Acts 12 Cross References - ISV

¹ An Angel Frees Peter from PrisonAbout that time, Herod arrested some people who belonged to the church and mistreated them. ² He even had James, the brother of John, killed with a sword. ³ When he saw how this was agreeable to the Jews, he proceeded to arrest Peter, too. This happened during the Festival of Unleavened Bread. ⁴ When he arrested Peter, Herod put him in prison and turned him over to four squads of soldiers to guard him, planning to bring him out to the people after Passover season. ⁵ So Peter was kept in prison, but earnest prayer to God for him was being offered by the assembly.
⁶ That very night, before Herod was going to bring him out, Peter, bound with two chains, was sleeping between two soldiers, and guards in front of the door were watching the prisoners. ⁷ Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He tapped Peter on his side, woke him up, and said, “Get up quickly!” His chains fell from his wrists. ⁸ Then the angel told him, “Tuck in your shirt and put on your sandals!” He did this. Then the angel told him, “Put on your coat and follow me!” ⁹ So Peter went out and began to follow him, not realizing that what was being done by the angel was real; he thought he was seeing a vision. ¹⁰ They passed the first guard, then the second, and came to the iron gate that led into the city. It opened by itself for them, and they went outside and proceeded one block when the angel suddenly left him.
¹¹ Then Peter came to himself and said, “Now I’m sure that the Lord has sent his angel and rescued me from Herod and from everything the Jewish people were expecting!”
¹² When Peter realized what had happened, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John who was also called Mark, where a large number of people had gathered and were praying. ¹³ When he knocked at the outer gate, a servant girl named Rhoda came to answer it. ¹⁴ On recognizing Peter’s voice, she was so overjoyed that she didn’t open the gate but ran back inside and announced that Peter was standing at the gate. ¹⁵ The other people told her, “You’re out of your mind!” But she kept insisting that it was so. Then they said, “It’s his angel.”
¹⁶ Meanwhile, Peter kept on knocking and knocking. When they opened the gate, they saw him and were amazed. ¹⁷ He motioned to them with his hand to be quiet, and then he told them how the Lord had brought him out of the prison. He added, “Tell this to James and the brothers.” Then he left and went somewhere else. ¹⁸ When morning came, there was a great commotion among the soldiers as to what had become of Peter. ¹⁹ Herod searched for him but didn’t find him, so he questioned the guards and ordered them to be executed. Then he left Judea, went down to Caesarea, and stayed there for a while.
²⁰ The Death of HerodNow Herod had been in a violent quarrel with the people of Tyre and Sidon. So they came to him as a group. After they had won over Blastus, who oversaw security for the king’s sleeping quarters, they asked for a peace agreement because their country depended on the king’s country for food. ²¹ Therefore, at a set time Herod put on his royal robes, sat down on the royal seat, and made a speech to them. ²² The people kept shouting, “This is the voice of a god, not of a man!” ²³ Immediately the angel of the Lord struck him down because he did not give glory to God, and he was eaten by worms and died. ²⁴ But the word of God continued to grow and spread.
²⁵ When Barnabas and Saul had fulfilled their mission, they returned to Jerusalem, bringing with them John who was also called Mark.

¹⁷ Watch out for people who will hand you over to the local councils and whip you in their synagogues. ¹⁸ You will be brought before governors and kings because of me, to testify to them and to unbelievers.

⁹ Future Persecution, Apostasy, and Evangelism
“Then they’ll hand you over to suffer and will kill you, and you’ll be hated by all the nations because of my name.

⁵³ While I was with you day after day in the Temple, you didn’t lay a hand on me. But this is your hour, when darkness reigns!”

²⁰ Remember what I told you: ‘A servant is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will also keep yours.

² You’ll be thrown out of the synagogues. Yes, a time is coming when the one who kills you will think he’s serving God.

³⁰ as you stretch out your hand to heal and to perform signs and wonders through the name of your holy servant Jesus.”

³¹ So the church throughout Judea, Galilee, and Samaria enjoyed peace. As it continued to be built up and to live in the fear of the Lord, it kept increasing in numbers through the encouragement of the Holy Spirit.

¹ Elijah Runs from JezebelAhab complained to Jezebel about everything that Elijah had done, especially the part about him killing all the prophets of Baal with a sword.

¹⁰ “I’ve been very zealous for the LORD God of the Heavenly Armies,” he replied. “The Israelis have abandoned your covenant, demolished your altars, executed your prophets with swords, and I—that’s right, just me!—am the only one left. Now they’re seeking my life, to get rid of me!”

²³ They brought Uriah out of Egypt and brought him to King Jehoiakim, who killed him with a sword. Then they threw his body into a common grave.”

²¹ Going on from there he saw two other brothers—James, son of Zebedee, and his brother John. They were in a boat with their father Zebedee repairing their nets. When he called them, ²² they immediately left the boat and their father and followed him.

²³ He told them, “You will indeed drink from my cup. But it’s not up to me to grant you a seat at my right hand or at my left. These positions have already been prepared for others by my Father.”

³⁵ The Request of James and John
James and John, the sons of Zebedee, went to Jesus and told him, “Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask you.”

³⁸ But Jesus told them, “You don’t realize what you’re asking. Can you drink from the cup that I’m going to drink from or be baptized with the baptism with which I’m going to be baptized?”

³⁷ They were stoned to death, sawed in half, and killed with swords. They went around in sheepskins and goatskins. They were needy, oppressed, and mistreated.

¹⁴ “‘This day is to be a memorial for you, and you are to celebrate it as a festival to the LORD. You are to celebrate it as a perpetual ordinance from generation to generation. ¹⁵ You are to eat unleavened bread for seven days. On the first day be sure to remove all the leaven from your houses, because any person who eats anything leavened from the first day until the seventh will be cut off from Israel. ¹⁶ Also, on the first day you’re to hold a holy assembly, and on the seventh day you’re to hold a holy assembly. No work is to be done during those days, except for preparing what is to be eaten by each person.
¹⁷ “‘You are to observe the Festival of Unleavened Bread, since on this very day I brought your tribal divisions from the land of Egypt. You are to observe this day from generation to generation as a perpetual ordinance. ¹⁸ In the first month, from the evening of the fourteenth day of the month until the evening of the twenty-first day of the month, you are to eat unleavened bread. ¹⁹ For seven days leaven is not to be found in your houses. Indeed, any person who eats anything leavened, is to be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether an alien or a native of the land. ²⁰ You are not to eat what is leavened. You are to eat unleavened bread in all your settlements.’”

³ The Festival of Unleavened BreadThen Moses told the people, “Remember this day on which you came out of Egypt, from the house of bondage, because the LORD brought you out from this place with a strong show of force. Moreover, nothing leavened is to be eaten. ⁴ Today, in the month of Abib, you are going out. ⁵ When the LORD brings you to the land of the Canaanite, the Hittite, the Amorite, the Hivite, and the Jebusite, which he swore to your ancestors to give you—a land flowing with milk and honey—you are to observe this ritual in this month. ⁶ You are to eat unleavened bread for seven days, and on the seventh day there is to be a festival to the LORD. ⁷ Unleavened bread is to be eaten for seven days, and nothing leavened is to be seen among you, nor is leaven to be seen among you throughout your territory.

¹⁵ You are to observe the Festival of Unleavened Bread. As I commanded you, you are to eat unleavened bread for seven days at the appointed time in the month Abib, because in it you came out of Egypt. No one is to appear before me empty handed.

