Acts 1-4

Lexham English Bible

The Preface

1 I produced the former account, O Theophilus, about all that^[a] Jesus began to do and to teach, ² until the day he was taken up, after he^[b] had given orders through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen, ³ to whom he also presented himself alive after he suffered, with many convincing proofs, appearing to them over a period of forty days and speaking the things about the kingdom of God. ⁴ And while he^[c] was with^[d] them,^[e] he commanded them, “Do not depart from Jerusalem, but wait for what was promised by the Father, which you heard about from me. ⁵ For John baptized with water, but you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”^[f]

The Ascension

⁶ So when^[g] they had come together, they began asking^[h] him, saying, “Lord, is it at this time you are restoring the kingdom to Israel?” ⁷ But he said to them, “It is not for you to know the times or seasons that the Father has set by his own authority. ⁸ But you will receive power when^[i] the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the farthest part of the earth.” ⁹ And after he^[j] had said these things, while^[k] they were watching, he was taken up, and a cloud received him from their sight. ¹⁰ And as they were staring into the sky while^[l] he was departing, behold, two men in white clothing stood by them ¹¹ who also said, “Men of Galilee,^[m] why do you stand there looking^[n] into the sky? This Jesus who was taken up from you into heaven like this will come back in the same way you saw him departing into heaven!”

Matthias Chosen to Replace Judas

¹² Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mountain that is called Olive Grove^[o] which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’s journey away.^{[p] 13} And when they had entered, they went up to the upstairs room where they were staying—Peter and John and James and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot and Judas son of James. ¹⁴ All these were busily engaged with one mind in prayer, together with the women and Mary the mother of Jesus and with^[q] his brothers.

¹⁵ And in those days Peter stood up in the midst of the brothers (and it was a crowd of persons of about one hundred twenty at the same place) and^[r] said, ¹⁶ “Men and brothers, it was necessary that the scripture be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit proclaimed beforehand through the mouth of David concerning Judas, who became a guide to those who arrested Jesus, ¹⁷ because he was counted among us and received a share in this ministry.” ¹⁸ (Now this man acquired a field for the wages of his wickedness, and falling headlong, he burst open in the middle and all his intestines spilled out. ¹⁹ And it became known to all who live in Jerusalem, so that that field was called in their own language^[s] “Akeldama,” that is, “Field of Blood.”) ²⁰ “For it is written in the book of Psalms,

and,

²¹ Therefore it is necessary for one of the men who have accompanied us during all the time in which the Lord Jesus went in and went out among us, ²² beginning from the baptism of John until the day on which he was taken up from us—one of these men must become a witness of his resurrection together with us.” ²³ And they proposed two men, Joseph called Barsabbas (who was called Justus) and Matthias. ²⁴ And they prayed and^[v] said, “You, Lord, who know the hearts of all, show clearly which one of these two you have chosen ²⁵ to take the place in this ministry and apostleship from which Judas turned aside to depart to his own place.” ²⁶ And they cast lots for them, and the lot fell on Matthias, and he was added to serve^[w] with the eleven apostles.

Pentecost and the Coming of the Holy Spirit

2 And when the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in the same place. ² And suddenly a sound like a violent rushing wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. ³ And divided^[x] tongues like fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. ⁴ And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other languages^[y] as the Spirit gave them ability to speak out.

⁵ Now there were Jews residing in Jerusalem, devout men from every nation under heaven. ⁶ And when^[z] this sound occurred, the crowd gathered and was in confusion, because each one was hearing them speaking in his own language. ⁷ And they were astounded and astonished, saying, “Behold, are not all these who are speaking Galileans? ⁸ And how do we hear, each one of us, in our own native language?^{[aa] 9} Parthians and Medes and Elamites and those residing in Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia,^{[ab] 10} Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya toward Cyrene, and the Romans who were in town, ¹¹ both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabs—we hear them speaking in our own languages the great deeds of God!” ¹² And all were amazed and greatly perplexed, saying to one another,^[ac] “What can this mean?”^{[ad] 13} But others jeered and^[ae] said, “They are full of sweet new wine!”

