Saul Persecutes the Church

8 Now Saul was consenting to his death.

At that time a great persecution arose against the church which was at Jerusalem; and ^(A)they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles. ² And devout men carried Stephen to his burial, and ^(B)made great lamentation over him.

³ As for Saul, ^(C)he made havoc of the church, entering every house, and dragging off men and women, committing them to prison.

Christ Is Preached in Samaria

⁴ Therefore ^(D)those who were scattered went everywhere preaching the word. ⁵ Then ^(E)Philip went down to ^[a]the city of Samaria and preached Christ to them. ⁶ And the multitudes with one accord heeded the things spoken by Philip, hearing and seeing the miracles which he did. ⁷ For ^(F)unclean spirits, crying with a loud voice, came out of many who were possessed; and many who were paralyzed and lame were healed. ⁸ And there was great joy in that city.

The Sorcerer’s Profession of Faith

⁹ But there was a certain man called Simon, who previously ^(G)practiced ^[b]sorcery in the city and ^(H)astonished the ^[c]people of Samaria, claiming that he was someone great, ¹⁰ to whom they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, “This man is the great power of God.” ¹¹ And they heeded him because he had astonished them with his ^[d]sorceries for a long time. ¹² But when they believed Philip as he preached the things ^(I)concerning the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, both men and women were baptized. ¹³ Then Simon himself also believed; and when he was baptized he continued with Philip, and was amazed, seeing the miracles and signs which were done.

The Sorcerer’s Sin

¹⁴ Now when the ^(J)apostles who were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them, ¹⁵ who, when they had come down, prayed for them ^(K)that they might receive the Holy Spirit. ¹⁶ For ^(L)as yet He had fallen upon none of them. ^(M)They had only been baptized in ^(N)the name of the Lord Jesus. ¹⁷ Then ^(O)they laid hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.

¹⁸ And when Simon saw that through the laying on of the apostles’ hands the Holy Spirit was given, he offered them money, ¹⁹ saying, “Give me this power also, that anyone on whom I lay hands may receive the Holy Spirit.”

²⁰ But Peter said to him, “Your money perish with you, because ^(P)you thought that ^(Q)the gift of God could be purchased with money! ²¹ You have neither part nor portion in this matter, for your ^(R)heart is not right in the sight of God. ²² Repent therefore of this your wickedness, and pray God ^(S)if perhaps the thought of your heart may be forgiven you. ²³ For I see that you are ^(T)poisoned by bitterness and bound by iniquity.”

²⁴ Then Simon answered and said, ^(U)“Pray to the Lord for me, that none of the things which you have spoken may come upon me.”

²⁵ So when they had testified and preached the word of the Lord, they returned to Jerusalem, preaching the gospel in many villages of the Samaritans.

Christ Is Preached to an Ethiopian^(V)

²⁶ Now an angel of the Lord spoke to ^(W)Philip, saying, “Arise and go toward the south along the road which goes down from Jerusalem to Gaza.” This is ^[e]desert. ²⁷ So he arose and went. And behold, ^(X)a man of Ethiopia, a eunuch of great authority under Candace the queen of the Ethiopians, who had charge of all her treasury, and ^(Y)had come to Jerusalem to worship, ²⁸ was returning. And sitting in his chariot, he was reading Isaiah the prophet. ²⁹ Then the Spirit said to Philip, “Go near and overtake this chariot.”

³⁰ So Philip ran to him, and heard him reading the prophet Isaiah, and said, “Do you understand what you are reading?”

³¹ And he said, “How can I, unless someone guides me?” And he asked Philip to come up and sit with him. ³² The place in the Scripture which he read was this:

³⁴ So the eunuch answered Philip and said, “I ask you, of whom does the prophet say this, of himself or of some other man?” ³⁵ Then Philip opened his mouth, ^(AD)and beginning at this Scripture, preached Jesus to him. ³⁶ Now as they went down the road, they came to some water. And the eunuch said, “See, here is water. ^(AE)What hinders me from being baptized?”

^37 [f]Then Philip said, ^(AF)“If you believe with all your heart, you may.”

