Book of Common Prayer

18 After this Paul left Athens and went to the city of Corinth.

² There he met a Jew named Aquila, born in Pontus. A short time before this he and his wife Priscilla had come from the country of Italy. They left Italy because Claudius the ruler had ordered all the Jews to leave Rome. This was the big city in Italy. Paul went to the house of Aquila and Priscilla.

³ Paul's work had been the making of tents, and that is what they did. So he stayed with them. They worked together.

⁴ Every Sabbath day he talked with the people in the meeting place for the Jews. He tried to talk so that the Jews and the Greeks would believe.

⁵ When Silas and Timothy came from Macedonia, Paul felt in his heart that he must prove to the Jews that Jesus is the Christ.

⁶ But the people talked back to Paul. And they said wrong things about him. Paul shook his clothes and said to them, `If you are lost, it is your own fault, not mine! From now on I will go to those who are not Jews.'

⁷ So he left. He went to the house of a man named Justus who worshipped God. His house was next to the meeting place.

⁸ Crispus was the head ruler of the meeting house. He and his whole family believed in the Lord. Many of the people in Corinth heard and believed. And they were baptised.

⁹ The Lord said to Paul in a vision in the night, `Do not fear. Keep on speaking. Do not stop.

¹⁰ I am with you. nobody will hurt you. I have many people in this city.'

¹¹ So Paul stayed there for one year and six months. He taught the people God's word.

¹¹ The Pharisees came and began to argue with Jesus. They wanted to test him. So they asked him to show them a sign from the sky.

¹² He sighed deeply in his spirit and said, `Why do people today want a sign? I tell you the truth. No sign will be given to them.'

¹³ He left them and went to the other side in a boat.

¹⁴ The disciples forgot to take food. They had only one loaf of bread with them in the boat.

¹⁵ Jesus said, `Watch! Take care. Do not let the bread yeast of the Pharisees and Herod spoil you.'

¹⁶ The disciples talked to one another about the matter. They said, `He says that because we have no bread.'

¹⁷ Jesus knew what they were saying. He asked, `Why are you saying, "We have no bread"? Do you not yet understand? Are your minds so slow?

¹⁸ Can you not see with your eyes or hear with your ears? Do you not remember?

¹⁹ When I broke five loaves for five thousand people, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you gather?' They said, `Twelve.'

²⁰ He said, `When I broke seven loaves for four thousand people, how many baskets full of broken pieces did you gather?' They said, `Seven.'

²¹ He said to them, `How is it that you do not yet understand?'