but in every nation the person who fears God and does what is right [by seeking Him] is acceptable and welcomed by Him.

He has sent his word to the descendants of Israel and brought them the good news of peace through Jesus the Messiah. This man is the Lord of everyone.

ye know; the testimony which has spread through the whole of Judaea, beginning from Galilee after the baptism which John preached --

And He has commanded us to preach to the people and solemnly declare that this is He who has been appointed by God to be the Judge of the living and the dead.

To him all the prophets give witness, that through his name everyone who has faith in him will have forgiveness of sins.

saying, Thou wentest in to men uncircumcised and hast eaten with them.

And I said, In no wise, Lord, for common or unclean has never entered into my mouth.

And a voice answered the second time out of heaven, What God has cleansed, do not thou make common.

If then God has given them the same gift as also to us when we had believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, who indeed was I to be able to forbid God?

And when they heard these things they held their peace, and glorified God, saying, Then indeed God has to the nations also granted repentance to life.

And Peter, being come to himself, said, Now I know certainly that the Lord has sent forth his angel and has taken me out of the hand of Herod and all the expectation of the people of the Jews.

Of this man's seed according to promise has God brought to Israel a Saviour, Jesus;

Brethren, sons of Abraham's race, and those who among you fear God, to you has the word of this salvation been sent:

to you therefore we declare, that the promise which God had made to the fathers, he has now perform'd to us, who are their children, by his having raised up Jesus again.

that God has fulfilled this to us their children, having raised up Jesus; as it is also written in the second psalm, Thou art my Son: this day have I begotten thee.

But that he has raised him from the dead, no more going to return to decay, he has spoken in this way: 'I will give you the reliable divine decrees of David.'

And through him everyone who has faith is made free from all those things, from which the law of Moses was not able to make you free.

Then beware, lest the word which has been spoken by the prophets may come upon you;

for thus has the Lord enjoined us: I have set thee for a light of the nations, that thou shouldest be for salvation to the end of the earth.

He having heard Paul speaking, who having looked intently upon him, and seen that he has faith to be cured,

who in past ages has let all Nations proceed in their own ways.

and yet by His beneficence He has not left His existence unattested--His beneficence, I mean, in sending you rain from Heaven and fruitful seasons, satisfying your hearts with food and joyfulness."

And God, who knows the heart, has testified to them by giving them the Holy Spirit just as he did to us,

Simon has related how God first visited to take out of the nations a people for his name.

And to this corresponds the words of the prophet; as has been written,

‘After these things I will return,
And I will rebuild the tent of David which has fallen;
I will rebuild its ruins,
And I will restore it,

So that the rest of mankind may seek the Lord,
And all the Gentiles upon whom My name has been invoked,’

Says the Lord,
Who has been making these things known from long ago.

but that we write to them that they are to abstain from anything that has been contaminated by [being offered to] idols and from sexual impurity and from [eating the meat of] what has been strangled and from [the consumption of] blood.

For Moses, from generations of old, has in every city those who preach him, being read in the synagogues every sabbath.

it has been decided by us, having met together, to select men and send them to you with our beloved Barnabas and Paul,

For it has seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to lay upon you no greater burden than these necessary things:

that you abstain from things sacrificed to idols, and from [consuming] blood, and from [eating the meat of] things that have been strangled, and from sexual impurity. If you keep yourselves from these things, you will do well. Farewell.”

whom Jason has received; and these all do contrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying, that there is another king, Jesus.

But these were more noble than those in Thessalonica, who received the word with all willingness, examining the Scriptures daily, if it has these things this way.

A few of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers also encountered him. Some of them asked, "What has this beggarly babbler to say?" "His business," said others, "seems to be to cry up some foreign gods." This was because he had been telling the Good News of Jesus and the Resurrection.

The God who has made the world and all things which are in it, he, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands,

and has made of one blood every nation of men to dwell upon the whole face of the earth, having determined ordained times and the boundaries of their dwelling,

Therefore, as the offspring of God, we must not think that the Deity has any resemblance to anything made of gold, or silver, or stone--a work of human art and imagination.

