And they said to her, "You are crazy." But she insisted that [what she reported] was true. They replied, "It is [only] his angel."

But Peter continued to knock and when they [finally] opened [the door] they saw that it [really] was Peter and were amazed.

and said, "You child of the devil; you enemy of all that is right; you are full of deceit and every kind of evil [thing]. When will you stop perverting the right ways of the Lord?

Now look, the power of the Lord is coming on you to cause [such] blindness that you will not [even] be able to see the sun for awhile." And immediately a misty darkness fell on him and he kept trying to find people to lead him [around] by the hand.

Now Paul and his companions sailed from Paphos and arrived at Perga [a town in the province] of Pamphylia. [It was here that] John Mark left the party [of evangelists and attendants] and returned to [his home in] Jerusalem. [See 12:12].

And after the reading of the law of Moses and [the writings of] the prophets, the rulers of the synagogue sent [word] to Paul and Barnabas, saying, "Brothers, if you [men] have any message that will exhort [or encourage] the people, you may speak."

"After that He gave the people judges [i.e., local military rulers] until the time of Samuel the [first] prophet. [See 3:24].

And after that the people asked for a king [to rule their nation] so God gave them Saul, the son of Kish, from the [Israelite] tribe of Benjamin, who ruled as king for forty years.

And when God removed him [from the throne of Israel] He raised up David to be their king. God said about him, 'I have found David, the son of Jesse, to be a man close to my heart [i.e., whom I loved very much] and he will do all that I want him to.'

His coming occurred after John [the Immerser] had preached to Israel that those who repented should be immersed [as evidence that they had done so].

For the people living in Jerusalem, together with their ruling officials, did not understand [that Jesus was the Messiah] or what the message of the prophets, which is read every Sabbath day, really meant. So, [because of this] they [actually] made these Scripture predictions come true by condemning Jesus.

And when they had done everything that was predicted about Him, they took Jesus down from the tree [i.e., the cross] and placed Him in a tomb.

so that He was seen for many days by those [apostles] who came with Him from Galilee to Jerusalem. These men are now His witnesses before the people.

"Brothers, you should know, therefore, that forgiveness of sins is being proclaimed [to people] through this man [Jesus],

and [it is] by Him that every believer is made right with God in every way that he could not have been made right by [observing the requirements of] the law of Moses.

Beware that what was spoken by the prophets does not happen to you:

[Hab. 1:5 says], "Look, you people who despise [God], and be amazed [at what He can do] and be destroyed [for rejecting Him]; for I [i.e., God] will accomplish such a work during your days that you will not believe [it could happen, even] if someone told you about it."

But Paul and Barnabas [continued to] speak out boldly, saying, "It was necessary that the message of God be delivered to you [Jews] first. But since you have rejected it and [thereby] consider yourselves to be unworthy of [receiving] never ending life, we [i.e., Paul and Barnabas] will now begin proclaiming it to the [unconverted] Gentiles.

For the Lord commanded us to do this by saying, 'I have appointed you to be a light to the [unconverted] Gentiles, so that you should be [the occasion] for [bringing] salvation to the farthest corner of the earth.' "

It happened in Iconium that Paul and Barnabas [again] entered the Jewish synagogue and presented the message [so powerfully] that a large number of both Jews and Greeks [i.e., Gentiles] became believers.

As he listened to Paul, [the apostle] looked at him intently, perceiving that he had [enough] faith to be fully healed [of his lame condition],

"Gentlemen, why are you doing these things? [Do you not know that] we are also human beings with the same kind of feelings that you have? And we are just bringing you the good news that you should turn away from these useless things [i.e., idol worship] and [turn] to the living God, who created the heavens, the earth, the sea, and everything in them.

When they had preached the good news to that town, and had led many to become disciples, they returned to Lystra, [then] to Derbe, and [then on] to Antioch [in Pisidia].

[Along the way] they strengthened the hearts of the disciples, urging them to continue [to believe and practice] the faith and [explaining] that entering God's [heavenly] kingdom [See II Tim. 4:18] requires enduring many trials.

