44While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came on† all who heard the message. 45The circumcised believers who had come with Peter† were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out† even on the Gentiles.† 46For they heard them speaking in tongues[44] † and praising God.

Then Peter said, 47“Can anyone keep these people from being baptized with water?† They have received the Holy Spirit just as we have.”† 48So he ordered that they be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ.† Then they asked Peter to stay with them for a few days.


Acts 11

Peter Explains His Actions

1The apostles and the brothers† throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God. 2So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers† criticized him 3and said, “You went into the house of uncircumcised men and ate with them.”†




4Peter began and explained everything to them precisely as it had happened: 5“I was in the city of Joppa praying, and in a trance I saw a vision.† I saw something like a large sheet being let down from heaven by its four corners, and it came down to where I was. 6I looked into it and saw four-footed animals of the earth, wild beasts, reptiles, and birds of the air. 7Then I heard a voice telling me, ‘Get up, Peter. Kill and eat.’

8“I replied, ‘Surely not, Lord! Nothing impure or unclean has ever entered my mouth.’

9“The voice spoke from heaven a second time, ‘Do not call anything impure that God has made clean.’† 10This happened three times, and then it was all pulled up to heaven again.

11“Right then three men who had been sent to me from Caesarea stopped at the house where I was staying. 12The Spirit told† me to have no hesitation about going with them.† These six brothers also went with me, and we entered the man’s house. 13He told us how he had seen an angel appear in his house and say, ‘Send to Joppa for Simon who is called Peter. 14He will bring you a message through which you and all your household† will be saved.’

15“As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit came on† them as he had come on us at the beginning.† 16Then I remembered what the Lord had said: ‘John baptized with[45] water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’† 17So if God gave them the same gift as he gave us,† who believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to think that I could oppose God?”

18When they heard this, they had no further objections and praised God, saying, “So then, God has granted even the Gentiles repentance unto life.”†

The Church in Antioch

19Now those who had been scattered by the persecution in connection with Stephen† traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus and Antioch,† telling the message only to Jews. 20Some of them, however, men from Cyprus† and Cyrene,† went to Antioch and began to speak to Greeks also, telling them the good news about the Lord Jesus. 21The Lord’s hand was with them,† and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord.†

22News of this reached the ears of the church at Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas† to Antioch. 23When he arrived and saw the evidence of the grace of God,† he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with all their hearts.† 24He was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord.†

25Then Barnabas went to Tarsus† to look for Saul, 26and when he found him, he brought him to Antioch. So for a whole year Barnabas and Saul met with the church and taught great numbers of people. The disciples† were called Christians first† at Antioch.

27During this time some prophets† came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. 28One of them, named Agabus,† stood up and through the Spirit predicted that a severe famine would spread over the entire Roman world.† (This happened during the reign of Claudius.)† 29The disciples,† each according to his ability, decided to provide help† for the brothers† living in Judea. 30This they did, sending their gift to the elders† by Barnabas and Saul.†


Acts 12

Peter’s Miraculous Escape From Prison

1It was about this time that King Herod arrested some who belonged to the church, intending to persecute them. 2He had James, the brother of John,† put to death with the sword. 3When he saw that this pleased the Jews,† he proceeded to seize Peter also. This happened during the Feast of Unleavened Bread.† 4After arresting him, he put him in prison, handing him over to be guarded by four squads of four soldiers each. Herod intended to bring him out for public trial after the Passover.




5So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was earnestly praying to God for him.†

6The night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains,† and sentries stood guard at the entrance. 7Suddenly an angel† of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He struck Peter on the side and woke him up. “Quick, get up!” he said, and the chains fell off Peter’s wrists.†

8Then the angel said to him, “Put on your clothes and sandals.” And Peter did so. “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me,” the angel told him. 9Peter followed him out of the prison, but he had no idea that what the angel was doing was really happening; he thought he was seeing a vision.† 10They passed the first and second guards and came to the iron gate leading to the city. It opened for them by itself,† and they went through it. When they had walked the length of one street, suddenly the angel left him.

11Then Peter came to himself† and said, “Now I know without a doubt that the Lord sent his angel and rescued me† from Herod’s clutches and from everything the Jewish people were anticipating.”

