The Passover^(A)

16 Observe the month of Aviv^(B) and celebrate the Passover^(C) of the Lord your God, because in the month of Aviv he brought you out of Egypt by night. ² Sacrifice as the Passover to the Lord your God an animal from your flock or herd at the place the Lord will choose as a dwelling for his Name.^{(D) 3} Do not eat it with bread made with yeast, but for seven days eat unleavened bread, the bread of affliction,^(E) because you left Egypt in haste^(F)—so that all the days of your life you may remember the time of your departure from Egypt.^{(G) 4} Let no yeast be found in your possession in all your land for seven days. Do not let any of the meat you sacrifice on the evening^(H) of the first day remain until morning.^(I)

⁵ You must not sacrifice the Passover in any town the Lord your God gives you ⁶ except in the place he will choose as a dwelling for his Name. There you must sacrifice the Passover in the evening, when the sun goes down, on the anniversary^[a](J) of your departure from Egypt. ⁷ Roast^(K) it and eat it at the place the Lord your God will choose. Then in the morning return to your tents. ⁸ For six days eat unleavened bread and on the seventh day hold an assembly^(L) to the Lord your God and do no work.^(M)

The Festival of Weeks^(N)

⁹ Count off seven weeks^(O) from the time you begin to put the sickle to the standing grain.^{(P) 10} Then celebrate the Festival of Weeks to the Lord your God by giving a freewill offering in proportion to the blessings the Lord your God has given you. ¹¹ And rejoice^(Q) before the Lord your God at the place he will choose as a dwelling for his Name^(R)—you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, the Levites^(S) in your towns, and the foreigners,^(T) the fatherless and the widows living among you.^{(U) 12} Remember that you were slaves in Egypt,^(V) and follow carefully these decrees.

The Festival of Tabernacles^(W)

¹³ Celebrate the Festival of Tabernacles for seven days after you have gathered the produce of your threshing floor^(X) and your winepress.^{(Y) 14} Be joyful^(Z) at your festival—you, your sons and daughters, your male and female servants, and the Levites, the foreigners, the fatherless and the widows who live in your towns. ¹⁵ For seven days celebrate the festival to the Lord your God at the place the Lord will choose. For the Lord your God will bless you in all your harvest and in all the work of your hands, and your joy^(AA) will be complete.

¹⁶ Three times a year all your men must appear^(AB) before the Lord your God at the place he will choose: at the Festival of Unleavened Bread,^(AC) the Festival of Weeks and the Festival of Tabernacles.^(AD) No one should appear before the Lord empty-handed:^{(AE) 17} Each of you must bring a gift in proportion to the way the Lord your God has blessed you.

Judges

¹⁸ Appoint judges^(AF) and officials for each of your tribes in every town the Lord your God is giving you, and they shall judge the people fairly.^{(AG) 19} Do not pervert justice^(AH) or show partiality.^(AI) Do not accept a bribe,^(AJ) for a bribe blinds the eyes of the wise and twists the words of the innocent. ²⁰ Follow justice and justice alone, so that you may live and possess the land the Lord your God is giving you.

Barnabas and Saul Sent Off

²⁵ When Barnabas^(A) and Saul had finished their mission,^(B) they returned from^[a] Jerusalem, taking with them John, also called Mark.^(C) 13 ¹ Now in the church at Antioch^(D) there were prophets^(E) and teachers:^(F) Barnabas,^(G) Simeon called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene,^(H) Manaen (who had been brought up with Herod^(I) the tetrarch) and Saul. ² While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said,^(J) “Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work^(K) to which I have called them.”^{(L) 3} So after they had fasted and prayed, they placed their hands on them^(M) and sent them off.^(N)

On Cyprus

⁴ The two of them, sent on their way by the Holy Spirit,^(O) went down to Seleucia and sailed from there to Cyprus.^{(P) 5} When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God^(Q) in the Jewish synagogues.^(R) John^(S) was with them as their helper.

⁶ They traveled through the whole island until they came to Paphos. There they met a Jewish sorcerer^(T) and false prophet^(U) named Bar-Jesus, ⁷ who was an attendant of the proconsul,^(V) Sergius Paulus. The proconsul, an intelligent man, sent for Barnabas and Saul because he wanted to hear the word of God. ⁸ But Elymas the sorcerer^(W) (for that is what his name means) opposed them and tried to turn the proconsul^(X) from the faith.^{(Y) 9} Then Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit,^(Z) looked straight at Elymas and said, ¹⁰ “You are a child of the devil^(AA) and an enemy of everything that is right! You are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery. Will you never stop perverting the right ways of the Lord?^{(AB) 11} Now the hand of the Lord is against you.^(AC) You are going to be blind for a time, not even able to see the light of the sun.”^(AD)

Immediately mist and darkness came over him, and he groped about, seeking someone to lead him by the hand. ¹² When the proconsul^(AE) saw what had happened, he believed, for he was amazed at the teaching about the Lord.

