⁴⁵ “Before I finished praying in my heart,^(A) Rebekah came out, with her jar on her shoulder.^(B) She went down to the spring and drew water, and I said to her, ‘Please give me a drink.’^(C)

¹² When this had dawned on him, he went to the house of Mary the mother of John, also called Mark,^(A) where many people had gathered and were praying.^{(B) 13} Peter knocked at the outer entrance, and a servant named Rhoda came to answer the door.^{(C) 14} When she recognized Peter’s voice, she was so overjoyed^(D) she ran back without opening it and exclaimed, “Peter is at the door!”

¹⁵ “You’re out of your mind,” they told her. When she kept insisting that it was so, they said, “It must be his angel.”^(E)

¹⁶ But Peter kept on knocking, and when they opened the door and saw him, they were astonished. ¹⁷ Peter motioned with his hand^(F) for them to be quiet and described how the Lord had brought him out of prison. “Tell James^(G) and the other brothers and sisters^(H) about this,” he said, and then he left for another place.

³⁰ Cornelius answered: “Three days ago I was in my house praying at this hour, at three in the afternoon. Suddenly a man in shining clothes^(A) stood before me

Ask, Seek, Knock^(A)

⁷ “Ask and it will be given to you;^(B) seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.

²³ As soon as you began to pray,^(A) a word went out, which I have come to tell you, for you are highly esteemed.^(B) Therefore, consider the word and understand the vision:^(C)

¹⁵ Before he had finished praying,^(A) Rebekah^(B) came out with her jar on her shoulder. She was the daughter of Bethuel^(C) son of Milkah,^(D) who was the wife of Abraham’s brother Nahor.^{(E) 16} The woman was very beautiful,^(F) a virgin;^(G) no man had ever slept with her. She went down to the spring, filled her jar and came up again.

¹⁷ The servant hurried to meet her and said, “Please give me a little water from your jar.”^(H)

¹⁸ “Drink,^(I) my lord,” she said, and quickly lowered the jar to her hands and gave him a drink.

¹⁹ After she had given him a drink, she said, “I’ll draw water for your camels^(J) too,^(K) until they have had enough to drink.” ²⁰ So she quickly emptied her jar into the trough, ran back to the well to draw more water, and drew enough for all his camels.^(L)

²⁶ In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit^(A) himself intercedes for us^(B) through wordless groans.

²⁴ When they heard this, they raised their voices together in prayer to God.^(A) “Sovereign Lord,” they said, “you made the heavens and the earth and the sea, and everything in them.^{(B) 25} You spoke by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of your servant, our father David:^(C)

²⁷ Indeed Herod^(E) and Pontius Pilate^(F) met together with the Gentiles and the people of Israel in this city to conspire against your holy servant Jesus,^(G) whom you anointed. ²⁸ They did what your power and will had decided beforehand should happen.^{(H) 29} Now, Lord, consider their threats and enable your servants to speak your word with great boldness.^{(I) 30} Stretch out your hand to heal and perform signs and wonders^(J) through the name of your holy servant Jesus.”^(K)

³¹ After they prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken.^(L) And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit^(M) and spoke the word of God^(N) boldly.^(O)

The Believers Share Their Possessions

³² All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of their possessions was their own, but they shared everything they had.^{(P) 33} With great power the apostles continued to testify^(Q) to the resurrection^(R) of the Lord Jesus. And God’s grace^(S) was so powerfully at work in them all