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

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.)

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

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

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

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.

"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.

For David says of him, 'I constantly regarded the Lord before me, For he is at my right hand, so that I may not be displaced.

"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.

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.

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

and when he saw Peter and John on the point of going into the Temple he asked them to give him something.

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

And as he still clung to Peter and John, all the people crowded about them in the utmost astonishment in what was known as Solomon's Colonnade.

When Peter saw this, he said to the people. "Men of Israel, why are you so surprised at this? Why do you stare so at us, as though it were some power or some piety of ours that had made him able to walk?

It is by his power and through faith in him that this man whom you see and recognize has been made strong again, and it is faith inspired by him that has given him the perfect health you all see.

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

with Annas the high priest, Caiaphas, John, Alexander, and all who belonged to the high priest's family.

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,

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

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."

So they called them in and ordered them not to speak or teach at all about the name of Jesus.

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,

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.

The apostles gave their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus with great power, and God's favor rested richly upon them.

with his wife's connivance appropriated some of the price received, and brought only a part of it to put at the disposal of the apostles.

They would all meet together in Solomon's Colonnade.

so that people would carry their sick out into the streets, and lay them down on beds and mats, to have at least Peter's shadow fall on some of them as he went by.

So they brought them before the council. The high priest called on them for an explanation.

"We strictly forbade you," he said, "to teach on this authority, and here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and propose to hold us responsible for this man's death!"

So in the present case, I tell you, keep away from these men and let them alone, for if this idea or movement is of human origin, it will come to naught,

So they went out from before the council, glad that they had been thought worthy to bear disgrace for the sake of Jesus,

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.

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

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

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

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."

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

So he left the country of the Chaldeans and went to live in Haran, and from there after the death of his father, God caused him to move into this country where you now live.

And he made the agreement of circumcision with him, and so Abraham became the father of Isaac and circumcised him on the eighth day, and Isaac became the father of Jacob, and Jacob of the twelve patriarchs.

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

He took advantage of our people and oppressed our forefathers, making them abandon their infant children, so that they should not live.

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.

So Moses was educated in all the Egyptian culture; he was strong in speech and action.

When Moses saw it he wondered at the sight, and when he went up to see what it was, the voice of the Lord said,

I have seen all the oppression of my people in Egypt, and I have heard their groans, and I have come down to save them. So come! I will make you my messenger to Egypt!'

It was he who brought them out of Egypt, and did wonders and signs there, and at the Red Sea, and for forty years in the desert.

So God turned his back on them and left them to worship the starry host, just as the Book of the Prophets says, " 'Was it victims and sacrifices that you offered to me, O house of Israel, Those forty years in the desert?

You offered me the tent of Moloch and the star of your god Rompha, The images you had made to worship! So I will deport you beyond Babylon.'

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

And he said, "Look! I can see heaven open, and the Son of Man standing at God's right hand!"

When the people heard Philip and saw the signs that he showed they were all interested in what he had to say,

So there was great rejoicing in that city.

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.

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

But when Simon saw that the holy Spirit was imparted through the laying on of the apostles' hands, he offered them money,

But Peter said to him, "Go to destruction with your money, for thinking you could buy God's gift with it!

So repent of this wickedness of yours, and pray to the Lord, to see if you may not be forgiven for thinking of such a thing.

For I see that you are a bitter poison and a bundle of iniquity!"

After they had given their testimony and delivered the Lord's message, they went back to Jerusalem, telling the good news in many Samaritan villages on the way.

So he got up and went. Now there was an Ethiopian eunuch, a member of the court of Candace, queen of Ethiopia, her chief treasurer, who had come up to Jerusalem to worship,

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

When they came out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord hurried Philip away, and the eunuch saw nothing more of him. Full of joy, he went on with his journey,

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

and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any men or women there who belonged to the Way, he might bring them in chains to Jerusalem.

Saul's fellow-travelers stood speechless, for they heard the voice but could not see anyone.

When he got up from the ground and opened his eyes he could see nothing. They had to take him by the hand and lead him into Damascus,

and for three days he could not see, and neither ate nor drank.

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 spoke boldly for the Lord's cause, talking and debating with the Greek-speaking Jews. But they tried to kill him.

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.

As Peter was traveling about among them all, he happened to visit God's people at Lydda.

And everybody who lived in Lydda or in Sharon saw him, and they turned to the Lord.

So it came about that Peter stayed for some time in Joppa, at the house of a tanner named Simon.

One afternoon, about three o'clock, he had a vision, and distinctly saw an angel of God come into his room and say to him, "Cornelius!"

He is being entertained at the house of a tanner named Simon, which is close to the sea."

and saw the sky opened and a thing like a great sheet coming down, lowered to the ground by the four corners,

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,

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?"

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."

So Peter invited them in and entertained them. The next day he started off with them, accompanied by some of the brothers from Joppa,

So they went in talking together, and Peter found that many people had gathered,

So send to Joppa and invite Simon who is called Peter to come here. He is staying at the house of a tanner named Simon, close to the sea.'

So I sent for you immediately, and you have very kindly come. Now we are all here in God's presence, to hear everything that the Lord has instructed you to say."

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.

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

and when I looked at it, I saw in it quadrupeds, wild animals, reptiles, and wild birds.

And I heard a voice say to me, 'Get up, Peter! Kill something and eat it!'

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.

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 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?"

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

When he reached there and saw the favor God had shown them, he was delighted, and encouraged them all to be resolute and steadfast in their devotion to the Lord,

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

He had John's brother, James, beheaded,

and when he saw that this gratified the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter too, at the time of the festival of Unleavened Bread.

So Peter was kept in the jail, but the church was praying earnestly to God for him.

and the angel said to him, "Put on your belt and your sandals!" And he did so. Then he said to him, "Put on your coat and follow me!"

So he followed him out without knowing that what the angel was doing was real, for he thought he was having a vision.

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.