14 “And when we had aall fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in the 1bHebrew dialect, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me? 2It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’

15 “And I said, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ And the Lord said, ‘I am Jesus whom you are persecuting.

16 ‘But get up and astand on your feet; for this purpose I have appeared to you, to bappoint you a cminister and da witness not only to the things which you have 1seen, but also to the things in which I will appear to you;

17 arescuing you bfrom the Jewish people and from the Gentiles, to whom I am sending you,

18 to aopen their eyes so that they may turn from bdarkness to light and from the dominion of cSatan to God, that they may receive dforgiveness of sins and an einheritance among those who have been sanctified by ffaith in Me.’

19 “So, King Agrippa, I did not prove disobedient to the heavenly vision,

20 but kept declaring both ato those of Damascus first, and also bat Jerusalem and then throughout all the region of Judea, and even cto the Gentiles, that they should drepent and turn to God, performing deeds eappropriate to repentance.

21 “For this reason some Jews aseized me in the temple and tried bto put me to death.

22 “So, having obtained help from God, I stand to this day atestifying both to small and great, stating nothing but what bthe Prophets and Moses said was going to take place;

23 1athat 2the Christ was 3to suffer, and 1that bby reason of His resurrection from the dead He would be the first to proclaim clight both to the Jewish people and to the Gentiles.”

24 While Paul was saying this in his defense, Festus * said in a loud voice, “Paul, you are out of your mind! 1Your great alearning is 2driving you mad.”

25 But Paul * said, “I am not out of my mind, amost excellent Festus, but I utter words 1of sober truth.

26 “For the king 1aknows about these matters, and I speak to him also with confidence, since I am persuaded that none of these things escape his notice; for this has not been done in a 2corner.

27 “King Agrippa, do you believe the Prophets? I know that you 1do.”

28 Agrippa replied to Paul, “1In a short time you 2will persuade me to 3become a aChristian.”

29 And Paul said, “1I would wish to God, that whether 2in a short or long time, not only you, but also all who hear me this day, might become such as I am, except for these achains.”

30 aThe king stood up and the governor and Bernice, and those who were sitting with them,

31 and when they had gone aside, they began talking to one another, saying, “aThis man is not doing anything worthy of death or 1imprisonment.”

32 And Agrippa said to Festus, “This man might have been aset free if he had not bappealed to Caesar.”