The Acts 5
5
1BUT a certain man named Ananias, with Saphira his wife, sold a piece of land,
2And by fraud kept back part of the price of the land, his wife being privy thereunto: and bringing a certain part of it, laid it at the feet of the apostles.
3But Peter said: Ananias, why hath Satan tempted thy heart, that thou shouldst lie to the Holy Ghost, and by fraud keep part of the price of the land?
4Whilst it remained, did it not remain to thee? and after it was sold, was it not in thy power? Why hast thou conceived this thing in thy heart? Thou hast not lied to men, but to God.
5And Ananias hearing these words, fell down, and gave up the ghost. And there came great fear upon all that heard it.
6And the young men rising up, removed him, and carrying him out, buried him.
7And it was about the space of three hours after, when his wife, not knowing what had happened, came in.
8And Peter said to her: Tell me, woman, whether you sold the land for so much? And she said: Yea, for so much.
9And Peter said unto her: Why have you agreed together to tempt the Spirit of the Lord? Behold the feet of them who have buried thy husband are at the door, and they shall carry thee out.
10Immediately she fell down before his feet, and gave up the ghost. And the young men coming in, found her dead: and carried her out, and buried her by her husband.
11And there came great fear upon the whole church, and upon all that heard these things.
12And by the hands of the apostles were many signs and wonders wrought among the people. And they were all with one accord in Solomon's porch.
13But of the rest no man durst join himself unto them; but the people magnified them.
14And the multitude of men and women who believed in the Lord, was more increased:
15Insomuch that they brought forth the sick into the streets, and laid them on beds and couches, that when Peter came, his shadow at the least, might overshadow any of them, and they might be delivered from their infirmities.
16And there came also together to Jerusalem a multitude out of the neighboring cities, bringing sick persons, and such as were troubled with unclean spirits; who were all healed.
17Then the high prist rising up, and all they that were with him, (which is the heresy of the Sadducees,) were filled with envy.
18And they laid hands on the apostles, and put them in the common prison.
19But an angel of the Lord by night opening the doors of the prison, and leading them out, said:
20Go, and standing speak in the temple to the people all the words of this life.
21Who having heard this, early in the morning, entered into the temple, and taught. And the high priest coming, and they that were with him, called together the council, and all the ancients of the children of Israel; and they sent to the prison to have them brought.
22But when the ministers came, and opening the prison, found them not there, they returned and told,
23Saying: The prison indeed we found shut with all diligence, and the keepers standing before the doors; but opening it, we found no man within.
24Now when the officer of the temple and the chief priests heard these words, they were in doubt concerning them, what would come to pass.
25But one came and told them: Behold, the men whom you put in prison are in the temple standing, and teaching the people.
26Then went the officer with the ministers, and brought them without violence; for they feared the people, lest they should be stoned.
27And when they had brought them, they set them before the council. And the high priest asked them,
28Saying: Commanding we commanded you, that you should not teach in this name; and behold, you have filled Jerusalem with your doctrine, and you have a mind to bring the blood of this man upon us.
29But Peter and the apostles answering, said: We ought to obey God, rather than men.
30The God of our fathers hath raised up Jesus, whom you put to death, hanging him upon a tree.
31Him hath God exalted with his right hand, to be Prince and Saviour, to give repentance to Israel, and remission of sins.
32And we are witnesses of these things and the Holy Ghost, whom God hath given to all that obey him.
33When they had heard these things, they were cut to the heart, and they thought to put them to death.
34But one in the council rising up, a Pharisee, named Gamaliel, a doctor of the law, respected by all the people, commanded the men to be put forth a little while.
35And he said to them: Ye men of Israel, take heed to yourselves what you intend to do, as touching these men.
36For before these days rose up Theodas, affirming himself to be somebody, to whom a number of men, about four hundred, joined themselves: who was slain; and all that believed him were scattered, and brought to nothing.
37After this man, rose up Judas of Galilee, in the days of the enrolling, and drew away the people after him: he also perished; and all, even as many as consented to him, were dispersed.
38And now, therefore, I say to you, refrain from these men, and let them alone; for if this council or this work be of men, it will come to nought;
39But if it be of God, you cannot overthrow it, lest perhaps you be found even to fight against God. And they consented to him.
40And calling in the apostles, after they had scourged them, they charged them that they should not speak at all in the name of Jesus; and they dismissed them.
41And they indeed went from the presence of the council, rejoicing that they were accounted worthy to suffer reproach for the name of Jesus.
42And every day they ceased not in the temple, and from house to house, to teach and preach Christ Jesus.
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The Acts 5: DRC1752
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An historical text maintained by the British and Foreign Bible Society.