Peter’s Sermon on the Day of Pentecost

¹⁴ But Peter, standing with the eleven, raised his voice and declared to them, “Judean men, and all those who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and pay attention to my words! ¹⁵ For these men are not drunk, as you assume, because it is the third hour of the day. ¹⁶ But this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel:

²² “Israelite men, listen to these words! Jesus the Nazarene, a man attested to you by God with deeds of power and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst, just as you yourselves know— ²³ this man, delivered up by the determined plan and foreknowledge of God, you executed by^[ah] nailing to a cross^[ai] through the hand of lawless men. ²⁴ God raised him^[aj] up, having brought to an end the pains of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it. ²⁵ For David says with reference to him,

²⁹ “Men and brothers, it is possible to speak with confidence to you about the patriarch David, that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us until this day. ³⁰ Therefore, because he^[am] was a prophet and knew that God had sworn to him with an oath to seat one of his descendants^[an] on his throne, ³¹ by^[ao] having foreseen this,^[ap] he spoke about the resurrection of the Christ,^[aq] that neither was he abandoned in Hades nor did his flesh experience decay. ³² This Jesus God raised up, of which^[ar] we all are witnesses. ³³ Therefore, having been exalted to the right hand of God and having received the promise of the Holy Spirit from the Father, he has poured out this that you see and hear.^{[as] 34} For David did not ascend into heaven, but he himself says,

³⁶ Therefore let all the house of Israel know beyond a doubt, that God has made him both Lord and Christ—this Jesus whom you crucified!”

The Response to Peter’s Sermon

³⁷ Now when they^[au] heard this,^[av] they were pierced to the heart and said to Peter and the other apostles, “What should we do, men and brothers?” ³⁸ And Peter said^[aw] to them, “Repent and be baptized, each one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. ³⁹ For the promise is for you and for your children, and for all those who are far away, as many as the Lord our God calls to himself.” ⁴⁰ And with many other words he solemnly urged and exhorted them, saying, “Be saved from this crooked generation!” ⁴¹ So those who accepted his message were baptized, and on that day about three thousand souls were added.

The Fellowship of the First Believers

⁴² And they were devoting themselves to the teaching of the apostles and to fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayers. ⁴³ And fear came on every soul, and many wonders and signs were being performed by the apostles. ⁴⁴ And all who believed were in the same place, and had everything in common. ⁴⁵ And they began selling^[ax] their^[ay] possessions and property, and distributing these things to all, to the degree that anyone had need. ⁴⁶ And every day, devoting themselves to meeting^[az] with one purpose in the temple courts^[ba] and breaking bread from house to house, they were eating their food with joy and simplicity of heart, ⁴⁷ praising God and having favor with all the people. And the Lord was adding every day to the total of those who were being saved.

A Lame Beggar Healed at the Temple

3 Now Peter and John were going up to the temple at the hour of prayer, the ninth hour. ² And a certain man was being carried who was lame from birth.^[bb] He^[bc] was placed every day at the gate of the temple called “Beautiful,” so that he could ask for charitable gifts from those who were going into the temple courts.^{[bd] 3} When he^[be] saw Peter and John about to go into the temple courts,^[bf] he began asking to receive alms. ⁴ And Peter looked intently at him, together with John, and^[bg] said, “Look at us!” ⁵ So he fixed his attention on them, expecting to receive something from them. ⁶ But Peter said, “Silver and gold I do not possess,^[bh] but what I have, this I give to you—in the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, walk!”^{[bi] 7} And taking hold of him by the right hand, he raised him up, and immediately his feet and ankles were made strong. ⁸ And leaping up, he stood and began walking around^[bj] and entered into the temple courts^[bk] with them, walking and leaping and praising God. ⁹ And all the people saw him walking and praising God, ¹⁰ And they recognized him, that this one^[bl] was the one who used to sit asking for alms at the Beautiful Gate of the temple, and they were filled with awe and astonishment at what had happened to him.

Peter’s Sermon in Solomon’s Portico

¹¹ And while^[bm] he was holding fast to Peter and John, all the people ran together to them in the portico called Solomon’s, utterly astonished. ¹² And when he^[bn] saw it,^[bo] Peter replied to the people, “Men and Israelites, why are you astonished at this? Or why are you staring at us, as if by our own power or godliness we have made him walk? ¹³ The God of Abraham and of Isaac^[bp] and of Jacob,^[bq] the God of our fathers, has glorified his servant Jesus, whom you handed over and denied in the presence of Pilate, after^[br] he had decided to release him.^{[bs] 14} But you denied the Holy and Righteous One and demanded that a man—a murderer—be granted to you. ¹⁵ And you killed the originator of life, whom God raised from the dead, of which we are witnesses! ¹⁶ And on the basis of faith in his name, his name has made this man strong, whom you see and know, and the faith that is through him has given him this perfect health in the presence of you all. ¹⁷ And now, brothers, I know that you acted in ignorance, just as your rulers did also. ¹⁸ But the things which God foretold through the mouth of all the prophets, that his Christ^[bt] would suffer, he has fulfilled in this way. ¹⁹ Therefore repent and turn back, so that your sins may be blotted out, ²⁰ so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and he may send the Christ^[bu] appointed for you—Jesus, ²¹ whom heaven must receive until the times of the restoration of all things, about which God spoke through the mouth of his holy prophets from earliest times. ²² Moses said, ‘The Lord God^[bv] will raise up for you a prophet like me from your brothers. You will listen to him in everything that he says to you.^{[bw] 23} And it will be that every soul who does not listen to that prophet will be destroyed utterly from the people.’^{[bx] 24} And indeed, all the prophets from Samuel and all those who followed him^[by] have spoken about and proclaimed these days. ²⁵ You are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant that God ordained with your fathers, saying to Abraham, ‘And in your offspring all the nations of the earth will be blessed.’^{[bz] 26} God, after he^[ca] had raised up his servant, sent him to you first, to bless you by turning each of you back from your wickedness!”

