Acts 1
1
Introduction
1In my first book, Theophilus, I wrote about what Jesus began to do and teach. This included everything from the beginning ⌞of his life⌟ 2until the day he was taken to heaven. Before he was taken to heaven, he gave instructions through the Holy Spirit to the apostles, whom he had chosen.
Jesus Ascends to Heaven
3After his death Jesus showed the apostles a lot of convincing evidence that he was alive. For 40 days he appeared to them and talked with them about God’s kingdom.
4Once, while he was meeting with them, he ordered them not to leave Jerusalem but to wait there for what the Father had promised. Jesus said to them, “I’ve told you what the Father promises: 5John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”
6So when the apostles came together, they asked him, “Lord, is this the time when you’re going to restore the kingdom to Israel?”
7Jesus told them, “You don’t need to know about times or periods that the Father has determined by his own authority. 8But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes to you. Then you will be my witnesses to testify about me in Jerusalem, throughout Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
9After he had said this, he was taken to heaven. A cloud hid him so that they could no longer see him.
10They were staring into the sky as he departed. Suddenly, two men in white clothes stood near them. 11They asked, “Why are you men from Galilee standing here looking at the sky? Jesus, who was taken from you to heaven, will come back in the same way that you saw him go to heaven.”
A New Apostle Takes Judas’ Place
12Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mountain called the Mount of Olives. It is near Jerusalem, about half a mile away.
13When they came into the city, Peter, John, James, Andrew, Philip, Thomas, Bartholomew, Matthew, James (son of Alphaeus), Simon the Zealot, and Judas (son of James) went to the second-story room where they were staying.
14The apostles had a single purpose as they devoted themselves to prayer. They were joined by some women, including Mary (the mother of Jesus), and they were joined by his brothers.
15At a time when about 120 disciples had gathered together, Peter got up and spoke to them.
He said, 16“Brothers, what the Holy Spirit predicted through David in Scripture about Judas had to come true. Judas led the men to arrest Jesus. 17He had been one of us and had been given an active role in this ministry. 18With the money he received from the wrong he had done, he bought a piece of land where he fell headfirst to his death. His body split open, and all his internal organs came out. 19Everyone living in Jerusalem knows about this. They even call that piece of land Akeldama, which means ‘Field of Blood’ in their dialect. 20You’ve read in Psalms, ‘Let his home be deserted, and let no one live there,’ and ‘Let someone else take his position.’
“Therefore, someone must be added to our number to serve with us as a witness that Jesus came back to life. 21He must be one of the men who accompanied Jesus with us the entire time that the Lord Jesus was among us. 22This person must have been with us from the time that John was baptizing people to the day that Jesus was taken from us.” #1:22 Verses 21–22 have been rearranged to express the complex Greek sentence structure more clearly in English.
23The disciples determined that two men were qualified. These men were Joseph (who was called Barsabbas and was also known as Justus) and Matthias. 24Then they prayed, “Lord, you know everyone’s thoughts. Show us which of these two you have chosen. 25Show us who is to take the place of Judas as an apostle, since Judas abandoned his position to go to the place where he belongs.”
26They drew names to choose an apostle. Matthias was chosen and joined the eleven apostles.
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GOD'S WORD® Translation ©1995, 2003, 2013, 2014, 2019, 2020 by God's Word to the Nations Mission Society. All rights reserved.
Acts 1
1
Luke Writes Another Book
1To Theophilus.
The first book I wrote was about everything Jesus began to do and teach 2until the day he was taken up into heaven. Before this, with the help of the Holy Spirit, Jesus told the apostles he had chosen what they should do. 3After his death, he showed himself to them and proved in many ways that he was alive. The apostles saw Jesus during the forty days after he was raised from the dead, and he spoke to them about the kingdom of God. 4Once when he was eating with them, he told them not to leave Jerusalem. He said, “Wait here to receive the promise from the Father which I told you about. 5John baptized people with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”
Jesus Is Taken Up into Heaven
6When the apostles were all together, they asked Jesus, “Lord, are you now going to give the kingdom back to Israel?”
7Jesus said to them, “The Father is the only One who has the authority to decide dates and times. These things are not for you to know. 8But when the Holy Spirit comes to you, you will receive power. You will be my witnesses—in Jerusalem, in all of Judea, in Samaria, and in every part of the world.”
9After he said this, as they were watching, he was lifted up, and a cloud hid him from their sight. 10As he was going, they were looking into the sky. Suddenly, two men wearing white clothes stood beside them. 11They said, “Men of Galilee, why are you standing here looking into the sky? Jesus, whom you saw taken up from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you saw him go.”
A New Apostle Is Chosen
12Then they went back to Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives. (This mountain is about half a mile from Jerusalem.) 13When they entered the city, they went to the upstairs room where they were staying. Peter, John, James, Andrew, Philip, Thomas, Bartholomew, Matthew, James son of Alphaeus, Simon (known as the Zealot), and Judas son of James were there. 14They all continued praying together with some women, including Mary the mother of Jesus, and Jesus’ brothers.
15During this time there was a meeting of the believers (about one hundred twenty of them). Peter stood up and said, 16-17“Brothers and sisters, in the Scriptures the Holy Spirit said through David something that must happen involving Judas. He was one of our own group and served together with us. He led those who arrested Jesus.” 18(Judas bought a field with the money he got for his evil act. But he fell to his death, his body burst open, and all his intestines poured out. 19Everyone in Jerusalem learned about this so they named this place Akeldama. In their language Akeldama means “Field of Blood.”) 20“In the Book of Psalms,” Peter said, “this is written:
‘May his place be empty;
leave no one to live in it.’#Psalm 69:25
And it is also written:
‘Let another man replace him as leader.’#Psalm 109:8
21-22“So now a man must become a witness with us of Jesus’ being raised from the dead. He must be one of the men who were part of our group during all the time the Lord Jesus was among us—from the time John was baptizing people until the day Jesus was taken up from us to heaven.”
23They put the names of two men before the group. One was Joseph Barsabbas, who was also called Justus. The other was Matthias. 24-25The apostles prayed, “Lord, you know the thoughts of everyone. Show us which one of these two you have chosen to do this work. Show us who should be an apostle in place of Judas, who turned away and went where he belongs.” 26Then they used lots to choose between them, and the lots showed that Matthias was the one. So he became an apostle with the other eleven.
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The Holy Bible, New Century Version, Copyright © 2005 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.