Paulus ta hokololifwa vali muKesarea
1 Opo nee omafiku atatu eshi a pita po, Festus eshi a ninga omupangeli woshilongo, ye okwa dja kuKesarea ndele okwa ya kuJerusalem. 2 Ndele ovapristeli ovakulunhu novanamadina Ovajuda ove mu shiivifila nokutya, va hala okuhokololifa Paulus, ndele ve mu indila 3 va mone onghenda kuye, opo a etife Paulus kuJerusalem, osheshi ove lilongekidila oku mu nangela, opo ve mu dipaele mondjila. 4 Ndele Festus okwa nyamukula kutya Paulus oku li onghwate muKesarea, na Festus mwene okwa hala okuya ko diva. 5 Ye okwa tya: “Ovawiliki veni nave uye, tu ye pamwe navo, nomulumenhu winya ngeenge okwa nyona, a hokololifwe.”
6 Ndele eshi a menekela puvo omafiku ahetatu ile omulongo, okwa shuna kuKesarea. Efiku la shikula okwa kala omutumba kolukalwatokolo, ndele ta etifa Paulus koshipala shaye. 7 Ndele ye eshi a holoka, Ovajuda ava va dja kuJerusalem, ove mu fikamena ndele tave mu pe omatimba mahapu madjuu, ndele ova nyengwa okupameka omatomhelo avo; 8 osheshi Paulus e lipopila ndele ta ti: “Ame inandi nyona sha nokomhango yOvajuda ile kotembeli ile komukesari.” 9 Ndele Festus eshi a hala okulihokwifa kOvajuda, okwa tya kuPaulus: “Ove owa hala okuya kuJerusalem, u tokolwe kwinya omolwoinima ei moipafi yange?” 10 Ndele Paulus ta ti: “Ondi li ofika polukalwatokolo lomukesari, noko nda hala ndi yukifilwe, Ovajuda ava inandi nyona sha kuvo, ngaashi naave mwene u shi shii nawa. 11 Ndele ngeenge nda kala ndi noushima, ile ndi netimba lokufya, itandi anye okufya, ndelenee oinima ei aishe tava hokololifa nge ngeenge oyongaho, opo nee kaku na ou ta dulu okuyandja nge momake avo. Ame onde liameka komukesari.” 12 Opo nee Festus eshi a kundafana nomalenga aye, okwe mu nyamukula: “Ove owe liameka komukesari, hano u nokuya koshipala shomukesari.”
Festus ta hepaululile Agrippa Paulus
13 Ndele eshi pa pita omafiku amwe, ohamba Agrippa naBernike ove uya kuKesarea okutalela po Festus. 14 Ndele eshi va menekela po omafiku amwe, Festus okwa hepaululila ohamba eendjovo daPaulus, ta ti: “Omu omu na omulumenhu, onghwate, a fiwa mo kuFeliks, 15 oye ou eshi nda ile kuJerusalem, ovapristeli ovakulunhu novakulunhu vOvajuda va shiivifile kutya, ova hala oku mu hokololifa ndele va indila, a ka tokolwe. 16 Ndelenee ame onde va nyamukula kutya kashi fi onghedi yOvaroma okuyandja omunhu fimbo ina tulwa pamwe novahokololifi vaye, nofimbo ina mona omhito okulipopila osho ta hokololifilwa. 17 Hano eshi ve uya oku, ame ndiha mane po efimbo, mefiku la shikula, onda kala omutumba kolukalwatokolo nonda ifanena po omulumenhu winya. 18 Ndele ovahokololifi eshi ve mu fikamena, ova nyengwa oku mu pa etimba ngaashi nda diladila. 19 Ndele vo ova patafana naye omolwomapulo amwe omeitavelolongo lavo nomolwanakufya umwe, Jesus, ou Paulus ta ti e nomwenyo. 20 Ndele eshi nda li nda limbililwa ndihe shii oinima ya tya ngaha ngeenge i nokutokolwa, onde mu pula, ngeenge okwa hala okuya kuJerusalem ye a ka pangulilwe oko. 21 Ndele Paulus eshi e liameka komukesari nokwa hala okutwalwa kuye, onghee nde va lombwela, a kwatelwe modolongo fimbo handi ke mu tuma komukesari.” 22 Ndele Agrippa okwa tya kuFestus: “Naame yo onda hala okuuda omulumenhu ou.” Ye okwa tya: “Mongula oto ke mu uda.”
