Acts 8
8
Acts 8
1¶ And Saul was consenting unto his death. And at that time there was a great persecution against the congregation {Gr. ekklesia – called out ones} which was at Jerusalem, and they were all scattered abroad throughout the regions of Judaea and Samaria, except the apostles.
2And devout men carried Stephen to his burial and made great lamentation over him.
3As for Saul, he made havoc of the congregation; {Gr. ekklesia – called out ones} entering into the houses and dragging out men and women, he committed them to prison.
4¶ But those that were scattered abroad went everywhere preaching the word of the gospel.
5Then Philip went down to the city of Samaria and preached the Christ unto them.
6And the people with one accord gave heed unto those things which Philip spoke, hearing and seeing the signs which he did.
7For many unclean spirits, crying with a loud voice, came out of those who were possessed with them, and many paralytics and that were lame were healed.
8And there was great joy in that city.
9But there was a certain man called Simon, who before this in the same city used magic arts and amazed the people of Samaria, giving out that he himself was some great one,
10to whom they all gave heed, from the least to the greatest, saying, This is the great virtue of God.
11And to him they had regard because for a long time he had amazed them with magic arts.
12But when they believed Philip preaching the gospel of the kingdom of God and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women.
13Then Simon himself believed also; and when he was baptized, he continued with Philip and wondered, beholding the miracles and signs which were being done.
14¶ Now when the apostles who were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent Peter and John unto them,
15who, when they were come down, prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit.
16(For as yet he was fallen upon none of them; they were baptized only in the name of the Lord Jesus.)
17Then they laid their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.
18And when Simon saw that through the laying on of the apostles’ hands the Holy Spirit was given, he offered them money,
19saying, Give me also this power, that on whomsoever I lay hands, he may receive the Holy Spirit.
20But Peter said unto him, Thy money perish with thee because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money.
21Thou hast neither part nor lot in this matter, for thy heart is not right in the sight of God.
22Repent therefore of this thy wickedness and pray God, if perhaps this thought of thine heart may be forgiven thee.
23For I perceive that thou art in the gall of bitterness and in the prison of iniquity.
24Then Simon answered and said, Pray ye to the Lord for me that none of these things which ye have spoken come upon me.
25And they, when they had testified and preached the word of God, returned to Jerusalem and preached the gospel in many villages of the Samaritans.
26¶ And the angel of the Lord spoke unto Philip, saying, Arise and go toward the south unto the way that goes down from Jerusalem unto Gaza, which is desert.
27Then he arose and went, and, behold, a man of Ethiopia, a eunuch of great authority under Candace queen of the Ethiopians, who had the charge of all her treasure and had come to Jerusalem to worship,
28was returning and sitting in his chariot reading Isaiah the prophet.
29Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near and join thyself to this chariot.
30And Philip ran there to him and heard him read the prophet Isaiah and said, Dost thou understand what thou readest?
31And he said, How can I, except someone should guide me? And he besought Philip to come up and sit with him.
32The place of the scripture which he read was this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter, and like a lamb dumb before his shearer, so opened he not his mouth;
33in his humiliation his judgment was taken away, and who shall declare his generation? for his life is taken from the earth.
34And the eunuch answered Philip and said, I pray thee, of whom does the prophet speak this? of himself or of some other?
35Then Philip opened his mouth and began at the same scripture and preached unto him the gospel of Jesus.
36And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water; and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what hinders me to be baptized?
37And Philip said, If thou dost believe with all thine heart, thou may. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.
38And he commanded the chariot to stand still, and they went both down into the water, both Philip and the eunuch, and he baptized him.
39And when they were come up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, so that the eunuch saw him no more, and he went on his way rejoicing.
40But Philip was found at Azotus, and passing through, he preached the gospel in all the cities until he came to Caesarea.
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Acts 8: JUB
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The Jubilee Bible 2000 (JUB) by Ransom Press International
Acts 8
8
1-2Saul approved the stoning of Stephen. Some faithful followers of the Lord buried Stephen and mourned very much for him.
