The Coming of the Holy Spirit

1 When the day of ^hPentecost arrived, they were all together in one place. 2 And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a ⁱmighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. 3 And divided tongues as of ^jfire appeared to them and rested¹ on each one of them. 4 And they were all ^kfilled with the Holy Spirit and began to ^lspeak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.

5 Now there were dwelling in Jerusalem Jews, devout men from every nation under heaven. 6 And at this sound the multitude came together, and they were bewildered, because ^meach one was hearing them speak in his own language. 7 And they were amazed and astonished, saying, “Are not all these who are speaking Galileans? 8 And how is it that we hear, each of us in his own native language? 9 Parthians and Medes and Elamites and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, 10 Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya belonging to Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, 11 both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabians—we hear them telling in our own tongues the mighty works of God.” 12 And all were amazed and perplexed, saying to one another, “What does this mean?” 13 But others ⁿmocking said, “They are ^ofilled with new wine.”

Peter’s Sermon at Pentecost

14 But Peter, standing with the eleven, lifted up his voice and addressed them: “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give ear to my words. 15 For these people are not drunk, as you suppose, since it is only the third hour of the day.² 16 But this is what was uttered through the prophet Joel:

22 “Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know— 23 this Jesus,³ delivered up according to the definite plan and ^sforeknowledge of God, ^tyou crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. 24 ^uGod ^vraised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was ^wnot possible for him to be held by it. 25 For David says concerning him,

29 “Brothers, I may say to you with confidence about the patriarch David that he both ^ydied and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. 30 Being therefore a prophet, and knowing that God had ^zsworn with an oath to him that he would set one of his descendants on his throne, 31 he foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption. 32 This Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are ^awitnesses. 33 Being therefore ^bexalted ^cat the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the ^dpromise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and hearing. 34 For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he himself says,

36 Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that God has made him both ^gLord and ^hChrist, this Jesus whom you crucified.”

37 Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, ⁱ“Brothers, what shall we do?” 38 And Peter said to them, ^j“Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the ^kforgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the ^lgift of the Holy Spirit. 39 For the promise is for you and ^mfor your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God ⁿcalls to himself.” 40 And with many other words he bore witness and continued to exhort them, saying, “Save yourselves from this ^ocrooked generation.” 41 So those who received his word were baptized, and there were ^padded that day about three thousand souls.

The Fellowship of the Believers

42 And they ^qdevoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and the fellowship, to the ^rbreaking of bread and the prayers. 43 And awe⁴ came upon every soul, and many wonders and signs were being done through the apostles. 44 And all who believed were together and had ^sall things in common. 45 And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need. 46 And day by day, attending the temple together and breaking bread in their homes, they received their food with glad and generous hearts, 47 praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.

The Lame Beggar Healed

1 Now Peter and John were going up to the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour.⁵ 2 And a man lame ^tfrom birth was being carried, whom they laid daily at the gate of the temple that is called the Beautiful Gate to ask alms of those entering the temple. 3 Seeing Peter and John about to go into the temple, he asked to receive alms. 4 And Peter directed his ^ugaze at him, as did John, and said, “Look at us.” 5 And he fixed his attention on them, expecting to receive something from them. 6 But Peter said, “I have no silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you. In the ^vname of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!” 7 And he took him by the right hand and raised him up, and immediately his feet and ankles were made strong. 8 And ^wleaping up, he stood and began to walk, and entered the temple with them, walking and leaping and praising God. 9 And all the people saw him walking and praising God, 10 and ^xrecognized him as ^ythe one who sat at the Beautiful Gate of the temple, asking for alms. And they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.

Peter Speaks in Solomon’s Portico

11 While he clung to Peter and John, all the people, utterly astounded, ran together to them in the ^zportico called Solomon’s. 12 And when Peter saw it he addressed the people: “Men of Israel, why do you wonder at this, or why do you stare at us, as though by our own power or piety we have made him walk? 13 The ^aGod of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, the God of our fathers, ^bglorified his ^cservant⁶ Jesus, whom ^dyou delivered over and denied in the presence of Pilate, when ^ehe had decided to release him. 14 But you denied the Holy and ^fRighteous One, and ^gasked for a murderer to be granted to you, 15 and you killed the ^hAuthor of life, whom God raised from the dead. To this we are ⁱwitnesses. 16 And his name—by faith in his name—has made this man strong whom you see and know, and the faith that is through Jesus⁷ has given the man this perfect health in the presence of you all.

