1 Paulo kalingisisa Gulukota, ngono kati, “Zwikamu zwangu, hana yangu i mbuyanana ngekwe zila yandakatjila ndiyo mbeli kwe Ndzimu kuswikila zhuba lino.” 2 Ngekwa ikoku Ntungamili we bapirisiti Ananiyasi kadwa bakabe bali mile pejo na Paulo kuti banlobe mu nlomo. 3 Ipapo Paulo kati kunli, “Ndzimu unowoloba iwe, iwe guma lakadzulugwa butjena ndiwe! Apa ugele ipapo undisumikilisa nge nlayo, koga iwe nge kuko utjuluka nlayo nge kuti ndilobgwe!”
4 Ibabo bakabe bali mile pejo na Paulo bakati, “Apa unotuka Ntungamili we bapirisiti we Ndzimu kene?”
5 Paulo kati, “Zwikamu, ndabe ndisingazibe kuti ndiye Ntungamili we bapirisiti; ngobe kwakakwagwa kuyi, ‘Usilebe bubi ngekwe nlauli we bathu ba kanyi kuko.’ ”
6 Paulo kati ebona kuti bamwe babo Basadusi koga bamwe Bafarasi kamilidzila hwi pezhugwi mu Gulukota kati, “Zwikamu, imi ndi Nfarasi, nkololo we Bafarasi. Ndosekesegwa kugalabgwe nenge kumuka kwe bafi!”
7 Kati aleba ikoku kukabe ne zhoba pakati kwe Basadusi ne Bafarasi, ngono gubungano likabe ne kuthubukana pakati. 8 Basadusi banoti akuna kumuka mu bafi ne kuti akuna batumwa be Ndzimu kene Meya, koga Bafarasi banoti zwithu zose izwezwi zwiyapo. 9 Kwakabe ne zhoba hwulu, ngono bamwe be badiyi be nlayo bakabe bali Bafarasi bakamilika, ngono bakakakabala kwazo beti, “Iswi atitobona nlandu mu nlume iwoyu. Meya kene ntumwa we kudzimu ha alebeleka nayeke?”
10 Kukakabadzana kwakabe kwakabangalala kwakati Nkulu we babhayani katja kuti banowopalula Paulo. Kadwa babhayani kuti badeluke bankombeledze banzhise mu nzi we babhayani.
11 Busiku igogo She bakama hwunde na Paulo, ngono bakati, “Ibe nge tjilopa! Sekwa wakapa butendeki nge kwangu mu Jerusalema wakafanila kunopabo butendeki ku Roma.”
Nlangano ngekwe butjilo gwa Paulo
12 Mangwanana etjimuka Bajuta bakathama nlangano ngono bakazwisunga nge kutuna kuti basije kene kuli kung'wa kudzina bebulaya Paulo. 13 Balume banopinda makumi manna (40) bakabe bali mu nlangano iwoyo. 14 Bakayenda ku bapirisiti bakulu neku bakulu, ngono bakati, “Tatuna takalonga meya kusaja tjimwe kudzina tibulaye Paulo. 15 Ndizoke ngwenu, imwi ne Gulukota, kumbilani Nkulu we babhayani kunzhisa mbeli kwenyu muti moshaka matama mamwe e malebeswa ngekwe ndebo iye. Takazwilulwamisila kumbulaya asathu kaswika ipapa.”
16 Koga kukati nzekulu wa Paulo we tjilisana ehwa ngekwe nlangano iwoyo kangina mu nzi we babhayani, ngono kabudza Paulo. 17 Ipapo Paulo kadana mmwe we balauli be babhayani bali zana kati, “Yisa mbisana iwoyu ku Nkulu we babhayani; una tjaanoshaka kumbudza.” 18 Ndizo kansa ku Nkulu we babhayani ebe eti, “Paulo we nsungwa wandidana, ngono kandikumbila kuti ndizhise mbisana iwoyu kumuli, ngobe una tjaanoshaka kumubudza.”
19 Nkulu we babhayani kabhata mbisana nge luboko, kamila naye ntome ngono kambhuzwa bali boga kati, “Ini tjaunoshaka kundibudza?”
20 Kati, “Bajuta badumana kuti bamukumbile kuzhisa Paulo mbeli kwe Gulukota mangwana beti banoshaka matama mamwe e malebeswa nge kukwe. 21 Musibadumile, ngobe balume banopinda makumi manna (40) babo bakanlalila mu zila. Batuna kuti abatowoja kene kuli kung'wa kudzina bambulaya. Bakazwilulwamisa ngwenu bamilile kuti mubadumile mu kukumbila kwabo.” 22 Nkulu we babhayani kadwa nzhuzha kati ayende, ngono kantjemela eti, “Usibudze mmwe kuti wandibudza ikoku.”
Paulo unoyisiwa ku mbusi Felikisi
23 Ipapo kadana babili be balauli be babhayani bali zana, kabadwa kati, “Lulwamisani goko le babhayani bali mazana mabili (200) ne balume bali makumi ali kutendeka (70) bakatatha mbizi ne balume bali mazana mabili (200) bakabhata mathumo, kuyenda ku Sizariya nge tjibaka tje buzhanalume busiku guno. 24 Muwanile Paulo mbizi kuti atathe, kuti ndizo anoswika zubuyanana ku mbusi Felikisi.” 25 Ngono kakwala lukwalo eti,
26 “Ndimi Kilaudiyo Lisiyasi, kuna Mbilimangenje, Mbusi Felikisi, Dumiliso. 27 Nlume iwoyu wakabhakhwa nge Bajuta, ngono bakabe bali pejo nge kumbulaya koga azha ne babhayani bangu an'gwila, ngobe ndakabe ndahwa kuti n'gali we Roma. 28 Ndakabe ndishako ziba kuti ini bempa nlandu ndizo anzhisa ku Gulukota labo. 29 Ndakawana ili kuti nlandu waanobong'wa wakalingisana nge nlayo wabo, koga kwakabe kusina nlandu wakalizana kuti afe kene alongwe mu ng'umba ye busungwa. 30 Ndakati ndabudziwa ngekwe nlangano unoyitiwa ngekwe nlume iwoyu, antumila ku muli tjinyolotjo. Kakale ndakadwa banombona nlandu kuti bamubudze nlandu uwe.”
