deri në këtë ditë, vazhdova t’u dëshmoj të vegjëlve dhe të mëdhenjve, duke mos thënë tjetër përveç atyre që profetët dhe Moisiu thanë se duhet të ndodhnin,

²³domethënë: që Krishti duhej të vuante dhe që, duke qenë i pari i ringjallur prej së vdekuris, duhej t’i shpallte dritën popullit dhe johebrenjve.”

²⁴Dhe, ndërsa Pali i thoshte këto gjëra në mbrojtje të tij, Festi tha me zë të lartë: “Pal, ti je tërbuar; studimet e shumta të bënë të shkallosh".

²⁵Por ai tha: “Unë nuk jam tërbuar, shumë i shkëlqyeri Fest, por them fjalë të së vërtetës dhe të mendjes së shëndoshë.

²⁶Sepse mbreti, të cilit unë po i flas lirisht, është i mirinformuar për këto gjëra, sepse unë jam i bindur se asnjë nga këto gjëra nuk është e panjohur për të, sepse e gjithë kjo nuk është bërë në fshehtësi.

²⁷O mbret Agripa, a u beson profetëve? Unë e di se ti beson.”

²⁸Atëherë Agripa i tha Palit: “Për pak dhe po ma mbush mendjen të bëhem i krishterë.”

²⁹Pali i tha: “Dhëntë Perëndia që në pak ose në shumë kohë jo vetëm ti, por edhe të gjithë ata që sot po më dëgjojnë, të bëhen të tillë, sikurse jam unë, përveç këtyre zinxhirëve.”

³⁰Mbasi tha këto gjëra, mbreti u ngrit dhe me të qeveritari, Berenike dhe ata që ishin ulur me ta.

³¹Mbasi u hoqën mënjanë, folën me njëri-tjetrin dhe thanë: “Ky njeri nuk ka bërë asgjë që të meritojë vdekjen ose burgun.”

³²Atëherë Agripa i tha Festit: “Ky njeri mund të ishte liruar, po të mos i ishte apeluar Cezarit.”

Acts 26

English Standard Version

Paul's Defense Before Agrippa

26 So ^(A)Agrippa said to Paul, “You have permission to speak for yourself.” Then Paul stretched out his hand and made his defense:

²“I consider myself fortunate that it is before you, King Agrippa, I am going to make my defense today ^(B)against all the accusations of the Jews, ³especially because you are familiar with all the ^(C)customs and ^(D)controversies of the Jews. Therefore I beg you to listen to me patiently.

⁴^(E)“My manner of life from my youth, spent from the beginning among ^(F)my own nation and in Jerusalem, is known by all the Jews. ⁵They have known for a long time, if they are willing to testify, that ^(G)according to the strictest ^(H)party of our ^(I)religion I have lived as ^(J)a Pharisee. ⁶And now I stand here on trial because of my hope in ^(K)the promise made by God to our fathers, ⁷^(L)to which ^(M)our twelve tribes hope to ^(N)attain, as they earnestly worship night and day. And for this hope ^(O)I am accused by Jews, O king! ⁸Why is it thought ^(P)incredible by any of you that God raises the dead?

⁹^(Q)“I myself was convinced that I ought to do many things in opposing the name of ^(R)Jesus of Nazareth. ¹⁰^(S)And I did so in Jerusalem. I not only locked up many of the saints in prison after receiving authority ^(T)from the chief priests, but ^(U)when they were put to death I cast my vote against them. ¹¹And ^(V)I punished them often in all the synagogues and tried to make them ^(W)blaspheme, and ^(X)in raging fury against them I ^(Y)persecuted them even to foreign cities.

Paul Tells of His Conversion

¹²“In this connection ^(Z)I journeyed to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests. ¹³At midday, O king, I saw on the way a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, that shone around me and those who journeyed with me. ¹⁴And when we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me ^(AA)in the Hebrew language,^[a] ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’ ¹⁵And I said, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ And the Lord said, ‘I am Jesus whom you are persecuting. ¹⁶But rise and ^(AB)stand upon your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose, ^(AC)to appoint you as a servant and witness to the things in which you have seen me and to those in which I will appear to you, ¹⁷^(AD)delivering you from your people and from the Gentiles—^(AE)to whom I ^(AF)am sending you ¹⁸^(AG)to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from ^(AH)the power of Satan to God, that they may receive ^(AI)forgiveness of sins and ^(AJ)a place among those who are sanctified ^(AK)by faith in me.’

¹⁹“Therefore, O King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to ^(AL)the heavenly vision, ²⁰but declared first ^(AM)to those in Damascus, ^(AN)then in Jerusalem and throughout all the region of Judea, and also ^(AO)to the Gentiles, that they should ^(AP)repent and ^(AQ)turn to God, performing deeds ^(AR)in keeping with their repentance. ²¹For this reason ^(AS)the Jews seized me in the temple and tried to kill me. ²²^(AT)To this day I have had the help that comes from God, and so ^(AU)I stand here testifying both to small and great, saying nothing but what ^(AV)the prophets and Moses said would come to pass: ²³^(AW)that the Christ ^(AX)must suffer and that, ^(AY)by being the first ^(AZ)to rise from the dead, ^(BA)he would proclaim ^(BB)light both to our people and to the Gentiles.”