17 “And now, brothers, I know that you acted in ^jignorance, as did also your rulers. 18 But what God foretold by the mouth of all the prophets, that ^khis ^lChrist would suffer, he thus fulfilled. 19 ^mRepent therefore, and turn back, that your sins may be ⁿblotted out, 20 that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that he may ^osend the Christ appointed for you, Jesus, 21 whom ^pheaven must receive until the time for restoring all the things about which God spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets ^qlong ago. 22 Moses said, ^r‘The Lord God will raise up for you a prophet like me from your brothers. You shall listen to him in whatever he tells you. 23 And it shall be that ^severy soul who does not listen to that prophet shall be destroyed from the people.’ 24 And all the prophets who have spoken, from ^tSamuel and those who came after him, also proclaimed these days. 25 You are the ^usons of the prophets and of the covenant that God made with your fathers, saying to Abraham, ^v‘And in your offspring shall all the families of the earth be blessed.’ 26 God, having raised up his servant, sent him to you ^wfirst, to bless you by turning every one of you from your wickedness.”

Peter and John Before the Council

1 And as they were speaking to the people, the priests and the captain of the temple and the ^xSadducees came upon them, 2 greatly annoyed because they were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the ^yresurrection from the dead. 3 And they arrested them and put them in ^zcustody until the next day, for it was already evening. 4 But many of those who had heard the word believed, and the ^anumber of the men came to about five thousand.

5 On the next day their rulers and elders and scribes gathered together in Jerusalem, 6 with Annas the high priest and Caiaphas and John and Alexander, and all who were of the high-priestly family. 7 And when they had set them in the midst, they inquired, “By what power or by what name did you do this?” 8 Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, ^bsaid to them, “Rulers of the people and elders, 9 if we are being examined today ^cconcerning a good deed done to a crippled man, by what means this man has been healed, 10 let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the ^dname of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whom ^eyou crucified, whom God raised from the dead—by him this man is standing before you well. 11 This Jesus⁸ is ^fthe stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the ^gcornerstone.⁹ 12 And there is ^hsalvation in no one else, for there is no other ⁱname under heaven given among men¹⁰ by which we must be saved.”

13 Now when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were ^juneducated, common men, they were astonished. ^kAnd they recognized that they had been with Jesus. 14 But seeing the man who was healed standing beside them, they had ^lnothing to say in opposition. 15 But when they had commanded them to leave the council, they conferred with one another, 16 saying, “What shall we do with these men? For that a notable sign has been performed through them is evident to all the inhabitants of Jerusalem, and we cannot deny it. 17 But in order that it may spread no further among the people, let us warn them to speak no more to anyone in this name.” 18 So they called them and ^mcharged them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. 19 But Peter and John answered them, “Whether it is ⁿright in the sight of God to listen to you rather than to God, you must judge, 20 for we ^ocannot but speak of what we have seen and heard.” 21 And when they had further threatened them, they let them go, finding no way to punish them, because of the people, for all were ^ppraising God for what had happened. 22 For the man on whom this sign of healing was performed was more than forty years old.

The Believers Pray for Boldness

23 When they were released, they went to their friends and reported what the chief priests and the elders had said to them. 24 And when they heard it, they lifted their voices together to God and said, “Sovereign Lord, who ^qmade the heaven and the earth and the sea and everything in them, 25 who through the mouth of our father David, your servant,¹¹ said by the Holy Spirit,

27 for truly in this city there were gathered together against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, both ^sHerod and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, 28 to do whatever your hand and your plan had ^tpredestined to take place. 29 And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all ^uboldness, 30 while you stretch out your hand to heal, and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus.” 31 And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was ^vshaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.

They Had Everything in Common

32 Now the full number of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things that belonged to him was his own, but they had everything in common. 33 And with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all. 34 There was ^wnot a needy person among them, for as many as were owners of lands or houses ^xsold them and brought the proceeds of what was sold 35 and laid it at the apostles’ feet, and it was ^ydistributed to each as any had need. 36 Thus Joseph, who was also called by the apostles Barnabas (which means son of encouragement), a Levite, a native of Cyprus, 37 sold a field that belonged to him and brought the money and laid it at the apostles’ feet.

Ananias and Sapphira

1 But a man named Ananias, with his wife Sapphira, sold a piece of property, 2 and with his wife’s knowledge he kept back for himself some of the proceeds and brought only a part of it and laid it at the apostles’ ^zfeet. 3 But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan ^afilled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back for yourself part of the proceeds of the land? 4 While it remained unsold, did it not remain your own? And after it was sold, was it not at your disposal? Why is it that you have contrived this deed in your heart? You have not lied to man but to God.” 5 ^bWhen Ananias heard these words, he fell down and breathed his last. And great fear came upon all who heard of it. 6 The young men rose and wrapped him up and carried him out and buried him.