Saul Makes Trouble for the Church
At that time the church in Jerusalem suffered terribly. All of the Lord's followers, except the apostles, were scattered everywhere in Judea and Samaria. 3#Ac 22.4,5; 26.9-11. Saul started making a lot of trouble for the church. He went from house to house, arresting men and women and putting them in jail.
The Good News Is Preached in Samaria
4The Lord's followers who had been scattered went from place to place, telling the good news. 5Philip went to the city of Samaria and told the people about Christ. 6They crowded around Philip because they were eager to hear what he was saying and to see him work miracles. 7Many people with evil spirits were healed, and the spirits went out of them with a shout. A lot of paralyzed and lame people were also healed. 8Everyone in that city was very glad because of what was happening.
9For some time a man named Simon had lived there and had amazed the people of Samaria. He practiced witchcraft and claimed to be somebody great. 10Everyone, rich and poor, crowded around him. They said, “This man is the power of God called ‘The Great Power.’ ”
11For a long time, Simon had used witchcraft to amaze the people, and they kept crowding around him. 12But when they believed what Philip was saying about God's kingdom and about the name of Jesus Christ, they were all baptized. 13Even Simon believed and was baptized. He stayed close to Philip, because he marveled at all the miracles and wonders.
14The apostles in Jerusalem heard that some people in Samaria had accepted God's message, and they sent Peter and John. 15When the two apostles arrived, they prayed that these people would be given the Holy Spirit. 16Before this, the Holy Spirit had not been given to any of them, though some of them had been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 17Peter and John then placed their hands on everyone who had faith in the Lord, and they were given the Holy Spirit.
18Simon noticed that the Spirit was given only when the apostles placed their hands on the people. So he brought money 19and said to Peter and John, “Let me have this power too! Then anyone I place my hands on will also be given the Holy Spirit.”
20Peter said to him, “You and your money will both end up in hell if you think you can buy God's gift! 21You don't have any part in this, and God sees that your heart isn't right. 22Get rid of these evil thoughts and ask God to forgive you. 23I can see that you are jealous and bound by your evil ways.”
24Simon said, “Please pray to the Lord, so that what you said won't happen to me.”
25After Peter and John had preached about the Lord, they returned to Jerusalem. On their way they told the good news in many villages of Samaria.
Philip and an Ethiopian Official
26The Lord's angel said to Philip, “Go south#8.26 Go south: Or “About noon go.” along the desert road that leads from Jerusalem to Gaza.”#8.26 the desert road that leads from Jerusalem to Gaza: Or “the road that leads from Jerusalem to Gaza in the desert.” 27So Philip left.
An important Ethiopian official happened to be going along that road in his chariot. He was the chief treasurer for Candace, the Queen of Ethiopia. The official had gone to Jerusalem to worship 28and was now on his way home. He was sitting in his chariot, reading the book of the prophet Isaiah.
29The Spirit told Philip to catch up with the chariot. 30Philip ran up close and heard the man reading aloud from the book of Isaiah. Philip asked him, “Do you understand what you are reading?”
31The official answered, “How can I understand unless someone helps me?” He then invited Philip to come up and sit beside him.
32 # Is 53.7,8 (LXX). The man was reading the passage that said,
“He was led like a sheep
on its way to be killed.
He was silent as a lamb
whose wool
is being cut off,
and he did not say
a word.
33He was treated like a nobody
and did not receive
a fair trial.
How can he have children,
if his life
is snatched away?”
34The official said to Philip, “Tell me, was the prophet talking about himself or about someone else?” 35So Philip began at this place in the Scriptures and explained the good news about Jesus.
36-37As they were going along the road, they came to a place where there was some water. The official said, “Look! Here is some water. Why can't I be baptized?”#8.36,37 Why can't I be baptized: Some manuscripts add, “Philip replied, ‘You can, if you believe with all your heart.’ The official answered, ‘I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God.’ ” 38He ordered the chariot to stop. Then they both went down into the water, and Philip baptized him.
39After they had come out of the water, the Lord's Spirit took Philip away. The official never saw him again, but he was very happy as he went on his way.
40Philip later appeared in Azotus. He went from town to town, all the way to Caesarea, telling people about Jesus.
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Contemporary English Version, Second Edition (CEV®)
© 2006 American Bible Society. All rights reserved.