Acts 5
EasyEnglish Bible
Ananias and Sapphira
5 But there was a man called Ananias among the group of believers. His wife was called Sapphira. Together they sold one of their fields. 2 Ananias gave part of the money that he received to the apostles. But he kept part of the money for himself. Sapphira knew all about what Ananias had done.[a]
3 Peter said to Ananias, ‘Ananias, Satan wanted you to tell a lie and you have obeyed him. You have told a lie to the Holy Spirit. That is a bad thing to do! You sold your field, but you did not give us all the money. You kept part of it for yourselves.[b] 4 Before you sold the field, it belonged to you. And after you sold the field, the money was yours. You could choose what to do with it. But you chose to do a very bad thing. You did not only tell a lie to us men. You have told a lie to God.’
5 As soon as he heard Peter say this, Ananias fell down and he died. When people heard what had happened, they were all very afraid. 6 Some young men came into the room. They put cloths around Ananias's dead body and they carried it outside. Then they buried it.
7 About three hours later, Ananias's wife, Sapphira, came into the room. She did not know what had happened to her husband. 8 Peter asked Sapphira, ‘Was this all the money that you and your husband received for your field?’ ‘Yes,’ Sapphira answered. ‘That was all the money that we received.’
9 Peter said to her, ‘It was wrong for you and your husband to do this bad thing. You agreed together to tell a lie to the Holy Spirit of the Lord God. Listen! The men who have just buried your husband are at the door again now. They will carry your body out too.’
10 Immediately, Sapphira fell down in front of Peter and she died. Then the young men came into the room. They saw that Sapphira was dead. So they carried her outside and they buried her body next to her husband. 11 The whole group of believers, and many other people, heard about what had happened to Ananias and Sapphira. They were all very afraid.
The apostles do some powerful things for the people to see
12 At that time, the apostles were doing many miracles that showed God's power among the people. All the believers often met together in the yard of the temple in a place called Solomon's porch. 13 The other people were afraid to meet with the group of believers. But people respected the believers very much. 14 More and more people became believers and they joined the group. So now many men and women believed in the Lord Jesus.
15 As a result, people carried their sick friends into the streets and put them on beds and mats. They hoped that Peter would pass that way and make their sick friends well again. They just wanted Peter's shadow to touch them.[c] 16 Many people also came into Jerusalem from the small towns near the city. They brought their sick friends with them. Some of those sick people had bad spirits that gave them trouble. God caused all these sick people to become well again.
The most important priest puts the apostles in prison
17 People liked the apostles very much. So the most important priest and his friends who belonged to the Sadducees' group were very jealous. 18 These important men took hold of the apostles and they put them in the city's prison. 19 But during the night, one of the Lord God's angels came and he opened the prison gates. He led the apostles out of the prison. 20 The angel said to them, ‘Go and stand in the yard of the temple. Tell the people everything about this new life that God gives.’
21 The apostles did what the angel told them to do. At dawn they went into the yard of the temple. They began to teach the people there.
Then the most important priest and his friends arrived. They told the group of Jewish leaders to meet with them. All the most important people in Israel were in that group. Then they sent their police to the prison to bring the apostles to the meeting place. 22 But when the police arrived at the prison, they did not find the apostles there. So the police returned to the Jewish leaders and they told them the news. 23 They said, ‘We arrived at the prison. We saw that the soldiers had locked the gates. They were standing at the gates and they were watching carefully. But when we opened the gates of the prison, we did not find anyone there!’[d]
24 The leader of the police of the temple and the leaders of the priests heard the news. They could not understand what had happened. They were afraid of what might happen next.
25 Then a man came to the leaders. He said to them, ‘Listen! Those men that you put in the prison are now standing in the yard of the temple. They are teaching the people there.’ 26 So the leader of the police took his men with him to find the apostles. They took hold of the apostles to take them back to the Jewish leaders. But they did not hurt them because they were afraid of the people. They thought that the people might be angry. They might throw stones at them to kill them.
27 The police brought the apostles into the meeting room. They made them stand in front of the group of Jewish leaders. The most important priest said to the apostles, 28 ‘We told you that you must not teach people any more with the authority of Jesus. But now look at what you have done! Now people everywhere in Jerusalem have heard your teaching. You also want people to think that we are guilty for the death of Jesus.’
