³ As he neared Damascus on his journey, suddenly a light from heaven flashed around him.^{(A) 4} He fell to the ground and heard a voice^(B) say to him, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me?”

⁵ “Who are you, Lord?” Saul asked.

“I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting,” he replied. ⁶ “Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.”^(C)

⁷ The men traveling with Saul stood there speechless; they heard the sound^(D) but did not see anyone.^{(E) 8} Saul got up from the ground, but when he opened his eyes he could see nothing.^(F) So they led him by the hand into Damascus. ⁹ For three days he was blind, and did not eat or drink anything.

¹⁰ In Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called to him in a vision,^(G) “Ananias!”

“Yes, Lord,” he answered.

¹¹ The Lord told him, “Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus^(H) named Saul, for he is praying. ¹² In a vision he has seen a man named Ananias come and place his hands on^(I) him to restore his sight.”

¹³ “Lord,” Ananias answered, “I have heard many reports about this man and all the harm he has done to your holy people^(J) in Jerusalem.^{(K) 14} And he has come here with authority from the chief priests^(L) to arrest all who call on your name.”^(M)

¹⁵ But the Lord said to Ananias, “Go! This man is my chosen instrument^(N) to proclaim my name to the Gentiles^(O) and their kings^(P) and to the people of Israel. ¹⁶ I will show him how much he must suffer for my name.”^(Q)

¹⁷ Then Ananias went to the house and entered it. Placing his hands on^(R) Saul, he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord—Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here—has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.”^{(S) 18} Immediately, something like scales fell from Saul’s eyes, and he could see again. He got up and was baptized,^{(T) 19} and after taking some food, he regained his strength.

Saul in Damascus and Jerusalem

Saul spent several days with the disciples^(U) in Damascus.^{(V) 20} At once he began to preach in the synagogues^(W) that Jesus is the Son of God.^{(X) 21} All those who heard him were astonished and asked, “Isn’t he the man who raised havoc in Jerusalem among those who call on this name?^(Y) And hasn’t he come here to take them as prisoners to the chief priests?”^{(Z) 22} Yet Saul grew more and more powerful and baffled the Jews living in Damascus by proving that Jesus is the Messiah.^(AA)

⁴ I persecuted^(A) the followers of this Way^(B) to their death, arresting both men and women and throwing them into prison,^{(C) 5} as the high priest and all the Council^(D) can themselves testify. I even obtained letters from them to their associates^(E) in Damascus,^(F) and went there to bring these people as prisoners to Jerusalem to be punished.

⁶ “About noon as I came near Damascus, suddenly a bright light from heaven flashed around me.^{(G) 7} I fell to the ground and heard a voice say to me, ‘Saul! Saul! Why do you persecute me?’

⁸ “‘Who are you, Lord?’ I asked.

“ ‘I am Jesus of Nazareth,^(H) whom you are persecuting,’ he replied. ⁹ My companions saw the light,^(I) but they did not understand the voice^(J) of him who was speaking to me.

¹⁰ “‘What shall I do, Lord?’ I asked.

“ ‘Get up,’ the Lord said, ‘and go into Damascus. There you will be told all that you have been assigned to do.’^{(K) 11} My companions led me by the hand into Damascus, because the brilliance of the light had blinded me.^(L)

¹² “A man named Ananias came to see me.^(M) He was a devout observer of the law and highly respected by all the Jews living there.^{(N) 13} He stood beside me and said, ‘Brother Saul, receive your sight!’ And at that very moment I was able to see him.

¹⁴ “Then he said: ‘The God of our ancestors^(O) has chosen you to know his will and to see^(P) the Righteous One^(Q) and to hear words from his mouth. ¹⁵ You will be his witness^(R) to all people of what you have seen^(S) and heard. ¹⁶ And now what are you waiting for? Get up, be baptized^(T) and wash your sins away,^(U) calling on his name.’^(V)

¹⁷ “When I returned to Jerusalem^(W) and was praying at the temple, I fell into a trance^{(X) 18} and saw the Lord speaking to me. ‘Quick!’ he said. ‘Leave Jerusalem immediately, because the people here will not accept your testimony about me.’

¹⁹ “‘Lord,’ I replied, ‘these people know that I went from one synagogue to another to imprison^(Y) and beat^(Z) those who believe in you.

⁹ “I too was convinced^(A) that I ought to do all that was possible to oppose^(B) the name of Jesus of Nazareth.^{(C) 10} And that is just what I did in Jerusalem. On the authority of the chief priests I put many of the Lord’s people^(D) in prison,^(E) and when they were put to death, I cast my vote against them.^{(F) 11} Many a time I went from one synagogue to another to have them punished,^(G) 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. ¹³ About 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. ¹⁴ We all fell to the ground, and I heard a voice^(H) saying to me in Aramaic,^[a](I) ‘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.

Paul’s Rights as an Apostle

9 Am I not free?^(A) Am I not an apostle?^(B) Have I not seen Jesus our Lord?^(C) Are you not the result of my work in the Lord?^(D)

⁸ and last of all he appeared to me also,^(A) as to one abnormally born.

⁸ and last of all he appeared to me also,^(A) as to one abnormally born.