³⁵ “Am I a Jew?” Pilate replied. “Your own people and chief priests handed you over to me. What is it you have done?”

God’s Faithfulness

3 What advantage, then, is there in being a Jew, or what value is there in circumcision? ² Much in every way!^(A) First of all, the Jews have been entrusted with the very words of God.^(B)

¹⁹ Instead, they had some points of dispute^(A) with him about their own religion^(B) and about a dead man named Jesus who Paul claimed was alive. ²⁰ I was at a loss how to investigate such matters; so I asked if he would be willing to go to Jerusalem and stand trial there on these charges.^(C)

Paul the Roman Citizen

²² The crowd listened to Paul until he said this. Then they raised their voices and shouted, “Rid the earth of him!^(A) He’s not fit to live!”^(B)

²³ As they were shouting and throwing off their cloaks^(C) and flinging dust into the air,^{(D) 24} the commander ordered that Paul be taken into the barracks.^(E) He directed^(F) that he be flogged and interrogated in order to find out why the people were shouting at him like this.

³⁸ “Aren’t you the Egyptian who started a revolt and led four thousand terrorists out into the wilderness^(A) some time ago?”^(B)

¹⁴ Just as Paul was about to speak, Gallio said to them, “If you Jews were making a complaint about some misdemeanor or serious crime, it would be reasonable for me to listen to you. ¹⁵ But since it involves questions about words and names and your own law^(A)—settle the matter yourselves. I will not be a judge of such things.” ¹⁶ So he drove them off.

¹³ The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob,^(A) the God of our fathers,^(B) has glorified his servant Jesus. You handed him over^(C) to be killed, and you disowned him before Pilate,^(D) though he had decided to let him go.^(E)

¹¹ Jesus answered, “You would have no power over me if it were not given to you from above.^(A) Therefore the one who handed me over to you^(B) is guilty of a greater sin.”