12When this had dawned on him, he went to the house of Mary the mother of John, also called Mark,† where many people had gathered and were praying.† 13Peter knocked at the outer entrance, and a servant girl named Rhoda came to answer the door.† 14When she recognized Peter’s voice, she was so overjoyed† she ran back without opening it and exclaimed, “Peter is at the door!”

15“You’re out of your mind,” they told her. When she kept insisting that it was so, they said, “It must be his angel.”†

16But Peter kept on knocking, and when they opened the door and saw him, they were astonished. 17Peter motioned with his hand† for them to be quiet and described how the Lord had brought him out of prison. “Tell James† and the brothers† about this,” he said, and then he left for another place.

18In the morning, there was no small commotion among the soldiers as to what had become of Peter. 19After Herod had a thorough search made for him and did not find him, he cross-examined the guards and ordered that they be executed.†

Herod’s Death

Then Herod went from Judea to Caesarea† and stayed there a while. 20He had been quarreling with the people of Tyre and Sidon;† they now joined together and sought an audience with him. Having secured the support of Blastus, a trusted personal servant of the king, they asked for peace, because they depended on the king’s country for their food supply.†

21On the appointed day Herod, wearing his royal robes, sat on his throne and delivered a public address to the people. 22They shouted, “This is the voice of a god, not of a man.” 23Immediately, because Herod did not give praise to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down,† and he was eaten by worms and died.

24But the word of God continued to increase and spread.†

25When Barnabas† and Saul had finished their mission,† they returned from[46] Jerusalem, taking with them John, also called Mark.†


Acts 13

Barnabas and Saul Sent Off

1In the church at Antioch† there were prophets† and teachers: Barnabas,† Simeon called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen (who had been brought up with Herod† the tetrarch) and Saul. 2While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said,† “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work† to which I have called them.”† 3So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them† and sent them off.†




On Cyprus

4The two of them, sent on their way by the Holy Spirit,† went down to Seleucia and sailed from there to Cyprus.† 5When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the Jewish synagogues.† John† was with them as their helper.

6They traveled through the whole island until they came to Paphos. There they met a Jewish sorcerer† and false prophet† named Bar-Jesus, 7who was an attendant of the proconsul,† Sergius Paulus. The proconsul, an intelligent man, sent for Barnabas and Saul because he wanted to hear the word of God. 8But Elymas the sorcerer† (for that is what his name means) opposed them and tried to turn the proconsul† from the faith.† 9Then Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit,† looked straight at Elymas and said, 10“You are a child of the devil† and an enemy of everything that is right! You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery. Will you never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord?† 11Now the hand of the Lord is against you.† You are going to be blind, and for a time you will be unable to see the light of the sun.”

Immediately mist and darkness came over him, and he groped about, seeking someone to lead him by the hand. 12When the proconsul† saw what had happened, he believed, for he was amazed at the teaching about the Lord.

In Pisidian Antioch

13From Paphos,† Paul and his companions sailed to Perga in Pamphylia, where John† left them to return to Jerusalem. 14From Perga they went on to Pisidian Antioch.† On the Sabbath† they entered the synagogue† and sat down. 15After the reading from the Law† and the Prophets, the synagogue rulers sent word to them, saying, “Brothers, if you have a message of encouragement for the people, please speak.”

16Standing up, Paul motioned with his hand† and said: “Men of Israel and you Gentiles who worship God, listen to me! 17The God of the people of Israel chose our fathers; he made the people prosper during their stay in Egypt, with mighty power he led them out of that country,† 18he endured their conduct[47] † for about forty years in the desert,† 19he overthrew seven nations in Canaan† and gave their land to his people† as their inheritance. 20All this took about 450 years.

“After this, God gave them judges† until the time of Samuel the prophet.† 21Then the people asked for a king,† and he gave them Saul† son of Kish, of the tribe of Benjamin,† who ruled forty years. 22After removing Saul,† he made David their king.† He testified concerning him: ‘I have found David son of Jesse a man after my own heart;† he will do everything I want him to do.’

23“From this man’s descendants† God has brought to Israel the Savior† Jesus,† as he promised.† 24Before the coming of Jesus, John preached repentance and baptism to all the people of Israel.† 25As John was completing his work,† he said: ‘Who do you think I am? I am not that one.† No, but he is coming after me, whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.’†

26“Brothers, children of Abraham, and you God-fearing Gentiles, it is to us that this message of salvation† has been sent. 27The people of Jerusalem and their rulers did not recognize Jesus,† yet in condemning him they fulfilled the words of the prophets† that are read every Sabbath. 28Though they found no proper ground for a death sentence, they asked Pilate to have him executed.† 29When they had carried out all that was written about him,† they took him down from the tree† and laid him in a tomb.† 30But God raised him from the dead,† 31and for many days he was seen by those who had traveled with him from Galilee to Jerusalem.† They are now his witnesses† to our people.

