secutest thou me? And I answered, Who art thou, Lord? The voice said, I am Jesus of Nazareth whom thou perse

cutest.

Those who were with me saw the light and were afraid, but they heard not the voice of him that spake to me. And I said, What shall I do, Lord? and the Lord said, Arise, and go into Damascus, and you shall be told what to do. I could not see for the glory of the light, but being led by the hand of those with me I came to Damascus.

Then a disciple, named Ananias, a devout man, came to me and said, Brother Saul, receive thy sight; and the same hour I could see him. And he said, God hath chosen you that you should know his will, and see Jesus and hear his voice and witness to all men what you have seen and heard. And once again, while praying in the temple, I saw Jesus in a vision, and he said to me, Make haste and go quickly out of Jerusalem, for the Jews will not believe your testimony concerning me, so I will send you to the Gentiles.

As soon as he mentioned the Gentiles as receiving the gospel, they cried out, Away with such a fellow, for he is not fit to live; and they cast off their clothes and threw dust into the air. The chief captain commanded that Paul should be brought into the castle and scourged to make him confess what evil he was guilty of. As they bound him with thongs he said, Is it lawful to scourge a Roman before he is found guilty? The centurion told the captain to be careful what he did, because Paul was a Roman, The captain came and said to Paul, Tell me, art thou a Roman? Paul answered, Yes. And the captain said, With a great sum I obtained that freedom. Paul said, I was free-born. Then the soldiers left him, and the captain was afraid for he had bound him, lest he might be punished.

Next day the chief captain wanted to know of what the Jews accused Paul. And he commanded the chief priests and all the Council of the Sanhedrim to come together, and he brought Paul before them. Paul looked earnestly upon them and said, Men and brethren, I have lived in all good conscience before God until this day. Ananias the high priest commanded them that stood by to smite him on the mouth.

Paul said, God shall smite thee, thou hypocrite. Do you sit to judge me after the Law and command me to be smitten contrary to the Law? Those that stood by said, Dost thou revile the high priest? Paul replied, I did not know, brethren,

that he was the high priest; for it is written in the Law, Thou shalt not speak evil of the ruler of thy people.

Now the Sanhedrim was composed of Pharisees and Sadducees, and when Paul tried to speak again a great strife arose between the two parties; and the chief captain being afraid that Paul might be killed, told the soldiers to bring him by force to the castle.

The next night the Lord Jesus came and stood by him

and said, Be of good cheer, Paul, for as you have spoken of me in Jerusalem you must bear witness of me also at Rome.

Next day, about forty Jews bound themselves under a curse that they would neither eat nor drink till they had killed Paul. And they told the chief priests and elders of it, and asked them to request the chief captain to bring the apostle again before the Sanhedrim, pretending to consider his case more perfectly. And while he is being brought, they said, we will come and kill him.

But Paul's sister's son heard of their plot and went into the castle and told Paul of it. Paul then told one of the centurions to bring his nephew to the chief captain. When the young man saw the chief captain he said, The Jews have agreed to ask you to bring Paul to-morrow into the Council, pretending to inquire more correctly into his case; but do not listen to them, for forty men, bound under oath, lie in wait to kill him.

The chief captain told the young man not to tell any one of these things. He was alarmed, and called to him two centurions, saying, Make ready two hundred soldiers, and seventy horsemen, and two hundred spearmen to go to Cæsarea at the third hour of the night, and send beasts on which Paul and the men that are with him shall ride, and bring him safe to Felix, the governor. And the chief captain wrote a letter to the governor, stating, This man was taken by the Jews, who were about to kill him. I, with an army, rescued him, having heard he was a Roman. I brought him before their Council and found no charge against him worthy of death or of bonds. Hearing they were still determined to kill him, I have sent him to thee, and have told the Jews to appear against him before thee.

The soldiers brought Paul that night to Antipatres, which was on the road to Cæsarea. On the morrow the soldiers returned to the castle, while the horsemen brought Paul to the governor.

When the governor read the letter of the chief captain he asked Paul in what province he was born. Paul said Cilicia. And the governor said, I will hear thee when thine accusers are also come. And he gave orders that Paul be kept in Herod's judgment-hall.

FIVE days after Paul had left Jerusalem Ananias the high priest came with the elders from Jerusalem to Cæsarea. Along with them came an orator named Tertullus to inform the governor against Paul. When Paul appeared before the governor Tertullus said, We have found this man a mischievous fellow, stirring up trouble among the Jews, and he is a ringleader among those who believe in Jesus of Nazareth. He has brought Gentiles into the temple and profaned it. We would have tried him by our law, but the chief captain took him from us by force, and told us to come before thee and accuse him. By examining us, his accusers, you may see that we have not accused him wrongfully. The Jews affirmed that these things were so. The governor then beckoned to Paul to speak, and Paul said, It is only twelve days since I went up to Jerusalem to worship in the temple, and I neither disputed with any man nor raised up the people either in the synagogue or the city, nor can they prove the things whereof they now accuse me. But I confess that I worship God in a way they call heresy, though I believe all things written in the law and the prophets, and I have hope toward God that there shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and of the unjust. On account of this belief I seek not to offend my conscience. I returned to Jerusalem, having been absent many years, bringing alms to the poor Jews resident in that city, and also offerings for the temple.

Certain Jews from Asia found me purified in the temple, and I was not with the crowd nor making any disturbance. They are the ones who should be here to accuse me, if they had aught against me. Let those here say if they have found any evil in me, while I stood before the Council in Jerusalem, except it was a crime to preach that the dead should rise from their graves at the judgment.

Then Felix said, When Lysias the chief captain comes I will know all about the matter; and he told the centurion to keep Paul, and to let him have liberty, and see any of his friends that might want to visit him.

After some days Felix sent for Paul to come and speak to him and to his wife Drusilla concerning the faith of Christ. And as Paul spoke of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come, Felix trembled. Yet he did not repent of his sins, but sent Paul back to prison, saying, Go thy way for this time; when it is convenient I will call for thee again. hoped also that Paul would have given him money to obtain his liberty. And on that account sent for him often to talk with him.

He

But after two years Porcius Festus took the place of Felix, and Felix, in order to please the Jews, left Paul in prison.

Festus, the new governor, came to Cæsarea, and after three days went to Jerusalem, where the high priests and the chief of the Jews spoke to him against Paul and begged that he might be sent back to Jerusalem, while they had planned to have men hidden by the way who would have killed him. But Festus answered, Paul is in prison at Cæsarea, and as I am going to that city in a few days, let those who wish to accuse Paul go with me.

After ten days Festus returned to Cæsarea and the next day sat on the judgment-seat, and commanded Paul to be brought. And when he was come the Jews made grievous complaints against him which they could not prove. Paul answered for himself and said, Neither against the laws of the Jews, nor against the temple, nor yet against Cæsar have I offended anything at all. But Festus, wishing to please the Jews, asked Paul, Art thou willing to go up to Jerusalem, and there be judged of these things before me? Said Paul, I stand at Cæsar's judgment-seat, where I ought to be judged. Any Roman in danger of being put to death might ask to be tried before the Emperor, who would determine whether he should live or die. Paul knew that the Jews were determined to kill him; therefore he said to Festus that he had done no wrong to the Jews, as Festus very well knew, and then he appealed to Cæsar.