Church Leaders Meet in Jerusalem

15 Certain people came down from Judea to Antioch. Here is what they were teaching the believers. “Moses commanded you to be circumcised,” they said. “If you aren’t, you can’t be saved.” ² But Paul and Barnabas didn’t agree with this. They argued strongly with them. So Paul and Barnabas were appointed to go up to Jerusalem. Some other believers were chosen to go with them. They were told to ask the apostles and elders about this question. ³ The church sent them on their way. They traveled through Phoenicia and Samaria. There they told how the Gentiles had turned to God. This news made all the believers very glad. ⁴ When they arrived in Jerusalem, the church welcomed them. The apostles and elders welcomed them too. Then Paul and Barnabas reported everything God had done through them.

⁵ Some of the believers were Pharisees. They stood up and said, “The Gentiles must be circumcised. They must obey the law of Moses.”

⁶ The apostles and elders met to consider this question. ⁷ After they had talked it over, Peter got up and spoke to them. “Brothers,” he said, “you know that some time ago God chose me. He appointed me to take the good news to the Gentiles. He wanted them to hear the good news and believe. ⁸ God knows the human heart. By giving the Holy Spirit to the Gentiles, he showed that he accepted them. He did the same for them as he had done for us. ⁹ God showed that there is no difference between us and them. That’s because he made their hearts pure because of their faith. ¹⁰ Now then, why are you trying to test God? You test him when you put a heavy load on the shoulders of Gentiles. Our people of long ago couldn’t carry that load. We can’t either. ¹¹ No! We believe we are saved through the grace of our Lord Jesus. The Gentiles are saved in the same way.”

¹² Everyone became quiet as they listened to Barnabas and Paul. They were telling about the signs and wonders God had done through them among the Gentiles. ¹³ When they finished, James spoke up. “Brothers,” he said, “listen to me. ¹⁴ Simon Peter has explained to us what God has now done. He has chosen some of the Gentiles to be among his very own people. ¹⁵ The prophets’ words agree with that. They say,

¹⁹ “Now here is my decision. We should not make it hard for the Gentiles who are turning to God. ²⁰ Here is what we should write to them. They must not eat food that has been made impure by being offered to statues of gods. They must not commit sexual sins. They must not eat the meat of animals that have been choked to death. And they must not drink blood. ²¹ These laws of Moses have been preached in every city from the earliest times. They are read out loud in the synagogues every Sabbath day.”

A Letter Is Written to Gentile Believers

²² Then the apostles, the elders and the whole church decided what to do. They would choose some of their own men who were leaders among the believers. They would send them to Antioch with Paul and Barnabas. So they chose Judas Barsabbas and Silas. They were leaders among the believers. ²³ Here is the letter they sent with them.

The apostles and elders, your brothers, are writing this letter.

We are sending it to the Gentile believers in Antioch, Syria and Cilicia.

Greetings.

²⁴ We have heard that some of our people came to you and caused trouble. You were upset by what they said. But we had given them no authority to go. ²⁵ So we all agreed to send our dear friends Barnabas and Paul to you. We chose some other men to go with them. ²⁶ Barnabas and Paul have put their lives in danger. They did it for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. ²⁷ So we are sending Judas and Silas with them. What they say will agree with this letter. ²⁸ Here is what seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us. We will not give you a load that is too heavy. So here are a few basic rules. ²⁹ Don’t eat food that has been offered to statues of gods. Don’t drink blood. Don’t eat the meat of animals that have been choked to death. And don’t commit sexual sins. You will do well to keep away from these things.

Farewell.

³⁰ So the men were sent down to Antioch. There they gathered the church together. They gave the letter to them. ³¹ The people read it. They were glad for its message of hope. ³² Judas and Silas were prophets. They said many things to give strength and hope to the believers. ^33-34 Judas and Silas stayed there for some time. Then the believers sent them away with the blessing of peace. They sent them back to those who had sent them out. ³⁵ Paul and Barnabas remained in Antioch. There they and many others taught and preached the word of the Lord.

Paul and Barnabas Do Not Agree

³⁶ Some time later Paul spoke to Barnabas. “Let’s go back to all the towns where we preached the word of the Lord,” he said. “Let’s visit the believers and see how they are doing.” ³⁷ Barnabas wanted to take John Mark with them. ³⁸ But Paul didn’t think it was wise to take him. Mark had deserted them in Pamphylia. He hadn’t continued with them in their work. ³⁹ Barnabas and Paul strongly disagreed with each other. So they went their separate ways. Barnabas took Mark and sailed for Cyprus. ⁴⁰ But Paul chose Silas. The believers asked the Lord to give his grace to Paul and Silas as they went. ⁴¹ Paul traveled through Syria and Cilicia. He gave strength to the churches there.

