Peter Reports to the Church

11 Now the apostles and ^rthe brothers¹ who were throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God. 2 So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, ^sthe circumcision party² criticized him, saying, 3 ^t“You went to uncircumcised men and ^uate with them.” 4 But Peter began and explained it to them in order: 5 ^v“I was in the city of Joppa praying, and in a trance I saw a vision, something like a great sheet descending, being let down from heaven by its four corners, and it came down to me. 6 Looking at it closely, I observed animals and beasts of prey and reptiles and birds of the air. 7 And I heard a voice saying to me, ‘Rise, Peter; kill and eat.’ 8 But I said, ‘By no means, Lord; for nothing common or unclean has ever entered my mouth.’ 9 But the voice answered a second time from heaven, ‘What God has made clean, do not call common.’ 10 This happened three times, and all was drawn up again into heaven. 11 And behold, at that very moment three men arrived at the house in which we were, sent to me from Caesarea. 12 And the Spirit told me to go with them, ^wmaking no distinction. ^xThese six brothers also accompanied me, and we entered the man’s house. 13 And he told us how he had seen the angel stand in his house and say, ‘Send to Joppa and bring Simon who is called Peter; 14 ^yhe will declare to you a message by which ^zyou will be saved, you and all your household.’ 15 As I began to speak, ^athe Holy Spirit fell on them ^bjust as on us at the beginning. 16 And I remembered the word of the Lord, how he said, ^c‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’ 17 If then ^dGod gave ^ethe same gift to them as he gave to us ^fwhen we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, ^gwho was I ^hthat I could stand in God’s way?” 18 When they heard these things they fell silent. And they ⁱglorified God, saying, ^j“Then to the Gentiles also God has ^kgranted ^lrepentance that leads to life.”

The Church in Antioch

19 ^mNow those who were scattered because of the persecution that arose over Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia and Cyprus and Antioch, speaking the word to no one except Jews. 20 But there were some of them, men of Cyprus and Cyrene, who on coming to Antioch spoke to the Hellenists³ also, ⁿpreaching the Lord Jesus. 21 And ^othe hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number who believed ^pturned to the Lord. 22 The report of this came to the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. 23 When he came and saw ^qthe grace of God, he was glad, and he exhorted them all to remain faithful to the Lord ^rwith steadfast purpose, 24 for he was a good man, ^sfull of the Holy Spirit and of faith. And a great many people ^twere added to the Lord. 25 So Barnabas went to ^uTarsus to look for Saul, 26 and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year they met with the church and taught a great many people. And in Antioch the disciples were first called ^vChristians.

27 Now in these days ^wprophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. 28 And one of them named ^xAgabus stood up and foretold ^yby the Spirit that there would be a great ^zfamine over all the world (this took place in the days of ^aClaudius). 29 So the disciples determined, every one according to his ability, ^bto send relief to ^cthe brothers⁴ living in Judea. 30 ^dAnd they did so, sending it to ^ethe elders by the hand of Barnabas and Saul.

James Killed and Peter Imprisoned

12 About that time Herod the king laid violent hands on some who belonged to the church. 2 He killed ^fJames the brother of John ^gwith the sword, 3 and when he saw ^hthat it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter also. This was during ⁱthe days of Unleavened Bread. 4 And when he had seized him, he put him ^jin prison, delivering him over to four ^ksquads of soldiers to guard him, intending after the Passover to bring him out to the people. 5 So Peter was kept in prison, but earnest ^lprayer for him was made to God by the church.

Peter Is Rescued

6 Now when Herod was about to bring him out, on that very night, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, ^mbound with two chains, and sentries before the door were guarding the prison. 7 And behold, ⁿan angel of the Lord ^ostood next to him, and a light shone in the cell. ^pHe struck Peter on the side and woke him, saying, “Get up quickly.” And ^qthe chains fell off his hands. 8 And the angel said to him, “Dress yourself and ^rput on your sandals.” And he did so. And he said to him, “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me.” 9 And he went out and followed him. He did not know that what was being done by the angel was real, but ^sthought he was seeing a vision. 10 When they had passed the first and the second guard, they came to the iron gate leading into the city. ^tIt opened for them of its own accord, and they went out and went along one street, and immediately the angel left him. 11 When Peter ^ucame to himself, he said, “Now I am sure that ^vthe Lord has sent his angel and ^wrescued me from the hand of Herod and from all that the Jewish people were expecting.”

