Acts 15

⁶For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. What matters is faith expressing itself through love.

⁵But some believers from the party of the Pharisees stood up and declared, “The Gentiles must be circumcised and required to obey the law of Moses.”

⁸See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, which are based on human tradition and the spiritual forces of the world rather than on Christ.

¹¹When Cephas came to Antioch, however, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned.

¹²For before certain men came from James, he used to eat with the Gentiles. But when they arrived, he began to draw back and separate himself, for fear of those in the circumcision group.

¹⁸Was a man already circumcised when he was called? He should not become uncircumcised. Was a man still uncircumcised when called? He should not be circumcised.

¹⁹Circumcision is nothing and uncircumcision is nothing. Keeping God’s commandments is what counts.

³And on the eighth day the flesh of the boy’s foreskin is to be circumcised.

²²Then the apostles and elders, with the whole church, decided to select men from among them to send to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. They chose Judas called Barsabbas and Silas, two leaders among the brothers,

²³and sent them with this letter: The apostles and the elders, your brothers, To the brothers among the Gentiles in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia: Greetings.

¹Fourteen years later I went up again to Jerusalem, accompanied by Barnabas. I took Titus along also.

²I went in response to a revelation and set before them the gospel that I preach among the Gentiles. But I spoke privately to those recognized as leaders, for fear that I was running or had already run in vain.

⁶So the apostles and elders met to look into this matter.

⁷After much discussion, Peter got up and said to them, “Brothers, you know that in the early days God made a choice among you that the Gentiles would hear from my lips the message of the gospel and believe.

⁵We did not give in to them for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel would remain with you.

⁵I consider myself in no way inferior to those “super-apostles.”

⁴On their arrival in Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church and apostles and elders, to whom they reported all that God had done through them.

²⁷When they arrived, 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.

⁵But when our time there had ended, we set out on our journey. All the disciples, with their wives and children, accompanied us out of the city and knelt down on the beach to pray with us.

¹¹No one, then, should treat him with contempt. Send him on his way in peace so that he can return to me, for I am expecting him along with the brothers.

⁶Perhaps I will stay with you awhile, or even spend the winter, so that you can help me on my journey, wherever I go.

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

¹⁹Meanwhile those scattered by the persecution that began with Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch, speaking the message only to Jews.

¹²The whole assembly fell silent as they listened to Barnabas and Paul describing the signs and wonders God had done among the Gentiles through them.

¹²The whole assembly fell silent as they listened to Barnabas and Paul describing the signs and wonders God had done among the Gentiles through them.

²⁷When they arrived, 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.

³Sent on their way by the church, they passed through Phoenicia and Samaria, recounting the conversion of the Gentiles and bringing great joy to all the brothers.

¹⁸I will not presume to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me in leading the Gentiles to obedience by word and deed,

¹⁷When we arrived in Jerusalem, the brothers welcomed us joyfully.

⁸Therefore we ought to support such men, so that we may be fellow workers for the truth.

⁹I have written to the church about this, but Diotrephes, who loves to be first, will not accept our instruction.

¹It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not be encumbered once more by a yoke of slavery.

²Take notice: I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no value to you at all.

¹Then some men came down from Judea and were teaching the brothers, “Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.”

⁵circumcised on the eighth day, of the people of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin; a Hebrew of Hebrews; as to the law, a Pharisee;

⁶as to zeal, persecuting the church; as to righteousness in the law, faultless.

²⁰When they heard this, they glorified God. Then they said to Paul, “You see, brother, how many thousands of Jews have believed, and all of them are zealous for the law.

²⁴It has come to our attention that some went out from us without our authorization and unsettled you, troubling your minds by what they said.

⁵They have known me for a long time and can testify, if they are willing, that I lived as a Pharisee, adhering to the strictest sect of our religion.

⁶And now I stand on trial because of my hope in the promise that God made to our fathers,

²²Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.

⁷Remember your leaders who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith.

¹⁷Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they watch over your souls as those who must give an account. To this end, allow them to lead with joy and not with grief, for that would be of no advantage to you.

²⁵So we all agreed to choose men to send to you along with our beloved Barnabas and Paul,

⁴On their arrival in Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church and apostles and elders, to whom they reported all that God had done through them.

¹⁸The next day Paul went in with us to see James, and all the elders were present.

¹⁷Consequently, faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.

¹⁸But I ask, did they not hear? Indeed they did: “Their voice has gone out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.”