Law Courts

⁸ If cases come before your courts that are too difficult for you to judge^(A)—whether bloodshed, lawsuits or assaults^(B)—take them to the place the Lord your God will choose.^{(C) 9} Go to the Levitical^(D) priests and to the judge^(E) who is in office at that time. Inquire of them and they will give you the verdict.^{(F) 10} You must act according to the decisions they give you at the place the Lord will choose. Be careful to do everything they instruct you to do. ¹¹ Act according to whatever they teach you and the decisions they give you. Do not turn aside from what they tell you, to the right or to the left.^{(G) 12} Anyone who shows contempt^(H) for the judge or for the priest who stands ministering^(I) there to the Lord your God is to be put to death.^(J) You must purge the evil from Israel.^{(K) 13} All the people will hear and be afraid, and will not be contemptuous again.^(L)

The King

¹⁴ When you enter the land the Lord your God is giving you and have taken possession^(M) of it and settled in it,^(N) and you say, “Let us set a king over us like all the nations around us,”^{(O) 15} be sure to appoint^(P) over you a king the Lord your God chooses. He must be from among your fellow Israelites.^(Q) Do not place a foreigner over you, one who is not an Israelite. ¹⁶ The king, moreover, must not acquire great numbers of horses^(R) for himself^(S) or make the people return to Egypt^(T) to get more of them,^(U) for the Lord has told you, “You are not to go back that way again.”^{(V) 17} He must not take many wives,^(W) or his heart will be led astray.^(X) He must not accumulate^(Y) large amounts of silver and gold.^(Z)

¹⁸ When he takes the throne^(AA) of his kingdom, he is to write^(AB) for himself on a scroll a copy^(AC) of this law, taken from that of the Levitical priests. ¹⁹ It is to be with him, and he is to read it all the days of his life^(AD) so that he may learn to revere the Lord his God and follow carefully all the words of this law and these decrees^{(AE) 20} and not consider himself better than his fellow Israelites and turn from the law^(AF) to the right or to the left.^(AG) Then he and his descendants will reign a long time over his kingdom in Israel.^(AH)

In Pisidian Antioch

¹³ From Paphos,^(A) Paul and his companions sailed to Perga in Pamphylia,^(B) where John^(C) left them to return to Jerusalem. ¹⁴ From Perga they went on to Pisidian Antioch.^(D) On the Sabbath^(E) they entered the synagogue^(F) and sat down. ¹⁵ After the reading from the Law^(G) and the Prophets, the leaders of the synagogue sent word to them, saying, “Brothers, if you have a word of exhortation for the people, please speak.”

¹⁶ Standing up, Paul motioned with his hand^(H) and said: “Fellow Israelites and you Gentiles who worship God, listen to me! ¹⁷ The God of the people of Israel chose our ancestors; he made the people prosper during their stay in Egypt; with mighty power he led them out of that country;^{(I) 18} for about forty years he endured their conduct^[a](J) in the wilderness;^{(K) 19} and he overthrew seven nations in Canaan,^(L) giving their land to his people^(M) as their inheritance.^{(N) 20} All this took about 450 years.

“After this, God gave them judges^(O) until the time of Samuel the prophet.^{(P) 21} Then the people asked for a king,^(Q) and he gave them Saul^(R) son of Kish, of the tribe of Benjamin,^(S) who ruled forty years. ²² After removing Saul,^(T) he made David their king.^(U) God testified concerning him: ‘I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart;^(V) he will do everything I want him to do.’^(W)

²³ “From this man’s descendants^(X) God has brought to Israel the Savior^(Y) Jesus,^(Z) as he promised.^{(AA) 24} Before the coming of Jesus, John preached repentance and baptism to all the people of Israel.^{(AB) 25} As John was completing his work,^(AC) he said: ‘Who do you suppose I am? I am not the one you are looking for.^(AD) But there is one coming after me whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.’^(AE)

²⁶ “Fellow children of Abraham^(AF) and you God-fearing Gentiles, it is to us that this message of salvation^(AG) has been sent. ²⁷ The people of Jerusalem and their rulers did not recognize Jesus,^(AH) yet in condemning him they fulfilled the words of the prophets^(AI) that are read every Sabbath. ²⁸ Though they found no proper ground for a death sentence, they asked Pilate to have him executed.^{(AJ) 29} When they had carried out all that was written about him,^(AK) they took him down from the cross^(AL) and laid him in a tomb.^{(AM) 30} But God raised him from the dead,^{(AN) 31} and for many days he was seen by those who had traveled with him from Galilee to Jerusalem.^(AO) They are now his witnesses^(AP) to our people.

³² “We tell you the good news:^(AQ) What God promised our ancestors^{(AR) 33} he has fulfilled for us, their children, by raising up Jesus.^(AS) As it is written in the second Psalm:

³⁴ God raised him from the dead so that he will never be subject to decay. As God has said,

³⁵ So it is also stated elsewhere:

³⁶ “Now when David had served God’s purpose in his own generation, he fell asleep;^(AW) he was buried with his ancestors^(AX) and his body decayed. ³⁷ But the one whom God raised from the dead^(AY) did not see decay.

³⁸ “Therefore, my friends, I want you to know that through Jesus the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you.^{(AZ) 39} Through him everyone who believes^(BA) is set free from every sin, a justification you were not able to obtain under the law of Moses.^{(BB) 40} Take care that what the prophets have said does not happen to you:

⁴² As Paul and Barnabas were leaving the synagogue,^(BD) the people invited them to speak further about these things on the next Sabbath. ⁴³ When the congregation was dismissed, many of the Jews and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who talked with them and urged them to continue in the grace of God.^(BE)