Acts 23:1-13 ▼

1 AND as Paul beheld their assembly, he said, Men, my brethren, I have lived i n all good conscience before God until this day.

2 And the high priest An-a-ni’as commanded those who stood by his side to strike Paul on the mouth.

3 Then Paul said to him, God shall smite you, O you hypocrite: for you sit to judge me according to the law, yet you yourself transgress the law, when you command that I be smitten.

4 And those who stood by said to him, Do you even revile the high priest of God?

5 Then Paul said to them, Brothers, I did not know that he was a high priest: for it is written, You shall not revile the ruler of your people.

6 Now when Paul perceived that part of the people were Sad’du-cees, and the others were Phar’i-sees, he cried out in the assembly, Men, my brethren, I am a Phar’i-see, the son of a Phar’i-see: and it is because of the hope of the resurrection of the dead that I am here to be judged.

7 And when he had said this, there arose a dissension between the Phar’i-sees and the Sad’du-cees: and the people were divided.

8 For the Sad’du-cees say there is no resurrection, neither angels nor soul: but the Phar’i-sees believe in them.

9 Then there arose a great cry: and the scribes that were of the party of the Phar’i-sees rose up, and argued, saying, We find no fault with this man: and if a spirit or an angel has spoken to him, there is nothing wrong in that.

10 And because there was a great disturbance among them, the chief captain, fearing that they might tear Paul to pieces, sent Roman soldiers to go and seize him from among them and bring him into the castle.

11 During the night, our LORD appeared to Paul and said, Be strong, for as you have testified concerning me at Jerusalem, so also you are to testify at Rome.

12 And when it was morning, certain of the Jews banded together and bound themselves under oath, that they would neither eat nor drink till they had killed Paul.

13 And those who had sworn to this conspiracy were more than forty persons.