but you will be given power when the holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be witnesses for me in Jerusalem and all over Judea and Samaria and to the very ends of the earth."

Peter said to them, "You must repent, and every one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ, in order to have your sins forgiven; then you will receive the gift of the holy Spirit,

And they devoted themselves to the teaching and the society of the apostles, the breaking of bread, and prayer.

There is no salvation through anyone else, for there is no one else in the world who has been named to men as their only means of being saved."

On the day of the Harvest Festival, they were all meeting together,

Take care of yourselves and of the whole flock, of which the holy Spirit has made you guardians, and be shepherds of the church of God, which he got at the cost of his own life.

The Jews there were more high-minded than those at Thessalonica, and received the message with great eagerness and studied the Scriptures every day, to find out whether it was true.

and they were all filled with the holy Spirit and began to say in foreign languages whatever the Spirit prompted them to utter.

"Believe in the Lord Jesus," they said, "and you and your household will be saved!"

So they welcomed his message and were baptized, and about three thousand people joined them that day.

As he said this, he was caught up before their eyes and a cloud took him up from their sight.

On the first day of the week, when we had met for the breaking of bread, Paul addressed them, as he was going away the next morning, and he prolonged his address until midnight.

and said to them, "Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up into the sky? This very Jesus who has been caught up from you into heaven will come in just the way that you have seen him go up to heaven."

So repent and turn to God, to have your sins wiped out, and happier times will come from the presence of the Lord,

While God overlooked those times of ignorance, he now calls upon all men everywhere to repent,

In those days, as the number of the disciples was increasing, complaints were made by the Greek-speaking Jews against the native Jews that their widows were being neglected in the daily distribution of food.

Then Peter began and said, "Now I really understand that God shows no partiality,

The brothers sent Paul and Silas away immediately, in the course of the following night, to Berea. On arriving there they went to the Jewish synagogue.

In my first volume, Theophilus, I dealt with all that Jesus did and taught from the beginning

From one forefather he has created every nation of mankind, and made them live all over the face of the earth, fixing their appointed times and the limits of their lands,

Now Saul, still breathing murderous threats against the Lord's disciples, went to the high priest,

"Men of Israel, listen to what I say. Jesus of Nazareth, as you know, was a man whom God commended to you by the wonders, portents, and signs that God did right among you through him.

And Peter said, "Ananias, why has Satan taken such possession of your heart that you should lie to the holy Spirit, by appropriating part of the price of your land?

When they heard this, they were stung to the heart, and they said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Brothers, what shall we do?"

" 'It will come about in the last days, God says, That I will pour out my Spirit upon all mankind; Your sons and daughters will become prophets, Your young men will have visions, And your old men will have dreams.

And once when he ate with them, he instructed them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father had promised. "You have heard me speak of it," he said,

about Jesus of Nazareth, and how God endowed him with the power of the holy Spirit, and he went about doing good and curing all who were in the power of the devil, because God was with him.

There were at Antioch in the church there a number of prophets and teachers??arnabas, Symeon who was called Niger, Lucius the Cyrenian, Manaen, who had been brought up with Herod the governor, and Saul.

But an angel of the Lord said to Philip, "Get up and go south, by the road that runs from Jerusalem to Gaza." (The town is now deserted.)

Peter and the apostles answered, "We must obey God rather than men.

There was but one heart and soul in the multitude who had become believers, and not one of them claimed anything that belonged to him as his own, but they shared everything they had with one another.

So those who were present asked him, "Master, is this the time when you are going to re-establish the kingdom for Israel?"

"Therefore the whole nation of Israel must understand that God has declared this Jesus whom you crucified both Lord and Christ."

But a man named Ananias, who, with his wife Sapphira, had sold a piece of property,

For it is through union with him that we live and move and exist, as some of your poets have said, " 'For we are also his offspring.'

The younger men got up and wrapping his body up carried it out and buried it.

It was while Apollos was in Corinth that Paul, after passing through the interior, reached Ephesus. Finding some disciples there,

He led them out of the jail and said to them, "Gentlemen, what must I do to be saved?"

and found him and brought him to Antioch. The result was that for a whole year they met with the church, and taught large numbers of people, and it was at Antioch that the disciples first came to be known as Christians.

