But Mary stood by the tomb, lamenting. And as she lamented, she stooped and looked inside the tomb, and she saw two angels, in white, sitting where the body of Jesus had been lying, one at the head and one at the feet. And they said to her: Lady, why are you lamenting? She said to them: Because they have taken my Lord away, and I do not know where they have put him. So speaking, she turned about, and she saw Jesus standing there and did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to her: Lady, why are you lamenting? Whom do you seek? She thought he was the gardener and said to him: Sir, if you took him away, tell me where you put him, and I will take him. Jesus said to her: Mary. Then she turned and said to him, in Hebrew: Rabbuni (which means master). Jesus said to her: Do not hold me, since I have not yet gone up to my father. Go to my brothers and tell them I am going up to my father, and your father, and my God and your God. Mary the Magdalene went and announced to the disciples: I have seen the Lord. And that he had said these things to her.
When it was evening on that day, the first of the week, and the doors of the place where the disciples were staying were locked, through fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said: Peace be with you. And when he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. And the disciples were joyful at seeing the Lord. So he said to them once more: Peace be with you. As the father sent me forth, so I also send you. And so saying he breathed his spirit into them, and said to them: Receive the Holy Spirit. For any whose sins you forgive, their sins are forgiven. For any whose sins you keep fast, they are kept fast.
One of the twelve, Thomas, called the Twin, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples said to him: We have seen the Lord. But he said to them: Unless I see the holes from the nails, and put my finger into the holes from the nails, and put my hand into his side, I will not believe. And eight days later the disciples were in the house once again, and Thomas was with them. Jesus came, though the doors were locked, and stood in their midst and said: Peace be with you. Then he said to Thomas: Put your finger here, and examine my hands, and take your hand and put it into my side, and be not an unbeliever but a believer. Thomas answered and said to him: My Lord and my God. Jesus said to him: You have believed me because you have seen me? Blessed are they who have not seen, and believe.
Jesus performed many other such miracles, in the presence of the disciples, which have not been written down in this book; but these have been written down, so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the son of God, and so that, believing, you may have life in his name.
41 After this, Jesus again showed himself to his disciples, by the Sea of Tiberias. And this is how he showed himself. There together were Simon Peter and Thomas called the Twin and Nathanael from Cana in Galilee and the sons of Zebedee and two others of the disciples. Simon Peter said to them: I am going fishing. They said to him: And we are going with you. So they went and manned the ship, and that night they caught nothing. Early in the morning Jesus was standing on the beach, but the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus then said to them: Children, have you caught anything to eat? They answered him: No. And he said to them: Cast your net in the waters to the right of the ship, and you will find some. So they cast, and they could no longer pull it in because of the quantity of fish. Then that disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter: It is the Lord. So Simon Peter, when he heard that it was the Lord, put on his outer clothes, for he had been stripped down, and threw himself into the sea. And the other disciples came with the boat, for they were not far from the land but about three hundred feet off, dragging the net full of fish. When they came out on the shore they saw a charcoal fire laid, and a small fish placed on it, and bread. Jesus said to them: Bring some of the fish that you caught just now. So Simon Peter went aboard and hauled ashore the net full of big fish, a hundred and fifty-three of them; and though there were so many, the net did not break. Jesus said to them: Come to breakfast. Not one of the disciples dared ask him: Who are you? For they knew that it was the Lord. Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, and the fish likewise.
This was now the third time since he had risen from the dead that Jesus showed himself to the disciples.
When they had breakfasted Jesus said to Simon Peter: Simon son of John, do you love me more than these? He said to him: Yes, Lord, you know that I love you. He said to him: Feed my lambs. He said to him a second time: Simon son of John, do you love me? He said to him: Yes, Lord, you know that I love you. He said to him: Take care of my little sheep. He said to him for the third time: Simon son of John, do you love me? Peter was hurt because he had asked him for the third time: Do you love me? And he said to him: Lord, you know all things, you know that I love you. Jesus said to him: Feed my little sheep. Truly truly I tell you, when you were younger, you girded yourself up and walked about wherever you wished; but when you are old, you will stretch out your hands, and another will gird you and carry you where you do not wish to go. This he said, indicating the kind of death by which he was to glorify God. And when he had said this, he told him: Follow me.
Peter turned about and saw following them the disciple whom Jesus loved, the very one who at the dinner had leaned back close to the breast of Jesus and said: Lord, which one is your betrayer? So seeing this man, Peter said to Jesus: Lord, what of him? Jesus said to him: If I wish him to remain until I come, what is that to you? You, follow me. Therefore the story went out among the brothers that that one was not to die. But Jesus did not tell him that he was not to die, but: If I wish him to remain until I come, what is that to you?