Timothy Joins Paul and Silas

16 Paul came to Derbe. Then he went on to Lystra. A believer named Timothy lived there. His mother was Jewish and a believer. His father was a Greek. ² The believers at Lystra and Iconium said good things about Timothy. ³ Paul wanted to take him along on the journey. So he circumcised Timothy because of the Jews who lived in that area. They all knew that Timothy’s father was a Greek. ⁴ Paul and his companions traveled from town to town. They reported what the apostles and elders in Jerusalem had decided. The people were supposed to obey what was in the report. ⁵ So the churches were made strong in the faith. The number of believers grew every day.

Paul’s Vision of the Man From Macedonia

⁶ Paul and his companions traveled all through the area of Phrygia and Galatia. The Holy Spirit had kept them from preaching the word in Asia Minor. ⁷ They came to the border of Mysia. From there they tried to enter Bithynia. But the Spirit of Jesus would not let them. ⁸ So they passed by Mysia. Then they went down to Troas. ⁹ During the night Paul had a vision. He saw a man from Macedonia standing and begging him. “Come over to Macedonia!” the man said. “Help us!” ¹⁰ After Paul had seen the vision, we got ready at once to leave for Macedonia. We decided that God had called us to preach the good news there.

Lydia Becomes a Believer in Philippi

¹¹ At Troas we got into a boat. We sailed straight for Samothrace. The next day we went on to Neapolis. ¹² From there we traveled to Philippi, a Roman colony. It is an important city in that part of Macedonia. We stayed there several days.

¹³ On the Sabbath day we went outside the city gate. We walked down to the river. There we expected to find a place of prayer. We sat down and began to speak to the women who had gathered together. ¹⁴ One of the women listening was from the city of Thyatira. Her name was Lydia, and her business was selling purple cloth. She was a worshiper of God. The Lord opened her heart to accept Paul’s message. ¹⁵ She and her family were baptized. Then she invited us to her home. “Do you consider me a believer in the Lord?” she asked. “If you do, come and stay at my house.” She succeeded in getting us to go home with her.

Paul and Silas Are Thrown Into Prison

¹⁶ One day we were going to the place of prayer. On the way we were met by a female slave. She had a spirit that helped her tell people what was going to happen. She earned a lot of money for her owners by doing this. ¹⁷ She followed Paul and the rest of us around. She shouted, “These men serve the Most High God. They are telling you how to be saved.” ¹⁸ She kept this up for many days. Finally Paul became upset. Turning around, he spoke to the spirit that was in her. “In the name of Jesus Christ,” he said, “I command you to come out of her!” At that very moment the spirit left the woman.

¹⁹ Her owners realized that their hope of making money was gone. So they grabbed Paul and Silas. They dragged them into the market place to face the authorities. ²⁰ They brought them to the judges. “These men are Jews,” her owners said. “They are making trouble in our city. ²¹ They are suggesting practices that are against Roman law. These are practices we can’t accept or take part in.”

²² The crowd joined the attack against Paul and Silas. The judges ordered that Paul and Silas be stripped and beaten with rods. ²³ They were whipped without mercy. Then they were thrown into prison. The jailer was commanded to guard them carefully. ²⁴ When he received these orders, he put Paul and Silas deep inside the prison. He fastened their feet so they couldn’t get away.

²⁵ About midnight Paul and Silas were praying. They were also singing hymns to God. The other prisoners were listening to them. ²⁶ Suddenly there was a powerful earthquake. It shook the prison from top to bottom. All at once the prison doors flew open. Everyone’s chains came loose. ²⁷ The jailer woke up. He saw that the prison doors were open. He pulled out his sword and was going to kill himself. He thought the prisoners had escaped. ²⁸ “Don’t harm yourself!” Paul shouted. “We are all here!”

²⁹ The jailer called out for some lights. He rushed in, shaking with fear. He fell down in front of Paul and Silas. ³⁰ Then he brought them out. He asked, “Sirs, what must I do to be saved?”

³¹ They replied, “Believe in the Lord Jesus. Then you and everyone living in your house will be saved.” ³² They spoke the word of the Lord to him. They also spoke to all the others in his house. ³³ At that hour of the night, the jailer took Paul and Silas and washed their wounds. Right away he and everyone who lived with him were baptized. ³⁴ The jailer brought them into his house. He set a meal in front of them. He and everyone who lived with him were filled with joy. They had become believers in God.