Some people came down from Judea and began to teach the brothers that unless they were circumcised as Moses prescribed, they could not be saved.

And now, why do you delay? Get up and be baptized, and wash out your sins, calling on his name.'

God who created the world and all that is in it, since he is Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples built by human hands,

This girl would follow Paul and the rest of us, crying out, "These men are slaves of the Most High God, and they are making known to you a way of salvation."

He had shown himself alive to them after he had suffered, in many convincing ways, appearing to them through forty days, and telling them about the Kingdom of God.

constantly praising God and respected by all the people. And every day the Lord added people who were saved to their number.

The believers all shared everything they had with one another,

I showed you in every way that by hard work like that we must help those who are weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, for he said, 'It makes one happier to give than to be given to.' "

Then Peter stood up with the eleven around him, and raising his voice addressed them. "Men of Judea," he said, "and all you residents of Jerusalem, let me explain this to you, and pay attention to what I say.

"for John baptized people in water, but in a few days you will be baptized in the holy Spirit."

Then everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.'

They were all devoting themselves with one mind to prayer, with the women and Mary, Jesus' mother, and his brothers.

But you, by the fixed purpose and intention of God, handed him over to wicked men, and had him crucified.

But my life does not matter, if I can only finish my race and do the service intrusted to me by the Lord Jesus, of declaring the good news of God's favor.

Once as we were on our way to the praying place a slave-girl met us who had the gift of ventriloquism, and made her masters a great deal of money by her fortune-telling.

From Miletus he sent to Ephesus for the elders of the church.

Before Peter had finished saying these words, the holy Spirit fell on all who were listening to his message.

Day after day they all went regularly to the Temple, they broke their bread together in their homes, and they ate their food with glad and simple hearts,

As they went on along the road, they came to some water, and the eunuch said, "Here is some water! What is there to prevent my being baptized?"

reassuring the disciples and encouraging them to stand by the faith and reminding them that we have to undergo many hardships to get into the Kingdom of God.

to open their eyes and turn them from darkness to light and from Satan's control to God, so that they may have their sins forgiven and have a place among those who are consecrated through faith in me.'

Peter and John were on their way up to the Temple for the three o'clock hour of prayer,

There was at Caesarea a man named Cornelius, a captain in what was known as the Italian regiment.

They appointed elders for them in each church, and with prayer and fasting they committed them to the Lord in whom they had believed.

since he has fixed a day on which he will justly judge the world through a man whom he has appointed, and whom he has guaranteed to all men by raising him from the dead."

He said to them, "It is not for you to know times and dates which the Father has fixed by his own authority,

But when they believed Philip's message of the good news of the Kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, men and women alike accepted baptism.

And Saul entirely approved of his being put to death. A great persecution of the church in Jerusalem broke out that day, and they were all scattered over Judea and Samaria except the apostles.

but earnestly urged Greeks as well as Jews to turn to God in repentance and to believe in our Lord Jesus.

Now I commit you to the Lord, and to the message of his favor, which will build you up and give you a place among those whom God has consecrated.

As they were engaged in worshiping the Lord and in fasting, the holy Spirit said, "Set Barnabas and Saul apart for me, for the work to which I have called them."

Then Paul stood up in the middle of the council and said, "Men of Athens, from every point of view I see that you are extremely religious.

Everyone there, high and low, made much of him, and said, "He must be what is known as the Great Power of God!"

Thus they crossed Phrygia and Galatia. The holy Spirit prevented them from delivering the message in Asia,

When they entered the city they went to the upstairs room where they were staying. There were Peter, John, James and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James, the son of Alpheus, Simon the Zealot, and Judas, the son of James.

One of our hearers was a woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple goods, from the town of Thyatira. She was a believer in God, and the Lord touched her heart, and led her to accept Paul's teaching.

When the heathen heard this they were delighted, and praised God's message, and all who were destined for eternal life believed,

It is of him that all the prophets bear witness that everyone that believes in him will have his sins forgiven in his name."

