GENTILE SALVATION DEFENDED

11 The apostles and the brothers and sisters who were throughout Judea heard that the Gentiles had also received the word of God. 2 When Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcision party criticized him,v 3 saying, “You went to uncircumcised men and ate with them.”w

4 Peter began to explain to them step by step, 5 “Ix was in the town of Joppa praying, and I saw, in a trance, an object that resembled a large sheet coming down, being lowered by its four corners from heaven, and it came to me. 6 When I looked closely and considered it, I saw the four-footed animals of the earth, the wild beasts, the reptiles, and the birds of the sky. 7 I also heard a voice telling me, ‘Get up, Peter; kill and eat.’

8 “ ‘No, Lord!’ I said. ‘For nothing impure or ritually unclean has ever entered my mouth.’ 9 But a voice answered from heaven a second time, ‘What God has made clean, you must not call impure.’

10 “Now this happened three times, and everything was drawn up again into heaven. 11 At that very moment, three men who had been sent to me from Caesarea arrived at the house where we were. 12 The Spirit told me to accompany them with no doubts at all. These six brothers also accompanied me, and we went into the man’s house.a 13 He reported to us how he had seen the angel standing in his house and saying, ‘Send A to Joppa, and call for Simon, who is also named Peter. 14 He will speak a message to you by which you and all your householdb will be saved.’

15 “As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit came down on them, just as on us at the beginning.c 16 I remembered the word of the Lord, how he said, ‘John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.’d 17 If, then, God gave them the same gift that he also gave to us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, how could I possibly hinder God?”e

18 When they heard this they became silent. And they glorified God, saying, “So then, God has given repentance resulting in life even to the Gentiles.”f

THE CHURCH IN ANTIOCH

19 Now those who had been scattered as a result of the persecution that started because of Stephen made their way as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch,g speaking the word to no one except Jews. 20 But there were some of them, men from Cyprus and Cyrene, who came to Antioch and began speaking to the GreeksA also, proclaiming the good news about the Lord Jesus.h 21 The Lord’s hand was with them, and a large number who believed turned to the Lord.i 22 News about them reachedB the church in Jerusalem, and they sent out Barnabas to travelC as far as Antioch. 23 When he arrived and saw the grace of God, he was glad and encouraged all of them to remain true to the Lord with devoted hearts,j 24 for he was a good man, full of the Holy Spiritk and of faith. And large numbers of people were addedl to the Lord.

25 Then he E went to Tarsus to search for Saul, 26 and when he found him he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year they met with the church and taught large numbers. The disciplesm were first called Christians at Antioch.n

FAMINE RELIEF

27 In those days some prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch.o 28 One of them, named Agabus, stood up and predicted by the Spirit that there would be a severe famine throughout the Roman world.D This took place during the reign of Claudius.p 29 Each of the disciples, according to his ability, determined to send relief to the brothers and sisters who lived in Judea.q 30 They did this, sending it to the eldersr by means of Barnabas and Saul.

JAMES MARTYRED AND PETER JAILED

12 About that time King Herod violently attacked some who belonged to the church, 2 and he executed James,s John’s brother, with the sword. 3 When he saw that it pleased the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter too, during the Festival of Unleavened Bread.t 4 After the arrest, he put him in prison and assigned four squads of four soldiers each to guard him, intending to bring him out to the people after the Passover. 5 So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was praying fervently to God for him.

PETER RESCUED

6 When Herod was about to bring him out for trial, that very night Peter, bound with two chains, was sleeping between two soldiers, while the sentries in front of the door guarded the prison. 7 Suddenly an angel of the Lordu appeared, and a light shone in the cell. Striking Peter on the side, he woke him up and said, “Quick, get up!” And the chains fell off his wrists.v 8 “Get dressed,” the angel told him, “and put on your sandals.” And he did. “Wrap your cloak around you,” he told him, “and follow me.” 9 So he went out and followed, and he did not know that what the angel did was really happening, but he thought he was seeing a vision.w 10 After they passed the first and second guards, they came to the iron gate that leads into the city, which opened to them by itself. They went outside and passed one street, and suddenly the angel left him.a

11 When Peter came to himself, he said, “Now I know for certain that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me from Herod’s grasp and from all that the Jewish people expected.”b 12 As soon as he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John who was called Mark, c where many had assembled and were praying. 13 He knocked at the door of the outer gate, and a servant named Rhoda came to answer. 14 She recognized Peter’s voice, and because of her joy, she did not open the gate but ran in and announced that Peter was standing at the outer gate.

15 “You’re out of your mind!” they told her. But she kept insisting that it was true, and they said, “It’s his angel.”d 16 Peter, however, kept on knocking, and when they opened the door and saw him, they were amazed.

17 Motioning to them with his hande to be silent, he described to them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. “Tell these things to Jamesf and the brothers,” he said, and he left and went to another place.

18 At daylight, there was a great commotion among the soldiers as to what had become of Peter. 19 After Herod had searched and did not find him, he interrogated the guards and ordered their execution. Then Herod went down from Judea to Caesarea and stayed there.g

HEROD’S DEATH

20 Herod had been very angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon. Together they presented themselves before him. After winning over Blastus, who was in charge of the king’s bedroom, they asked for peace, because their country was supplied with food from the king’s country.h 21 On an appointed day, dressed in royal robes and seated on the throne, Herod delivered a speech to them. 22 The assembled people began to shout, “It’s the voice of a god and not of a man!” 23 At once an angel of the Lordi struck him because he did not give the glory to God, and he was eaten by worms and died.j

24 But the word of God spread and multiplied.k 25 After they had completed their relief mission, Barnabas and Saul returned toA Jerusalem, taking along John who was called Mark.l

PREPARING FOR THE MISSION FIELD

13 Now in the church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon who was called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen, a close friend of Herod the tetrarch,m and Saul.

2 As they were worshipingA the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.”n 3 Then after they had fasted, prayed, and laid hands on them, they sent them off.o

THE MISSION TO CYPRUS

4 So being sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia, and from there they sailed to Cyprus. 5 Arriving in Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the Jewish synagogues. They also had John as their assistant.p 6 When they had traveled the whole island as far as Paphos, they came across a sorcerer, a Jewish false prophet named Bar-Jesus.q 7 He was with the proconsul, Sergius Paulus, an intelligent man. This man summoned Barnabas and Saul and wanted to hear the word of God.r 8 But Elymas the sorcerer (that is the meaning of his name) opposeds them and tried to turn the proconsul away from the faith.t

9 But Saul—also called Paul—filled with the Holy Spirit, stared straight at Elymas 10 and said, “You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery, you son of the devilu and enemy of all that is right. Won’t you ever stop perverting the straight pathsv of the Lord? 11 Now, look, the Lord’s hand is against you.w You are going to be blind, and will not see the sun for a time.” Immediately a mist and darkness fell on him, and he went around seeking someone to lead him by the hand.

12 Then, when he saw what happened, the proconsul believed, because he was astonished at the teaching of the Lord.x

PAUL’S SERMON IN ANTIOCH OF PISIDIA

13 Paul and his companions set sail from Paphos and came to Perga in Pamphylia, but John left them and went back to Jerusalem.y 14 They continued their journey from Perga and reached Pisidian Antioch. On the Sabbath day they went into the synagogue and sat down.z 15 After the reading of the Law and the Prophets, the leaders of the synagogue sent word to them, saying, “Brothers, if you have any word of encouragement for the people, you can speak.”a

16 Paul stood up and motioned with his hand and said, “Fellow Israelites, and you who fear God, listen!b 17 The God of this people Israel chose our ancestors, made the people prosper during their stay in the land of Egypt, and led them out of it with a mightyB arm.c 18 And for about forty years he put up with themC in the wilderness;d 19 and after destroying seven nations in the land of Canaan,e he gave them their land as an inheritance. 20 This all took about 450 years. After this, he gave them judges until Samuel the prophet.f 21 Then they asked for a king, and God gave them Saul the son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin, for forty years.g 22 After removing him,h he raised up David as their king and testified about him, ‘I have found David the son of Jesse to be a man after my own heart,D ,i who will carry out all my will.’

23 “From this man’s descendants, as he promised, God brought to Israelj the Savior, Jesus.A 24 Before his coming to public attention, John had previously proclaimed a baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel.k 25 Now as John was completing his mission, he said, ‘Who do you think I am? I am not the one. But one is coming after me, and I am not worthy to untie the sandals on his feet.’l

26 “Brothers and sisters, children of Abraham’s race, and those among you who fear God, it is to us that the word of this salvation has been sent.m 27 Since the residents of Jerusalem and their rulers did not recognize him or the sayings of the prophets that are read every Sabbath, they have fulfilled their words by condemning him.n 28 Though they found no grounds for the death sentence, they asked Pilate to have him killed.o 29 When they had carried out all that had been written about him, they took him down from the tree and put him in a tomb.p 30 But God raised him from the dead,q 31 and he appeared for many days to those who came up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are now his witnesses to the people.r 32 And we ourselves proclaim to you the good news of the promise that was made to our ancestors.s 33 God has fulfilled this for us, their children, by raising up Jesus, as it is written in the second Psalm:

You are my Son;

today I have become your Father.B,C , t

34 As to his raising him from the dead, never to return to decay, he has spoken in this way, I will give you the holy and sure promises of David.D ,u 35 Therefore he also says in another passage, You will not let your Holy One see decay.E ,v 36 For David, after serving God’s purpose in his own generation, fell asleep,w was buried with his fathers, and decayed,x 37 but the one God raised up did not decay. 38 Therefore, let it be known to you, brothers and sisters, that through this man forgiveness of sins is being proclaimed to you.y 39 Everyone who believes is justifiedF through him from everything that you could not be justified from through the law of Moses.z 40 So beware that what is said in the prophets does not happen to you:

41 Look, you scoffers,

marvel and vanish away,

because I am doing a work in your days,

a work that you will never believe,

even if someone were to explain it to you.”G ,aa

PAUL AND BARNABAS IN ANTIOCH

42 As they were leaving, the peopleH urged them to speak about these matters the following Sabbath. 43 After the synagogue had been dismissed, many of the Jews and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who were speaking with them and urging them to continue in the grace of God.ab

44 The following Sabbath almost the whole town assembled to hear the word of the Lord.I 45 But when the Jews saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy and began to contradict what Paul was saying, insulting him.ac

46 Paul and Barnabas boldly replied, “It was necessary that the word of God be spoken to you first. Since you reject it and judge yourselves unworthy of eternal life, we are turning to the Gentiles.ad 47 For 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.”A ,a

48 When the Gentiles heard this, they rejoiced and honored the word of the Lord, and all who had been appointed to eternal life believed. 49 The word of the Lord spread through the whole region. 50 But the Jews incited the prominent God-fearing women and the leading men of the city. They stirred up persecution against Paul and Barnabas and expelled them from their district.b 51 But Paul and Barnabas shook the dust off their feetc against themd and went to Iconium. 52 And the disciples were filled with joy and the Holy Spirit.e

GROWTH AND PERSECUTION IN ICONIUM

14 In Iconium they entered the Jewish synagogue, as usual, and spoke in such a way that a great number of both Jews and Greeks believed.f 2 But the unbelieving Jews stirred up the Gentiles and poisoned their minds against the brothers.g 3 So they stayed there a long time and spoke boldly for the Lord, who testified to the message of his grace by enabling them to do signs and wonders.h 4 But the people of the city were divided, some siding with the Jews and others with the apostles.i 5 When an attempt was made by both the Gentiles and Jews, with their rulers, to mistreat and stone them, 6 they found out about it and fled to the Lycaonian towns of Lystra and Derbe and to the surrounding countryside.j 7 There they continued preaching the gospel.k

MISTAKEN FOR GODS IN LYSTRA

8 In Lystra a man was sitting who was without strength in his feet, had never walked, and had been lame from birth. 9 He listened as Paul spoke. After looking directly at him and seeing that he had faith to be healed, 10 Paul said in a loud voice, “Stand up on your feet!” And he jumped up and began to walk around.l

11 When the crowds saw what Paul had done, they shouted, saying in the Lycaonian language, “The gods have come down to us in human form!”m 12 Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul, Hermes, because he was the chief speaker. 13 The priest of Zeus, whose temple was just outside the town, brought bulls and wreaths to the gates because he intended, with the crowds, to offer sacrifice.

14 The apostles Barnabas and Paul tore their robes when they heard this and rushed into the crowd, shouting,n 15 “People! Why are you doing these things? We are people also, just like you, and we are proclaiming good news to you, that you turn from these worthless thingso to the living God, who made the heaven, the earth, the sea, and everything in them.B ,p 16 In past generations he allowed all the nationsq to go their own way, 17 although he did not leave himself without a witness,r since he did what is good by giving you rain from heaven and fruitful seasonss and filling you with food and your C hearts with joy.” 18 Even though they said these things, they barely stopped the crowds from sacrificing to them.

19 Some Jews came from Antioch and Iconium, and when they won over the crowds, they stoned Paul and dragged him out of the city, thinking he was dead.t 20 After the disciples gathered around him, he got up and went into the town. The next day he left with Barnabas for Derbe.u

CHURCH PLANTING

21 After they had preached the gospel in that town and made many disciples, they returned to Lystra, to Iconium, and to Antioch,v 22 strengthening theA disciples by encouraging them to continue in the faithw and by telling them, “It is necessary to go through many hardshipsx to enter the kingdom of God.” 23 When they had appointed eldersy for them in every church and prayed with fasting, they committed them to the Lord in whom they had believed.

24 They passed through Pisidia and came to Pamphylia. 25 After they had spoken the word in Perga, they went down to Attalia. 26 From there they sailed back to Antioch where they had been commended to the grace of God for the work they had now completed.z 27 After they arrived and gathered the church together, they reported everything God had done with themaa and that he had opened the doorab of faith to the Gentiles. 28 And they spent a considerable time with the disciples.

DISPUTE IN ANTIOCH

15 Some menac came down from Judea and began to teach the brothers, “Unless you are circumcisedad according to the custom prescribed by Moses,ae you cannot be saved.” 2 After Paul and Barnabas had engaged them in serious argument and debate, Paul and Barnabas and some others were appointed to go up to the apostles and elders in Jerusalem about this issue.a 3 When they had been sent on their way by the church,b they passed through both Phoenicia and Samaria, describing in detail the conversion of the Gentiles, and they brought great joy to all the brothers and sisters.

4 When they arrived at Jerusalem, they were welcomed by the church, the apostles, and the elders, and they reported all that God had done with them.c 5 But some of the believers who belonged to the party of the Pharisees stood up and said, “It is necessary to circumcise them and to command them to keep the law of Moses.”

THE JERUSALEM COUNCIL

6 The apostles and the elders gathered to consider this matter. 7 After there had been much debate, Peter stood up and said to them, “Brothers, you are aware that in the early days God made a choice among you,B that by my mouth the Gentiles would hear the gospel message and believe. 8 And God, who knows the heart, bore witness to them by giving them the Holy Spirit, just as he also did to us.d 9 He made no distinction between us and them,e cleansing their hearts by faith.f 10 Now then, why are you testing God by putting a yoke on the disciples’ necksg that neither our ancestors nor we have been able to bear? 11 On the contrary, we believe that we are saved through the graceh of the Lord Jesus in the same way they are.”

12 The whole assembly became silent and listened to Barnabas and Paul describe all the signs and wonders God had done through them among the Gentiles.i 13 After they stopped speaking, James responded, “Brothers, listen to me. 14 SimeonA has reported how God first intervened to take from the Gentiles a people for his name.j 15 And the words of the prophets agree with this, as it is written:

16 After these things I will return

and rebuild David’s fallen tent.

I will rebuild its ruins

and set it up again,

17 so that the rest of humanity

may seek the Lord—

even all the Gentiles

who are called by my name—

declares the Lord

who makes these things 18 known from long ago.B,C, k

19 Therefore, in my judgment, we should not cause difficulties for those among the Gentiles who turn to God, 20 but instead we should write to them to abstain from things polluted by idols, from sexual immorality,l from eating anything that has been strangled, and from blood. 21 For since ancient times, Moses has had those who proclaim him in every city, and every Sabbath day he is read aloud in the synagogues.”m

THE LETTER TO THE GENTILE BELIEVERS

22 Then the apostles and the elders, with the whole church, decided to select men who were among them and to send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas: Judas, called Barsabbas, and Silas,n both leading men among the brothers. 23 They wrote:

“From the apostles and the elders, your brothers,

To the brothers and sisters among the Gentiles in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia:o

Greetings.

24 Since we have heard that some without our authorization went out from usp and troubled you with their words and unsettled your hearts,D,q 25 we have unanimouslyr decided to select men and send them to you along with our dearly loved Barnabas and Paul, 26 who have risked their livess for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. 27 Therefore we have sent Judas and Silas, who will personally report the same things by word of mouth. 28 For it was the Holy Spirit’s decision—and ours—not to place further burdens on you beyond these requirements:t 29 that you abstain from food offered to idols, from blood, from eating anything that has been strangled, and from sexual immorality.u You will do well if you keep yourselves from these things.

Farewell.”

THE OUTCOME OF THE JERUSALEM LETTER

30 So they were sent off and went down to Antioch, and after gathering the assembly, they delivered the letter. 31 When they read it, they rejoiced because of its encouragement. 32 Both Judas and Silas, who were also prophets themselves, encouraged the brothers and sisters and strengthened them with a long message.a 33 After spending some time there, they were sent back in peaceb by the brothers and sisters to those who had sent them.A,* 35 But Paul and Barnabas, along with many others, remained in Antioch, teaching and proclaiming the word of the Lord.c

PAUL AND BARNABAS PART COMPANY

36 After some time had passed, Paul said to Barnabas, “Let’s go back and visit the brothers and sisters in every townd where we have preached the word of the Lord and see how they’re doing.” 37 Barnabas wanted to take along John who was called Mark. 38 But Paul insisted that they should not take along this man who had deserted them in Pamphylia and had not gone on with them to the work. 39 They had such a sharp disagreement that they parted company, and Barnabas took Marke with him and sailed off to Cyprus. 40 But Paul chose Silas and departed, after being commended by the brothers and sisters to the grace of the Lord.f 41 He traveled through Syriag and Cilicia, strengthening the churches.