1“Anuanom ne agyanom, muntie mʼanoyi yi.”
2Wɔtee sɛ ɔka Arameike no, wɔyɛɛ komm koraa.
Paulo toaa so se, 3“Meyɛ Yudani a wɔwoo me wɔ Tarso a ɛwɔ Kilikia. Wɔtetew me wɔ Yerusalem wɔ Gamaliel nan ase. Misuaa sɛnea wodi Yudafo mmara ne wɔn amanne so pɛpɛɛpɛ. Mebɔɔ mmɔden sɛ biribiara a meyɛ no, mede bɛhyɛ Onyankopɔn anuonyam sɛnea mo nyinaa nso reyɛ nnɛ yi. 4Metaa nnipa a wodi Awurade asɛm so no nyinaa kunkum wɔn. Mekyeree mmea ne mmarima de wɔn guu afiase. 5Ɔsɔfopanyin ne agyinatufo no nyinaa di me adanse sɛ, asɛm a mereka yi yɛ nokware. Wɔn nkyɛn mpo na migyee tumi nhoma sɛ mede rekɔma anuanom Yudafo a wɔwɔ Damasko no. Saa nhoma no na anka megyina so makyekyere nnipa a wodi Awurade asɛm so no agu wɔn nkɔnsɔnkɔnsɔn, de wɔn aba Yerusalem na wɔatwe wɔn aso.
6“Owigyinae a mereyɛ adu Damasko no, mpofirim na hann bi twa faa me ho. 7Mitwa hwee fam, na metee nne bi a ɛrebisa me se, ‘Saulo! Saulo! Adɛn nti na wotaa me?’
8“Mibisae se, ‘Ɛyɛ wo hena, Awurade?’
“Nne no buaa me se, ‘Ɛyɛ me Nasareni Yesu a wotaa me no.’ 9Nnipa a na wɔne me nam no huu hann no de, nanso wɔante nne a ɛkasa kyerɛɛ me no.
10“Mibisae se, ‘Dɛn na menyɛ, Awurade?’
“Awurade ka kyerɛɛ me se, ‘Sɔre na kɔ Damasko, na hɔ na mɛkyerɛ wo biribiara a mepɛ sɛ woyɛ.’ 11Hann no hyerɛn ano den no maa mʼani furae enti nnipa a na me ne wɔn rekɔ no susoo me nsa de me kɔɔ Damasko.
12“Na Onipa bi a wɔfrɛ no Anania a odi Mose mmara so a na Yudafo nyinaa di no ni no te Damasko hɔ. 13Ɔbaa me nkyɛn bɛkae se, ‘Onua Saulo, hu ade bio!’ ” Na hɔ ara mʼani buei.
14“Ɔka kyerɛɛ me se, ‘Yɛn nenanom Nyankopɔn ayi wo sɛnea ɛbɛyɛ a wobɛyɛ nʼapɛde na woahu ɔtreneeni no, na wobɛte nʼankasa ne nne sɛ ɛkasa kyerɛ wo. 15Wubedi adanse afa biribiara a woahu na woate wɔ Awurade ho no akyerɛ nnipa nyinaa. 16Afei, dɛn na woretwɛn bio? Sɔre na ma wɔmmɔ wo asu nhohoro wo bɔne wɔ Yesu din mu.’
Wɔsoma Paulo Amanamanmufo Nkyɛn
17“Mesan kɔɔ Yerusalem na merebɔ mpae wɔ asɔredan mu no, 18mihuu Awurade wɔ anisoadehu mu na ɔka kyerɛɛ me se, ‘Yɛ ntɛm fi Yerusalem ha, efisɛ nnipa a wɔwɔ ha no rentie adanse a wudi fa me ho no.’
19“Mekae se, ‘Awurade, wɔn nyinaa nim pefee sɛ mekɔɔ hyiadan mu kɔkyekyeree asuafo boroo wɔn. 20Saa ara na bere a wokum wo dansefo Stefano no, na mewɔ hɔ bi. Mepenee ne kum no so, hwɛɛ awudifo no ntama so.’
21“Awurade ka kyerɛɛ me se, ‘Sɔre na kɔ, efisɛ mɛsoma wo akɔ akyirikyiri, amanamanmufo nkyɛn!’ ”
22Bere a Paulo kae se wɔasoma no amanamanmufo nkyɛn pɛ na dɔm no fii ase teɛteɛɛ mu dennen se, “Munkum no! Ɔmfata sɛ ɔtena wiase!”
