On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait(A) for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about.(B) For John baptized with[a] water,(C) but in a few days you will be baptized with[b] the Holy Spirit.”(D)

Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore(E) the kingdom to Israel?”

He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority.(F) But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you;(G) and you will be my witnesses(H) in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria,(I) and to the ends of the earth.”(J)

After he said this, he was taken up(K) before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.

10 They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white(L) stood beside them. 11 “Men of Galilee,”(M) they said, “why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back(N) in the same way you have seen him go into heaven.”

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Footnotes

  1. Acts 1:5 Or in
  2. Acts 1:5 Or in

prohibiting them from leaving Jerusalem, but rather requiring them to wait there until they received what He called “the promise of the Father.”

Jesus: This is what you heard Me teach— that just as John ritually cleansed people with water through baptism,[a] so you will be washed with the Holy Spirit very soon.

When they had gathered just outside Jerusalem at the Mount of Olives, they asked Jesus,

Disciples: Is now the time, Lord—the time when You will reestablish Your kingdom in our land of Israel?

Jesus: The Father, on His own authority, has determined the ages and epochs of history, but you have not been given this knowledge. Here’s the knowledge you need: you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you. And you will be My witnesses, first here in Jerusalem, then beyond to Judea and Samaria, and finally to the farthest places on earth.

As He finished this commission, He began to rise from the ground before their eyes until the clouds obscured Him from their vision. 10 As they strained to get one last glimpse of Him going into heaven, the Lord’s emissaries[b] realized two men in white robes were standing among them.

Two Men: 11 You Galileans, why are you standing here staring up into the sky? This Jesus who is leaving you and ascending to heaven will return in the same way you see Him departing.

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Footnotes

  1. 1:5 Literally, immersed, to show repentance
  2. 1:10 Literally, apostles