32“We tell you the good news:† What God promised our fathers† 33he has fulfilled for us, their children, by raising up Jesus. As it is written in the second Psalm:

“ ‘You are my Son;

today I have become your Father.[48] ’[49] †

34The fact that God raised him from the dead, never to decay, is stated in these words:

“ ‘I will give you the holy and sure blessings promised to David.’[50] †

35So it is stated elsewhere:

“ ‘You will not let your Holy One see decay.’[51] †

36“For when David had served God’s purpose in his own generation, he fell asleep; he was buried with his fathers† and his body decayed. 37But the one whom God raised from the dead did not see decay.

38“Therefore, my brothers, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you.† 39Through him everyone who believes is justified from everything you could not be justified from by the law of Moses.† 40Take care that what the prophets have said does not happen to you:

41“ ‘Look, you scoffers,

wonder and perish,

for I am going to do something in your days

that you would never believe,

even if someone told you.’[52] ”†

42As Paul and Barnabas were leaving the synagogue,† the people invited them to speak further about these things on the next Sabbath. 43When the congregation was dismissed, many of the Jews and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who talked with them and urged them to continue in the grace of God.†

44On the next Sabbath almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord. 45When the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy and talked abusively† against what Paul was saying.†

46Then Paul and Barnabas answered them boldly: “We had to speak the word of God to you first.† Since you reject it and do not consider yourselves worthy of eternal life, we now turn to the Gentiles.† 47For this is what the Lord has commanded us:

“ ‘I have made you[53] a light for the Gentiles,†

that you[54] may bring salvation to the ends of the earth.’[55] ”†

48When the Gentiles heard this, they were glad and honored the word of the Lord; and all who were appointed for eternal life believed.

49The word of the Lord spread through the whole region. 50But the Jews incited the God-fearing women of high standing and the leading men of the city. They stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and expelled them from their region.† 51So they shook the dust from their feet† in protest against them and went to Iconium.† 52And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.


Acts 14

In Iconium

1At Iconium† Paul and Barnabas went as usual into the Jewish synagogue. There they spoke so effectively that a great number of Jews and Gentiles believed. 2But the Jews who refused to believe stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers. 3So Paul and Barnabas spent considerable time there, speaking boldly† for the Lord, who confirmed the message of his grace by enabling them to do miraculous signs and wonders.† 4The people of the city were divided; some sided with the Jews, others with the apostles.† 5There was a plot afoot among the Gentiles and Jews, together with their leaders, to mistreat them and stone them.† 6But they found out about it and fled† to the Lycaonian cities of Lystra and Derbe and to the surrounding country, 7where they continued to preach† the good news.†




In Lystra and Derbe

8In Lystra there sat a man crippled in his feet, who was lame from birth† and had never walked. 9He listened to Paul as he was speaking. Paul looked directly at him, saw that he had faith to be healed† 10and called out, “Stand up on your feet!” At that, the man jumped up and began to walk.†

11When the crowd saw what Paul had done, they shouted in the Lycaonian language, “The gods have come down to us in human form!”† 12Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul they called Hermes because he was the chief speaker. 13The priest of Zeus, whose temple was just outside the city, brought bulls and wreaths to the city gates because he and the crowd wanted to offer sacrifices to them.

14But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of this, they tore their clothes† and rushed out into the crowd, shouting: 15“Men, why are you doing this? We too are only men,† human like you. We are bringing you good news,† telling you to turn from these worthless things† to the living God,† who made heaven and earth† and sea and everything in them.† 16In the past, he let† all nations go their own way.† 17Yet he has not left himself without testimony:† He has shown kindness by giving you rain from heaven and crops in their seasons;† he provides you with plenty of food and fills your hearts with joy.” 18Even with these words, they had difficulty keeping the crowd from sacrificing to them.

19Then some Jews† came from Antioch and Iconium† and won the crowd over. They stoned Paul† and dragged him outside the city, thinking he was dead. 20But after the disciples† had gathered around him, he got up and went back into the city. The next day he and Barnabas left for Derbe.

