And then brought them before the Council. The High Priest demanded an explanation from them.

But some members of the Synagogue known as that of Libertines, Cyrenians, Alexandrians, and Visitors from Cilicia and Roman Asia, were roused to action and began disputing with Stephen;

On this, Abraham left the country of the Chaldaeans and settled in Haran; and from there, after his father's death, God caused him to migrate into this very country, in which you are now living.

And their bodies were removed to Shechem, and laid in the tomb which Abraham had bought for a sum of money from the sons of Hamor in Shechem.

This was the Moses who said to the people of Israel--'God will raise up for you, from among your brothers, a Prophet, as he raised up me.'

So God turned from them and left them to the worship of the Starry Host, as is written in the Book of the Prophets--'Did you offer victims and sacrifices to me, O House of Israel, all those forty years in the Desert?

Now those who were scattered in different directions went from place to place proclaiming the Good News.

Meanwhile an angel of the Lord had said to Philip: "Set out on a journey southwards, along the road that runs down from Jerusalem to Gaza." (It is now deserted).

The passage of Scripture which he was reading was this--'Like a sheep, he was led away to slaughter, and as a lamb is dumb in the hands of its shearer, so he refrains from opening his lips.

In his lowly condition justice was denied him. Who will tell the story of his generation? For his life is cut off from earth.'

While on his journey, as he was nearing Damascus, suddenly a light from the heavens flashed around him.

When Saul got up from the ground, though his eyes were open, he could see nothing. So his men led him by the hand, and brought him into Damascus;

"Go at once," said the Lord, "to the 'Straight Street', and ask at Judas's house for a man named Saul, from Tarsus. He is at this moment praying,

"Lord," exclaimed Ananias, "I have heard from many people about this man--how much harm he has done at Jerusalem to your People there.

And, here, too, he holds authority from the Chief Priests to put in chains all those who invoke your Name."

Instantly it seemed as if a film fell from Saul's eyes, and his sight was restored. Then he got up and was baptized,

Peter, while traveling from place to place throughout the country, went down to visit the People of Christ living at Lydda.

One afternoon, about three o'clock, he distinctly saw in a vision an angel from God come to him, and call him by name.

Upon this Peter invited them in and entertained them. The next day he lost no time in setting out with them, accompanied by some of the Brethren from Jaffa;

You yourselves know the story which spread through all Judea, how, beginning form Galilee, after the baptism which John proclaimed--

Not indeed to every one, but to witnesses chosen beforehand by God--to us, who ate and drank with him after his resurrection from the dead.

Those converts from Judaism, who had come with Peter, were amazed that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been bestowed even upon the Gentiles;

But, when Peter went up to Jerusalem, those who were converts from Judaism began to attack him,

Then a second time there came a voice from the heavens. "What God has pronounced 'clean'," it said, "you must not call 'defiled'."

At that moment three men, who had been sent from Caesarea to see me, came up to the house in which we were.

During this time, some Prophets came to Antioch from Jerusalem.

The chains dropped from his wrists, and then the angel said: "Put on your girdle and sandals." When Peter had done so, the angel added: "Throw your cloak round you and follow me."

Then Peter came to himself and said: "Now I know beyond all doubt that the Lord has sent his angel, and has rescued me from Herod's hands and from all that the Jewish people have been expecting."

And, when Herod had made further search for him and failed to find him, he closely questioned the Guard, and ordered them away to execution. Then he went down from Judea to stay at Caesarea.

Barnabas and Saul, sent on this mission, as they were, by the Holy Spirit, went down to Seleucia, and from there sailed to Cyprus.

But Elymas, the astrologer (for that is the meaning of the word), opposed them, eager to divert the Governor's attention from the Faith.

After this, Paul and his companions set sail from Paphos and went to Perga in Pamphylia, where John left them and returned to Jerusalem.

The others went on from Perga and arrived at Antioch in Pisidia. There they went into the Synagogue on the Sabbath and took their seats.