⁷On the contrary, they saw that I had been entrusted to preach the gospel to the uncircumcised, just as Peter had been to the circumcised.

⁸For the One who was at work in Peter’s apostleship to the circumcised was also at work in my apostleship to the Gentiles.

⁴Yet the Lord, the God of Israel, chose me out of all my father’s house to be king over Israel forever. For He chose Judah as leader, and from the house of Judah He chose my father’s household, and from my father’s sons He was pleased to make me king over all Israel.

⁵And of all my sons—for the Lord has given me many sons—He has chosen Solomon my son to sit on the throne of the kingdom of the Lord over Israel.

²And after engaging these men in sharp debate, Paul and Barnabas were appointed, along with some other believers, to go up to Jerusalem to see the apostles and elders about this question.

²⁰So get up! Go downstairs and accompany them without hesitation, because I have sent them.”

³²Therefore send to Joppa for Simon, who is called Peter. He is a guest in the home of Simon the tanner, by the sea.’

³³So I sent for you immediately, and you were kind enough to come. Now then, we are all here in the presence of God to listen to everything the Lord has instructed you to tell us.”

²⁴And they prayed, “Lord, You know everyone’s heart. Show us which of these two You have chosen

⁴⁷“Can anyone withhold the water to baptize these people? They have received the Holy Spirit just as we have!”

¹³Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight; everything is uncovered and exposed before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.

³So Paul and Barnabas spent considerable time there, speaking boldly for the Lord, who affirmed the message of His grace by enabling them to perform signs and wonders.

⁴And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them.

¹⁵As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit fell upon them, just as He had fallen upon us at the beginning.

¹⁶Then I remembered the word of the Lord, how He said, ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’

⁶This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are fellow heirs, fellow members of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus.

⁶For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision has any value. What matters is faith expressing itself through love.

²²And this righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no distinction,

²⁸He said to them, “You know how unlawful it is for a Jew to associate with a foreigner or visit him. But God has shown me that I should not call any man impure or unclean.

²⁸There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.

²To the church of God in Corinth, to those sanctified in Christ Jesus and called to be holy, together with all those everywhere who call on the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours:

¹It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not be encumbered once more by a yoke of slavery.

⁴They tie up heavy, burdensome loads and lay them on men’s shoulders, but they themselves are not willing to lift a finger to move them.

⁹But now that you know God, or rather are known by God, how is it that you are turning back to those weak and worthless principles? Do you wish to be enslaved by them all over again?

⁹It is an illustration for the present time, because the gifts and sacrifices being offered were unable to cleanse the conscience of the worshiper.

²⁸Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.

²⁹Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

⁷Jesus replied, “It is also written: ‘Do not put the Lord your God to the test.’”

²⁴and are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.

⁴But when the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared,

⁵He saved us, not by the righteous deeds we had done, but according to His mercy, through the washing of new birth and renewal by the Holy Spirit.

⁵made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in our trespasses. It is by grace you have been saved!

⁶And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with Him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus,

¹¹For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to everyone.

¹⁶know that a man is not justified by works of the law, but by faith in Jesus Christ. So we, too, have believed in Christ Jesus, that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified.

²³For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

²⁷When they arrived, 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.

⁴On their arrival in Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church and apostles and elders, to whom they reported all that God had done through them.

⁴⁸Jesus said to him, “Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will never believe.”

¹⁹Paul greeted them and recounted one by one the things that God had done among the Gentiles through his ministry.

¹⁷Peter motioned with his hand for silence, and he described how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. “Send word to James and to the brothers,” he said, and he left for another place.

¹James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the twelve tribes of the Dispersion: Greetings.

¹²For before certain men came from James, he used to eat with the Gentiles. But when they arrived, he began to draw back and separate himself, for fear of those in the circumcision group.

⁹And recognizing the grace that I had been given, James, Cephas, and John—those reputed to be pillars—gave me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship, so that we should go to the Gentiles, and they to the circumcised.

³⁰And if a revelation comes to someone who is seated, the first speaker should stop.

³¹For you can all prophesy in turn so that everyone may be instructed and encouraged.

¹⁹My beloved brothers, understand this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak, and slow to anger,

¹Simon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ have received a faith as precious as ours:

⁷After much discussion, Peter got up and said to them, “Brothers, you know that in the early days God made a choice among you that the Gentiles would hear from my lips the message of the gospel and believe.

⁸And God, who knows the heart, showed His approval by giving the Holy Spirit to them, just as He did to us.

