Acts 26
1 Agrippa said to Paul, "You may speak for yourself." Then Paul stretched out his hand, and made his defense.
And Agrippa seide to Poul, It is suffrid to thee, to speke for thi silf. Thanne Poul helde forth the hoond, and bigan to yelde resoun.
2 "I think myself happy, King Agrippa, that I am to make my defense before you this day concerning all the things that I am accused by the Jews,
Of alle thingis, in whiche Y am accusid of the Jewis, thou king Agrippa, Y gesse me blessid at thee, whanne Y schal defende me this dai;
3 especially because you are expert in all customs and questions which are among Jews. Therefore I beg you to hear me patiently.
moost for thou knowist alle thingis that ben among Jewis, customes and questiouns. For which thing, Y biseche, here me pacientli.
4 "Indeed, all Jews know my way of life from my youth up, which was from the beginning among my own nation and at Jerusalem;
For alle Jewis that bifor knewen me fro the bigynnyng, knewen my lijf fro yongthe; that fro the bigynnyng was in my folc in Jerusalem,
5 having known me from the first, if they are willing to testify, that after the strictest sect of our religion I lived a Pharisee.
if thei wolen bere witnessing, that bi the moost certeyn sect of oure religioun, Y lyuede a Farisee.
6 Now I stand here to be judged for the hope of the promise made by God to our fathers,
And now for the hope of repromyssioun, that is maad to oure fadris of God, Y stonde suget in dom;
7 which our twelve tribes, earnestly serving night and day, hope to attain. Concerning this hope I am accused by the Jews, O King.
in which hope oure twelue lynagis seruynge niyt and dai hopen to come; of which hope, sir king, Y am accusid of the Jewis.
8 Why is it judged incredible with you, if God does raise the dead?
What vnbileueful thing is demed at you, if God reisith deed men?
9 "In fact, I thought to myself that I ought to do many things against the name of Jesus the Nazorean.
And sotheli Y gesside, that Y ouyte do many contrarie thingis ayens the name of Jhesu Nazarene.
10 This I also did in Jerusalem. I both shut up many of the saints in prisons, having received authority from the chief priests, and when they were put to death I gave my vote against them.
Which thing also Y dide in Jerusalem, and Y encloside manye of the seyntis in prisoun, whanne Y hadde take powere of the princis of preestis. And whanne thei weren slayn, Y brouyte the sentence.
11 Punishing them often in all the synagogues, I tried to make them blaspheme. Being exceedingly enraged against them, I persecuted them even to foreign cities.
And bi alle synagogis ofte Y punyschide hem, and constreynede to blasfeme; and more Y wex wood ayens hem, and pursuede in to alien citees.
12 "Whereupon as I traveled to Damascus with the authority and commission from the chief priests,
In whiche, the while Y wente to Damask, with power and suffring of princis of preestis,
13 at noon, O King, I saw on the way a light from the sky, brighter than the sun, shining around me and those who traveled with me.
at myddai, in the weie Y say, sir king, that fro heuene liyt schynede aboute me, passing the schynyng of the sunne, and aboute hem that weren togidir with me.
14 When we had all fallen to the earth, I heard a voice saying to me in the Hebrew language, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.'
And whanne we alle hadden falle doun in to the erthe, Y herde a vois seiynge to me in Ebrew tunge, Saul, Saul, what pursuest thou me? it is hard to thee, to kicke ayens the pricke.
15 "I said, 'Who are you, Lord?' "He said, 'I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.
And Y seide, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord seide, Y am Jhesus, whom thou pursuest.
16 But arise, and stand on your feet, for I have appeared to you for this purpose: to appoint you a servant and a witness both of the things which you have seen me, and of the things which I will reveal to you;
But rise vp, and stoond on thi feet. For whi to this thing Y apperide to thee, that Y ordeyne thee mynystre and witnesse of tho thingis that thou hast seyn, and of tho in whiche Y schal schewe to thee.
17 delivering you from the people, and from the non-Jewish people, to whom I send you,
And Y schal delyuere thee fro puplis and folkis, to whiche now Y sende thee,
18 to open their eyes, that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins and an inheritance among those who are sanctified by faith in me.'
to opene the iyen of hem, that thei ben conuertid fro derknesse to liyt, and fro power of Sathnas to God, that thei take remyssioun of synnes, and part among seyntis, bi feith that is in me.
19 "Therefore, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision,
Wherfor, sir kyng Agrippa, Y was not vnbileueful to the heuenli visioun;
20 but declared first to them of Damascus, at Jerusalem, and throughout all the country of Judea, and also to the non-Jews, that they should repent and turn to God, doing works worthy of repentance.
but Y tolde to hem that been at Damask first, and at Jerusalem, and bi al the cuntre of Judee, and to hethene men, that thei schulden do penaunce, and be conuertid to God, and do worthi werkis of penaunce.
21 For this reason Jews seized me when I was in the temple, and tried to kill me.
For this cause Jewis token me, whanne Y was in the temple, to sle me.
22 Having therefore obtained the help that is from God, I stand to this day testifying both to small and great, saying nothing but what the Prophets and Moses said would happen,
But Y was holpun bi the helpe of God in to this dai, and stonde, witnessinge to lesse and to more. And Y seye no thing ellis than whiche thingis the prophetis and Moises spaken that schulen come,
23 how the Christ would suffer, and how, by the resurrection of the dead, he would be first to proclaim light both to these people and to non-Jewish people."
if Crist is to suffre, if he is the firste of the ayenrising of deed men, that schal schewe liyt to the puple and to hethene men.
24 As he thus made his defense, Festus said with a loud voice, "Paul, you are crazy. Your great learning is driving you insane."
Whanne he spak these thingis, and yeldide resoun, Festus seide with greet vois, Poul, thou maddist; many lettris turnen thee to woodnesse.
25 But he said, "I am not crazy, most excellent Festus, but boldly declare words of truth and reasonableness.
And Poul seide, Y madde not, thou beste Festus, but Y speke out the wordis of treuthe and of sobernesse.
26 For the king knows of these things, to whom also I speak freely. For I am persuaded that none of these things is hidden from him, for this has not been done in a corner.
For also the king, to whom Y speke stidfastli, woot of these thingis; for Y deme, that no thing of these is hid fro hym; for nether in a cornere was ouyt of these thingis don.
27 King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know that you believe."
Bileuest thou, king Agrippa, `to prophetis? Y woot that thou bileuest.
28 Agrippa said to Paul, "With a little persuasion are you trying to make me a Christian?"
And Agrippa seide to Poul, In litil thing thou counseilist me to be maad a cristen man.
29 Paul said, "I pray to God, that whether with little or with much, not only you, but also all that hear me this day, might become such as I am, except for these bonds."
And Poul seide, Y desire anentis God, bothe in litil and in greet, not oneli thee, but alle these that heren to dai, to be maad sich as Y am, outakun these boondis.
30 The king rose up with the governor, and Bernice, and those who sat with them.
And the kyng roos vp, and the president, and Beronyce, and thei that saten niy to hem.
31 When they had withdrawn, they spoke one to another, saying, "This man does nothing worthy of death or of bonds."
And whanne thei wenten awei, thei spaken togider, and seiden, That this man hath not don ony thing worthi deth, nether boondis.
32 Agrippa said to Festus, "This man might have been set free if he had not appealed to Caesar."
And Agrippa seide to Festus, This man miyt be delyuerid, if he hadde not appelid to the emperour.
