Top of Page
Page Style
apostles and the brothers who were in Judea heard that the Gentiles had also received the word of God. 2 So when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised believers criticised him, 3 saying, “You visited uncircumcised men and ate with them!”
4 So Peter explained everything to them as it had happened: 5 “I was in the city of Joppa praying, and in a trance I saw a vision. There was an object descending that resembled a large sheet being let down from heaven by its four corners, and it came to me. 6 When I looked closely and considered it, I saw four-footed animals of the earth, wild beasts, reptiles, and birds of the air. 7 I heard a voice saying to me, ‘Get up, Peter, kill and eat’.
8 “But I replied, ‘No, Lord! For nothing common or unclean has ever entered my mouth’.
9 “But the voice spoke from heaven a second time, ‘What God has made clean, you must not call common’. 10 This happened three times, and then everything was pulled up again to heaven.
11 “At that very moment, three men who had been sent to me from Caesarea arrived at the house where we were. 12 Then the Spirit told me to go with them having no doubts about it. These six brothers also went with me, and we entered the man’s house. 13 He told us how he had seen the angel standing in his house and saying, ‘Send men to Joppa, and bring Simon, who is called Peter. 14 He will tell you words by which you and your household will be saved’.
15 “As I began to speak, the Holy Spirit came down on them, just as on us at the beginning. 16 Then I remembered the word of the Lord, how He said, ‘John baptised with water, but you will be baptised with the Holy Spirit’. 17 So if God gave them the same gift that He gave us, when we believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to think that I could oppose God?”
18 When they heard this, they became silent. Then they glorify God, saying, “So God has even granted the Gentiles repentance that leads to life!”
19 Now those who were scattered by the persecution that started because of Stephen travelled as far as Phoenicia, Cyprus, and Antioch, telling the message only to Jews. 20 But there were some of them, men from Cyprus and Cyrene, who came to Antioch and began speaking to the Hellenists also, proclaiming the Lord Jesus. 21 The hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number believed and turned to the Lord.
22 News of this came to the ears of the church in Jerusalem, and they sent out Barnabas to travel as far as Antioch. 23 When he arrived and saw the grace of God, he was glad and encouraged them all to remain true to the Lord with a full purpose of heart; 24 for he was a good man, full of the Holy Spirit and faith, and a great many people were added to the Lord.
25 Then Barnabas went to Tarsus to search for Saul, 26 and when he had found him, he brought him to Antioch. For a whole year they met with a church and taught a great many people. The disciples were first called Christians in Antioch.
27 At that time some prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch. 28 One of them, named Agabus, stood up and predicted by the Spirit that there would be a severe famine throughout the entire Roman world. This took place during the reign of Claudius. 29 So the disciples, each according to his ability, determined to send relief to the brothers living in Judea. 30 This they did, sending it to the elders by Barnabas and Saul.