And when they arrived [in Antioch of Syria], they gathered the church together and reported everything that God had done through them and how He had opened a door [of opportunity] for the [unconverted] Gentiles to [enter] the faith.

After Paul and Barnabas had a heated debate and argued with these men [over this issue], the brothers [of the Antioch church] decided that Paul and Barnabas, along with certain others, should go up to Jerusalem and discuss the question with the apostles and elders there.

When they arrived in Jerusalem they were welcomed by the church, together with the apostles and elders, and then reported everything that God had done through their ministry.

And after many questions were asked [about it] Peter stood up and addressed the assembly [including the former Pharisees who were now brothers]: "Brothers, you are aware that some time ago God decided that, from among your number, it would be through my ministry that the Gentiles would hear and believe the Gospel message.

For we believe that [both] we [Jews] and they [Gentiles] will be saved in the same way, through the unearned favor of the Lord Jesus."

so that the rest of mankind, including all the Gentiles [or nations], may seek after the Lord and be called by my name.

We have heard that certain [men] who left here have been upsetting you people and [even] undermining [some people's] spiritual lives by what they have been teaching. This was done without our authorization [or approval].

For it was the judgment of the Holy Spirit, and we agreed, that no greater burden be placed on you people than the following necessary things:

Avoid [eating] things sacrificed to idols; avoid [drinking] blood; avoid [eating] things [that were] strangled [to death] and avoid sexual immorality. If you avoid [all] these things, you will be doing well. Goodbye."

A heated discussion developed [over this matter] so that Paul and Barnabas went their separate ways [over it], with Barnabas sailing for Cyprus and taking [John] Mark with him.

Paul wanted him to travel with him [on a preaching mission] so he had him circumcised in order to avoid prejudice by the Jews in that area, for everyone knew that his father was a Greek.

And as they traveled through the towns [of Asia Minor] they presented [to each church] the requirements they were to observe that had been decided on by the apostles and elders of the Jerusalem church.

After seeing [the man in] the vision, we immediately made every effort to go to Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to proclaim the good news [about Jesus] to the people there. [Note: This is first use of "we" and "us" in the book of Acts and indicates that Luke, the writer of Acts, joined the party at this point. See 1:1 with Luke 1:1-3].

And when she was immersed [into Christ], along with her household [i.e., possibly relatives and/or employees] she urged us, saying, "If you consider me to be a faithful disciple of the Lord, come and stay at my house." And she insisted that we go [to her house].

At a later time, when we were going to that [same] place of prayer, we met a certain young woman who was dominated by an [evil] spirit, [claiming to be] able to tell people's fortunes. This [claimed] power was the source of considerable income for the girl's slave-owner.

But when the girl's slave-owners saw that their prospects for income [from her activities] were [now] gone, they grabbed Paul and Silas and dragged them to the open shopping market, in front of the authorities.

The jailor, who was awakened from sleep [by the commotion] saw the jail doors open so drew his [short] sword and prepared to kill himself, assuming that all the prisoners had escaped. [Note: He would have faced a humiliating execution himself if he had allowed capital offense criminals to escape. With that prospect in view, it was considered honorable by the Romans for a person to commit suicide].

So, the officers reported what Paul had said and the city officials became fearful when they learned that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens.

Now when they [Note: A change from the use of "we" to "they" suggests that the writer Luke remained behind in Philippi at this point] had traveled through the [Macedonian] towns of Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to [the city of] Thessalonica where there was a Jewish synagogue.

explaining and declaring that it was necessary for Christ to suffer and [then] rise again from the dead. Paul was saying, "This Jesus, whom I am proclaiming to you, is the Christ."

Some of the Jews were convinced [that Jesus was the Messiah] and so joined with Paul and Silas. Also, a large number of devoted Greeks [i.e., Gentiles] and leading women [joined their group].

Jason has welcomed them and [now] all of them [i.e., Paul, Silas, Jason and the others] are going against the [Roman] laws of Caesar by saying that someone else is [our] king; that Jesus is [king]!"

But when the Jews of Thessalonica learned that Paul was proclaiming the message of God at Berea also, they went there too, and incited and upset the crowds.