⁶ On the fifteenth day of that month is the Festival of Unleavened Bread to the LORD. For seven days you are to eat unleavened bread. ⁷ On the first day that you hold the sacred assembly, you are to do no servile work. ⁸ Instead, you are to bring an offering made by fire to the LORD daily for seven days. On the seventh day, you are also to hold a sacred assembly during which you are to do no servile work.”
⁹ First Fruit OfferingsThe LORD told Moses, ¹⁰ “Tell the Israelis that when you enter the land that I’m about to give you and gather its produce, you are to bring a sheaf from the first portion of your harvest to the priest, ¹¹ who will offer the sheaf in the LORD’s presence for your acceptance. The priest is to wave it on the day after the Sabbath. ¹² On the day you wave the sheaf, you are to offer a one year old male lamb without defect for a burnt offering in the LORD’s presence. ¹³ Also present a meal offering of two tenths of a measure of fine flour mixed with olive oil as an offering made by fire to the LORD, a pleasing aroma. Now as to a drink offering, you are to present a fourth of a hin of wine. ¹⁴ You are not to eat bread, parched grain, or fresh grain until that day when you’ve brought the offering of your God. This is to be an eternal ordinance throughout your generations, wherever you live.”

¹⁰ Even human anger praises you; you will wear the survivors of your wrath as an ornament.

¹⁷ The Passover with the Disciples
On the first day of the Festival of Unleavened Bread, the disciples approached Jesus and asked, “Where do you want us to make preparations for you to eat the Passover meal?”

⁴³ For they loved the praise of human beings more than the praise of God.

¹¹ Jesus answered him, “You have no authority over me at all, except what was given to you from above. That’s why the one who handed me over to you is guilty of a greater sin.”

¹⁸ “Truly, I tell you emphatically, when you were young, you would fasten your belt and go wherever you liked. But when you get old, you will stretch out your hands, and someone else will fasten your belt and take you where you don’t want to go.”

¹⁴ Peter Addresses the CrowdThen Peter stood up among the eleven apostles 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.

¹³ Now when the Jewish leaders saw the boldness of Peter and John and found out that they were uneducated and ordinary men, they were amazed and realized that they had been with Jesus.

⁶ After the Festival of Unleavened Bread, we sailed from Philippi, and days later we joined them in Troas and stayed there for seven days.

²⁷ After two years had passed, Felix was succeeded by Porcius Festus. Since Felix wanted to do the Jews a favor, he left Paul in prison.

⁹ Then Festus, wanting to do the Jewish leaders a favor, asked Paul, “Are you willing to go up to Jerusalem to be tried there before me on these charges?”

⁷ Get rid of the old yeast so that you may be a new batch of dough, since you are to be free from yeast. For the Messiah, our Passover, has been sacrificed. ⁸ So let’s keep celebrating the festival, neither with old yeast nor with yeast that is evil and wicked, but with yeast-free bread that is both sincere and true.

¹⁰ Am I now trying to win the approval of people or of God? Or am I trying to please people? If I were still trying to please people, I would not be the Messiah’s servant.

⁴ Rather, because we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, we speak as we do, not trying to please people but God, who tests our motives.

⁶ Because they had told him who the people of Mordecai were, Haman found it unacceptable to kill only Mordecai. So Haman sought to destroy all of Mordecai’s people, the Jewish people, who were in all the kingdom of Ahasuerus.
⁷ Haman’s Plot against the Jewish PeopleIn the twelfth year of the reign of King Ahasuerus, in the first month (the month Nisan), the pur (that is, the lot) was cast in Haman’s presence to determine the best day and month to carry out his plot. The lot indicated the twelfth month, the month Adar.

¹³ Letters were sent by couriers to all of the king’s provinces to annihilate, to kill, and to destroy all the Jewish people, both young and old, women and children, and to confiscate their goods on a single day—the thirteenth day of the twelfth month of Adar.

²¹ Many plans occupy the mind of a man, but the LORD’s purposes will prevail.

¹ General Counsel Never brag about the day to come, because you don’t know what it might bring.

³⁷ Who can command, and it happens, without the Lord having ordered it?

⁵ But they kept saying, “This must not happen during the festival. Otherwise, there’ll be a riot among the people.”

⁶⁴ Therefore, order the tomb to be secured until the third day, or his disciples may go and steal him and then tell the people, ‘He has been raised from the dead.’ Then the last deception would be worse than the first one.”
⁶⁵ Pilate told them, “You have a military guard. Go and make the tomb as secure as you know how.” ⁶⁶ So they went and secured the tomb by putting a seal on the stone in the presence of the guards.

¹² Future Persecutions
“But before all these things take place, people will arrest you and persecute you. They will hand you over to synagogues and prisons, and you will be brought before kings and governors for my name’s sake.

³³ Peter told him, “Lord, I am ready to go even to prison and to die with you!”

³⁶ Jesus Predicts Peter’s Denial
Simon Peter asked him, “Lord, where are you going?”
Jesus answered him, “I’m going where you cannot follow me now, though you will follow me later on.”
³⁷ “Lord, why can’t I follow you now?” Peter asked him. “I would lay down my life for you!”
³⁸ Jesus answered him, “Would you lay down your life for me? I tell you emphatically, a rooster will not crow until you have denied me three times.”

²³ When the soldiers had crucified Jesus, they took his clothes and divided them into four parts, one for each soldier, and took his cloak as well. The cloak was seamless, woven in one piece from the top down.

³ So they arrested them and placed them in custody until the next day, since it was already evening.

²⁸ to carry out everything that your hand and will had predetermined to take place.

¹⁸ arrested the apostles, and put them in the city jail.

³ But Saul kept trying to destroy the church. Going into one house after another, he began dragging off men and women and throwing them in prison.

²³ After giving them a severe beating, they threw them in jail and ordered the jailer to keep them under tight security. ²⁴ Having received these orders, he put them into the inner cell and fastened their feet in leg irons.

⁶ “Upon your walls, Jerusalem, I have posted watchmen; all day and all night they won’t remain silent. You who make mention of the LORD, take no rest, ⁷ and give him no rest until he prepares, establishes and makes Jerusalem a song of praise throughout the earth.

¹⁹ Furthermore, I tell all of you with certainty that if two of you agree on earth about anything you request, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven,

¹ The Parable about the Judge and the WidowJesus told his disciples a parable about their need to pray all the time and never give up.

¹² When Peter realized what had happened, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John who was also called Mark, where a large number of people had gathered and were praying.

²⁶ If one part suffers, every part suffers with it. If one part is praised, every part rejoices with it.

¹¹ as you also help us by your prayers for us. Then many people will thank God on our behalf because of the favor shown us through the prayers of many.

¹⁸ Pray in the Spirit at all times with every kind of prayer and request. Likewise, be alert with your most diligent efforts and pray for all the saints. ¹⁹ Pray also for me, so that, when I begin to speak, the right words will come to me. Then I will boldly make known the secret of the gospel, ²⁰ for whose sake I am an ambassador in chains, desiring to declare the gospel as boldly as I should.

¹⁷ Continually be prayerful.

³ Continue to remember those in prison as if you were in prison with them, as well as those who are mistreated, since they also are only mortal.

¹⁶ Therefore, make it your habit to confess your sins to one another and to pray for one another, so that you may be healed. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective.

¹⁴ Abraham named that place, “The LORD Will Provide,” as it is told this day, “On the LORD’s mountain, he will provide.”

²⁶ “I said, ‘I will scatter them, erasing their memory from the human race,

²⁶ Saul went on one side of the mountain while David and his men went on the other side of the mountain. David was hurrying to get away from Saul while Saul and his men were closing in on David and his men to capture them.
²⁷ Then a messenger came to Saul with this news: “Come quickly, because the Philistines have made a raid on the land!”

⁵ I lie down and sleep, I wake up, because the LORD sustains me. ⁶ I will not fear multitudes of people, who set themselves against me on every side.

⁸ I will lie down and sleep in peace, for you alone, LORD, enable me to live securely.

³ You will keep perfectly peaceful the one whose mind remains focused on you, because he remains in you. ⁴ “Trust in the LORD forever, for in the LORD GOD you have an everlasting rock.