²⁴And as he was saying these things in his defense, Festus said with a loud voice, “Paul, ^(BC)you are out of your mind; your great learning is driving you out of your mind.” ²⁵But Paul said, “I am not out of my mind, ^(BD)most excellent Festus, but I am speaking ^(BE)true and ^(BF)rational words. ²⁶For ^(BG)the king knows about these things, and to him I speak boldly. For I am persuaded that none of these things has escaped his notice, for this has not been done in a corner. ²⁷King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know that you believe.” ²⁸And Agrippa said to Paul, “In a short time would you persuade me to be ^(BH)a Christian?”^[b] ²⁹And Paul said, “Whether short or long, I would to God that not only you but also all who hear me this day ^(BI)might become such as I am—except for ^(BJ)these chains.”

³⁰Then the king rose, and ^(BK)the governor and Bernice and those who were sitting with them. ³¹And when they had withdrawn, they said to one another, ^(BL)“This man is doing nothing to deserve death or imprisonment.” ³²And Agrippa said to Festus, ^(BM)“This man could have been set ^(BN)free if he had not appealed ^(BO)to Caesar.”

Footnotes

Acts 26:14 Or the Hebrew dialect (probably Aramaic)
Acts 26:28 Or In a short time you would persuade me to act like a Christian!

Acts 26

GOD’S WORD Translation

26 Agrippa said to Paul, “You’re free to speak for yourself.”

Paul acknowledged King Agrippa and then began his defense. ²“King Agrippa, I think I’m fortunate today to stand in front of you and defend myself against every charge that the Jews brought against me. ³I say this since you are especially familiar with every custom and controversy in Judaism. So I ask you to listen patiently to me.

⁴“All the Jews know how I lived the earliest days of my youth with my own people and in Jerusalem. ⁵They’ve known me for a long time and can testify, if they’re willing, that I followed the strictest party of our religion. They know that I lived my life as a Pharisee.

⁶“I’m on trial now because I expect God to keep the promise that he made to our ancestors. ⁷Our twelve tribes expect this promise to be kept as they worship with intense devotion day and night. Your Majesty, the Jews are making accusations against me because I expect God to keep his promise. ⁸Why do all of you refuse to believe that God can bring dead people back to life?

⁹“I used to think that I had to do a lot of things to oppose the one named Jesus of Nazareth. ¹⁰That is what I did in Jerusalem. By the authority I received from the chief priests, I locked many Christians in prison. I voted to have them killed every time a vote was taken. ¹¹I even went to each synagogue, punished believers, and forced them to curse ⌞the name of Jesus⌟. In my furious rage against them, I hunted them down in cities outside ⌞Jerusalem⌟.

¹²“I was carrying out these activities when I went to the city of Damascus. I had the power and authority of the chief priests. ¹³Your Majesty, at noon, while I was traveling, I saw a light that was brighter than the sun. The light came from the sky and shined around me and those who were with me. ¹⁴All of us fell to the ground, and I heard a voice asking me in Hebrew, ‘Saul, Saul! Why are you persecuting me? It’s hard for ⌞a mortal like⌟ you to resist God.’

¹⁵“I asked, ‘Who are you, sir?’

“The Lord answered, ‘I am Jesus, the one you’re persecuting. ¹⁶Stand up! I have appeared to you for a reason. I’m appointing you to be a servant and witness of what you have seen and of what I will show you. ¹⁷I will rescue you from the Jewish people and from the non-Jewish people to whom I am sending you. ¹⁸You will open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light and from Satan’s control to God’s. Then they will receive forgiveness for their sins and a share among God’s people who are made holy by believing in me.’

¹⁹“At that point I did not disobey the vision I saw from heaven, King Agrippa. ²⁰Instead, I spread the message that I first told to the ⌞Jewish⌟ people in Damascus and Jerusalem and throughout the whole country of Judea. I spread the same message to non-Jewish people. Both groups were expected to change the way they thought and acted and to turn to God. I told them to do things that prove they had changed their lives. ²¹For this reason the Jews took me prisoner in the temple courtyard and tried to murder me.

²²“God has been helping me to this day so that I can stand and testify to important and unimportant people. I tell them only what the prophets and Moses said would happen. ²³They said that the Messiah would suffer and be the first to come back to life and would spread light to Jewish and non-Jewish people.”

²⁴As Paul was defending himself in this way, Festus shouted, “Paul, you’re crazy! Too much education is driving you crazy!”

²⁵Paul replied, “I’m not crazy, Your Excellency Festus. What I’m saying is true and sane. ²⁶I can easily speak to a king who knows about these things. I’m sure that none of these things has escaped his attention. None of this was done secretly. ²⁷King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know you believe them!”

²⁸Agrippa said to Paul, “Do you think you can quickly persuade me to become a Christian?”

²⁹Paul replied, “I wish to God that you and everyone listening to me today would quickly and completely become as I am (except for being a prisoner).”

³⁰The king, the governor, Bernice, and the people who were sitting with them got up. ³¹As they were leaving, they said to each other, “This man isn’t doing anything for which he deserves to die or be put in prison.”

³²Agrippa told Festus, “This man could have been set free if he hadn’t appealed his case to the emperor.”

New International Version (NIV)

Acts 26

New International Version

Footnotes

Cross references

Veprat e Apostujve 26

Albanian Bible

Acts 26

English Standard Version

Paul's Defense Before Agrippa

Paul Tells of His Conversion

Footnotes

Cross references

Acts 26

GOD’S WORD Translation

More on the NIV

Acts 26 New International Version

Footnotes

Cross references

Veprat e Apostujve 26 Albanian Bible

Acts 26 English Standard Version

Paul's Defense Before Agrippa

Paul Tells of His Conversion

Footnotes

Cross references

Acts 26 GOD’S WORD Translation

More on the NIV

Acts 26

New International Version

Veprat e Apostujve 26

Albanian Bible

Acts 26

English Standard Version

Acts 26

GOD’S WORD Translation