So when they had gathered together, they began to ask him, "Lord, is this the time when you are restoring the kingdom to Israel?"

He told them, "You are not permitted to know the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority.

Completely baffled, they said, "Aren't all these who are speaking Galileans?

But others jeered at the speakers, saying, "They are drunk on new wine!"

In spite of what you think, these men are not drunk, for it is only nine o'clock in the morning.

This Jesus God raised up, and we are all witnesses of it.

For the promise is for you and your children, and for all who are far away, as many as the Lord our God will call to himself."

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

You killed the Originator of life, whom God raised from the dead. To this fact we are witnesses!

This one heaven must receive until the time all things are restored, which God declared from times long ago through his holy prophets.

You are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant that God made with your ancestors, saying to Abraham, 'And in your descendants all the nations of the earth will be blessed.'

if we are being examined today for a good deed done to a sick man -- by what means this man was healed --

Peter then told her, "Why have you agreed together to test the Spirit of the Lord? Look! The feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out!"

But someone came and reported to them, "Look! The men you put in prison are standing in the temple courts and teaching the people!"

And we are witnesses of these events, and so is the Holy Spirit whom God has given to those who obey him."

Then he said to the council, "Men of Israel, pay close attention to what you are about to do to these men.

But carefully select from among you, brothers, seven men who are well-attested, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may put in charge of this necessary task.

Then the high priest said, "Are these things true?"

The next day Moses saw two men fighting, and tried to make peace between them, saying, 'Men, you are brothers; why are you hurting one another?'

But the Lord said to him, 'Take the sandals off your feet, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.

I have certainly seen the suffering of my people who are in Egypt and have heard their groaning, and I have come down to rescue them. Now come, I will send you to Egypt.'

"You stubborn people, with uncircumcised hearts and ears! You are always resisting the Holy Spirit, like your ancestors did!

For I see that you are bitterly envious and in bondage to sin."

Philip, however, found himself at Azotus, and as he passed through the area, he proclaimed the good news to all the towns until he came to Caesarea.

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

So he said, "Who are you, Lord?" He replied, "I am Jesus whom you are persecuting!

While Peter was still thinking seriously about the vision, the Spirit said to him, "Look! Three men are looking for you.

Therefore I sent for you at once, and you were kind enough to come. So now we are all here in the presence of God to listen to everything the Lord has commanded you to say to us."

We are witnesses of all the things he did both in Judea and in Jerusalem. They killed him by hanging him on a tree,

and said, "You who are full of all deceit and all wrongdoing, you son of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness -- will you not stop making crooked the straight paths of the Lord?

For the people who live in Jerusalem and their rulers did not recognize him, and they fulfilled the sayings of the prophets that are read every Sabbath by condemning him.

and for many days he appeared to those who had accompanied him from Galilee to Jerusalem. These are now his witnesses to the people.

that this promise God has fulfilled to us, their children, by raising Jesus, as also it is written in the second psalm, 'You are my Son; today I have fathered you.'

Both Paul and Barnabas replied courageously, "It was necessary to speak the word of God to you first. Since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we are turning to the Gentiles.

"Men, why are you doing these things? We too are men, with human natures just like you! We are proclaiming the good news to you, so that you should turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made the heaven, the earth, the sea, and everything that is in them.

Now some men came down from Judea and began to teach the brothers, "Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved."

So now why are you putting God to the test by placing on the neck of the disciples a yoke that neither our ancestors nor we have been able to bear?

On the contrary, we believe that we are saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, in the same way as they are."

"Therefore I conclude that we should not cause extra difficulty for those among the Gentiles who are turning to God,

Therefore we are sending Judas and Silas who will tell you these things themselves in person.

After some days Paul said to Barnabas, "Let's return and visit the brothers in every town where we proclaimed the word of the Lord to see how they are doing."

She followed behind Paul and us and kept crying out, "These men are servants of the Most High God, who are proclaiming to you the way of salvation."

When they had brought them before the magistrates, they said, "These men are throwing our city into confusion. They are Jews

and are advocating customs that are not lawful for us to accept or practice, since we are Romans."

But Paul called out loudly, "Do not harm yourself, for we are all here!"

But Paul said to the police officers, "They had us beaten in public without a proper trial -- even though we are Roman citizens -- and they threw us in prison. And now they want to send us away secretly? Absolutely not! They themselves must come and escort us out!"

and Jason has welcomed them as guests! They are all acting against Caesar's decrees, saying there is another king named Jesus!"