Then Paul stood up in the Areopagus and said, "You men of Athens, I noticed that you are an extremely religious people in all your ways. [See verse 16]

He wanted these people to search for God in hope that, by groping for Him, they might [eventually] find Him, even though He is not [really] very far from [any of] us.

Since therefore we are God's children, we should not think that the Deity is like gold, silver or stone, to be carved [into an idol] by the design and skill of men.

For He has appointed a [certain] day when He will judge the people of the world according to [a standard of] true justice by the man [i.e., Jesus] whom He has appointed [as Judge, See II Tim. 4:8]. [And] He has given assurance to all people [that He will do this] by raising Jesus from the dead."

There he met a certain Jewish man named Aquila, a native of Pontus, [in northern Asia Minor] who, with his wife Priscilla, had recently come from Rome, because Claudius [the Roman Emperor] had ordered all Jews out of that city. Paul met this couple

Every Sabbath day Paul held discussions in the synagogues, trying to convince [both] Jews and Greeks [i.e., Gentiles, that Jesus was the Messiah].

But when Silas and Timothy arrived from Macedonia [i.e., from the town of Berea], Paul began devoting his full time to declaring the message to Jews that Jesus was the Christ.

For Apollos effectively refuted [the position of] the Jews, publicly proving, by using the [Old Testament] Scriptures, that Jesus was the Christ.

He asked them, "Did [any of] you receive the [indwelling] Holy Spirit when you became believers [in Jesus]?" They answered him, "No, we have never [even] heard that there was a Holy Spirit."

This continued for two years so that all the Jews and Greeks [i.e., Gentiles] who lived in [the province of] Asia heard the message of the Lord.

such as sick people, who were given hand towels or [leather] aprons that had touched Paul's body, being healed from diseases and delivered from evil spirits.

But certain traveling Jews, who practiced exorcism, decided that they too would attempt to speak the name of the Lord over people dominated of evil spirits while saying, "I command you [evil spirits to come out] by [the authority of] Jesus whom Paul preaches."

The man with the evil spirit then jumped on all of them, took control, then overpowered them so that they ran out of the house with their clothes torn off and badly beaten.

About that time a large disturbance arose [in Ephesus] concerning "the Way."

He called a meeting of his men and others involved in the same work and said to them, "Fellows, you know that we have made a good living from this work [of making temple replicas].

And now you have seen and heard, not only here in Ephesus, but throughout almost all of [the province of] Asia, that this Paul has been convincing people, [even] to the point of turning many away [from idol worship]. [He is] saying that hand-made gods [like we make] are not real [gods at all].

And not only is there a [real] danger that our trade will be discredited but also that the temple of our great goddess Artemis will be considered worthless and that even she [herself] will be dethroned from her magnificent place of being adored by all [in the province of] Asia and the world."

[It appears that] Alexander was appointed out of the crowd by the Jews [i.e., to be their spokesman in defending them from the charges being made against Paul]. He motioned with his hand [to get attention] and attempted to speak to the assembly in defense [of the Jewish viewpoint].

But when the crowd realized that he was a Jew, they all joined together for about two hours shouting, "Great is [the goddess] Artemis, of the Ephesians."

When the town clerk had quieted down the crowd, he said, "You people of Ephesus, who among you does not know that the city of Ephesus is caretaker of the temple of the great Artemis and of her image, which fell down from the sky?

where he spent three months. Then, just as he was about to set sail for Syria, Paul discovered that a plot was being laid against him by the Jews, so he decided to return through Macedonia.

These [men] had gone ahead and were waiting for us [when we arrived] in Troas [i.e., a seaport town across the Aegean Sea from Philippi]. [Note: The use of "us" begins here again, suggesting that the writer Luke rejoins the party at Philippi. See next verse].

And on the first day of the week [i.e., Sunday], when we [disciples] had gathered together to break bread [i.e., the Lord's Supper. See I Cor. 11:20-24], Paul delivered a message that lasted until midnight, [since] he was planning to leave [Troas] the next day.