⁴ Now, look, I’ve freed you today from the chains that were on your hands. If you want to come with me to Babylon, come, and I’ll look after you. But if you don’t want to come with me to Babylon, don’t. Look, the whole land lies before you, so go wherever it seems good and right for you to go.”

⁴ Trembling from fear, even the guards themselves became catatonic.

²³ “We found the prison securely locked and the guards standing at the doors, but when we opened them, we found no one inside.”

³³ Then the tribune came up, grabbed Paul, and ordered him to be tied up with two chains. He then asked who Paul was and what he had done.

²⁰ That’s why I asked to see you and speak with you, since it is for the hope of Israel that I’m wearing this chain.”

²⁰ for whose sake I am an ambassador in chains, desiring to declare the gospel as boldly as I should.

⁶ Never worry about anything. Instead, in every situation let your petitions be made known to God through prayers and requests, with thanksgiving. ⁷ Then God’s peace, which goes far beyond anything we can imagine, will guard your hearts and minds in union with the Messiah Jesus.

¹⁶ May the Lord grant mercy to the family of Onesiphorus, for he often took care of me and was not ashamed that I was a prisoner.

⁶ Hence we can confidently say, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can anyone do to me?”

¹⁵ As dawn was breaking, the angels pressured Lot. “Get going!” they told him. “Take your wife and your two daughters who are here, or you will be engulfed by the devastation that’s coming to this city.”
¹⁶ But Lot kept lingering in the city, so the men grabbed his hand and the hands of his wife and two daughters (because of the LORD’s compassion for him!), brought them out of the city, and left them outside.

²⁹ For you are my lamp, LORD, the LORD who illuminates my darkness.

⁵ Then he lay down and went to sleep under the juniper tree. All of a sudden, there was an angel, who kept grabbing him and telling him, “Get up! Eat!”

⁷ Later, the angel of the LORD came a second time, grabbed him, and said “Get up! Eat! The journey ahead is too difficult for you!”

⁷ The angel of the LORD surrounds those who fear him, and he delivers them.

³² The wicked stalks the righteous person, seeking to kill him, ³³ but the LORD will not let him fall into his hands. He will not be condemned when he is put on trial.

¹⁸ They bound his feet with fetters and placed an iron collar on his neck, ¹⁹ until the time his prediction came true, as the word of the LORD refined him. ²⁰ He sent a king who released him, a ruler of people who set him free.

¹⁴ And he brought them out from darkness and the shadow of death, shattering their chains.

¹⁶ LORD, I am indeed your servant. I am your servant. I am the son of your handmaid. You have released my bonds.

⁶ Pay attention to my cry, for I have been brought very low. Deliver me from my tormentors, for they are far too strong for me. ⁷ Break me out of this prison, so I can give thanks to your name. The righteous will surround me, for you will deal generously with me.

⁷ who brings justice for the oppressed, and who gives food to the hungry. The LORD frees the prisoners;

³⁰ “And this will be your sign, Hezekiah: Eat this year what grows on its own, and in the second year what springs from that. But in the third year sow, reap, plant vineyards, and eat their fruit.

¹ The Light of God’s Deliverance “Arise, shine! For your light has come; the glory of the LORD has risen upon you.

² and the glory of the God of Israel was coming from the east. His voice sounded like roaring water, and the land shimmered from his glory.

²⁴ The Fourth Man in the FurnaceAstonished, King Nebuchadnezzar stood up in terror, and asked his advisers, “Didn’t we throw three men into the fire, bound firmly with ropes?”
In reply they told the king, “Yes, your majesty.”
²⁵ “Look!” he told them, “I see four men walking untied and unharmed in the middle of the fire, and the appearance of the fourth resembles a divine being.”

²² My God sent his angel and sealed the mouths of the lions. They have not harmed me, proving that I’m innocent before him. Also against you, your majesty, I’ve committed no offense.”

⁹ I will endure the LORD’s anger— since I have sinned against him— until he takes over my defense, administers justice on my behalf, and brings me out to the light, where I will gaze on his righteousness.

⁴ His radiance is like sunlight; beams of light shine from his hand, where his strength lays hidden.

¹¹ The sun and moon stand still in their orbits; at the glint of your arrows they speed along, even at the gleam of your flashing spear.

⁹ An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.

⁴ While they were puzzling over this, two men in dazzling robes suddenly stood beside them.

²⁴ But God raised him up and put an end to suffering of death, since it was impossible for him to be held by it,

¹⁹ But at night the angel of the Lord opened the prison doors and led them out. The angel told them,

³ As Saul traveled along and was approaching Damascus, a light from heaven suddenly flashed around him.

³⁰ Cornelius replied, “Four days ago at this very hour, three o’clock in the afternoon, I was praying in my home. All at once a man in radiant clothes stood in front of me

⁶ That very night, before Herod was going to bring him out, Peter, bound with two chains, was sleeping between two soldiers, and guards in front of the door were watching the prisoners.

²³ Immediately the angel of the Lord struck him down because he did not give glory to God, and he was eaten by worms and died.

²⁶ Suddenly, there was an earthquake so violent that the foundations of the prison were shaken. All the doors immediately flew open, and everyone’s chains were unfastened.

²³ For just last night an angel of God, to whom I belong and whom I serve, stood by me ²⁴ and said, ‘Stop being afraid, Paul! You must stand before the emperor. Indeed, God has given to you the lives of everyone who is sailing with you.’

¹⁴ for the light is making everything visible. That is why it says, “Wake up, sleeper! Arise from the dead, and the Messiah will shine on you.’’

¹⁴ All of them are spirits on a divine mission, sent to serve those who are about to inherit salvation, aren’t they?

¹ The Vision of the Fall of BabylonAfter these things, I saw another angel coming down from heaven. He had great authority, and the earth was made bright by his splendor.

²² Noah did all of this, precisely as God had commanded.

²⁶ where they informed their father, “Joseph is still alive! As a matter of fact, he’s ruling the entire land of Egypt.” But Jacob didn’t believe them, because he had become cynical.

¹ A Song of Ascents
The Exiles Restored When the LORD brought back Zion’s exiles, we were like dreamers.

⁵ His mother told the servants, “Do whatever he tells you.”

¹⁰ Now in Damascus there was a disciple named Ananias. The Lord called out to him in a vision, “Ananias!”
He answered, “Here I am, Lord.”

³ One day, about three in the afternoon, he had a vision and clearly saw an angel of God coming to him and saying to him, “Cornelius!”

¹⁷ While Peter was still at a loss to know what the vision he had seen could mean, the men sent by Cornelius asked for Simon’s house and went to the gate.

⁵ “I was in the town of Joppa praying when in a trance I saw a vision: Something like a large linen sheet descended down from heaven, lowered by its four corners, and it came right down to me.

¹⁹ “And so, King Agrippa, I was not disobedient to the heavenly vision.

¹ Paul’s ThornI must boast, although it does not do any good. Let’s talk about visions and revelations from the Lord. ² I know a man who belongs to the Messiah. Fourteen years ago—whether in his body or outside of his body, I do not know, but God knows—that man was snatched away to the third heaven. ³ I know that this man—whether in his body or outside of his body, I do not know, but God knows—

⁸ By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going.

³ that he locked them up in the prison dungeon operated by the captain of the guard, the very place where Joseph was imprisoned.

¹⁷ Then Joseph locked them all together in prison for three days.

³⁴ Then they confined him until it could be declared what should be done to him.

⁸ Then the lookout shouted: “Upon a watchtower I stand, O Lord, continually by day, and I am stationed at my post throughout the night.

¹ Cyrus: God’s Deliverer This is what the LORD says to his anointed, Cyrus, whose right hand I have grasped to subdue nations before him, as I strip kings of their armor, to open doors before him and gates that cannot keep closed: ² “I myself will go before you, and he will make the mountains level; I’ll shatter bronze doors and cut through iron bars.

