Acts 8

¹⁶Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego replied to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter.

¹⁷If the God whom we serve exists, then He is able to deliver us from the blazing fiery furnace and from your hand, O king.

²⁰And when the blood of Your witness Stephen was shed, I stood there giving my approval and watching over the garments of those who killed him.’

⁴⁰At this, they yielded to Gamaliel. They called the apostles in and had them flogged. Then they ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and released them.

⁸But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

⁵⁸They dragged him out of the city and began to stone him. Meanwhile the witnesses laid their garments at the feet of a young man named Saul.

³³When the Council members heard this, they were enraged, and they resolved to put the apostles to death.

¹⁰When they reached the threshing floor of Atad, which is across the Jordan, they lamented and wailed loudly, and Joseph mourned for his father seven days.

¹¹When the Canaanites of the land saw the mourning at the threshing floor of Atad, they said, “This is a solemn ceremony of mourning by the Egyptians.” Thus the place across the Jordan is called Abel-mizraim.

¹⁸Therefore this is what the Lord says concerning Jehoiakim son of Josiah king of Judah: “They will not mourn for him: ‘Alas, my brother! Alas, my sister!’ They will not mourn for him: ‘Alas, my master! Alas, his splendor!’

²She died in Kiriath-arba (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went out to mourn and to weep for her.

²⁵Then Jeremiah lamented over Josiah, and to this day all the male and female singers recite laments over Josiah. They established them as a statute for Israel, and indeed they are written in the Book of Laments.

³³And Hezekiah rested with his fathers and was buried in the upper tombs of David’s descendants. All Judah and the people of Jerusalem paid him honor at his death. And his son Manasseh reigned in his place.

³¹When the Jews who were in the house consoling Mary saw how quickly she got up and went out, they followed her, supposing she was going to the tomb to mourn there.

³²When Mary came to Jesus and saw Him, she fell at His feet and said, “Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died.”

¹³I was formerly a blasphemer, a persecutor, and a violent man; yet because I had acted in ignorance and unbelief, I was shown mercy.

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

⁹For I am the least of the apostles and am unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God.

¹³For you have heard of my former way of life in Judaism, how severely I persecuted the church of God and tried to destroy it.

²¹All who heard him were astounded and asked, “Isn’t this the man who wreaked havoc in Jerusalem on those who call on this name? And hasn’t he come here to take them as prisoners to the chief priests?”

¹⁹‘Lord,’ I answered, ‘they know very well that in one synagogue after another I imprisoned and beat those who believed in You.

²³When they persecute you in one town, flee to the next. Truly I tell you, you will not reach all the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.

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

¹And Saul was there, giving approval to Stephen’s death. On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria.

²As you are aware, we had already endured suffering and shameful treatment in Philippi. But in the face of strong opposition, we were bold in our God to speak to you the gospel of God.

³⁵But Paul and Barnabas remained at Antioch, along with many others, teaching and preaching the word of the Lord.

²But the unbelieving Jews 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 affirmed the message of His grace by enabling them to perform signs and wonders.

⁵This proposal pleased the whole group. They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit, as well as Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas from Antioch, a convert to Judaism.

⁸Leaving the next day, we went on to Caesarea and stayed at the home of Philip the evangelist, who was one of the Seven.

⁴⁰But Philip appeared at Azotus and traveled through that region, preaching the gospel in all the towns until he came to Caesarea.

³⁵Then Philip began with this very Scripture and told him the good news about Jesus.

³⁶As they traveled along the road and came to some water, the eunuch said, “Look, here is water! What is there to prevent me from being baptized?”

⁴²Every day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they did not stop teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Christ.

²³but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles,

⁴¹And many more believed because of His message.

⁴²They said to the woman, “We now believe not only because of your words; we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man truly is the Savior of the world.”

¹⁵Do I not have the right to do as I please with what is mine? Or are you envious because I am generous?’

¹⁶So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”

⁴⁴On the following Sabbath, nearly the whole city gathered to hear the word of the Lord.

¹²Moreover, the power of God was on the people in Judah to give them one heart to obey the command of the king and his officials according to the word of the Lord.

¹And calling His twelve disciples to Him, Jesus gave them authority over unclean spirits, so that they could drive them out and heal every disease and sickness.

⁸In Lystra there sat a man crippled in his feet, who was lame from birth and had never walked.

⁹This man was listening to the words of Paul, who looked intently at him and saw that he had faith to be healed.