It was at that time that Peter got up among the brothers??here were about a hundred and twenty persons present??nd said,

I know that after I am gone savage wolves will get in among you and will not spare the flock,

So they took him and brought him to the council of the Areopagus and said, "May we know just what this new teaching of yours is?

While Paul waited for them at Athens, he was exasperated to see how idolatrous the city was.

He looked at them, supposing that they were going to give him something.

When they heard this, they made no further objection, but they gave honor to God, and said, "Then God has given even the heathen repentance and the hope of life!"

About three hours later, his wife came in, without having learned what had happened.

for the promise of it belongs to you and your children, as well as to all those far away whom the Lord our God calls to him."

As they were talking in this way to the people, the high priests, the commander of the Temple, and the Sadducees came up to them,

with all kinds of quadrupeds, reptiles, and wild birds in it.

So he has been exalted to God's right hand, and has received from his Father and poured over us the holy Spirit that had been promised, as you see and hear.

Among the disciples at Joppa there was a woman named Tabitha, which is in Greek Dorcas, that is, gazelle. She had devoted herself to doing good and to acts of charity.

You stubborn people, with heathen hearts and ears, you are always opposing the holy Spirit, just as your forefathers did!

When the apostles at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had accepted God's message, they sent Peter and John there.

and the Spirit told me not to hesitate to go with them. These six brothers here also went with me, and we went to the man's house.

After this he left Athens and went to Corinth.

About that time King Herod laid violent hands upon some who belonged to the church.

They were amazed to see how outspoken Peter and John were, and to find that they were uneducated men with no advantages. They recognized them as companions of Jesus,

Yet he must remain in heaven till the time for the universal reformation of which God told in ancient times by the lips of his holy prophets.

But about midnight, as Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns of praise to God, and the prisoners were listening to them,

So that the rest of mankind may seek the Lord, And all the heathen who are called by my name, Says the Lord,

and I have the same hope in God that they themselves hold, that there is to be a resurrection of the upright and the wicked.

So the Lord's message went on growing wonderfully in influence and power.

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until the day when through the holy Spirit he gave the apostles he had chosen their instructions, and was taken up to heaven.

After passing through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they reached Thessalonica, where the Jews had a synagogue.

So God's message continued to spread; the number of the disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a great many priests accepted the faith.

Then they went back to Jerusalem from the hill called the Olive-orchard, which is near Jerusalem, half a mile away.

you and the people of Israel must all know that it is through the power of Jesus Christ of Nazareth whom you crucified but whom God raised from the dead, that he stands here before you well.

But he, full of the holy Spirit, looked up to heaven and saw God's glory and Jesus standing at God's right hand.

Paul went to it as he was accustomed to do, and for three Sabbaths he discussed the Scriptures with them,

They would all meet together in Solomon's Colonnade.

There was a man named Simon in the town, who had been amazing the Samaritan people by practicing magic there, and who made great pretensions.

The fugitives from the persecution that had broken out over Stephen went all the way to Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch, but they told the message to none but Jews.

When they had prayed, the place where they were meeting shook, and they were all filled with the holy Spirit, and fearlessly uttered God's message.

He went to Derbe and Lystra also. At Lystra there was a disciple named Timothy whose mother was a Jewish Christian while his father was a Greek,

"Can anyone refuse the use of water to baptize these people when they have received the holy Spirit just as we did?"

and rescued him from all his troubles, and enabled him to win favor and to show wisdom when he stood before Pharaoh, king of Egypt, and he appointed him governor of Egypt and of his whole household.

The apostles and brothers all over Judea heard that the heathen had also accepted God's message,

God took him up to his right hand as our leader and savior, in order to give repentance and forgiveness of sins to Israel.

But God set aside the pain of death and raised him up, for death could not control him.

for I have not shrunk from letting you know God's purpose without reserve.

The Lord said to him, "Go! This man is the means I have chosen for carrying my name among the heathen and their kings, and among the descendants of Israel.

But Peter and John answered them, "You must decide whether it is right in the sight of God to obey you instead of him,

For the holy Spirit and we have decided not to lay upon you any burden but this indispensable one,

They had the apostles brought before them and demanded of them, "By what power or authority have men like you done this?"

A Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus. He was an eloquent man, skilful in the use of the Scriptures.

You, brothers, must pick out from your number seven men of good standing, who are wise and full of the Spirit, and we will put them in charge of this matter,

Stephen, greatly strengthened by God's favor, did remarkable signs and wonders among the people.

Moses said, 'The Lord God will raise up a prophet for you from among your brothers, as he raised me up. You must listen to everything that he tells you.

But this is what was predicted by the prophet Joel,

Peter said to her, "Tell me, did you sell the land for such and such a sum?" "Yes," she said, "that was it."

Those who were scattered went from place to place preaching the good news of the message.

but they went on from Perga and reached Antioch in Pisidia. On the Sabbath they went to the synagogue there and took seats.

He is Jesus, whom God raised from the dead, and to whose resurrection we are all witnesses.

As they stoned Stephen, he prayed, "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!"

There Paul had a vision one night; a Macedonian was standing appealing to him and saying, "Come over to Macedonia and help us."

"Brothers, one may say to you confidently of the patriarch David that he died and was buried, and his grave is here among us to this very day.

This fact was well known to all the residents of Jerusalem, so that the piece of land came to be called in their language Akeldamach, the bloody field.)

You must understand therefore, my brothers, that through him the forgiveness of your sins is announced to you,

The next day, while they were still on their way, and were just getting near the town, Peter went up on the housetop about noon to pray.

Some of the things you tell us sound strange to us, and we want to know just what they mean."

and that through union with him everyone who believes is cleared of every charge of which the Law of Moses could not clear you.

And they saw tongues like flames separating and settling one on the head of each of them,

"Brothers, the prediction of the Scriptures had to come true that the holy Spirit uttered by the lips of David, about Judas, who acted as guide for the men that arrested Jesus??17 for he was one of our number and a share in this ministry of ours fell to his lot."

Some time after, Paul said to Barnabas, "Come, let us go back and revisit the brothers in each of the towns where we made the Lord's message known, to see how they are doing."

We and the holy Spirit which God has given to those who obey him are witnesses to these things."

Symeon has told how God first showed an interest in taking from among the heathen a people to bear his name.

When they heard it, with one impulse they all raised their voices to God and said, "Master, it was you who made heaven, earth, and sea, and everything that is in them,

And while they were gazing after him into the sky, two men dressed in white suddenly stood beside them,

so that they might search for God, and perhaps grope for him and find him, though he is never far from any of us.

This plan met the approval of the whole body, and they selected Stephen, a man full of faith and of the holy Spirit, with Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicholas of Antioch, who had been a convert to Judaism.

Philip reached the city of Samaria, and proclaimed the Christ to them.

For they have assembled here in this city against your holy servant Jesus, whom you had consecrated??erod and Pontius Pilate, with the heathen and the peoples of Israel,

But Peter said, "Never, sir! For I have never eaten anything that was not ceremonially cleansed."

But Peter said, "I have no silver or gold, but I will give you what I have. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk!"

Then the apostles and elders with the whole church resolved to select representatives and send them with Paul and Barnabas to Antioch. They were Judas who was called Barsabbas, and Silas, both leading men among the brothers.

It was he who with the congregation in the desert went between the angel who spoke to him on Mount Sinai and our forefathers, and received and communicated to you utterances that still live.

Then he removed him and raised David up to be their king, bearing this testimony to him: 'I have found in David the son of Jesse a man after my own heart, who will do all that I desire.'

When he knocked at the outer door, a maid named Rhoda came to answer it,

After being released, the apostles went back to their friends, and told them what the high priests and members of the council had said to them.

So the church all over Judea, Galilee, and Samaria was at peace and became established. It lived in reverence for the Lord and, stimulated by the holy Spirit, it grew steadily in numbers.

For you will not desert my soul in death, You will not let your Holy One be destroyed.

but we should write to them to avoid anything that has been contaminated by idols, immorality, the meat of strangled animals, and the tasting of blood.

Everyone felt a sense of awe, and many wonders and signs were done by the apostles.

But Jacob heard that there was food in Egypt, and he sent our forefathers on their first visit there.