¹⁹ Jesus Appears to the Disciples
It was the evening of the first day of the week, and the doors of the house where the disciples had met were locked because they were afraid of the Jewish leaders. Jesus came and stood among them. He told them, “Peace be with you.”

²⁶ A week later, his disciples were again inside, and Thomas was with them. Even though the doors were shut, Jesus came, stood among them, and said, “Peace be with you.”

⁴ When he arrested Peter, Herod put him in prison and turned him over to four squads of soldiers to guard him, planning to bring him out to the people after Passover season.

⁷ The Letter to the Church in Philadelphia“To the messenger of the church in Philadelphia, write: ‘The one who is holy, who is true, who has the key of David, who opens a door that no one can shut, and who shuts a door that no one can open, ‘says this:

¹³ Then the LORD told Abram, “You can be certain about this: Your descendants will be foreigners in a land that isn’t theirs. They will be slaves there and will be oppressed for 400 years.

¹³ The LORD asked Abraham, “Why did Sarah laugh and think, ‘Am I really going to bear a child, since I’m so old?’

⁹ So Abimelech called Isaac and confronted him. “She is definitely your wife!” he accused him, “So why did you claim, ‘She’s my sister?’”
Isaac responded, “Because I had thought ‘…otherwise, I’ll die on account of her.’”

¹ David’s Psalm of DeliveranceDavid composed the words of this song to the LORD the very day the LORD delivered him from the domination of all of his enemies, including from Saul’s hands.

⁹ The LORD’s eyes keep on roaming throughout the earth, looking for those whose hearts completely belong to him, so that he may strongly support them. But because you have acted foolishly in this, from now on you will have wars.”

¹⁹ “He will deliver you through six calamities; and calamity won’t touch you throughout the seventh.

³¹ People in my household have said, ‘We cannot find anyone who has not been satisfied with his meat,’ haven’t they?

¹⁸ Indeed, the LORD watches those who fear him; those who trust in his gracious love

²² The LORD redeems the lives of his servants; and none of those who trust in him will be held guilty.

² The LORD will protect him and keep him alive; he will be blessed in the land; and he will not be handed over to the desires of his enemies.

¹⁰ Hate evil, you who love the LORD! He guards the lives of those who love him, delivering them from domination by the wicked.

³¹ for he stands at the right hand of the needy one, to deliver him from his accusers.

²⁵ “Look!” he told them, “I see four men walking untied and unharmed in the middle of the fire, and the appearance of the fourth resembles a divine being.”

²⁸ Nebuchadnezzar spoke up and announced: “Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego! He sent his angel to deliver his servants who trusted in him. They disobeyed the king’s command and were willing to risk their lives in order not to serve or worship any god except their own God.

¹⁷ “Then he came to his senses and said, ‘How many of my father’s hired men have more food than they can eat, and here I am starving to death!

⁷ Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared and a light shone in the cell. He tapped Peter on his side, woke him up, and said, “Get up quickly!” His chains fell from his wrists.

¹² Some Jews Plot to Kill PaulIn the morning, the Jewish leaders formed a conspiracy and took an oath not to eat or drink anything before they had killed Paul. ¹³ More than 40 men formed this conspiracy. ¹⁴ They went to the high priests and elders and said, “We have taken a solemn oath not to taste any food before we have killed Paul. ¹⁵ Now then, you and the Council must notify the tribune to bring him down to you on the pretext that you want to look into his case more carefully, but before he arrives we’ll be ready to kill him.”
¹⁶ But the son of Paul’s sister heard about the ambush, so he came and got into the barracks and told Paul. ¹⁷ Then Paul called one of the centurions and said, “Take this young man to the tribune, because he has something to tell him.”
¹⁸ So the centurion took him, brought him to the tribune, and said, “The prisoner Paul called me and asked me to bring this young man to you. He has something to tell you.”
¹⁹ The tribune took him by the hand, stepped aside to be alone with him, and asked, “What have you got to tell me?”
²⁰ He answered, “The Jewish leaders have agreed to ask you to bring Paul down to the Council tomorrow as though they were going to examine his case more carefully. ²¹ Don’t believe them, because more than 40 of them are planning to ambush him. They’ve taken an oath not to eat or drink before they’ve killed him. They are ready now, just waiting for your consent.”
²² The tribune dismissed the young man and ordered him not to tell anyone that he had notified him. ²³ Then he summoned two centurions and ordered, “Get 200 soldiers ready to leave for Caesarea at nine o’clock tonight, along with 70 mounted soldiers and 200 soldiers with spears. ²⁴ Provide a mount for Paul to ride, and take him safely to Governor Felix.” ²⁵ He wrote a letter with this message:
²⁶ “From: Claudius Lysias
To: Governor Felix
Greetings, Your Excellency:
²⁷ This man had been seized by the Jews and was about to be killed by them when I went with the guard and rescued him, having learned that he was a Roman citizen. ²⁸ I wanted to know the exact charge they were making against him, so I had him brought before their Council. ²⁹ I found that, although he was charged with questions about their Law, there was no charge against him deserving death or imprisonment. ³⁰ Since a plot against the man has been reported to me, I’m sending him to you at once, and I’ve also ordered his accusers to present their charges against him before you.”

³ and asking Festus to have Paul brought to Jerusalem as a favor. They were laying an ambush to kill him on the road.
⁴ Festus replied that Paul was being kept in custody at Caesarea and that he himself would be going there soon. ⁵ “Therefore,” he said, “have your authorities come down with me and present their charges against him there, if there is anything wrong with the man.”

⁸ How God Rescued PaulFor we do not want you to be ignorant, brothers, about the suffering we experienced in Asia. We were so crushed beyond our ability to endure that we even despaired of living. ⁹ In fact, we felt that we had received a death sentence so we would not rely on ourselves but on God, who raises the dead. ¹⁰ He has rescued us from a terrible death, and he will continue to rescue us. Yes, he is the one on whom we have set our hope, and he will rescue us again,

⁹ then the Lord knows how to rescue godly people from their trials and to hold unrighteous people for punishment on the day of judgment,

²⁴ Before they call, I will answer, while they are still speaking, I’ll hear.

¹⁹ Furthermore, I tell all of you with certainty that if two of you agree on earth about anything you request, it will be done for you by my Father in heaven, ²⁰ because where two or three have come together in my name, I am there among them.”

²³ The Believers Pray for BoldnessAfter they were released, Peter and John went to their fellow believers and told them everything the high priests and the elders had said.

⁵ So Peter was kept in prison, but earnest prayer to God for him was being offered by the assembly.

²⁵ When Barnabas and Saul had fulfilled their mission, they returned to Jerusalem, bringing with them John who was also called Mark.

⁵ Arriving in Salamis, they began to preach God’s word in the Jewish synagogues. They also had John to help them.

¹³ Paul and Barnabas Go to Antioch in PisidiaThen Paul and his men set sail from Paphos and arrived in Perga in Pamphylia, where John left them and went back to Jerusalem.

³⁷ Barnabas wanted to take along John, who was called Mark, ³⁸ but Paul did not think it was right to take along the man who had deserted them in Pamphylia and who had not gone with them into the work. ³⁹ The disagreement was so sharp that they parted ways. Barnabas took Mark and sailed to Cyprus,

⁴⁰ Leaving the jail, Paul and Silas went to Lydia’s house. They saw the brothers, encouraged them, and then left.

¹⁰ Aristarchus, my fellow prisoner, sends his greetings, as does Mark, the cousin of Barnabas. You have received instructions about him. If he comes to you, welcome him. ¹¹ Only Luke is with me. Get Mark and bring him with you, for he is useful in my ministry.

²⁴ as do Mark, Aristarchus, Demas, and Luke, my fellow workers.

¹³ Your sister church in Babylon, chosen along with you, sends you greetings, as does Mark, whom I regard as a son. ¹⁴ And this is the confidence that we have in him: if we ask for anything according to his will, he listens to us. ¹⁵ And if we know that he listens to our requests, we can be sure that we have what we ask him for.

