His answer was: "It is not for you to know times or hours, for the Father has reserved these for his own decision;

No sooner had Jesus said this than he was caught up before their eyes, and a cloud received him from their sight.

"For in the Book of Psalms," Peter continued, "it is said-- 'Let his dwelling become desolate, and let no one live in it'; and also--'His office let another take.'

Now there were then staying in Jerusalem religious Jews from every country in the world;

But there were some who said with a sneer: "They have had too much new wine."

These men are not drunk, as you suppose; for it is only now nine in the morning! No!

Men of Israel, listen to what I am saying. Jesus of Nazareth, a man whose mission from God to you was proved by miracles, wonders, and signs, which God showed among you through him, as you know full well--

And now that he has been exalted to the right hand of God, and has received from the Father the promised gift of the Holy Spirit, he has begun to pour out that gift, as you yourselves now see and hear.

So let the whole nation of Israel know beyond all doubt, that God has made him both Lord and Christ--this very Jesus whom you crucified."

For the promise is for you and for your children, and also for all those now far away, who may be called by the Lord our God."

But Peter added: "I have no gold or silver, but I give you what I have. In the Name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth I bid you walk."

And it is by faith in the Name of Jesus, that this man, whom you all see and know, has--by his Name--been made strong. Yes, it is the faith inspired by Jesus that has made this complete cure of the man, before the eyes of you all.

And yet, my Brothers, I know that you acted as you did from ignorance, and your rulers also.

Let me tell you all and all the people of Israel, that it is by the Name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom you crucified and whom God raised from the dead--it is, I say, by his Name that this man stands here before you lame no longer.

And Salvation is in him alone; for there is no other Name in the whole world, given to men, to which we must look for our Salvation."

Now, therefore, O Lord, mark their threats, and enable thy servants, with all fearlessness, to tell thy Message,

But of the rest no one ventured to join them. On the other hand, the people were full of their praise,

"Go," he said, "and stand in the Temple Courts, and tell the people the whole Message of this new Life."

On this, Abraham left the country of the Chaldaeans and settled in Haran; and from there, after his father's death, God caused him to migrate into this very country, in which you are now living.

God did not at that time give him any part of it, not even a foot of ground. But he promised to 'give him possession of it and his descendants after him, though at that time he had no child.

Then a famine spread over the whole of Egypt and Canaan, causing great distress, and our ancestors could find no food.

Until a new king, who knew nothing of Joseph, came to the throne.

I have seen the oppression of my people who are in Egypt, and heard their groans, and I have come down to deliver them. Come now and I will send you into Egypt.'

While they said to Aaron--'Make us Gods who will lead the way for us, since, as for this Moses who has brought us out of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.'

Which of the Prophets escaped persecution at their hands? They killed those who foretold the coming of the Righteous One; of whom you, in your turn, have now become the betrayers and murderers--

Now those who were scattered in different directions went from place to place proclaiming the Good News.

You have no share or part in our Message, for your 'heart is not right with God.'

Meanwhile an angel of the Lord had said to Philip: "Set out on a journey southwards, along the road that runs down from Jerusalem to Gaza." (It is now deserted).

And was now on his way home, sitting in his carriage and reading the Prophet Isaiah.

"Now," said the Treasurer, addressing Philip, "tell me, of whom is the Prophet speaking? Of himself, or of some one else?"

But, when they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught Philip away, and the Treasurer saw no more of him; for he continued his journey with a joyful heart.

The men traveling with Saul were meanwhile standing speechless; they heard the sound of the voice, but saw no one.

Now there was at Damascus a disciple named Ananias, to whom, in a vision, the Lord said: "Ananias." "Yes, Lord," he answered.

And now, send messengers to Jaffa and fetch a man called Simon, who is also known as Peter.

"No, Lord, I cannot," answered Peter, "for I have never eaten anything 'defiled' and 'unclean'."

Upon this Peter invited them in and entertained them. The next day he lost no time in setting out with them, accompanied by some of the Brethren from Jaffa;

That was why I came, when I was sent for, without raising any objection. And now I ask your reason for sending for me."

Accordingly I sent to you at once, and you have been so good as to come. And now we are all here in the presence of God, to listen to all that you have been instructed by the Lord to say."

You yourselves know the story which spread through all Judea, how, beginning form Galilee, after the baptism which John proclaimed--

"Can any one refuse the water for the baptism of these people, now that they have received the Holy Spirit as we did ourselves?"

'No, Lord, I cannot,' I answered, 'for nothing 'defiled' or 'unclean' has ever passed my lips.'

On hearing this statement, they said no more, but broke out into praise of God. "So even to the Gentiles," they exclaimed, "God has granted the repentance which leads to Life!"

Now those who had been scattered in different directions, in consequence of the persecution that followed upon the death of Stephen, went as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch, telling the Message--but only to Jews.

Then Peter came to himself and said: "Now I know beyond all doubt that the Lord has sent his angel, and has rescued me from Herod's hands and from all that the Jewish people have been expecting."

The hand of the Lord is upon you even now, and you will be blind for a time and unable to see the sun." Immediately a mist and darkness fell upon him, and he went feeling about for some one to guide him.

After the reading of the Law and the Prophets, the President of the Synagogue sent them this message--"Brothers, if you have any helpful words to address to the people, now is the time to speak."

They found no ground at all for putting him to death, and yet demanded his execution from Pilate;

And he appeared for many days to those who had gone up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem, and who are now witnesses for him to the people.

I would, therefore, have you know, brothers, that through Jesus forgiveness of sins is being proclaimed to you,

In the streets of Lystra there used to sit a man who had no power in his feet; he had been lame from his birth, and had never walked.

From there they sailed to Antioch--the place where they had been committed to the gracious care of God for the work which they had now finished.