Acts 5
5
Ananias and Sapphira
1There was a man named Ananias. His wife’s name was Sapphira. Ananias sold some land he had, 2but he gave only part of the money to the apostles. He secretly kept some of the money for himself. His wife knew this, and she agreed with it.
3Peter said, “Ananias, why did you let Satan fill your mind with such an idea? You kept part of the money for yourself and lied about it to the Holy Spirit! 4Before you sold the field, it belonged to you, right? And even after you sold it, you could have used the money any way you wanted. How could you even think of doing such a thing? You lied to God, not to us!”
5-6When Ananias heard this, he fell down and died. Some young men came and wrapped his body. They carried it out and buried it. And everyone who heard about this was filled with fear.
7About three hours later his wife came in. Sapphira did not know about what had happened to her husband. 8Peter said to her, “Tell me how much money you got for your field. Was it this much?”
Sapphira answered, “Yes, that was all we got for the field.”
9Peter said to her, “Why did you and your husband agree to test the Spirit of the Lord? Listen! Do you hear those footsteps? The men who buried your husband are at the door. They will carry you out in the same way.” 10At that moment Sapphira fell down by his feet and died. The young men came in and saw that she was dead. They carried her out and buried her beside her husband. 11The whole church and all the other people who heard about this were filled with fear.
Proofs From God
12The apostles were given the power to do many miraculous signs and wonders among the people. They were together in Solomon’s Porch, and they all had the same purpose. 13None of the other people dared to stand with the apostles, but everyone was saying wonderful things about them. 14More and more people believed in the Lord, and many men and women were added to the group of believers. 15So the people brought those who were sick into the streets and put them on little beds and mats. They were hoping that Peter’s shadow might fall on them as he walked by. 16People came from all the towns around Jerusalem. They brought those who were sick or troubled by evil spirits. All of them were healed.
The Apostles Are Arrested
17The high priest and all his friends, a group called the Sadducees, became very jealous. 18They grabbed the apostles and put them in jail. 19But during the night, an angel of the Lord opened the doors of the jail. The angel led the apostles outside and said, 20“Go and stand in the Temple area. Tell the people everything about this new life.” 21When the apostles heard this, they did what they were told. They went into the Temple area about sunrise and began to teach the people.
The high priest and his friends came together and called a meeting of the high council and all the older Jewish leaders. They sent some men to the jail to bring the apostles to them. 22When the men went to the jail, they could not find the apostles there. So they went back and told the Jewish leaders about this. 23They said, “The jail was closed and locked. The guards were standing at the doors. But when we opened the doors, the jail was empty!” 24The captain of the Temple guards and the leading priests heard this. They were confused and wondered what it all meant.
25Then another man came and told them, “Listen! The men you put in jail are standing in the Temple area teaching the people.” 26The captain and his men went out and brought the apostles back. But the soldiers did not use force, because they were afraid of the people. They were afraid the people would stone them to death.
27The soldiers brought the apostles in and made them stand before the council. The high priest questioned them. 28He said, “We told you never again to teach using that name.#5:28 that name That is, Jesus’ name. The Jewish leaders avoided saying his name. See Acts 4:17, 18. But look at what you have done! You have filled Jerusalem with your teaching. And you are trying to blame us for his death.”
29Peter and the other apostles answered, “We must obey God, not you! 30You killed Jesus by nailing him to a cross. But God, the same God our fathers had, raised Jesus up from death. 31Jesus is the one God honored by giving him a place at his right side. He made him our Leader and Savior. God did this to give all the people of Israel the opportunity to change and turn to God to have their sins forgiven. 32We saw all these things happen, and we can say that they are true. The Holy Spirit also shows that these things are true. God has given this Spirit to all those who obey him.”
33When the council members heard this, they became very angry. They began to plan a way to kill the apostles. 34But one member of the council, a Pharisee named Gamaliel, stood up. He was a teacher of the law, and all the people respected him. He told the men to make the apostles leave the meeting for a few minutes. 35Then he said to them, “Men of Israel, be careful of what you are planning to do to these men. 36Remember when Theudas appeared? He said he was an important man, and about 400 men joined him. But he was killed, and all who followed him were scattered and ran away. They were not able to do anything. 37Later, during the time of the census, a man named Judas came from Galilee. Many people joined his group, but he was also killed, and all his followers were scattered. 38And so now I tell you, stay away from these men. Leave them alone. If their plan is something they thought up, it will fail. 39But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop them. You might even be fighting against God himself!”
The Jewish leaders agreed with what Gamaliel said. 40They called the apostles in again. They beat them and told them not to speak anymore using the name of Jesus. Then they let them go free. 41The apostles left the council meeting. They were happy because they were given the honor of suffering dishonor for Jesus. 42The apostles did not stop teaching the people. They continued to tell the Good News—that Jesus is the Messiah. They did this every day in the Temple area and in people’s homes.
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