²⁵ After the homeowner gets up and closes the door, you can stand outside, knock on the door, and say again and again, ‘Lord, open the door for us!’ But he will answer you, ‘I don’t know where you come from.’

¹⁶ Peter, however, stood outside the gate. So this other disciple who was known to the high priest went out and spoke to the gatekeeper and brought Peter inside. ¹⁷ The young woman at the gate asked Peter, “You aren’t one of this man’s disciples, too, are you?”
“I am not,” he replied.

¹⁶ Meanwhile, Peter kept on knocking and knocking. When they opened the gate, they saw him and were amazed.

⁸ So they quickly left the tomb, terrified but also ecstatic, and ran to tell Jesus’ disciples.

⁴¹ Even though they were still skeptical due to their joy and astonishment, Jesus asked them, “Do you have anything here to eat?”

¹⁶ the angel who has been rescuing me from all sorts of evil, bless these young men. May my name continue to live on within them, including the names of my ancestors Abraham and Isaac, and may they grow into a vast multitude throughout the earth.”

¹⁶ “Were I to be summoned, and he were to answer me, I wouldn’t even believe that he was listening to what I have to say.

¹⁰ “See to it that you do not despise one of these little ones, because I tell you, their angels in heaven always have access to my Father in heaven.

¹¹ When they heard that he was alive and that he had been seen by her, they refused to believe Mary.

¹⁴ Jesus Commissions His Disciples
Finally he appeared to his eleven disciples while they were eating. He rebuked them for their unbelief and stubbornness, because they had not believed those who had seen him after he had risen.

¹¹ But what they said seemed nonsense to them, so they did not believe them.

³⁷ They were startled and terrified, thinking they were seeing a ghost. ³⁸ But Jesus told them, “What’s frightening you? And why are you doubting?

²⁴ As he continued his defense, Festus shouted, “You’re out of your mind, Paul! Too much education is driving you crazy!”

¹⁶ Come and listen, all of you who fear God, and I will tell you what he did for me.

²⁰ to listen to the groans of prisoners, to set free those condemned to death, ²¹ so they would declare the name of the LORD in Zion and his praise in Jerusalem,

²¹ Let them give thanks to the LORD for his gracious love, and for his awesome deeds for mankind. ²² Let them offer sacrifices of thanksgiving and talk about his works with shouts of joy.

¹⁴ I will fulfill my vows to the LORD in the presence of all his people. ¹⁵ In the sight of the LORD, the death of his faithful ones is valued.

²³ So when they persecute you in one town, flee to the next, because I tell all of you with certainty that you will not have gone through the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.

²² But when he did come out, he was unable to speak to them. Then they realized that he had seen a vision in the sanctuary. He kept motioning to them but remained unable to speak.

¹ The Unbelief of Jesus’ BrothersAfter this, Jesus traveled throughout Galilee, because he didn’t want to travel in Judea, since the Jewish leaders there were trying to kill him.

⁵⁹ At this, they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the Temple.

⁴⁰ Then he went away again across the Jordan to the place where John had been baptizing at first, and he remained there.

⁵⁴ As a result, Jesus no longer walked openly among the Jews. Instead, he went from there to a town called Ephraim in the region near the wilderness. There he remained with his disciples.

²⁴ So Simon Peter motioned to this man to ask Jesus about whom he was speaking.

¹⁶ Then Paul stood up, motioned with his hand, and said:
“Men of Israel and you who fear God, listen!

¹³ After Paul and Barnabas had finished speaking, James responded, “Brothers, listen to me:

³³ Some of the crowd concluded it was because of Alexander, since the Jews had pushed him to the front. So Alexander motioned for silence and tried to make a defense before the people.

¹⁸ The next day, Paul went with us to visit James, and all the elders were present.

⁴⁰ The tribune gave him permission, and Paul, standing on the steps, motioned for the people to be silent. When everyone had quieted down, he spoke to them in the Hebrew language:

⁷ Next he was seen by James, then by all the apostles,

¹⁹ But I did not see any other apostle except James, the Lord’s brother.

⁹ So when James, Cephas, and John (who were reputed to be leaders) recognized the grace that had been given me, they gave Barnabas and me the right hand of fellowship, agreeing that we should go to the gentiles and they to the circumcised.

¹² Until some men arrived from James, he was in the habit of eating with the gentiles, but after those men came, he withdrew from the gentiles and would not associate with them any longer, because he was afraid of the circumcision party.

¹ GreetingsFrom: James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus, the Messiah.
To: The twelve tribes in the Dispersion.
Greetings.

²² When the Temple police got there, they did not find them in the prison. They came back and reported, ²³ “We found the prison securely locked and the guards standing at the doors, but when we opened them, we found no one inside.” ²⁴ When the commander of the Temple guards and the high priests heard these words, they were utterly at a loss as to what could have happened to them.
²⁵ Then someone came and told them, “Look! The men you put in prison are standing in the Temple and teaching the people!”

²⁷ When the jailer woke up and saw the prison doors wide open, he drew his sword and was about to kill himself, since he thought the prisoners had escaped.

²³ A Riot in EphesusNow about that time a great commotion broke out concerning the Way.

¹⁴ Jonathan Visits DavidDavid stayed in the wilderness in the strongholds, and he lived in the hill country in the wilderness of Ziph. Saul sought him every day, but God did not let David slip into Saul’s control.

⁴³ After hearing this, the king of Israel rode back to his palace in Samaria, frustrated and in a foul mood.

¹² Then Mordecai returned to the king’s gate, while Haman hurried to his house, mourning and hiding his face.

²⁶ The king ordered his son Jerahmeel, Azriel’s son Seraiah, and Abdeel’s son Shelemiah to get Baruch the scribe and Jeremiah the prophet, but the LORD had hidden them.

¹¹ Furthermore, what the king is asking is so difficult that no one can reveal it except the gods—and they don’t live with human beings.”
¹² At this point, the king flew into a rage and issued an order to destroy all the advisors of Babylon. ¹³ When the order went out to kill the advisors, they searched for Daniel and his friends to kill them, too.

¹³ The Escape to EgyptAfter they had gone, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream. “Get up, take the child and his mother, and flee to Egypt,” he said. “Stay there until I tell you, because Herod intends to search for the child and kill him.”

¹⁶ The Massacre of the InfantsHerod flew into a rage when he learned that he had been tricked by the wise men, so he ordered the execution of all the male children in Bethlehem and all its neighboring regions, who were two years old and younger, according to the time that he had determined from the wise men.

¹¹ The Guards Report to the High PriestsWhile the women were on their way, some of the guards went into the city and told the high priests everything that had happened. ¹² So they met with the elders and agreed on a plan to give the soldiers a large amount of money. ¹³ They said, “Say that Jesus’ disciples came at night and stole him while you were sleeping. ¹⁴ If this is reported to the governor, we’ll personally persuade him to keep you out of trouble.” ¹⁵ So the soldiers took the money, did as they were instructed, and this story has been spread among the Jews to this day.

¹⁰ So the high priests planned to kill Lazarus, too, ¹¹ since he was the reason why so many of the Jews were leaving to believe in Jesus.

⁴⁰ But Philip found himself at Azotus. As he was passing through that region, he kept proclaiming the good news in all the towns until he came to Caesarea.

⁸ The next day, we left and came to Caesarea. We went to the home of Philip the evangelist, one of the Seven, and stayed with him.

¹³ King Agrippa Meets PaulAfter several days had passed, King Agrippa and Bernice came to Caesarea to welcome Festus.

⁴² The soldiers’ plan was to kill the prisoners to keep them from swimming ashore and escaping,

¹⁵ Canaan fathered Sidon his firstborn, along with the Hittites,

¹⁹ The Canaanite border extended south from Sidon toward Gerar as far as Gaza, and east toward Sodom, Gomorrah, Admah, and Zeboiim, as far as Lasha.