³⁵ Early in the morning the judges sent their officers to the jailer. They ordered him, “Let those men go.” ³⁶ The jailer told Paul, “The judges have ordered me to set you and Silas free. You can leave now. Go in peace.”

³⁷ But Paul replied to the officers. “They beat us in public,” he said. “We weren’t given a trial. And we are Roman citizens! They threw us into prison. And now do they want to get rid of us quietly? No! Let them come themselves and personally lead us out.”

³⁸ The officers reported this to the judges. When the judges heard that Paul and Silas were Roman citizens, they became afraid. ³⁹ So they came and said they were sorry. They led them out of the prison. Then they asked them to leave the city. ⁴⁰ After Paul and Silas came out of the prison, they went to Lydia’s house. There they met with the brothers and sisters. They told them to be brave. Then they left.

Paul and Silas Arrive in Thessalonica

17 Paul and those traveling with him passed through Amphipolis and Apollonia. They came to Thessalonica. A Jewish synagogue was there. ² Paul went into the synagogue as he usually did. For three Sabbath days in a row he talked with the Jews about the Scriptures. ³ He explained and proved that the Messiah had to suffer and rise from the dead. “This Jesus I am telling you about is the Messiah!” he said. ⁴ His words won over some of the Jews. They joined Paul and Silas. A large number of Greeks who worshiped God joined them too. So did quite a few important women.

⁵ But other Jews were jealous. So they rounded up some evil people from the market place. Forming a crowd, they started all kinds of trouble in the city. The Jews rushed to Jason’s house. They were looking for Paul and Silas. They wanted to bring them out to the crowd. ⁶ But they couldn’t find them. So they dragged Jason and some other believers to the city officials. “These men have caused trouble all over the world,” they shouted. “Now they have come here. ⁷ Jason has welcomed them into his house. They are all disobeying Caesar’s commands. They say there is another king. He is called Jesus.” ⁸ When the crowd and the city officials heard this, they became very upset. ⁹ They made Jason and the others give them money. The officials did this to make sure they would return to the court. Then they let Jason and the others go.

Paul and Silas Are Sent to Berea

¹⁰ As soon as it was night, the believers sent Paul and Silas away to Berea. When they arrived, they went to the Jewish synagogue. ¹¹ The Berean Jews were very glad to receive Paul’s message. They studied the Scriptures carefully every day. They wanted to see if what Paul said was true. So they were more noble than the Thessalonian Jews. ¹² Because of this, many of the Berean Jews believed. A number of important Greek women also became believers. And so did many Greek men.

¹³ But the Jews in Thessalonica found out that Paul was preaching God’s word in Berea. So some of them went there too. They stirred up the crowds and got them all worked up. ¹⁴ Right away the believers sent Paul to the coast. But Silas and Timothy stayed in Berea. ¹⁵ The believers who went with Paul took him to Athens. Then they returned with orders that Silas and Timothy were supposed to join him as soon as they could.

Paul Preaches in Athens

¹⁶ Paul was waiting for Silas and Timothy in Athens. He was very upset to see that the city was full of statues of gods. ¹⁷ So he went to the synagogue. There he talked both with Jews and with Greeks who worshiped God. Each day he spoke with anyone who happened to be in the market place. ¹⁸ A group of Epicurean and Stoic thinkers began to argue with him. Some of them asked, “What is this fellow chattering about?” Others said, “He seems to be telling us about gods we’ve never heard of.” They said this because Paul was preaching the good news about Jesus. He was telling them that Jesus had risen from the dead. ¹⁹ They took him to a meeting of the Areopagus. There they said to him, “What is this new teaching you’re giving us? ²⁰ You have some strange ideas we’ve never heard before. We would like to know what they mean.” ²¹ All the people of Athens spent their time talking about and listening to the latest ideas. People from other lands who lived there did the same.

²² Then Paul stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus. He said, “People of Athens! I see that you are very religious in every way. ²³ As I walked around, I looked carefully at the things you worship. I even found an altar with

To an Unknown God

written on it. So you don’t know what you are worshiping. Now I am going to tell you about this ‘unknown god.’

²⁴ “He is the God who made the world. He also made everything in it. He is the Lord of heaven and earth. He doesn’t live in temples built by human hands. ²⁵ He is not served by human hands. He doesn’t need anything. Instead, he himself gives life and breath to all people. He also gives them everything else they have. ²⁶ From one man he made all the people of the world. Now they live all over the earth. He decided exactly when they should live. And he decided exactly where they should live. ²⁷ God did this so that people would seek him. And perhaps they would reach out for him and find him. They would find him even though he is not far from any of us. ²⁸ ‘In him we live and move and exist.’ As some of your own poets have also said, ‘We are his children.’