So they took Paul and brought him to the Areopagus, saying, "May we know what this new teaching is that you are proclaiming?

For you are bringing some surprising things to our ears, so we want to know what they mean."

So Paul stood before the Areopagus and said, "Men of Athens, I see that you are very religious in all respects.

For in him we live and move about and exist, as even some of your own poets have said, 'For we too are his offspring.'

So since we are God's offspring, we should not think the deity is like gold or silver or stone, an image made by human skill and imagination.

But the evil spirit replied to them, "I know about Jesus and I am acquainted with Paul, but who are you?"

And you see and hear that this Paul has persuaded and turned away a large crowd, not only in Ephesus but in practically all of the province of Asia, by saying that gods made by hands are not gods at all.

So because these facts are indisputable, you must keep quiet and not do anything reckless.

For you have brought these men here who are neither temple robbers nor blasphemers of our goddess.

If then Demetrius and the craftsmen who are with him have a complaint against someone, the courts are open and there are proconsuls; let them bring charges against one another there.

For we are in danger of being charged with rioting today, since there is no cause we can give to explain this disorderly gathering."

except that the Holy Spirit warns me in town after town that imprisonment and persecutions are waiting for me.

And now I entrust you to God and to the message of his grace. This message is able to build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified.

Then Paul replied, "What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For I am ready not only to be tied up, but even to die in Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus."

When they heard this, they praised God. Then they said to him, "You see, brother, how many thousands of Jews there are who have believed, and they are all ardent observers of the law.

When the seven days were almost over, the Jews from the province of Asia who had seen him in the temple area stirred up the whole crowd and seized him,

"I am a Jew, born in Tarsus in Cilicia, but brought up in this city, educated with strictness under Gamaliel according to the law of our ancestors, and was zealous for God just as all of you are today.

Then I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?'

I answered, 'Who are you, Lord?' He said to me, 'I am Jesus the Nazarene, whom you are persecuting.'

And now what are you waiting for? Get up, be baptized, and have your sins washed away, calling on his name.'

When the centurion heard this, he went to the commanding officer and reported it, saying, "What are you about to do? For this man is a Roman citizen."

So the commanding officer came and asked Paul, "Tell me, are you a Roman citizen?" He replied, "Yes."

So now you and the council request the commanding officer to bring him down to you, as if you were going to determine his case by conducting a more thorough inquiry. We are ready to kill him before he comes near this place."

So do not let them persuade you to do this, because more than forty of them are lying in ambush for him. They have bound themselves with an oath not to eat or drink anything until they have killed him, and now they are ready, waiting for you to agree to their request."

When Paul had been summoned, Tertullus began to accuse him, saying, "We have experienced a lengthy time of peace through your rule, and reforms are being made in this nation through your foresight.

When you examine him yourself, you will be able to learn from him about all these things we are accusing him of doing."

nor can they prove to you the things they are accusing me of doing.

But there are some Jews from the province of Asia who should be here before you and bring charges, if they have anything against me.

But Festus, wanting to do the Jews a favor, asked Paul, "Are you willing to go up to Jerusalem and be tried before me there on these charges?"

Then Festus said, "King Agrippa, and all you who are present here with us, you see this man about whom the entire Jewish populace petitioned me both in Jerusalem and here, shouting loudly that he ought not to live any longer.

because you are especially familiar with all the customs and controversial issues of the Jews. Therefore I ask you to listen to me patiently.

They know, because they have known me from time past, if they are willing to testify, that according to the strictest party of our religion, I lived as a Pharisee.

a promise that our twelve tribes hope to attain as they earnestly serve God night and day. Concerning this hope the Jews are accusing me, Your Majesty!

When we had all fallen to the ground, I heard a voice saying to me in Aramaic, 'Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me? You are hurting yourself by kicking against the goads.'

So I said, 'Who are you, Lord?' And the Lord replied, 'I am Jesus whom you are persecuting.

to open their eyes so that they turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a share among those who are sanctified by faith in me.'

Agrippa said to Paul, "In such a short time are you persuading me to become a Christian?"

Paul replied, "I pray to God that whether in a short or a long time not only you but also all those who are listening to me today could become such as I am, except for these chains."

and said, 'Do not be afraid, Paul! You must stand before Caesar, and God has graciously granted you the safety of all who are sailing with you.'

For the heart of this people has become dull, and their ears are hard of hearing, and they have closed their eyes, so that they would not see with their eyes and hear with their ears and understand with their heart and turn, and I would heal them."'