Acts 23:3

"And the high priest Ananias commanded them that stood by him to smite him on the mouth. Then said Paul unto him, God shall smite thee, thou whited wall: for sittest thou to judge me after the law, and commandest me to be smitten contrary to the law?" What hardihood, what shamelessness! Therefore Paul set him down with a rebuke "God shall smite thee thou whited wall." Accordingly Ananias himself is put to a stand, and dares not say a word: only those about him could not bear Paul's boldness. They saw a man ready to die. For the wrong was not to be put up with, for to hold his peace under such treatment would have been to embolden the tribune to sacrifice him to his enemies, as a person who might be insulted with impunity. He both shows that he suffers willingly what he suffers, and thus excuses himself before them, not that he wished to excuse himself to them-since as for those, he even strongly condemns them-but for the sake of the people. "Violating the law, commandest thou me to be beaten?" Well may he say so: for to kill a man who had done them no injury, and that an innocent person, was a violating of the law. For neither was it abuse that was spoken by him, unless one would call Christ's words abusive, when He says, "Woe unto you, Scribes and Pharisees, for ye are like unto whited walls." True, you will say: but if he had said it before he had been beaten, it would have betokened not anger, but boldness.

They are the words of boldness, rather than of anger; he did not choose to appear in a contemptible light to the tribune. For suppose the tribune himself had spared to scourge him, only as he was about to be delivered up to the Jews, his being beaten by their servants would have more emboldened him: this is why Paul does not attack the servant, but the person who gave the order. But that saying, "Thou whited wall, and dost thou sit to judge me after the law?" is instead of, Being thyself a culprit: as if he had said, And thyself worthy of stripes without number. See accordingly how greatly they were struck with his boldness; for whereas the point was to have overthrown the whole matter, they rather commend him.