'Lord,' I answered, 'they know very well that I went to the synagogues and arrested and beat those who believe in you.

And when your witness Stephen was put to death, I myself was there, approving of his murder and taking care of the cloaks of his murderers.'

threw him out of the city, and stoned him. The witnesses left their cloaks in the care of a young man named Saul.

And Saul approved of his murder. That very day the church in Jerusalem began to suffer cruel persecution. All the believers, except the apostles, were scattered throughout the provinces of Judea and Samaria.

But Saul tried to destroy the church; going from house to house, he dragged out the believers, both men and women, and threw them into jail.

In the meantime Saul kept up his violent threats of murder against the followers of the Lord. He went to the High Priest

and asked for letters of introduction to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he should find there any followers of the Way of the Lord, he would be able to arrest them, both men and women, and bring them back to Jerusalem.

Ananias answered, "Lord, many people have told me about this man and about all the terrible things he has done to your people in Jerusalem.

And he has come to Damascus with authority from the chief priests to arrest all who worship you."

All who heard him were amazed and asked, "Isn't he the one who in Jerusalem was killing those who worship that man Jesus? And didn't he come here for the very purpose of arresting those people and taking them back to the chief priests?"

"I myself thought that I should do everything I could against the cause of Jesus of Nazareth.

Many times I had them punished in the synagogues and tried to make them deny their faith. I was so furious with them that I even went to foreign cities to persecute them.

For I am the least of all the apostles---I do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted God's church.

and I was so zealous that I persecuted the church. As far as a person can be righteous by obeying the commands of the Law, I was without fault.

even though in the past I spoke evil of him and persecuted and insulted him. But God was merciful to me because I did not yet have faith and so did not know what I was doing.

This is a true saying, to be completely accepted and believed: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. I am the worst of them,

She followed Paul and us, shouting, "These men are servants of the Most High God! They announce to you how you can be saved!"

He began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him home with them and explained to him more correctly the Way of God.

But some of them were stubborn and would not believe, and before the whole group they said evil things about the Way of the Lord. So Paul left them and took the believers with him, and every day he held discussions in the lecture hall of Tyrannus.

It was at this time that there was serious trouble in Ephesus because of the Way of the Lord.

I do admit this to you: I worship the God of our ancestors by following that Way which they say is false. But I also believe in everything written in the Law of Moses and the books of the prophets.