The Return to Antioch in Syria

21They preached the good news in that city and won a large number of disciples. Then they returned to Lystra, Iconium† and Antioch, 22strengthening the disciples and encouraging them to remain true to the faith.† “We must go through many hardships† to enter the kingdom of God,” they said. 23Paul and Barnabas appointed elders[56] † for them in each church and, with prayer and fasting,† committed them to the Lord,† in whom they had put their trust. 24After going through Pisidia, they came into Pamphylia, 25and when they had preached the word in Perga, they went down to Attalia.

26From Attalia they sailed back to Antioch,† where they had been committed to the grace of God† for the work they had now completed.† 27On arriving there, they gathered the church together and reported all that God had done through them† and how he had opened the door† of faith to the Gentiles. 28And they stayed there a long time with the disciples.


Acts 15

The Council at Jerusalem

1Some men† came down from Judea to Antioch and were teaching the brothers: “Unless you are circumcised,† according to the custom taught by Moses,† you cannot be saved.” 2This brought Paul and Barnabas into sharp dispute and debate with them. So Paul and Barnabas were appointed, along with some other believers, to go up to Jerusalem† to see the apostles and elders† about this question. 3The church sent them on their way, and as they traveled through Phoenicia and Samaria, they told how the Gentiles had been converted.† This news made all the brothers very glad. 4When they came to Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church and the apostles and elders, to whom they reported everything God had done through them.†




5Then some of the believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees stood up and said, “The Gentiles must be circumcised and required to obey the law of Moses.”

6The apostles and elders met to consider this question. 7After much discussion, Peter got up and addressed them: “Brothers, you know that some time ago God made a choice among you that the Gentiles might hear from my lips the message of the gospel and believe. 8God, who knows the heart,† showed that he accepted them by giving the Holy Spirit to them,† just as he did to us. 9He made no distinction between us and them,† for he purified their hearts by faith.† 10Now then, why do you try to test God by putting on the necks of the disciples a yoke† that neither we nor our fathers have been able to bear? 11No! We believe it is through the grace† of our Lord Jesus that we are saved, just as they are.”

12The whole assembly became silent as they listened to Barnabas and Paul telling about the miraculous signs and wonders† God had done among the Gentiles through them.† 13When they finished, James† spoke up: “Brothers, listen to me. 14Simon[57] has described to us how God at first showed his concern by taking from the Gentiles a people for himself. 15The words of the prophets are in agreement with this, as it is written:

16“ ‘After this I will return

and rebuild David’s fallen tent.

Its ruins I will rebuild,

and I will restore it,

17that the remnant of men may seek the Lord,

and all the Gentiles who bear my name,

says the Lord, who does these things’[58] †

18that have been known for ages.[59]

19“It is my judgment, therefore, that we should not make it difficult for the Gentiles who are turning to God. 20Instead we should write to them, telling them to abstain from food polluted by idols,† from sexual immorality,† from the meat of strangled animals and from blood.† 21For Moses has been preached in every city from the earliest times and is read in the synagogues on every Sabbath.”†

The Council’s Letter to Gentile Believers

22Then the apostles and elders, with the whole church, decided to choose some of their own men and send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. They chose Judas (called Barsabbas) and Silas,† two men who were leaders among the brothers. 23With them they sent the following letter:

The apostles and elders, your brothers,

To the Gentile believers in Antioch,† Syria and Cilicia:†

Greetings.†

24We have heard that some went out from us without our authorization and disturbed you, troubling your minds by what they said.† 25So we all agreed to choose some men and send them to you with our dear friends Barnabas and Paul— 26men who have risked their lives† for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. 27Therefore we are sending Judas and Silas to confirm by word of mouth what we are writing. 28It seemed good to the Holy Spirit† and to us not to burden you with anything beyond the following requirements: 29You are to abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the meat of strangled animals and from sexual immorality.† You will do well to avoid these things.

Farewell.

30The men were sent off and went down to Antioch, where they gathered the church together and delivered the letter. 31The people read it and were glad for its encouraging message. 32Judas and Silas, who themselves were prophets, said much to encourage and strengthen the brothers. 33After spending some time there, they were sent off by the brothers with the blessing of peace† to return to those who had sent them.[60] 35But Paul and Barnabas remained in Antioch, where they and many others taught and preached† the word of the Lord.