And he answered and said, ^(AG)“I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.”

³⁸ So he commanded the chariot to stand still. And both Philip and the eunuch went down into the water, and he baptized him. ³⁹ Now when they came up out of the water, ^(AH)the Spirit of the Lord caught Philip away, so that the eunuch saw him no more; and he went on his way rejoicing. ⁴⁰ But Philip was found at ^[g]Azotus. And passing through, he preached in all the cities till he came to ^(AI)Caesarea.

The Damascus Road: Saul Converted^(A)

9 Then ^(B)Saul, still breathing threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest ² and asked ^(C)letters from him to the synagogues of Damascus, so that if he found any who were of the Way, whether men or women, he might bring them bound to Jerusalem.

Paul Recounts His Conversion^(A)

^12 (B)“While thus occupied, as I journeyed to Damascus with authority and commission from the chief priests, ¹³ at midday, O king, along the road I saw a light from heaven, brighter than the sun, shining around me and those who journeyed with me. ¹⁴ And when we all had fallen to the ground, I heard a voice speaking to me and saying in the Hebrew language, ‘Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting Me? It is hard for you to kick against the goads.’

⁸ So I answered, ‘Who are You, Lord?’ And He said to me, ‘I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom you are persecuting.’

⁹ “And ^(A)those who were with me indeed saw the light ^[a]and were afraid, but they did not hear the voice of Him who spoke to me. ¹⁰ So I said, ‘What shall I do, Lord?’ And the Lord said to me, ‘Arise and go into Damascus, and there you will be told all things which are appointed for you to do.’

¹⁶ But rise and stand on your feet; for I have appeared to you for this purpose, ^(A)to make you a minister and a witness both of the things which you have seen and of the things which I will yet reveal to you. ¹⁷ I will ^[a]deliver you from the Jewish people, as well as from the Gentiles, ^(B)to whom I ^[b]now send you, ^18 (C)to open their eyes, in order ^(D)to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan to God, ^(E)that they may receive forgiveness of sins and ^(F)an inheritance among those who are ^(G)sanctified^[c] by faith in Me.’

⁸ Then Saul arose from the ground, and when his eyes were opened he saw no one. But they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. ⁹ And he was three days without sight, and neither ate nor drank.

¹² “Then ^(A)a certain Ananias, a devout man according to the law, ^(B)having a good testimony with all the ^(C)Jews who dwelt there,

Ananias Baptizes Saul

¹⁰ Now there was a certain disciple at Damascus ^(A)named Ananias; and to him the Lord said in a vision, “Ananias.”

And he said, “Here I am, Lord.”

¹¹ So the Lord said to him, “Arise and go to the street called Straight, and inquire at the house of Judas for one called Saul ^(B)of Tarsus, for behold, he is praying. ¹² And in a vision he has seen a man named Ananias coming in and putting his hand on him, so that he might receive his sight.”

¹³ Then Ananias answered, “Lord, I have heard from many about this man, ^(C)how much ^[a]harm he has done to Your saints in Jerusalem. ¹⁴ And here he has authority from the chief priests to bind all ^(D)who call on Your name.”

¹⁵ But the Lord said to him, “Go, for ^(E)he is a chosen vessel of Mine to bear My name before ^(F)Gentiles, ^(G)kings, and the ^(H)children^[b] of Israel. ¹⁶ For ^(I)I will show him how many things he must suffer for My ^(J)name’s sake.”

^17 (K)And Ananias went his way and entered the house; and ^(L)laying his hands on him he said, “Brother Saul, the Lord ^[c]Jesus, who appeared to you on the road as you came, has sent me that you may receive your sight and ^(M)be filled with the Holy Spirit.”

¹⁴ Then he said, ^(A)‘The God of our fathers ^(B)has chosen you that you should ^(C)know His will, and ^(D)see the Just One, ^(E)and hear the voice of His mouth. ^15 (F)For you will be His witness to all men of ^(G)what you have seen and heard. ¹⁶ And now why are you waiting? Arise and be baptized, ^(H)and wash away your sins, ^(I)calling on the name of the Lord.’