delivered up through God's settled purpose and foreknowledge--you by the hands of Gentiles have nailed to a cross and have put to death.

"They did indeed assemble in this city in hostility to Thy holy Servant Jesus whom Thou hadst anointed--Herod and Pontius Pilate with the Gentiles and also the tribes of Israel--

That Tent was bequeathed to the next generation of our forefathers. Under Joshua they brought it with them when they were taking possession of the land of the Gentile nations, whom God drove out before them. So it continued till David's time.

"Go," replied the Lord; "he is a chosen instrument of Mine to carry My name to the Gentiles and to kings and to the descendants of Israel.

He said to them, "You know better than most that a Jew is strictly forbidden to associate with a Gentile or visit him; but God has taught me to call no one unholy or unclean.

And all the Jewish believers who had come with Peter were astonished that on the Gentiles also the gift of the Holy Spirit was poured out.

Now the Apostles, and the brethren in various parts of Judaea, heard that the Gentiles also had received God's Message;

This statement of Peter's silenced his opponents. They extolled the goodness of God, and said, "So, then, to the Gentiles also God has given the repentance which leads to Life."

Then, throwing off all reserve, Paul and Barnabas said, "We were bound to proclaim God's Message to you first. But since you spurn it and judge yourselves to be unworthy of the Life of the Ages--well, we turn to the Gentiles.

For such is the Lord's command to us. "'I have placed Thee,' He says of Christ, 'as a light to the Gentiles, in order that Thou mayest be a Saviour as far as the remotest parts of the earth.'"

The Gentiles listened with delight and extolled the Lord's Message; and all who were pre-destined to the Life of the Ages believed.

But the Jews who had refused obedience stirred up the Gentiles and embittered their minds against the brethren.

And when a hostile movement was made by both Gentiles and Jews, with the sanction of their magistrates, to maltreat and stone them,

Upon their arrival they called the Church together and proceeded to report in detail all that God, working with them, had done, and how He had opened for the Gentiles the door of faith.

So they set out, being accompanied for a short distance by some other members of the Church; and as they passed through Phoenicia and Samaria, they told the whole story of the conversion of the Gentiles and inspired all the brethren with great joy.

But certain men who had belonged to the sect of the Pharisees but were now believers, stood up in the assembly, and said, "Yes, Gentile believers ought to be circumcised and be ordered to keep the Law of Moses."

and after there had been a long discussion Peter rose to his feet. "It is within your own knowledge," he said, "that God originally made choice among you that from my lips the Gentiles were to hear the Message of the Good News, and believe.

Then the whole assembly remained silent while they listened to the statement made by Paul and Barnabas as to all the signs and marvels that God had done among the Gentiles through their instrumentality.

Symeon has related how God first looked graciously on the Gentiles to take from among them a People to be called by His name.

"My judgement, therefore, is against inflicting unexpected annoyance on those of the Gentiles who are turning to God.

and they took with them the following letter: "The Apostles and the elder brethren send greeting to the Gentile brethren throughout Antioch, Syria and Cilicia.

But upon their opposing him with abusive language, he shook his clothes by way of protest, and said to them, "Your ruin will be upon your own heads. I am not responsible: in future I will go among the Gentiles."

When he arrived he took Paul's loincloth, and bound his own feet and arms with it, and said, "Thus says the Holy Spirit, 'So will the Jews in Jerusalem bind the owner of this loincloth, and will hand him over to the Gentiles.'"

After exchanging friendly greetings, Paul told in detail all that God had done among the Gentiles through his instrumentality.

Now what they have been repeatedly told about you is that you teach all the Jews among the Gentiles to abandon Moses, and that you forbid them to circumcise their children or observe old-established customs.

But as for the Gentiles who have accepted the faith, we have communicated to them our decision that they are carefully to abstain from anything sacrificed to an idol, from blood, from what is strangled, and from fornication."

They laid hands on him, crying out, "Men of Israel, help! help! This is the man who goes everywhere preaching to everybody against the Jewish people and the Law and this place. And besides, he has even brought Gentiles into the Temple and has desecrated this holy place."

I will save you from the Jewish people and from the Gentiles, to whom I send you to open their eyes,

but I proceeded to preach first to the people in Damascus, and then to those in Jerusalem and in all Judaea, and to the Gentiles, that they must repent and turn to God, and live lives consistent with such repentance.

since the Christ was to be a suffering Christ, and by coming back from the dead was then to be the first to proclaim a message of light both to the Jewish people and to the Gentiles."

"Be fully assured, therefore, that this salvation--God's salvation--has now been sent to the Gentiles, and that they, at any rate, will give heed."