This aroused the high priest and all his supporters, the party of the Sadducees, and filled them with jealousy,

So he ordered the car to stop, and Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and Philip baptized him.

I never shrank from telling you anything that was for your good, nor from teaching you in public or at your houses,

(This man bought a piece of land with the money paid him for his treachery, and his body swelled up and burst open in the middle and all his vitals poured out.

As they could not find them, they dragged Jason and some of the brothers before the town magistrates, shouting, "The men who have made trouble all over the world have come here too,

They made much of him because for a long time he had amazed them with his magic.

But on his journey, as he was approaching Damascus, a sudden light flashed around him from heaven,

"I am a Jew, and I was born in Tarsus in Cilicia, but was brought up here in this city, and thoroughly educated under the teaching of Gamaliel in the Law of our forefathers. I was zealous for God, just as all of you are today.

He answered, "Brothers and fathers, listen. The glorious God appeared to our forefather Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he settled in Haran,

when suddenly there came from the sky a sound like a violent blast of wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting.

He said much more besides in giving his testimony, and urged them to save themselves from that crooked age.

and they did not for a single day stop teaching and preaching in the Temple and in private houses the good news of Jesus, the Christ.

He also directed us to announce to the people and bear solemn testimony that he is the one whom God has appointed to be the judge of the living and the dead.

They were perfectly amazed and said in their astonishment, "Are not all these men who are speaking Galileans?

Then Peter, filled with the holy Spirit, said to them, "Leaders of the people and members of the council,

Then he told us how he had seen the angel stand in his house and say, 'Send to Joppa for a man named Simon who is also called Peter,

"So one of the men who has been associated with us all the time that the Lord Jesus moved about among us,

So if we are God's children we ought not to imagine that the divine nature is like gold or silver or stone, wrought by human art and thought.

Now there were devout Jews from every part of the world living in Jerusalem.

But as he was a prophet, and knew that God had promised him with an oath that he would put one of his descendants upon his throne,

nor is he waited on by human hands as though he were in need of anything, for he himself gives all men life and breath and everything.

He has sent his message to Israel's descendants, and made the good news of peace known to them through Jesus Christ. He is Lord of us all.

God did such extraordinary wonders by means of Paul,

while we devote ourselves to prayer and to delivering the message."

For all Athenians and all visitors there from abroad used to spend all their time telling or listening to something new.

The God of our forefathers raised Jesus to life when you had hung him on a cross and killed him.

Then Philip began, and starting from this passage, he told him the good news about Jesus.

and shouting, "Friends, why are you doing this? We are only human beings like you, and we bring you the good news that you should turn from these follies to a living God, who made heaven and earth and sea and all that they contain.

As they were shouting and throwing their clothes about and flinging dust into the air,

He has had a vision and seen a man named Ananias come in and lay his hands on him, to restore his sight."

For as I was going about and looking at the things you worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: 'To an Unknown God.' So it is what you already worship in ignorance that I am now telling you of.

he foresaw the resurrection of the Christ and told of it, for he was not deserted in death and his body was not destroyed.

though he did not fail to give some evidence about himself, through his kindnesses to you, in sending you rain from heaven and fruitful seasons, giving you food and happiness to your heart's content."

He is the stone that you builders rejected, which has become the cornerstone.

to take this place of service as an apostle which Judas left to go where he belonged."

The high priest said, "Is this statement true?"

but first to the people of Damascus and Jerusalem and then all over Judea, and even to the heathen I preached that they must repent and turn to God and live as men who have repented should.

King Agrippa, do you believe the prophets? I know that you do!"

Peter said to her, "How could you two agree to test the Spirit of the Lord? There at the door are the footsteps of the men who buried your husband, and they will carry you out also."

On their second visit, Joseph made himself known to his brothers, and Pharaoh learned of Joseph's parentage.

Why, we believe that it is by the mercy of the Lord Jesus that we are saved just as they are."

Paul stayed some time longer, and then bade the brothers goodbye and sailed for Syria, with Priscilla and Aquila. At Cenchreae he had his hair cut, because of a vow he had been under.

There was at Damascus a disciple named Ananias, and the Lord said to him in a vision, "Ananias!" And he answered, "Yes, Lord!"

