And once when he was eating with them he charged them not to depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the promise of the Father. "Of this," he said, "you have heard from me.

When he had said this, and while they were looking at him, he was lifted up, and a cloud received him up out of their sight.

and they said: "Men of Galilee, why do you stand gazing into the sky? This same Jesus who has been taken up from you into the sky will come back in just the same way as you have seen him going into the sky."

It was during these days that Peter stood up among the brothers??he whole number of persons present was about one hundred and twenty??nd said:

For David did not ascend into heaven; but he himself said, "The Lord said to my Lord Sit thou on my right hand

When they heard these words they were stung to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles. "Men and brothers, what shall we do?"

Peter fixed his eyes upon him, as did John, and said, "Look at us."

So he waited, expecting to get something from them. Then Peter said:

When he saw this, Peter said to the people. "Men of Israel, why are you wondering at this? Why do you stare at us, as if by our own power or piety we had made this man to walk?

"Moses, for example, said: "The Lord your God will raise up a Prophet for you from among your brothers, as he raised up me; you must listen to whatever he may tell you;

"What," said they, "shall we do with these men? For it is well known throughout Jerusalem that a notable miracle has been performed by them, and we cannot deny it.

But Peter and John said in reply. "Do you decide whether in the sight of God it is right to obey you rather than God;

As soon as the apostles were released, they went to their friends, and told what the high priests and elders had said.

"Ananias," said Peter, "why has Satan so filled your heart that you are lying to the Holy Spirit, and keeping back part of the price of the land?

and Peter said to her, "Tell me if you got so much for the land." "Yes," she said, "so much."

"Why was it," said Peter, "that you both agreed to tempt the Spirit of the Lord? Lo, the feet of those who buried your husband are at the door, and they shall carry you out."

He said to them, "Go take your stand in the Temple, and continue to tell the people all the words of this Life."

But Peter and the apostles said in reply.

He said: "Men of Israel, take care what you are about to do with these men.

Then the Twelve called the general body of the disciples together, and said to them. "It is not fitting for us to leave off preaching the Word of God, and minister at tables.

And the high priest said, "Are these things so?"

and said to him, "Leave your country and your kindred, and come to whatever land I will show you.

"What God said was this. "'His offspring will sojourn in a foreign land where they will be enslaved and oppressed for four hundred years.

"'And the nation, whichever it is, that enslaves them I will judge, said God, 'and after ward they shall come out, and they shall worship me in this place.

"Next day he came upon two of them fighting, and tried to make peace between them. "'Sirs,' he said, 'you are brothers. Why are you wronging each other?'

"When Moses saw it he was astonished at the sight. But when he drew near to look, the voice of the Lord said,

"And the Lord said: "Take off your sandals, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground.

"This Moses whom they refused when they said, Who made you to be a ruler and a judge? that same Moses we find God sending as a ruler and a redeemer by the hand in the bush.

"It was this Moses who said to the Children of Israel, "God will raise up a Prophet for you from among your brothers, as he did me.

"Said they to Aaron. "Make Gods for us who shall march in front of us! As for this Moses who led us forth out of the land of Egypt, we know not what has happened to him.

"Yet the Most High does not dwell in houses made with hands; as said the prophet.

"Look, I see heaven open," he said, "And the Son of man standing at the right hand of God."

The crowd with one accord were giving heed to what he said, when they heard and saw the signs that he did.

But Peter said to him. "Your money perish with you, because you have supposed that with money you can obtain God's free gift!"

And Simon answered, "Pray to the Lord for me, both of you, that nothing which you have said may happen to me."

And the Spirit said to Philip, "Go up and join that chariot."

So Philip ran up, and heard him reading Isaiah the Prophet, and said to him. "Do you understand what you are reading?"

And as they were going on their way they came to a certain water, and the eunuch said: "See, here is water! What hinders my being baptized?"

And Philip said, "If you believe with your whole heart, you may." The eunuch answered, "I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God."

He fell to the ground, and heard a voice which said to him, "Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?"

And he said, "Who are you Lord?"

"I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting," he said: "Stand up and go into the city, and there you shall be told what you must do."

And the Lord said to him. "Arise, go into the street named 'Straight,' and make inquiries in the house of Judas for a man of Tarsus, one Saul.

"But, Lord," said Ananias, "I have heard from many about that man, and how much evil he did to the saints at Jerusalem!

And so Ananias went and entered into the house, and laying his hands on him, said, "Brother Saul, the Lord, even Jesus, who appeared to you on your journey, has sent me that you may receive your sight, and be filled with the Holy Spirit."

Peter said to him. "Aeneas, Jesus Christ cures you! Rise and make your own bed!"

But Peter put them all out, and kneeled down, and prayed; and then turning to the body, he said, "Tabitha, rise!" She opened her eyes, and on seeing Peter she sat up.

He stared at him in terror, and said, "What is it, Lord?" "Your prayers and your alms have risen for a memorial before God," answered the angel;

So the Spirit said to Peter, who was still pondering over the vision.

So Peter went down to the men and said: "I am the man you are looking for. What is the reason of your coming?"

but Peter lifted him up. "Stand up," he said, "I am only a man, myself."

To them he said: "You know, yourselves, that it is illegal for a Jew to associate with or to visit one of another nation; but God has taught me that I should not call any man common or unclean. For this reason, when sent for, I came without demur.

and said: "'Cornelius, your prayer is heard, and your alms are had in remembrance in the sight of God.