³¹which You have prepared in the sight of all people,

³²a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to Your people Israel.”

⁹But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, to proclaim the virtues of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.

¹⁰Once you were not a people, but now you are the people of God; once you had not received mercy, but now you have received mercy.

²¹The people I formed for Myself will declare My praise.

⁵Through Him and on behalf of His name, we received grace and apostleship to call all those among the Gentiles to the obedience that comes from faith.

⁸For I tell you that Christ has become a servant of the circumcised on behalf of God’s truth, to confirm the promises made to the patriarchs,

⁹so that the Gentiles may glorify God for His mercy. As it is written: “Therefore I will praise You among the Gentiles; I will sing hymns to Your name.”

⁴⁷For this is what the Lord has commanded us: ‘I have made you a light for the Gentiles, to bring salvation to the ends of the earth.’”

¹¹“In that day I will restore the fallen tent of David. I will repair its gaps, restore its ruins, and rebuild it as in the days of old,

¹²that they may possess the remnant of Edom and all the nations that bear My name,” declares the Lord, who will do this.

³¹Behold, you will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to give Him the name Jesus.

³²He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David,

³⁵Once and for all I have sworn by My holiness—I will not lie to David—

³⁶his offspring shall endure forever, and his throne before Me like the sun,

²²This is what the Lord God says: ‘I will take a shoot from the lofty top of the cedar, and I will set it out. I will pluck a tender sprig from its topmost shoots, and I will plant it on a high and lofty mountain.

²³I will plant it on the mountain heights of Israel so that it will bear branches; it will yield fruit and become a majestic cedar. Birds of every kind will nest under it, taking shelter in the shade of its branches.

⁶For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given, and the government will be upon His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

⁷Of the increase of His government and peace there will be no end. He will reign on the throne of David and over his kingdom, to establish and sustain it with justice and righteousness from that time and forevermore. The zeal of the Lord of Hosts will accomplish this.

¹⁶When all Israel saw that the king had refused to listen to them, they answered the king: “What portion do we have in David, and what inheritance in the son of Jesse? To your tents, O Israel! Look now to your own house, O David!” So the Israelites went home,

¹¹“On that day many nations will join themselves to the Lord, and they will become My people. I will dwell among you, and you will know that the Lord of Hosts has sent Me to you.

²⁰This is what the Lord of Hosts says: “Peoples will yet come—the residents of many cities—

²¹and the residents of one city will go to another, saying: ‘Let us go at once to plead before the Lord and to seek the Lord of Hosts. I myself am going.’

²³And I will sow her as My own in the land, and I will have compassion on ‘No Compassion.’ I will say to those called ‘Not My People,’ ‘You are My people,’ and they will say, ‘You are my God.’”

¹“I revealed Myself to those who did not ask for Me; I was found by those who did not seek Me. To a nation that did not call My name, I said, ‘Here I am! Here I am!’

¹⁹O Lord, my strength and my fortress, my refuge in the day of distress, the nations will come to You from the ends of the earth, and they will say, “Our fathers inherited nothing but lies, worthless idols of no benefit at all.

¹¹For My name will be great among the nations, from where the sun rises to where it sets. In every place, incense and pure offerings will be presented in My name, because My name will be great among the nations,” says the Lord of Hosts.

⁴For He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless in His presence. In love

⁹and to illuminate for everyone the stewardship of this mystery, which for ages past was kept hidden in God, who created all things.

⁹Remember what happened long ago, for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me.

¹⁰I declare the end from the beginning, and from ancient times what is still to come. I say, ‘My purpose will stand, and all My good pleasure I will accomplish.’

²⁰He was known before the foundation of the world, but was revealed in the last times for your sake.

¹¹In Him we were also chosen as God’s own, having been predestined according to the plan of Him who works out everything by the counsel of His will,

²⁶From one man He made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and He determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their lands.

²⁸It seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us not to burden you with anything beyond these essential requirements:

⁷which is not even a gospel. Evidently some people are troubling you and trying to distort the gospel of Christ.

⁸But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be under a curse!

²⁴It has come to our attention that some went out from us without our authorization and unsettled you, troubling your minds by what they said.

⁹For they themselves report what kind of welcome you gave us, and how you turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God

⁷Let the wicked man forsake his way and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that He may have compassion, and to our God, for He will freely pardon.

²Bring your confessions and return to the Lord. Say to Him: “Take away all our iniquity and receive us graciously, that we may present the fruit of our lips.