Disagreement Between Paul and Barnabas

36Some time later Paul said to Barnabas, “Let us go back and visit the brothers in all the towns† where we preached the word of the Lord and see how they are doing.” 37Barnabas wanted to take John, also called Mark,† with them, 38but Paul did not think it wise to take him, because he had deserted them† in Pamphylia and had not continued with them in the work. 39They had such a sharp disagreement that they parted company. Barnabas took Mark and sailed for Cyprus, 40but Paul chose Silas† and left, commended by the brothers to the grace of the Lord.† 41He went through Syria† and Cilicia,† strengthening the churches.†


Acts 16

Timothy Joins Paul and Silas

1He came to Derbe and then to Lystra,† where a disciple named Timothy† lived, whose mother was a Jewess and a believer, but whose father was a Greek. 2The brothers† at Lystra and Iconium† spoke well of him. 3Paul wanted to take him along on the journey, so he circumcised him because of the Jews who lived in that area, for they all knew that his father was a Greek.† 4As they traveled from town to town, they delivered the decisions reached by the apostles and elders† in Jerusalem† for the people to obey.† 5So the churches were strengthened† in the faith and grew daily in numbers.




Paul’s Vision of the Man of Macedonia

6Paul and his companions traveled throughout the region of Phrygia† and Galatia,† having been kept by the Holy Spirit from preaching the word in the province of Asia.† 7When they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus† would not allow them to. 8So they passed by Mysia and went down to Troas.† 9During the night Paul had a vision† of a man of Macedonia† standing and begging him, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.” 10After Paul had seen the vision, we† got ready at once to leave for Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to preach the gospel† to them.

Lydia’s Conversion in Philippi

11From Troas† we put out to sea and sailed straight for Samothrace, and the next day on to Neapolis. 12From there we traveled to Philippi,† a Roman colony and the leading city of that district of Macedonia.† And we stayed there several days.

13On the Sabbath† we went outside the city gate to the river, where we expected to find a place of prayer. We sat down and began to speak to the women who had gathered there. 14One of those listening was a woman named Lydia, a dealer in purple cloth from the city of Thyatira,† who was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart† to respond to Paul’s message. 15When she and the members of her household† were baptized, she invited us to her home. “If you consider me a believer in the Lord,” she said, “come and stay at my house.” And she persuaded us.

Paul and Silas in Prison

16Once when we were going to the place of prayer,† we were met by a slave girl who had a spirit† by which she predicted the future. She earned a great deal of money for her owners by fortune-telling. 17This girl followed Paul and the rest of us, shouting, “These men are servants of the Most High God,† who are telling you the way to be saved.” 18She kept this up for many days. Finally Paul became so troubled that he turned around and said to the spirit, “In the name of Jesus Christ I command you to come out of her!” At that moment the spirit left her.†

19When the owners of the slave girl realized that their hope of making money† was gone, they seized Paul and Silas† and dragged† them into the marketplace to face the authorities. 20They brought them before the magistrates and said, “These men are Jews, and are throwing our city into an uproar† 21by advocating customs unlawful for us Romans† to accept or practice.”†

22The crowd joined in the attack against Paul and Silas, and the magistrates ordered them to be stripped and beaten.† 23After they had been severely flogged, they were thrown into prison, and the jailer† was commanded to guard them carefully. 24Upon receiving such orders, he put them in the inner cell and fastened their feet in the stocks.†

25About midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns† to God, and the other prisoners were listening to them. 26Suddenly there was such a violent earthquake that the foundations of the prison were shaken.† At once all the prison doors flew open,† and everybody’s chains came loose.† 27The jailer woke up, and when he saw the prison doors open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself because he thought the prisoners had escaped.† 28But Paul shouted, “Don’t harm yourself! We are all here!”

29The jailer called for lights, rushed in and fell trembling before Paul and Silas. 30He then brought them out and asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”†

31They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved—you and your household.”† 32Then they spoke the word of the Lord to him and to all the others in his house. 33At that hour of the night† the jailer took them and washed their wounds; then immediately he and all his family were baptized. 34The jailer brought them into his house and set a meal before them; he† was filled with joy because he had come to believe in God—he and his whole family.