29 Peter and the other apostles answered, ‘We must obey God rather than obey people. 30 You fixed Jesus to a cross so that he died. But then the God of our ancestors caused him to become alive again. 31 God raised Jesus and he put him in the most important place at his right side. Jesus is now the one who leads us and the one who saves us. He has made a way for the people of Israel to turn back to God. He wants us to stop doing wrong things. Then God will forgive us for our sins. 32 We tell people about what happened to Jesus. We ourselves saw these things. Now God has given his Holy Spirit to people who obey him. The Holy Spirit also shows that these things are true.’
33 The group of Jewish leaders heard what the apostles said to them. They were so angry that they wanted to kill the apostles. 34 But one man did not agree. He was called Gamaliel and he was a Pharisee, a teacher of the Law. All the people agreed that he was a good man. Gamaliel stood up in front of the group of Jewish leaders. He told the police to take the apostles out of the room. 35 When they had gone, Gamaliel spoke to the group of leaders: ‘Men of Israel! Think carefully about what you want to do to these men. 36 Remember what happened to Theudas a few years ago. That man told everyone, “I am a very important leader.” As a result, about 400 men joined his group. But then somebody killed him, and all his men went away. Nobody heard any more about them. 37 Later, Judas from Galilee appeared at the time when the Romans were making a list of everyone's names.[e] Many people also came to help him fight against the Romans. But somebody killed him. His men also ran away and nothing more happened.[f]
38 Now think about what is happening with these men. I tell you it would be better to leave them alone. Let them go free. If their message only comes from human ideas, all their work will fail. 39 But perhaps what they are doing really does come from God himself. If that is true, then you cannot stop them. You might even find that you are fighting against God!’
40 The Jewish leaders agreed with Gamaliel. They told the apostles to come back into the room. They told the police to hit them with whips. Then they said to the apostles, ‘You must not use the authority of Jesus to teach the people.’ After that, they let the apostles go free.[g]
41 The apostles went away from the meeting of the Jewish leaders. They were very happy because they thought to themselves, ‘These leaders have done bad things to us because we obey Jesus. That shows that God accepts us as his people.’
42 Every day the apostles continued to teach people about Jesus. They spoke in people's homes and in the yard of the temple. All the time, they told people the good news that Jesus is God's Messiah.
Footnotes
- 5:2 Ananias gave his money to the apostles. Then they would give it to other believers who needed it. Ananias told the apostles that he had given them all the money. But this was not true. He had only given them part of it.
- 5:3 The Holy Spirit had told Peter what Ananias had done. Ananias did not need to tell him.
- 5:15 God's Holy Spirit caused the apostles to be powerful. They could cause sick people to become well again. In those days, people thought that shadows were powerful. And they thought that Peter's shadow would cause sick people to become well again.
- 5:23 The soldiers at the gates of the prison did not know that the apostles were not inside.
- 5:37 The Romans were making a list of all the people at the time when Jesus was born.
- 5:37 Judas from Galilee would not pay money to the Roman government. People joined Judas's group and they helped him. They fought the Roman soldiers. These people were called Zealots. This Judas was not the same man that Jesus chose to follow him.
- 5:40 Rulers used a whip to punish people who did not obey the law.
Acts 5
New King James Version
Lying to the Holy Spirit
5 But a certain man named Ananias, with Sapphira his wife, sold a possession. 2 And he kept back part of the proceeds, his wife also being aware of it, and brought a certain part and laid it at the apostles’ feet. 3 (A)But Peter said, “Ananias, why has (B)Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and keep back part of the price of the land for yourself? 4 While it remained, was it not your own? And after it was sold, was it not in your own control? Why have you conceived this thing in your heart? You have not lied to men but to God.”
5 Then Ananias, hearing these words, (C)fell down and breathed his last. So great fear came upon all those who heard these things. 6 And the young men arose and (D)wrapped him up, carried him out, and buried him.
7 Now it was about three hours later when his wife came in, not knowing what had happened. 8 And Peter answered her, “Tell me whether you sold the land for so much?”
She said, “Yes, for so much.”
9 Then Peter said to her, “How is it that you have agreed together (E)to test the Spirit of the Lord? Look, the feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door, and they will carry you out.” 10 (F)Then immediately she fell down at his feet and breathed her last. And the young men came in and found her dead, and carrying her out, buried her by her husband. 11 (G)So great fear came upon all the church and upon all who heard these things.
Continuing Power in the Church
12 And (H)through the hands of the apostles many signs and wonders were done among the people. (I)And they were all with one accord in Solomon’s Porch. 13 Yet (J)none of the rest dared join them, (K)but the people esteemed them highly. 14 And believers were increasingly added to the Lord, multitudes of both men and women, 15 so that they brought the sick out into the streets and laid them on beds and couches, (L)that at least the shadow of Peter passing by might fall on some of them. 16 Also a multitude gathered from the surrounding cities to Jerusalem, bringing (M)sick people and those who were tormented by unclean spirits, and they were all healed.
Imprisoned Apostles Freed
17 (N)Then the high priest rose up, and all those who were with him (which is the sect of the Sadducees), and they were filled with [a]indignation, 18 (O)and laid their hands on the apostles and put them in the common prison. 19 But at night (P)an angel of the Lord opened the prison doors and brought them out, and said, 20 “Go, stand in the temple and speak to the people (Q)all the words of this life.”
21 And when they heard that, they entered the temple early in the morning and taught. (R)But the high priest and those with him came and called the [b]council together, with all the [c]elders of the children of Israel, and sent to the prison to have them brought.
Apostles on Trial Again
22 But when the officers came and did not find them in the prison, they returned and reported, 23 saying, “Indeed we found the prison shut securely, and the guards standing [d]outside before the doors; but when we opened them, we found no one inside!” 24 Now when [e]the high priest, (S)the captain of the temple, and the chief priests heard these things, they wondered what the outcome would be. 25 So one came and told them, [f]saying, “Look, the men whom you put in prison are standing in the temple and teaching the people!”
26 Then the captain went with the officers and brought them without violence, (T)for they feared the people, lest they should be stoned. 27 And when they had brought them, they set them before the council. And the high priest asked them, 28 saying, (U)“Did we not strictly command you not to teach in this name? And look, you have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine, (V)and intend to bring this Man’s (W)blood on us!”
29 But Peter and the other apostles answered and said: (X)“We ought to obey God rather than men. 30 (Y)The God of our fathers raised up Jesus whom you murdered by (Z)hanging on a tree. 31 (AA)Him God has exalted to His right hand to be (AB)Prince and (AC)Savior, (AD)to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. 32 And (AE)we are His witnesses to these things, and so also is the Holy Spirit (AF)whom God has given to those who obey Him.”
Gamaliel’s Advice
33 When they heard this, they were (AG)furious[g] and plotted to kill them. 34 Then one in the council stood up, a Pharisee named (AH)Gamaliel, a teacher of the law held in respect by all the people, and commanded them to put the apostles outside for a little while. 35 And he said to them: “Men of Israel, [h]take heed to yourselves what you intend to do regarding these men. 36 For some time ago Theudas rose up, claiming to be somebody. A number of men, about four hundred, [i]joined him. He was slain, and all who obeyed him were scattered and came to nothing. 37 After this man, Judas of Galilee rose up in the days of the census, and drew away many people after him. He also perished, and all who obeyed him were dispersed. 38 And now I say to you, keep away from these men and let them alone; for if this plan or this work is of men, it will come to nothing; 39 (AI)but if it is of God, you cannot overthrow it—lest you even be found (AJ)to fight against God.”
40 And they agreed with him, and when they had (AK)called for the apostles (AL)and beaten them, they commanded that they should not speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. 41 So they departed from the presence of the council, (AM)rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for [j]His name. 42 And daily (AN)in the temple, and in every house, (AO)they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ.
Hechos 5
Reina-Valera Antigua
5 MAS un varón llamado Ananías, con Safira su mujer, vendió una posesión,
2 Y defraudó del precio, sabiéndolo también su mujer; y trayendo una parte, púsola á los pies de los apóstoles.
3 Y dijo Pedro: Ananías, ¿por qué ha llenado Satanás tu corazón á que mintieses al Espíritu Santo, y defraudases del precio de la heredad?
4 Reteniéndola, ¿no se te quedaba á ti? y vendida, ¿no estaba en tu potestad? ¿Por qué pusiste esto en tu corazón? No has mentido á los hombres, sino á Dios.
5 Entonces Ananías, oyendo estas palabras, cayó y espiró. Y vino un gran temor sobre todos los que lo oyeron.
6 Y levantándose los mancebos, le tomaron, y sacándolo, sepultáronlo.
7 Y pasado espacio como de tres horas, sucedió que entró su mujer, no sabiendo lo que había acontecido.
8 Entonces Pedro le dijo: Dime: ¿vendisteis en tanto la heredad? Y ella dijo: Sí, en tanto.
9 Y Pedro le dijo: ¿Por qué os concertasteis para tentar al Espíritu del Señor? He aquí á la puerta los pies de los que han sepultado á tu marido, y te sacarán.
10 Y luego cayó á los pies de él, y espiró: y entrados los mancebos, la hallaron muerta; y la sacaron, y la sepultaron junto á su marido.
