1 I rmãos e pais, ouvi a minha defesa, que agora faço perante vós.

¶ Men, brethren, and fathers, hear ye my defense which I make now unto you.

2 O ra, quando ouviram que lhes falava em língua hebraica, guardaram ainda maior silêncio. E ele prosseguiu.

(And when they heard that he spoke in the Hebrew tongue to them, they kept the more silence, and he said,)

3 E u sou judeu, nascido em Tarso da Cilícia, mas criado nesta cidade, instruído aos pés de Gamaliel, conforme a precisão da lei de nossos pais, sendo zeloso para com Deus, assim como o sois todos vós no dia de hoje.

¶ I am indeed a Jew, born in Tarsus, a city in Cilicia, yet brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel and taught according to the truth of the law of the fathers, zealous toward God, as ye all are this day.

4 E persegui este Caminho até a morte, algemando e metendo em prisões tanto a homens como a mulheres,

And I persecuted this way unto the death, binding and delivering into prisons both men and women.

5 d o que também o sumo sacerdote me é testemunha, e assim todo o conselho dos anciãos; e, tendo recebido destes cartas para os irmãos, seguia para Damasco, com o fim de trazer algemados a Jerusalém aqueles que ali estivessem, para que fossem castigados.

As also the prince of the priests bears me witness, and all the estate of the elders, from whom also I received letters unto the brethren, and went to Damascus to bring those who were bound there unto Jerusalem to be punished.

6 A conteceu, porém, que, quando caminhava e ia chegando perto de Damasco, pelo meio-dia, de repente, do céu brilhou-me ao redor uma grande luz.

And it came to pass that, as I made my journey and was come near unto Damascus about noon, suddenly there shone from heaven a great light round about me.

7 C aí por terra e ouvi uma voz que me dizia: Saulo, Saulo, por que me persegues?

And I fell unto the ground and heard a voice saying unto me, Saul, Saul, why dost thou persecute me?

8 E u respondi: Quem és tu, Senhor? Disse-me: Eu sou Jesus, o nazareno, a quem tu persegues.

And I answered, Who art thou, Lord? And he said unto me, I Am Jesus of Nazareth, whom thou dost persecute.

9 E os que estavam comigo viram, em verdade, a luz, mas não entenderam a voz daquele que falava comigo.

And those that were with me saw indeed the light and were afraid, but they did not hear the voice of him that spoke to me.

10 E ntão disse eu: Senhor que farei? E o Senhor me disse: Levanta-te, e vai a Damasco, onde se te dirá tudo o que te é ordenado fazer.

And I said, What shall I do, Lord? And the Lord said unto me, Arise and go into Damascus, and there it shall be told thee of all things which are appointed for thee to do.

11 C omo eu nada visse por causa do esplendor daquela luz, guiado pela mão dos que estavam comigo cheguei a Damasco.

And when I could not see for the clarity of that light, being led by the hand of those that were with me, I came into Damascus.

12 u m certo Ananias, varão piedoso conforme a lei, que tinha bom testemunho de todos os judeus que ali moravam,

And one Ananias, a devout man according to the law, having a good witness of all the Jews who dwelt there,

13 v indo ter comigo, de pé ao meu lado, disse-me: Saulo, irmão, recobra a vista. Naquela mesma hora, recobrando a vista, eu o vi.

came unto me and stood and said unto me, Brother Saul, receive thy sight. And the same hour I looked up upon him.

14 D isse ele: O Deus de nossos pais de antemão te designou para conhecer a sua vontade, ver o Justo, e ouvir a voz da sua boca.

And he said, The God of our fathers has chosen thee that thou should know his will and see that Just One and should hear the voice of his mouth.

15 P orque hás de ser sua testemunha para com todos os homens do que tens visto e ouvido.

For thou shalt be his witness unto all men of what thou hast seen and heard.

16 A gora por que te demoras? Levanta-te, batiza-te e lava os teus pecados, invocando o seu nome.

And now why tarriest thou? Arise and be baptized and wash away thy sins, calling on the name of the Lord.

17 A conteceu que, tendo eu voltado para Jerusalém, enquanto orava no templo, achei-me em êxtase,

And it came to pass that, when I was come again to Jerusalem, even while I prayed in the temple, I was in a rapture of understanding

18 e vi aquele que me dizia: Apressa-te e sai logo de Jerusalém; porque não receberão o teu testemunho acerca de mim.

and saw him saying unto me, Make haste and go quickly out of Jerusalem, for they will not receive thy testimony concerning me.

19 D isse eu: Senhor, eles bem sabem que eu encarcerava e açoitava pelas sinagogas os que criam em ti,

And I said, Lord, they know that I imprisoned and in every synagogue beat those that believed on thee;

20 e quando se derramava o sangue de Estêvão, tua testemunha, eu também estava presente, consentindo na sua morte e guardando as capas dos que o matavam.

and when the blood of thy martyr Stephen was shed, I also was standing by and consenting unto his death and kept the raiment of those that slew him.

21 D isse-me ele: Vai, porque eu te enviarei para longe aos gentios.

And he said unto me, Depart, for I will send thee far from here unto the Gentiles.

22 O ra, escutavam-no até esta palavra, mas então levantaram a voz, dizendo: Tira do mundo tal homem, porque não convém que viva.

¶ And they gave him audience unto this word and then lifted up their voices and said, Away with such a fellow from the earth, for it is not fit that he should live.

23 G ritando eles e arrojando de si as capas e lançando pó para o ar,

And as they cried out and cast off their clothes and threw dust into the air,

24 o comandante mandou que levassem Paulo para dentro da fortaleza, ordenando que fosse interrogado debaixo de açoites, para saber por que causa assim clamavam contra ele.

the tribunal commanded him to be brought into the fortress and bade that he should be examined by scourging that he might know why they cried out so against him.

25 Q uando o haviam atado com as correias, disse Paulo ao centurião que ali estava: É-vos lícito açoitar um cidadão romano, sem ser ele condenado?

And as they bound him with thongs, Paul said unto the centurion that stood by, Is it lawful for you to scourge a man that is a Roman and uncondemned?

26 O uvindo isto, foi o centurião ter com o comandante e o avisou, dizendo: Vê o que estás para fazer, pois este homem é romano.

When the centurion heard that, he went and told the tribunal, saying, Take heed what thou doest, for this man is a Roman.

27 V indo o comandante, perguntou-lhe: Dize-me: és tu romano? Respondeu ele: Sou.

Then the tribunal came and said unto him, Tell me, art thou a Roman? He said, Yes.

28 T ornou o comandante: Eu por grande soma de dinheiro adquiri este direito de cidadão. Paulo disse: Mas eu o sou de nascimento.

And the tribunal answered, With a great sum I obtained this freedom. And Paul said, But I was free born.

29 I mediatamente, pois se apartaram dele aqueles que o iam interrogar; e até o comandante, tendo sabido que Paulo era romano, atemorizou-se porque o havia ligado.

Then straightway those who should have tormented him departed from him, and the tribunal was also afraid, after he knew that he was a Roman and because he had bound him.

30 N o dia seguinte, querendo saber ao certo a causa por que ele era acusado pelos judeus, soltou-o das prisões, e mandou que se reunissem os principais sacerdotes e todo o sinédrio; e, trazendo Paulo, apresentou-o diante deles.

On the next day, because he wanted to know of certainty the cause for which he was accused of the Jews, he loosed him from his bands and commanded the princes of the priests and all their council to appear and brought Paul down and set him before them.