35When it was daylight, the magistrates sent their officers to the jailer with the order: “Release those men.” 36The jailer† told Paul, “The magistrates have ordered that you and Silas be released. Now you can leave. Go in peace.”†

37But Paul said to the officers: “They beat us publicly without a trial, even though we are Roman citizens,† and threw us into prison. And now do they want to get rid of us quietly? No! Let them come themselves and escort us out.”

38The officers reported this to the magistrates, and when they heard that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens, they were alarmed.† 39They came to appease them and escorted them from the prison, requesting them to leave the city.† 40After Paul and Silas came out of the prison, they went to Lydia’s house,† where they met with the brothers† and encouraged them. Then they left.


Acts 17

In Thessalonica

1When they had passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to Thessalonica,† where there was a Jewish synagogue. 2As his custom was, Paul went into the synagogue,† and on three Sabbath† days he reasoned with them from the Scriptures,† 3explaining and proving that the Christ[61] had to suffer† and rise from the dead.† “This Jesus I am proclaiming to you is the Christ,[62] ”† he said. 4Some of the Jews were persuaded and joined Paul and Silas,† as did a large number of God-fearing Greeks and not a few prominent women.






5But the Jews were jealous; so they rounded up some bad characters from the marketplace, formed a mob and started a riot in the city.† They rushed to Jason’s† house in search of Paul and Silas in order to bring them out to the crowd.[63] 6But when they did not find them, they dragged† Jason and some other brothers before the city officials, shouting: “These men who have caused trouble all over the world† have now come here,† 7and Jason has welcomed them into his house. They are all defying Caesar’s decrees, saying that there is another king, one called Jesus.”† 8When they heard this, the crowd and the city officials were thrown into turmoil. 9Then they made Jason† and the others post bond and let them go.

In Berea

10As soon as it was night, the brothers sent Paul and Silas away to Berea.† On arriving there, they went to the Jewish synagogue. 11Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians,† for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures† every day to see if what Paul said was true. 12Many of the Jews believed, as did also a number of prominent Greek women and many Greek men.

13When the Jews in Thessalonica learned that Paul was preaching the word of God at Berea, they went there too, agitating the crowds and stirring them up. 14The brothers immediately sent Paul to the coast, but Silas† and Timothy† stayed at Berea. 15The men who escorted Paul brought him to Athens† and then left with instructions for Silas and Timothy to join him as soon as possible.†

In Athens

16While Paul was waiting for them in Athens, he was greatly distressed to see that the city was full of idols. 17So he reasoned in the synagogue† with the Jews and the God-fearing Greeks, as well as in the marketplace day by day with those who happened to be there. 18A group of Epicurean and Stoic philosophers began to dispute with him. Some of them asked, “What is this babbler trying to say?” Others remarked, “He seems to be advocating foreign gods.” They said this because Paul was preaching the good news about Jesus and the resurrection.† 19Then they took him and brought him to a meeting of the Areopagus,† where they said to him, “May we know what this new teaching† is that you are presenting? 20You are bringing some strange ideas to our ears, and we want to know what they mean.” 21(All the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there spent their time doing nothing but talking about and listening to the latest ideas.)

22Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: “Men of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious. 23For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscription: TO AN UNKNOWN GOD. Now what you worship as something unknown† I am going to proclaim to you.

24“The God who made the world and everything in it† is the Lord of heaven and earth† and does not live in temples built by hands.† 25And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything, because he himself gives all men life and breath and everything else.† 26From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live.† 27God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us.† 28‘For in him we live and move and have our being.’† As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’

29“Therefore since we are God’s offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone—an image made by man’s design and skill.† 30In the past God overlooked† such ignorance,† but now he commands all people everywhere to repent.† 31For he has set a day when he will judge† the world with justice† by the man he has appointed.† He has given proof of this to all men by raising him from the dead.”†

32When they heard about the resurrection of the dead,† some of them sneered, but others said, “We want to hear you again on this subject.” 33At that, Paul left the Council. 34A few men became followers of Paul and believed. Among them was Dionysius, a member of the Areopagus,† also a woman named Damaris, and a number of others.





Acts 18

In Corinth

1After this, Paul left Athens† and went to Corinth.† 2There he met a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, who had recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla,† because Claudius† had ordered all the Jews to leave Rome. Paul went to see them, 3and because he was a tentmaker as they were, he stayed and worked with them.† 4Every Sabbath† he reasoned in the synagogue, trying to persuade Jews and Greeks.