²⁹You must 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.

²⁰But I have this against you: You tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess. By her teaching she misleads My servants to be sexually immoral and to eat food sacrificed to idols.

¹⁴But I have a few things against you, because some of you hold to the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to place a stumbling block before the Israelites so they would eat food sacrificed to idols and commit sexual immorality.

¹⁷This is a permanent statute for the generations to come, wherever you live: You must not eat any fat or any blood.”

⁴But you must not eat meat with its lifeblood still in it.

⁴So about eating food sacrificed to idols: We know that an idol is nothing at all in the world, and that there is no God but one.

⁵For even if there are so-called gods, whether in heaven or on earth (as there are many so-called gods and lords),

¹⁵After the reading from the Law and the Prophets, the synagogue leaders sent word to them: “Brothers, if you have a word of encouragement for the people, please speak.”

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.

¹⁴But their minds were closed. For to this day the same veil remains at the reading of the old covenant. It has not been lifted, because only in Christ can it be removed.

¹⁵And even to this day when Moses is read, a veil covers their hearts.

¹At that time all the people gathered together in the square before the Water Gate, and they asked Ezra the scribe to bring out the Book of the Law of Moses, which the Lord had commanded for Israel.

²On the first day of the seventh month, Ezra the priest brought the Law before the assembly of men and women and all who could listen and understand.

¹⁶Then Jesus came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up. As was His custom, He entered the synagogue on the Sabbath. And when He stood up to read,

²⁷Therefore we are sending Judas and Silas to tell you in person the same things we are writing.

⁴⁰but Paul chose Silas and left, commended by the brothers to the grace of the Lord.

¹Paul, Silvanus, and Timothy, To the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ:

³²Judas and Silas, who themselves were prophets, said much to encourage and strengthen the brothers.

²³So they proposed two men: Joseph called Barsabbas (also known as Justus) and Matthias.

¹²Through Silvanus, whom I regard as a faithful brother, I have written to you briefly, encouraging you and testifying that this is the true grace of God. Stand firm in it.

²⁶Claudius Lysias, To His Excellency, Governor Felix: Greetings.

¹James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, To the twelve tribes of the Dispersion: Greetings.

²¹Later I went to the regions of Syria and Cilicia.

³Greet Prisca and Aquila, my fellow workers in Christ Jesus,

⁴who have risked their lives for me. Not only I but all the churches of the Gentiles are grateful to them.

²²Then the apostles and elders, with the whole church, decided to select men from among them to send to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. They chose Judas called Barsabbas and Silas, two leaders among the brothers,

⁴On their arrival in Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church and apostles and elders, to whom they reported all that God had done through them.

¹²As for those who are agitating you, I wish they would proceed to emasculate themselves!

¹Then some men came down from Judea and were teaching the brothers, “Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.”

¹⁰I am confident in the Lord that you will take no other view. The one who is troubling you will bear the judgment, whoever he may be.

¹⁰For many are rebellious and full of empty talk and deception, especially those of the circumcision,

¹¹who must be silenced. For the sake of dishonorable gain, they undermine entire households and teach things they should not.

⁷which is not even a gospel. Evidently some people are troubling you and trying to distort the gospel of Christ.

¹²Those who want to make a good impression outwardly are trying to compel you to be circumcised. They only do this to avoid persecution for the cross of Christ.

¹³For the circumcised do not even keep the law themselves, yet they want you to be circumcised that they may boast in your flesh.

²²Then the apostles and elders, with the whole church, decided to select men from among them to send to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. They chose Judas called Barsabbas and Silas, two leaders among the brothers,

¹⁵Consider also that our Lord’s patience brings salvation, just as our beloved brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom God gave him.

¹⁴With one accord they all continued in prayer, along with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus, and with His brothers.

³Therefore, having carefully investigated everything from the beginning, it seemed good also to me to write an orderly account for you, most excellent Theophilus,

²And after engaging these men in sharp debate, Paul and Barnabas were appointed, along with some other believers, to go up to Jerusalem to see the apostles and elders about this question.

²¹Tychicus, the beloved brother and faithful servant in the Lord, will tell you everything, so that you also may know about me and what I am doing.

¹⁹Then some Jews arrived from Antioch and Iconium and won over the crowds. They stoned Paul and dragged him outside the city, presuming he was dead.

²³After many days had passed, the Jews conspired to kill him,

²⁴but Saul learned of their plot. Day and night they watched the city gates in order to kill him.

