Therefore select from among you, brothers, seven men of good report, full of the Spirit and of wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business.

whom they set before the apostles. When they had prayed, they laid their hands on them.

But some of those who were of the synagogue called "The Libertines," and of the Cyrenians, of the Alexandrians, and of those of Cilicia and Asia arose, disputing with Stephen.

and set up false witnesses who said, "This man never stops speaking blasphemous words against this holy place and the Law.

All who sat in the council, fastening their eyes on him, saw his face like it was the face of an angel.

until there arose a different king over Egypt, who did not know Joseph.

Seeing one of them suffer wrong, he defended him, and avenged him who was oppressed, striking the Egyptian.

But he who did his neighbor wrong pushed him away, saying, 'Who made you a ruler and a judge over us?

"This Moses, whom they refused, saying, 'Who made you a ruler and a judge?'?God has sent him as both a ruler and a deliverer by the hand of the angel who appeared to him in the bush.

This is that Moses, who said to the children of Israel, 'God will raise up a prophet for you from among your brothers, like me.'

This is he who was in the assembly in the wilderness with the angel that spoke to him on Mount Sinai, and with our fathers, who received words of life to give to us,

to whom our fathers would not be obedient, but rejected him, and turned back in their hearts to Egypt,

saying to Aaron, 'Make us gods that will go before us, for as for this Moses, who led us out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what has become of him.'

"Our fathers had the tabernacle of the testimony in the wilderness, even as he who spoke to Moses commanded him to make it according to the pattern that he had seen;

which also our fathers, in their turn, brought in with Joshua when they entered into the possession of the nations, whom God drove out before the face of our fathers, to the days of David,

who found favor in the sight of God, and asked to find a habitation for the God of Jacob.

Which of the prophets did not your fathers persecute? They killed those who foretold the coming of the Righteous One, of whom you have now become betrayers and murderers.

Therefore those who were scattered abroad went around proclaiming the word.

For unclean spirits came out of many of those who had them. They came out, crying with a loud voice. Many who had been paralyzed and lame were healed.

But there was a certain man, Simon by name, who used to practice sorcery in the city, and amazed the people of Samaria, making himself out to be some great one,

to whom they all listened, from the least to the greatest, saying, "This man is that power of God which is called Great."

Now when the apostles who were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them,

who, when they had come down, prayed for them, that they might receive the Holy Spirit;

He arose and went; and behold, there was a man from Ethiopia, a eunuch of great authority under Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was over all her treasure, who had come to Jerusalem to worship.

In his humiliation, justice was taken away. Who will declare His generation? For his life is taken from the earth."

The eunuch answered Philip, "Who is the prophet talking about? About himself, or about someone else?"

and asked for letters from him to the synagogues of Damascus, that if he found any who were of the Way, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.

He said, "Who are you, Lord?" The Lord said, "I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting.

The men who traveled with him stood speechless, hearing the sound, but seeing no one.

Here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all who call on your name."

Ananias departed, and entered into the house. Laying his hands on him, he said, "Brother Saul, the Lord, who appeared to you on the road by which you came, has sent me, that you may receive your sight, and be filled with the Holy Spirit."

He took food and was strengthened. He stayed several days with the disciples who were at Damascus.

All who heard him were amazed, and said, "Is not this he who in Jerusalem made havoc of those who called on this name? And he had come here intending to bring them bound before the chief priests."

But Saul increased more in strength, and confounded the Jews who lived at Damascus, proving that this is the Messiah.

It happened, as Peter went throughout all those parts, he came down also to the saints who lived at Lydda.

There he found a certain man named Aeneas, who had been bedridden for eight years, because he was paralyzed.

All who lived at Lydda and in Sharon saw him, and they turned to the Lord.

a devout man, and one who feared God with all his house, who gave gifts for the needy generously to the people, and always prayed to God.

Now send men to Joppa, and get Simon, who is surnamed Peter.

When the angel who spoke to him had departed, he called two of his household servants and a devout soldier of those who waited on him continually.

Now while Peter was very perplexed in himself what the vision which he had seen might mean, behold, the men who were sent by Cornelius, having made inquiry for Simon's house, stood before the gate,

and called and asked whether Simon, who was surnamed Peter, was lodging there.

Peter went down to the men, and said, "Behold, I am he whom you seek. Why have you come?"

They said, "Cornelius, a centurion, a righteous man and one who fears God, and well spoken of by all the Jewish nation, was directed by a holy angel to invite you to his house, and to listen to what you say."

He said to them, "You yourselves know how it is an unlawful thing for a man who is a Jew to join himself or come to one of another nation, but God has shown me that I should not call any man unholy or unclean.

Send therefore to Joppa, and summon Simon, who is surnamed Peter. He lodges in the house of Simon, a tanner, by the seaside.'

but in every nation he who fears him and works righteousness is acceptable to him.

even Jesus of Nazareth, how God anointed him with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with him.

