Beginning

Resurrection plus the name of Jesus equals trouble

4 As they were speaking to the people, along came the priests, the chief of the Temple police, and the Sadducees. ² They were thoroughly annoyed that they were teaching the people and proclaiming that “the resurrection of the dead” had begun to happen in Jesus. ³ They seized them and put them under guard until the next day, since it was already evening. ⁴ But a large number of the people who had heard the message believed it, and the number of men grew to five thousand.

⁵ On the next day their rulers, the elders and the scribes gathered in Jerusalem, ⁶ along with Annas the high priest, Caiaphas, John, Alexander and all the members of the high-priestly family. ⁷ They stood them in the midst.

“How did you do this?” they asked them. “What power did you use? What name did you invoke?”

⁸ Peter was filled with the holy spirit. “Rulers of the people and elders,” he said, ⁹ “if the question we’re being asked today is about a good deed done for a sick man, and whose power it was that rescued him, ¹⁰ let it be known to all of you, and to all the people of Israel, that this man stands before you fit and well because of the name of the Messiah, Jesus of Nazareth, whom you crucified, but whom God raised from the dead. ¹¹ He is the stone which you builders rejected, but which has become the head cornerstone. ¹² Rescue won’t come from anybody else! There is no other name given under heaven and among humans by which we must be rescued.”

The clash of loyalties

¹³ When they saw how boldly Peter and John were speaking, and realized that they were untrained, ordinary men, they were astonished, and they recognized them as people who had been with Jesus. ¹⁴ And when they saw the man who had been healed standing with them, they had nothing to say in reply. ¹⁵ They ordered them to be put out of the assembly while they conferred among themselves.

¹⁶ “What can we do to these men?” they said. “This is a spectacular sign that has happened through them. All Jerusalem knows it, and we can’t deny it! ¹⁷ But we certainly don’t want it to spread any further among the people. So let’s threaten them with awful consequences if they speak any more in this name to anybody.”

¹⁸ So they called them in and gave them orders not to speak at all, or to teach, in the name of Jesus.

¹⁹ But Peter and John gave them this reply.

“You judge,” they said, “whether it’s right before God to listen to you rather than to God! ²⁰ As far as we’re concerned, we can’t stop speaking about what we have seen and heard.”

²¹ Then they threatened them some more, and let them go. They couldn’t find any way to punish them because of the people, since everyone was glorifying God for what had happened. ²² After all, the man to whom this sign of healing had happened was over forty years old.

Look upon their threats

²³ When they had been released, they went back to their own people, and told them everything that the chief priests and the elders had said. ²⁴ When they heard it, they all together lifted up their voices to God.

“Sovereign Master,” they said, “you made heaven and earth, and the sea, and everything in them. ²⁵ And you said through the holy spirit, by the mouth of our ancestor David, your servant,

²⁷ “It’s true: Herod and Pontius Pilate, together with the nations and the peoples of Israel, gathered themselves together in this very city against your holy child Jesus, the one you anointed, ²⁸ to do whatever your hand and your plan had foreordained to take place. ²⁹ So now, Master, look on their threats; and grant that we, your servants, may speak your word with all boldness, ³⁰ while you stretch out your hand for healing, so that signs and wonders may come about through the name of your holy child Jesus.”

³¹ When they had prayed, the place where they were gathered was shaken. They were all filled with the holy spirit, and they boldly spoke the word of God.

Signs of the new covenant

³² The company of those who believed had one heart and soul. Nobody said that they owned their property; instead, they had everything in common. ³³ The apostles gave their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus with great power, and great grace was upon all of them. ³⁴ For there was no needy person among them, since any who possessed lands or houses sold them, brought the money from the sale, ³⁵ and placed it at the feet of the apostles, who then gave to each according to their need.

³⁶ Joseph, a Levite from Cyprus, to whom the apostles gave the surname “Barnabas” (which means “son of encouragement”), ³⁷ sold some land which belonged to him, brought the money, and laid it at the apostles’ feet.

Disaster

5 There was, however, a man named Ananias, married to a woman called Sapphira. He sold some property, ² and, with his wife’s knowledge, kept back part of the price. He brought the rest and laid it at the apostles’ feet.

³ “Ananias!” said Peter. “Why did the satan fill your heart, to make you tell a lie to the holy spirit and to keep back part of the price of the land? ⁴ While it was still yours, it belonged to you, didn’t it? And, when you sold it, it was still in your power! Why did you get such an idea in your heart? It isn’t humans that you’ve lied to: it’s God!”

⁵ When Ananias heard these words, he fell down and died. Everyone who heard about it was scared out of their wits. ⁶ The young men got up, took him away, wrapped up his body and buried him.

⁷ After an interval of about three hours, his wife came in, not knowing what had happened.

⁸ Peter spoke to her.

“Tell me,” he said, “did you sell the land for this much?”

“Yes,” she replied, “that was the price.”

⁹ “So why,” Peter answered, “did you agree together to put the holy spirit to the test? Look: the feet of those who have buried your husband are at the door—and they will carry you out too!”

¹⁰ At once she fell down at his feet and died. The young men were just coming in, and they found her dead, so they took her out and buried her beside her husband. ¹¹ Great fear came upon the whole gathering, and on all who heard about these things.

