But a certain man named Simon had been in the city before Philip, practicing sorcery and astonishing the people of Samaria, claiming to be a great man, and all followed him, from the small to the great, saying: This is the power of God which is called great. They followed
because for some time he had been astonishing them with his sorceries. But when they believed Philip as he preached the gospel of the Kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women. And Simon himself believed, and when he was baptized he attached himself to Philip, and when he saw the miracles and great powers that were sho^, he was astonished.
The apostles in Jerusalem, hearing that Samaria had accepted the word of God, sent Peter and John to them. When these arrived, they prayed for their sake that they might receive the Holy Spirit. For this had not yet come to any of them, but they had been baptized only in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then they laid their hands upon them and they received the Holy Spirit. When Simon saw that the Holy Spirit was given by the laying on of the hands of the apostles, he brought them money, saying: Give me also this power, so that anyone on whom I lay my hands may receive the Holy Spirit. But Peter said to him: May your silver go to perdition and you along with it, since you thought you could buy the gift of God for money. You have no part or rightful share in this word, since your heart is not straightforward in the sight of God. Then repent of this baseness and beg of the Lord that the intention of your heart will be forgiven; for I see that you are in the gall of bitterness and the bondage of unrighteousness. Simon answered and said: Yourselves pray to the Lord for my sake, that nothing of what you have spoken of will happen to me.
They then, bearing witness and speaking the word of the Lord, t^raed back toward Jerusalem, and they brought the gospel to many villages of the Samaritans.
An angel of the Lord spoke to Philip, saying: Rise up and go south to the road that comes downwn from Jerusalem to Gaza. This is desert. And he rose up and went on his way, and behold, there was an Ethiopian man, a eunuch, influential with Candace the Queen of the Ethiopians, who was in charge of all her treasure. He had come to worship in Jerusalem, and now he was on his way back, sitting in his carriage and reading the prophet Isaiah. And the Spirit said to Philip: Go and attach yourself to that carriage. Then Philip ran up to him, and he heard him reading the prophet Isaiah aloud, and said: Do you understand what you are reading? He answered: Why, how could I be able to, unless someone were to guide me? And he invited Philip to mount up and sit by him. And this is the passage of scripture which he had been reading: He was led like a sheep to slaughter, and as a lamb is speechless before his shearer, even so .he does not open his mouth. He was condemned to humiliation. Who can tell of his posterity? His life is taken off the earth.
And the eunuch spoke forth and said: Please tell me, about whom does the prophet say this? About himself or someone else? Then Philip opened his mouth and, beginning from this scripture, told him the whole gospel of Jesus. And as they went on along the road they c^e to some water, and the eunuch said: See, water. What prevents me from being baptized? So he ordered the carriage to stop, and both of them, Philip and the eunuch, went into the water, and Philip baptized him. But when they came out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught Philip up and away, and the eunuch did not see him any more, for he was continuing on his way, rejoicing. But Philip found himself in Ashdod, and he brought the gospel to all the cities as he passed through until he came to Cae- sarea.
1But Saul, still breathing threats and slaughter against the disciples of the Lord, went to the high priest and asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he could find any disciples of the Way, man or woman, he could bring them in bonds to Jerusalem. And on his journey it befell him that he was approaching Damascus, and suddenly there was a flash of light from the sky around him, and he fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him: Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? And he said: Who are you, Lord? And he said: I am Jesus; whom you persecute. But rise up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do. And the men who were traveling with him had been standing there speechless; they heard the voice but they saw no one. Saul got up from the ground but when his eyes were opened he could see nothing, and they led him by the hand and brought him into Damascus. And he was three days without seeing, and he ate nothing and drank nothing.