We are witnesses of everything he did both in the countryside of Judea, and in Jerusalem; whom they also killed, hanging him on a tree.

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

He commanded us to proclaim to the people and to testify that this is he who is appointed by God as the Judge of the living and the dead.

All the prophets testify about him, that through his name everyone who believes in him will receive remission of sins."

While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell on all those who heard the word.

They of the circumcision who believed were amazed, as many as came with Peter, because the gift of the Holy Spirit was also poured out on the Gentiles.

"Can any man forbid the water, that these who have received the Holy Spirit as well as we should not be baptized?"

Now the apostles and the brothers who were in Judea heard that the Gentiles had also received the word of God.

When Peter had come up to Jerusalem, those who were of the circumcision contended with him,

who will speak to you words by which you will be saved, you and all your house.'

If then God gave to them the same gift as us, when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I, that I could withstand God?"

They therefore who were scattered abroad by the oppression that arose about Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch, speaking the word to no one except to Jews only.

But there were some of them, men of Cyprus and Cyrene, who, when they had come to Antioch, spoke to the Hellenists, proclaiming the Lord Jesus.

who, when he had come, and had seen the grace of God, was glad. He exhorted them all, that with purpose of heart they should remain near to the Lord.

As any of the disciples had plenty, each determined to send relief to the brothers who lived in Judea;

Now in the church that was at Antioch there were some prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen the foster brother of Herod the tetrarch, and Saul.

who was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, a man of understanding. This man summoned Barnabas and Saul, and sought to hear the word of God.

But Saul, who is also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, fastened his eyes on him,

Paul stood up, and beckoning with his hand said, "Men of Israel, and you who fear God, listen.

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

Brothers, children of the stock of Abraham, and those among you who fear God, the word of this salvation is sent out to us.

For those who dwell in Jerusalem, and their rulers, because they did not know him, nor the voices of the prophets which are read every Sabbath, fulfilled them by condemning him.

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

But he whom God raised up saw no decay.

and by him everyone who believes is justified from all things, from which you could not be justified by the Law of Moses.

Now when the synagogue broke up, many of the Jews and of the devout proselytes followed Paul and Barnabas; who, speaking to them, urged them to continue in the grace of God.

Therefore they stayed there a long time, speaking boldly in the Lord, who testified to the word of his grace, granting signs and wonders to be done by their hands.

At Lystra a certain man sat, impotent in his feet, a cripple from his mother's womb, who never had walked.

He was listening to Paul speaking, who, fastening eyes on him, and seeing that he had faith to be made whole,

"Men, why are you doing these things? We also are men of like passions with you, and bring you good news, that you should turn from these vain things to the living God, who made the sky and the earth and the sea, and all that is in them;

who in the generations gone by allowed all the nations to walk in their own ways.

When they had appointed elders for them in every church, and had prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord, on whom they had believed.

But some of the sect of the Pharisees who believed rose up, saying, "It is necessary to circumcise them, and to command them to keep the Law of Moses."

God, who knows the heart, testified about them, giving them the Holy Spirit, just like he did to us.

that the rest of mankind may seek after the Lord, and all the Gentiles who are called by my name,' says the Lord, who makes these things

"Therefore my judgment is that we do not trouble those from among the Gentiles who turn to God,

For Moses from generations of old has in every city those who proclaim him, being read in the synagogues every Sabbath."

They wrote these things by their hand: "The apostles, the elders, and the brothers, to the brothers who are of the Gentiles in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia: greetings.

Because we have heard that some who went out from us have troubled you with words, unsettling your souls, to whom we gave no commandment;

men who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

We have sent therefore Judas and Silas, who themselves will also tell you the same things by word of mouth.

Barnabas planned to take John, who was called Mark, with them also.

But Paul did not think that it was a good idea to take with them someone who had withdrawn from them in Pamphylia, and did not go with them to do the work.

He came to Derbe and Lystra: and behold, a certain disciple was there, named Timothy, the son of a Jewess who believed; but his father was a Greek.

The brothers who were at Lystra and Iconium gave a good testimony about him.

Paul wanted to have him go out with him, and he took and circumcised him because of the Jews who were in those parts; for they all knew that his father was a Greek.

As they went on their way through the cities, they delivered the decrees to them to keep which had been ordained by the apostles and elders who were at Jerusalem.

On the Sabbath day we went forth outside of the gate by a riverside, where we supposed there was a place of prayer, and we sat down, and spoke to the women who had come together.

A certain woman named Lydia, a seller of purple, of the city of Thyatira, one who worshiped God, heard us; whose heart the Lord opened to listen to the things which were spoken by Paul.

It happened, as we were going to prayer, that a certain girl having a spirit of divination met us, who brought her masters much gain by fortune telling.

She followed Paul and us, shouting, "These men are servants of the Most High God, who proclaim to you the way of salvation."

who, having received such a command, threw them into the inner prison, and secured their feet in the stocks.