Book of Common Prayer

¹⁸ In the morning the soldiers tried hard to find Peter.

¹⁹ Herod had looked for him and had not found him. So he questioned the guards and ordered them to be taken away and killed. And then Peter went from Judea to Caesarea to live for a while.

²⁰ Now Herod was angry with the people of Tyre and Sidon. But they got Blastus to speak to the king for them. Blastus was one of the men who worked in the king's house. They came to Herod together. They wanted to make peace with him because their country got its food from his country.

²¹ On a certain day Herod put on his king's robes and sat on his chair and made a speech.

²² The people shouted, `A god is talking to us. He is not a man.'

²³ At once an angel from God put a bad sickness on Herod because he did not give God the praise. Worms ate him and he died.

²⁴ The word of God spread further and further and more people believed.

²⁵ Barnabas and Saul returned from Jerusalem when they had finished their work. They brought John Mark with them.

¹³ Jesus went out again by the seaside. Many people came to him. So he taught them.

¹⁴ As he went along, he saw Levi, the son of Alphaeus. He was sitting at the place where people come to pay taxes. Jesus said to him, `Come with me.' Levi stood up and went with him.

¹⁵ Jesus was eating in Levi's house. Many tax collectors and bad people also came. They sat down to eat with Jesus and his disciples. There were many who went with him.

¹⁶ The scribes and Pharisees saw that Jesus ate with these people. They said to the disciples, `Why does he eat and drink with bad people?'

¹⁷ Jesus heard it. He said to them, `People who are well do not need a doctor. But sick people need him. I did not come to call good people. I came to call bad people to stop doing wrong things.'

¹⁸ John's disciples and the Pharisees' disciples were fasting [not eating food for a time]. Some people came to Jesus and said, `The disciples of John and of the Pharisees fast. Why do your disciples not do the same?'

¹⁹ Jesus answered them, `The people at a wedding cannot be sad while the man who is married is with them.

²⁰ But the time will come when he will be taken away from them. Then they will fast.

²¹ No person sews a piece of new cloth on an old coat. If he does, the new cloth will tear the old coat. Then the hole is bigger than it was before.

²² No person puts new wine into old wine skins. If he does, the new wine will break the skins. Then the wine will be lost and the skins will be spoiled. New wine is put into new skins.'