There was a disciple in Damascus named Ananias, and the Lord said to him in a vision: Ananias. And he said: Here I am, Lord. The Lord said to him: Rise up and go to the street which is called Straight and look in the house of Judas for one, Saul by name, from Tarsus; for behold, he is praying, and he saw in a vision a man named Ananias coming in and laying his hands upon him, to make him see again. But Ananias answered: Lord, I have heard from many people about this man, and all the evil things he has done to your saints in Jerusalem; and he has such authority from the high priests that he can im-
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prison all who call upon your n^e. The Lord said to him: Go on, because this man is my chosen instrument to carry my name before the nations and the Kings and sons of Israel, for I will show him all that he must suffer for the sake of my name. So Ananias went off and entered the house, and laid his hands upon him and said: Brother Saul, the Lord has sent me; Jesus, who appeared to you on the road where you were going; so that you may see again and be filled with the Holy Spirit. And immediately there fell from his eyes what was like scales, and he saw again, and rose up and was baptized; and when he had taken some nourishment, he got his strength.
He was with the disciples in Damascus for some days; and immediately he began proclaiming Jesus in the synagogues, and saying that he was the son of God. And all who heard were startled and said: Is not this the man who in Jerusalem preyed on those who called upon that name, and did he not come here to bring them in bonds before the high priests? But Saul grew all the stronger and confounded the Jews who lived in Damascus, demonstrating that this was the Christ. And after a number of days had passed, the Jews plotted to kill him; but their plot was made known to Saul. They were watching the gates, night and day, to kill him; but his disciples got him across the wall at night and eased him down in a basket.
Arriving in Jerusalem, he tried to attach himself to the disciples, but all were afraid of him, not believing that he was a disciple. But Barnabas took him by the hand and led him before the apostles and told them how he had seen the Lord on the road and talked with him, and how he had spoken out in Damascus in the name of Jesus. And he was with them, going in and out of Jerusa-
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lem, and speaking out in the name of the Lord; and he spoke and argued against the Hellenists. These were trying to kill him; but when the brothers learned of this, they got him down to Caesarea and sent him off to Tarsus.
So now in all Judaea and Galilee and Samaria the church had peace and was building up, and proceeding in the fear of the Lord, and the comforting of the Holy Spirit, it increased.
It happened that Peter traveled about among them all and came to the saints who lived in Lydda. And there he found a man n^ed Aeneas who had been lying in bed for eight years. He was paralysed. And Peter said to him: Aeneas, Jesus Christ heals you. Get up and make your bed. And at once he stood up. And all those saw him who lived in Lydda and Sharon, those who had turned to the Lord.
In Joppa there was a disciple named Tabitha, which translated means Dorcas. She was full of good works and the acts of charity which she did. And it happened that in those days she fell sick and died; and they washed her and laid her out in an upper room. Lydda is close to Joppa, and the disciples, hearing that Peter was there, sent two men to him who said to him in entreaty: Do not hesitate, come to us. Peter rose up and went with them; and when he arrived they took him to the upper room, and all the widows came to him, weeping and displaying the tunics and mantles which Dorcas had made when she was with them. Pete
r put everyone out and went on his knees and prayed and turned to the body and said: Tabitha, rise up. She opened her eyes and when she saw Peter she sat up. He gave her his hand and raised her up, and called to the saints and the widows and set her before them, alive. This became known throughout Joppa, and many believed in the Lord. And it happened that he stayed for some days in Joppa with a certain Simon, a tanner.
1 There was a man in Caesarea named Cornelius, a centurion of the cohort called the Italian cohort; a pious ^^ who feared God, together with all his household, who did many acts of charity for the people and prayed to God in everything he did. In a vision about the ninth hour he saw plainly an angel of God who came into his house and said to him: Cornelius. He gazed at him and was full of fear and said to him: What is it, Lord? He said to him: Your prayers and your acts of charity have gone up and come to the attention of God. Now send men to Joppa, and invite a man named Simon, s^mamed Peter; he is the guest of Simon the tanner, whose house is by the sea. And when the angel who spoke to him left him, he called in two of his servants, and a pious soldier out of those who were under his co^^^d, and told them everything and sent them to Joppa.
