Beginning
Introduction
1 In my first book, Theophilus, I wrote about everything Jesus did and taught from the beginning, 2 up to the day when he was taken up to heaven[a] after giving orders by the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen. 3 After he had suffered, he had shown himself alive to them by many convincing proofs, appearing to them during a period of 40 days and telling them about the kingdom of God.
The Promise of the Holy Spirit
4 While he was meeting with them, he ordered them, “Don’t leave Jerusalem. Instead, wait for what the Father has promised, about which you heard me speak, 5 because John baptized with[b] water, but you will be baptized with[c] the Holy Spirit a few days from now.”
6 Now those who had gathered together began to ask Jesus,[d] “Lord, is this the time when you will restore the kingdom to Israel?” 7 He answered them, “It isn’t for you to know what times or periods the Father has fixed by his own authority. 8 But you’ll receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you, and you’ll be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
Jesus Goes Up to Heaven
9 After saying this, Jesus[e] was taken up while those who had gathered together[f] were watching, and a cloud took him out of their sight. 10 While he was going and they were gazing up toward heaven, two men in white robes stood right beside them. 11 They asked, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking up toward heaven? This same Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you saw him go up into heaven.”
A New Apostle Takes the Place of Judas
12 Then they returned to Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives,[g] which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’s journey away.[h] 13 When they came into the city, these men[i] went to the upstairs room where they had been staying: Peter and John, James and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus and Simon the Zealot, and Judas the son[j] of James. 14 With one mind, all of them kept devoting themselves to prayer, along with the women (including Mary the mother of Jesus) and his brothers.
15 At that time,[k] Peter got up among the brothers (there were about 120 people present) and said, 16 “Brothers, the Scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spoke long ago through the voice of David about Judas, who was the guide for those who arrested Jesus, 17 because he was one of our number and was appointed[l] to share in this ministry.” 18 (Now this man bought a field with the money he got for his crime. Falling on his face, he burst open in the middle, and all his intestines gushed out. 19 This became known to all the residents of Jerusalem, so that this field is called in their language Hakeldama, that is, “The Field of Blood”.) 20 “For in the Book of Psalms it is written, ‘Let his estate be desolate, and let no one live on it,’[m] and, ‘Let someone else take over his office,’[n] 21 who was one of the men associated with us all the time the Lord Jesus came and went among us, 22 beginning when he was baptized by John until the day he was taken up from us. Therefore, someone like this[o] must become a witness with us to his resurrection.”
23 So they nominated two men—Joseph called Barsabbas, who also was called Justus, and Matthias. 24 Then they prayed, “Lord, you know the hearts of all people. Show us which one of these two men you have chosen 25 to serve in this office of apostle,[p] from which Judas left to go to his own place.”
26 So they drew lots for them, and when the lot fell on Matthias, he was enrolled with the eleven apostles.
The Coming of the Holy Spirit
2 When the day of Pentecost was being celebrated,[q] all of them were together in one place. 2 Suddenly, a sound like the roar of a mighty windstorm came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 They saw tongues like flames[r] of fire that separated, and one rested on each of them. 4 All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in foreign[s] languages as the Spirit gave them that ability.
5 Now devout Jews from every nation on earth[t] were living in Jerusalem. 6 When that sound came, a crowd quickly gathered, startled because each one heard the disciples[u] speaking in his own language. 7 Stunned and amazed, they asked, “All of these people who are speaking are Galileans, aren’t they? 8 So how is it that each one of us hears them speaking in his own native language:[v] 9 Parthians, Medes, Elamites, residents of Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, Asia, 10 Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt, the district of Libya near Cyrene, Jewish and proselyte visitors from Rome, 11 Cretans, and Arabs, listening to them talk in our own languages about the great deeds of God?”
12 All of them continued to be stunned and puzzled, and they kept asking one another, “What can this mean?”
13 But others kept saying in derision, “They’re drunk on sweet wine!”
Peter Addresses the Crowd
14 Then Peter stood up among the eleven apostles[w] and raised his voice to address them:
“Men of Judea and everyone living in Jerusalem! You must understand something, so pay close attention to my words. 15 These men are not drunk as you suppose, for it’s only nine o’clock in the morning.[x] 16 Rather, this is what was spoken through the prophet Joel:
17 ‘In the last days, God says,
I will pour out my Spirit on everyone.[y]
Your sons and your daughters will prophesy,
your young men will see visions,
and your old men will dream dreams.
18 In those days I will even pour out my Spirit
on my slaves, men and women alike,
and they will prophesy.
19 I will display wonders in the sky above
and signs on the earth below:
blood, fire, and clouds of smoke.
20 The sun will become dark,
and the moon turn to blood,
before the coming of the great and glorious Day of the Lord.[z]
21 Then whoever calls on the name of the Lord[aa] will be saved.’[ab]
22 “Fellow Israelis, listen to these words: Jesus from Nazareth[ac] was a man authenticated to you by God through miracles, wonders, and signs that God performed through him among you, as you yourselves know. 23 After he was arrested according to the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified this very man and killed him using the hands of lawless men. 24 But God raised him up, putting an end to the suffering of death,[ad] since it was impossible for him to be held by it, 25 since David says about him,
‘I always keep my eyes on the Lord,[ae]
for he is at my right hand
so that I cannot be shaken.
