Acts 7-9

Easy-to-Read Version

Stephen’s Speech

7 The high priest said to Stephen, “Is all this true?” ² Stephen answered, “My Jewish fathers and brothers, listen to me. Our great and glorious God appeared to Abraham, our ancestor, when he was in Mesopotamia. This was before he lived in Haran. ³ God said to him, ‘Leave your country and your people, and go to the country I will show you.’^[a]

⁴ “So Abraham left the country of Chaldea.^[b] He went to live in Haran. After his father died, God sent him to this place, where you live now. ⁵ But God did not give Abraham any of this land, not even a foot of it. But God promised that in the future he would give Abraham this land for himself and for his children. This was before Abraham had any children.

⁶ “This is what God said to him: ‘Your descendants will live in another country. They will be strangers. The people there will make them slaves and mistreat them for 400 years. ⁷ But I will punish the nation that made them slaves.’^[c] And God also said, ‘After those things happen, your people will come out of that country. Then they will worship me here in this place.’^[d]

⁸ “God made an agreement with Abraham; the sign for this agreement was circumcision. And so when Abraham had a son, he circumcised him when he was eight days old. His son’s name was Isaac. Isaac also circumcised his son Jacob. And Jacob did the same for his sons, who became the twelve great ancestors of our people.

⁹ “These ancestors of ours became jealous of their brother Joseph and sold him to be a slave in Egypt. But God was with him ¹⁰ and saved him from all his troubles. Pharaoh was the king of Egypt then. He liked Joseph and respected him because of the wisdom God gave him. Pharaoh gave Joseph the job of being a governor of Egypt. He even let him rule over all the people in Pharaoh’s house. ¹¹ But all the land of Egypt and of Canaan became dry. It became so dry that food could not grow, and the people suffered very much. Our people could not find anything to eat.

¹² “But Jacob heard that there was food in Egypt. So he sent our people there. This was their first trip to Egypt. ¹³ Then they went there a second time. This time Joseph told his brothers who he was. And Pharaoh learned about Joseph’s family. ¹⁴ Then Joseph sent some men to tell Jacob, his father, to come to Egypt. He also invited all his relatives, a total of 75 people. ¹⁵ So Jacob went down to Egypt. He and our other ancestors lived there until they died. ¹⁶ Later, their bodies were moved to Shechem, where they were put in a tomb. It was the same tomb that Abraham had bought in Shechem from the sons of Hamor. He paid them with silver.

¹⁷ “The number of our people in Egypt grew. There were more and more of our people there. The promise that God made to Abraham was soon to come true. ¹⁸ Then a different king began to rule Egypt, one who knew nothing about Joseph. ¹⁹ This king tricked our people. He treated them badly, making them leave their children outside to die.

²⁰ “This was the time when Moses was born. He was a very beautiful child, and for three months his parents took care of him at home. ²¹ When they put him outside, Pharaoh’s daughter took him. She raised him as her own son. ²² The Egyptians taught Moses everything they knew. He was powerful in all he said and did.

²³ “When Moses was about 40 years old, he decided to visit his own people, the people of Israel. ²⁴ He saw one of them being mistreated by an Egyptian, so he defended him. Moses hit the Egyptian to pay him back for hurting the man. He hit him so hard that it killed him. ²⁵ Moses thought that his people would understand that God was using him to save them. But they did not understand.

²⁶ “The next day, Moses saw two of his own people fighting. He tried to make peace between them. He said, ‘Men, you are brothers! Why are you trying to hurt each other?’ ²⁷ The man who was hurting the other one pushed Moses away and said to him, ‘Did anyone say you could be our ruler and judge? ²⁸ Will you kill me just as you killed that Egyptian yesterday?’^{[e] 29} When Moses heard him say this, he left Egypt. He went to live in the land of Midian, where he was a stranger. During the time he lived there, he had two sons.

³⁰ “Forty years later Moses was in the desert near Mount Sinai. An angel appeared to him in the flame of a burning bush. ³¹ When Moses saw this, he was amazed. He went near to look closer at it. He heard a voice; it was the Lord’s. ³² The Lord said, ‘I am the same God your ancestors had—the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.’^[f] Moses began to shake with fear. He was afraid to look at the bush.

³³ “The Lord said to him, ‘Take off your sandals, because the place where you are now standing is holy ground. ³⁴ I have seen my people suffer much in Egypt. I have heard my people crying and have come down to save them. Come now, Moses, I am sending you back to Egypt.’^[g]

³⁵ “This Moses was the one his people said they did not want. They said, ‘Did anyone say you could be our ruler and judge?’^[h] But he is the one God sent to be a ruler and savior. God sent him with the help of an angel, the one Moses saw in the burning bush. ³⁶ So Moses led the people out of Egypt. He worked wonders and miraculous signs in Egypt, at the Red Sea, and then in the desert for 40 years.

³⁷ “This is the same Moses who said these words to the people of Israel: ‘God will give you a prophet. That prophet will come from among your own people. He will be like me.’^{[i] 38} This same Moses was with the gathering of God’s people in the desert. He was with the angel who spoke to him at Mount Sinai, and he was with our ancestors. He received life-giving words from God to give to us.

³⁹ “But our ancestors did not want to obey Moses. They rejected him. They wanted to go back to Egypt again. ⁴⁰ They said to Aaron, ‘Moses led us out of the country of Egypt. But we don’t know what has happened to him. So make some gods to go before us and lead us.’^{[j] 41} So the people made an idol that looked like a calf. Then they brought sacrifices to it. They were very happy with what they had made with their own hands. ⁴² But God turned against them and let them continue worshiping the army of false gods in the sky. This is what God says in the book that contains what the prophets wrote:

⁴⁴ “The Holy Tent^[k] was with our ancestors in the desert. God told Moses how to make this tent. He made it like the plan that God showed him. ⁴⁵ Later, Joshua led our ancestors to capture the lands of the other nations. Our people went in and God made the other people go out. When our people went into this new land, they took with them this same tent. Our people received this tent from their fathers, and our people kept it until the time of David. ⁴⁶ God was very pleased with David. He asked God to let him build a Temple for the people of Jacob.^{[l] 47} But Solomon was the one who built the Temple.

⁴⁸ “But the Most High God does not live in houses built by human hands. This is what the prophet^[m] writes:

⁵¹ Then Stephen said, “You stubborn Jewish leaders! You refuse to give your hearts to God or even listen to him. You are always against what the Holy Spirit wants you to do. That’s how your ancestors were, and you are just like them! ⁵² They persecuted every prophet who ever lived. They even killed those who long ago said that the Righteous One would come. And now you have turned against that Righteous One and killed him. ⁵³ You are the people who received God’s law, which he gave you through his angels. But you don’t obey it!”

Stephen Is Killed

⁵⁴ When those in the council meeting heard this, they became very angry. They were so mad they were grinding their teeth at him. ⁵⁵ But Stephen was full of the Holy Spirit. He looked up into heaven and saw the glory of God. And he saw Jesus standing at God’s right side. ⁵⁶ Stephen said, “Look! I see heaven open. And I see the Son of Man standing at God’s right side.”

⁵⁷ Everyone there started shouting loudly, covering their ears with their hands. Together they all ran at Stephen. ⁵⁸ They took him out of the city and began throwing stones at him. The men who told lies against Stephen gave their coats to a young man named Saul. ⁵⁹ As they were throwing the stones at him, Stephen was praying. He said, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit!” ⁶⁰ He fell on his knees and shouted, “Lord, don’t blame them for this sin!” These were his last words before he died.

8 Saul agreed that the killing of Stephen was a good thing. Some godly men buried Stephen and cried loudly for him.

Trouble for the Believers

On that day the Jews began to persecute the church in Jerusalem, making them suffer very much. Saul was also trying to destroy the group. He went into their houses, dragged out men and women, and put them in jail. All the believers left Jerusalem. Only the apostles stayed. The believers went to different places in Judea and Samaria. ⁴ They were scattered everywhere, and in every place they went, they told people the Good News.

Philip Tells the Good News in Samaria

⁵ Philip^[n] went to the city of Samaria and told people about the Messiah. ⁶ The people there heard Philip and saw the miraculous signs he was doing. They all listened carefully to what he said. ⁷ Many of these people had evil spirits inside them, but Philip made the evil spirits leave them. The spirits made a lot of noise as they came out. There were also many weak and crippled people there. Philip made these people well too. ⁸ What a happy day this was for that city!

⁹ Now there was a man named Simon who lived in that city. Before Philip came there, Simon had been doing magic and amazing all the people of Samaria. He bragged and called himself a great man. ¹⁰ All the people—the least important and the most important—believed what he said. They said, “This man has the power of God that is called ‘the Great Power.’” ¹¹ Simon amazed the people with his magic for so long that the people became his followers. ¹² But Philip told the people the Good News about God’s kingdom and the power of Jesus Christ. Men and women believed Philip and were baptized. ¹³ Simon himself also believed, and after he was baptized, he stayed close to Philip. When he saw the miraculous signs and powerful things Philip did, he was amazed.

¹⁴ The apostles in Jerusalem heard that the people of Samaria had accepted the word of God. So they sent Peter and John to the people in Samaria. ¹⁵ When Peter and John arrived, they prayed for the Samaritan believers to receive the Holy Spirit. ¹⁶ These people had been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus, but the Holy Spirit had not yet come down on any of them. This is why Peter and John prayed. ¹⁷ When the two apostles laid their hands on the people, they received the Holy Spirit.

¹⁸ Simon saw that the Spirit was given to people when the apostles laid their hands on them. So he offered the apostles money. ¹⁹ He said, “Give me this power so that when I lay my hands on someone, they will receive the Holy Spirit.”

²⁰ Peter said to Simon, “You and your money should both be destroyed because you thought you could buy God’s gift with money. ²¹ You cannot share with us in this work. Your heart is not right before God. ²² Change your heart! Turn away from these evil thoughts and pray to the Lord. Maybe he will forgive you. ²³ I see that you are full of bitter jealousy and cannot stop yourself from doing wrong.”

²⁴ Simon answered, “Both of you pray to the Lord for me, so that what you have said will not happen to me.”

²⁵ Then the two apostles told the people what they had seen Jesus do. They told them the message of the Lord. Then they went back to Jerusalem. On the way, they went through many Samaritan towns and told people the Good News.

Philip Teaches a Man From Ethiopia

²⁶ An angel of the Lord spoke to Philip. The angel said, “Get ready and go south on the road that leads down to Gaza from Jerusalem—the road that goes through the desert.”

²⁷ So Philip got ready and went. On the road he saw a man from Ethiopia. He was a eunuch and an important official in the service of Candace, the queen of the Ethiopians. He was responsible for taking care of all her money. This man had gone to Jerusalem to worship. ²⁸ Now he was on his way home. He was sitting in his chariot reading from the book of Isaiah the prophet.

²⁹ The Spirit said to Philip, “Go to that chariot and stay near it.” ³⁰ So he went toward the chariot, and he heard the man reading from Isaiah the prophet. Philip asked him, “Do you understand what you are reading?”

³¹ The man answered, “How can I understand? I need someone to explain it to me.” Then he invited Philip to climb in and sit with him. ³² The part of the Scriptures that he was reading was this:

³⁴ The official^[o] said to Philip, “Please, tell me, who is the prophet talking about? Is he talking about himself or about someone else?” ³⁵ Philip began to speak. He started with this same Scripture and told the man the Good News about Jesus.

³⁶ While they were traveling down the road, they came to some water. The official said, “Look, here is water! What is stopping me from being baptized?” ^{37 [p] 38} Then the official ordered the chariot to stop. Both Philip and the official went down into the water, and Philip baptized him. ³⁹ When they came up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord took Philip away; the official never saw him again. The official continued on his way home. He was very happy. ⁴⁰ But Philip appeared in a city called Azotus. He was going to the city of Caesarea. He told people the Good News in all the towns on the way from Azotus to Caesarea.

Saul Becomes a Follower of Jesus

9 In Jerusalem Saul was still trying to scare the followers of the Lord, even saying he would kill them. He went to the high priest ² and asked him to write letters to the synagogues in the city of Damascus. Saul wanted the high priest to give him the authority to find people in Damascus who were followers of the Way. If he found any believers there, men or women, he would arrest them and bring them back to Jerusalem.

³ So Saul went to Damascus. When he came near the city, a very bright light from heaven suddenly shined around him. ⁴ He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul, Saul! Why are you persecuting me?”

⁵ Saul said, “Who are you, Lord?”

The voice answered, “I am Jesus, the one you are persecuting. ⁶ Get up now and go into the city. Someone there will tell you what you must do.”

⁷ The men traveling with Saul just stood there, unable to speak. They heard the voice, but they saw no one. ⁸ Saul got up from the ground and opened his eyes, but he could not see. So the men with him held his hand and led him into Damascus. ⁹ For three days, Saul could not see; he did not eat or drink.

¹⁰ There was a follower of Jesus in Damascus named Ananias. In a vision the Lord said to him, “Ananias!”

Ananias answered, “Here I am, Lord.”

