Read the New Testament in 24 Weeks

A Lame Man Is Healed

3 Peter and John were going to the temple courtyard for the three o’clock prayer. ² At the same time, a man who had been lame from birth was being carried by some men. Every day these men would put the lame man at a gate in the temple courtyard. The gate was called Beautiful Gate. There he would beg for handouts from people going into the courtyard. ³ When the man saw that Peter and John were about to go into the courtyard, he asked them for a handout.

⁴ Peter and John stared at him. “Look at us!” Peter said. ⁵ So the man watched them closely. He expected to receive something from them. ⁶ However, Peter said to him, “I don’t have any money, but I’ll give you what I do have. Through the power of Yeshua Christ from Nazareth, walk!” ⁷ Peter took hold of the man’s right hand and began to help him up. Immediately, the man’s feet and ankles became strong. ⁸ Springing to his feet, he stood up and started to walk. He went with Peter and John into the temple courtyard. The man was walking, jumping, and praising God.

⁹ 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 temple’s Beautiful Gate. The people were amazed and stunned to see what had happened to him. ¹¹ They were excited, and everyone ran to see them at the place called Solomon’s Porch. The man wouldn’t let go of Peter and John.

¹² When Peter saw this, he said to the people, “Men of Israel, why are you amazed about this man? Why are you staring at us as though we have made him walk by our own power or godly life? ¹³ The God of our ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob has glorified his servant Yeshua. You handed Yeshua over to Pilate. You rejected him in Pilate’s presence, even though Pilate had decided to let him go free. ¹⁴ You rejected the man who was holy and innocent. You asked to have a murderer given to you, ¹⁵ and you killed the source of life. But God brought him back to life, and we are witnesses to that. ¹⁶ We believe in the one named Yeshua. Through his power alone this man, whom you know, was healed, as all of you saw.

¹⁷ “And now, brothers, I know that like your rulers you didn’t know what you were doing. ¹⁸ But in this way God made the sufferings of his Messiah come true. God had predicted these sufferings through all the prophets. ¹⁹ So change the way you think and act, and turn to God to have your sins removed. ²⁰ Then times will come when the Lord will refresh you. He will send you Yeshua, whom he has appointed to be the Christ. ²¹ Heaven must receive Yeshua until the time when everything will be restored as God promised through his holy prophets long ago.

²² “Moses said, ‘The Lord your God will send you a prophet, an Israelite like me. Listen to everything he tells you. ²³ Those who won’t listen to that prophet will be excluded from the people.’ ²⁴ Samuel and all the prophets who followed him spoke about these days. ²⁵ You are the descendants of the prophets and the heirs of the promise^[a] that God made to our ancestors when he said to Abraham, ‘Through your descendant all people on earth will be blessed.’ ²⁶ God has brought his servant back to life and has sent him to you first. God did this to bless you by turning every one of you from your evil ways.”

Peter and John’s Trial in Front of the Jewish Council

4 Some priests, the officer in charge of the temple guards, and some Sadducees approached Peter and John while they were speaking to the people. ² These religious authorities were greatly annoyed. Peter and John were teaching the people and spreading the message that the dead will come back to life through Yeshua. ³ So the temple guards arrested them. Since it was already evening, they put Peter and John in jail until the next day.

⁴ But many of those who had heard the message became believers, so the number of men who believed grew to about 5,000.

⁵ The next day the Jewish rulers, the leaders, and the experts in Moses’ Teachings met in Jerusalem. ⁶ The chief priest Annas, Caiaphas, John, Alexander, and the rest of the chief priest’s family were present. ⁷ They made Peter and John stand in front of them and then asked, “By what power or in whose name did you do this?”

⁸ Then Peter, because he was filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers and leaders of the people, ⁹ today you are cross-examining us about the good we did for a crippled man. You want to know how he was made well. ¹⁰ You and all the people of Israel must understand that this man stands in your presence with a healthy body because of the power of Yeshua Christ from Nazareth. You crucified Yeshua Christ, but God has brought him back to life. ¹¹ He is the stone that the builders rejected, the stone that has become the cornerstone. ¹² No one else can save us. Indeed, we can be saved only by the power of the one named Yeshua and not by any other person.”

¹³ After they found out that Peter and John had no education or special training, they were surprised to see how boldly they spoke. They realized that these men had been with Yeshua. ¹⁴ When they saw the man who was healed standing with Peter and John, they couldn’t say anything against the two apostles. ¹⁵ So they ordered Peter and John to leave the council room and began to discuss the matter among themselves. ¹⁶ They said, “What should we do to these men? Clearly, they’ve performed a miracle that everyone in Jerusalem knows about. We can’t deny that. ¹⁷ So let’s threaten them. Let’s tell them that they must never speak to anyone about the one named Yeshua. Then the news about the miracle that they have performed will not spread any further among the people.”

¹⁸ They called Peter and John and ordered them never to teach about Yeshua or even mention his name.

¹⁹ Peter and John answered them, “Decide for yourselves whether God wants people to listen to you rather than to him. ²⁰ We cannot stop talking about what we’ve seen and heard.”

²¹ The authorities threatened them even more and then let them go. Since all the people were praising God for what had happened, the authorities couldn’t find any way to punish Peter and John. ²² (The man who was healed by this miracle was over 40 years old.)

The Apostles Pray for God’s Help

²³ When Peter and John were released, they went to the other apostles and told them everything the chief priests and leaders had said. ²⁴ When the apostles heard this, they were united and loudly prayed to God, “Master, you made the sky, the land, the sea, and everything in them. ²⁵ You said through the Holy Spirit, who spoke through your servant David (our ancestor),

²⁷ “In this city Herod and Pontius Pilate made plans together with non-Jewish people and the people of Israel. They made their plans against your holy servant Yeshua, whom you anointed. ²⁸ Through your will and power, they did everything that you had already decided should be done.

²⁹ “Lord, pay attention to their threats now, and allow us to speak your word boldly. ³⁰ Show your power by healing, performing miracles, and doing amazing things through the power and the name of your holy servant Yeshua.”

³¹ When the apostles had finished praying, their meeting place shook. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God boldly.

The Believers Share Their Property

³² The whole group of believers lived in harmony. No one called any of his possessions his own. Instead, they shared everything.

³³ With great power the apostles continued to testify that the Lord Yeshua had come back to life. God’s abundant good will^[b] was with all of them. ³⁴ None of them needed anything. From time to time, people sold land or houses and brought the money ³⁵ to the apostles. Then the money was distributed to anyone who needed it.

³⁶ Joseph, a descendant of Levi, had been born on the island of Cyprus. The apostles called him Barnabas, which means “a person who encourages.” ³⁷ He had some land. He sold it and turned the money over to the apostles.