11 Y vino un gran temor en toda la iglesia, y en todos los que oyeron estas cosas.
12 Y por las manos de los apóstoles eran hechos muchos milagros y prodigios en el pueblo; y estaban todos unánimes en el pórtico de Salomón.
13 Y de los otros, ninguno osaba juntarse con ellos; mas el pueblo los alababa grandemente.
14 Y los que creían en el Señor se aumentaban más, gran número así de hombres como de mujeres;
15 Tanto que echaban los enfermos por las calles, y los ponían en camas y en lechos, para que viniendo Pedro, á lo menos su sombra tocase á alguno de ellos.
16 Y aun de las ciudades vecinas concurría multitud á Jerusalem, trayendo enfermos y atormentados de espíritus inmundos; los cuales todos eran curados.
17 Entonces levantándose el príncipe de los sacerdotes, y todos los que estaban con él, que es la secta de los Saduceos, se llenaron de celo;
18 Y echaron mano á los apóstoles, y pusiéronlos en la cárcel pública.
19 Mas el ángel del Señor, abriendo de noche las puertas de la cárcel, y sacándolos, dijo:
20 Id, y estando en el templo, hablad al pueblo todas las palabras de esta vida.
21 Y oído que hubieron esto, entraron de mañana en el templo, y enseñaban. Entre tanto, viniendo el príncipe de los sacerdotes, y los que eran con él, convocaron el concilio, y á todos los ancianos de los hijos de Israel, y enviaron á la cárcel para que fuesen traídos.
22 Mas como llegaron los ministros, y no los hallaron en la cárcel, volvieron, y dieron aviso,
23 Diciendo: Por cierto, la cárcel hemos hallado cerrada con toda seguridad, y los guardas que estaban delante de las puertas; mas cuando abrimos, á nadie hallamos dentro.
24 Y cuando oyeron estas palabras el pontífice y el magistrado del templo y los príncipes de los sacerdotes, dudaban en qué vendría á parar aquello.
25 Pero viniendo uno, dióles esta noticia: He aquí, los varones que echasteis en la cárcel, están en el templo, y enseñan al pueblo.
26 Entonces fué el magistrado con los ministros, y trájolos sin violencia; porque temían del pueblo ser apedreados.
27 Y como los trajeron, los presentaron en el concilio: y el príncipe de los sacerdotes les preguntó,
28 Diciendo: ¿No os denunciamos estrechamente, que no enseñaseis en este nombre? y he aquí, habéis llenado á Jerusalem de vuestra doctrina, y queréis echar sobre nosotros la sangre de este hombre.
29 Y respondiendo Pedro y los apóstoles, dijeron: Es menester obedecer á Dios antes que á los hombres.
30 El Dios de nuestros padres levantó á Jesús, al cual vosotros matasteis colgándole de un madero.
31 A éste ha Dios ensalzado con su diestra por Príncipe y Salvador, para dar á Israel arrepentimiento y remisión de pecados.
32 Y nosotros somos testigos suyos de estas cosas, y también el Espíritu Santo, el cual ha dado Dios á los que le obedecen.
33 Ellos, oyendo esto, regañaban, y consultaban matarlos.
34 Entonces levantándose en el concilio un Fariseo llamado Gamaliel, doctor de la ley, venerable á todo el pueblo, mandó que sacasen fuera un poco á los apóstoles.
35 Y les dijo: Varones Israelitas, mirad por vosotros acerca de estos hombres en lo que habéis de hacer.
36 Porque antes de estos días se levantó Teudas, diciendo que era alguien; al que se agregó un número de hombres como cuatrocientos: el cual fué matado; y todos los que le creyeron fueron dispersos, y reducidos á nada.
37 Después de éste, se levantó Judas el Galileo en los días del empadronamiento, y llevó mucho pueblo tras sí. Pereció también aquél; y todos los que consintieron con él, fueron derramados.
38 Y ahora os digo: Dejaos de estos hombres, y dejadlos; porque si este consejo ó esta obra es de los hombres, se desvanecerá:
39 Mas si es de Dios, no la podréis deshacer; no seáis tal vez hallados resistiendo á Dios.
40 Y convinieron con él: y llamando á los apóstoles, después de azotados, les intimaron que no hablasen en el nombre de Jesús, y soltáronlos.
41 Y ellos partieron de delante del concilio, gozosos de que fuesen tenidos por dignos de padecer afrenta por el Nombre.
42 Y todos los días, en el templo y por las casas, no cesaban de enseñar y predicar á Jesucristo.
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Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