7 After an interval of about three hours his wife came in, not knowing what had happened. 8 And Peter said to her, “Tell me whether you¹³ sold the land for so much.” And she said, “Yes, for so much.” 9 But Peter said to her, “How is it that you have agreed together to ^ctest the Spirit of the Lord? Behold, the feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out.” 10 Immediately she fell down at his feet and breathed her last. When the young men came in they found her dead, and they carried her out and buried her beside her husband. 11 And great ^dfear came upon the whole church and upon all who heard of these things.

Many Signs and Wonders Done

12 Now many signs and wonders were regularly done among the people by the hands of the apostles. And they were all together in Solomon’s Portico. 13 None of the rest dared join them, but the people held them in high esteem. 14 And more than ever believers were ^eadded to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women, 15 so that they even carried out the sick into the streets and laid them on cots and mats, that as Peter came by at least his ^fshadow might fall on some of them. 16 The people also gathered from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing the sick and those afflicted with unclean spirits, and they were all ^ghealed.

The Apostles Arrested and Freed

17 But the high priest rose up, and all who were with him (that is, the party of the Sadducees), and filled with ^hjealousy 18 they arrested the apostles and put them in the public ⁱprison. 19 But during the night an angel of the Lord ^jopened the prison doors and brought them out, and said, 20 “Go and stand in the temple and speak to the people all the words of this ^kLife.” 21 And when they heard this, they entered the temple at daybreak and began to teach.

Now when the high priest came, and those who were with him, they called together the council, all the senate of the people of Israel, and sent to the prison to have them brought. 22 But when the officers came, they did not find them in the prison, so they returned and reported, 23 “We found the prison securely locked and the guards standing at the doors, but when we opened them we found no one inside.” 24 Now when the captain of the temple and the chief priests heard these words, they were greatly perplexed about them, ^lwondering what this would come to. 25 And someone came and told them, “Look! The men whom you put in prison are standing in the temple and teaching the people.” 26 Then the captain with the officers went and brought them, but not by force, for they were afraid of being stoned by the people.

27 And when they had brought them, they set them before the council. And the high priest questioned them, 28 saying, ^m“We strictly charged you not to teach in this name, yet here you have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and you intend to bring this man’s ⁿblood upon us.” 29 But Peter and the apostles answered, “We must ^oobey God rather than men. 30 The God of our fathers raised Jesus, whom you killed by hanging him on a ^ptree. 31 God ^qexalted him ^rat his right hand as ^sLeader and ^tSavior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. 32 And we are ^uwitnesses to these things, ^vand so is the Holy Spirit, ^wwhom God has given to those who obey him.”

33 When they heard this, they were ^xenraged and wanted to kill them. 34 But a Pharisee in the council named Gamaliel, a teacher of the law held in honor by all the people, stood up and gave orders to put the men outside for a little while. 35 And he said to them, “Men of Israel, take care what you are about to do with these men. 36 For before these days ^yTheudas rose up, claiming to be somebody, and a number of men, about four hundred, joined him. He was killed, and all who followed him were dispersed and came to nothing. 37 After him Judas the Galilean rose up in the days of ^zthe census and drew away some of the people after him. He too perished, and all who followed him were scattered. 38 So in the present case I tell you, keep away from these men and let them alone, for if this plan or this undertaking is of man, it will fail; 39 but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them. You might even be found opposing God!” So they took his advice, 40 and when they had called in the apostles, they beat them and ^acharged them not to speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. 41 Then they left the presence of the council, ^brejoicing that they were ^ccounted worthy to suffer dishonor for the name. 42 And every day, in the temple and from house to house, they did not cease teaching and preaching that the ^dChrist is Jesus.

Peter and Cornelius

1 At Caesarea there was a man named Cornelius, a centurion of what was known as the Italian Cohort, 2 a devout man who ^hfeared God with all his household, gave ⁱalms generously to the people, and prayed continually to God. 3 About the ninth hour of the day¹ he saw clearly in a vision an angel of God come in and say to him, “Cornelius.” 4 And he stared at him in terror and said, “What is it, Lord?” And he said to him, “Your prayers and your alms have ascended as a memorial before God. 5 And now send men to Joppa and bring one Simon who is called Peter. 6 He is lodging with one Simon, a tanner, whose house is by the sea.” 7 When the angel who spoke to him had departed, he called two of his servants and a devout soldier from among those who attended him, 8 and having related everything to them, he sent them to Joppa.