Acts 1
New Testament for Everyone
Here comes the sequel!
1 Dear Theophilus,
The previous book which I wrote was about everything Jesus began to do and teach. 2 I took the story as far as the day when he was taken up, once he had given instructions through the holy spirit to his chosen apostles.
3 He showed himself to them alive, after his suffering, by many proofs. He was seen by them for forty days, during which he spoke about God’s kingdom. 4 As they were having a meal together, he told them not to go away from Jerusalem, but to wait, as he put it, “for the father’s promise, which I was telling you about earlier. 5 John baptized with water, you see; but in a few days from now you will be baptized with the holy spirit.”
When, what and how?
6 So when the apostles came together, they put this question to Jesus.
“Master,” they said, “is this the time when you are going to restore the kingdom to Israel?”
7 “It’s not your business to know about times and dates,” he replied. “The father has placed all that under his own direct authority. 8 What will happen, though, is that you will receive power when the holy spirit comes upon you. Then you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judaea and Samaria, and to the very ends of the earth.”
Ascension!
9 As Jesus said this, he was lifted up while they were watching, and a cloud took him out of their sight. 10 They were gazing into heaven as he disappeared. Then, lo and behold, two men appeared, dressed in white, standing beside them.
11 “Galileans,” they said, “why are you standing here staring into heaven? This Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you saw him go into heaven.”
12 Then they went back to Jerusalem from the hill called the Mount of Olives, which is close to Jerusalem, about the distance you could travel on a sabbath. 13 They then entered the city (“they” here means Peter, John, James, Andrew, Philip, Thomas, Bartholomew, Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, Simon the zealot, and Judas the son of James) and went to the upstairs room where they were staying. 14 They all gave themselves single-heartedly to prayer, with the women, including Mary, Jesus’ mother, and his brothers.
Restoring the Twelve
15 Around that time Peter stood up in the middle of the gathering, which by this stage numbered about a hundred and twenty.
16 “My dear family,” he said, “the holy spirit spoke long ago, through the mouth of David, about Judas, who became a guide to the people who arrested Jesus. There it is in the Bible, and it had to come true. 17 He was counted along with us, and he had his own share in the work we’ve been given.”
(18 Judas, you see, had bought a field with the money his wickedness had brought him, where he fell headlong and burst open, with all his innards gushing out. 19 This became known to everyone who lived in Jerusalem, so that the field was called, in their local language, “Akeldamach,” which means “Blood-place.”)
20 “For this is what it says in the book of Psalms:
Let his home become desolate
and let nobody live in it;
and again,
Let someone else receive his overseeing task.
21 “So this is what has to be done. There are plenty of people who have gone about with us all the time that our master Jesus was coming and going among us, 22 starting from John’s baptism until the day he was taken from us. Let one of them be chosen to be alongside us as a special witness of his resurrection.”
23 So they chose two: Joseph who was called Barsabbas, with the surname Justus, and Matthias.
24 “Lord,” they prayed, “you know the hearts of all people. Show us which one of these two you have chosen 25 to receive this particular place of service and apostleship, from which Judas went away to go to his own place.”
26 So they cast lots for them. The lot fell on Matthias, and he was enrolled along with the eleven apostles.
Hechos 1
Reina Valera Contemporánea
La promesa del Espíritu Santo
1 Estimado Teófilo, en mi primer tratado(A) hablé acerca de todo lo que Jesús comenzó a hacer y a enseñar, 2 hasta el día en que fue recibido en el cielo, después de que por medio del Espíritu Santo, les dio mandamientos a los apóstoles que había escogido. 3 Después de su muerte, se les presentó vivo y, con muchas pruebas que no admiten duda, se les apareció durante cuarenta días y les habló acerca del reino de Dios. 4 Mientras estaban juntos, les mandó que no se fueran de Jerusalén, sino que les dijo: «Esperen la promesa del Padre,(B) la cual ustedes oyeron de mí. 5 Como saben, Juan bautizó con agua, pero dentro de algunos días ustedes serán bautizados con el Espíritu Santo.»(C)
La ascensión
6 Entonces los que estaban reunidos con él le preguntaron: «Señor, ¿vas a devolverle a Israel el reino en este tiempo?» 7 Y él les respondió: «No les toca a ustedes saber el tiempo ni el momento, que son del dominio del Padre. 8 Pero cuando venga sobre ustedes el Espíritu Santo recibirán poder, y serán mis testigos en Jerusalén, en Judea, en Samaria, y hasta lo último de la tierra.»(D) 9 Después de haber dicho esto, ellos lo vieron elevarse y ser recibido por una nube, que lo ocultó de sus ojos.(E) 10 Mientras miraban al cielo y veían cómo él se alejaba, dos varones vestidos de blanco se pusieron junto a ellos 11 y les dijeron: «Varones galileos, ¿por qué están mirando al cielo? Este mismo Jesús, que ustedes han visto irse al cielo, vendrá de la misma manera que lo vieron desaparecer.»
Elección del sucesor de Judas
12 Entonces los apóstoles volvieron a Jerusalén desde el monte del Olivar, que dista de Jerusalén poco más de un kilómetro.[a] 13 Cuando llegaron a Jerusalén, subieron al aposento alto, donde se hallaban Pedro, Jacobo, Juan, Andrés, Felipe, Tomás, Bartolomé, Mateo, Jacobo hijo de Alfeo, Simón el Zelote y Judas, el hermano de Jacobo.(F) 14 Todos ellos oraban y rogaban a Dios continuamente, en unión de las mujeres, de María la madre de Jesús, y de sus hermanos.
15 Uno de esos días Pedro se puso de pie, en medio de los hermanos (que estaban reunidos y eran como ciento veinte), y dijo: 16 «Hermanos míos, tenía que cumplirse la Escritura, donde por boca de David se dice que el Espíritu Santo habló acerca de Judas, el que guió a los que prendieron a Jesús. 17 Nosotros lo considerábamos como uno de los nuestros, porque era parte de este ministerio. 18 Con lo que le pagaron por su iniquidad, Judas compró un campo; pero se cayó de cabeza y su cuerpo se reventó por la mitad, y todas sus entrañas se derramaron. 19 Como esto lo supieron todos los habitantes de Jerusalén, aquel campo se llama Acéldama, que en su lengua quiere decir “Campo de sangre”.(G) 20 En el libro de los Salmos está escrito:
21 »Se hace necesario que, de aquellos que nos acompañaron todo el tiempo en que el Señor Jesús estuvo entre nosotros, 22 desde que Juan bautizaba(J) hasta el día en que el Señor subió al cielo,(K) uno de ellos se nos una para ser testigo de su resurrección.»
23 Entonces señalaron a José, llamado Barsabás, que tenía por sobrenombre «el Justo», y a Matías. 24 Y en su oración dijeron: «Señor, tú conoces todos los corazones. Muéstranos a cuál de los dos has escogido, 25 para que tome la parte de este ministerio y apostolado, de la que Judas cayó por su transgresión para irse a donde le correspondía.» 26 Y lo echaron a la suerte, y ésta recayó en Matías. Y a partir de entonces fue contado entre los once apóstoles.
Footnotes
- Hechos 1:12 Lit. Camino de un día de reposo.
Scripture quotations from The New Testament for Everyone are copyright © Nicholas Thomas Wright 2011, 2018, 2019.
Copyright © 2009, 2011 by Sociedades Bíblicas Unidas