The God of this people Israel chose our ancestors, and during their stay in Egypt increased the prosperity of the people, and then 'with uplifted arm brought them out from that land.'

It was from this man's descendants that God, in accordance with his promise, gave Israel a Savior--Jesus;

They found no ground at all for putting him to death, and yet demanded his execution from Pilate;

And, after carrying out everything written about him, they took Jesus down from the cross, and laid him in a tomb.

But God raised him from the dead;

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

As to his raising Jesus from the dead, never again to return to corruption, this is what is said--'I will give to you the sacred promises made to David;'

But Jesus, whom God raised from the dead, did not undergo corruption.

And that, in union with him, every one who believes in him is absolved from every sin from which under the Law of Moses you could not be absolved.

In the streets of Lystra there used to sit a man who had no power in his feet; he had been lame from his birth, and had never walked.

"We are only men like yourselves, and we have come with the Good News that you should turn away from these follies to a living God, 'who made the heavens, the earth, the sea, and everything that is in them.'

Yet he has not failed to give you, in the good he does, some revelation of himself--sending you from heaven rain and fruitful seasons, and gladdening your hearts with plenty and good cheer."

Even with this appeal they could hardly restrain the people from offering sacrifice to them.

Presently, however, there came some Jews from Antioch, and Iconium who, after they had won over the people, stoned Paul, and dragged him out of the town, thinking him to be dead.

From there they sailed to Antioch--the place where they had been committed to the gracious care of God for the work which they had now finished.

But certain persons came down from Judea, and began to teach the Brethren that, unless they were circumcised, in accordance with the custom enjoined by Moses, they could not be saved.

Simon has described the manner in which God first visited the Gentiles, in order to take from among them a people to bear his Name.

Says the Lord, as he does these things, foreknown from of old.'

But we should write to them to abstain from food that has been polluted by being sacrificed to idols, from impurity, from eating the flesh of strangled animals, and from blood.

As we had heard that some of our number had upset you by their assertions, and unsettled your minds--without instructions from us--

That you abstain from food offered to idols, from blood, from eating the flesh of strangled animals, and from impurity. If you guard yourselves against such things, it will be well with you. Farewell.'

After some stay, they were dismissed with kind farewells from the Brethren, and returned to those who had sent them.

As they traveled from town to town, they gave the Brethren the decisions which had been reached by the Apostles and Officers of the Church at Jerusalem, for them to observe.

So the Churches grew stronger in the Faith, and increased in numbers from day to day.

They next went through the Phrygian district of Galatia, but were restrained by the Holy Spirit from delivering the Message in Roman Asia.

Accordingly we set sail from Troas, and ran before the wind to Samothrace, reaching Neapolis the next day.

From there we made our way to Philippi, which is the principal city of that part of Macedonia, and also a Roman Settlement. In that city we spent several days.

When her masters saw that there was no hope of further profit from her, they seized Paul and Silas, dragged them into the public square to the authorities,

Roused from his sleep, and seeing the prison doors open, the Governor drew his sword intending to kill himself, in the belief that the prisoners had escaped.

And, following his usual custom, Paul joined them, and for three Sabbaths addressed them, drawing his arguments from the Scriptures.

He laid before them and explained that the Christ must undergo suffering and rise from the dead; and "It is this man," he declared, "who is the Christ--this Jesus about whom I am telling you."

But the Jews, becoming jealous, engaged some worthless fellows from the streets, and, getting a mob together, kept the city in an uproar. They attacked Jason's house, with the intention of bringing Paul and Silas before the Popular Assembly;

And, before letting them go, they took bail from Jason and the others.

That they might search for God, if by any means they might feel their way to him and find him. And yet he is not really far from any one of us;

Because he has fixed a day on which he intends to 'judge the world with justice,' by a man whom he has appointed--and of this he has given all men a pledge by raising this man from the dead."

