Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

Jehovah the keeper of his people.

A Song of Ascents.

²⁶ And above the firmament that was over their heads was the likeness of a throne, as the appearance of a sapphire stone; and upon the likeness of the throne was a likeness as the appearance of a man upon it above. ²⁷ And I saw as it were glowing metal, as the appearance of fire within it round about, from the appearance of his loins and upward; and from the appearance of his loins and downward I saw as it were the appearance of fire, and there was brightness round about ^[a]him. ²⁸ As the appearance of the bow that is in the cloud in the day of rain, so was the appearance of the brightness round about. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of Jehovah. And when I saw it, I fell upon my face, and I heard a voice of one that spake.

2 And he said unto me, Son of man, stand upon thy feet, and I will speak with thee.

26 And Agrippa said unto Paul, Thou art permitted to speak for thyself. Then Paul stretched forth his hand, and made his defence:

² I think myself happy, king Agrippa, that I am to make my defence before thee this day touching all the things whereof I am accused by the Jews: ^3 [a]especially because thou art expert in all customs and questions which are among the Jews: wherefore I beseech thee to hear me patiently. ⁴ My manner of life then from my youth up, which was from the beginning among mine own nation and at Jerusalem, know all the Jews; ⁵ having knowledge of me from the first, if they be willing to testify, that after the straitest sect of our religion I lived a Pharisee. ⁶ And now I stand here to be judged for the hope of the promise made of God unto our fathers; ⁷ unto which promise our twelve tribes, earnestly serving God night and day, hope to attain. And concerning this hope I am accused by the Jews, O king! ⁸ Why is it judged incredible with you, if God doth raise the dead? ⁹ I verily thought with myself that I ought to do many things contrary to the name of Jesus of Nazareth. ¹⁰ And this I also did in Jerusalem: and I both shut up many of the saints in prisons, having received authority from the chief priests, and when they were put to death I gave my vote against them. ¹¹ And punishing them oftentimes in all the synagogues, I strove to make them blaspheme; and being exceedingly mad against them, I persecuted them even unto foreign cities. ^12 [b]Whereupon as I journeyed to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests, ¹³ at midday, O king, I saw on the way a light from heaven, above the brightness of the sun, shining round about me and them that journeyed with me. ¹⁴ And when we were all fallen to the earth, I heard a voice saying unto me in the Hebrew language, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? it is hard for thee to kick against ^[c]the goad. ¹⁵ And I said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, I am Jesus whom thou persecutest. ¹⁶ But arise, and stand upon thy feet: for to this end have I appeared unto thee, to appoint thee a minister and a witness both of the things ^[d]wherein thou hast seen me, and of the things wherein I will appear unto thee; ¹⁷ delivering thee from the people, and from the Gentiles, unto whom I send thee, ¹⁸ to open their eyes, ^[e]that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive remission of sins and an inheritance among them that are sanctified by faith in me.