The Church at Antioch

19Meanwhile those scattered by the persecution that began with Stephen traveled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch, speaking the message only to Jews.20But some of them, men from Cyprus and Cyrene, went to Antioch and began speaking to the Greeks as well, proclaiming the good news about the Lord Jesus.21The hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number of people believed and turned to the Lord.22When news of this reached the ears of the church in Jerusalem, they sent Barnabas to Antioch.23When he arrived and saw the grace of God, he rejoiced and encouraged them all to abide in the Lord with all their hearts.24Barnabas was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great number of people were brought to the Lord.

25Then Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul,26and when he found him, he brought him back to Antioch. So for a full year they met together with the church and taught large numbers of people. The disciples were first called Christians at Antioch.

27In those days some prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch.28One of them named Agabus stood up and predicted through the Spirit that a great famine would sweep across the whole world. (This happened under Claudius.)29So the disciples, each according to his ability, decided to send relief to the brothers living in Judea.30This they did, sending their gifts to the elders with Barnabas and Saul.

James Killed, Peter Imprisoned

1About that time, King Herod reached out to harm some who belonged to the church.2He had James, the brother of John, put to death with the sword.3And seeing that this pleased the Jews, Herod proceeded to seize Peter during the Feast of Unleavened Bread.4He arrested him and put him in prison, handing him over to be guarded by four squads of four soldiers each. Herod intended to bring him out to the people after the Passover.

The Rescue of Peter

5So Peter was kept in prison, but the church was fervently praying to God for him.6On the night before Herod was to bring him to trial, Peter was sleeping between two soldiers, bound with two chains, with sentries standing guard at the entrance to the prison.

7Suddenly an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He tapped Peter on the side and woke him up, saying, “Get up quickly.” And the chains fell off his wrists.8“Get dressed and put on your sandals,” said the angel. Peter did so, and the angel told him, “Wrap your cloak around you and follow me.”9So Peter followed him out, but he was unaware that what the angel was doing was real. He thought he was only seeing a vision.10They passed the first and second guards and came to the iron gate leading to the city, which opened for them by itself. When they had gone outside and walked the length of one block, the angel suddenly left him.

11Then Peter came to himself and said, “Now I know for sure that the Lord has sent His angel and rescued me from Herod’s grasp and from everything the Jewish people were anticipating.”12And when he had realized this, he went to the house of Mary the mother of John, also called Mark, where many people had gathered together and were praying.13He knocked at the outer gate, and a servant girl named Rhoda came to answer it.14When she recognized Peter’s voice, she was so overjoyed that she forgot to open the gate, but ran inside and announced, “Peter is standing at the gate!”

15“You are out of your mind,” they told her. But when she kept insisting it was so, they said, “It must be his angel.”16But Peter kept on knocking, and when they opened the door and saw him, they were astounded.17Peter motioned with his hand for silence, and he described how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. “Send word to James and to the brothers,” he said, and he left for another place.

18At daybreak there was no small commotion among the soldiers as to what had become of Peter.19After Herod had searched for him unsuccessfully, he examined the guards and ordered that they be executed. Then he went down from Judea to Caesarea and spent some time there.

The Death of Herod

20Now Herod was in a furious dispute with the people of Tyre and Sidon, and they convened before him. Having secured the support of Blastus, the king’s chamberlain, they asked for peace, because their region depended on the king’s country for food.21On the appointed day, Herod donned his royal robes, sat on his throne, and addressed the people.22And they began to shout, “This is the voice of a god, not a man!”23Immediately, because Herod did not give glory to God, an angel of the Lord struck him down, and he was eaten by worms and died.

24But the word of God continued to spread and multiply.25When Barnabas and Saul had fulfilled their mission to Jerusalem, they returned, bringing with them John, also called Mark.

Paul’s First Missionary Journey Begins

1Now in the church at Antioch there were prophets and teachers: Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, Lucius of Cyrene, Manaen (who had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch), and Saul.2While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set apart for Me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them.”

3And after they had fasted and prayed, they laid their hands on them and sent them off.

On Cyprus

4So Barnabas and Saul, sent forth by the Holy Spirit, went down to Seleucia and sailed from there to Cyprus.5When they arrived at Salamis, they proclaimed the word of God in the Jewish synagogues. And John was with them as their helper.6They traveled through the whole island as far as Paphos, where they found a Jewish sorcerer and false prophet named Bar-Jesus,7an attendant of the proconsul, Sergius Paulus. The proconsul, a man of intelligence, summoned Barnabas and Saul because he wanted to hear the word of God.8But Elymas the sorcerer (for that is what his name means) opposed them and tried to turn the proconsul from the faith.9Then Saul, who was also called Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked directly at Elymas10and said, “O child of the devil and enemy of all righteousness, you are full of all kinds of deceit and trickery! Will you never stop perverting the straight ways of the Lord?11Now look, the hand of the Lord is against you, and for a time you will be blind and unable to see the light of the sun.” Immediately mist and darkness came over him, and he groped about, seeking someone to lead him by the hand.12When the proconsul saw what had happened, he believed, for he was astonished at the teaching about the Lord.

In Pisidian Antioch

13After setting sail from Paphos, Paul and his companions came to Perga in Pamphylia, where John left them to return to Jerusalem.14And from Perga, they traveled inland to Pisidian Antioch, where they entered the synagogue on the Sabbath and sat down.15After the reading from the Law and the Prophets, the synagogue leaders sent word to them: “Brothers, if you have a word of encouragement for the people, please speak.”

16Paul stood up, motioned with his hand, and began to speak: “Men of Israel and you Gentiles who fear God, listen to me!17The God of the people of Israel chose our fathers. He made them into a great people during their stay in Egypt, and with an uplifted arm He led them out of that land.18He endured their conduct for about forty years in the wilderness.19And having vanquished seven nations in Canaan, He gave their land to His people as an inheritance.20All this took about 450 years. After this, God gave them judges until the time of Samuel the prophet.21Then the people asked for a king, and God gave them forty years under Saul son of Kish, from the tribe of Benjamin.22After removing Saul, He raised up David as their king and testified about him: ‘I have found David son of Jesse a man after My own heart; he will carry out My will in its entirety.’23From the descendants of this man, God has brought to Israel the Savior Jesus, as He promised.24Before the arrival of Jesus, John preached a baptism of repentance to all the people of Israel.25As John was completing his course, he said, ‘Who do you suppose I am? I am not that One. But He is coming after me whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.’

26Brothers, children of Abraham, and you Gentiles who fear God, it is to us that this message of salvation has been sent.27The people of Jerusalem and their rulers did not recognize Jesus, yet in condemning Him they fulfilled the words of the prophets that are read every Sabbath.28And though they found no ground for a death sentence, they asked Pilate to have Him executed.29When they had carried out all that was written about Him, they took Him down from the tree and laid Him in a tomb.30But God raised Him from the dead,31and for many days He was seen by those who had accompanied Him from Galilee to Jerusalem. They are now His witnesses to our people.32And now we proclaim to you the good news: What God promised our fathers