²⁹Welcome him in the Lord with great joy, and honor men like him,

³⁰because he nearly died for the work of Christ, risking his life to make up for your deficit of service to me.

²³Are they servants of Christ? (I am speaking as if I were out of my mind.) I am so much more: in harder labor, in more imprisonments, in worse beatings, in frequent danger of death.

²⁴Five times I received from the Jews the forty lashes minus one.

³⁰And why do we endanger ourselves every hour?

¹⁸Zebulun was a people who risked their lives; Naphtali, too, on the heights of the battlefield.

²²Then the apostles and elders, with the whole church, decided to select men from among them to send to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. They chose Judas called Barsabbas and Silas, two leaders among the brothers,

¹²I have many things to write to you, but I would prefer not to do so with paper and ink. Instead, I hope to come and speak with you face to face, so that our joy may be complete.

³²Judas and Silas, who themselves were prophets, said much to encourage and strengthen the brothers.

¹³I have many things to write to you, but I would prefer not to do so with pen and ink.

³⁰For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

²⁴But I say to the rest of you in Thyatira, who do not hold to her teaching and have not learned the so-called deep things of Satan: I will place no further burden upon you

¹³However, when the Spirit of truth comes, He will guide you into all truth. For He will not speak on His own, but He will speak what He hears, and He will declare to you what is to come.

³⁷If anyone considers himself a prophet or spiritual person, let him acknowledge that what I am writing you is the Lord’s command.

¹²It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves, but you, when they foretold the things now announced by those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things.

⁴⁰In my judgment, however, she is happier if she remains as she is. And I think that I too have the Spirit of God.

²⁰Instead, we should write and tell them to abstain from food polluted by idols, from sexual immorality, from the meat of strangled animals, and from blood.

²⁵As for the Gentile believers, we have written to them our decision that they must abstain from food sacrificed to idols, from blood, from the meat of strangled animals, and from sexual immorality.”

¹⁴But I have a few things against you, because some of you hold to the teaching of Balaam, who taught Balak to place a stumbling block before the Israelites so they would eat food sacrificed to idols and commit sexual immorality.

²⁰But I have this against you: You tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess. By her teaching she misleads My servants to be sexually immoral and to eat food sacrificed to idols.

¹⁴For the life of all flesh is its blood. Therefore I have told the Israelites, ‘You must not eat the blood of any living thing, because the life of all flesh is its blood; whoever eats it must be cut off.’

¹⁸Consider the people of Israel: Are not those who eat the sacrifices fellow partakers in the altar?

¹⁹Am I suggesting, then, that food sacrificed to an idol is anything, or that an idol is anything?

⁴As they went from town to town, they delivered the decisions handed down by the apostles and elders in Jerusalem for the people to obey.

²So the Twelve summoned all the disciples and said, “It is unacceptable for us to neglect the word of God in order to wait on tables.

²²What then should we do? They will certainly hear that you have come.

³³When the horsemen arrived in Caesarea, they delivered the letter to the governor and presented Paul to him.

⁴This issue arose because some false brothers had come in under false pretenses to spy on our freedom in Christ Jesus, in order to enslave us.

⁵We did not give in to them for a moment, so that the truth of the gospel would remain with you.

¹It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not be encumbered once more by a yoke of slavery.

³For it is we who are the circumcision, we who worship by the Spirit of God, who glory in Christ Jesus, and who put no confidence in the flesh—

¹Then some men came down from Judea and were teaching the brothers, “Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.”

¹⁰Now then, why do you test God by placing on the necks of the disciples a yoke that neither we nor our fathers have been able to bear?

⁵So the churches were strengthened in the faith and grew daily in numbers.

²³When he arrived and saw the grace of God, he rejoiced and encouraged them all to abide in the Lord with all their hearts.

²²strengthening the souls of the disciples and encouraging them to continue in the faith. “We must endure many hardships to enter the kingdom of God,” they said.

¹Now in 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.

³But he who prophesies speaks to men for their edification, encouragement, and comfort.

²We sent Timothy, our brother and fellow worker for God in the gospel of Christ, to strengthen and encourage you in your faith,

¹⁰And after you have suffered for a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to His eternal glory in Christ, will Himself restore you, secure you, strengthen you, and establish you.

¹¹No one, then, should treat him with contempt. Send him on his way in peace so that he can return to me, for I am expecting him along with the brothers.

³¹By faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies in peace, did not perish with those who were disobedient.

