But when they believed Philip proclaiming good news concerning the Kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women.

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

But Peter said to him, "May your silver perish with you, because you thought you could obtain the gift of God with money.

You have neither part nor lot in this matter, for your heart is not right before God.

Repent therefore of this, your wickedness, and ask the Lord if perhaps the thought of your heart may be forgiven you.

For I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and in the bondage of iniquity."

Philip ran to him, and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet, and said, "Do you understand what you are reading?"

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.

Saul arose from the ground, and when his eyes were opened, he saw no one. They led him by the hand, and brought him into Damascus.

But Ananias answered, "Lord, I have heard from many about this man, how much evil he did to your saints at Jerusalem.

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

But the Lord said to him, "Go your way, for he is my chosen vessel to bear my name before the nations and kings, and the sons of Israel.

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."

When many days were fulfilled, the Jews conspired together to kill him,

When Saul had come to Jerusalem, he tried to join himself to the disciples; but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he was a disciple.

He spoke and disputed against the Hellenists, but they were seeking to kill him.

So the church throughout all Judea and Galilee and Samaria had peace, and were built up. They were multiplied, walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit.

Peter said to him, "Aeneas, Jesus Christ heals you. Get up and make your bed." Immediately he arose.

He, fastening his eyes on him, and being frightened, said, "What is it, Lord?" He said to him, "Your prayers and your gifts to the needy have gone up for a memorial before God.

Now on the next day as they were on their journey, and got close to the city, Peter went up on the housetop to pray at about noon.

He became hungry and desired to eat, but while they were preparing, he fell into a trance.

in which were all kinds of four-footed animals of the earth, crawling creatures and birds of the sky.

But Peter said, "Not so, Lord; for I have never eaten anything that is common or unclean."

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,

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.

and said, 'Cornelius, your prayer is heard, and your gifts to the needy are remembered in the sight of God.

Therefore I sent to you at once, and it was good of you to come. Now therefore we are all here present in the sight of God to hear all things that have been commanded you by the Lord."

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.

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.

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,

But I said, 'Not so, Lord, for nothing unholy or unclean has ever entered into my mouth.'

This was done three times, and all were drawn up again into heaven.

Behold, immediately three men stood before the house where I was, having been sent from Caesarea to me.

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

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.

For he was a good man, and full of the Holy Spirit and of faith, and many people were added to the Lord.

When he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. It happened, that for a whole year they were gathered together with the church, and taught many people. The disciples were first called Christians in Antioch.

The angel said to him, "Get dressed and put on your sandals." He did so. He said to him, "Put on your cloak, and follow me."

When they were past the first and the second guard, they came to the iron gate that leads into the city, which opened to them by itself. They went out, and went down one street, and immediately the angel departed from him.

When Peter had come to himself, he said, "Now I truly know that the Lord has sent out his angel and delivered me out of the hand of Herod, and from everything the Jewish people were expecting."

Thinking about that, he came to the house of Mary, the mother of John whose surname was Mark, where many were gathered together and were praying.

They said to her, "You are crazy." But she insisted that it was so. They said, "It is his angel."

But Peter continued knocking. When they had opened, they saw him, and were amazed.

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.

When they were at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the Jewish synagogues. They had also John as their attendant.

The God of this people Israel chose our fathers, and exalted the people when they stayed as foreigners in the land of Egypt, and with an uplifted arm, he led them out of it.

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.

When they had fulfilled all things that were written about him, they took him down from the tree, and placed him in a tomb.

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.

that God has fulfilled the same to us, their children, in that he raised up Jesus. As it is also written in the second psalm, 'You are my Son. Today I have become your father.'

Therefore he says also in another psalm, 'You will not allow your Holy One to see decay.'

'Behold, you scoffers, and wonder, and perish; for I work a work in your days, a work which you will in no way believe, if one declares it to you.'"

But when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy, and contradicted the things which were spoken by Paul, and reviled him.

As the Gentiles heard this, they were glad, and glorified the word of God. As many as were appointed to eternal life believed.

The disciples were filled with joy with the Holy Spirit.

said with a loud voice, "Stand upright on your feet." He leaped up and walked.

"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;

Yet he did not leave himself without witness, in that he did good and gave you rains from the sky and fruitful seasons, filling your hearts with food and gladness."

From there they sailed to Antioch, from where they had been committed to the grace of God for the work which they had fulfilled.

Some men came down from Judea and taught the brothers, "Unless you are circumcised after the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved."

When they had come to Jerusalem, they were received by the church and the apostles and the elders, and they reported all things that God had done with them.

The apostles and the elders were gathered together to see about this matter.

Now therefore why do you tempt God, that you should put a yoke on the neck of the disciples which neither our fathers nor we were able to bear?

But we believe that we are saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they are."

After they were silent, James answered, "Brothers, listen to me.

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

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;

it seemed good to us, having come to one accord, to choose out men and send them to you with our beloved Barnabas and Paul,

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

So, when they were sent off, they came to Antioch, and having gathered the congregation together, they delivered the letter.

After they had spent some time there, they were sent back with greetings from the brothers to those that had sent them forth.

After some days Paul said to Barnabas, "Let us return now and visit our brothers in every city in which we proclaimed the word of the Lord, to see how they are doing."

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.

So the churches were strengthened in the faith, and increased in number daily.

When they had gone through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, they were forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia.

and from there to Philippi, which is a city of Macedonia, the foremost of the district, a Roman colony. We were staying some days in this city.

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.

When she and her household were baptized, she begged us, saying, "If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house, and stay." So she persuaded us.

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."

When they had brought them to the magistrates, they said, "These men, being Jews, are agitating our city,

and set forth customs which it is not lawful for us to accept or to observe, being Romans."

But about midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God, and the prisoners were listening to them.

Suddenly there was a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison were shaken; and immediately all the doors were opened, and everyone's bonds were loosened.

But Paul shouted loudly, saying, "Do not harm yourself, for we are all here."

They said, "Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved, you and your household."

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

But Paul said to them, "They have beaten us publicly, without a trial, men who are Romans, and have cast us into prison. Do they now release us secretly? No indeed. Let them come themselves and bring us out."