¹¹ The Lord said to him, “Get up and go to the street called Straight Street. Find the house of Judas^[q] and ask for a man named Saul from the city of Tarsus. He is there now, praying. ¹² He has seen a vision in which a man named Ananias came and laid his hands on him so that he could see again.”

¹³ But Ananias answered, “Lord, many people have told me about this man. They told me about the many bad things he did to your holy people in Jerusalem. ¹⁴ Now he has come here to Damascus. The leading priests have given him the power to arrest all people who trust in you.^[r]”

¹⁵ But the Lord Jesus said to Ananias, “Go! I have chosen Saul for an important work. I want him to tell other nations, their rulers, and the people of Israel about me. ¹⁶ I will show him all that he must suffer for me.”

¹⁷ So Ananias left and went to the house of Judas. He laid his hands on Saul and said, “Saul, my brother, the Lord Jesus sent me. He is the one you saw on the road when you came here. He sent me so that you can see again and also be filled with the Holy Spirit.” ¹⁸ Immediately, something that looked like fish scales fell off Saul’s eyes. He was able to see! Then he got up and was baptized. ¹⁹ After he ate, he began to feel strong again.

Saul Begins to Tell About Jesus

Saul stayed with the followers of Jesus in Damascus for a few days. ²⁰ Soon he began to go to the synagogues and tell people about Jesus. He told the people, “Jesus is the Son of God!”

²¹ All the people who heard Saul were amazed. They said, “This is the same man who was in Jerusalem trying to destroy the people who trust in Jesus^[s]! And that’s why he has come here—to arrest the followers of Jesus and take them back to the leading priests.”

²² But Saul became more and more powerful in proving that Jesus is the Messiah. His proofs were so strong that the Jews who lived in Damascus could not argue with him.

Saul Escapes From Some Jews

²³ After many days, some Jews made plans to kill Saul. ²⁴ They were watching the city gates day and night. They wanted to kill Saul, but he learned about their plan. ²⁵ One night some followers that Saul had taught helped him leave the city. They put him in a basket and lowered it down through a hole in the city wall.

Saul in Jerusalem

²⁶ Then Saul went to Jerusalem. He tried to join the group of followers, but they were all afraid of him. They did not believe that he was really a follower of Jesus. ²⁷ But Barnabas accepted Saul and took him to the apostles. He told them how Saul had seen the Lord on the road and how the Lord had spoken to Saul. Then he told them how boldly Saul had spoken for the Lord in Damascus.

²⁸ And so Saul stayed with the followers and went all around Jerusalem speaking boldly for the Lord. ²⁹ He often had arguments with the Greek-speaking Jews, who began making plans to kill him. ³⁰ When the believers learned about this, they took Saul to Caesarea, and from there they sent him to the city of Tarsus.

³¹ The church in Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had a time of peace. And with the help of the Holy Spirit, these groups of believers became stronger in faith and showed their respect for the Lord by the way they lived. So the church everywhere grew in numbers.

Peter in Lydda and Joppa

³² Peter was traveling through all the areas around Jerusalem, and he stopped to visit the believers^[t] who lived in Lydda. ³³ There he met a man named Aeneas, who was paralyzed and had not been able to get out of bed for the past eight years. ³⁴ Peter said to him, “Aeneas, Jesus Christ heals you. Get up and make your bed!” He stood up immediately. ³⁵ All the people living in Lydda and on the plain of Sharon saw him, and they decided to follow the Lord.

³⁶ In the city of Joppa there was a follower of Jesus named Tabitha. Her Greek name, Dorcas, means “a deer.” She was always doing good things for people and giving money to those in need. ³⁷ While Peter was in Lydda, Tabitha became sick and died. They washed her body and put it in an upstairs room. ³⁸ The followers in Joppa heard that Peter was in Lydda, which was not far away. So they sent two men, who begged him, “Hurry, please come quickly!”

³⁹ Peter got ready and went with them. When he arrived, they took him to the upstairs room. All the widows stood around him. They were crying and showing him the coats and other clothes that Tabitha had made during her time with them. ⁴⁰ Peter sent all the people out of the room. He knelt down and prayed. Then he turned to Tabitha’s body and said, “Tabitha, stand up!” She opened her eyes. When she saw Peter, she sat up. ⁴¹ He gave her his hand and helped her stand up. Then he called the believers and the widows into the room. He showed them Tabitha; she was alive!

⁴² People everywhere in Joppa learned about this, and many believed in the Lord. ⁴³ Peter stayed in Joppa for many days at the home of a man named Simon, who was a leatherworker.