There he ¹  found ²  a Jew named Aquila, ³  a native of Pontus, ⁴  who had recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius ⁵  had ordered all the Jews to depart from ⁶  Rome. ⁷  Paul approached ⁸  them,

Paul answered, ¹  “I am a Jew ²  from Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of an important city. ³  Please ⁴  allow me to speak to the people.”

But when I saw that they were not behaving consistently with the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas ¹  in front of them all, “If you, although you are a Jew, live like a Gentile and not like a Jew, how can you try to force ²  the Gentiles to live like Jews?”

Everyone was supposed to free their male and female Hebrew slaves. No one was supposed to keep a fellow Judean enslaved. ¹ 

Now there happened to be a Jewish man in Susa the citadel whose name was Mordecai. ¹  He was the son of Jair, the son of Shimei, the son of Kish, a Benjaminite,

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is God’s power for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. ¹ 

To the Jews I became like a Jew to gain the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law) ¹  to gain those under the law.

He said to them, “You know that ¹  it is unlawful ²  for a Jew ³  to associate with or visit a Gentile, ⁴  yet God has shown me that I should call no person ⁵  defiled or ritually unclean. ⁶ 

The king then said to Haman, “Go quickly! Take the clothing and the horse, just as you have described, and do as you just indicated to Mordecai the Jew who sits at the king’s gate. Don’t neglect ¹  a single thing of all that you have said.”

“I am a Jew, ¹  born in Tarsus in Cilicia, but brought up ²  in this city, educated with strictness ³  under ⁴  Gamaliel ⁵  according to the law of our ancestors, ⁶  and was ⁷  zealous ⁸  for God just as all of you are today.

The Lord who rules over all says, ‘In those days ten people from all languages and nations will grasp hold of – indeed, grab – the robe of one Jew and say, “Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.”’” ¹ 

(Now seven sons of a man named ¹  Sceva, a Jewish high priest, were doing this.) ² 

When they had crossed over ¹  the whole island as far as Paphos, ²  they found a magician, a Jewish false prophet named Bar-Jesus, ³ 

For there is no partiality with God.

But the thought of striking out against ¹  Mordecai alone was repugnant to him, for he had been informed ²  of the identity of Mordecai’s people. ³  So Haman sought to destroy all the Jews (that is, the people of Mordecai) ⁴  who were in all the kingdom of Ahasuerus.

Actually, there are many advantages. ¹  First of all, ²  the Jews ³  were entrusted with the oracles of God. ⁴ 

But to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God.

he ¹  said to take back this answer to Esther:

I am the one who gives them reason to celebrate. ¹  Complete prosperity ²  is available both to those who are far away and those who are nearby,” says the Lord, “and I will heal them.

Paul looked directly ¹  at the council ²  and said, “Brothers, I have lived my life with a clear conscience ³  before God to this day.”