On the next day, as these men were on their way and approac^^g the city, Peter went up to the roof to pray at about the sixth hour. And he was hungry and wished to eat; and as people were preparing something for him, a trance came over him, and he saw the sky opened, and coming down from it an arangement that was like a great sheet let down by its four corners upon the earth; and on it were all the four-footed beasts and creeping things of the earth, and the birds of the sky. And a voice came to him: Rise up, Peter; kiU, and eat. But Peter said: Surely not, Lord; since I have never eaten anything profane and unclean. And the voice spoke to him again: What God has made clean do not you make profane. This happened three times; and immediately the arrangement was taken back up into the sky.
As Peter was wondering to himself over the meaning of the vision he had seen, behold, the men sent by Cornelius had found their way to the house of Simon and stood before the gate, and called out to ask whether Simon, surnamed Peter, were a guest there. And as Peter was still pondering his vision the Spirit said: Behold, here are three men looking for you; rise, and go down, and go along with them without hesitation; because I sent them. Peter came down to the men and said: Here I am, the one you were looking for. What is the reason for your being here? They said: Cornelius the centurion, a man who is righteous and fears God, as is attested by all the Jewish people, was told by a holy angel to invite you to his house and listen to what you have to say. So Peter asked them in and made them his guests.
On the next day he rose up and went with them, and some of the brothers from Joppa went with him. And on the day after that he entered Caesarea; and Cornelius was expecting them and had called in all his relatives and his close friends. And at the time when Peter entered, Cornelius went to meet him and threw himself at his feet and did obeisance to him. But Peter raised him and said: Stand up. I myself am also a man. And he went inside, talking with him, and found many gathered together, and said to them: You understand that it is not lawful for a Jewish man to approach or mingle with an alien. But God has shown me that I must not call any person profane or unclean. Therefore I came without objection when I was invited. So I ask, for what reason did you invite me? And Cornelius said: Four days before this time I was praying at the ninth hour in my house, and behold, a man stood before me in shining clothes, and said: Cornelius, your prayer has been heard and your acts of charity have come to the attention of God. Send therefore to Joppa and invite Simon, who is surnamed Peter; he is the guest of Simon the tanner, by the sea. So I sent men to you at once, and you have been kind enough to come. Here then we are all gathered in the sight of God to hear all that the Lord has commanded you to say.
Then Peter opened his mouth and said: I understand the truth, that God has no favorites, but in any nation he who fears him and practices righteousness is acceptable to him. He sent out the word to the sons of Israel, bringing the gospel of peace through Jesus Christ. He is the Lord of all. You know the word that went through all Judaea, beginning from Galilee after the baptism which John preached: Jesus, from Nazareth, when God anointed him with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing those who were in the power of the devil, because God was with him. And we are witnesses to all that he did in the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem. And they killed him by hanging him on the cross. God raised him on the third day and granted that he should become visible, not to all the people but to witnesses who were foreordained by God; to us, who ate and drank with him after his resurrection from the dead; and he told us to preach to the people and testify that this is the one appointed by God as judge of the living and the dead. And all the prophets testify to him, that through his name everyone who believes in him shall have forgiveness of his sins.
While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit descended upon all who were listening to his discourse. And the faithful from among the circumcised who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been diffused upon the Gentiles also; for they heard them speaking with tongues and glorifying God. Then Peter spoke forth: Surely no one can forbid the water for the baptism of those who have received the Holy Spirit, as we also have done. And he ordered that they should be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked him to stay with them for a few days.