Therefore [although] God has overlooked the times of ignorance, he now commands all people everywhere to repent,

because he has set a day in which he is going to judge the habitable earth in righteousness by the man whom he has appointed, giving the proof of it to all in having raised him from among the dead.

and ye see and hear that this Paul has persuaded and turned away a great crowd, not only of Ephesus, but almost of all Asia, saying that they are no gods which are made with hands.

for we are in danger of being charged with sedition for what has happened this day, there being no cause by which we can give a reason for this concourse.

And when they had come, he said to them, You yourselves have seen what my life has been like all the time from the day when I first came into Asia,

But even the sacrifice of my life I count as nothing, if only I may perfect my earthly course, and be faithful to the duty which the Lord Jesus has entrusted to me of proclaiming, as of supreme importance, the Good News of God's grace.

Take heed therefore to yourselves, and to all the flock, wherein the Holy Spirit has set you as overseers, to shepherd the assembly of God, which he has purchased with the blood of his own.

And now I commend you to the Lord and to the Message of his Love--a Message which has the power to build up your characters, and to give you your place among all those who have become Christ's People.

my constant example has shown you that the disabled should be assisted by your labours, remembring the words of the Lord Jesus, who said, "it is a greater happiness to give than to receive."

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."

what then is it? certainly the multitude it behoveth to come together, for they will hear that thou hast come.

these take, and perform the rites of purification with them, contributing to the expence of having their heads shav'd: this will convince them, what has been reported of you, is all groundless, and that you stick to the observances of the law.

But with regard to the Gentiles who have believed [in Christ], we have sent them a letter with our decision that they should abstain from meat sacrificed to idols and from [consuming] blood and from [the meat of] what has been strangled and from sexual immorality.”

crying, Israelites, help! this is the man who teaches all everywhere against the people, and the law, and this place, and has brought Greeks too into the temple, and profaned this holy place.

And while seeking to kill him, a report went up to the chief captain of the band, that all Jerusalem has been stirred up.

Then the commander came up and seized him; he ordered him to be bound with a couple of chains, and asked "Who is he?" and "What has he done?"

And being about to be brought into the camp, Paul says to the captain of a thousand, Is it lawful for me to speak anything to thee? and he said, Hast thou knowledge in Greek?

And I asked, "'What am I to do, Lord?' "And the Lord said to me, "'Rise, and go into Damascus. There you shall be told of all that has been appointed for you to do.'

And he said, The God of our fathers has chosen thee beforehand to know his will, and to see the just one, and to hear a voice out of his mouth;

For thou shalt be his witness unto all men of what thou hast seen and heard.

And when they had put leather bands round him, Paul said to the captain who was present, Is it the law for you to give blows to a man who is a Roman and has not been judged?

But the next day the commander released Paul [from the chains] because he wanted to know what specific charges the Jews has against him. So, he ordered the leading priests and the entire [Jewish] Council to assemble, then brought Paul down and placed him in front of them.

And Paul, looking fixedly at the Sanhedrin, said, My brothers, my life has been upright before God till this day.

And Paul said, Brother, I had no idea that he was the high priest: for it has been said, You may not say evil about the ruler of your people.

And there was a great clamour, and the scribes of the Pharisees' part rising up contended, saying, We find nothing evil in this man; and if a spirit has spoken to him, or an angel ...

And the night following the Lord stood by him, and said, Be of good cheer, Paul: for as thou hast testified of me in Jerusalem, so must thou bear witness also at Rome.

And Paul, having called one of the centurions, said, Take this youth to the chiliarch, for he has something to report to him.

He therefore, having taken him with him, led him to the chiliarch, and says, The prisoner Paul called me to him and asked me to lead this youth to thee, who has something to say to thee.

Then the chief captain took him by the hand, and went with him aside privately, and asked him, What is that thou hast to tell me?

So the chief captain then let the young man depart, and charged him, See thou tell no man that thou hast shewed these things to me.

Since a plot against the man has been reported to me, I'm sending him to you at once, and I've also ordered his accusers to present their charges against him before you."