²⁹ There the boundary turned toward Ramah, reaching to the fortress city of Tyre and turned to Hosah, where it terminated at the Mediterranean Sea. Also included were Mahalab, Achzib,

⁹ My servants will transport them from Lebanon to the sea, where we’ll make them into rafts and float them by sea to the port that you tell me to send them. We’ll have them prepared for transport there and then you can carry them from there. You can meet my needs by providing provisions for my household.”
¹⁰ That’s how Hiram came to provide Solomon as much cedar and cypress timber as he needed. ¹¹ In return, Solomon paid Hiram 20,000 kors of wheat as food for his household, and 20 kors of beaten oil. Solomon provided this amount every year during the construction.

¹⁰ “Now look! I will pay your servants, the lumberjacks who prepare the timber, 20,000 measures of barley, 20,000 baths of wine, and 20,000 baths of oil.”

¹⁵ “So then, may my lord send to his servants the wheat, barley, oil, and wine about which he has spoken.

⁷ Construction Begins on the TempleThey paid masons and carpenters in cash. They paid the residents of Sidon and Tyre with food, drink, and oil, for them to bring cedar trees by sea from Lebanon to Joppa in accordance with the order they had obtained from Cyrus, king of Persia.

¹⁴ Starting a quarrel is like spilling water— so drop the dispute before it escalates.

¹⁸ Make plans by seeking advice; make war by obtaining guidance.

⁸ don’t be in a hurry to argue in court. Otherwise, what will you do later on when your neighbor humiliates you?

⁴ If your overseer gets angry at you, don’t resign, because calmness pacifies great offenses.

¹ Tyre is RebukedA message concerning Tyre. “Wail, you ships of Tarshish, for Tyre is destroyed and is without house or harbor! From the land of Cyprus it was revealed to them. ² “Be silent, you inhabitants of the coast, you merchants of Sidon, whose messengers crossed over the sea, ³ and were on mighty waters. Her revenue was the grain of Shihor, the harvest of the Nile; and she became the marketplace of nations. ⁴ Be ashamed, Sidon, because the sea has spoken, the fortress of the sea: I have neither been in labor nor given birth, I have neither reared young men nor brought up young women.”

⁴ I am not angry. If only the vineyard could give me briers and thorns to battle, I would march against it, and I would burn it all up. ⁵ Or else let it lay claim to my protection; let it make peace with me, yes, let it make peace with me.”

¹⁷ The territories of Judah and Israel were your clients, too. They traded wheat from their distribution centers, baked goods, honey, oil, and ointments for your merchandise.

⁸ She didn’t recognize that it was I who provided her grain, wine, and oil, and it was I who gave her silver, while they crafted gold for Baal. ⁹ “Therefore I’ll return and take back my grain at harvest time and my new wine in its season. I’ll take back my wool and my flax that was to have covered her nakedness.

⁶ Israel’s Refusal to Return to God“I also have scheduled food shortages for you in all of your cities, and lack of bread in all of your settlements, but you haven’t returned to me,” declares the LORD. ⁷ “I therefore have withheld the rain from you three months before the harvest, causing rain to come upon one city, but not upon another, and upon one field but not upon another, so that it would wither. ⁸ So the people of two or three cities staggered away to another city in order to obtain drinking water, but you have not returned to me,” declares the LORD. ⁹ “I afflicted you with blight and fungus; and the locust swarm devoured the harvest of your gardens, your vineyards, your fig trees, and your olive trees, but you have not returned to me,” declares the LORD.

⁸ Go up into the mountains, bring timber, and reconstruct my house. Then I will be pleased with it and I will be honored,’ says the LORD. ⁹ ‘You turned away in pursuit of abundance, but look at how little you found! What you did manage to bring home, I blew away! And why?’ declares the LORD of the Heavenly Armies. ‘It’s because of my house! It lies in ruins while each of you runs off to his own house! ¹⁰ That is why the heavens keep withholding dew from you, and the earth withholds her fruit. ¹¹ I sent a drought on the land, on the mountains, on your grain, on your new wines, on your oil—on everything the ground produces—on men, on livestock, and on everything you do!’”

¹⁶ When someone came to a pile of grain to get 20 measures, there were only ten. Or when someone approached the wine press to siphon out 50 measures, there were only 20. ¹⁷ I punished you and everything that you undertook—with scorching wind, with mildew, and with hail, and you still did not return to me,’ declares the LORD.

²¹ “How terrible it will be for you, Chorazin! How terrible it will be for you, Bethsaida! Because if the miracles that happened in you had taken place in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. ²² Indeed I tell you, it will be more bearable for Tyre and Sidon on Judgment Day than for you!

³¹ “Or suppose a king is going to war against another king. He will first sit down and consider whether with 10,000 men he can fight the one coming against him with 20,000 men, won’t he? ³² If he can’t, he will send a delegation to ask for terms of peace while the other king is still far away.

⁸ The master praised the dishonest servant manager for being so clever, because worldly people are more clever than enlightened people in dealing with their own.

² Everyone speaks lies to his neighbor; they speak with flattering lips and hidden motives.

⁷ All of the royal administrators, prefects, regional authorities, scribes, and governors have concluded that the king should establish and enforce an edict that anyone who prays to any god or man for the next 30 days (except to you, your majesty) is to be thrown into the lions’ pit.

¹⁰ he said in a loud voice, “Stand up straight on your feet!” Then the man jumped up and began to walk.
¹¹ When the crowds saw what Paul had done, they shouted in the Lycaonian language, “The gods have become like men and have come down to us!” ¹² They began to call Barnabas Zeus, and Paul Hermes, because he was the main speaker. ¹³ The priest of the temple of Zeus, which was just outside the city, brought bulls and garlands to the gates. He and the crowds wanted to offer sacrifices.

¹⁶ These people are complainers and faultfinders, following their own desires. They say arrogant things and flatter people in order to take advantage of them.

⁴ They worshipped the dragon because it had given authority to the beast. They also worshipped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast, and who can fight a war with it?”

¹⁷ You are still acting arrogantly against my people by not letting them go.

³ Moses and Aaron went to Pharaoh and told him, “This is what the LORD God of the Hebrews says: ‘How long will you refuse to humble yourself before me? Let my people go, so they may serve me.

¹² I’ll pass through the land of Egypt that night and strike every firstborn in the land of Egypt, both people and animals. I’ll execute judgments on all the gods of Egypt. I am the LORD.

²³ because the LORD will pass through to strike down the Egyptians, and when he sees the blood on the lintel and the two doorposts, the LORD will pass over the doorway, and won’t allow the destroyer to enter your houses to strike you down.

²⁹ The Death of the Firstborn in EgyptAnd so at midnight the LORD struck down every firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the firstborn of the prisoner who was in the dungeon, and all the firstborn of the livestock.

³⁸ About ten days later the LORD struck Nabal, and he died.

¹⁶ As the angel was stretching out his hand to destroy Jerusalem, the LORD was grieved because of the calamity, so he told the angel who was afflicting the people, “Enough! Stay your hand!” So the angel of the LORD remained near the threshing floor that belonged to Araunah the Jebusite.
¹⁷ When David saw the angel who had been attacking the people, he told the LORD, “Look, I’m the one who has sinned! I did the evil. These are only sheep! What did they do? Please, let your hand fall on me and on my household!”

³⁵ God Destroys the Assyrian Army
That very night, the angel of the LORD went out to the camp of the Assyrian army and killed 185,000 men. Early the next morning, when the army of Israel arose, all 185,000 soldiers were dead.

