PAUL’S LIFE TESTIMONY, Sarah Barry
PAUL'S TESTIMONY
Passage: Acts 22:1~21  
Key verse: 15,16
22 1 “Brothers and fathers,(A) listen now to my defense.”
2 When they heard him speak to them in Aramaic,(B) they became very quiet.
Then Paul said: 3 “I am a Jew,(C) born in Tarsus(D) of Cilicia,(E) but brought up in this city. I studied under(F) Gamaliel(G) and was thoroughly trained in the law of our ancestors.(H) I was just as zealous(I) for God as any of you are today. 4 I persecuted(J) the followers of this Way(K) to their death, arresting both men and women and throwing them into prison,(L) 5 as the high priest and all the Council(M) can themselves testify. I even obtained letters from them to their associates(N) in Damascus,(O) 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.(P) 7 I 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,(Q) whom you are persecuting,’ he replied. 9 My companions saw the light,(R) but they did not understand the voice(S) 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.’(T) 11 My companions led me by the hand into Damascus, because the brilliance of the light had blinded me.(U)
12 “A man named Ananias came to see me.(V) He was a devout observer of the law and highly respected by all the Jews living there.(W) 13 He 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(X) has chosen you to know his will and to see(Y) the Righteous One(Z) and to hear words from his mouth. 15 You will be his witness(AA) to all people of what you have seen(AB) and heard. 16 And now what are you waiting for? Get up, be baptized(AC) and wash your sins away,(AD) calling on his name.’(AE)
17 “When I returned to Jerusalem(AF) and was praying at the temple, I fell into a trance(AG) 18 and 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(AH) and beat(AI) those who believe in you. 20 And when the blood of your martyr[a] Stephen was shed, I stood there giving my approval and guarding the clothes of those who were killing him.’(AJ)
21 “Then the Lord said to me, ‘Go; I will send you far away to the Gentiles.’ ”(AK)
Footnotes
- Acts 22:20 Or witness
Cross references
- Acts 22:1 : Ac 7:2
- Acts 22:2 : Ac 21:40; S Jn 5:2
- Acts 22:3 : Ac 21:39
- Acts 22:3 : S Ac 9:11
- Acts 22:3 : S Ac 6:9
- Acts 22:3 : Lk 10:39
- Acts 22:3 : Ac 5:34
- Acts 22:3 : Ac 26:5
- Acts 22:3 : 1Ki 19:10; S Ac 21:20
- Acts 22:4 : S Ac 8:3
- Acts 22:4 : S Ac 9:2
- Acts 22:4 : ver 19, 20
- Acts 22:5 : Lk 22:66
- Acts 22:5 : S Ac 1:16; 2:29; 13:26; 23:1; 28:17, 21; S Ro 7:1; 9:3
- Acts 22:5 : Ac 9:2
- Acts 22:6 : Ac 9:3
- Acts 22:8 : S Mk 1:24
- Acts 22:9 : Ac 26:13
- Acts 22:9 : Ac 9:7
- Acts 22:10 : Ac 16:30
- Acts 22:11 : Ac 9:8
- Acts 22:12 : Ac 9:17
- Acts 22:12 : Ac 10:22
- Acts 22:14 : S Ac 3:13
- Acts 22:14 : S 1Co 15:8
- Acts 22:14 : Ac 7:52
- Acts 22:15 : Ac 23:11; 26:16
- Acts 22:15 : ver 14
- Acts 22:16 : S Ac 2:38
- Acts 22:16 : Lev 8:6; Ps 51:2; Eze 36:25; Jn 3:5; 1Co 6:11; Eph 5:26; Tit 3:5; Heb 10:22; 1Pe 3:21
- Acts 22:16 : Ro 10:13
- Acts 22:17 : Ac 9:26
- Acts 22:17 : Ac 10:10
- Acts 22:19 : ver 4; S Ac 8:3
- Acts 22:19 : S Mt 10:17
- Acts 22:20 : Ac 7:57-60; 8:1
- Acts 22:21 : S Ac 9:15; S 13:46
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Source:  BibleGateway
1. Paul's zeal to serve God (1-5)
In his zeal to serve God, Paul had lived as a strict Pharisee. He had studied under the most famous teachers, and was trained in the law. But he was convinced that the Jesus movement was a cult, and, in his zeal for God, he was determined to eradicate it.
2. Paul meets Jesus (6-16)
Saul was on his way to Damascus to arrest Jesus' people when the Risen Jesus appeared to him in a blinding light. He said, 'Saul! Saul! Why do you persecute me?' Saul was led, blind, into the city, where a devout man named Ananias came and prayed for him; his sight was restored; he was baptized as a Christian and given God's instructions to be a witness to the Risen Jesus.
3. A special mission from God (17-21)
Jesus himself met Saul in Jerusalem and sent him as a missionary to preach the gospel to the Gentiles. The word 'Gentiles' triggered the mob.
Prayer: Lord, you alone can change murderers into life-giving servants of God.
One Word: Jesus says, 'Go!'