5When Silas† and Timothy† came from Macedonia,† Paul devoted himself exclusively to preaching, testifying to the Jews that Jesus was the Christ.[64] † 6But when the Jews opposed Paul and became abusive,† he shook out his clothes in protest and said to them, “Your blood be on your own heads!† I am clear of my responsibility.† From now on I will go to the Gentiles.”†

7Then Paul left the synagogue and went next door to the house of Titius Justus, a worshiper of God.† 8Crispus,† the synagogue ruler,† and his entire household† believed in the Lord; and many of the Corinthians who heard him believed and were baptized.




9One night the Lord spoke to Paul in a vision: “Do not be afraid; keep on speaking, do not be silent. 10For I am with you,† and no one is going to attack and harm you, because I have many people in this city.” 11So Paul stayed for a year and a half, teaching them the word of God.

12While Gallio was proconsul of Achaia,† the Jews made a united attack on Paul and brought him into court. 13“This man,” they charged, “is persuading the people to worship God in ways contrary to the law.”

14Just as Paul was about to speak, Gallio said to the Jews, “If you Jews were making a complaint about some misdemeanor or serious crime, it would be reasonable for me to listen to you. 15But since it involves questions about words and names and your own law†—settle the matter yourselves. I will not be a judge of such things.” 16So he had them ejected from the court. 17Then they all turned on Sosthenes† the synagogue ruler and beat him in front of the court. But Gallio showed no concern whatever.

Priscilla, Aquila and Apollos

18Paul stayed on in Corinth for some time. Then he left the brothers† and sailed for Syria, accompanied by Priscilla and Aquila. Before he sailed, he had his hair cut off at Cenchrea† because of a vow he had taken.† 19They arrived at Ephesus,† where Paul left Priscilla and Aquila. He himself went into the synagogue and reasoned with the Jews. 20When they asked him to spend more time with them, he declined. 21But as he left, he promised, “I will come back if it is God’s will.”† Then he set sail from Ephesus. 22When he landed at Caesarea,† he went up and greeted the church and then went down to Antioch.†

23After spending some time in Antioch, Paul set out from there and traveled from place to place throughout the region of Galatia† and Phrygia, strengthening all the disciples.†

24Meanwhile a Jew named Apollos,† a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus. He was a learned man, with a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures. 25He had been instructed in the way of the Lord, and he spoke with great fervor[65] † and taught about Jesus accurately, though he knew only the baptism of John.† 26He began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they invited him to their home and explained to him the way of God more adequately.

27When Apollos wanted to go to Achaia,† the brothers† encouraged him and wrote to the disciples there to welcome him. On arriving, he was a great help to those who by grace had believed. 28For he vigorously refuted the Jews in public debate, proving from the Scriptures† that Jesus was the Christ.†


Acts 19

Paul in Ephesus

1While Apollos was at Corinth,† Paul took the road through the interior and arrived at Ephesus.† There he found some disciples 2and asked them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when[66] you believed?”




They answered, “No, we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.”

3So Paul asked, “Then what baptism did you receive?”

“John’s baptism,” they replied.

4Paul said, “John’s baptism was a baptism of repentance. He told the people to believe in the one coming after him, that is, in Jesus.”† 5On hearing this, they were baptized into[67] the name of the Lord Jesus. 6When Paul placed his hands on them,† the Holy Spirit came on them,† and they spoke in tongues[68] † and prophesied. 7There were about twelve men in all.

8Paul entered the synagogue† and spoke boldly there for three months, arguing persuasively about the kingdom of God.† 9But some of them† became obstinate; they refused to believe and publicly maligned the Way.† So Paul left them. He took the disciples† with him and had discussions daily in the lecture hall of Tyrannus. 10This went on for two years,† so that all the Jews and Greeks who lived in the province of Asia† heard the word of the Lord.

11God did extraordinary miracles† through Paul, 12so that even handkerchiefs and aprons that had touched him were taken to the sick, and their illnesses were cured† and the evil spirits left them.

13Some Jews who went around driving out evil spirits† tried to invoke the name of the Lord Jesus over those who were demon-possessed. They would say, “In the name of Jesus,† whom Paul preaches, I command you to come out.” 14Seven sons of Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, were doing this. 15[One day] the evil spirit answered them, “Jesus I know, and I know about Paul, but who are you?” 16Then the man who had the evil spirit jumped on them and overpowered them all. He gave them such a beating that they ran out of the house naked and bleeding.

