9 Meanwhile Saul was still spouting off murderous threats towards the followers of the master. He went to the chief priest 2 and obtained official letters to enable him to enter the Jewish meeting halls in Damascus so that if he found either male or female followers of Yeshua, he could arrest them and bring them to Yerusalem in chains.

3 On his journey as he approached Damascus, suddenly light from the sky flashed around him. 4 He dropped to his knees[fn] and heard a voice calling, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?”

5 “Who are you, master?” he asked.

And the voice replied, “I’m Yeshua, the one that you’re persecuting. 6 Now, stand up and go into the city, and you’ll be told there what you need to do.”

7 Meanwhile his travelling companions had stood there speechless, because they had heard the voice but couldn’t see anyone. 8 They helped Saul up from the ground, but even when he opened his eyes, he couldn’t see anything. So they had to lead him into Damascus by hand. 9 Saul stayed there for three days, unable to see and not eating or drinking anything.

6 “But one time as I was travelling and getting close to Damascus by the middle of the day, suddenly a bright light from the sky began to flash around me 7 and I fell to the ground. I heard a voice asking me, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?’ 8 ‘Who are you, master?’ I answered. And the voice said, ‘I am Yeshua—the one from Nazareth that you are persecuting.’ 9 The other people with me saw the light but didn’t hear the voice that spoke to me. 10 Then I asked, ‘What do I need to do, master?’ ‘Get up and continue into Damascus,’ the master said. ‘When you get there, you’ll be told everything that you’ve been assigned to do.’ 11 But I couldn’t see anything because the brightness of the light had affected my eyes, so my companions had to lead me by hand into Damascus.

12 “In Damascus there was a man named Ananias—a non-Jew but who was respected by the Jews there because he strove to obey Moses’ instructions about living. 13 Ananias came to where I was and standing by me said, “Brother Saul, receive your sight?” That very hour I was able to see again and look at him 14 and he said, ‘The god of our ancestors has decided in advance to reveal his plans to you, and for you to see the sinless one—to hear him speaking 15 because he wants you to inform people everywhere what you’ve seen and heard. 16 So what else are you waiting for? Get up and wash away your sins by getting immersed in water as you request his forgiveness.’

12 So it was one time travelling to Damascus carrying permission letters from the chief priests 13 that in the middle of the day, oh king, I saw a bright light from the sky—even brighter than the sun—and it shone on me and my companions. 14 All of us fell down to the ground and I heard a voice speaking to me in Hebrew saying, “Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? Life will be difficult for you if resist me.” 15 “Who are you, master?” I asked.

And the master responded, “I am Yeshua, the one you’re persecuting. 16 Now get up, because I let you see me in order to appoint you as my servant and my witness—to tell the people what you’ve seen and what you will be shown. 17 I will rescue you from your own people and from the non-Jews that I’m sending you out to, 18 to open their minds and for them to turn back from darkness to light and from Satan’s power to God, so that they can be forgiven for their sins and receive an inheritance among the ones who’ve been made guiltless by their faith in me.”