12 When he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of ^xJohn whose other name was Mark, where many were gathered together and ^ywere praying. 13 And when he knocked at the door of the gateway, ^za servant girl named Rhoda came to answer. 14 Recognizing Peter’s voice, ^ain her joy she did not open the gate but ran in and reported that Peter was standing at the gate. 15 They said to her, “You are out of your mind.” But she kept insisting that it was so, and they kept saying, “It is ^bhis angel!” 16 But Peter continued knocking, and when they opened, they saw him and were amazed. 17 But ^cmotioning to them with his hand to be silent, he described to them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. And he said, “Tell these things to ^dJames and to ^ethe brothers.”¹ Then he departed and went to another place.

18 Now when day came, there was no little disturbance among the soldiers over what had become of Peter. 19 And after Herod searched for him and did not find him, he examined the sentries and ^fordered that they should be put to death. Then he went down from Judea to Caesarea and spent time there.

The Death of Herod

20 Now Herod was angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon, and they came to him with one accord, and ^ghaving persuaded Blastus, the king’s chamberlain,² they asked for peace, because ^htheir country depended on the king’s country for food. 21 On an appointed day Herod put on his royal robes, took his seat upon the throne, and delivered an oration to them. 22 And the people were shouting, “The voice of a god, and not of a man!” 23 Immediately ⁱan angel of the Lord struck him down, because ^jhe did not give God the glory, and he was eaten by worms and breathed his last.

24 But ^kthe word of God increased and multiplied.

25 ^lAnd Barnabas and Saul returned from³ Jerusalem when they had completed their service, bringing with them ^mJohn, whose other name was Mark.

Barnabas and Saul Sent Off

13 Now there were in the church at Antioch ⁿprophets and ⁿteachers, ^oBarnabas, Simeon who was called Niger,¹ Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen a lifelong friend of ^pHerod the tetrarch, and Saul. 2 While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, ^qthe Holy Spirit said, ^r“Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul ^sfor the work to which I have called them.” 3 Then after fasting and ^tpraying they laid their hands on them and ^usent them off.

Barnabas and Saul on Cyprus

4 So, being sent out ^vby the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia, and from there they sailed to Cyprus. 5 When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God ^win the synagogues of the Jews. And they had ^xJohn to ^yassist them. 6 When they had gone through the whole island as far as Paphos, they came upon a certain ^zmagician, ^aa Jewish false prophet named Bar-Jesus. 7 He was with ^bthe proconsul, Sergius Paulus, a man of intelligence, who summoned Barnabas and Saul and sought to hear the word of God. 8 But Elymas the ^zmagician (for that is the meaning of his name) ^copposed them, seeking to turn ^dthe proconsul away from the faith. 9 But Saul, who was also called Paul, ^efilled with the Holy Spirit, looked intently at him 10 and said, “You ^fson of the devil, you enemy of all righteousness, full of all deceit and ^gvillainy, will you not stop ^hmaking crooked ⁱthe straight paths of the Lord? 11 And now, behold, ^jthe hand of the Lord is upon you, and you will be blind and unable to see the sun for a time.” Immediately mist and darkness fell upon him, and he went about seeking ^kpeople to lead him by the hand. 12 Then the proconsul believed, when he saw what had occurred, for he was astonished at ^lthe teaching of the Lord.

Paul and Barnabas at Antioch in Pisidia

13 Now Paul and his companions set sail from Paphos and came to Perga in Pamphylia. And ^mJohn left them and returned ⁿto Jerusalem, 14 but they went on from Perga and came to Antioch in Pisidia. And ^oon the Sabbath day ^pthey went into the synagogue and sat down. 15 After ^qthe reading from ^rthe Law and the Prophets, ^sthe rulers of the synagogue sent a message to them, saying, “Brothers, if you have any ^tword of encouragement for the people, say it.” 16 So Paul stood up, and ^umotioning with his hand said:

“Men of Israel and ^vyou who fear God, listen. 17 ^wThe God of this people Israel ^xchose our fathers and ^ymade the people great ^zduring their stay in the land of Egypt, and ^awith uplifted arm he led them out of it. 18 And for about ^bforty years ^che put up with² them in the wilderness. 19 And ^dafter destroying ^eseven nations in the land of Canaan, ^fhe gave them their land as an inheritance. 20 All this took about 450 years. And after that ^ghe gave them judges until ^hSamuel the prophet. 21 Then ⁱthey asked for a king, and God gave them Saul ^jthe son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, for forty years. 22 And ^kwhen he had removed him, ^lhe raised up David to be their king, of whom he testified and said, ^m‘I have found in David the son of Jesse ⁿa man after my heart, ^owho will do all my will.’ 23 ^pOf this man’s offspring God has brought to Israel ^qa Savior, Jesus, ^ras he promised. 24 Before his coming, ^sJohn had proclaimed ^ta baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel. 25 And as John was finishing his course, ^uhe said, ‘What do you suppose that I am? I am not he. No, but behold, after me one is coming, the sandals of whose feet I am not worthy to untie.’

26 “Brothers, sons of the family of Abraham, and those among you ^vwho fear God, to us has been sent ^wthe message of ^xthis salvation. 27 For those who live in Jerusalem and their rulers, because ^ythey did not recognize him nor understand ^zthe utterances of the prophets, which are read every Sabbath, ^afulfilled them by condemning him. 28 And ^bthough they found in him no guilt worthy of death, ^cthey asked Pilate to have him executed. 29 And when ^dthey had carried out all that was written of him, ^ethey took him down from ^fthe tree and laid him in a tomb. 30 But ^gGod raised him from the dead, 31 and for many days ^hhe appeared to those ⁱwho had come up with him ^jfrom Galilee to Jerusalem, ^kwho are now ^lhis witnesses to the people. 32 And we bring you the good news ^mthat what God promised to the fathers, 33 ⁿthis he has fulfilled to us their children by raising Jesus, as also it is written in the second Psalm,

34 And as for the fact that he raised him from the dead, ^pqno more to return to corruption, he has spoken in this way,

35 Therefore he says also in another psalm,

36 For David, after he had ^tserved the purpose of God in his own generation, ^ufell asleep and ^vwas laid with his fathers and saw corruption, 37 but he whom ^wGod raised up did not see corruption. 38 Let it be known to you therefore, brothers, ^xthat through this man ^yforgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you, 39 and by him ^zeveryone who believes is freed³ from everything ^afrom which you could not be freed by the law of Moses. 40 Beware, therefore, lest what is said in the Prophets should come about:

42 As they went out, the people begged that these things might be told them the next Sabbath. 43 And after the meeting of the synagogue broke up, many Jews and ^cdevout ^dconverts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who, as they spoke with them, urged them ^eto continue in ^fthe grace of God.

44 The next Sabbath almost the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord. 45 ^gBut ^hwhen the Jews⁴ saw the crowds, they were filled with ⁱjealousy and began to contradict what was spoken by Paul, ^jreviling him. 46 And Paul and Barnabas spoke out boldly, saying, “It was necessary that the word of God ^kbe spoken first to you. ^lSince you thrust it aside and judge yourselves ^munworthy of eternal life, behold, we ⁿare turning to the Gentiles. 47 ^oFor so the Lord has commanded us, saying,

48 And when the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and ^sglorifying the word of the Lord, and as many as were appointed to eternal life believed. 49 And the word of the Lord was spreading throughout the whole region. 50 ^tBut the Jews incited the devout ^uwomen of high standing and the leading men of the city, ^vstirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and ^wdrove them out of their district. 51 But they ^xshook off the dust from their feet against them and went to Iconium. 52 And the disciples were filled ^ywith joy and ^zwith the Holy Spirit.

Paul and Barnabas at Iconium

14 Now at Iconium ^athey entered together into the Jewish synagogue and spoke in such a way that a great number of both Jews and Greeks believed. 2 ^bBut the ^cunbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds against ^dthe brothers.¹ 3 So they remained for a long time, speaking boldly for ^ethe Lord, who bore witness to ^fthe word of his grace, ^ggranting signs and wonders to be done by their hands. 4 But the people of the city ^hwere divided; ⁱsome sided with the Jews and some with the apostles. 5 When an attempt was made by both Gentiles and Jews, with their rulers, ^jto mistreat them and ^kto stone them, 6 they learned of it and ^lfled to ^mLystra and Derbe, cities of Lycaonia, and to the surrounding country, 7 and there they continued to preach the gospel.