²⁹ “Yes, we are God’s children. So we shouldn’t think that God is made out of gold or silver or stone. He isn’t a statue planned and made by clever people. ³⁰ In the past, God didn’t judge people for what they didn’t know. But now he commands all people everywhere to turn away from their sins. ³¹ He has set a day when he will judge the world fairly. He has appointed a man to be its judge. God has proved this to everyone by raising that man from the dead.”

³² They heard Paul talk about the dead being raised. Some of them made fun of this idea. But others said, “We want to hear you speak about this again.” ³³ So Paul left the meeting of the Areopagus. ³⁴ Some of the people became followers of Paul and believed in Jesus. Dionysius was one of them. He was a member of the Areopagus. A woman named Damaris also became a believer. And so did some others.

Paul Goes to Corinth

18 After this, Paul left Athens and went to Corinth. ² There he met a Jew named Aquila, who was a native of Pontus. Aquila had recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla. The emperor Claudius had ordered all Jews to leave Rome. Paul went to see Aquila and Priscilla. ³ They were tentmakers, just as he was. So he stayed and worked with them. ⁴ Every Sabbath day he went to the synagogue. He was trying to get both Jews and Greeks to believe in the Lord.

⁵ Silas and Timothy came from Macedonia. Then Paul spent all his time preaching. He was a witness to the Jews that Jesus was the Messiah. ⁶ But they opposed Paul. They treated him badly. So he shook out his clothes in protest. Then he said to them, “God’s judgment against you will be your own fault! Don’t blame me for it! From now on I will go to the Gentiles.”

⁷ Then Paul left the synagogue and went to the house next door. It was the house of Titius Justus, a man who worshiped God. ⁸ Crispus was the synagogue leader. He and everyone living in his house came to believe in the Lord. Many others who lived in Corinth heard Paul. They too believed and were baptized.

⁹ One night the Lord spoke to Paul in a vision. “Don’t be afraid,” he said. “Keep on speaking. Don’t be silent. ¹⁰ I am with you. No one will attack you and harm you. I have many people in this city.” ¹¹ So Paul stayed in Corinth for a year and a half. He taught them God’s word.

¹² At that time Gallio was governor of Achaia. The Jews of Corinth got together and attacked Paul. They brought him into court. ¹³ They made a charge against Paul. They said, “This man is talking people into worshiping God in wrong ways. Those ways are against the law.”

¹⁴ Paul was about to give reasons for his actions. But just then Gallio spoke to them. He said, “You Jews don’t claim that Paul has committed a great or small crime. If you did, it would make sense for me to listen to you. ¹⁵ But this is about your own law. It is a question of words and names. Settle the matter yourselves. I will not be a judge of such things.” ¹⁶ So he made them leave. ¹⁷ Then the crowd there turned against Sosthenes, the synagogue leader. They beat him up in front of the governor. But Gallio didn’t care at all.

Priscilla and Aquila Teach Apollos

¹⁸ Paul stayed in Corinth for some time. Then he left the brothers and sisters and sailed for Syria. Priscilla and Aquila went with him. Before he sailed, he had his hair cut off at Cenchreae. He did this because he had made a promise to God. ¹⁹ They arrived at Ephesus. There Paul said goodbye to Priscilla and Aquila. He himself went into the synagogue and talked with the Jews. ²⁰ The Jews asked him to spend more time with them. But he said no. ²¹ As he left, he made them a promise. “If God wants me to,” he said, “I will come back.” Then he sailed from Ephesus. ²² When he landed at Caesarea, he went up to Jerusalem. There he greeted the church. He then went down to Antioch.

²³ Paul spent some time in Antioch. Then he left and traveled all over Galatia and Phrygia. He gave strength to all the believers there.

²⁴ At that time a Jew named Apollos came to Ephesus. He was an educated man from Alexandria. He knew the Scriptures very well. ²⁵ Apollos had been taught the way of the Lord. He spoke with great power. He taught the truth about Jesus. But he only knew about John’s baptism. ²⁶ He began to speak boldly in the synagogue. Priscilla and Aquila heard him. So they invited him to their home. There they gave him a better understanding of the way of God.

²⁷ Apollos wanted to go to Achaia. The brothers and sisters agreed with him. They wrote to the believers there. They asked them to welcome him. When he arrived, he was a great help to those who had become believers by God’s grace. ²⁸ In public meetings, he argued strongly against Jews who disagreed with him. He proved from the Scriptures that Jesus was the Messiah.