³⁶The jailer informed Paul: “The magistrates have sent orders to release you. Now you may go on your way in peace.”

²⁹that you will not harm us, just as we have not harmed you but have done only good to you, sending you on your way in peace. And now you are blessed by the Lord.”

¹⁸Then Moses went back to his father-in-law Jethro and said to him, “Please let me return to my brothers in Egypt to see if they are still alive.” “Go in peace,” Jethro replied.

³⁴“Daughter,” said Jesus, “your faith has healed you. Go in peace and be free of your affliction.”

²⁸We proclaim Him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ.

²Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and encourage with every form of patient instruction.

¹Now in 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.

¹⁹Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

²⁰and teaching them to obey all that I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

⁴Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went.

³¹Boldly and freely he proclaimed the kingdom of God and taught about the Lord Jesus Christ.

⁴So Barnabas and Saul, sent forth by the Holy Spirit, went down to Seleucia and sailed from there to Cyprus.

⁶they found out about it and fled to the Lycaonian cities of Lystra and Derbe and to the surrounding region,

¹³After setting sail from Paphos, Paul and his companions came to Perga in Pamphylia, where John left them to return to Jerusalem.

¹⁴And from Perga, they traveled inland to Pisidian Antioch, where they entered the synagogue on the Sabbath and sat down.

⁵¹So they shook the dust off their feet in protest against them and went to Iconium.

²⁴After passing through Pisidia, they came to Pamphylia.

²⁵And when they had spoken the word in Perga, they went down to Attalia.

²⁸Apart from these external trials, I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches.

¹²And when he had realized this, he went to the house of Mary the mother of John, also called Mark, where many people had gathered together and were praying.

²⁵When Barnabas and Saul had fulfilled their mission to Jerusalem, they returned, bringing with them John, also called Mark.

²⁴as do Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, and Luke, my fellow workers.

⁵When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the Jewish synagogues. And John was with them as their helper.

¹¹Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, because he is useful to me in the ministry.

¹⁰My fellow prisoner Aristarchus sends you greetings, as does Mark the cousin of Barnabas. You have already received instructions about him: If he comes to you, welcome him.

¹³After setting sail from Paphos, Paul and his companions came to Perga in Pamphylia, where John left them to return to Jerusalem.

¹⁹Like a broken tooth or a foot out of joint is confidence in a faithless man in time of trouble.

⁹The archers of Ephraim turned back on the day of battle.

⁸He is a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways.

²⁷And whoever does not carry his cross and follow Me cannot be My disciple.

²⁸Which of you, wishing to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost to see if he has the resources to complete it?

⁶¹Still another said, “I will follow You, Lord; but first let me bid farewell to my family.”

¹⁰My fellow prisoner Aristarchus sends you greetings, as does Mark the cousin of Barnabas. You have already received instructions about him: If he comes to you, welcome him.

³⁶Joseph, a Levite from Cyprus, whom the apostles called Barnabas (meaning Son of Encouragement),

²⁰Surely there is no righteous man on earth who does good and never sins.

²We all stumble in many ways. If anyone is never at fault in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to control his whole body.

¹⁸I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my flesh; for I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out.

¹⁹For I do not do the good I want to do. Instead, I keep on doing the evil I do not want to do.

⁴So Barnabas and Saul, sent forth 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. And John was with them as their helper.

²²Then the apostles and elders, with the whole church, decided to select men from among them to send to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. They chose Judas called Barsabbas and Silas, two leaders among the brothers,

²³When he arrived and saw the grace of God, he rejoiced and encouraged them all to abide in the Lord with all their hearts.

²⁶From Attalia they sailed to Antioch, where they had been commended to the grace of God for the work they had just completed.

¹⁰But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace to me was not in vain. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me.

¹⁴The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with all of you.

²²The Lord be with your spirit. Grace be with you all.

²³and sent them with this letter: The apostles and the elders, your brothers, To the brothers among the Gentiles in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia: Greetings.

³²Judas and Silas, who themselves were prophets, said much to encourage and strengthen the brothers.

²¹Later I went to the regions of Syria and Cilicia.

⁴As they went from town to town, they delivered the decisions handed down 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.

⁹But resistance arose from what was called the Synagogue of the Freedmen, including Cyrenians, Alexandrians, and men from the provinces of Cilicia and Asia. They disputed with Stephen,

³After sighting Cyprus and passing south of it, we sailed on to Syria and landed at Tyre, where the ship was to unload its cargo.