Acts 23:23–35

To Caesarea by Night

²³He summoned two of his centurions and said, “Get 200 soldiers ready with 70 cavalry and 200 spearmen to go to Caesarea at nine tonight. ^jk24Also provide mounts so they can put Paul on them and bring him safely to Felix the governor.”

²⁵He wrote a letter of this kind:

²⁶Claudius Lysias,

To the most excellent governor Felix:

Greetings. ^l

²⁷When this man had been seized by the Jews and was about to be killed by them, I arrived with my troops and rescued him because I learned that he is a Roman citizen. ^m28Wanting to know the charge they were accusing him of, I brought him down before their Sanhedrin. ²⁹I found out that the accusations were about disputed matters in their law, ⁿand that there was no charge that merited death or chains. ^o30When I was informed that there was a plot against the man, ^pqI sent him to you right away. I also ordered his accusers ^rto state their case against him in your presence. ^s

³¹Therefore, the soldiers took Paul during the night and brought him to Antipatris as they were ordered. ³²The next day, they returned to the barracks, allowing the cavalry to go on with him. ³³When these men entered Caesarea and delivered the letter to the governor, they also presented Paul to him. ^t34After he ^uread it, he asked what province he was from. So when he learned he was from Cilicia, ^v35he said, “I will give you a hearing whenever your accusers get here too.” And he ordered that he be kept under guard in Herod’s palace. ^w