² One day as these men were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Appoint Barnabas and Saul for the special work to which I have called them.”

¹⁵ But even before I was born, God chose me and called me by his marvelous grace. Then it pleased him

¹⁵ But the Lord said, “Go, for Saul is my chosen instrument to take my message to the Gentiles and to kings, as well as to the people of Israel.

¹¹ And God chose me to be a preacher, an apostle, and a teacher of this Good News.

¹¹ It is the one and only Spirit who distributes all these gifts. He alone decides which gift each person should have.

Greetings from Paul

1 This letter is from Paul, a slave of Christ Jesus, chosen by God to be an apostle and sent out to preach his Good News.

⁷ And I have been chosen as a preacher and apostle to teach the Gentiles this message about faith and truth. I’m not exaggerating—just telling the truth.

²¹ “But the Lord said to me, ‘Go, for I will send you far away to the Gentiles!’”

²⁶ Finally, they returned by ship to Antioch of Syria, where their journey had begun. The believers there had entrusted them to the grace of God to do the work they had now completed.

³ So I turned to the Lord God and pleaded with him in prayer and fasting. I also wore rough burlap and sprinkled myself with ashes.