¹⁴ Then the LORD sent a pestilence to Israel, and 70,000 men died in Israel. ¹⁵ God also sent an angel to destroy Jerusalem, but as he was about to do so, the LORD looked and withdrew the calamity by saying to the destroying angel, “Enough! Stop what you’re doing!”
So the angel of the LORD remained standing near the threshing floor that belonged to Ornan the Jebusite. ¹⁶ David looked up and saw the angel of the LORD standing between earth and heaven, with a drawn sword in his hand stretched out over Jerusalem. Then David and the elders, clothed in sackcloth, fell on their faces.
¹⁷ David told God, “Wasn’t I the one who ordered the census of the population? Wasn’t it I who sinned and acted wickedly? Now as for these sheep, what have they done? LORD God, please let your hand be against me and my ancestral household, but don’t let your people be ravaged by plague!”
¹⁸ David’s Altar
The angel of the LORD told Gad to tell David that David was to go up and build an altar to the LORD on the threshing floor that belonged to Ornan the Jebusite.

¹⁸ Jehoram’s Illness and Death
After all of this happened, the LORD struck him in his bowels with an incurable illness. ¹⁹ In due course, as time passed, two years later his bowels came out because of his sickness and he died in agony. His people lit no memorial bonfire for him as they had done for his ancestors.

²¹ So the LORD sent an angel, who eliminated all of the elite forces, commanders, and officers within the encampment of the king of Assyria. As a result, he retreated to his own country, deeply ashamed and humiliated. When he visited the temple of his god, some of his sons killed him right there with swords.

⁵ My skin is covered with worms and clods of dirt; my skin becomes rough and then breaks out afresh.

²⁶ Even after my skin has been destroyed, clothed in my flesh I will see God,

¹ The Impotence of Idols Not to us, LORD, not to us, but to your name be given glory on account of your gracious love and faithfulness.

¹¹ Your pomp has been brought down to Sheol, along with the noise of your harps. Maggots are spread out beneath you, and worms are your covering.”

²³ Whom have you insulted and reviled? Against whom have you raised your voice and lifted your eyes in pride? Against the Holy One of Israel!

⁸ For moths will eat them up just like a garment, and worms will devour them like wool; but my deliverance will last forever, and my salvation to all generations.

²⁴ “Then they will go out and look upon the dead bodies of the people who rebelled against me. For their worm will not die, nor will their fire be extinguished, and they will remain an object of revulsion to all humanity.”

² “Son of Man, tell Tyre’s Commander-in-Chief, ‘This is what the Lord GOD says: “Because your heart is arrogant, and because you keep saying, ‘I have taken my seat, I am a god, seated in God’s seat right in the middle of the sea,’ and because you’re a man, and not a god, even though you pretend that you have a god-like heart…

⁹ Is that when you’ll say, ‘I’m God’ to the face of those who will be killing you? After all, you’re a man, and have never been a god, especially when you’re under the control of those who will defile you!

³⁰ he commented to himself, “Isn’t Babylon great? I’ve built a royal palace in it by my own might and power, for the sake of my majesty.”
³¹ As these words were being spoken by the king, a voice came out of heaven: “King Nebuchadnezzar, this is declared to you: ‘The kingdom has been taken from you! ³² You’re to be driven away from people. You’re to live with the wild animals of the field. You are to be made to eat grass like cattle, and seven years will pass you by until you realize that the Most High is sovereign over human kingdoms and grants them to whomever he desires.’”
³³ The decree was fulfilled against Nebuchadnezzar immediately. He was driven away from people to eat grass like cattle, and his body was drenched with dew from the sky, until his hair grew like eagles’ feathers and his nails like birds’ claws.”
³⁴ The King’s Sanity Returns“When that period of time was over, I, Nebuchadnezzar, lifted my eyes to heaven and my sanity returned to me. I blessed the Most High, praising and honoring the one who lives forever: For his sovereignty is eternal, and his kingdom continues from generation to generation. ³⁵ All who live on the earth are nothing compared to him. He does what he wishes with the heavenly armies and with those who live on earth. No one can hold back his power or say to him, ‘What did you do?’
³⁶ At that moment I recovered my sanity, and my honor and majesty returned to me, for the sake of my kingdom. My advisors and officials sought me out, my throne was restored, and even more greatness than I had before was added to me. ³⁷ In conclusion, I, Nebuchadnezzar, praise, exalt, and give glory to the King of heaven: For everything he does is true, his ways are just, and he is able to humble those who walk in pride.”

¹⁸ Your majesty, the Most High God gave your grandfather Nebuchadnezzar sovereignty, as well as greatness, glory, and splendor. ¹⁹ And because of the greatness that he gave him, all peoples, nations, and languages revered and feared him. He executed those whom he desired to execute, he spared those whom he wished to spare, he promoted those whom he desired to promote, and he humbled those whom he wished to humble. ²⁰ But when he became arrogant and his spirit hardened, he was removed from his royal throne and his glory was taken away from him. ²¹ He was driven away from human society and given the mind of an animal. He lived with wild donkeys, ate grass like cattle, and his body was soaked with dew from the sky until he realized that the Most High God is sovereign over human kingdoms and places over them whomever he desires.
²² “But you, Belshazzar, his grandson, haven’t humbled yourself, even though you knew all of this.
²³ “You’ve exalted yourself against the Lord of heaven.
“You’ve had the vessels from his Temple brought into your presence.
“And you, your officials, and your wives and mistresses drank wine from them.
“You praised gods of silver, gold, bronze, iron, wood, and stone, which can’t see, hear, or demonstrate knowledge.
“But you didn’t honor God, who holds in his power your very life and all your ways.
²⁴ “Therefore, the hand that wrote this inscription was sent from his presence.

⁴³ So if your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It’s better for you to enter life injured than to have two hands and go to hell, to the fire that cannot be put out. ⁴⁴ In that place, worms never die, and the fire is never put out.
⁴⁵ And if your foot causes you to sin, cut it off. It’s better for you to enter life crippled than to have two feet and be thrown into hell. ⁴⁶ In that place, worms never die, and the fire is never put out.
⁴⁷ And if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out. It’s better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell. ⁴⁸ In that place, worms never die, and the fire is never put out.

⁴⁷ That servant who knew what his master wanted but didn’t prepare himself or do what was wanted will receive a severe beating. ⁴⁸ But the servant who did things that deserved a beating without knowing it will receive a light beating. Much will be required from everyone to whom much has been given. But even more will be demanded from the one to whom much has been entrusted.”

²⁵ When Peter was about to enter, Cornelius met him, bowed down at his feet, and began to worship him. ²⁶ But Peter made him get up, saying, “Stand up! I, too, am only a man.”

¹⁴ But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of it, they tore their clothes and rushed out into the crowd, shouting, ¹⁵ “Men, why are you doing this? We are merely human beings with natures like yours. We are telling you the good news so you’ll turn from these worthless things to the living God, who made heaven and earth, the sea, and everything in them.

⁴ He opposes and exalts himself above every so-called god and object of worship. As a result, he seats himself in the sanctuary of God and himself declares that he is God.

²⁸ When the wicked rise to power, people hide themselves, but when the wicked perish, the righteous increase.

¹⁰ Don’t be afraid, because I’m with you; don’t be anxious, because I am your God. I keep on strengthening you; I’m truly helping you. I’m surely upholding you with my victorious right hand.”
¹¹ The Coming Defeat of God’s Enemies“Look! All who are enraged at you will be put to shame and disgraced; those who contend with you will all die. ¹² Those who quarrel with you will be as nothing; those who fight you like nothing at all!”
¹³ A Call to Courage“For I am the LORD your God, who takes hold of your right hand, who says to you, ‘Don’t be afraid. I’ll help you.

¹⁴ “In righteousness you’ll be established; you will be far from tyranny, for you won’t be afraid, and from terror, for it won’t come near you. ¹⁵ Watch! If anyone does attack you, it will not be from me; whoever may attack you will fall because of you. ¹⁶ Look! It is I who have created the blacksmith who fans coals in the fire, and produces a weapon for his purpose. It is I who have created the ravager to wreak havoc; ¹⁷ no weapon that is forged against you will be effective. This is the heritage of the LORD’s servants, and their righteousness from me,” says the LORD.

