# Acts 26.14

<!-- type: passage | created: 2026-08-18 | updated: 2026-08-18 -->

**Book:** [Acts](/codex/acts/) · NASB95

## Immediate context (±2 verses)

**ASV** ([ASV](/codex/asv/))
> 12. Whereupon as I journeyed to Damascus with the authority and commission of the chief priests, 13. at midday, O king, I saw on the way a light from heaven, above the brightness of the sun, shining round about me and them that journeyed with me.
>
> **14. And when we were all fallen to the earth, I heard a voice saying unto me in the Hebrew language, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? it is hard for thee to kick against the goad.**
>
> 15. And I said, Who art thou, Lord? And the Lord said, <span class="rl-speech">I am Jesus whom thou persecutest.</span> 16. <span class="rl-speech">But arise, and stand upon thy feet: for to this end have I appeared unto thee, to appoint thee a minister and a witness both of the things wherein thou hast seen me, and of the things wherein I will appear unto thee;</span> (Acts 26:12-16, ASV)

**WEB** ([WEB](/codex/web/))
> 12. “Whereupon as I traveled to Damascus with the authority and commission from the chief priests, 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.
>
> **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.’**
>
> 15. “I said, ‘Who are you, Lord?’ “He said, ‘I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting. 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, and of the things which I will reveal to you; (Acts 26:12-16, WEB)

**KJV** ([KJV](/codex/kjv/))
> 12. Whereupon as I went to Damascus with authority and commission from the chief priests, 13. At midday, O king, I saw in the way a light from heaven, above the brightness of the sun, shining round about me and them which journeyed with me.
>
> **14. And when we were all fallen to the earth, I heard a voice speaking unto me, and saying in the Hebrew tongue, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me? it is hard for thee to kick against the pricks.**
>
> 15. And I said, Who art thou, Lord? And he said, <span class="rl-speech">I am Jesus whom thou persecutest.</span> 16. <span class="rl-speech">But rise, and stand upon thy feet: for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee;</span> (Acts 26:12-16, KJV)

**YLT** ([YLT](/codex/ylt/))
> 12. 'In which things, also, going on to Damascus, with authority and commission from the chief priests 13. at mid-day, I saw in the way, O king, out of heaven, above the brightness of the sun, shining round about me a light, and those going on with me;
>
> **14. and we all having fallen to the earth, I heard a voice speaking unto me, and saying in the Hebrew dialect, Saul, Saul, why me dost thou persecute? hard for thee against pricks to kick!**
>
> 15. 'And I said, Who art thou, Lord? and he said, <span class="rl-speech">I am Jesus whom thou dost persecute;</span> 16. <span class="rl-speech">but rise, and stand upon thy feet, for for this I appeared to thee, to appoint thee an officer and a witness both of the things thou didst see, and of the things [in which] I will appear to thee,</span> (Acts 26:12-16, YLT)

## Setting

- **Speaker:** _TBD_
- **Audience:** _TBD_
- **Location:** _TBD_
- **Time period:** _TBD_

## Theological reading

_Patristic / early-church-father exegesis, to be added._

## Key words

_Theologically-loaded Greek or Hebrew words in this verse may have entries in the lexicon. Curated to roughly 100 contested terms across the corpus, not every word._

- [G4314 - pros](/codex/g4314-pros/), *pros*, Strong's G4314
- [G3956 - pas](/codex/g3956-pas/), *pas*, Strong's G3956
- [G3004 - lego](/codex/g3004-lego/), *lego*, Strong's G3004

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## Quoted in

**Arguments and defeaters:**

- [Argument from the Resurrection](/codex/argument-from-the-resurrection/), via [Acts 26.9-23](/codex/acts-26-9-23/)

**Concepts:**

- [Jesus Said](/codex/jesus-said/), via [Acts 26](/codex/acts-26/)

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## Notes

_Your annotations._

## Why these four translations

ris3n chose ASV, WEB, KJV, and YLT for two reasons together. They are the **most literal English translations available** (formal-equivalence: word-for-word renderings that preserve the Hebrew and Greek grammar rather than smoothing it into modern dynamic-equivalence idiom). And they are in the **public domain in the United States**, which means fair-use quotation at any length requires no publisher license. Modern licensed translations (NASB95, ESV, NIV) restrict volume of quotation under their copyright terms, so they are not used at stub-level coverage here. NASB95 appears only on hand-curated rich passage hubs under Lockman Foundation's fair-use allowance.

The four:

- **[ASV](/codex/asv/)** (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition.
- **[WEB](/codex/web/)** (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English.
- **[KJV](/codex/kjv/)** (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base.
- **[YLT](/codex/ylt/)** (Young's Literal Translation, Robert Young, 1862). Hyper-literal preservation of Hebrew and Greek grammar; useful for word-study work even where English reads stiff.

See [Bibles](/codex/bibles/) for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses.