Chapter 15

The Council at Jerusalem

1 aSome men came down from Judea and began teaching bthe brethren, “Unless you are ccircumcised according to dthe custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.”

2 And when Paul and Barnabas had 1great dissension and adebate with them, bthe brethren determined that Paul and Barnabas and some others of them should go up to Jerusalem to the capostles and elders concerning this issue.

3 Therefore, being asent on their way by the church, they were passing through both bPhoenicia and Samaria, cdescribing in detail the conversion of the Gentiles, and were bringing great joy to all dthe brethren.

4 When they arrived at Jerusalem, they were received by the church and athe apostles and the elders, and they breported all that God had done with them.

5 But some of athe sect of the bPharisees who had believed stood up, saying, “It is necessary to ccircumcise them and to direct them to observe the Law of Moses.”

6 aThe apostles and the elders came together to 1look into this 2matter.

7 After there had been much adebate, Peter stood up and said to them, “Brethren, you know that 1in the early days bGod made a choice among you, that by my mouth the Gentiles would hear the word of cthe gospel and believe.

8 “And God, awho knows the heart, testified to them bgiving them the Holy Spirit, just as He also did to us;

9 and aHe made no distinction between us and them, bcleansing their hearts by faith.

10 “Now therefore why do you aput God to the test by placing upon the neck of the disciples a yoke which bneither our fathers nor we have been able to bear?

11 “But we believe that we are saved through athe grace of the Lord Jesus, in the same way as they also are.”

12 All the people kept silent, and they were listening to Barnabas and Paul as they were arelating what bsigns and wonders God had done through them among the Gentiles.

James’s Judgment

13 After they had stopped speaking, 1aJames answered, saying, “Brethren, listen to me.

14 “aSimeon has related how God first concerned Himself about taking from among the Gentiles a people for His name.

15 “With this the words of athe Prophets agree, just as it is written,

16 ‘aAfter these things bI will return,

And I will rebuild the 1tabernacle of David which has fallen,

And I will rebuild its ruins,

And I will restore it,

17 aSo that the rest of 1mankind may seek the Lord,

And all the Gentiles 2bwho are called by My name,’

18 aSays the Lord, who 1bmakes these things known from long ago.

19 “Therefore it is amy judgment that we do not trouble those who are turning to God from among the Gentiles,

20 but that we write to them that they abstain from 1athings contaminated by idols and from bfornication and from cwhat is strangled and from blood.

21 “For aMoses from ancient generations has in every city those who preach him, since 1he is read in the synagogues every Sabbath.”

22 Then it seemed good to athe apostles and the elders, with the whole church, to choose men from among them to send to bAntioch with Paul and Barnabas—Judas called Barsabbas, and cSilas, leading men among dthe brethren,

23 and they 1sent this letter by them,

“aThe apostles and the brethren who are elders, to bthe brethren in cAntioch and dSyria and eCilicia who are from the Gentiles, fgreetings.

24 “Since we have heard that asome 1of our number to whom we gave no instruction have bdisturbed you with their words, unsettling your souls,

25 ait seemed good to us, having 1become of one mind, to select men to send to you with our beloved Barnabas and Paul,

26 men who have 1arisked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

27 “Therefore we have sent aJudas and bSilas, who themselves will also report the same things by word of mouth.

28 “For ait seemed good to bthe Holy Spirit and to cus to lay upon you no greater burden than these essentials:

29 that you abstain from athings sacrificed to idols and from ablood and from athings strangled and from afornication; 1if you keep yourselves free from such things, you will do well. Farewell.”

30 So when they were sent away, athey went down to Antioch; and having gathered the 1congregation together, they delivered the letter.

31 When they had read it, they rejoiced because of its 1encouragement.

32 aJudas and bSilas, also being cprophets themselves, 1encouraged and strengthened dthe brethren with a lengthy message.

33 After they had spent time there, they were sent away from the brethren ain peace to those who had bsent them out.

34 [1But it seemed good to Silas to remain there.]

35 But aPaul and Barnabas stayed in Antioch, teaching and bpreaching with many others also, cthe word of the Lord.

Second Missionary Journey

36 After some days Paul said to Barnabas, “Let us return and visit the brethren in aevery city in which we proclaimed bthe word of the Lord, and see how they are.”

37 Barnabas wanted to take aJohn, called Mark, along with them also.

38 But Paul kept insisting that they should not take him along who had adeserted them 1in Pamphylia and had not gone with them to the work.

39 And there occurred such a sharp disagreement that they separated from one another, and Barnabas took aMark with him and sailed away to bCyprus.

40 But Paul chose aSilas and left, being bcommitted by the brethren to the grace of the Lord.

41 And he was traveling through aSyria and bCilicia, strengthening the churches.

Chapter 16

The Macedonian Vision

1 Paul came also to aDerbe and to aLystra. And a disciple was there, named bTimothy, the son of a cJewish woman who was a believer, but his father was a Greek,

2 and he was well spoken of by athe brethren who were in bLystra and cIconium.

3 Paul wanted this man to 1go with him; and he atook him and circumcised him because of the Jews who were in those parts, for they all knew that his father was a Greek.

4 Now while they were passing through the cities, they were delivering athe decrees which had been decided upon by bthe apostles and celders who were in Jerusalem, for them to observe.

5 So athe churches were being strengthened 1in the faith, and were bincreasing in number daily.

6 They passed through the 1aPhrygian and bGalatian region, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in 2cAsia;

7 and after they came to aMysia, they were trying to go into bBithynia, and the cSpirit of Jesus did not permit them;

8 and passing by aMysia, they came down to bTroas.

9 aA vision appeared to Paul in the night: a man of bMacedonia was standing and appealing to him, and saying, “Come over to Macedonia and help us.”

10 When he had seen athe vision, immediately bwe sought to 1go into Macedonia, concluding that God had called us to cpreach the gospel to them.

11 So putting out to sea from aTroas, we ran ba straight course to Samothrace, and on the day following to Neapolis;

12 and from there to aPhilippi, which is a leading city of the district of bMacedonia, ca Roman colony; and we were staying in this city for some days.

13 And on athe Sabbath day we went outside the gate to a riverside, where we were supposing that there would be a place of prayer; and we sat down and began speaking to the women who had assembled.

First Convert in Europe

14 A woman named Lydia, from the city of aThyatira, a seller of purple fabrics, ba worshiper of God, was listening; 1and the Lord copened her heart to respond to the things spoken by Paul.

15 And when she and aher household had been baptized, she urged us, saying, “If you have judged me to be faithful to the Lord, come into my house and stay.” And she prevailed upon us.

16 It happened that as we were going to athe place of prayer, a slave-girl having ba spirit of divination met us, who was bringing her masters much profit by fortune-telling.

17 Following after Paul and us, she kept crying out, saying, “These men are bond-servants of athe Most High God, who are proclaiming to you 1the way of salvation.”

18 She continued doing this for many days. But Paul was greatly annoyed, and turned and said to the spirit, “I command you ain the name of Jesus Christ to come out of her!” And it came out at that very 1moment.

19 But when her masters saw that their hope of aprofit was 1gone, they seized bPaul and Silas and cdragged them into the market place before the authorities,

20 and when they had brought them to the chief magistrates, they said, “These men are throwing our city into confusion, being Jews,

21 and aare proclaiming customs which it is not lawful for us to accept or to observe, being bRomans.”

Paul and Silas Imprisoned

22 The crowd rose up together against them, and the chief magistrates tore their 1robes off them and proceeded to order 2them to be abeaten with rods.

23 When they had struck them with many blows, they threw them into prison, commanding athe jailer to guard them securely;

24 1and he, having received such a command, threw them into the inner prison and fastened their feet in athe 2stocks.

25 But about midnight aPaul and Silas were praying and bsinging hymns of praise to God, and the prisoners were listening to them;

26 and suddenly athere came a great earthquake, so that the foundations of the prison house were shaken; and immediately ball the doors were opened and everyone’s cchains were unfastened.

27 When athe jailer awoke and saw the prison doors opened, he drew his sword and was about bto kill himself, supposing that the prisoners had escaped.

28 But Paul cried out with a loud voice, saying, “Do not harm yourself, for we are all here!”

29 And he called for lights and rushed in, and trembling with fear he fell down before aPaul and Silas,

30 and after he brought them out, he said, “Sirs, awhat must I do to be saved?”

The Jailer Converted

31 They said, “aBelieve in the Lord Jesus, and you will be saved, you and byour household.”

32 And they spoke the word of 1the Lord to him together with all who were in his house.

33 And he took them athat very hour of the night and washed their wounds, and immediately he was baptized, he and all his household.

34 And he brought them into his house and set 1food before them, and rejoiced 2greatly, having believed in God with ahis whole household.

35 Now when day came, the chief magistrates sent their policemen, saying, “Release those men.”

36 And athe jailer reported these words to Paul, saying, “The chief magistrates have sent to release you. Therefore come out now and go bin peace.”

37 But Paul said to them, “They have beaten us in public without trial, amen who are Romans, and have thrown us into prison; and now are they sending us away secretly? No indeed! But let them come themselves and bring us out.”

38 The policemen reported these words to the chief magistrates. aThey were afraid when they heard that they were Romans,

39 and they came and appealed to them, and when they had brought them out, they kept begging them ato leave the city.

40 They went out of the prison and entered the house of aLydia, and when they saw bthe brethren, they 1encouraged them and departed.

Chapter 17

Paul at Thessalonica

1 Now when they had traveled through Amphipolis and Apollonia, they came to aThessalonica, where there was a synagogue of the Jews.

2 And aaccording to Paul’s custom, he went to them, and for three bSabbaths reasoned with them from cthe Scriptures,

3 1explaining and 2giving evidence that the 3Christ ahad to suffer and brise again from the dead, and saying, “cThis Jesus whom I am proclaiming to you is the 3Christ.”

4 aAnd some of them were persuaded and joined bPaul and Silas, 1along with a large number of the cGod-fearing dGreeks and 2a number of the eleading women.

5 But athe Jews, becoming jealous and taking along some wicked men from the market place, formed a mob and set the city in an uproar; and attacking the house of bJason, they were seeking to bring them out to the people.

6 When they did not find them, they began adragging Jason and some brethren before the city authorities, shouting, “These men who have upset 1bthe world have come here also;

7 1and Jason ahas welcomed them, and they all act bcontrary to the decrees of Caesar, saying that there is another king, Jesus.”

8 They stirred up the crowd and the city authorities who heard these things.

9 And when they had received a 1pledge from aJason and the others, they released them.

Paul at Berea

10 aThe brethren immediately sent bPaul and Silas away by night to cBerea, 1and when they arrived, they went into dthe synagogue of the Jews.

11 Now these were more noble-minded than those in aThessalonica, 1for they received the word with 2great eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see whether these things were so.

12 Therefore amany of them believed, 1along with a number of bprominent Greek cwomen and men.

13 But when the Jews of aThessalonica found out that the word of God had been proclaimed by Paul in bBerea also, they came there as well, agitating and stirring up the crowds.

14 Then immediately athe brethren sent Paul out to go as far as the sea; and bSilas and cTimothy remained there.

15 Now athose who escorted Paul brought him as far as bAthens; and receiving a command for cSilas and Timothy to dcome to him as soon as possible, they left.

Paul at Athens

16 Now while Paul was waiting for them at aAthens, his spirit was being provoked within him as he was observing the city full of idols.

17 So he was reasoning ain the synagogue with the Jews and bthe God-fearing Gentiles, and in the market place every day with those who happened to be present.

18 And also some of the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers were 1conversing with him. Some were saying, “What would athis 2idle babbler wish to say?” Others, “He seems to be a proclaimer of strange deities,”—because he was preaching bJesus and the resurrection.

19 And they atook him and brought him 1to the 2bAreopagus, saying, “May we know what cthis new teaching is 3which you are proclaiming?

20 “For you are bringing some strange things to our ears; so we want to know what these things mean.”

21 (Now all the Athenians and the strangers avisiting there used to spend their time in nothing other than telling or hearing something new.)

Sermon on Mars Hill

22 So Paul stood in the midst of the 1Areopagus and said, “Men of aAthens, I observe that you are very breligious in all respects.

23 “For while I was passing through and examining the aobjects of your worship, I also found an altar with this inscription, ‘TO AN UNKNOWN GOD.’ Therefore what byou worship in ignorance, this I proclaim to you.

24 “aThe God who made the world and all things in it, since He is bLord of heaven and earth, does not cdwell in temples made with hands;

25 nor is He served by human hands, aas though He needed anything, since He Himself gives to all people life and breath and all things;

26 and aHe made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having bdetermined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation,

27 that they would seek God, if perhaps they might grope for Him and find Him, athough He is not far from each one of us;

28 for ain Him we live and move and 1exist, as even some of your own poets have said, ‘For we also are His children.’

29 “Being then the children of God, we aought not to think that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and thought of man.

30 “Therefore having aoverlooked bthe times of ignorance, God is cnow declaring to men that all people everywhere should repent,

31 because He has fixed aa day in which bHe will judge 1cthe world in righteousness 2through a Man whom He has dappointed, having furnished proof to all men 3by eraising Him from the dead.”

32 Now when they heard of athe resurrection of the dead, some began to sneer, but others said, “We shall hear you 1again concerning this.”

33 So Paul went out of their midst.

34 But some men joined him and believed, among whom also were Dionysius the aAreopagite and a woman named Damaris and others with them.

Chapter 18

Paul at Corinth

1 After these things he left aAthens and went to bCorinth.

2 And he found a Jew named aAquila, a native of bPontus, having recently come from cItaly with his wife aPriscilla, because dClaudius had commanded all the Jews to leave Rome. He came to them,

3 and because he was of the same trade, he stayed with them and athey were working, for by trade they were tent-makers.

4 And he was reasoning ain the synagogue every bSabbath and trying to persuade cJews and Greeks.

5 But when aSilas and Timothy bcame down from cMacedonia, Paul began devoting himself completely to the word, solemnly dtestifying to the Jews that eJesus was the 1Christ.

6 But when they resisted and blasphemed, he ashook out his garments and said to them, “Your bblood be on your own heads! I am clean. From now on I will go cto the Gentiles.”

7 Then he left there and went to the house of a man named 1Titius Justus, aa worshiper of God, whose house was next to the synagogue.

8 aCrispus, bthe leader of the synagogue, believed in the Lord cwith all his household, and many of the dCorinthians when they heard were believing and being baptized.

9 And the Lord said to Paul in the night by aa vision, “Do not be afraid any longer, but go on speaking and do not be silent;

10 for I am with you, and no man will attack you in order to harm you, for I have many people in this city.”

11 And he settled there a year and six months, teaching the word of God among them.

12 But while Gallio was aproconsul of bAchaia, cthe Jews with one accord rose up against Paul and brought him before dthe judgment seat,

13 saying, “This man persuades men to worship God contrary to athe law.”

14 But when Paul was about to aopen his mouth, Gallio said to the Jews, “If it were a matter of wrong or of vicious crime, O Jews, it would be reasonable for me to put up with you;

15 but if there are aquestions about words and names and your own law, look after it yourselves; I am unwilling to be a judge of these matters.”

16 And he drove them away from athe judgment seat.

17 And they all took hold of aSosthenes, bthe leader of the synagogue, and began beating him in front of cthe judgment seat. But Gallio was not concerned about any of these things.

18 Paul, having remained many days longer, atook leave of bthe brethren and put out to sea for cSyria, and with him were dPriscilla and dAquila. In eCenchrea 1he fhad his hair cut, for he was keeping a vow.

19 They came to aEphesus, and he left them there. Now he himself entered bthe synagogue and reasoned with the Jews.

20 When they asked him to stay for a longer time, he did not consent,

21 but ataking leave of them and saying, “I will return to you again bif God wills,” he set sail from cEphesus.

22 When he had landed at aCaesarea, he went up and greeted the church, and went down to bAntioch.

Third Missionary Journey

23 And having spent some time there, he left and passed successively through the aGalatian region and Phrygia, strengthening all the disciples.

24 Now a Jew named aApollos, an bAlexandrian by birth, 1an eloquent man, came to cEphesus; and he was mighty in the Scriptures.

25 This man had been instructed in athe way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he was speaking and teaching accurately the things concerning Jesus, being acquainted only with bthe baptism of John;

26 and 1he began to speak out boldly in the synagogue. But when aPriscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him aside and explained to him bthe way of God more accurately.

27 And when he wanted to go across to aAchaia, bthe brethren encouraged him and wrote to cthe disciples to welcome him; and when he had arrived, he greatly 1helped those who had believed through grace,

28 for he powerfully refuted the Jews in public, demonstrating aby the Scriptures that bJesus was the 1Christ.

Chapter 19

Paul at Ephesus

1 It happened that while aApollos was at bCorinth, Paul passed through the cupper country and came to dEphesus, and found some disciples.

2 He said to them, “aDid you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” And they said to him, “No, bwe have not even heard whether 1there is a Holy Spirit.”

3 And he said, “Into what then were you baptized?” And they said, “aInto John’s baptism.”

4 Paul said, “aJohn baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people bto believe in Him who was coming after him, that is, in Jesus.”

5 When they heard this, they were abaptized 1in the name of the Lord Jesus.

6 And when Paul had alaid his hands upon them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they began bspeaking with tongues and cprophesying.

7 There were in all about twelve men.

8 And he entered athe synagogue and continued speaking out boldly for three months, reasoning and persuading them babout the kingdom of God.

9 But when asome were becoming hardened and disobedient, speaking evil of bthe Way before the 1people, he withdrew from them and took away cthe disciples, reasoning daily in the school of Tyrannus.

10 This took place for atwo years, so that all who lived in 1bAsia heard cthe word of the Lord, both Jews and Greeks.

Miracles at Ephesus

11 God was performing aextraordinary 1miracles by the hands of Paul,

12 aso that handkerchiefs or aprons were even carried from his body to the sick, and the diseases left them and bthe evil spirits went out.

13 But also some of the Jewish aexorcists, who went from place to place, attempted to name over those who had the evil spirits the name of the Lord Jesus, saying, “I adjure you by Jesus whom Paul preaches.”

14 Seven sons of one Sceva, a Jewish chief priest, were doing this.

15 And the evil spirit answered and said to them, “I recognize Jesus, and I know about Paul, but who are you?”

16 And the man, in whom was the evil spirit, leaped on them and subdued all of them and overpowered them, so that they fled out of that house naked and wounded.

17 This became known to all, both Jews and Greeks, who lived in aEphesus; and fear fell upon them all and the name of the Lord Jesus was being magnified.

18 Many also of those who had believed kept coming, confessing and disclosing their practices.

19 And many of those who practiced magic brought their books together and began burning them in the sight of everyone; and they counted up the price of them and found it 1fifty thousand apieces of silver.

20 So 1athe word of the Lord bwas growing mightily and prevailing.

21 Now after these things were finished, Paul purposed in the 1Spirit to ago to Jerusalem bafter he had passed through cMacedonia and dAchaia, saying, “After I have been there, eI must also see Rome.”

22 And having sent into aMacedonia two of bthose who ministered to him, cTimothy and dErastus, he himself stayed in 1eAsia for a while.

23 About that time there occurred no small disturbance concerning athe Way.

24 For a man named Demetrius, a silversmith, who made silver shrines of 1Artemis, awas bringing no little 2business to the craftsmen;

25 these he gathered together with the workmen of similar trades, and said, “Men, you know that our prosperity 1depends upon this business.

26 “You see and hear that not only in aEphesus, but in almost all of 1bAsia, this Paul has persuaded and turned away a considerable number of people, saying that 2cgods made with hands are no gods at all.

27 “Not only is there danger that this trade of ours fall into disrepute, but also that the temple of the great goddess 1Artemis be regarded as worthless and that she whom all of 2aAsia and bthe 3world worship will even be dethroned from her magnificence.”

28 When they heard this and were filled with rage, they began crying out, saying, “Great is 1Artemis of the aEphesians!”

29 The city was filled with the confusion, and they rushed 1with one accord into the theater, dragging along aGaius and bAristarchus, Paul’s traveling ccompanions from dMacedonia.

30 And when Paul wanted to go into the 1assembly, athe disciples would not let him.

31 Also some of the 1Asiarchs who were friends of his sent to him and repeatedly urged him not to 2venture into the theater.

32 aSo then, some were shouting one thing and some another, for the 1assembly was in confusion and the majority did not know 2for what reason they had come together.

33 Some of the crowd 1concluded it was Alexander, since the Jews had put him forward; and having amotioned with his hand, Alexander was intending to make a defense to the 2assembly.

34 But when they recognized that he was a Jew, a single outcry arose from them all as they shouted for about two hours, “Great is 1Artemis of the Ephesians!”

35 After quieting the crowd, the town clerk * said, “Men of aEphesus, what man is there after all who does not know that the city of the Ephesians is guardian of the temple of the great 1Artemis and of the image which fell down from 2heaven?

36 “So, since these are undeniable facts, you ought to keep calm and to do nothing rash.

37 “For you have brought these men here who are neither arobbers of temples nor blasphemers of our goddess.

38 “So then, if Demetrius and the craftsmen who are with him have a complaint against any man, the courts are in session and 1aproconsuls are available; let them bring charges against one another.

39 “But if you want anything beyond this, it shall be settled in the 1lawful 2assembly.

40 “For indeed we are in danger of being accused of a riot in connection with today’s events, since there is no real cause for it, and in this connection we will be unable to account for this disorderly gathering.”

41 After saying this he dismissed the 1assembly.

Chapter 20

Paul in Macedonia and Greece

1 After the uproar had ceased, Paul sent for athe disciples, and when he had exhorted them and taken his leave of them, he left bto go to cMacedonia.

2 When he had gone through those districts and had given them much exhortation, he came to Greece.

3 And there he spent three months, and when aa plot was formed against him by the Jews as he was about to set sail for bSyria, he decided to return through cMacedonia.

4 And 1he was accompanied by Sopater of aBerea, the son of Pyrrhus, and by bAristarchus and Secundus of the cThessalonians, and bGaius of dDerbe, and eTimothy, and fTychicus and gTrophimus of 2hAsia.

5 But these had gone on ahead and were waiting for aus at bTroas.

6 aWe sailed from bPhilippi after cthe days of Unleavened Bread, and came to them at dTroas within five days; and there we stayed seven days.

7 On athe first day of the week, when bwe were gathered together to cbreak bread, Paul began talking to them, intending to leave the next day, and he prolonged his 1message until midnight.

8 There were many alamps in the bupper room where we were gathered together.

9 And there was a young man named 1Eutychus sitting 2on the window sill, sinking into a deep sleep; and as Paul kept on talking, he was overcome by sleep and fell down from the third floor and was picked up dead.

10 But Paul went down and afell upon him, and after embracing him, he bsaid, “1Do not be troubled, for his life is in him.”

11 When he had gone back up and had abroken the bread and 1eaten, he talked with them a long while until daybreak, and then left.

12 They took away the boy alive, and were 1greatly comforted.

Troas to Miletus

13 But awe, going ahead to the ship, set sail for Assos, intending from there to take Paul on board; for so he had arranged it, intending himself to go 1by land.

14 And when he met us at Assos, we took him on board and came to Mitylene.

15 Sailing from there, we arrived the following day opposite Chios; and the next day we crossed over to Samos; and the day following we came to aMiletus.

16 For Paul had decided to sail past aEphesus so that he would not have to spend time in 1bAsia; for he was hurrying cto be in Jerusalem, if possible, don the day of Pentecost.

Farewell to Ephesus

17 From Miletus he sent to aEphesus and called to him bthe elders of the church.

18 And when they had come to him, he said to them,

“You yourselves know, afrom the first day that I set foot in 1Asia, how I was with you the whole time,

19 serving the Lord with all humility and with tears and with trials which came upon me 1through athe plots of the Jews;

20 how I adid not shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable, and teaching you publicly and 1from house to house,

21 solemnly atestifying to both Jews and Greeks of brepentance toward God and cfaith in our Lord Jesus Christ.

22 “And now, behold, bound by the 1Spirit, aI am on my way to Jerusalem, not knowing what will happen to me there,

23 except that athe Holy Spirit solemnly btestifies to me in every city, saying that cbonds and afflictions await me.

24 “But aI do not consider my life of any account as dear to myself, so that I may bfinish my course and cthe ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to dtestify solemnly of the gospel of ethe grace of God.

25 “And now, behold, I know that all of you, among whom I went about apreaching the kingdom, will no longer see my face.

26 “Therefore, I 1testify to you this day that aI am 2innocent of the blood of all men.

27 “For I adid not shrink from declaring to you the whole bpurpose of God.

28 “Be on guard for yourselves and for all athe flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you 1overseers, to shepherd bthe church of God which cHe 2purchased 3with His own blood.

29 “I know that after my departure asavage wolves will come in among you, not sparing bthe flock;

30 and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away athe disciples after them.

31 “Therefore be on the alert, remembering that night and day for a period of athree years I did not cease to admonish each one bwith tears.

32 “And now I acommend you to God and to bthe word of His grace, which is able to cbuild you up and to give you dthe inheritance among all those who are sanctified.

33 “aI have coveted no one’s silver or gold or clothes.

34 “You yourselves know that athese hands ministered to my own needs and to the bmen who were with me.

35 “In everything I showed you that by working hard in this manner you must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, that He Himself said, ‘It is more blessed to give than to receive.’ ”

36 When he had said these things, he aknelt down and prayed with them all.

37 And 1they began to weep aloud and 2aembraced Paul, and repeatedly kissed him,

38 1grieving especially over athe word which he had spoken, that they would not see his face again. And they were baccompanying him to the ship.

Chapter 21

Paul Sails from Miletus

1 When awe had parted from them and had set sail, we ran ba straight course to Cos and the next day to Rhodes and from there to Patara;

2 and having found a ship crossing over to aPhoenicia, we went aboard and set sail.

3 When we came in sight of aCyprus, leaving it on the left, we kept sailing to bSyria and landed at cTyre; for there the ship was to unload its cargo.

4 After looking up athe disciples, we stayed there seven days; and they kept telling Paul 1bthrough the Spirit not to set foot in Jerusalem.

5 When 1our days there were ended, we left and started on our journey, while they all, with wives and children, aescorted us until we were out of the city. After bkneeling down on the beach and praying, we said farewell to one another.

6 Then we went on board the ship, and they returned ahome again.

7 When we had finished the voyage from aTyre, we arrived at Ptolemais, and after greeting bthe brethren, we stayed with them for a day.

8 On the next day we left and came to aCaesarea, and entering the house of bPhilip the cevangelist, who was bone of the seven, we stayed with him.

9 Now this man had four virgin daughters who were aprophetesses.

10 As we were staying there for some days, a prophet named aAgabus came down from Judea.

11 And coming to us, he atook Paul’s belt and bound his own feet and hands, and said, “This bis what the Holy Spirit says: ‘In this way the Jews at Jerusalem will cbind the man who owns this belt and ddeliver him into the hands of the Gentiles.’ ”

12 When we had heard this, we as well as the local residents began begging him anot to go up to Jerusalem.

13 Then Paul answered, “What are you doing, weeping and breaking my heart? For aI am ready not only to be bound, but even to die at Jerusalem for bthe name of the Lord Jesus.”

14 And since he would not be persuaded, we fell silent, remarking, “aThe will of the Lord be done!”

Paul at Jerusalem

15 After these days we got ready and astarted on our way up to Jerusalem.

16 Some of athe disciples from bCaesarea also came with us, taking us to Mnason of cCyprus, a ddisciple of long standing with whom we were to lodge.

17 After we arrived in Jerusalem, athe brethren received us gladly.

18 And the following day Paul went in with us to 1aJames, and all bthe elders were present.

19 After he had greeted them, he abegan to relate one by one the things which God had done among the Gentiles through his bministry.

20 And when they heard it they began aglorifying God; and they said to him, “You see, brother, how many 1thousands there are among the Jews of those who have believed, and they are all bzealous for the Law;

21 and they have been told about you, that you are ateaching all the Jews who are among the Gentiles to forsake Moses, telling them bnot to circumcise their children nor to 1walk according to cthe customs.

22 “What, then, is to be done? They will certainly hear that you have come.

23 “Therefore do this that we tell you. We have four men who 1aare under a vow;

24 take them and apurify yourself along with them, and 1pay their expenses so that they may bshave their 2heads; and all will know that there is nothing to the things which they have been told about you, but that you yourself also walk orderly, keeping the Law.

25 “But concerning the Gentiles who have believed, we wrote, ahaving decided that they should abstain from 1meat sacrificed to idols and from blood and from what is strangled and from fornication.”

26 Then Paul 1took the men, and the next day, apurifying himself along with them, bwent into the temple giving notice of the completion of the days of purification, until the sacrifice was offered for each one of them.

Paul Seized in the Temple

27 When athe seven days were almost over, bthe Jews from 1cAsia, upon seeing him in the temple, began to stir up all the crowd and laid hands on him,

28 crying out, “Men of Israel, come to our aid! aThis is the man who preaches to all men everywhere against our people and the Law and this place; and besides he has even brought Greeks into the temple and has bdefiled this holy place.”

29 For they had previously seen aTrophimus the bEphesian in the city with him, and they supposed that Paul had brought him into the temple.

30 Then all the city was provoked, and 1the people rushed together, and taking hold of Paul they adragged him out of the temple, and immediately the doors were shut.

31 While they were seeking to kill him, a report came up to the 1commander of the aRoman 2cohort that all Jerusalem was in confusion.

32 At once he atook along some soldiers and centurions and ran down to them; and when they saw the 1commander and the soldiers, they stopped beating Paul.

33 Then the 1commander came up and took hold of him, and ordered him to be abound with btwo chains; and he began asking who he was and what he had done.

34 But among the crowd asome were shouting one thing and some another, and when he could not find out the 1facts because of the uproar, he ordered him to be brought into bthe barracks.

35 When he got to athe stairs, he was carried by the soldiers because of the violence of the 1mob;

36 for the multitude of the people kept following them, shouting, “aAway with him!”

37 As Paul was about to be brought into athe barracks, he said to the 1commander, “May I say something to you?” And he * said, “Do you know Greek?

38 “Then you are not athe Egyptian who some 1time ago stirred up a revolt and led the four thousand men of the Assassins out binto the wilderness?”

39 But Paul said, “aI am a Jew of Tarsus in bCilicia, a citizen of no insignificant city; and I beg you, allow me to speak to the people.”

40 When he had given him permission, Paul, standing on athe stairs, bmotioned to the people with his hand; and when there 1was a great hush, he spoke to them in the 2cHebrew dialect, saying,

Chapter 22

Paul’s Defense before the Jews

1 “aBrethren and fathers, hear my defense which I now offer to you.”

2 And when they heard that he was addressing them in the 1aHebrew dialect, they became even more quiet; and he * said,

3 “aI am ba Jew, born in cTarsus of dCilicia, but brought up in this city, educated 1under eGamaliel, 2fstrictly according to the law of our fathers, being zealous for God just as gyou all are today.

4 “aI persecuted this bWay to the death, binding and putting both men and women into prisons,

5 as also athe high priest and all bthe Council of the elders 1can testify. From them I also creceived letters to dthe brethren, and started off for cDamascus in order to bring even those who were there to Jerusalem 2as prisoners to be punished.

6 “aBut it happened that as I was on my way, approaching Damascus about noontime, a very bright light suddenly flashed from heaven all around me,

7 and I fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to me, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me?’

8 “And I answered, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ And He said to me, ‘I am aJesus the Nazarene, whom you are persecuting.’

9 “And those who were with me asaw the light, to be sure, but bdid not 1understand the voice of the One who was speaking to me.

10 “And I said, ‘aWhat shall I do, Lord?’ And the Lord said to me, ‘Get up and go on into Damascus, and there you will be told of all that has been appointed for you to do.’

11 “But since I acould not see because of the 1brightness of that light, I was led by the hand by those who were with me and came into Damascus.

12 “A certain aAnanias, a man who was devout by the standard of the Law, and bwell spoken of by all the Jews who lived there,

13 came to me, and standing near said to me, ‘aBrother Saul, receive your sight!’ And 1bat that very time I looked up at him.

14 “And he said, ‘aThe God of our fathers has bappointed you to know His will and to csee the dRighteous One and to hear an 1utterance from His mouth.

15 ‘For you will be aa witness for Him to all men of bwhat you have seen and heard.

16 ‘Now why do you delay? aGet up and be baptized, and bwash away your sins, ccalling on His name.’

17 “It happened when I areturned to Jerusalem and was praying in the temple, that I bfell into a trance,

18 and I saw Him saying to me, ‘aMake haste, and get out of Jerusalem quickly, because they will not accept your testimony about Me.’

19 “And I said, ‘Lord, they themselves understand that in one synagogue after another aI used to imprison and bbeat those who believed in You.

20 ‘And awhen the blood of Your witness Stephen was being shed, I also was standing by approving, and watching out for the coats of those who were slaying him.’

21 “And He said to me, ‘Go! For I will send you far away ato the Gentiles.’ ”

22 They listened to him up to this statement, and then they raised their voices and said, “aAway with such a fellow from the earth, for bhe should not be allowed to live!”

23 And as they were crying out and athrowing off their cloaks and btossing dust into the air,

24 the 1commander ordered him to be brought into athe barracks, stating that he should be bexamined by scourging so that he might find out the reason why they were shouting against him that way.

25 But when they stretched him out 1with thongs, Paul said to the centurion who was standing by, “Is it 2lawful for you to scourge aa man who is a Roman and uncondemned?”

26 When the centurion heard this, he went to the 1commander and told him, saying, “What are you about to do? For this man is a Roman.”

27 The 1commander came and said to him, “Tell me, are you a Roman?” And he said, “Yes.”

28 The 1commander answered, “I acquired this citizenship with a large sum of money.” And Paul said, “But I was actually born a citizen.”

29 Therefore those who were about to aexamine him immediately 1let go of him; and the 2commander also bwas afraid when he found out that he was a Roman, and because he had 3cput him in chains.

30 But on the next day, awishing to know for certain why he had been accused by the Jews, he breleased him and ordered the chief priests and all cthe 1Council to assemble, and brought Paul down and set him before them.

Chapter 23

Paul before the Council

1 Paul, looking intently at athe 1Council, said, “bBrethren, cI have 2lived my life with a perfectly good conscience before God up to this day.”

2 The high priest aAnanias commanded those standing beside him bto strike him on the mouth.

3 Then Paul said to him, “God is going to strike you, ayou whitewashed wall! Do you bsit to try me according to the Law, and in violation of the Law order me to be struck?”

4 But the bystanders said, “Do you revile God’s high priest?”

5 And Paul said, “I was not aware, brethren, that he was high priest; for it is written, ‘aYou shall not speak evil of a ruler of your people.’ ”

6 But perceiving that one group were aSadducees and the other Pharisees, Paul began crying out in bthe 1Council, “cBrethren, dI am a Pharisee, a son of Pharisees; I am on trial for ethe hope and resurrection of the dead!”

7 As he said this, there occurred a dissension between the Pharisees and Sadducees, and the assembly was divided.

8 For athe Sadducees say that there is no resurrection, nor an angel, nor a spirit, but the Pharisees acknowledge them all.

9 And there occurred a great uproar; and some of athe scribes of the Pharisaic party stood up and began to argue heatedly, saying, “bWe find nothing wrong with this man; csuppose a spirit or an angel has spoken to him?”

10 And as a great dissension was developing, the 1commander was afraid Paul would be torn to pieces by them and ordered the troops to go down and take him away from them by force, and bring him into athe barracks.

11 But on athe night immediately following, the Lord stood at his side and said, “bTake courage; for cas you have dsolemnly witnessed to My cause at Jerusalem, so you must witness at Rome also.”

A Conspiracy to Kill Paul

12 When it was day, athe Jews formed a 1conspiracy and bbound themselves under an oath, saying that they would neither eat nor drink until they had killed Paul.

13 There were more than forty who formed this plot.

14 They came to the chief priests and the elders and said, “We have abound ourselves under a solemn oath to taste nothing until we have killed Paul.

15 “Now therefore, you 1and athe 2Council notify the 3commander to bring him down to you, as though you were going to determine his case by a more thorough investigation; and we for our part are ready to slay him before he comes near the place.”

16 But the son of Paul’s sister heard of their ambush, 1and he came and entered athe barracks and told Paul.

17 Paul called one of the centurions to him and said, “Lead this young man to the 1commander, for he has something to report to him.”

18 So he took him and led him to the 1commander and * said, “Paul athe prisoner called me to him and asked me to lead this young man to you since he has something to tell you.”

19 The 1commander took him by the hand and stepping aside, began to inquire of him privately, “What is it that you have to report to me?”

20 And he said, “aThe Jews have agreed to ask you to bring Paul down tomorrow to bthe 1Council, as though they were going to inquire somewhat more thoroughly about him.

21 “So do not 1listen to them, for more than forty of them are alying in wait for him who have bbound themselves under a curse not to eat or drink until they slay him; and now they are ready and waiting for the promise from you.”

22 So the 1commander let the young man go, instructing him, “Tell no one that you have notified me of these things.”

Paul Moved to Caesarea

23 And he called to him two of the centurions and said, “Get two hundred soldiers ready by 1the third hour of the night to proceed to aCaesarea, 2with seventy horsemen and two hundred 3spearmen.”

24 They were also to provide mounts to put Paul on and bring him safely to aFelix the governor.

25 And he wrote a letter having this form:

26 “Claudius Lysias, to the amost excellent governor Felix, bgreetings.

27 “When this man was arrested by the Jews and was about to be slain by them, aI came up to them with the troops and rescued him, bhaving learned that he was a Roman.

28 “And awanting to ascertain the charge for which they were accusing him, I bbrought him down to their 1cCouncil;

29 and I found him to be accused over aquestions about their Law, but 1under bno accusation deserving death or 2imprisonment.

30 “When I was ainformed that there would be ba plot against the man, I sent him to you at once, also instructing chis accusers to 1bring charges against him before you.”

31 So the soldiers, in accordance with their orders, took Paul and brought him by night to Antipatris.

32 But the next day, leaving athe horsemen to go on with him, they returned to bthe barracks.

33 When these had come to aCaesarea and delivered the letter to bthe governor, they also presented Paul to him.

34 When he had read it, he asked from what aprovince he was, and when he learned that bhe was from Cilicia,

35 he said, “I will give you a hearing after your aaccusers arrive also,” giving orders for him to be bkept in Herod’s 1Praetorium.

Chapter 24

Paul before Felix

1 After afive days the high priest bAnanias came down with some elders, 1with an 2attorney named Tertullus, and they 3brought charges to cthe governor against Paul.

2 After Paul had been summoned, Tertullus began to accuse him, saying to the governor,

“Since we have through you attained much peace, and since by your providence reforms are being carried out for this nation,

3 we acknowledge this in every way and everywhere, amost excellent Felix, with all thankfulness.

4 “But, that I may not weary you any further, I beg you 1to grant us, by your kindness, a brief hearing.

5 “For we have found this man a real pest and a fellow who stirs up dissension among all the Jews throughout 1the world, and a ringleader of the asect of the Nazarenes.

6 “And he even tried to adesecrate the temple; and 1then we arrested him. [2We wanted to judge him according to our own Law.

7 “But Lysias the commander came along, and with much violence took him out of our hands,

8 ordering his accusers to come before you.] By examining him yourself concerning all these matters you will be able to ascertain the things of which we accuse him.”

9 aThe Jews also joined in the attack, asserting that these things were so.

10 When athe governor had nodded for him to speak, Paul responded:

“Knowing that for many years you have been a judge to this nation, I cheerfully make my defense,

11 since you can take note of the fact that no more than atwelve days ago I went up to Jerusalem to worship.

12 “aNeither in the temple, nor in the synagogues, nor in the city itself did they find me carrying on a discussion with anyone or bcausing 1a riot.

13 “aNor can they prove to you the charges of which they now accuse me.

14 “But this I admit to you, that according to athe Way which they call a bsect I do serve 1cthe God of our fathers, dbelieving everything that is in accordance with the Law and that is written in the Prophets;

15 having a hope in God, which athese men cherish themselves, that there shall certainly be a resurrection of both the righteous and the wicked.

16 “In view of this, aI also 1do my best to maintain always a blameless conscience both before God and before men.

17 “Now aafter several years I bcame to bring 1alms to my nation and to present offerings;

18 in which they found me occupied in the temple, having been apurified, without any bcrowd or uproar. But there were some cJews from 1Asia—

19 who ought to have been present before you and to amake accusation, if they should have anything against me.

20 “Or else let these men themselves tell what misdeed they found when I stood before athe 1Council,

21 other than for this one statement which aI shouted out while standing among them, ‘For the resurrection of the dead I am on trial before you today.’ ”

22 But Felix, 1having a more exact knowledge about athe Way, put them off, saying, “When Lysias the 2commander comes down, I will decide your case.”

23 Then he gave orders to the centurion for him to be akept in custody and yet bhave some freedom, and not to prevent any of chis friends from ministering to him.

24 But some days later Felix arrived with Drusilla, his 1wife who was a Jewess, and sent for Paul and heard him speak about afaith in Christ Jesus.

25 But as he was discussing arighteousness, bself-control and cthe judgment to come, Felix became frightened and said, “Go away for the present, and when I find time I will summon you.”

26 At the same time too, he was hoping that amoney would be given him by Paul; therefore he also used to send for him quite often and converse with him.

27 But after two years had passed, Felix 1was succeeded by Porcius aFestus, and bwishing to do the Jews a favor, Felix left Paul cimprisoned.

Chapter 25

Paul before Festus

1 Festus then, having arrived in athe province, three days later went up to Jerusalem from bCaesarea.

2 And the chief priests and the leading men of the Jews abrought charges against Paul, and they were urging him,

3 requesting a 1concession against 2Paul, that he might 3have him brought to Jerusalem (at the same time, asetting an ambush to kill him on the way).

4 Festus then aanswered that Paul bwas being kept in custody at cCaesarea and that he himself was about to leave shortly.

5 “Therefore,” he * said, “let the influential men among you 1go there with me, and if there is anything wrong 2about the man, let them 3prosecute him.”

6 After he had spent not more than eight or ten days among them, he went down to aCaesarea, and on the next day he took his seat on bthe tribunal and ordered Paul to be brought.

7 After Paul arrived, the Jews who had come down from Jerusalem stood around him, bringing amany and serious charges against him bwhich they could not prove,

8 while Paul said in his own defense, “aI have committed no offense either against the Law of the Jews or against the temple or against Caesar.”

9 But Festus, awishing to do the Jews a favor, answered Paul and said, “bAre you willing to go up to Jerusalem and 1stand trial before me on these charges?”

10 But Paul said, “I am standing before Caesar’s atribunal, where I ought to be tried. I have done no wrong to the Jews, as you also very well know.

11 “If, then, I am a wrongdoer and have committed anything worthy of death, I do not refuse to die; but if none of those things is true of which these men accuse me, no one can hand me over to them. I aappeal to Caesar.”

12 Then when Festus had conferred with 1his council, he answered, “You have appealed to Caesar, to Caesar you shall go.”

13 Now when several days had elapsed, King Agrippa and Bernice arrived at aCaesarea 1and paid their respects to Festus.

14 While they were spending many days there, Festus laid Paul’s case before the king, saying, “There is a man who was aleft as a prisoner by Felix;

15 and when I was at Jerusalem, the chief priests and the elders of the Jews abrought charges against him, asking for a sentence of condemnation against him.

16 “I aanswered them that it is not the custom of the Romans to hand over any man before bthe accused meets his accusers face to face and has an opportunity to make his defense against the charges.

17 “So after they had assembled here, I did not delay, but on the next day took my seat on athe tribunal and ordered the man to be brought before me.

18 “When the accusers stood up, they began bringing charges against him not of such crimes as I was expecting,

19 but they simply had some apoints of disagreement with him about their own 1breligion and about a dead man, Jesus, whom Paul asserted to be alive.

20 “aBeing at a loss how to investigate 1such matters, I asked whether he was willing to go to Jerusalem and there stand trial on these matters.

21 “But when Paul aappealed to be held in custody for 1the Emperor’s decision, I ordered him to be kept in custody until I send him to Caesar.”

22 Then aAgrippa said to Festus, “I also would like to hear the man myself.” “Tomorrow,” he * said, “you shall hear him.”

Paul before Agrippa

23 So, on the next day when aAgrippa came 1together with aBernice amid great pomp, and entered the auditorium 2accompanied by the 3commanders and the prominent men of the city, at the command of Festus, Paul was brought in.

24 Festus * said, “King Agrippa, and all you gentlemen here present with us, you see this man about whom aall the people of the Jews appealed to me, both at Jerusalem and here, loudly declaring that bhe ought not to live any longer.

25 “But I found that he had committed anothing worthy of death; and since he himself bappealed to 1the Emperor, I decided to send him.

26 “1Yet I have nothing definite about him to write to my lord. Therefore I have brought him before you all and especially before you, King Agrippa, so that after the investigation has taken place, I may have something to write.

27 “For it seems absurd to me in sending a prisoner, not to indicate also the charges against him.”