31 Ndizo babhayani, ngolondolodza ndayo, bakayenda na Paulo busiku, ngono bakanzhisa ku Antipatirisi. 32 Tjimuka babhayani banoyenda nge makumbo bakabgwilila ku nzi we babhayani, ngono bakaletja babhayani be mbizi kuyenda naye. 33 Kukati babhayani banoyenda nge mbizi beswika mu Sizariya bakayisa lukwalo ku mbusi, na Paulo bakansa kunli. 34 Mbusi kabala lukwalo, ngono kabhuzwa kuti unodwa ku ntuthu upi. Wakati ehwa kuti unodwa ku Silisiya 35 kati, “Ndowokuhwilila ha banokubona nlandu baswika.” Ipapo kalaya kuti Paulo alisiwe ali mu ng'umba ya Herode ye bushe.
1 Paul looked straight at the Council and said, “My fellow Israelites! My conscience is perfectly clear about the way in which I have lived before God to this very day.” 2 The High Priest Ananias ordered those who were standing close to Paul to strike him on the mouth. 3 Paul said to him, “God will certainly strike you—you whitewashed wall! You sit there to judge me according to the Law, yet you break the Law by ordering them to strike me!”
4 The men close to Paul said to him, “You are insulting God's High Priest!”
5 Paul answered, “My fellow Israelites, I did not know that he was the High Priest. The scripture says, ‘You must not speak evil of the ruler of your people.’”
6 When Paul saw that some of the group were Sadducees and the others were Pharisees, he called out in the Council, “Fellow Israelites! I am a Pharisee, the son of Pharisees. I am on trial here because of the hope I have that the dead will rise to life!”
7 As soon as he said this, the Pharisees and Sadducees started to quarrel, and the group was divided. ( 8 For the Sadducees say that people will not rise from death and that there are no angels or spirits; but the Pharisees believe in all three.) 9 The shouting became louder, and some of the teachers of the Law who belonged to the party of the Pharisees stood up and protested strongly: “We cannot find a thing wrong with this man! Perhaps a spirit or an angel really did speak to him!”
10 The argument became so violent that the commander was afraid that Paul would be torn to pieces. So he ordered his soldiers to go down into the group, get Paul away from them, and take him into the fort.
11 That night the Lord stood by Paul and said, “Don't be afraid! You have given your witness for me here in Jerusalem, and you must also do the same in Rome.”
The Plot against Paul's Life
12 The next morning some Jews met together and made a plan. They took a vow that they would not eat or drink anything until they had killed Paul. 13 There were more than forty who planned this together. 14 Then they went to the chief priests and elders and said, “We have taken a solemn vow together not to eat a thing until we have killed Paul. 15 Now then, you and the Council send word to the Roman commander to bring Paul down to you, pretending that you want to get more accurate information about him. But we will be ready to kill him before he ever gets here.”
16 But the son of Paul's sister heard about the plot; so he went to the fort and told Paul. 17 Then Paul called one of the officers and said to him, “Take this young man to the commander; he has something to tell him.” 18 The officer took him, led him to the commander, and said, “The prisoner Paul called me and asked me to bring this young man to you, because he has something to say to you.”
19 The commander took him by the hand, led him off by himself, and asked him, “What do you have to tell me?”
20 He said, “The Jewish authorities have agreed to ask you tomorrow to take Paul down to the Council, pretending that the Council wants to get more accurate information about him. 21 But don't listen to them, because there are more than forty men who will be hiding and waiting for him. They have taken a vow not to eat or drink until they have killed him. They are now ready to do it and are waiting for your decision.”
22 The commander said, “Don't tell anyone that you have reported this to me.” And he sent the young man away.
Paul Is Sent to Governor Felix
23 Then the commander called two of his officers and said, “Get two hundred soldiers ready to go to Caesarea, together with seventy horsemen and two hundred spearmen, and be ready to leave by nine o'clock tonight. 24 Provide some horses for Paul to ride and get him safely through to Governor Felix.” 25 Then the commander wrote a letter that went like this:
26 “Claudius Lysias to His Excellency, Governor Felix: Greetings. 27 The Jews seized this man and were about to kill him. I learned that he is a Roman citizen, so I went with my soldiers and rescued him. 28 I wanted to know what they were accusing him of, so I took him down to their Council. 29 I found out that he had not done a thing for which he deserved to die or be put in prison; the accusation against him had to do with questions about their own law. 30 And when I was informed that there was a plot against him, at once I decided to send him to you. I have told his accusers to make their charges against him before you.”
31 The soldiers carried out their orders. They got Paul and took him that night as far as Antipatris. 32 The next day the foot soldiers returned to the fort and left the horsemen to go on with him. 33 They took him to Caesarea, delivered the letter to the governor, and turned Paul over to him. 34 The governor read the letter and asked Paul what province he was from. When he found out that he was from Cilicia, 35 he said, “I will hear you when your accusers arrive.” Then he gave orders for Paul to be kept under guard in the governor's headquarters.