But beware! For you will be handed over to the courts and will be flogged with whips in the synagogues.

你们要防备人；因为他们要把你们交给公会，也要在会堂里鞭打你们，

你们要防备那些人，因为他们要把你们交给议会，也要在会堂里鞭打你们。

你们要防备那些人，因为他们要把你们交给议会，也要在会堂里鞭打你们。

“你们要小心谨慎，因为人们要把你们送上法庭，也要在会堂里鞭打你们。

你们要小心，因为有人要把你们送交公议会，并要在会堂里鞭打你们；

你们要提防人们，因为他们将要把你们送交议会，并且在他们的会堂里鞭打你们。

你們要防備人；因為他們要把你們交給公會，也要在會堂裏鞭打你們，

你們要防備那些人，因為他們要把你們交給議會，也要在會堂裏鞭打你們。

你們要防備那些人，因為他們要把你們交給議會，也要在會堂裏鞭打你們。

「你們要小心謹慎，因為人們要把你們送上法庭，也要在會堂裡鞭打你們。

你們要小心，因為有人要把你們送交公議會，並要在會堂裡鞭打你們；

你們要注意提防人，因為他們必把你們送交議會，必在他們的會堂裏鞭打你們；

你們要提防人們，因為他們將要把你們送交議會，並且在他們的會堂裡鞭打你們。

謹防若人、蓋將付爾於公會、鞭爾於會堂、

謹防若人、解爾於公會、鞭爾於會堂、

惟謹防於人、因將解爾於公會、鞭爾於會堂、

謹防世人、人將送爾於公會、撻爾於會堂、

Be on your guard; you will be handed over to the local councils and be flogged in the synagogues.

Watch out! You will be handed over to the local courts. You will be whipped in the synagogues.

Beware of men, for they will deliver you over to courts and flog you in their synagogues,

Beware of them, because they will hand you over to local courts and flog you in their synagogues.

But be on guard against people, for they will hand you over to the courts and flog you in their synagogues;

But beware of men, for they will deliver you up to councils and scourge you in their synagogues.

But beware of men: for they will deliver you up to councils, and in their synagogues they will scourge you;

Because people will hand you over to sanhedrins and flog you in their synagogues, beware of them.

But beware of men: for they will deliver you up to the councils, and they will scourge you in their synagogues;

Beware of people, because they will hand you over to councils and flog you in their synagogues.

But beware of men: for they will deliver you up to councils, and in their synagogues they will scourge you.

“ When these things begin to happen, watch out! You will be handed over to the local councils and beaten in the synagogues. You will stand trial before governors and kings because you are my followers. But this will be your opportunity to tell them about me.

“ Therefore, I am sending you prophets and wise men and teachers of religious law. But you will kill some by crucifixion, and you will flog others with whips in your synagogues, chasing them from city to city.

But I say, if you are even angry with someone, you are subject to judgment! If you call someone an idiot, you are in danger of being brought before the court. And if you curse someone, you are in danger of the fires of hell.

“ And when you are brought to trial in the synagogues and before rulers and authorities, don’t worry about how to defend yourself or what to say,

Many times I had them punished in the synagogues to get them to curse Jesus. I was so violently opposed to them that I even chased them down in foreign cities.

“ Then you will be arrested, persecuted, and killed. You will be hated all over the world because you are my followers.And many will turn away from me and betray and hate each other.

“‘ But Lord,’ I argued,‘ they certainly know that in every synagogue I imprisoned and beat those who believed in you.

For you will be expelled from the synagogues, and the time is coming when those who kill you will think they are doing a holy service for God.

Be careful of him, for he fought against everything we said.

If the person in the wrong is sentenced to be flogged, the judge must command him to lie down and be beaten in his presence with the number of lashes appropriate to the crime.But never give more than forty lashes; more than forty lashes would publicly humiliate your neighbor.

Don’t trust anyone— not your best friend or even your wife!

Then they will hand him over to the Romans to be mocked, flogged with a whip, and crucified. But on the third day he will be raised from the dead.”

“ But before all this occurs, there will be a time of great persecution. You will be dragged into synagogues and prisons, and you will stand trial before kings and governors because you are my followers.But this will be your opportunity to tell them about me.

The captain went with his Temple guards and arrested the apostles, but without violence, for they were afraid the people would stone them.Then they brought the apostles before the high council, where the high priest confronted them.“ We gave you strict orders never again to teach in this man’s name!” he said.“ Instead, you have filled all Jerusalem with your teaching about him, and you want to make us responsible for his death!”But Peter and the apostles replied,“ We must obey God rather than any human authority.The God of our ancestors raised Jesus from the dead after you killed him by hanging him on a cross.Then God put him in the place of honor at his right hand as Prince and Savior. He did this so the people of Israel would repent of their sins and be forgiven.We are witnesses of these things and so is the Holy Spirit, who is given by God to those who obey him.”When they heard this, the high council was furious and decided to kill them.But one member, a Pharisee named Gamaliel, who was an expert in religious law and respected by all the people, stood up and ordered that the men be sent outside the council chamber for a while.Then he said to his colleagues,“ Men of Israel, take care what you are planning to do to these men!Some time ago there was that fellow Theudas, who pretended to be someone great. About 400 others joined him, but he was killed, and all his followers went their various ways. The whole movement came to nothing.After him, at the time of the census, there was Judas of Galilee. He got people to follow him, but he was killed, too, and all his followers were scattered.“ So my advice is, leave these men alone. Let them go. If they are planning and doing these things merely on their own, it will soon be overthrown.But if it is from God, you will not be able to overthrow them. You may even find yourselves fighting against God!”The others accepted his advice. They called in the apostles and had them flogged. Then they ordered them never again to speak in the name of Jesus, and they let them go.The apostles left the high council rejoicing that God had counted them worthy to suffer disgrace for the name of Jesus.And every day, in the Temple and from house to house, they continued to teach and preach this message:“ Jesus is the Messiah.”