Paul and Barnabas at Lystra

8 Now at Lystra there was a man sitting who could not use his feet. He was ⁿcrippled from birth and had never walked. 9 He listened to Paul speaking. And Paul, looking intently at him and ^oseeing that he had faith to be made well,² 10 said in a loud voice, “Stand upright on your feet.” And he ^psprang up and began walking. 11 And when the crowds saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voices, saying in Lycaonian, ^q“The gods have come down to us in the likeness of men!” 12 Barnabas they called ^rZeus, and Paul, Hermes, because he was the chief speaker. 13 And the priest of ^rZeus, whose temple was at the entrance to the city, brought oxen and garlands to the gates and ^swanted to offer sacrifice with the crowds. 14 But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of it, they ^ttore their garments and rushed out into the crowd, crying out, 15 “Men, ^uwhy are you doing these things? We also are men, ^vof like nature with you, and we bring you good news, that ^wyou should turn from these ^xvain things to ^ya living God, ^zwho made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all that is in them. 16 In past generations he ^aallowed all the nations ^bto walk in their own ways. 17 Yet ^che did not leave himself without witness, for he ^ddid good by ^egiving you rains from heaven and ^ffruitful seasons, satisfying your hearts with ^gfood and ^hgladness.” 18 Even with these words they scarcely restrained the people from offering sacrifice to them.

Paul Stoned at Lystra

19 ⁱBut Jews came from Antioch and Iconium, and having persuaded the crowds, ^jthey stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, supposing that he was dead. 20 But when the disciples gathered about him, he rose up and entered the city, and on the next day he went on with Barnabas to Derbe. 21 When they had preached the gospel to that city and had ^kmade many disciples, they returned to Lystra and to Iconium and to Antioch, 22 ^lstrengthening the souls of the disciples, encouraging them ^mto continue in ⁿthe faith, and saying that ^othrough many tribulations we must enter the kingdom of God. 23 And when they had ^pappointed ^qelders for them in every church, with prayer and fasting ^rthey committed them to the Lord in whom they had believed.

Paul and Barnabas Return to Antioch in Syria

24 Then they passed through Pisidia and came to Pamphylia. 25 And when they had spoken the word in Perga, they went down to Attalia, 26 and from there they sailed to Antioch, ^swhere they had been ^tcommended to the grace of God for the work that they had fulfilled. 27 And when they arrived and gathered the church together, ^uthey declared all that God had done with them, and ^vhow he had ^wopened ^xa door of faith to the Gentiles. 28 And they remained no little time with the disciples.

The Jerusalem Council

15 ^yBut some men came down from Judea and were teaching ^zthe brothers, “Unless you are ^acircumcised ^baccording to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.” 2 And after Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and ^cdebate with them, Paul and Barnabas and ^dsome of the others were appointed to go up to Jerusalem to ^ethe apostles and the elders about this question. 3 So, ^fbeing sent on their way by the church, they passed through both Phoenicia and Samaria, ^gdescribing in detail the conversion of the Gentiles, and ^hbrought great joy to all ⁱthe brothers.¹ 4 ^jWhen they came to Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church and ^kthe apostles and the elders, and ^gthey declared all that God had done with them. 5 But some believers who belonged to ^lthe party of the Pharisees rose up and said, ^m“It is necessary ⁿto circumcise them and to order them to keep the law of Moses.”

6 ^oThe ^kapostles and the elders were gathered together to consider this matter. 7 And after there had been much ^pdebate, Peter stood up and said to them, “Brothers, you know that in the early days God made a choice among you, ^qthat by my mouth the Gentiles should hear ^rthe word of ^sthe gospel and believe. 8 And God, ^twho knows the heart, ^ubore witness to them, ^vby giving them the Holy Spirit just as he did to us, 9 and ^whe made no distinction between us and them, ^xhaving cleansed their hearts ^yby faith. 10 Now, therefore, why ^zare you putting God to the test ^aby placing a yoke on the neck of the disciples ^bthat neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear? 11 But we ^cbelieve that we will be ^dsaved through ^ethe grace of the Lord Jesus, ^wjust as they will.”