Read the New Testament in 24 Weeks

Peter Heals a Crippled Man

3 One day Peter and John went to the Temple at three o’clock, the time set each day for the afternoon prayer service. ² There, at the Temple gate called Beautiful Gate, was a man who had been crippled all his life. Every day he was carried to this gate to beg for money from the people going into the Temple. ³ The man saw Peter and John going into the Temple and asked them for money. ⁴ Peter and John looked straight at him and said, “Look at us!” ⁵ The man looked at them, thinking they were going to give him some money. ⁶ But Peter said, “I don’t have any silver or gold, but I do have something else I can give you. By the power of Jesus Christ from Nazareth, stand up and walk!” ⁷ Then Peter took the man’s right hand and lifted him up. Immediately the man’s feet and ankles became strong. ⁸ He jumped up, stood on his feet, and began to walk. He went into the Temple with them, walking and jumping and praising God. ^9-10 All the people recognized him as the crippled man who always sat by the Beautiful Gate begging for money. Now they saw this same man walking and praising God, and they were amazed. They wondered how this could happen.

Peter Speaks to the People

¹¹ While the man was holding on to Peter and John, all the people were amazed and ran to them at Solomon’s Porch. ¹² When Peter saw this, he said to them, “People of Israel, why are you surprised? You are looking at us as if it were our own power or goodness that made this man walk. ¹³ The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our ancestors, gave glory to Jesus, his servant. But you handed him over to be killed. Pilate decided to let him go free, but you told Pilate you did not want Jesus. ¹⁴ You did not want the One who is holy and good but asked Pilate to give you a murderer^[a] instead. ¹⁵ And so you killed the One who gives life, but God raised him from the dead. We are witnesses to this. ¹⁶ It was faith in Jesus that made this crippled man well. You can see this man, and you know him. He was made completely well because of trust in Jesus, and you all saw it happen!

¹⁷ “Brothers and sisters, I know you did those things to Jesus because neither you nor your leaders understood what you were doing. ¹⁸ God said through the prophets that his Christ would suffer and die. And now God has made these things come true in this way. ¹⁹ So you must change your hearts and lives! Come back to God, and he will forgive your sins. Then the Lord will send the time of rest. ²⁰ And he will send Jesus, the One he chose to be the Christ. ²¹ But Jesus must stay in heaven until the time comes when all things will be made right again. God told about this time long ago when he spoke through his holy prophets. ²² Moses said, ‘The Lord your God will give you a prophet like me, who is one of your own people. You must listen to everything he tells you. ²³ Anyone who does not listen to that prophet will die, cut off from God’s people.’^{[b] 24} Samuel, and all the other prophets who spoke for God after Samuel, told about this time now. ²⁵ You are descendants of the prophets. You have received the agreement God made with your ancestors. He said to your father Abraham, ‘Through your descendants all the nations on the earth will be blessed.’^{[c] 26} God has raised up his servant Jesus and sent him to you first to bless you by turning each of you away from doing evil.”

Peter and John at the Council

4 While Peter and John were speaking to the people, priests, the captain of the soldiers that guarded the Temple, and Sadducees came up to them. ² They were upset because the two apostles were teaching the people and were preaching that people will rise from the dead through the power of Jesus. ³ The older leaders grabbed Peter and John and put them in jail. Since it was already night, they kept them in jail until the next day. ⁴ But many of those who had heard Peter and John preach believed the things they said. There were now about five thousand in the group of believers.

⁵ The next day the rulers, the elders, and the teachers of the law met in Jerusalem. ⁶ Annas the high priest, Caiaphas, John, and Alexander were there, as well as everyone from the high priest’s family. ⁷ They made Peter and John stand before them and then asked them, “By what power or authority did you do this?”

⁸ Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, “Rulers of the people and you elders, ⁹ are you questioning us about a good thing that was done to a crippled man? Are you asking us who made him well? ¹⁰ We want all of you and all the people to know that this man was made well by the power of Jesus Christ from Nazareth. You crucified him, but God raised him from the dead. This man was crippled, but he is now well and able to stand here before you because of the power of Jesus. ¹¹ Jesus is

¹² Jesus is the only One who can save people. No one else in the world is able to save us.”

¹³ The leaders saw that Peter and John were not afraid to speak, and they understood that these men had no special training or education. So they were amazed. Then they realized that Peter and John had been with Jesus. ¹⁴ Because they saw the healed man standing there beside the two apostles, they could say nothing against them. ¹⁵ After the leaders ordered them to leave the meeting, they began to talk to each other. ¹⁶ They said, “What shall we do with these men? Everyone in Jerusalem knows they have done a great miracle, and we cannot say it is not true. ¹⁷ But to keep it from spreading among the people, we must warn them not to talk to people anymore using that name.”

¹⁸ So they called Peter and John in again and told them not to speak or to teach at all in the name of Jesus. ¹⁹ But Peter and John answered them, “You decide what God would want. Should we obey you or God? ²⁰ We cannot keep quiet. We must speak about what we have seen and heard.” ²¹ The leaders warned the apostles again and let them go free. They could not find a way to punish them, because all the people were praising God for what had been done. ²² The man who received the miracle of healing was more than forty years old.

The Believers Pray

²³ After Peter and John left the meeting of leaders, they went to their own group and told them everything the leading priests and the elders had said to them. ²⁴ When the believers heard this, they prayed to God together, “Lord, you are the One who made the sky, the earth, the sea, and everything in them. ²⁵ By the Holy Spirit, through our father David your servant, you said:

²⁷ These things really happened when Herod, Pontius Pilate, and some Jews and non-Jews all came together against Jesus here in Jerusalem. Jesus is your holy servant, the One you made to be the Christ. ²⁸ These people made your plan happen because of your power and your will. ²⁹ And now, Lord, listen to their threats. Lord, help us, your servants, to speak your word without fear. ³⁰ Show us your power to heal. Give proofs and make miracles happen by the power of Jesus, your holy servant.”

³¹ After they had prayed, the place where they were meeting was shaken. They were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they spoke God’s word without fear.

The Believers Share

³² The group of believers were united in their hearts and spirit. All those in the group acted as though their private property belonged to everyone in the group. In fact, they shared everything. ³³ With great power the apostles were telling people that the Lord Jesus was truly raised from the dead. And God blessed all the believers very much. ³⁴ There were no needy people among them. From time to time those who owned fields or houses sold them, brought the money, ³⁵ and gave it to the apostles. Then the money was given to anyone who needed it.

³⁶ One of the believers was named Joseph, a Levite born in Cyprus. The apostles called him Barnabas (which means “one who encourages”). ³⁷ Joseph owned a field, sold it, brought the money, and gave it to the apostles.