They all met together and were constantly united in prayer, along with Mary the mother of Jesus, several other women, and the brothers of Jesus.

(Judas had bought a field with the money he received for his treachery. Falling headfirst there, his body split open, spilling out all his intestines.

The news of his death spread to all the people of Jerusalem, and they gave the place the Aramaic name Akeldama, which means “Field of Blood.”)

Then they all prayed, “O Lord, you know every heart. Show us which of these men you have chosen

The Holy Spirit Comes

On the day of Pentecost all the believers were meeting together in one place.

They were completely amazed. “How can this be?” they exclaimed. “These people are all from Galilee,

(both Jews and converts to Judaism), Cretans, and Arabs. And we all hear these people speaking in our own languages about the wonderful things God has done!”

But others in the crowd ridiculed them, saying, “They’re just drunk, that’s all!”

Peter Preaches to the Crowd

Then Peter stepped forward with the eleven other apostles and shouted to the crowd, “Listen carefully, all of you, fellow Jews and residents of Jerusalem! Make no mistake about this.

‘In the last days,’ God says, ‘I will pour out my Spirit upon all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy. Your young men will see visions, and your old men will dream dreams.

For you will not leave my soul among the dead or allow your Holy One to rot in the grave.

David was looking into the future and speaking of the Messiah’s resurrection. He was saying that God would not leave him among the dead or allow his body to rot in the grave.

“God raised Jesus from the dead, and we are all witnesses of this.

This promise is to you, to your children, and to those far away—all who have been called by the Lord our God.”

Then Peter continued preaching for a long time, strongly urging all his listeners, “Save yourselves from this crooked generation!”

Those who believed what Peter said were baptized and added to the church that day—about 3,000 in all.

The Believers Form a Community

All the believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, and to fellowship, and to sharing in meals (including the Lord’s Supper), and to prayer.

A deep sense of awe came over them all, and the apostles performed many miraculous signs and wonders.

And all the believers met together in one place and shared everything they had.

all the while praising God and enjoying the goodwill of all the people. And each day the Lord added to their fellowship those who were being saved.

All the people saw him walking and heard him praising God.

They all rushed out in amazement to Solomon’s Colonnade, where the man was holding tightly to Peter and John.

For it is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—the God of all our ancestors—who has brought glory to his servant Jesus by doing this. This is the same Jesus whom you handed over and rejected before Pilate, despite Pilate’s decision to release him.

But God was fulfilling what all the prophets had foretold about the Messiah—that he must suffer these things.

For he must remain in heaven until the time for the final restoration of all things, as God promised long ago through his holy prophets.