¹⁷And these signs will accompany those who believe: In My name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues;

¹⁸they will pick up snakes with their hands, and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not harm them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will be made well.”

¹⁶Crowds also gathered from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing the sick and those tormented by unclean spirits, and all of them were healed.

⁴and was affirmed by God through signs, wonders, various miracles, and gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to His will.

³³There he found a man named Aeneas who had been paralyzed and bedridden for eight years.

³⁴“Aeneas,” Peter said to him, “Jesus Christ heals you! Get up and put away your mat.” Immediately Aeneas got up,

⁵²And the disciples were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit.

¹⁰Declare among the nations: “The Lord reigns!” The world is firmly established; it cannot be moved; He will judge the peoples with equity.

¹¹Let the heavens be glad and the earth rejoice; let the sea resound, and all that fills it.

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

¹⁰But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid! For behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people:

¹¹Today in the city of David a Savior has been born to you. He is Christ the Lord!

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.”

¹⁰Again, it says: “Rejoice, O Gentiles, with His people.”

³⁹When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord carried Philip away, and the eunuch saw him no more, but went on his way rejoicing.

⁶They traveled through the whole island as far as Paphos, where they found a Jewish sorcerer and false prophet named Bar-Jesus,

¹⁸He who speaks on his own authority seeks his own glory, but He who seeks the glory of the One who sent Him is a man of truth; in Him there is no falsehood.

³⁶Some time ago Theudas rose up, claiming to be somebody, and about four hundred men joined him. He was killed, all his followers were dispersed, and it all came to nothing.

¹⁸The magicians tried to produce gnats using their magic arts, but they could not. And the gnats remained on man and beast.

¹⁹“This is the finger of God,” the magicians said to Pharaoh. But Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, and he would not listen to them, just as the Lord had said.

¹⁸Many who had believed now came forward, confessing and disclosing their deeds.

¹⁹And a number of those who had practiced magic arts brought their books and burned them in front of everyone. When the value of the books was calculated, the total came to fifty thousand drachmas.

⁶Whoever turns to mediums or spiritists to prostitute himself with them, I will also set My face against that person and cut him off from his people.

²Many will follow in their depravity, and because of them the way of truth will be defamed.

³One of the heads of the beast appeared to have been mortally wounded. But the mortal wound was healed, and the whole world marveled and followed the beast.

³⁴No longer will each man teach his neighbor or his brother, saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ because they will all know Me, from the least of them to the greatest, declares the Lord. For I will forgive their iniquities and will remember their sins no more.”

¹⁰Therefore I will give their wives to other men and their fields to new owners. For from the least of them to the greatest, all are greedy for gain; from prophet to priest, all practice deceit.

⁵And the Ninevites believed God. They proclaimed a fast and dressed in sackcloth, from the greatest of them to the least.

¹¹When the crowds saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voices in the Lycaonian language: “The gods have come down to us in human form!”

⁹Prior to that time, a man named Simon had practiced sorcery in the city and astounded the people of Samaria. He claimed to be someone great,

¹O foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you? Before your very eyes Jesus Christ was clearly portrayed as crucified.

¹⁹When men tell you to consult mediums and spiritists who whisper and mutter, shouldn’t a people consult their God instead? Why consult the dead on behalf of the living?

⁹These two things will overtake you in a moment, in a single day: loss of children, and widowhood. They will come upon you in full measure, in spite of your many sorceries and the potency of your spells.

¹⁰You were secure in your wickedness; you said, ‘No one sees me.’ Your wisdom and knowledge led you astray; you told yourself, ‘I am, and there is none besides me.’

²⁵who foils the signs of false prophets and makes fools of diviners, who confounds the wise and turns their knowledge into nonsense,

³⁸Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

³After His suffering, He presented Himself to them with many convincing proofs that He was alive. He appeared to them over a span of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God.

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,

⁴¹Those who embraced his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to the believers that day.

²¹And this water symbolizes the baptism that now saves you also—not the removal of dirt from the body, but the pledge of a clear conscience toward God—through the resurrection of Jesus Christ,

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

¹¹God did extraordinary miracles through the hands of Paul,

⁶The crowds all paid close attention to Philip’s message and to the signs they saw him perform.

⁷With loud shrieks, unclean spirits came out of many who were possessed, and many of the paralyzed and lame were healed.

²⁰The Father loves the Son and shows Him all He does. And to your amazement, He will show Him even greater works than these.

