Book of Common Prayer

God’s rescue plan

³⁷ When they heard this, the people in the crowd were cut to the heart.

“Brothers,” they said to Peter and the other apostles, “what shall we do?”

³⁸ “Turn back!” replied Peter. “Be baptized—every single one of you—in the name of Jesus the Messiah, so that your sins can be forgiven, and you will receive the gift of the holy spirit. ³⁹ The promise is for you and for your children, and for everyone who is far away, as many as the Lord our God will call.”

⁴⁰ He carried on explaining things to them with many other words.

“Let God rescue you,” he was urging them, “from this wicked generation!”

⁴¹ Those who welcomed his word were baptized. About three thousand people were added to the community that day.

The new family

⁴² They all gave full attention to the teaching of the apostles and to the common life, to the breaking of bread and the prayers. ⁴³ Great awe fell on everyone, and many remarkable deeds and signs were performed by the apostles.

⁴⁴ All of those who believed came together, and held everything in common. ⁴⁵ They sold their possessions and belongings and divided them up to everyone in proportion to their various needs. ⁴⁶ Day by day they were all together attending the Temple. They broke bread in their various houses, and ate their food with glad and sincere hearts, ⁴⁷ praising God and standing in favor with all the people. And every day the Lord added to their number those who were being rescued.

Signs of the end

⁵ Some people were talking about the Temple, saying how wonderfully it was decorated, with its beautiful stones and dedicated gifts.

“Yes,” said Jesus; ⁶ “but the days will come when everything you see will be torn down. Not one stone will be left standing on another.”

⁷ “Teacher,” they asked him, “when will these things happen? What will be the sign that it’s all about to take place?”

⁸ “Watch out that nobody deceives you,” said Jesus. “Yes: lots of people will come using my name, saying ‘I’m the one!’ and ‘The time has come!’ Don’t go following them. ⁹ When you hear about wars and rebellions, don’t be alarmed. These things have to happen first, but the end won’t come at once.

¹⁰ “One nation will rise against another,” he went on, “and one kingdom against another. ¹¹ There will be huge earthquakes, famines and plagues in various places, terrifying omens, and great signs from heaven.

¹² “Before all this happens they will lay hands on you and persecute you. They will hand you over to the synagogues and prisons. They will drag you before kings and governors because of my name. ¹³ That will become an opportunity for you to tell your story. ¹⁴ So settle it in your hearts not to work out beforehand what tale to tell. ¹⁵ I’ll give you a mouth and wisdom, which none of your opponents will be able to resist or contradict.

¹⁶ “You will be betrayed by parents, brothers and sisters, relatives and friends, and they will kill some of you. ¹⁷ You will be hated by everyone because of my name. ¹⁸ But no hair of your head will be lost. ¹⁹ The way to keep your lives is to be patient.”