Then Peter said, "Can any one refuse water for the baptism of these men who have received the Holy Spirit as well as we?"

"'Not so, my Lord' said I, 'for nothing common or unclean has ever gone into my mouth.'

"This was said three times, and then everything was drawn up again into the sky.

"And," said Peter, "as soon as I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them, just as he fell upon us at the beginning.

"Gird yourself," said the angel, "and put on your sandals." He did so. Then he said unto him, "Throw your cloak about you, and follow me."

Peter, coming to himself, said, "Now I know for a certainty that the Lord has sent his angel and released me from the hand of Herod, and from all that the Jewish people were anticipating."

"You are mad," they said. But she confidently insisted that it was so. "It is his angel," they said.

He motioned to them to keep quiet, and told them how the Lord had brought him out of prison. "Tell all this to James," he said, "and to the brothers," and away he went to another place.

And as they were worshiping the Lord, and fasting, the Holy Spirit said to them, "Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them."

So Saul, who is also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, gazed steadily at him, and said:

And, after the reading of the Law and the Prophets, the wardens of the synagogue sent word to them. "Brothers," they said, "if you have any word of encouragement to the people, say it."

So Paul stood up, and motioning with his hand, said: "Men of Israel, and you who fear God, listen.

After deposing him, he raised up David to be their king, to whom he also bore witness, when he said, "I have found David, the son of Jesse, a man after my own heart, and who will obey all my will.

"And as to his having raised him from among the dead, now no more to return to corruption, he has said this, "I will give thee the holy and sure blessings of David.

So Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly. "It was necessary," they said, "first to proclaim the word of God to you. But since you push it away from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles.

said in a loud voice, "Stand upright on your feet!"

Everywhere they strengthened the souls of the disciples, encouraging them to hold to the faith. "It is through many tribulations," they said, "that we must enter into the kingdom of God."

But certain men who had belonged to the sect of the Pharisees, but were now believers, stood up and said, "It is necessary to circumcise Gentile, and to order them to keep the Law of Moses."

and after there had been a long discussion, Peter rose and said: "Brothers, you know how a good while ago God made choice among you, that from my lips the Gentiles were to hear the message of the gospel and believe.

When they had finished speaking, James said:

And after some days Paul said to Barnabas, "Let is go back and visit the brothers in every city in which we have proclaimed the word of the Lord. Let us see how they fare."

Among them was a certain woman named Lydia, a seller of purple, who belonged to the town of Thyatira. She, since she was a worshiper of God, listened to us, and the Lord opened her heart to attend to what Paul said.

She persisted in this for many days, until Paul, worn out, turned round and said to the spirit, "I charge you, in the name of Jesus Christ, to come out of her." In that very hour it came out of her.

But Paul said: "They have flogged us publicly, uncondemned, men that are Roman citizens; and have thrown us into prison. Are they now going to get rid of us secretly? No, indeed! Let them come here, themselves and take us out."

A few of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers also encountered him again and again. Some were saying, "What has this beggarly fellow to say?" Others said, "He seems to be a setter forth of strange gods," because he preached Jesus and the resurrection.

So Paul stood up in the center of Mars Hill, and said: "Men of Athens, I perceive that in all respects you are remarkably religious.

"for in him we live and move and have our being; as certain even of your own poets have said, "'For we also are his offspring.'

But on hearing of the resurrection of the dead, some began to mock; but others said, "We will hear you again on that subject."

But as they opposed him and abused him, he shook out his garments in protest, and said: "Your blood be upon your own hands. I am clean. From now on I will go to the Gentiles."

And the Lord said to Paul in a vision, by night. "Have no fear; go on speaking, and do not keep silent;

"This fellow," they said, "is persuading men to offer unlawful worship to God."

Paul was about to open his mouth, when Gallio said to the Jews. "If it had been some misdemeanor or wicked villainy, it would have been within reason for me to listen to you Jews;

but said, as he took leave of them, "I will return again to you, if God will."

"Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?" he asked them. "No" said they, "we did not even hear that there is a Holy Spirit."

"Into what, then, were you baptized?" he asked. And they said, "Into the baptism of John."

Now after these things were ended, Paul resolved in his spirit to travel through Macedonia and Achaia on his way to Jerusalem. "After I get there," he said, "I must see Rome, too."

He gathered them together with others of like occupation, and said: "Men, you know that by this business we make our money.

At length the recorder got them quiet. "Men of Ephesus," he said, "who here does not know that the city of the Ephesians is temple-guardian of the great Diana and of the image which fell down from Jupiter?

Then Paul went down, threw himself upon him, and embracing him, said: "Do not lament; his life is still in him."

and when they arrived, he said to them. "You yourselves know quite well, how I lived among you, from the first day that I set foot in Asia,

"In all things I have set you an example, how that so toiling, you ought to help the weak and to remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, "It is more blessed to give than to receive."

When he had so said, Paul kneeled down, and prayed with them.

and said good-bye, and went on board the ship, while they returned home again.

And they, when they heard it, glorified God, and said to him. "You see, brother, how many thousands there are among the Jews, of those who have believed, and they are all zealous for the Law.

Just as he was about to be taken into the barracks, Paul said to the tribune, "May I speak to you?"

"Do you know Greek?" said the tribune; "Are you not, then, the Egyptian who in days gone by stirred up to sedition, and let into the wilderness the four thousand cutthroats?"

"I am a Jew," he said, "born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, taught according to the strict manner of the Law of our forefathers, ardent for God, even as you all are this day.