After much discussion, Peter rose and said: "You, my Brothers, know well that long ago God singled me out--that through my lips the Gentiles should hear the Message of the Good News, and become believers in Christ.

Now God, who reads all hearts, declared his acceptance of the Gentiles, by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as he did to us.

He made no distinction between them and us, when he purified their hearts by their faith.

Why, then, do you now provoke God, by putting on the necks of these disciples a yoke which neither our ancestors nor we were able to bear?

No, it is through the loving-kindness of the Lord Jesus that we, just as they do, believe that we have been saved."

We are accordingly sending Judas and Silas, and they will tell you by word of mouth what we are now writing.

We have, therefore, decided, under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, to lay no further burden upon you beyond these necessary conditions--

Wishing to take this man with him on his journey, Paul caused him to be circumcised on account of the Jews in that neighborhood, for they all knew that his father had been a Greek.

When her masters saw that there was no hope of further profit from her, they seized Paul and Silas, dragged them into the public square to the authorities,

But Paul's answer to them was: "They have flogged us in public without trial, though we are Roman citizens, and they have put us in prison, and now they are for sending us out secretly! No, indeed! Let them come and take us out themselves."

And, not finding them there, they proceeded to drag Jason and some of the Brethren before the City Magistrates, shouting out: "These men, who have turned the world upside down, have now come here,

So they laid hold of him and took him to the Court of Areopagus. "May we hear," they asked, "what new teaching this is which you are giving?

For you are bringing some strange things to our notice, and we should like to know what they mean."

(All Athenians and the foreigners staying in the city found no time for anything else but telling, or listening to, the last new thing.)

For as I was going about, looking at your sacred shrines, I came upon an altar with this inscription--'To an Unknown God.' What, therefore, you worship in ignorance, that I am now proclaiming to you.

True, God looked with indulgence on the days of men's ignorance, but now he is announcing to every one everywhere the need for repentance,

One night the Lord said to Paul, in a vision: "Have no fear, but continue to speak, and refuse to be silenced;

For I am with you, and no one shall do you harm, for I have many People in this city."

He had been well-instructed in the Cause of the Lord, and with burning zeal he spoke of, and taught carefully, the facts about Jesus, though he knew of no baptism but John's.

"Did you, when you became believers in Christ, receive the Holy Spirit?" "No," they answered, "we did not even hear that there was a Holy Spirit."

God did miracles of no ordinary kind by Paul's hands;

But the wicked spirit answered them: "Jesus I acknowledge, and Paul I know, but you--who are you?"

Got these men together, as well as the workmen engaged in similar occupations, and said: "Men, you know that our prosperity depends upon this work,

And, when they came, he spoke to them as follows: "You know well the life that I always led among you from the very first day that I set foot in Roman Asia,

And now, under spiritual constraint, I am here on my way to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there,

But I count my life of no value to myself, if only I may complete the course marked out for me, and the task that was allotted me by the Lord Jesus--which was to declare the Good News of the Love of God.

And now, I tell you, I know that none of you will ever see my face again--you among whom I have gone about proclaiming the Kingdom.

I know that, after my departure, merciless wolves will get in among you, who will not spare the flock;

And now I commend you to the Lord and to the Message of his Love--a Message which has the power to build up your characters, and to give you your place among all those who have become Christ's People.

You, yourselves, know that these hands of mine provided not only for my own wants, but for my companions also.

So, as he would not be persuaded, we said no more to him, only adding--"The Lord's will be done."

Now they have heard it said about you, that you teach all Jews in foreign countries to forsake Moses, for you tell them not to circumcise their children or even to observe Jewish customs.

Well now, as they are certain to hear of your arrival, do what we are going to suggest.

Join these men, share their purification, and bear their expenses, so that they may shave their heads; and then all will see that there is no truth in what they have been told about you, but that, on the contrary, you yourself rule your life in obedience to the Jewish Law.

Some of the crowd said one thing, and some another; and, as he could get no definite reply on account of the uproar, he ordered Paul to be taken into the barracks.

Just as he was about to be taken into the Fort, Paul said to the Commanding Officer: "May I speak to you?" "Do you know Greek?" asked the Commanding Officer.

"No," said Paul, "I am a Jew of Tarsus in Cilicia, a citizen of a city of some note; and I beg you to give me permission to speak to the people."

And now why wait any longer: Be baptized at once, wash away your sins, and invoke his Name.

'Lord,' I answered, 'these people know that I used to imprison and scourge, in Synagogue after Synagogue, those who believed in you;

On hearing this, the Captain went and reported it to the Commanding Officer. "Do you know what you are doing?" he said. "This man is a Roman citizen."

The people standing near said to Paul: "Do you know that you are insulting God's High Priest?"

"I did not know, Brothers, that it was the High Priest," said Paul, "for Scripture says--'Of the Ruler of thy People thou shalt speak no ill'."

(For Sadducees say there is no such thing as a resurrection, and that there is neither angel nor spirit, while Pharisees believe in both.)

So we want you now, with the consent of the Council, to suggest to the Commanding Officer that he should bring Paul down before you, as though you intended to go more fully into his case; but, before he comes here, we will be ready to make away with him."

And they cannot establish the charges which they are now making against me.

"No," replied Paul, "I am standing at the Emperor's Bar, where I ought to be tried. I have not wronged the Jews, as you yourself are well aware.

If, however, I am breaking the law and have committed any offence deserving death, I do not ask to escape the penalty; but, if there is nothing in the accusations of these people, no one has the power to give me up to them. I appeal to the Emperor."

But, when his accusers came forward, they brought no charge of wrong-doing such as I had expected;

Even now, it is because of my hope in the promise given by God to our ancestors that I stand here on my trial--