³⁰As Jesus spoke these things, many believed in Him.

³¹So He said to the Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, you are truly My disciples.

¹⁷And these signs will accompany those who believe: In My name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues;

²³While He was in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, many people saw the signs He was doing and believed in His name.

²⁴But Jesus did not entrust Himself to them, for He knew them all.

¹³And we continually thank God because, when you received the word of God that you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men, but as it truly is, the word of God, which is also now at work in you who believe.

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

¹And Saul was there, giving approval to Stephen’s death. On that day a great persecution broke out against the church in Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria.

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.

⁴¹Those who embraced his message were baptized, and about three thousand were added to the believers that day.

⁸Jesus sent Peter and John, saying, “Go and make preparations for us to eat the Passover.”

³⁸Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

²³In that day you will no longer ask Me anything. Truly, truly, I tell you, whatever you ask the Father in My name, He will give you.

²⁴Until now you have not asked for anything in My name. Ask and you will receive, so that your joy may be complete.

¹⁹Again, I tell you truly that if two of you on the earth agree about anything you ask for, it will be done for you by My Father in heaven.

¹³And I will do whatever you ask in My name, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son.

¹⁴If you ask Me for anything in My name, I will do it.

¹⁹because I know that through your prayers and the provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ, my distress will turn out for my deliverance.

³⁸Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

²and asked them, “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you became believers?” “No,” they answered, “we have not even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.”

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,

⁵On hearing this, they were baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus.

⁶And when Paul laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied.

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.’

⁴⁴While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell upon all who heard his message.

⁴⁵All the circumcised believers who had accompanied Peter were astounded that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on the Gentiles.

⁶And when Paul laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they spoke in tongues and prophesied.

⁶They presented these seven to the apostles, who prayed and laid their hands on them.

⁶For this reason I remind you to fan into flame the gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands.

¹⁸When Simon saw that the Spirit was given through the laying on of the apostles’ hands, he offered them money.

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

¹⁷So Ananias went to the house, and when he arrived, he placed his hands on Saul. “Brother Saul,” he said, “the Lord Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you were coming here, has sent me so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit.”

⁵and constant friction between men of depraved mind who are devoid of the truth. These men regard godliness as a means of gain.

⁸Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.

⁹So Hazael went to meet Elisha, taking with him a gift of forty camel loads of every good thing from Damascus. And he went in and stood before him and said, “Your son Ben-hadad king of Aram has sent me to ask, ‘Will I recover from this illness?’”

¹⁹You have profaned Me among My people for handfuls of barley and scraps of bread. By lying to My people who would listen, you have killed those who should not have died and spared those who should not have lived.

¹⁵Then Naaman and all his attendants went back to the man of God, stood before him, and declared, “Now I know for sure that there is no God in all the earth except in Israel. So please accept a gift from your servant.”

¹⁶But Elisha replied, “As surely as the Lord lives, before whom I stand, I will not accept it.” And although Naaman urged him to accept it, he refused.

⁷When Jesus noticed how the guests chose the places of honor, He told them a parable:

⁸“When you are invited to a wedding banquet, do not sit in the place of honor, in case someone more distinguished than you has been invited.

¹At that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who then is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”

²Jesus invited a little child to stand among them.

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

⁴⁴How can you believe if you accept glory from one another, yet do not seek the glory that comes from the only God?

¹⁷Then Peter and John laid their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.

⁹Prior to that time, a man named Simon had practiced sorcery in the city and astounded the people of Samaria. He claimed to be someone great,

¹⁰and all the people, from the least to the greatest, heeded his words and said, “This man is the divine power called the Great Power.”

¹⁷In response, Daniel said to the king, “You may keep your gifts for yourself and give your rewards to someone else. Nevertheless, I will read the inscription for the king and interpret it for him.

³⁸Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

⁸Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, drive out demons. Freely you have received; freely give.

¹⁵The merchants who sold these things and gained their wealth from her will stand at a distance, in fear of her torment. They will weep and mourn,

¹⁴Their eyes are full of adultery; their desire for sin is never satisfied; they seduce the unstable. They are accursed children with hearts trained in greed.

¹⁵They have left the straight way and wandered off to follow the way of Balaam son of Beor, who loved the wages of wickedness.

⁹Those who want to be rich, however, fall into temptation and become ensnared by many foolish and harmful desires that plunge them into ruin and destruction.

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.

²²The eye is the lamp of the body. If your eyes are good, your whole body will be full of light.