Healed by Peter’s shadow

¹² Many signs and wonders were performed by the apostles among the people. They were all together in Solomon’s Porch, ¹³ while none of the others dared join them, though the people spoke highly of them. ¹⁴ But more people, a crowd both of men and women, believed in the Lord, and were added to their number. ¹⁵ They used to bring the sick into the streets, and place them on beds and mats so that at least Peter’s shadow might fall on them as he went by. ¹⁶ Crowds gathered from the towns around Jerusalem, bringing people who were sick, or infested with unclean spirits. All of them were cured.

The words of this life

¹⁷ Then the high priest got up, and all who were with him, namely the group called the Sadducees. They were filled with righteous indignation, ¹⁸ and seized the apostles and put them in the public jail. ¹⁹ But an angel of the Lord came in the night, opened the prison doors, and brought them out.

²⁰ “Go and take your stand in the Temple,” he said, “and speak all the words of this Life to the people.”

²¹ When they heard this, they went in at early morning and began to teach.

When the high priest arrived with his entourage, they called the official Assembly and all the elders of the children of Israel, and they sent to the prison to have the apostles brought in. ²² But when the attendants went, they didn’t find them in the prison. So they came and reported back.

²³ “We found the jail shut up with maximum security,” they said, “and the guards were standing in front of the doors. But when we opened up we found nobody inside.”

²⁴ When they heard these words, the commander of the Temple police and the chief priests were at a loss about them, with no idea what had happened. ²⁵ But then someone came with a message for them.

“Look!” he said. “The men you put in prison are standing in the Temple and teaching the people!”

²⁶ Then the commander went with his attendants and brought them. They didn’t use force, though, because they were afraid that the people might stone them.

Human inventions and divine instructions

²⁷ So they brought them and stood them in the Assembly. The high priest questioned them.

²⁸ “We gave you strict orders, didn’t we?” he demanded. “We told you not to teach in this Name, and look what you’re doing! You have filled Jerusalem with your teaching, and you’re trying to bring this man’s blood on us!”

²⁹ “We must obey God, not human beings!” responded Peter and the apostles. ³⁰ “The God of our ancestors raised Jesus, after you had laid violent hands on him and hanged him on a tree. ³¹ God exalted him to his right hand as leader and savior, to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins. ³² We are witnesses of these things, and so is the holy spirit, which God gave to those who obey him.”

³³ When they heard this, they were infuriated, and wanted to kill them. ³⁴ But then a Pharisee by the name of Gamaliel stood up in the Assembly. He was a law-teacher, highly respected by all the people. He ordered the men to be put outside for a short while.

³⁵ “Men of Israel,” he said to the gathering, “be careful what you do to these men. ³⁶ Before these times Theudas rose up, claiming to be someone special, and about four hundred men went off to join him. But he was killed, and all the people who had trusted him were dispersed. The movement came to nothing. ³⁷ After that, Judas the Galilean arose, in the days of the census, and drew a crowd after himself. But he was killed, and all those who trusted him were scattered. ³⁸ So my advice to you now is this. Leave off from these men; let them be. You see, if this plan or this work is of merely human origin, it will come to ruin. ³⁹ But if it’s from God—well, you won’t be able to stop them. You might even be found to be fighting against God!”

They were persuaded by him, ⁴⁰ and they called the apostles back in. They beat them and told them not to speak in the name of Jesus. Then they let them go. ⁴¹ They, however, went out from the presence of the Assembly celebrating, because they had been reckoned worthy to suffer disgrace for the Name. ⁴² And all day, in the Temple and from house to house, they did not stop teaching and proclaiming Jesus as the Messiah.

Problems of family living

6 Around that time, as the number of disciples increased, the “Hellenists” raised a dispute with the “Hebrews” because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food. ² So the Twelve called the whole crowd of disciples together.

“Listen,” they said. “It wouldn’t be right for us to leave the word of God to wait on tables. ³ So, brothers and sisters, choose seven men from among yourselves who are well spoken of and filled with the spirit and wisdom. We will put them in charge of what needs to be done in this matter. ⁴ We will continue to pay attention to prayer and to the ministry of the word.”

⁵ The whole gathering was pleased with what they said. They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and the holy spirit, and Philip, Prochorus, Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas and Nicolaus (a proselyte from Antioch). ⁶ They presented them before the apostles, who prayed and laid their hands on them.

⁷ The word of God increased, and the number of disciples in Jerusalem grew by leaps and bounds. This included a large crowd of priests who became obedient to the faith.

Stephen becomes a target

⁸ Stephen was filled with grace and power, and performed great signs and wonders among the people. ⁹ But some from the “Freemen’s Synagogue,” as it was named, and from Cyrene, Alexandria, Cilicia and Asia, stood up and disputed with Stephen. ¹⁰ They could not, however, resist the wisdom and the spirit with which he spoke.

¹¹ Then they put up men to say, “We heard this man speaking blasphemous words against Moses and against God!” ¹² They aroused the people, the elders and the scribes. They set upon him, seized him, and took him in front of the Assembly. ¹³ They set up false witnesses to say, “This man never stops speaking words against this holy place and the law! ¹⁴ We heard him say that this Jesus the Nazorean will destroy this place, and change the customs which Moses handed down to us!”

¹⁵ Everyone who was sitting in the Assembly looked hard at Stephen. They all saw that his face was like the face of an angel.