1 WYC And aftir fyue daies, Ananye, prince of preestis, cam doun with summe eldere men, and Terculle, a feir speker, which wenten to the precident ayens Poul. BSB BSB: Five days later the high priest Ananias came down with some elders and a lawyer named Tertullus, who presented to the governor their case against Paul.
2 WYC And whanne Poul was somened, Terculle bigan to accuse hym, and seide, Whanne in myche pees we doon bi thee, and many thingis ben amendid bi thi wisdom, euere more and euery where, BSB BSB: When Paul had been called in, Tertullus opened the prosecution: “Because of you, we have enjoyed a lasting peace, and your foresight has brought improvements to this nation.
3 WYC thou best Felix, we han resseyued with al doyng of thankingis. BSB BSB: In every way and everywhere, most excellent Felix, we acknowledge this with all gratitude.
4 WYC But lest Y tarie thee lengere, Y preie thee, schortly here vs for thi mekenesse. BSB BSB: But in order not to delay you any further, I beg your indulgence to hear us briefly.
5 WYC We han foundun this wickid man stirynge dissencioun to alle Jewis in al the world, and auctour of dissencioun of the secte of Nazarenus; and he also enforside to defoule the temple; BSB BSB: We have found this man to be a pestilence, stirring up dissension among the Jews all over the world. He is a ringleader of the sect of the Nazarenes,
6 WYC whom also we token, and wolden deme, after oure lawe. BSB BSB: and he even tried to desecrate the temple; so we seized him.
7 WYC But Lisias, the trybune, cam with greet strengthe aboue, and delyuerede hym fro oure hoondis; BSB BSB: Not in the BSB
8 WYC and comaundide hise accuseris to come to thee, of whom thou demynge, maist knowe of alle these thingis, of whiche we accusen hym. BSB BSB: By examining him yourself, you will be able to learn the truth about all our charges against him.”
9 WYC And Jewis putten to, and seiden, that these thingis hadden hem so. BSB BSB: The Jews concurred, asserting that these charges were true.
10 WYC And Poul answeride, whanne the president grauntide hym to seie, Of mony yeeris Y knowe thee, that thou art domesman `to this folk, and Y schal do ynowy for me with good resoun. BSB BSB: When the governor motioned for Paul to speak, he began his response: “Knowing that you have been a judge over this nation for many years, I gladly make my defense.
11 WYC For thou maist knowe, for to me ben not more than twelue daies, sithen Y cam vp to worschipe in Jerusalem; BSB BSB: You can verify for yourself that no more than twelve days ago I went up to Jerusalem to worship.
12 WYC and nether in the temple thei founden me disputinge with ony man, nether makynge concours of puple, nether in synagogis, nether in citee; BSB BSB: Yet my accusers did not find me debating with anyone in the temple or riling up a crowd in the synagogues or in the city.
13 WYC nether thei moun preue to thee, of the whiche thingis thei now accusen me. BSB BSB: Nor can they prove to you any of their charges against me.
14 WYC But Y knowleche to thee this thing, that aftir the secte which thei seien eresie, so Y serue to God the fadir, `and Y bileue to alle thingis that ben writun in the lawe and profetis; and Y haue hope in God, BSB BSB: I do confess to you, however, that I worship the God of our fathers according to the Way, which they call a sect. I believe everything that is laid down by the Law and written in the Prophets,
15 WYC whiche also thei hem silf abiden, the ayenrisyng `to comynge of iust men and wickid. BSB BSB: and I have the same hope in God that they themselves cherish, that there will be a resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked.
16 WYC In this thing Y studie with outen hirtyng, to haue concience to God, and to men euermore. BSB BSB: In this hope, I strive always to maintain a clear conscience before God and man.
17 WYC But after many yeeris, Y cam to do almes dedis to my folc, and offryngis, and auowis; BSB BSB: After several years, then, I returned to Jerusalem to bring alms to my people and to present offerings.
18 WYC in whiche thei founden me purified in the temple, not with company, nether with noise. And thei cauyten me, and thei crieden, and seiden, Take awei oure enemye. BSB BSB: At the time they found me in the temple, I was ceremonially clean and was not inciting a crowd or an uproar. But there are some Jews from the province of Asia
19 WYC And summe Jewis of Asie, whiche it behofte to be now present at thee, and accuse, if thei hadden ony thing ayens me, BSB BSB: who ought to appear before you and bring charges, if they have anything against me.
20 WYC ether these hem silf seie, if thei founden in me ony thing of wickidnesse, sithen Y stonde `in the counsel, BSB BSB: Otherwise, let these men state for themselves any crime they found in me when I stood before the Sanhedrin,
21 WYC but oneli of this vois, by which Y criede stondynge among hem, For of the ayenrisyng of deed men Y am demyd this dai of you. BSB BSB: unless it was this one thing I called out as I stood in their presence: ‘It is concerning the resurrection of the dead that I am on trial before you today.’”
22 WYC Sothely Felix delayede hem, and knewe moost certeynli of the weie, and seide, Whanne Lisias, the tribune, schal come doun, Y schal here you. BSB BSB: Then Felix, who was well informed about the Way, adjourned the hearing and said, “When Lysias the commander comes, I will decide your case.”
23 WYC And he comaundide to a centurien to kepe hym, and that he hadde reste, nethir to forbede ony man to mynystre of his owne thingis to him. BSB BSB: He ordered the centurion to keep Paul under guard, but to allow him some freedom and permit his friends to minister to his needs.
24 WYC And after summe dayes Felix cam, with Drussille his wijf, that was a Jewesse, and clepide Poul, and herde of him the feith that is in Crist Jhesu. BSB BSB: After several days, Felix returned with his wife Drusilla, who was a Jewess. He sent for Paul and listened to him speak about faith in Christ Jesus.
25 WYC And while he disputide of riytwisnesse, and chastite, and of dom to comynge, Felix was maad tremblinge, and answerde, That perteneth now, go; but in tyme couenable Y schal clepe thee. BSB BSB: As Paul expounded on righteousness, self-control, and the coming judgment, Felix became frightened and said, “You may go for now. When I find the time, I will call for you.”
26 WYC Also he hopide, that money schulde be youun to hym of Poul; for which thing eft he clepide hym, and spak with hym. BSB BSB: At the same time, he was hoping that Paul would offer him a bribe. So he sent for Paul frequently and talked with him.
27 WYC And whanne twei yeeris weren fillid, Felix took a successoure, Porcius Festus; and Felix wolde yyue grace to Jewis, and lefte Poul boundun. BSB BSB: After two years had passed, Felix was succeeded by Porcius Festus. And wishing to do the Jews a favor, Felix left Paul in prison.
Select verses for actions: Enter goes to them and Escape comes back.