²³But if your eyes are bad, your whole body will be full of darkness. If then the light within you is darkness, how great is that darkness!

¹For the choirmaster. A Psalm of David, the servant of the Lord. An oracle is in my heart regarding the transgression of the wicked man: There is no fear of God before his eyes.

¹⁷Jesus asked a third time, “Simon son of John, do you love Me?” Peter was deeply hurt that Jesus had asked him a third time, “Do you love Me?” “Lord, You know all things,” he replied. “You know I love You.” Jesus said to him, “Feed My sheep.

¹⁹And if anyone takes away from the words of this book of prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and the holy city, which are described in this book.

²And he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, but not wholeheartedly.

²⁵He must gently reprove those who oppose him, in the hope that God may grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth.

²⁶Then they will come to their senses and escape the snare of the devil, who has taken them captive to his will.

²⁷Therefore, may my advice be pleasing to you, O king. Break away from your sins by doing what is right, and from your iniquities by showing mercy to the oppressed. Perhaps there will be an extension of your prosperity.”

¹²For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it pierces even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow. It judges the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

¹¹“Get up!” the Lord told him. “Go to the house of Judas on Straight Street and ask for a man from Tarsus named Saul, for he is praying.

⁹So I tell you: Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and the door will be opened to you.

¹⁰For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.

⁴Or do you disregard the riches of His kindness, tolerance, and patience, not realizing that God’s kindness leads you to repentance?

⁶Isn’t this the fast that I have chosen: to break the chains of wickedness, to untie the cords of the yoke, to set the oppressed free and tear off every yoke?

²²The iniquities of a wicked man entrap him; the cords of his sin entangle him.

³⁴Jesus replied, “Truly, truly, I tell you, everyone who sins is a slave to sin.

¹⁵See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God, and that no root of bitterness springs up to cause trouble and defile many.

³For at one time we too were foolish, disobedient, misled, and enslaved to all sorts of desires and pleasures—living in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another.

²²So now, do not mock, or your shackles will become heavier. Indeed, I have heard from the Lord God of Hosts a decree of destruction against the whole land.

⁸Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron and said, “Pray to the Lord to take the frogs away from me and my people. Then I will let your people go, that they may sacrifice to the Lord.”

⁷Then the people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned by speaking against the Lord and against you. Intercede with the Lord so He will take the snakes away from us.” So Moses interceded for the people.

⁸So now, take seven bulls and seven rams, go to My servant Job, and sacrifice a burnt offering for yourselves. Then My servant Job will pray for you, for I will accept his prayer and not deal with you according to your folly. For you have not spoken accurately about Me, as My servant Job has.”

⁷Now return the man’s wife, for he is a prophet; he will pray for you and you will live. But if you do not restore her, be aware that you will surely die—you and all who belong to you.”

¹⁶Therefore confess your sins to each other and pray for each other so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous man has great power to prevail.

³²Take your flocks and herds as well, just as you have said, and depart! And bless me also.”

²¹testifying to Jews and Greeks alike about repentance to God and faith in our Lord Jesus Christ.

²³So they set a day to meet with Paul, and many people came to the place he was staying. He expounded to them from morning to evening, testifying about the kingdom of God and persuading them about Jesus from the Law of Moses and the Prophets.

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.

²⁸Be advised, therefore, that God’s salvation has been sent to the Gentiles, and they will listen!”

⁴⁰But Philip appeared at Azotus and traveled through that region, preaching the gospel in all the towns until he came to Caesarea.

⁸But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

³But the angel of the Lord said to Elijah the Tishbite, “Go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria and ask them, ‘Is it because there is no God in Israel that you are on your way to inquire of Baal-zebub, the god of Ekron?’

¹⁹But during the night an angel of the Lord opened the doors of the jail and brought them out, saying,

¹⁴Are not the angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?

²³For just last night an angel of the God to whom I belong and whom I serve stood beside me

²³Immediately, because Herod did not give glory to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died.

²²“Cornelius the centurion has sent us,” they said. “He is a righteous and God-fearing man with a good reputation among the whole Jewish nation. A holy angel instructed him to request your presence in his home so he could hear a message from you.”

¹⁰From beyond the rivers of Cush My worshipers, My scattered people, will bring Me an offering.

³¹Envoys will arrive from Egypt; Cush will stretch out her hands to God.