There he met a Jew of the name of Aquila, a native of Pontus, who, with his wife Priscilla, had lately come from Italy, in consequence of the order which had been issued by the Emperor Claudius for all Jews to leave Rome. Paul paid them a visit,

But, when Silas and Timothy had come down from Macedonia, Paul devoted himself entirely to delivering the Message, earnestly maintaining before the Jews that Jesus was the Christ.

However, as they set themselves against him and became abusive, Paul shook his clothes in protest and said to them: "Your blood be on your own heads. My conscience is clear. From this time forward I shall go to the Gentiles."

Saying this, he drove them back from the Bench.

As he took his leave, "I will come back again to you, please God," and then set sail from Ephesus.

However, when they recognized him as a Jew, one cry broke from them all, and they continued shouting for two hours--"Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!"

When the Recorder had succeeded in quieting the crowd, he said: "Men of Ephesus, who is there, I ask you, who needs to be told that this city of Ephesus is the Warden of the Temple of the great Artemis, and of the statue which fell down from Zeus?

He was accompanied by Sopater the son of Pyrrhus, of Beroea, Aristarchus and Secundus from Thessalonica, Gaius of Derbe, and Timothy, as well as by Tychicus and Trophimus of Roman Asia.

While we ourselves sailed from Philippi after the Passover, and joined them five days later at Troas, where we stayed for a week.

And a young man named Eutychus, sitting at the window, was gradually overcome with great drowsiness, as Paul continued his address. At last, quite overpowered by his drowsiness, he fell from the third story to the ground, and was picked up for dead.

The day after we had sailed from there, we arrived off Chios, touched at Samos the following day, and the next day reached Miletus;

From Miletus, however, he sent to Ephesus and invited the Officers of the Church to meet him;

And, when they came, he spoke to them as follows: "You know well the life that I always led among you from the very first day that I set foot in Roman Asia,

I never shrank from telling you anything that could be helpful to you, or from teaching you both in public and in private.

For I have not shrunk from announcing the whole purpose of God regarding you.

And from among yourselves, too, men will arise, who will teach perversions of truth, so as to draw away the disciples after them.

When we had torn ourselves away and had set sail, we ran before the wind to Cos; the next day we came to Rhodes, and from there to Patara,

After we had made the run from Tyre, we landed at Ptolemais, and exchanged greetings with the Brethren there, and spent a day with them.

During our visit, which lasted several days, a Prophet, named Agabus, came down from Judea.

Some of the disciples from Caesarea went with us, and brought Mnason with them, a Cypriot disciple of long standing, with whom we were to stay.

But, just as the seven days were drawing to a close, the Jews from Roman Asia caught sight of Paul in the Temple, and caused great excitement among all the people present, by seizing Paul and shouting:

And to that the High Priest himself and all the Council can testify. For I had letters of introduction from them to our fellow Jews at Damascus, and I was on my way to that place, to bring those whom I might find there prisoners to Jerusalem for punishment.

While I was still on my way, just as I was getting close to Damascus, about mid-day, suddenly there flashed from the heavens a great light all round me.

Then he said 'The God of our ancestors has appointed you to learn his will, and to see the Righteous One, and to hear words from his lips;

The dispute was becoming so violent, that the Commanding Officer, fearing that Paul would be torn in pieces between them, ordered the Guard to go down and rescue him from them, and take him into the Fort.

As soon as Felix had read the letter, he enquired to what province Paul belonged, and, learning that he came from Cilicia, he said:

On a sign from the Governor, Paul made this reply: "Knowing, as I do, for how many years you have acted as Judge to this nation, it is with confidence that I undertake my own defense.

There were, however, some Jews from Roman Asia who ought to have been here before you, and to have made any charge that they may have against me--

So he gave orders to the Captain in charge of Paul to keep him in custody, but to relax the regulations, and not to prevent any of his personal friends from attending to his wants.

He was hoping, too, for a bribe from Paul, and so he used to send for him frequently and talk with him.

On Paul's appearance, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem surrounded him, and made many serious charges, which they failed to establish.

My life, then, from youth upwards, was passed, from the very first, among my own nation, and in Jerusalem, and is within the knowledge of all Jews;