This is the disciple who testifies to these things, and who wrote this, and we know that his testimony is true.
And there are many other things which Jesus did. If they were written down one by one, I do not think the very world could hold all the books that would be written.
ACTS
The Acts of the Apostles
1THE FIRST BOOK I WROTE, О THEOPH- ilus, was about all the acts and teachings of Jesus until that day when, after gi^^ instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen, he was taken aloft. It was to these that he showed himself after his ordeal with many proofs that he was alive, and for forty days he would appear to them and tell them about the Kingdom of God. And while he was staying with them he told them not to remove from Jerusalem, but said: Await my father's promise which you have heard of from me; because John baptized with water, but after not many days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit. So those who were with him questioned him, saying: Lord, are you restoring the Kingdom of Israel in this time? He said to them: It is not yours to know the times and occasions which the Father has appointed by his own authority; but when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, you will be given power, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and all Judaea and Samaria and as far as the end of the earth. When he had said this and as they watched he was raised aloft and a cloud hid him from their eyes. And as they stared into heaven where he went, behold, two men clothed in white stood near them and said: You men of Galilee, why do you stand there looking toward heaven? This same Jesus who was taken up from you to heaven will come back in the same way that you saw him going to heaven. Then they returned to Jerusalem from the hill which is called the Mount of Olives; it is near Jerusalem, a sabbath's walk away. And when they were indoors, they went to the upper story where they were staying. They were Peter and John and James and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus and Simon the zealot and Judas the son of James. All these together were devoting themselves to prayer, along with some women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and his brothers.
On one of those days Peter stood up in the midst of the brothers. There was a crowd of about a hundred and twenty persons assembled. And Peter said: Men and brothers, the scripture was bound to be fulfilled which the Holy Spirit gave us as prophecy t
hrough the mouth of David, concerning Judas, who acted as guide for the men who seized Jesus. For he was numbered among us and had his share of this ministry. Judas bought a piece of property with the money he got for his crime, and there he fell on his face and burst open in the middle and all his bowels spilled out of him. This became known to all who live in Jerusalem, so that that property is called in their language Akeldamach. which means the Field of Blood. For it is written in the Book of Psalms: May his dwelling place be desolate, and may there be no one living in it; and again: Let someone else take over his office. Therefore, out of those men who were with us in all the time when the Lord Jesus came and went among us, beginning from his baptism by John until the day when he was taken aloft from us, out of all these men one should join us as witness to his resurrection. Then they put forward two men, Joseph called Barsabbas, who was surnamed Justus, and Matthias. Then they spoke, praying: Lord, you who know the hearts of all, show us which one of these two you have chosen to take the place in this ministry and mission which Judas forsook for his own place. And they gave them the lots, and the lot fell on Matthias, and he was added by vote to the eleven apostles.
1 Now as the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place; and suddenly there c^e from the sky a noise like the blowing of a great wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And they saw what was like separate tongues of fire, and one settled on each of them, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit, and they began to speak in different languages according as the Spirit gave each one the gift of speaking them.
Now there were Jews living in Jerusalem who were devout men from every nation under heaven; and at the sound of these voices the crowd c^e together, and they were confused, because each one heard them speaking in his own language; and they were full of astonishment and wonder, and said: See, are not all these speakers Galileans? And how is it that each of us hears them speaking in the language he was born to? Parthians and Medes and Elamites, and inhabitants of Mesopotamia, Judaea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, P^rygia and Pam- phylia, E^^ and the parts of Libya by Cyrene; and the Romans who are here in town, Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabs: we all hear them speaking in our own languages of the greatness of God. They were astonished and puzzled and said, one to another: What can this mean? But others scoffed and said: They are drunk on new wine.
But Peter stood forth with the eleven and raised his voice and said to them: Men, Jews and all who live in Jerusalem, let this be understood by you and listen to my words. These men are not drunk as you suppose, for it is only the third hour of the day, but this is what was spoken of by the prophet Joel: And it will come about in the final days, says God, that I will inspire all flesh with my spirit, and your sons and your daughters will prophesy, and your young men will see visions, and your old men will dream dreams; and in those days I will inspire my slaves and my slave women with something of my spirit, and they will prophesy. And I will present portents in the sky above, and signs upon the earth below, blood and fire and clouds of smoke. The sun will tum to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the day of the Lord, the great and glorious day. And it will come about that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved.