¹⁰ “For just as the rain and snow come down from heaven, and do not return there without watering the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, yielding seed for the sower and bread for eating,

²⁴ After this, Daniel went to Arioch, whom the king had appointed to execute the advisors of Babylon. He told him, “Don’t destroy the advisors of Babylon. Bring me before the king and I’ll explain the meaning to him.”

⁴⁴ “During the reigns of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor its sovereignty left in the hands of another people. It will shatter and crush all of these kingdoms, and it will stand forever.

¹⁸ I tell you that you are Peter, and it is on this rock that I will build my congregation, and the powers of hell will not conquer it.

³⁹ However, if it’s from God, you won’t be able to stop them, and you may even discover that you are fighting against God!”
So they were convinced by him.

⁷ So the word of God continued to spread, and the number of disciples in Jerusalem continued to grow rapidly. Even a large number of priests became obedient to the faith.

²¹ The hand of the Lord was with them, and a large number of people believed and turned to the Lord.

²⁰ In that way the word of the Lord kept spreading and triumphing.

⁶ that has come to you. Just as it is bearing fruit and spreading all over the world, so it has been doing among you from the day you heard it and came to know the grace of God in truth.

¹ An Example to FollowFinally, brothers, pray for us—that the word of the Lord may spread rapidly, and that it may be honored the way it is among you.

³⁶ One man, Joseph, a descendant of Levi and a native of Cyprus, who was named Barnabas by the apostles (the name means “a son of encouragement”),

²⁹ So all of the disciples decided they would send a contribution to the brothers living in Judea, as they were able, ³⁰ by sending it through Barnabas and Saul to the elders.

¹ Barnabas and Saul Travel to CyprusNow Barnabas, Simeon called Niger, Lucius from Cyrene, Manaen, who grew up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul were prophets and teachers in the church at Antioch. ² While they were worshiping the Lord and fasting, the Holy Spirit said, “Set Barnabas and Saul apart for me to do the work for which I called them.” ³ Then they fasted and prayed, laid their hands on them, and let them go. ⁴ After they had been sent out by the Holy Spirit, they went to Seleucia and from there sailed to Cyprus. ⁵ Arriving in Salamis, they began to preach God’s word in the Jewish synagogues. They also had John to help them.
⁶ They went through the whole island as far as Paphos, where they found a Jewish occult practitioner and false prophet named Bar-jesus. ⁷ He was associated with the proconsul Sergius Paulus, who was an intelligent man. He sent for Barnabas and Saul because he wanted to hear the word of God. ⁸ But Elymas the occult practitioner (that is the meaning of his name) continued to oppose them and tried to turn the proconsul away from the faith. ⁹ But Saul, also known as Paul, filled with the Holy Spirit, looked him straight in the eye ¹⁰ and said, “You’re full of every form of deception and trickery, you son of the devil, you enemy of all that is right! You’ll never stop perverting the straight ways of the Lord, will you? ¹¹ The Lord is against you now, and you’ll be blind and unable to see the sun for a while!” At that moment a dark mist came over him, and he went around looking for someone to lead him by the hand. ¹² When the proconsul saw what had happened, he believed, because he was astonished at the Lord’s teaching.
¹³ Paul and Barnabas Go to Antioch in PisidiaThen Paul and his men set sail from Paphos and arrived in Perga in Pamphylia, where John left them and went back to Jerusalem. ¹⁴ They left Perga and arrived in Antioch in Pisidia. On the Sabbath day, they went into the synagogue and sat down. ¹⁵ After the reading of the Law and the Prophets, the synagogue leaders asked them, “Brothers, if you have any message of encouragement for the people, you may speak.”
¹⁶ Then Paul stood up, motioned with his hand, and said:
“Men of Israel and you who fear God, listen! ¹⁷ The God of this people Israel chose our ancestors and made them a great people during their stay in the land of Egypt, and with a public display of power he led them out of there. ¹⁸ After he had put up with them for 40 years in the wilderness, ¹⁹ he destroyed seven nations in the land of Canaan. Then God gave their land to the Israelis as an inheritance ²⁰ for about 450 years.
“After that, he gave them judges until the time of the prophet Samuel. ²¹ When they demanded a king, God gave them Kish’s son Saul, from the tribe of Benjamin, for 40 years. ²² Then God removed Saul and made David their king, about whom he testified, ‘I have found that David, the son of Jesse, is a man after my own heart, who will carry out all my wishes.’ ²³ It was from this man’s descendants that God, as he promised, brought to Israel a Savior, who is Jesus. ²⁴ Before Jesus’ appearance, John had already preached a baptism of repentance to all the people in Israel. ²⁵ When John was finishing his work, he said, ‘Who do you think I am? I’m not the Messiah. No, but he is coming after me, and I’m not worthy to untie the sandals on his feet.’
²⁶ “My brothers, descendants of Abraham’s family, and those among you who fear God, it is to us that the message of this salvation has been sent. ²⁷ For the people who live in Jerusalem and their leaders, not knowing who Jesus was, condemned him and so fulfilled the words of the prophets that are read every Sabbath. ²⁸ Although they found no reason to sentence him to death, they asked Pilate to have him executed. ²⁹ When they had finished doing everything that was written about him, they took him down from the tree and placed him in a tomb. ³⁰ But God raised him from the dead, ³¹ and for many days he appeared to those who had come with him to Jerusalem from Galilee. These are now his witnesses to the people. ³² We’re telling you the good news: What God promised our ancestors ³³ he has fulfilled for us, their descendants, by raising Jesus. As it is written in the second Psalm, ‘You are my Son. Today I have become your Father.’ ³⁴ God raised him from the dead, never to experience decay, as he said, ‘I’ll give you the holy promises made to David.’ ³⁵ In another Psalm he says, ‘You will not let your Holy One experience decay.’ ³⁶ Now David, after he had served God’s purpose in his own generation, died and was buried with his ancestors, and so he experienced decay. ³⁷ However, the man whom God raised did not experience decay.
³⁸ “Therefore, brothers, you must understand that through him the forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you, ³⁹ and that everyone who believes in him is justified and freed from everything that kept you from being justified by the Law of Moses. ⁴⁰ So be careful that what the prophets said doesn’t happen to you: ⁴¹ ‘Look, you mockers! Be amazed and die! Since I am performing an action in your days, one that you would not believe even if someone told you!’”
⁴² As Paul and Barnabas were leaving, the people kept urging them to tell them the same things the next Sabbath. ⁴³ When the meeting of the synagogue broke up, many Jews and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who kept talking to them and urging them to continue in the grace of God.
⁴⁴ The next Sabbath almost the whole town gathered to hear the word of the Lord. ⁴⁵ But when the Jewish leaders saw the crowds, they were filled with jealousy and began to object to the statements made by Paul and even to abuse him.
⁴⁶ Then Paul and Barnabas boldly declared, “We had to speak God’s word to you first, but since you reject it and consider yourselves unworthy of eternal life, we are now going to turn to the gentiles. ⁴⁷ For that is what the Lord ordered us to do: ‘I have made you a light to the gentiles to be the means of salvation to the very ends of the earth.’”
⁴⁸ When the gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing and glorifying the word of the Lord. Meanwhile, all who had been destined to eternal life believed, ⁴⁹ and the word of the Lord began to spread throughout the whole region. ⁵⁰ But the Jewish leaders stirred up devout women of high social standing and the officials in the city, started a persecution against Paul and Barnabas, and drove them out of their territory. ⁵¹ So Paul and Barnabas shook the dust off their feet in protest against them and went to Iconium. ⁵² Meanwhile, the disciples continued to be full of joy and the Holy Spirit.

³⁷ Barnabas wanted to take along John, who was called Mark,