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26 But (A)an angel of the [a]Lord spoke to (B)Philip saying, “Rise up and go south to the road that descends from Jerusalem to (C)Gaza.” ([b]This is a desert road.) 27 So he rose up and went; and behold, (D)there was an Ethiopian eunuch, a court official of Candace, queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure; and he (E)had come to Jerusalem to worship, 28 and he was returning and sitting in his [c]chariot, and was reading the prophet Isaiah. 29 Then (F)the Spirit said to Philip, “Go over and join this [d]chariot.” 30 And Philip ran up and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet, and said, “Do you understand what you are reading?” 31 And he said, “Well, how could I, unless someone guides me?” And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him. 32 Now the passage of Scripture which he was reading was this:

(G)As a sheep is led to slaughter;
And as a lamb before its shearer is silent,
So He does not open His mouth.
33 (H)In humiliation His judgment was taken away;
Who will [e]recount His [f]generation?
For His life is removed from the earth.”

34 And the eunuch answered Philip and said, “I ask you earnestly, of whom does the prophet say this? Of himself or of someone else?” 35 Then Philip (I)opened his mouth, and (J)beginning from this Scripture he (K)proclaimed the good news about Jesus to him. 36 And as they went along the road they came to some water; and the eunuch *said, “Look! Water! (L)What prevents me from being baptized?” 37 [g][And Philip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.” And he answered and said, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.”] 38 And he ordered the [h]chariot to stop, and they both went down into the water, Philip as well as the eunuch, and he baptized him. 39 When they came up out of the water, (M)the Spirit of the Lord snatched Philip away, and the eunuch no longer saw him, [i]but went on his way rejoicing. 40 But Philip [j]found himself at [k](N)Azotus, and as he passed through he (O)kept proclaiming the gospel to all the cities until he came to (P)Caesarea.

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Footnotes

  1. Acts 8:26 In OT, Yahweh, cf. Gen 16:7
  2. Acts 8:26 Or This city is deserted
  3. Acts 8:28 Or carriage
  4. Acts 8:29 Or carriage
  5. Acts 8:33 Or describe
  6. Acts 8:33 Or family, origin
  7. Acts 8:37 Early mss omit this v
  8. Acts 8:38 Or carriage
  9. Acts 8:39 Lit for he was going
  10. Acts 8:40 Or was found
  11. Acts 8:40 In OT, Ashdod

Philip and the Ethiopian Eunuch

26 Now an angel of the Lord said to Philip, “Get up and go south to the road that goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” (This is an isolated area.) 27 So he got up and went. And there was a man, an Ethiopian eunuch, a court official of Candace, Queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasury. He had come to Jerusalem to worship. 28 He was on his way home, sitting in his chariot and reading the prophet Isaiah.

29 The Spirit told Philip, “Go over there and stay close to that chariot.” 30 Philip ran up to it and heard him reading Isaiah the prophet.

Philip asked, “Do you understand what you are reading?”

31 The man replied, “How can I unless someone explains it to me?” And he invited Philip to come up and sit with him.

32 Now the passage of Scripture the eunuch was reading was this:

He was led like a sheep to the slaughter,
and as a lamb before its shearer is silent,
so he does not open his mouth.
33 In his[a] humiliation justice was denied him.
Who will talk about his generation?
For his life is taken from the earth.[b]

34 The eunuch said to Philip, “I ask you, who is the prophet talking about—himself or someone else?” 35 Then Philip began to speak. Starting with that very passage of Scripture, he told him the good news about Jesus. 36 As they were traveling along the road, they came to some water, and the eunuch said, “Look, here is water. What is there to prevent me from being baptized?”[c]

38 He ordered the chariot to stop. Then both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and Philip baptized him. 39 When they stepped up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord carried Philip away. The eunuch did not see him anymore, but went on his way rejoicing.

40 Philip, however, found himself at Azotus. And as he went from place to place, he preached the gospel in all the towns until he came to Caesarea.

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Footnotes

  1. Acts 8:33 Some witnesses to the text omit his.
  2. Acts 8:33 Isaiah 53:7-8
  3. Acts 8:36 A few witnesses to the text add verse 37: Philip said, “If you believe with all your heart, you may.” He replied, “I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.”