Men of Israel, listen to these words. There was Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God through powers and portents and the miracles God wrought through him in your presence, as you yourselves know. This man was delivered up by the definite plan and purpose of God, and you nailed him to the cross by the hands of heathen men, and killed him. But God destroyed the pangs of death and resurrected him, because it was not possible for him to be overcome by death. For David says, meaning him: Throughout all I see the Lord close by me, since he is on my right to keep me unshaken. Therefore my heart is gladdened and my tongue rejoices, and my flesh will still live with hope; because you will not abandon my soul to Hades, nor make him who is sacred to you look upon destruction. You have made me know the ways of life, and with your countenance will fill me with gladness.
Men and brothers, it is possible to speak confidently about the patriarch David because he did die and was buried and his tomb is with us, down to the present day. He was a prophet, and knew that God had sworn to him an oath that he would seat upon his throne one sprung from the issue of his loins; and he said with foreknowledge of the resurrection of the Christ that he was not abandoned to Hades, and that his flesh knew no corruption. God resurrected this Jesus; to that we are all witnesses. And raised to the right hand of God, and having received the promise of the Holy Spirit from his father, he inspired this which you see and hear. For David did not go up to heaven; he himself says: The Lord said to my Lord: Sit on my right, so that I may make your enemies a footstool for your feet. Then let every house in Israel know for sure that God made him Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.
When they heard it they were stricken to the heart, and they said to Peter and the rest of the apostles: Men and brothers, what shall we do? Peter said to them: Repent, and let each one of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit; since for you is the promise, and for your children and for all those far away whom the Lord our God summons to him.
And in many more words he charged them and exhorted them, saying: Be saved from this crooked generation. And those who accepted his word were baptized, and something like three thousand souls were brought over on that day. And they held fast to the teaching of the apostles, their life in common, their breaking of bread, and their prayers. And there was fear in every soul, and many portentous things and miracles were wrought by the apostles. And all those who believed had everything in one place and in common, and they sold their property and belongings and shared all as each one might have need; and every day they would attend at the temple together, and break their bread at home, and share their food in cheerfulness and innocence of heart, praising God and in favor with the whole population. And every day the Lord added more who were saved to their number.
1 Peter and John went up to the temple at the hour for prayer, the ninth hour; and there was a man being carried there who had been lame from his mother's womb. Every day they would lay him down by the gate of the temple which is called the Beautiful Gate, to beg for charity from the people going into the temple. When this man saw Peter and John about to enter the temple, he asked for charity. Peter, together with John, stared at him and said: Look at us. The man turned toward them, expecting to get something from them. But Peter said: I have no silver or gold. But what I do have, I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk. And he gripped him by the right hand and pulled him up; and suddenly his feet and his ankles became strong, and he sprang up and stood and walked, and went into the temple with them, walking and bounding and praising God. And all the people saw him walking and praising God, and they knew that this was the man who had sat begging by the Beautiful Gate of the temple, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.
As he clung to Peter and John, aU the people, in wonderment, ran up to them at the porch which is called the Porch of Solomon. When Peter saw them he spoke forth to the people, saying: Men of Israel, why do you wonder at this? Or why do you stare at us as if by our own power or piety we had made this man walk? The God of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob, the God of our fathers, glorified his son Jesus, whom you betrayed and denied before Pilate, when Pilate judged that he should be released; but you denied the holy and righteous man, and demanded that a murderer be given you as your gift; and you killed the author of life, whom God raised from the dead. To this we are witnesses. And by faith in his name, his name gave strength to this man whom you see before your eyes, and the faith, through him, gave this man full health in the sight of you all.
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nbsp; Now I know, brothers, that you acted in ignorance, and so did your leaders; but God thus fulfilled the sufferings of his Christ which he had foretold through the mouths of all the prophets. Repent, therefore, and tum yourselves to wiping out your sins, so that times may come for relief from the face of the Lord and for him to send Jesus, appointed to be your Christ, whom heaven must receive until the time of the restoration of all things, time of which God has spoken from eternity through the mouths of his holy prophets. Moses said: The Lord God will raise up a prophet from among your brothers; as he did me. Listen to everything he says to you.
And every soul which does not listen to that prophet shall be eradicated from the people. And all the prophets who have spoken, from Samuel and his successors, have predicted these days. You are the sons of the prophets and of the covenant which God made with your fathers, saying to Abraham: And in your seed all the nations of the earth shall be blessed. It was for you first that God raised up his son and sent him to you to bless you by turning each one of you away from his wickedness.
1 As they were speaking to the people, the high priests and the captain of the temple and the Sadducees were upon them, angry because they were teaching the people and announcing in the name of Jesus the resurrection from the dead; and they laid hands on them and put them in prison until the next day, since it was now evening. But many of those who had heard the word believed, and the number of these men came to about five thousand.
The New Testament Page 23