Then a mob of Gentiles and Jews, along with their leaders, decided to attack and stone them.When the apostles learned of it, they fled to the region of Lycaonia— to the towns of Lystra and Derbe and the surrounding area.

Inside, the leading priests and the entire high council were trying to find witnesses who would lie about Jesus, so they could put him to death.

“ A brother will betray his brother to death, a father will betray his own child, and children will rebel against their parents and cause them to be killed.

Then the leading priests and Pharisees called the high council together.“ What are we going to do?” they asked each other.“ This man certainly performs many miraculous signs.

Annas the high priest was there, along with Caiaphas, John, Alexander, and other relatives of the high priest.They brought in the two disciples and demanded,“ By what power, or in whose name, have you done this?”Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them,“ Rulers and elders of our people,are we being questioned today because we’ve done a good deed for a crippled man? Do you want to know how he was healed?Let me clearly state to all of you and to all the people of Israel that he was healed by the powerful name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, the man you crucified but whom God raised from the dead.For Jesus is the one referred to in the Scriptures, where it says,‘ The stone that you builders rejected has now become the cornerstone.’There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved.”The members of the council were amazed when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, for they could see that they were ordinary men with no special training in the Scriptures. They also recognized them as men who had been with Jesus.But since they could see the man who had been healed standing right there among them, there was nothing the council could say.So they ordered Peter and John out of the council chamber and conferred among themselves.“ What should we do with these men?” they asked each other.“ We can’t deny that they have performed a miraculous sign, and everybody in Jerusalem knows about it.But to keep them from spreading their propaganda any further, we must warn them not to speak to anyone in Jesus’ name again.”So they called the apostles back in and commanded them never again to speak or teach in the name of Jesus.But Peter and John replied,“ Do you think God wants us to obey you rather than him?We cannot stop telling about everything we have seen and heard.”The council then threatened them further, but they finally let them go because they didn’t know how to punish them without starting a riot. For everyone was praising Godfor this miraculous sign— the healing of a man who had been lame for more than forty years.

Five different times the Jewish leaders gave me thirty nine lashes.Three times I was beaten with rods. Once I was stoned. Three times I was shipwrecked. Once I spent a whole night and a day adrift at sea.I have traveled on many long journeys. I have faced danger from rivers and from robbers. I have faced danger from my own people, the Jews, as well as from the Gentiles. I have faced danger in the cities, in the deserts, and on the seas. And I have faced danger from men who claim to be believers but are not.

Watch out for those dogs, those people who do evil, those mutilators who say you must be circumcised to be saved.

Some were jeered at, and their backs were cut open with whips. Others were chained in prisons.

Gazing intently at the high council, Paul began:“ Brothers, I have always lived before God with a clear conscience!”Instantly Ananias the high priest commanded those close to Paul to slap him on the mouth.But Paul said to him,“ God will slap you, you corrupt hypocrite! What kind of judge are you to break the law yourself by ordering me struck like that?”Those standing near Paul said to him,“ Do you dare to insult God’s high priest?”“ I’m sorry, brothers. I didn’t realize he was the high priest,” Paul replied,“ for the Scriptures say,‘ You must not speak evil of any of your rulers.’”Paul realized that some members of the high council were Sadducees and some were Pharisees, so he shouted,“ Brothers, I am a Pharisee, as were my ancestors! And I am on trial because my hope is in the resurrection of the dead!”This divided the council— the Pharisees against the Sadducees—for the Sadducees say there is no resurrection or angels or spirits, but the Pharisees believe in all of these.So there was a great uproar. Some of the teachers of religious law who were Pharisees jumped up and began to argue forcefully.“ We see nothing wrong with him,” they shouted.“ Perhaps a spirit or an angel spoke to him.”As the conflict grew more violent, the commander was afraid they would tear Paul apart. So he ordered his soldiers to go and rescue him by force and take him back to the fortress.That night the Lord appeared to Paul and said,“ Be encouraged, Paul. Just as you have been a witness to me here in Jerusalem, you must preach the Good News in Rome as well.”The next morning a group of Jews got together and bound themselves with an oath not to eat or drink until they had killed Paul.There were more than forty of them in the conspiracy.They went to the leading priests and elders and told them,“ We have bound ourselves with an oath to eat nothing until we have killed Paul.So you and the high council should ask the commander to bring Paul back to the council again. Pretend you want to examine his case more fully. We will kill him on the way.”But Paul’s nephew— his sister’s son— heard of their plan and went to the fortress and told Paul.Paul called for one of the Roman officers and said,“ Take this young man to the commander. He has something important to tell him.”So the officer did, explaining,“ Paul, the prisoner, called me over and asked me to bring this young man to you because he has something to tell you.”The commander took his hand, led him aside, and asked,“ What is it you want to tell me?”Paul’s nephew told him,“ Some Jews are going to ask you to bring Paul before the high council tomorrow, pretending they want to get some more information.But don’t do it! There are more than forty men hiding along the way ready to ambush him. They have vowed not to eat or drink anything until they have killed him. They are ready now, just waiting for your consent.”“ Don’t let anyone know you told me this,” the commander warned the young man.

The believers acted at once, sending Paul on to the coast, while Silas and Timothy remained behind.