Discovery BoxActs 22:5-6 
Context22:5 as both the high priest and the whole council of elders 1 can testify about me. From them 2 I also received 3 letters to the brothers in Damascus, and I was on my way 4 to make arrests there and bring 5 the prisoners 6 to Jerusalem 7 to be punished. 22:6 As 8 I was en route and near Damascus, 9 about noon a very bright 10 light from heaven 11 suddenly flashed 12 around me.
1 tn That is, the whole Sanhedrin. BDAG 861 s.v. πρεσβυτέριον has “an administrative group concerned with the interests of a specific community, council of elders – a. of the highest Judean council in Jerusalem, in our lit. usu. called συνέδριον…ὁ ἀρχιερεύς καὶ πᾶν τὸ πρ. Ac 22:5.”
2 tn Grk “from whom.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, the relative pronoun (“whom”) was translated by the third person plural pronoun (“them”) and a new sentence begun in the translation.
3 tn Grk “receiving.” The participle δεξάμενος (dexameno") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.
4 tn Grk “letters to the brothers, [and] I was going to Damascus.” Such a translation, however, might be confusing since the term “brother” is frequently used of a fellow Christian. In this context, Paul is speaking about fellow Jews.
5 tn Grk “even there and bring…” or “there and even bring…” The ascensive καί (kai) shows that Paul was fervent in his zeal against Christians, but it is difficult to translate for it really belongs with the entire idea of arresting and bringing back the prisoners.
6 tn BDAG 221 s.v. δέω 1.b has “δεδεμένον ἄγειν τινά bring someone as prisoner…Ac 9:2, 21; 22:5.”
7 tn Grk “I was going…to bring even those who were there to Jerusalem as prisoners that they might be punished.”
map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
8 tn Grk “It happened that as.” The introductory phrase ἐγένετο (egeneto, “it happened that”), common in Luke (69 times) and Acts (54 times), is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.
9 tn Grk “going and nearing Damascus.”
sn En route and near Damascus. This is the first retelling of Paul’s Damascus Road experience in Acts (cf. Acts 9:1-9; the second retelling is in Acts 26:9-20).
10 tn BDAG 472 s.v. ἱκανός 3.b has “φῶς a very bright light Ac 22:6.”
11 tn Or “from the sky” (the same Greek word means both “heaven” and “sky”).
12 tn Or “shone.”