So Paul was sent for, and Tertullus began to impeach him as follows: "Indebted as we are," he said, "to you, most noble Felix, for the perfect peace which we enjoy, and for reforms which your wisdom has introduced to this nation,

Since through you we enjoy great quietness, and since whatever has been undertaken for this nation has been conducted to a successful issue by your foresight at all times and in all places, we accept it, most excellent Felix, with all thankfulness.

Who also has gone about to profane the temple: whom we took, and would have judged according to our law.

Then Paul, after that the governor had beckoned unto him to speak, answered, Forasmuch as I know that thou hast been of many years a judge unto this nation, I do the more cheerfully answer for myself:

You can ascertain that {it has not been more than} twelve days {since} I went up to Jerusalem to worship.

And having heard these things, Felix put them off, knowing more accurately of the Way, saying, When Lysias the chiliarch has come down, I will examine the things concerning you.

And as he preached of righteousness, temperance, and judgment to come; Felix trembled, and answered, "Thou hast done enough at this time: depart. When I have a convenient time, I will send for thee."

Festus replied that Paul would be kept in custody at Caesarea, but that he himself meant to leave for Caesarea before long ??5 "when," he added, "your competent authorities can come down with me and charge the man with whatever crime he has committed."

"So," he said, "let your leaders go down there with me, and if this man has done anything wrong, they may bring charges against him."

If, however, I have done wrong and have committed any offence for which I deserve to die, I do not ask to be excused that penalty. But if there is no truth in what these men allege against me, no one has the right to give me up to them as a favour. I appeal to Caesar."

Then Festus, when he had conferred with the council, answered, Hast thou appealed unto Caesar? unto Caesar shalt thou go.

And when they had been there many days, Festus declared Paul's cause to the king, saying, A certain man has been left in bonds by Felix,

I answered them that it’s not the Romans’ custom to give any man up before the accused confronts the accusers face to face and has an opportunity to give a defense concerning the charges.

but had certain issues against him about his own religion, and about a certain Jesus, who has died, whom Paul was claiming to be alive.

Then Festus said: “King Agrippa and all men present with us, you see this man about whom the whole Jewish community has appealed to me, both in Jerusalem and here, shouting that he should not live any longer.

I could not discover that he had done anything for which he deserved to die; but as he has himself appealed to the Emperor, I have decided to send him to Rome.

But I have nothing specific about him to write to my lord. So I have brought him before all of you, and especially before you, King Agrippa, so that after the investigation has taken place, I will have something to put in writing.

My manner of life then from my youth, as it has been from the beginning among my own nation at Jerusalem, all the Jews are acquainted with,

But rise, and stand upon thy feet: for I have appeared unto thee for this purpose, to make thee a minister and a witness both of these things which thou hast seen, and of those things in the which I will appear unto thee;

And when he made his answer in these words, Festus said in a loud voice, Paul, you are off your head; your great learning has made you unbalanced.

For [your majesty] the king understands these things, and [therefore] I am also speaking to him with confidence and boldness, since I am convinced that none of these things escape his notice; for this has not been done in a corner [hidden from view, in secret].

And when they had gone away they said to one another, This man has done nothing which might give cause for death or prison.

saying, Fear not, Paul; thou must stand before Caesar; and behold, God has granted to thee all those that sail with thee.

Wherefore be of good courage, men, for I believe God that thus it shall be, as it has been said to me.

Wherefore I exhort you to partake of food, for this has to do with your safety; for not a hair from the head of any one of you shall perish.

And when the barbarians saw the beast hanging from his hand, they said to one another, This man is certainly a murderer, whom, though saved out of the sea, Nemesis has not allowed to live.

And they said to him, For our part, we have neither received letters from Judaea concerning thee, nor has any one of the brethren who has arrived reported or said anything evil concerning thee.

And when they could not agree among themselves they left, after hearing Paul make this one [important] statement: "The Holy Spirit has spoken truthfully to your forefathers through Isaiah the prophet,

For the heart of this people has become fat, and they hear heavily with their ears, and they have closed their eyes; lest they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and be converted, and I should heal them.

Be it known to you therefore, that this salvation of God has been sent to the nations; they also will hear it.