But Crispus, the leader of the synagogue, believed in the Lord, and so did all his household, and many of the people of Corinth heard Paul and believed and were baptized.

Joseph, a Levite, and a native of Cyprus, whom the apostles had named Barnabas, which means Son of Encouragement,

There he found a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, who had recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius had ordered all Jews to leave Rome. Paul went to see them,

And now, Lord, take note of their threats, and give your slaves the power to utter your message fearlessly,

Ananias set out and went to the house, and there he laid his hands upon Saul, and said to him, "Saul, my brother, I have been sent by the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on your journey, so that you may regain your sight and be filled with the holy Spirit."

and when she recognized Peter's voice, in her joy she did not stop to open the door, but ran in and told them that Peter was standing outside.

When he realized his situation, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John who was also called Mark, where a number of people were gathered, praying.

So the Twelve called in the whole body of disciples and said to them, "It is not desirable that we should give up preaching the word of God to keep accounts.

Knowing that part of them were Sadducees and part of them Pharisees, Paul called out in the council, "Brothers, I am a Pharisee, and the son of Pharisees! It is for my hope for the resurrection of the dead that I am on trial!"

The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our forefathers, has done this honor to his servant Jesus, whom you betrayed and disowned before Pilate, when he had decided to let him go.

Then a famine spread all over Egypt and Canaan, and there was great suffering, and our forefathers could not find any food.

"For David did not go up to heaven, but he said, 'The Lord said to my lord, Sit at my right hand,

Then after he had taken care of them for forty years in the desert,

About that time some prophets from Jerusalem came down to Antioch,

After a long discussion, Peter got up and said to them, "Brothers, you know that in the early days God chose that of you all I should be the one from whose lips the heathen should hear the message of the good news and believe it.

I admit that in worshiping the God of my forefathers I follow the way of life that they call a sect, but I believe everything that is taught in the Law or written in the prophets,

No one among them was in any want, for any who owned lands or houses would sell them and bring the proceeds of the sale

The God of this people of Israel chose our forefathers, and made the people great during their stay in Egypt, and then with uplifted hand led them out of Egypt.

When they arrived there, they called the church together, and reported how God had worked with them, and how he had opened the way to faith for the heathen.

and when Paul laid his hands on them, the holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in foreign tongues and with prophetic inspiration.

and he fell to the ground. Then he heard a voice saying to him, "Saul! Saul! Why do you persecute me?"

They asked him to stay longer, but he would not consent.

And a voice came to him, "Get up, Peter! Kill something and eat it!"

but they could not meet his wisdom and the inspiration with which he spoke.

who has been making this known from of old.'

And the whole church and all who heard this were appalled.

But Ananias answered, "Lord, I have heard many people tell of this man, and the harm he has done to your people in Jerusalem.

What then? They will be sure to hear that you have come.

except that in every town I visit, the holy Spirit warns me that imprisonment and persecution are awaiting me.

She instantly fell down at his feet and expired. When the young men came in they found her dead, and they carried her out and buried her beside her husband.

Then Joseph sent and invited his father Jacob and all his relatives, seventy-five in all,

if it is for a benefit conferred upon a helpless man, and as to how he was cured, that we are called to account here today,

So they instigated people to say, "We have heard him use abusive language about Moses and about God."

They were also to provide horses for Paul to ride, so that they might take him in safety to Felix, the governor,

While Peter was still wondering what the vision he had had could mean, the men whom Cornelius had sent had asked the way to Simon's house and reached the door,

And he took him by the right hand and raised him up, and his feet and ankles immediately became strong,

He motioned to them to be quiet, and then related to them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. "Tell all this to James and the brothers," he said. Then he left them and went somewhere else.

and he sprang to his feet and began to walk, and he went into the Temple with them, walking, leaping, and praising God.

They aroused the people, the elders, and the scribes, and they set upon him and seized him, and brought him before the council.

And they were all amazed and bewildered and said to one another, "What can this mean?"

This happened three times; then the thing was taken right up into the sky.

So do what we tell you. We have four men here who are under a vow.