Peter and John Arrested

4 And while^[cb] they were speaking to the people, the priests and the captain of the temple and the Sadducees approached them, ² greatly annoyed because they were teaching the people and proclaiming in Jesus the resurrection from the dead. ³ And they laid hands on them and put them^[cc] in custody until the next day, because it was already evening. ⁴ But many of those who listened to the message believed, and the number of the men was approximately five thousand.

Peter and John on Trial Before the Sanhedrin

⁵ And it happened that on the next day, their rulers and elders and scribes came together in Jerusalem, ⁶ and Annas the high priest, and Caiaphas and John and Alexander, and all those who were from the high priest’s family. ⁷ And they made them stand in their^[cd] midst and^[ce] began to ask,^[cf] “By what power or by what name did you do this?” ⁸ Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers of the people and elders, ⁹ if we are being examined today concerning a good deed done to a sick man—by what means^[cg] this man was healed— ¹⁰ let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead—by him this man stands before you healthy! ¹¹ This one^[ch] is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, that has become the cornerstone.^{[ci] 12} And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven that is given among people by which we must be saved.”

¹³ Now when they^[cj] saw the boldness of Peter and John, and understood that they were uneducated and untrained men, they were astonished, and recognized them, that they had been with Jesus. ¹⁴ And because they^[ck] saw the man who had been healed standing there with them, they had nothing to say in return. ¹⁵ But after they^[cl] had ordered them to go outside the Sanhedrin,^[cm] they began to confer^[cn] with one another, ¹⁶ saying, “What should we do with these men? For that a remarkable sign has taken place through them is evident to all those who live in Jerusalem, and we are not able to deny it!^{[co] 17} But in order that it may not spread much further among the people, let us warn them to speak no more in this name to anyone at all.”^{[cp] 18} And they called them back and^[cq] commanded them^[cr] not to speak or to teach at all in the name of Jesus. ¹⁹ But Peter and John answered and^[cs] said to them, “Whether it is right in the sight of God to listen to you rather than God, you decide! ²⁰ For we are not able to refrain from speaking about the things that we have seen and heard.” ²¹ So after^[ct] threatening them^[cu] further, they released them, finding no way to punish them on account of the people, because they were all praising God for what had happened. ²² For the man on whom this sign of healing had been performed was more than forty years old.

The Believers Pray for Continued Bold Witness

²³ And when they^[cv] were released, they went to their own people and reported all that the chief priests and the elders had said to them. ²⁴ And when they^[cw] heard it,^[cx] they lifted their voices with one mind to God and said, “Master, you are the one who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all the things in them, ²⁵ the one who said by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of our father David, your servant,

²⁷ For in truth both Herod and Pontius Pilate, together with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, assembled together in this city against your holy servant Jesus whom you anointed, ²⁸ to do all that your hand and plan^[da] had predestined to take place. ²⁹ And now, Lord, concern yourself with their threats and grant your slaves to speak your message with all boldness, ³⁰ as you extend your hand to heal and signs and wonders are performed through the name of your holy servant Jesus.” ³¹ And when^[db] they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak^[dc] the word^[dd] of God with boldness.

The Believers Share All Things in Common

³² Now the group of those who believed were one heart and soul, and no one said anything of what belonged to him was his own, but all things were theirs in common. ³³ And with great power the apostles were giving testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was on them all. ³⁴ For there was not even anyone needy among them, because all those who were owners of plots of land or houses were selling them^[de] and^[df] bringing the proceeds of the things that were sold ³⁵ and placing them^[dg] at the feet of the apostles. And it was being distributed to each as anyone had need. ³⁶ So Joseph, who was called Barnabas by the apostles (which is translated “son of encouragement”), a Levite of Cyprus by nationality, ³⁷ sold a field^[dh] that belonged to him and^[di] brought the money and placed it^[dj] at the feet of the apostles.