26 That is why my heart is glad
and my tongue rejoices,
yes, even my body still rests securely in hope.
27 For you will not abandon my soul to Hades[af]
or allow your Holy One to experience decay.
28 You have made the ways of life known to me,
and you will fill me with gladness in your presence.’[ag]
29 “Brothers, I can tell you confidently that the patriarch David died and was buried, and that his tomb is among us to this day. 30 Therefore, since he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him with an oath to put one of his descendants on his throne, 31 he looked ahead and spoke about the resurrection of the Messiah:[ah]
32 “It was this very Jesus whom God raised—and we’re all witnesses of that. 33 He has been exalted to the right hand of God, has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit,[ak] and has caused you to experience what you are seeing and hearing. 34 After all, David did not go up to heaven, but he said,
‘The Lord[al] told my Lord,
“Sit at my right hand,
35 until I make your enemies your footstool.”’[am]
36 “Therefore, let all the people[an] of Israel understand beyond a doubt that God made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Messiah!”[ao]
37 When the crowd that had gathered[ap] heard this, they were pierced to the heart. They asked Peter and the other apostles, “Brothers, what should we do?”
38 Peter answered them, “Every one of you must repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus the Messiah[aq] for the forgiveness of your sins. Then you will receive the Holy Spirit as a gift.[ar] 39 For this promise belongs to you and your children, as well as to all those who are distant, whom the Lord our God may call to himself.”
40 Using many different expressions, Peter[as] continued to testify and to plead: “Be saved,” he urged them, “from this corrupt generation!” 41 So those who welcomed his message were baptized. That day about 3,000 people were added to their number.
Life among the Believers
42 The believers[at] continued to devote themselves to what the apostles were teaching, to fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and to times of prayer.[au] 43 A sense of fear[av] came over everyone, and many wonders and signs were being done by the apostles. 44 All the believers were united and shared everything with one another.[aw] 45 They made it their practice to sell their possessions and goods and to distribute the proceeds[ax] to anyone who was in need. 46 United in purpose, they went to the Temple every day, ate at each other’s homes, and shared their food with glad and humble hearts. 47 They were praising God and enjoying the good will of all the people. Every day the Lord was adding to their number those who were being saved.
A Crippled Man is Healed
3 One afternoon, Peter and John were on their way to the Temple for the three o’clock prayer time.[ay] 2 Now a man who had been crippled from birth was being carried in. Every day people[az] would lay him at what was called the Beautiful Gate so that he could beg from those who were going into the Temple. 3 When he saw that Peter and John were about to go into the Temple, he asked them to give him something.
4 Peter, along with John, looked him straight in the eye and said, “Look at us!” 5 So the man[ba] watched them closely, expecting to get something from them. 6 However, Peter said, “I don’t have any silver or gold, but I’ll give you what I do have. In the name of Jesus the Messiah[bb] from Nazareth, walk!”[bc] 7 Then Peter[bd] took hold of his right hand and began to help him up. Immediately his feet and ankles became strong, 8 and he sprang to his feet, stood up, and began to walk. Then he went with them into the Temple, walking, jumping, and praising God.
9 When all the people saw him walking and praising God, 10 they knew that he was the man who used to sit and beg at the Beautiful Gate of the Temple, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.
Peter Speaks to the Onlookers
11 While he was holding on to Peter and John, all the people came running to them in what was called “Solomon’s Colonnade”. They were dumbfounded. 12 When Peter saw this, he told the people: “Fellow Israelis, why are you wondering about this, and why are you staring at us as if by our own power or godliness we made him walk? 13 The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—the God of our ancestors—has glorified his servant Jesus, whom you betrayed and rejected in the presence of Pilate, even though he had decided to let him go. 14 You rejected the Holy and Righteous One and asked to have a murderer released to you, 15 and you killed the source of life, whom God raised from the dead. We are witnesses to that. 16 It is his name—that is, by faith in his name—that has healed this man whom you see and know. Yes, the faith that comes through Jesus[be] has given him this perfect health in the presence of all of you.
17 “And now, brothers, I know that you acted in ignorance like your leaders. 18 This is how God fulfilled what he had predicted through the voice of all the prophets—that his Messiah[bf] would suffer. 19 Therefore, repent and turn to him to have your sins blotted out, 20 so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord and so that he may send you Jesus, whom he appointed long ago to be the Messiah.[bg] 21 He must remain in heaven until the time of universal restitution, which God announced long ago through the voice of his holy prophets. 22 In fact, Moses said,
‘The Lord[bh] your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your brothers. You must listen to everything he tells you.[bi] 23 Any person who will not listen to that prophet will be utterly destroyed from among the people.’[bj]
24 “Indeed, all the prophets who have spoken, from Samuel and those who followed him, also announced these days. 25 You are the descendants of the prophets and the heirs[bk] of the covenant that God made with your[bl] ancestors when he told Abraham, ‘Through your descendant[bm] all the families of the earth will be blessed.’[bn] 26 When God raised up his servant, he sent him first to you to bless you by turning every one of you from your evil ways.”
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