Paulus ta etwa koshipala shohamba
23 Mefiku la shikula, Agrippa naBernike ova li va djala oikutu ya vilima youlenga ve uya molupale letokolelo pamwe novaneyovi noipuna yoshilando. Kelombwelo laFestus, Paulus okwa etwa mo. 24 Opo nee Festus ta ti: “Ohamba Agrippa nanye amushe ava mu li apa pamwe nafye, taleni, omulumenhu ou, omolwaye ongudu aishe yOvajuda vomuJerusalem novaamu tava fininike nge nokuweelela, oye aha kale vali nomwenyo. 25 Ndele ame onda koneka kutya ye ke netimba lokufya, naye mwene e liameka komukesari, onda hala oku mu tuma ko. 26 Ndele ndihe shii eendjovo odilipipo ndi noku di shangela omwene wange, onghee hano nde mu eta apa koshipala sheni, unene tuu koshipala shoye, ohamba Agrippa, opo eshi a pwilikinwa, ndi mone owino oku mu shangela sha. 27 Osheshi osha nyika oulai okutuma omukwatwa, fimbo inaku shangelwa osho ta hokololifwa.”
Paul Appeals to the Emperor
1 Three days after Festus arrived in the province, he went from Caesarea to Jerusalem, 2 where the chief priests and the Jewish leaders brought their charges against Paul. They begged Festus 3 to do them the favor of having Paul come to Jerusalem, for they had made a plot to kill him on the way. 4 Festus answered, “Paul is being kept a prisoner in Caesarea, and I myself will be going back there soon. 5 Let your leaders go to Caesarea with me and accuse the man if he has done anything wrong.”
6 Festus spent another eight or ten days with them and then went to Caesarea. On the next day he sat down in the judgment court and ordered Paul to be brought in. 7 When Paul arrived, the Jews who had come from Jerusalem stood around him and started making many serious charges against him, which they were not able to prove. 8 But Paul defended himself: “I have done nothing wrong against the Law of the Jews or against the Temple or against the Roman Emperor.”
9 But Festus wanted to gain favor with the Jews, so he asked Paul, “Would you be willing to go to Jerusalem and be tried on these charges before me there?”
10 Paul said, “I am standing before the Emperor's own judgment court, where I should be tried. I have done no wrong to the Jews, as you yourself well know. 11 If I have broken the law and done something for which I deserve the death penalty, I do not ask to escape it. But if there is no truth in the charges they bring against me, no one can hand me over to them. I appeal to the Emperor.”
12 Then Festus, after conferring with his advisers, answered, “You have appealed to the Emperor, so to the Emperor you will go.”
Paul before Agrippa and Bernice
13 Some time later King Agrippa and Bernice came to Caesarea to pay a visit of welcome to Festus. 14 After they had been there several days, Festus explained Paul's situation to the king: “There is a man here who was left a prisoner by Felix; 15 and when I went to Jerusalem, the Jewish chief priests and elders brought charges against him and asked me to condemn him. 16 But I told them that we Romans are not in the habit of handing over any who are accused of a crime before they have met their accusers face-to-face and have had the chance of defending themselves against the accusation. 17 When they came here, then, I lost no time, but on the very next day I sat in the judgment court and ordered the man to be brought in. 18 His opponents stood up, but they did not accuse him of any of the evil crimes that I thought they would. 19 All they had were some arguments with him about their own religion and about a man named Jesus, who has died; but Paul claims that he is alive. 20 I was undecided about how I could get information on these matters, so I asked Paul if he would be willing to go to Jerusalem and be tried there on these charges. 21 But Paul appealed; he asked to be kept under guard and to let the Emperor decide his case. So I gave orders for him to be kept under guard until I could send him to the Emperor.”
22 Agrippa said to Festus, “I would like to hear this man myself.”
“You will hear him tomorrow,” Festus answered.
23 The next day Agrippa and Bernice came with great pomp and ceremony and entered the audience hall with the military chiefs and the leading men of the city. Festus gave the order, and Paul was brought in. 24 Festus said, “King Agrippa and all who are here with us: You see this man against whom all the Jewish people, both here and in Jerusalem, have brought complaints to me. They scream that he should not live any longer. 25 But I could not find that he had done anything for which he deserved the death sentence. And since he himself made an appeal to the Emperor, I have decided to send him. 26 But I have nothing definite about him to write to the Emperor. So I have brought him here before you—and especially before you, King Agrippa!—so that, after investigating his case, I may have something to write. 27 For it seems unreasonable to me to send a prisoner without clearly indicating the charges against him.”
