not to all the people but to us who were chosen by God as witnesses, who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead.

Of him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name."

And he ordered them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked him to stay on for a few days.

So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers criticized him,

and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. So for a whole year they met with the church and taught great numbers of people; and the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch.

When he had seized him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four squads of soldiers to guard him, intending after the Passover to bring him out to the people.

So Peter was kept in prison, but earnest prayer for him was made to God by the church.

The very night when Herod was about to bring him out, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and sentries before the door were guarding the prison.

And behold, an angel of the Lord suddenly appeared, and a light shone in the cell; and he struck Peter's side and woke him up, saying, "Get up quickly." And the chains fell off his hands.

And the angel said to him, "Dress yourself and put on your sandals." And he did so. And he said to him, "Wrap your cloak around you and follow me."

So he went out and followed him; and he did not know that what was done by the angel was real, but thought he was seeing a vision.

When they had passed the first and the second guard, they came to the iron gate leading into the city. It opened for them by itself, and they went out and passed on through one street; and immediately the angel left him.

But Peter continued knocking; and when they opened the door, they saw him and were amazed.

But motioning to them with his hand to be silent, he described to them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. And he said, "Tell this to James and to the brethren." Then he left and went to another place.

When Herod had searched for him and could not find him, he examined the guards and ordered that they be put to death. Then he went down from Judea to Caesarea and stayed there a while.

Now he was angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon; and they came to him in a body, and having persuaded Blastus, the king's chamberlain, they asked for peace, because their country depended on the king's country for food.

Immediately an angel of the Lord struck him because he did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and died.

But Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him

Now, behold, the hand of the Lord is upon you, and you will be blind and unable to see the sun for a time." And immediately a mist and a darkness fell upon him, and he went about seeking someone to lead him by the hand.

And after he had removed him, he raised up David to be their king; concerning whom he testified and said, 'I have found in David the son of Jesse a man after my heart, who will do all my will.'

For those who live in Jerusalem and their rulers, because they did not recognize him nor the utterances of the prophets which are read every Sabbath, fulfilled these by condemning him.

Though they found no ground for a death sentence, they asked Pilate to have him executed.

When they had carried out all that was written about him, they took him down from the tree and laid him in a tomb.

But God raised him from the dead;

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

As for the fact that he raised him from the dead, no more to return to decay, he spoke in this way: 'I will give you the holy and sure blessings of David.'

Therefore let it be known to you, brethren, that through him forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you,

and through him everyone who believes is freed from everything from which you could not be freed by the law of Moses.

He listened to Paul speaking; and Paul, looking intently at him and seeing that he had faith to be made well,

But Jews came there from Antioch and Iconium; and having won over the crowds, they stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, supposing that he was dead.

But after the disciples had gathered around him, he got up and entered the city. And the next day he went with Barnabas to Derbe.

For Moses from ancient generations has in every city those who preach him, since he is read in the synagogues every Sabbath."

There arose such a sharp disagreement that they separated from one another, and Barnabas took Mark with him and sailed away to Cyprus.

Paul wanted this man to accompany him; and he took him and circumcised him because of the Jews who were in those places, for they all knew that his father was a Greek.

A vision appeared to Paul in the night: a man of Macedonia was standing and begging him, and saying, "Come over to Macedonia and help us."

They spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all who were in his house.

Now those who escorted Paul brought him as far as Athens; and receiving a command for Silas and Timothy to come to him as soon as possible, they left.

Now while Paul was waiting for them at Athens, his spirit was provoked within him as he saw that the city was full of idols.

And also some of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers were conversing with him. Some said, "What would this idle babbler wish to say?" Others, "He seems to be a proclaimer of foreign deities,"because he was preaching Jesus and the resurrection.

And they took hold of him and brought him to the Areopagus, saying, "May we know what this new teaching is which you present?

that they would seek God, if perhaps they might grope for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us.

'For in him we live and move and have our being,' as even some of your own poets have said, 'We are his offspring.'

because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed, and of this he has given proof to all men by raising him from the dead."

But some men joined him and believed, among whom also were Dionysius the Areopagite and a woman named Damaris and others with them.

But when they opposed him and blasphemed, he shook out his garments and said to them, "Your blood be on your own heads! I am clean. From now on I will go to the Gentiles."

Crispus, the ruler of the synagogue, believed in the Lord, together with all his household; and many of the Corinthians who heard him believed and were baptized.

But while Gallio was proconsul of Achaia, the Jews made a united attack upon Paul and brought him before the judgment seat,

And they all seized Sosthenes, the ruler of the synagogue, and beat him in front of the judgment seat. But Gallio paid no attention to this.

After this Paul stayed many days longer, and then took leave of the brethren and sailed for Syria, and with him were Priscilla and Aquila. In Cenchrea he had his hair cut, for he had taken a vow.

When they asked him to stay for a longer time, he declined;

And he began to speak out boldly in the synagogue. But when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately.

And when he wanted to go across to Achaia, the brethren encouraged him and wrote to the disciples to welcome him. When he had arrived, he greatly helped those who had believed through grace,

Paul said, "John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in the one who was coming after him, that is, in Jesus."