When they came, they prayed that the Samaritans might receive the holy Spirit,

Then he took them up to his house and offered them food, and he and all his household were very happy over their new faith in God.

and brought them before the chief magistrates. "These men," they said, "are Jews, and they are making a great disturbance in our town.

He sent two of his assistants, Timothy and Erastus, to Macedonia, while he stayed on for a while in Asia.

He is here with authority to arrest everyone who calls upon your name."

When all the people saw him walking about, praising God,

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But Peter kept on knocking. And when they opened the door and saw him they were amazed.

They are advocating practices which it is against the law for us as Romans to adopt or observe."

the colonel ordered Paul brought into the barracks, and gave directions that he should be examined under the lash, so that he might find out why they made such an outcry against him.

But they said to her, "You are crazy!" But she insisted that it was so. Then they said, "Then it is his guardian angel!"

For I am going to show him what he will have to endure for my sake."

He bade them goodbye, saying, "I will come back to you again if it is God's will." Then he sailed from Ephesus.

Then they demanded a king and for forty years God gave them Saul, the son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin.

So if God had given them the same gift that we received when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I, to be able to interfere with God?"

and recognized him as the man who used to sit and beg at the Beautiful Gate of the Temple, they were perfectly astonished and amazed at what had happened to him.

At the same time he hoped to get money from Paul, and for that reason he used to send for him very often and talk with him.

Even with these words they could hardly restrain the people from offering sacrifice to them.

After that he gave them judges, down to the time of the prophet Samuel.

and they called out to ask if Simon who was called Peter was staying there.

The Lord's hand was with them, and there were a great many who believed and turned to the Lord.

There were some men from Cyprus and Cyrene among them, however, who when they reached Antioch spoke to the Greeks also, and told them the good news about the Lord Jesus.

he destroyed seven nations in Canaan, and settled them upon their land for about four hundred and fifty years.

Then they brought forward false witnesses, who said, "This man is constantly saying things against this holy place and against the Law,

None of the others dared to associate with them, but the people made much of them,

Get up and go down, and go with them without any hesitation, for I have sent them."

Yet I have nothing definite to write to our sovereign about him. So I have brought him before you all, and especially before you, King Agrippa, in order to get from your examination of him something to put in writing.

Herod was very angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon. So they came before him in a body, and after winning over Blastus, the king's chamberlain, they asked for a reconciliation, because their country depended upon the king's dominions for its food supply.

They were the bearers of this letter: "The apostles and the brothers who are elders send greeting to the brothers of heathen birth in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia.

But when morning came, there was no little commotion among the soldiers as to what could have become of Peter.

Herod had inquiries made for him, and when he could not find him, he examined the guards and ordered them to be put to death. Then he left Judea for Caesarea, and stayed there.

to whom he wrote a letter to this effect:

The news about them came to the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas all the way to Antioch.

Even on my slaves, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, And they will become prophets.

He, having had such strict orders, put them into the inner cell, and fastened their feet in the stocks.

So a day was fixed and on it Herod, dressed in his robes of state, took his seat on his throne in the theater, and made them an address,

"In a hurry or not," said Paul, "I would to God that not only you, but all who hear me today, might be what I am??xcept for these chains!"

After beating them severely, they put them in jail, and gave the jailer orders to keep close watch of them.

I will show wonders in the sky above, And signs on the earth below, Blood and fire and thick smoke.

and Jacob came down to Egypt. There he and our forefathers died,

and, after taking some food, regained his strength. Saul stayed for some time with the disciples at Damascus,

and they were carried back to Shechem, and laid in the tomb that Abraham had bought for a sum of money from the sons of Hamor in Shechem.

But when two whole years had passed, Felix was succeeded by Porcius Festus, and as he wanted to gratify the Jews, Felix left Paul in prison.

Even from the towns around Jerusalem crowds would come in bringing sick people and those who were troubled with foul spirits, and they were all cured.

and seeing the man who had been cured standing beside them, they had nothing to say.

Everyone who sat in the council fixed his eyes on him, and they saw that his face was like that of an angel.

A silversmith named Demetrius was making large profits for his workmen by the manufacture of silver shrines of Artemis.