23Nnipa no kɔɔ so teɛteɛɛ mu, hugyaa wɔn ntama saw mfutuma tow petee wim. 24Roma sahene no hyɛɛ sɛ wɔmfa Paulo nkɔ aban mu nkɔbɔ no mmaa sɛnea ɛbɛyɛ a ɔbɛka nea enti a nnipa no nyinaa mpɛ sɛ wotie nʼasɛm no. 25Bere a wɔkyekyeree no wiee a wɔrebɛbɔ no mmaa no, Paulo bisaa ɔsraani panyin a na ogyina hɔ no se, “Mowɔ ho kwan sɛ mobɔ Romani a wonnii nʼasɛm mmuu no fɔ no mmaa ana?”
26Bere a ɔsraani panyin no tee saa asɛm no, ɔkɔɔ ɔsahene no nkyɛn kobisaa no se, “Dɛn na wopɛ sɛ woyɛ yi? Onipa no yɛ Romani!”
27Afei ɔsahene no kɔɔ Paulo nkyɛn kobisaa no se, “Woyɛ Romani ana?”
Paulo buaa no se, “Yiw meyɛ Romani.”
28Ɔsahene no kae se, “Mituaa sika bebree na mede tɔɔ me Roma maniyɛ.”
Paulo nso kae se, “Me de, wɔwoo me sɛ Romani.”
29Ntɛm ara, nnipa a na wɔrebebisa Paulo nsɛm no twee wɔn ho fii ne nkyɛn. Ɔsafohene no tee sɛ Paulo yɛ Romani no, osuroe sɛ wama wɔagu Paulo nkɔnsɔnkɔnsɔn.
Paulo Gyina Asennii
30Esiane sɛ na ɔsafohene no pɛ sɛ ohu nea enti a Yudafo no asɔre atia Paulo no nti, ade kyee no, ɔhyɛ ma woyii Paulo fii nkɔnsɔnkɔnsɔn mu. Ɔmaa asɔfo mpanyin ne agyinatufo no nyinaa hyiae. Afei ɔde Paulo kɔɔ se wɔnhwehwɛ nʼasɛm no mu.
1“Brothers and fathers, listen now to my defense.”
2When they heard him speak to them in Aramaic, they became very quiet.
Then Paul said: 3“I am a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but brought up in this city. I studied under Gamaliel and was thoroughly trained in the law of our ancestors. I was just as zealous for God as any of you are today. 4I persecuted the followers of this Way to their death, arresting both men and women and throwing them into prison, 5as the high priest and all the Council can themselves testify. I even obtained letters from them to their associates in Damascus, 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. 7I 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, whom you are persecuting,’ he replied. 9My companions saw the light, but they did not understand the voice 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.’ 11My companions led me by the hand into Damascus, because the brilliance of the light had blinded me.
12“A man named Ananias came to see me. He was a devout observer of the law and highly respected by all the Jews living there. 13He 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 has chosen you to know his will and to see the Righteous One and to hear words from his mouth. 15You will be his witness to all people of what you have seen and heard. 16And now what are you waiting for? Get up, be baptized and wash your sins away, calling on his name.’
17“When I returned to Jerusalem and was praying at the temple, I fell into a trance 18and 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 and beat those who believe in you. 20And when the blood of your martyr22:20 Or witness Stephen was shed, I stood there giving my approval and guarding the clothes of those who were killing him.’
21“Then the Lord said to me, ‘Go; I will send you far away to the Gentiles.’ ”
Paul the Roman Citizen
22The crowd listened to Paul until he said this. Then they raised their voices and shouted, “Rid the earth of him! He’s not fit to live!”
23As they were shouting and throwing off their cloaks and flinging dust into the air, 24the commander ordered that Paul be taken into the barracks. He directed that he be flogged and interrogated in order to find out why the people were shouting at him like this. 25As they stretched him out to flog him, Paul said to the centurion standing there, “Is it legal for you to flog a Roman citizen who hasn’t even been found guilty?”
26When the centurion heard this, he went to the commander and reported it. “What are you going to do?” he asked. “This man is a Roman citizen.”
27The commander went to Paul and asked, “Tell me, are you a Roman citizen?”
“Yes, I am,” he answered.
28Then the commander said, “I had to pay a lot of money for my citizenship.”
“But I was born a citizen,” Paul replied.
29Those who were about to interrogate him withdrew immediately. The commander himself was alarmed when he realized that he had put Paul, a Roman citizen, in chains.
Paul Before the Sanhedrin
30The commander wanted to find out exactly why Paul was being accused by the Jews. So the next day he released him and ordered the chief priests and all the members of the Sanhedrin to assemble. Then he brought Paul and had him stand before them.