But when some were stubborn and disbelieved, speaking evil of the Way before the congregation, he withdrew from them, and took the disciples with him, reasoning daily in the hall of Tyrannus.

Paul wanted to go in among the crowd, but the disciples would not let him.

Some of the Asiarchs also, who were friends of his, sent to him and begged him not to venture into the theater.

Some of the crowd prompted Alexander, since the Jews had put him forward. And Alexander motioned with his hand, wishing to make a defense to the people.

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

There he spent three months, and when a plot was made against him by the Jews as he was about to set sail for Syria, he decided to return through Macedonia.

But Paul went down and fell on him, and after embracing him, he said, "Do not be alarmed, for his life is in him."

And when he met us at Assos, we took him on board and came to Mitylene.

From Miletus he sent to Ephesus and called to him the elders of the church.

And when they came to him, he said to them: "You yourselves know how I lived the whole time I was with you, from the first day that I set foot in Asia,

And they all wept and embraced Paul and kissed him,

grieving most of all over the word which he had spoken, that they would not see his face again. And they accompanied him to the ship.

On the next day we left and came to Caesarea, and entering the house of Philip the evangelist, who was one of the seven, we stayed with him.

And coming to us, he took Paul's belt and bound his own feet and hands, and said, "This is what the Holy Spirit says, 'In this way the Jews at Jerusalem will bind the man who owns this belt and deliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.'"

When we heard this, we and the people there begged him not to go up to Jerusalem.

And when they heard it, they glorified God. And they said to him, "You see, brother, how many thousands there are among the Jews of those who have believed; they are all zealous for the law,

When the seven days were almost over, the Jews from Asia, upon seeing him in the temple, stirred up all the crowd and laid hands on him,

For they had previously seen Trophimus the Ephesian in the city with him, and they supposed that Paul had brought him into the temple.

Then all the city was aroused, and the people rushed together, and taking hold of Paul they dragged him out of the temple, and immediately the gates were shut.

While they were trying to kill him, a report came up to the commander of the Roman cohort that all Jerusalem was in confusion.

Then the commander came up and arrested him, and ordered him to be bound with two chains. He inquired who he was and what he had done.

Some in the crowd shouted one thing, and some another; and as he could not learn the facts because of the uproar, he ordered him to be brought into the barracks.

for the mob of the people followed, shouting, "Away with him!"

When he had given him permission, Paul, standing on the steps, motioned to the people with his hand; and when there was a great hush, he spoke to them in the Hebrew language, saying,

came to me, and standing near said to me, 'Brother Saul, receive your sight!' And at that very time I looked up at him.

For you will be a witness for him to all men of what you have seen and heard.

and saw him saying to me, 'Make haste, and get out of Jerusalem quickly, because they will not accept your testimony about me.'

When the blood of Stephen your witness was shed, I also was standing by and approving, and keeping the garments of those who were killing him.'

Up to this word they listened to him, and then they raised their voices and said, "Away with such a fellow from the earth! For he ought not to live."

the commander ordered him to be brought into the barracks, and commanded him to be examined by scourging so that he might find out the reason why they were shouting against him that way.

But when they stretched him out with thongs, Paul said to the centurion who was standing by, "Is it lawful for you to scourge a man who is a Roman citizen and uncondemned?"

When the centurion heard this, he went to the commander and told him, saying, "What are you about to do? For this man is a Roman citizen."

So the commander came and said to him, "Tell me, are you a Roman citizen?" And he said, "Yes."

So those who were about to examine him withdrew from him immediately; and the commander also was afraid when he realized that Paul was a Roman citizen and that he had put him in chains.

But on the next day, wishing to know for certain why he had been accused by the Jews, he released him and ordered the chief priests and all the Council to assemble, and brought Paul down and set him before them.

The high priest Ananias commanded those standing beside him to strike him on the mouth.

Then Paul said to him, "God shall strike you, you whitewashed wall! Do you sit to judge me according to the law, and yet contrary to the law you order me to be struck?"

There occurred a great uproar; and some of the scribes of the Pharisees' party stood up and began to argue heatedly, saying, "We find nothing wrong with this man. What if a spirit or an angel has spoken to him?"

The dispute became so violent that the commander was afraid Paul would be torn to pieces by them and ordered the troops to go down and take him away from them by force, and bring him into the barracks.

The following night the Lord stood by him and said, "Take courage, for as you have testified about me at Jerusalem, so you must bear witness also at Rome."

You therefore, along with the council, give notice now to the commander to bring him down to you, as though you were going to determine his case more exactly. And we are ready to kill him before he comes near."

Paul called one of the centurions and said, "Take this young man to the commander; for he has something to tell him."

So he took him and brought him to the commander and said, "Paul the prisoner called me and asked me to bring this young man to you, since he has something to tell you."

The commander took him by the hand, and going aside asked him privately, "What is it that you have to tell me?"

And he said, "The Jews have agreed to ask you to bring Paul down tomorrow to the Council, as though they were going to inquire somewhat more thoroughly about him.

But do not yield to them; for more than forty of them are waiting in ambush for him, having bound themselves by an oath neither to eat nor drink until they have killed him; and now they are ready, waiting for the promise from you."

So the commander dismissed the young man, instructing him, "Tell no one that you have informed me of this."