³Let no foreigner who has joined himself to the Lord say, “The Lord will utterly exclude me from His people.” And let the eunuch not say, “I am but a dry tree.”

⁴For this is what the Lord says: “To the eunuchs who keep My Sabbaths, who choose what pleases Me and hold fast to My covenant—

⁷Now Ebed-melech the Cushite, a court official in the royal palace, heard that Jeremiah had been put into the cistern. While the king was sitting at the Gate of Benjamin,

⁴“I will mention Rahab and Babylon among those who know Me—along with Philistia, Tyre, and Cush—when I say, ‘This one was born in Zion.’”

⁴¹And as for the foreigner who is not of Your people Israel but has come from a distant land because of Your name—

⁴²for they will hear of Your great name and mighty hand and outstretched arm—when he comes and prays toward this temple,

¹⁶Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom, and as you sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs with gratitude in your hearts to God.

¹This is the vision concerning Judah and Jerusalem that Isaiah son of Amoz saw during the reigns of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz, and Hezekiah, kings of Judah.

²⁵They disagreed among themselves and began to leave after Paul had made this final statement: “The Holy Spirit was right when He spoke to your fathers through Isaiah the prophet:

¹My son, if you accept my words and hide my commandments within you,

²if you incline your ear to wisdom and direct your heart to understanding,

¹⁵From infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.

¹⁶All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for instruction, for conviction, for correction, and for training in righteousness,

⁹⁹I have more insight than all my teachers, for Your testimonies are my meditation.

¹⁹As Peter continued to reflect on the vision, the Spirit said to him, “Behold, three men are looking for you.

¹²The Spirit told me to accompany them without hesitation. These six brothers also went with me, and we entered the man’s home.

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.”

³And after they had fasted and prayed, they laid their hands on them and sent them off.

²²And now, compelled by the Spirit, I am going to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there.

²³I only know that in town after town the Holy Spirit warns me that chains and afflictions await me.

⁶After the Holy Spirit had prevented them from speaking the word in the province of Asia, they traveled through the region of Phrygia and Galatia.

⁷And when they came to the border of Mysia, they tried to enter Bithynia, but the Spirit of Jesus would not permit them.

³So let us know—let us press on to know the Lord. As surely as the sun rises, He will appear; He will come to us like the rain, like the spring showers that water the earth.

⁴⁴Jesus said to them, “These are the words I spoke to you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about Me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets, and the Psalms.”

⁴⁵Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures.

³⁹You pore over the Scriptures because you presume that by them you possess eternal life. These are the very words that testify about Me,

¹⁷Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.

¹⁰Jesus called the crowd to Him and said, “Listen and understand.

²³But the seed sown on good soil is the one who hears the word and understands it. He indeed bears fruit and produces a crop—a hundredfold, sixtyfold, or thirtyfold.”

⁵¹Have you understood all these things?” “Yes,” they answered.

¹⁴How then can they call on the One in whom they have not believed? And how can they believe in the One of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone to preach?

¹⁸On that day the deaf will hear the words of the scroll, and out of the deep darkness the eyes of the blind will see.

¹⁹The humble will increase their joy in the Lord, and the poor among men will rejoice in the Holy One of Israel.

¹⁶When I tried to understand all this, it was troublesome in my sight

¹⁷until I entered God’s sanctuary; then I discerned their end.

²Surely I am the most ignorant of men, and I lack the understanding of a man.

³I have not learned wisdom, and I have no knowledge of the Holy One.

⁸Good and upright is the Lord; therefore He shows sinners the way.

⁹He guides the humble in what is right and teaches them His way.

³“Truly I tell you,” He said, “unless you change and become like little children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.

⁴Therefore, whoever humbles himself like this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.

⁷He was oppressed and afflicted, yet He did not open His mouth. He was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is silent, so He did not open His mouth.

⁸By oppression and judgment He was taken away, and who can recount His descendants? For He was cut off from the land of the living; He was stricken for the transgression of My people.

²¹For to this you were called, because Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example, that you should follow in His footsteps:

²²“He committed no sin, and no deceit was found in His mouth.”

⁴⁰I will bring them down like lambs to the slaughter, like rams with male goats.

¹⁹For I was like a gentle lamb led to slaughter; I did not know that they had plotted against me: “Let us destroy the tree with its fruit; let us cut him off from the land of the living, that his name may be remembered no more.”

³⁶As it is written: “For Your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.”

¹¹You have given us up as sheep to be devoured; You have scattered us among the nations.

