ὃς ταύτην τὴν ὁδὸν ἐδίωξα ἄχρι θανάτου, δεσμεύων καὶ παραδιδοὺς εἰς φυλακὰς ἄνδρας τε καὶ γυναῖκας,
Relative Pronoun and Contextual Link: ὃς
- ὃς: Relative pronoun, nominative masculine singular—”who.”
- Refers back to Paul himself as the speaker, continuing the autobiographical narrative in his defense before the Jerusalem crowd.
- Introduces a relative clause summarizing Paul’s past behavior.
Direct Object and Definite Accusation: ταύτην τὴν ὁδὸν
- ταύτην: Demonstrative pronoun, accusative singular feminine—”this.”
- τὴν ὁδὸν: Accusative singular feminine of ὁδός, “way,” a term used throughout Acts to refer to the Christian movement.
- Together: “this way” or “this path”—a reference to the early Christian faith.
- This phrase reflects insider terminology within the nascent Church but is used here in a judicial self-indictment.
Main Verb of Violent Opposition: ἐδίωξα ἄχρι θανάτου
- ἐδίωξα: Aorist active indicative, 1st person singular of διώκω, “I persecuted.”
- Aorist expresses completed past action.
- ἄχρι: Preposition meaning “up to” or “as far as.”
- θανάτου: Genitive singular of θάνατος, “death.”
- Genitive with ἄχρι indicates extent—”to the point of death.”
- Translation: “I persecuted this way to the death.”
- This shows intensity and extremity, revealing Paul’s former zeal taken to deadly extremes.
Coordinated Participles of Legal Aggression: δεσμεύων καὶ παραδιδοὺς εἰς φυλακὰς
- δεσμεύων: Present active participle, nominative masculine singular of δεσμεύω, “binding.”
- Describes continuous or repeated action during the time of persecution.
- καὶ: Coordinating conjunction—”and.”
- παραδιδοὺς: Present active participle, nominative masculine singular of παραδίδωμι, “handing over,” “delivering up.”
- Another habitual action tied to legal process.
- εἰς φυλακὰς: Prepositional phrase—εἰς with accusative plural of φυλακή, “prisons.”
- Goal or destination: “into prisons.”
Inclusive List of Victims: ἄνδρας τε καὶ γυναῖκας
- ἄνδρας: Accusative plural masculine of ἀνήρ, “men.”
- τε καὶ: Coordinated pair—”both… and.”
- Emphasizes inclusion of both genders.
- γυναῖκας: Accusative plural feminine of γυνή, “women.”
- Translation: “binding and handing over both men and women into prisons.”
- The emphasis here is on total persecution: no one was exempt.
Autobiographical Testimony and Legal Confession
In Acts 22:4, Paul speaks in his own defense before a hostile Jewish audience, recounting his former role as a persecutor of Christians. The verse is constructed with tight legal language: persecution, imprisonment, and deadly intent. The main verb ἐδίωξα is intensified by the prepositional phrase ἄχρι θανάτου, and the following participles δεσμεύων and παραδιδοὺς show his hands-on participation in the judicial punishment of believers.
His mention of ἄνδρας τε καὶ γυναῖκας underscores how systematic and indiscriminate his former zeal was. The syntax—beginning with the relative pronoun ὃς and continuing through coordinated participles—emphasizes Paul’s personal agency in actions that were both legal and violent, highlighting the radical transformation between his past and his current identity as an apostle of Christ.