After that Paul went upstairs, broke bread and ate [a common meal]. [Following the meal] Paul talked with them for a long time, even until it got daylight, and then he left.

And from Miletus Paul sent to Ephesus, requesting that the elders of the church [there] come to him.

[You know that] I served the Lord with humility, with tears and with trials that I experienced as the result of plots by the Jews.

[You know how] I testified to both Jews and Greeks [i.e., Gentiles], that they must repent [i.e., change their attitudes and behavior] toward God, and have faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ.

except that the Holy Spirit reveals to me in every city [I visit] that chains and persecutions await me there.

Now look, I know that none of you, among whom I traveled on preaching missions, will ever see my face again.

Therefore, I [must] declare to you today that I am not responsible for what happens to any of you.

[Because] I know that after I am gone [from here] there will be vicious wolves [i.e., ravaging false teachers] who will come in among you, and they will not spare the flock [i.e., the congregation].

So, be very watchful, and remember that for three years I never stopped warning every one of you [about such matters] both night and day with tears [in my eyes].

[You know that] I had no greedy desire for anyone's silver, gold or clothing.

You [also] know that I worked with my own hands to provide not only my own needs, but the needs of those who were with me.

I have demonstrated before you a [good] example in all [these] things, so that you [too] will work hard to help those who are [physically] weak. [Also] remember the words of the Lord Jesus who Himself said, 'It is a greater blessing [for you] to give [to people's needs] than to receive [help yourselves].' "

What saddened them most of all was when Paul said that they would never see his face again. Then they accompanied him to his ship.

When he met with us, he took Paul's belt, tied his own hands and feet [with it], and said, "The Holy Spirit has revealed [to me] that the man who owns this belt will be tied up like this by the Jews in Jerusalem and will be turned over to the Gentiles."

[But] Paul answered, "What are you trying to do [by your] crying and breaking my heart [like this]? [Do you not know that] I am ready, not only to be chained up, but also to die at Jerusalem for the name of the Lord Jesus?"

And after greeting them Paul reported one by one the things that God had brought about among the Gentiles through his ministry.

Now these Jewish Christians have been informed that you are teaching all the Jews living among the Gentiles to give up [following the teaching of] Moses, [even] telling them not to circumcise their children and not to practice the [other] customs [of the Jewish religion].

What do you think will happen when they hear that you have come [here to Jerusalem]?

Take these men and observe the ceremony of purification with them, pay their expenses so they can shave their heads [i.e., to signify that they are making a vow] and [then] everyone will know that there is no truth in what people have been told about you, but that you, too, are living properly and observing the law of Moses.

But concerning Gentile believers, we wrote [to them] our decision, that they should avoid [eating] things sacrificed to idols, from [drinking] blood, from [eating] what is strangled and from sexual immorality."

shouting, "[You] Israelites, help [us]! This man is teaching people everywhere [to be] against our people [i.e., the Jews], the law of Moses and this place [i.e., the Temple]; and in addition to that he has also brought Greeks [i.e., Gentiles] into the Temple and has [thereby] contaminated this holy place."

And as they were attempting to kill Paul, the commander of the military unit was informed that the entire city of Jerusalem was rioting.

for the crowds that followed were [pressing in on them] shouting, "Kill him."

"And then it suddenly happened, about noon, as I was traveling and got close to Damascus, that this brilliant light from the sky flashed all around me.

came and stood beside me and said, 'Brother Saul, regain your sight.' And at that very moment I looked at him [fully able to see again].

"And it happened that when I returned to Jerusalem and was praying in the Temple, I fell into a trance [i.e., a semi-conscious vision-like state].

And I replied, 'Lord, they know very well that I am [the one] who imprisoned and beat the believers [who assembled] in every synagogue,

the commander ordered Paul to be brought to headquarters and requested that he be interrogated by means of a flogging, in order to learn the reason why people were shouting against him.

Then those who were about to interrogate Paul [with whips] immediately left him, and the commander also became fearful when he realized that he had chained a Roman citizen [illegally].

[Upon hearing this], the head priest Ananias ordered that those standing closest to Paul hit him on the mouth.