IThe apostles and the brothers who were in Judaea heard that the Gentiles also had received the word of God. And when Peter went up to Jerusalem, the circumcised took issue with him, saying that he had visited uncircum- cised men and eaten with them. But Peter explained everything in order from the beginning, saying: I was in the city of Joppa, praying, and in a trance I saw a vision: an arrangement like a great sheet let down by its four corners from the sky, and it came close to me. And I gazed at it and studied it, and I saw the four-footed beasts of the earth and the wild animals and the creeping things and the birds of the sky. And I heard a voice saying to me: Rise up, Peter; kill, and eat. But I said: Surely not, Lord; since nothing profane or unclean has ever entered my mouth. But the voice answered me again from the sky: What God has made clean do not you make profane. This happened three times and then everything was drawn up again into the sky. And behold, presently three men stood before the house where we were, sent to me from Caesarea; and the Spirit told me to go along with them without hesitation. These six brothers went with me and we entered the man's house. And he described to us how he had seen the angel standing in his house and saying: Send to Joppa and invite Simon, s^mamed Peter, who will tell you words which will be the salvation of yourself and all your household. And as I began to speak, the Holy Spirit descended upon them as it did upon us at the outset. And I remembered the words of the Lord, how he said: John baptized in water, but you shall be baptized in the Holy Spirit. If, then, God has given them a gift equal to that which he gave us when we believed in the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I to be able to stand in the way of God?
When they heard this, they held their peace and glorified God, saying: In truth then, God has granted repentance to the Gentiles, to give them life.
Those who had been scattered abroad after the persecution that c^e over the matter of Stephen traveled to Phoenicia and Cyprus and Antioch, announcing the word to no one except Jews. But some of them were men from Cyprus and Cyrene, and these when they c^e to Anti- och spoke also to the Greeks, preaching the gospel of the Lord Jesus. And the hand of the Lord was with them, and a great number believed and turned to the Lord. Word of them came to the ears of the church which was in Jerusalem, and they sent Barnabas to Antioch. When he arrived and saw the grace of God there, he was filled with joy, and he urged them all to remain true to the Lord in the devotion of their hearts; since he was a good man and full of the H
oly Spirit and faith. And a considerable number was brought over to the Lord. Then he went to Tarsus to look for Saul, and when he found him he brought him to Antioch. And it befell them that they met for a whole year in the church and taught a considerable number of people; and it was in Antioch that, for the first time, the disciples came to be called Christians.
In those days prophets came down from Jerusalem to Antioch; and one of them, by name Agabus, stood up and, through the Spirit, foretold that there would be a great famine over all the world. This took place in the time of Claudius. And they ordained that each of the disciples, according to his means, should send something to take care of the brothers who lived in Judaea. This they did, sending it to the elders through the agency of Barnabas and Saul.
1! At that time Herod the King laid hands upon some members of the church to destroy them. He had James, the brother of John, killed with the sword. And seeing that this was pleasing to the Jews, he added the arrest of Peter. It was during the days of Unleavened Bread. He seized Peter and put him in prison, and gave four squads of soldiers the duty of guarding him, meaning to bring him before the people after the Passover. So Peter was kept under guard in the prison, and there was continual prayer to God from the church for his sake.
When Herod was about to produce him, Peter was sleeping that night between two soldiers, bound with two chains, and guards were keeping watch before the door. And behold, an angel of the Lord stood there, and light flashed in the cell; and he struck Peter in the side and wakened him, saying: Rise up in speed. And his chains fell off his hands. Then the angel said to him: Dress and put on your shoes. And he did so. Then he said to him: Put on your mantle and follow me. And he followed him out, and he did not know that this was really being done by the angel, but thought he was seeing a vision. They passed through the first guard and the second and came to the iron gate which leads to the city, and this opened to them of its own accord; and they went out and walked to the next street, and suddenly the angel left him. And Peter came to himself and said: Now I know that the Lord really did send his angel and rescue me from the hand of Herod and all that the Jewish people had been hoping to do against me. And when he realized this, he went to the house of Mary, the mother of John, who was surnamed Mark, where a number of people were gathered together and praying. When he knocked on the courtyard door a maid named Rhoda c^e to answer, and when she recognized the voice of Peter, in her joy instead of opening the door she ran inside and announced that Peter was standing before the courtyard. They said to her: You are mad; but she insisted that it was so. But they said:It is his angel. But Peter continued to knock, and when they opened they saw him and were astonished. But motioning with his hand for them to be quiet, he described to them how the Lord had led him out of the prison, and said: Report this to James and the brothers. Then he went out and removed to another place.
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