It is from his descendants that God has brought to Israel as he promised to do, a savior in Jesus,

But the Lord's message continued to grow and spread.

and the people shouted in applause, "It is a god's voice, not a man's!"

Then as they were afraid we might go on the rocks, they dropped four anchors from the stern and waited anxiously for daylight.

for we have heard him say that Jesus of Nazareth will tear this place down and change the customs that have been handed down to us by Moses."

Toward the end of his career, John said, 'What do you suppose that I am? I am not he! No! Someone is coming after me, the shoes on whose feet I am not fit to untie!'

Therefore my heart is glad, and my tongue rejoices, And my body will still live in hope.

But they ordered them out of the presence of the council and conferred together.

who have risked their lives for the sake of our Lord Jesus Christ.

for he was an excellent man, full of the holy Spirit and faith. So a considerable number of people came over to the Lord.

When he reached Caesarea, he went up to Jerusalem and paid his respects to the church, and then went on to Antioch.

When he was abandoned, the daughter of Pharaoh adopted him and brought him up as her own son.

As the time drew near for the fulfilment of the promise God had made to Abraham, the people became more and more numerous in Egypt,

As Peter was pondering over his vision, the Spirit said to him, "There are two men looking for you.

When they heard of the resurrection of the dead, some of them sneered, but others said, "We should like to hear you again on this subject."

They said, "What are we to do with these men? For it is plain to everyone in Jerusalem that an extraordinary wonder has been done by them. We cannot deny that.

Everyone was astonished, and said, "Is not he the man who made such havoc of the people in Jerusalem who call upon that name, and who came here especially for the purpose of arresting such persons and taking them before the high priests?"

Some persons joined him, however, and became believers, among them Dionysius, a member of the council, and a woman named Damaris, and some others.

Join them, undergo the rites of purification with them, and pay their expenses so that they can have their heads shaved. Then everybody will understand that there is no truth in the stories about you, but that you yourself observe the Law.

But to keep it from spreading farther among the people, let us warn them to say nothing to anyone else at all about this person."

when a man who had been lame from his birth was carried by. He used to be placed every day at what was known as the Beautiful Gate of the Temple, to beg from the people on their way into the Temple,

greatly disturbed because they were teaching the people and declaring that in the case of Jesus there had been a resurrection from the dead.

They answered, "Cornelius, who is a captain, and an upright and God-fearing man, and who has a good reputation with the whole Jewish nation, was directed by a holy angel to send for you to come to his house, and to listen to what you have to say."

It was at this time that Moses was born. He was a wonderfully beautiful child, and for three months he was taken care of in his father's house.

As we have heard that some of our number, without any instructions from us, have disturbed you by their teaching and unsettled your minds,

but his disciples took him one night and let him down over the wall, lowering him in a basket.

Some of the religious authorities also, who were friends of his, sent to him and begged him not to venture into the theater.

until another king, who knew nothing about Joseph, became ruler of Egypt.

and from there they sailed back to Antioch, where they had first been commended to God's favor for the work which they had now finished.

The next day, as he wished to find out the real reason why the Jews denounced him, he had him unbound and ordered the high priests and the whole council to assemble, and took Paul down and brought him before them.

But when they had strapped him up, Paul said to the officer who was standing near, "Is it legal for you to flog a Roman citizen, and without giving him a trial?"

shouting, "Men of Israel, help! This is the man who teaches everybody everywhere against our people and the Law and this place, and besides he has actually brought Greeks into the Temple and desecrated this sacred place."

After some time had passed, the Jews made a plot to kill him,

After leaving the jail they went to Lydia's house, and saw the brothers and encouraged them. Then they left the town.

Then Peter went down to see the men, and said to them, "I am the man you are asking for. What is the reason for your coming?"

for he vigorously refuted the Jews in public, and showed from the scriptures that Jesus was the Christ.

But an angel of the Lord opened the jail doors in the night and let them out, and said to them,

For the people of Jerusalem and their leaders refused to recognize him, and condemned him, thus fulfilling the very utterances of the prophets which are read every Sabbath,

and was on his way home. He was sitting in his car, reading the prophet Isaiah.