17When this became known to the Jews and Greeks living in Ephesus,† they were all seized with fear,† and the name of the Lord Jesus was held in high honor. 18Many of those who believed now came and openly confessed their evil deeds. 19A number who had practiced sorcery brought their scrolls together and burned them publicly. When they calculated the value of the scrolls, the total came to fifty thousand drachmas.[69] 20In this way the word of the Lord spread widely and grew in power.†

21After all this had happened, Paul decided to go to Jerusalem,† passing through Macedonia† and Achaia.† “After I have been there,” he said, “I must visit Rome also.”† 22He sent two of his helpers,† Timothy† and Erastus,† to Macedonia, while he stayed in the province of Asia† a little longer.

The Riot in Ephesus

23About that time there arose a great disturbance about the Way.† 24A silversmith named Demetrius, who made silver shrines of Artemis, brought in no little business for the craftsmen. 25He called them together, along with the workmen in related trades, and said: “Men, you know we receive a good income from this business.† 26And you see and hear how this fellow Paul has convinced and led astray large numbers of people here in Ephesus† and in practically the whole province of Asia. He says that man-made gods are no gods at all.† 27There is danger not only that our trade will lose its good name, but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis will be discredited, and the goddess herself, who is worshiped throughout the province of Asia and the world, will be robbed of her divine majesty.”

28When they heard this, they were furious and began shouting: “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!”† 29Soon the whole city was in an uproar. The people seized Gaius† and Aristarchus,† Paul’s traveling companions from Macedonia,† and rushed as one man into the theater. 30Paul wanted to appear before the crowd, but the disciples would not let him. 31Even some of the officials of the province, friends of Paul, sent him a message begging him not to venture into the theater.

32The assembly was in confusion: Some were shouting one thing, some another.† Most of the people did not even know why they were there. 33The Jews pushed Alexander to the front, and some of the crowd shouted instructions to him. He motioned† for silence in order to make a defense before the people. 34But when they realized he was a Jew, they all shouted in unison for about two hours: “Great is Artemis of the Ephesians!”

35The city clerk quieted the crowd and said: “Men of Ephesus,† doesn’t all the world know that the city of Ephesus is the guardian of the temple of the great Artemis and of her image, which fell from heaven? 36Therefore, since these facts are undeniable, you ought to be quiet and not do anything rash. 37You have brought these men here, though they have neither robbed temples† nor blasphemed our goddess. 38If, then, Demetrius and his fellow craftsmen have a grievance against anybody, the courts are open and there are proconsuls.† They can press charges. 39If there is anything further you want to bring up, it must be settled in a legal assembly. 40As it is, we are in danger of being charged with rioting because of today’s events. In that case we would not be able to account for this commotion, since there is no reason for it.” 41After he had said this, he dismissed the assembly.


Acts 20

Through Macedonia and Greece

1When the uproar had ended, Paul sent for the disciples† and, after encouraging them, said good-by and set out for Macedonia.† 2He traveled through that area, speaking many words of encouragement to the people, and finally arrived in Greece, 3where he stayed three months. Because the Jews made a plot against him† just as he was about to sail for Syria, he decided to go back through Macedonia.† 4He was accompanied by Sopater son of Pyrrhus from Berea, Aristarchus† and Secundus from Thessalonica,† Gaius† from Derbe, Timothy† also, and Tychicus† and Trophimus† from the province of Asia. 5These men went on ahead and waited for us† at Troas.† 6But we sailed from Philippi† after the Feast of Unleavened Bread, and five days later joined the others at Troas,† where we stayed seven days.










Eutychus Raised From the Dead at Troas

7On the first day of the week† we came together to break bread. Paul spoke to the people and, because he intended to leave the next day, kept on talking until midnight. 8There were many lamps in the upstairs room† where we were meeting. 9Seated in a window was a young man named Eutychus, who was sinking into a deep sleep as Paul talked on and on. When he was sound asleep, he fell to the ground from the third story and was picked up dead. 10Paul went down, threw himself on the young man† and put his arms around him. “Don’t be alarmed,” he said. “He’s alive!”† 11Then he went upstairs again and broke bread† and ate. After talking until daylight, he left. 12The people took the young man home alive and were greatly comforted.