¹²You sell Your people for nothing; no profit do You gain from their sale.

¹²Therefore I will allot Him a portion with the great, and He will divide the spoils with the strong, because He has poured out His life unto death, and He was numbered with the transgressors. Yet He bore the sin of many and made intercession for the transgressors.

⁸By oppression and judgment He was taken away, and who can recount His descendants? For He was cut off from the land of the living; He was stricken for the transgression of My people.

⁸And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross.

⁹Therefore God exalted Him to the highest place and gave Him the name above all names,

⁷Awake, O sword, against My Shepherd, against the man who is My Companion, declares the Lord of Hosts. Strike the Shepherd, and the sheep will be scattered, and I will turn My hand against the little ones.

¹⁰Yet it was the Lord’s will to crush Him and to cause Him to suffer; and when His soul is made a guilt offering, He will see His offspring, He will prolong His days, and the good pleasure of the Lord will prosper in His hand.

²to deprive the poor of fair treatment and withhold justice from the oppressed of My people, to make widows their prey and orphans their plunder.

¹⁵Peter said to Him, “Explain this parable to us.”

³⁶Then Jesus dismissed the crowds and went into the house. His disciples came to Him and said, “Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field.”

²asking, “Where is the One who has been born King of the Jews? We saw His star in the east and have come to worship Him.”

³When King Herod heard this, he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him.

²⁷And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, He explained to them what was written in all the Scriptures about Himself.

²⁸For he powerfully refuted the Jews in public debate, proving from the Scriptures that Jesus is the Christ.

²For I resolved to know nothing while I was with you except Jesus Christ and Him crucified.

²³So they set a day to meet with Paul, and many people came to the place he was staying. He expounded to them from morning to evening, testifying about the kingdom of God and persuading them about Jesus from the Law of Moses and the Prophets.

²and He began to teach them, saying:

⁴²Every day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they did not stop teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Christ.

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

⁵Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit.

²³Now John was also baptizing at Aenon near Salim, because the water was plentiful there, and people kept coming to be baptized.

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.

⁶This is the Spirit He poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior,

⁶This is the One who came by water and blood, Jesus Christ—not by water alone, but by water and blood. And it is the Spirit who testifies to this, because the Spirit is the truth.

²⁵I will also sprinkle clean water on you, and you will be clean. I will cleanse you from all your impurities and all your idols.

¹When Jesus realized that the Pharisees were aware He was gaining and baptizing more disciples than John

²²After this, Jesus and His disciples went into the Judean countryside, where He spent some time with them and baptized.

²³Now John was also baptizing at Aenon near Salim, because the water was plentiful there, and people kept coming to be baptized.

¹²I do not know where the Spirit of the Lord may carry you off when I leave you. Then when I go and tell Ahab and he does not find you, he will kill me. But I, your servant, have feared the Lord from my youth.

¹⁶“Look now,” they said to Elisha, “we your servants have fifty valiant men. Please let them go and search for your master. Perhaps the Spirit of the Lord has taken him up and put him on one of the mountains or in one of the valleys.” “Do not send them,” Elisha replied.

³He stretched out what looked like a hand and took me by the hair of my head. Then the Spirit lifted me up between earth and heaven and carried me in visions of God to Jerusalem, to the entrance of the north gate of the inner court, where the idol that provokes jealousy was seated.

⁵Then the Spirit lifted me up and brought me into the inner court, and the glory of the Lord filled the temple.

¹Then the Spirit lifted me up and brought me to the gate of the house of the Lord that faces east. And there at the entrance of the gate were twenty-five men. Among them I saw Jaazaniah son of Azzur and Pelatiah son of Benaiah, who were leaders of the people.

¹²Then the Spirit lifted me up, and I heard a great rumbling sound behind me: “Blessed be the glory of the Lord in His dwelling place!”

¹³It was the sound of the wings of the living creatures brushing against one another and the sound of the wheels beside them, a great rumbling sound.

⁸Leaving the next day, we went on to Caesarea and stayed at the home of Philip the evangelist, who was one of the Seven.

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

⁴But Festus replied, “Paul is being held in Caesarea, and I myself am going there soon.

¹At Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion in what was called the Italian Regiment.

²³Then he called two of his centurions and said, “Prepare two hundred soldiers, seventy horsemen, and two hundred spearmen to go to Caesarea in the third hour of the night.

¹After the Philistines had captured the ark of God, they took it from Ebenezer to Ashdod,