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Acts 22:14
ESV And he said, ‘The God of our fathers appointed you to know his will, to see the Righteous One and to hear a voice from his mouth;
NIV Then he said: 'The God of our ancestors has chosen you to know his will and to see the Righteous One and to hear words from his mouth.
NASB And he said, ‘The God of our fathers has appointed you to know His will and to see the Righteous One and to hear a message from His mouth.
CSB And he said, 'The God of our ancestors has appointed you to know his will, to see the Righteous One, and to hear the words from his mouth,
NLT Then he told me, ‘The God of our ancestors has chosen you to know his will and to see the Righteous One and hear him speak.
KJV And he said, The God of our fathers hath chosen thee, that thou shouldest know his will, and see that Just One, and shouldest hear the voice of his mouth.

What does Acts 22:14 mean?

Paul is in Jerusalem with representatives from the churches around the Aegean Sea. They have brought financial support for the church in Jerusalem (Acts 20:4; Romans 15:26). One of these representatives is a Gentile from Ephesus named Trophimus. Jews from the territory around Ephesus saw Paul and Trophimus in the city and later saw Paul in the temple. They assumed Paul had brought the Gentile into the temple, so they attacked him (Acts 21:27–36). He didn't commit that error, but Paul wants to explain why he traveled with a Gentile. To do so, he recounts his conversion experience and the murder plot that led him to take Jesus' story to the Gentiles.

On his way to arrest Jewish Jesus-followers in Damascus, Paul met Jesus in a literally blinding light. Jesus gave Paul instructions to go to Damascus where he would be told what to do (Acts 9:3–12). Meanwhile, Jesus spoke to a disciple named Ananias in a vision and told him about Paul. Ananias already knew that Paul had violently persecuted the believers in Jerusalem and intended to do the same in Damascus. Jesus reassured Ananias that Paul would come to faith in Him; take His message of salvation to Jews, Gentiles, and kings; and suffer while doing so. Reassured, Ananias agreed to meet with Paul, lead him to Christ, and restore his sight (Acts 9:10–19).

Paul saw and heard the "Righteous One" when he saw Jesus in the blinding light and heard Him speak. Paul's companions saw the light and heard a noise but didn't clearly see or hear Jesus (Acts 9:7; 22:9). God intended the message only for Paul.

The words "God of our fathers" that Paul puts into Ananias' mouth are a bit confusing. He has already described Ananias as "a devout man according to the law, well-spoken of by all the Jews who lived" in Damascus (Acts 22:12). This language suggests Ananias is a Gentile who follows the Jewish law but has not fully converted to the point of circumcision. In the narrative of Acts 9:10–19, Ananias is not recorded as having said these words. It's likely Paul is giving the Sanhedrin a summary of what he witnessed, using phrases which specifically stresses that the God of the Jews sent Jesus, the Righteous One.
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